Log cabin – check. Swimming pool – check. Various family-friendly activities and restaurants – check.
As we looked out over the lush Mole Valley from the comfort of our balcony hot tub with a glass of cream in hand, I decided to compare the Mole Resort in North Devon with another famous holiday spot we’d been to many times before. In years past, Center Parcs was like comparing Virgin to EasyJet, for example.
After spending £450 a night on inadequate hostelry at Center Parcs Longford Forest in Ireland last summer and arriving to find an overflowing ashtray, fitted sheets too small for the bed and a dog exercise area not much bigger than our garden, we decided this was our last visit there. We swore it would happen.
Yet, less than a year later, we were in a similar but much more luxurious hostel on the Mole, which cost the equivalent of £750 a night in peak season, compared to around £400 per night off-peak for a midweek break. . I think I’d say this one is worth the price tag.
This is mainly because all the little add-ons you pay extra for at Center Parcs, from dishwashers to hot tubs, are included in the Mole. And because the overall finish, ambiance and experience, from the friendly staff to the bi-folding balcony doors, huge beds, matching wooden chopping boards and large American-style fridge and ice machine, are frankly superior.
Formerly known as the Highbullen Hotel, the 125-acre estate is also much smaller and more bijou than your average Center Parcs. The Hub includes 58 eco-friendly lodges, an Agatha Christie-style mansion, an 18-hole golf course and many other mansion rooms, along with a game room, spa, three restaurants and the Pavilion entertainment centre.
Our four-bedroom eco lodge is perfectly designed for a family of five like us, with three bedrooms and two bathrooms for the kids at one end and the master bedroom and bathroom for us at the other end. After they finally went to bed it almost felt like we were on our own mini break, without the enfants. And our dog, a labrador called Luna, was very welcome and loved the treats at the Hub, which is the main reception and base for the farm shop and indoor events.
The lodge is perched on the slopes of a very steep hill headed by the Pavilion entertainment center (can’t say I enjoy going up it several times a day; golf carts would be a welcome addition). With its retro split-level stone and white-painted exterior and location, it bore more than a passing resemblance to the 1950s hotel. Dirty Dancing. Although I wouldn’t want to go up that hill with a watermelon.
From the kids’ perspective, the big caveat, especially for those younger than us (Charlie, 15, Eddie, 12, and Jemima, nine) is that the Mole does not have an indoor water park, also known as Subtropical Swimming Paradise. Central Parc. Instead, there is a 20-meter indoor pool and a small outdoor pool.
Still, despite being a little tired around the edges, we enjoyed the indoor pool and array of 40 activities, from pickleball (like tennis but with small, plastic rackets) to axe-throwing, Nerf gun battles, and painting pottery. , kept us busy. The pool remained happily quiet despite the resort being fully booked when we were there.
We spoke to another family who said they had been going to Center Parcs for years but had heard about the Mole from some friends. They had boys about the same age as ours, and they said they had more to do here.
And did I mention the food? The on-site farm shop can be a bit pricey (£3.50 for a loaf of bread!) but the food is a serious step up from the aforementioned Center Parcs. There was no Bella Italia or Pancake House in sight.
We sampled the very filling breakfast basket with everything you need for a fry including over 15 local sausages, organic bacon and free range eggs, and the fry basket with chicken, homemade gravy, local herbs, wild garlic. potatoes etc.
We also ate at the Cellar restaurant one evening and although we had a bit of a wait, the food was great as many other families shared the same idea as us and made reservations for an early dinner. I had a delicious Caesar salad with fresh anchovies and the kids loved the fish and chips and pasta. The homemade focaccia with Marmite butter, a large sticky toffee pudding and the Languedoc rosé are also highly recommended.
The resort has also received Green Key accreditation (an international tourism ecolabel) since its opening in July 2023. It is located in the North Devon Unesco Biosphere, one of 738 reserves in 134 countries recognized as a place of learning for sustainable development.
The indoor pool and Pavilion leisure center are powered by a 199Kw biomass plant, food is all locally sourced and everything from the green moss roofs on the cottages to the sustainable L’Occitane soap and shampoo bars are designed with the planet. mind.
There were a few things we didn’t like; check-in at 4pm, for example, which meant many families wandered restlessly around the Center waiting to be let into their hostels; and a 10am checkout cut our two-night stay even shorter, but ultimately there wasn’t much we didn’t like about the Mole.
Center Parcs is now nothing more than a distant memory for us, but if you enjoy that kind of holiday and don’t mind paying a little extra for something more refined, this new Devon haven could be just the thing for you.
Georgina Fuller traveled as a guest of Mole Resort (01769 540561; themoleresort.com.tr), offering two-bedroom hostels from £168 per night based on three-night stays