Beachside

Campground & Fort Cafe

The holiday park was first advertised in 1935, as "CAMPING! CAMPING! Hele, sea front". In 1937 an advert also appeared for "THE FORT CAFE" which had been converted from the former coal store. This was originally opened soon after WW1 and was called 'The Better Hole'. "Beachside" was first advertised in 1939 as a 'bed & brek' establishment run by Miss J Talamo.

The Fort Cafe, c1960's, courtesey A Galliver

Beachside Chalivan Park

The campsite was listed in the 1960/1 Caravan Sites Guide, and in 1961 planning permission was granted for 28 static caravans and the site was terraced, much as it is today.

From 1964 the new owner G Banks home-built a range of static 'chalivans'. These included flush toilets which was very modern at the time. The Banks' also converted the house into 3 flats and owned Bayside Cafe (the Fort Cafe was closed around 1967 and converted into an amusement arcade).

The Park was sold in 1982 and in 1987/8 the chalivans were removed and replaced with conventional static caravans.

Five-star Caravan Holiday Park

In March 1997 the current owners (John and Melanie Moore) bought Beachside. The site was by now long past its prime of the 1970's and looked tired, with subsiding retaining walls, few flowers and insufficient parking.

We began a continuous program of replacing old caravans; we redesigned the site (losing a caravan pitch!) to improve parking; and we built new dry-stone walls (using over 200 tons of stone!) and flower-beds. We have also added a telephone kiosk and a laundry to our facilities.

Beachside was awarded three stars in 1998 which had gone up to FIVE STARS by 2001. For Beachside the heydays of the 1970's has returned if not been exceeded!

In 2004, Bayside Cafe, formerly part of the park, returns to the BeachSide family, and offers a mouth watering range of home made meals, snacks and refreshments, to eat in or take away, together with ice creams and a range of beach goods.