Exciting news from Darwin Forest Country Park is the fact that a marvellous new children’s Play Centre is being built for opening in early 2010. Construction work has begun, but we can assure you that everything possible is being done to ensure the minimum possible impact on holidays. The site of the Play Centre is where the Staff Car Park was, behind Reception, which means that it is in a place that has never been accessible to guests. All the rest of the park remains available for you to enjoy. Once complete, the new indoor Play Centre will provide a superb all weather venue for our younger guests.  In the meantime, we thank guests for their patience during these works.

Welcome to the new website for Pinelodge Holidays.  We hope that you will find it attractive, informative and easy to use.  The tourist information part should help give you lots of ideas for things to do in the area.  We also have a new way of enquiring about availability, to check that your preferred lodge is available before you make a booking. Please do let us have any feedback, good or bad, so that we can try to refine areas which you might have difficulty with. 

During early summer residents of some of the prettiest villages in Derbyshire open up their gardens to visitors .   Bonsall, Birchover, Parwich, Great Longstone, Fenny Bentley and Winster  are amongst those villages hosting open garden days.  Many gardens are open in each village, with the opportunity to see some great planting in delightful settings.  Refreshments and sometimes live music are laid on too.  It’s even a nice chance for a chat with some of the friendly locals!  These days make for a great outing - for just a few pounds.  A quick search on Google will give you the appropriate dates.

All the televisions at Sandybrook Country Park have now been upgraded to flatscreen models and to improve channel coverage and picture quality, Freeview channels have been introduced. 

As a further guest service we have now installed wi-fi coverage at both Darwin Forest and Sandybrook Country Parks.  You may now bring and use your laptop or netbook with you on holiday and be able to access the internet and email at the hot-spots which are around both reception buildings and Evolution Health & Fitness.   The best bit is that we are providing this as a free service!

Most of the country seems to have seen quite a bit snow during this week and Darwin Forest is no exception.  Earlier this week we took the opportunity to get out and about with a camera.  The roads are now clear, but there is still quite a bit of snow cover around - enough to make a lovely big snowman!

To mark the 200^th anniversary of the birth of Charles Darwin (on February 12^th), Darwin Forest Country Park is launching a new club for nature detectives  Membership includes a Starter Pack with everything needed to get the outdoor learning experience underway.  This includes Charles Darwin themed activity cards which cover: how to be an explorer and learn more about flora and fauna; how to spot tracks and work out what creatures are around; how to recognise different types of tree and how to identify and draw birds.  Others will be added over time.  Items such as bug jars, pond dipping nets, bird books and small microscopes will also be made available in the Woodland Store to help children develop their understanding of the great outdoors.

The trees are decorated, the lights are up, the bar is stocked and the lodges are ready to receive our Christmas and New Year guests.  We can’t wait to welcome you to a festive Derbyshire!  If you can’t make it here for this special holiday period, we look forward to welcoming you later in 2009.  In the meantime Merry Christmas from all of us!  

Any new bookings for holidays taken from now until the end of 2009 qualify for the lower rate of 15% VAT.  This equates to an immediate 2.13% reduction in the price of all our holidays!  The brochure and website continue to show the prices including the 17.5% VAT rate.   When you make a booking, your invoice will show a 2.13% discount on the price indicated.
If you have already made a booking for 2009, but have yet to pay your balance, bookings will be re-invoiced with the balance due reduced to reflect the reduction in VAT on the total price. If you have already paid in full for any future booking, we regret that we are unable to provide a refund. 

We look forward to your next visit when you will be able to benefit from this price reduction which applies to our entire 2009 programme.  We still have a few vacancies left for Christmas and New Year which will also qualify for the VAT reduction.

You don’t need to wait until Monday to make your booking - we are applying the saving right away to ensure that people don’t have to wait any longer than necessary to book their holiday at the lower price.

Darwin Forest are proud to have won this year’s top diamond award for Hoseason’s Best Holiday Park in the Heart of England.  The award is particulary pleasing as it is based on the response that Hoseasons received from their customers who stayed with us during 2008.  This latest success follows on from a similar award made to Sandybrook Country Park last year.