Craig Tara - Ayr

[Karen]

Does anyone have any opinions on the park ? I'm off there next month to see how it's all changed. I've read a few reviews & it doesn't come off very well.

[Jules67]

Hi Karen!
I've not been there since 1979..so I'm not a lot of help!! But my Mum went two years back with my brother and his family and they had alovely time. She did say it was unrecognisable to the old Butlinland tho.

[sarah]

We went last year for a week and had a great time that we also went for a weekend break!
The swimming pool is still there! The bowling green near the beach gate has kiddie rides on it now which you have to pay.
The dinning room is still in the same place but you go in from the front now. The bar upstairs which was the showboat was only open at the weekend for adults only we didn't have a look in.
We had a good time and we are thinking about going again in the summer!
And when we were there it brought back a lot of memories!

[Karen]

Thanks Juliet & Sarah.

I'm really expecting to feel quite sad when I see it. I had loads of happy times there when it was Butlins. I just can't imagine walking up that long road & not seeing The Stuart building at the top of it. I've seen pics of it but imagine it'll be different once I'm there.

[Jules67]

I imagine it will be bitter sweet Karen. It is for me still every time we go to Hafan-y-mor...the old Pwllheli site. You'll no doubt walk around thinking @the Roller rink used to be here, this used to be the.....' etc.
But...I'm sure todays camp and facilities have many good points...so heres hoping you have a fab time!!

[Karen]

Thanks Jules, hopefully we will enjoy it but I'll be exactly like you say & the kids have been warned I'll be like that lol

[sarah]

We're off to Craig Tara Ayr tomorrow.
We had a great time last year, just hope the sun comes out!

[catmad]

Does anyone have any opinions on the park ? I'm off there next month to see how it's all changed. I've read a few reviews & it doesn't come off very well.

looking thru these old threads i just wondered how you felt about the old camp, or lack of it.

[keno051]

Any that has been to craig tara,what did you think of it now that it is a Haven camp?

Also what is on the land that was previously the fair?

[ayrfan23]

The place is quite bare, in comparison to when it was Butlins. The main buidings are centralised, and the rest of the site is pretty much just caravans. Caravans cover the site of the old funfair. The buildings / facilities still there have all been upgraded and are very modern compared to when it was Butlins.

[keno051]

To many caravans and not enough amunities then it sounds

[deelieta]

.. is there anything that is still original Butlins at Craig Tara, Ayr?
outdoor pool? prince's building? funfair? redcoats? (ok, well just a thought!)

Here is a latest google pic of the site, and the main buildings still look really Butlinsy to me! It also looks like there are some original chalets there still.
Is it worth a visit? Are there any original Butlins features to be seen?

10936

A Curious Dee

[ayrfan23]

Yeah there quite a few Butlins features there. In fact most of what is left was put there by Butlins. A few original buildings / chalets as well as newer Wonderwest World buildings and chalets. Would be worth visiting and noting all the original Butlins features.

[Gorf]

Ooooh, I dunno! Maybe things have changed for the better now but I was put off.

It must've been a while back now.. maybe 4/5 years ago.. I went there with my partner and we were both disappointed, nay, I'll say it, disgusted with what we saw.

Maybe, for my part, I was hoping it was going to be much like the Ayr Butlin's camp as it was.

We were there for about a week, off peak, late in the season as I remember...
It was raucous in the bars and there was little to no entertainment.

The worst moment came when we visited the Harry Ramsden fish and chip bar.
It was FILTHY! To a deeply unhygienic extent. I wouldn't have allowed a dog to eat there!
We made our complaints and left, two days early.

I think if Mr Ramsden had seen what we had he'd be doing pirouettes in his grave!

.. is there anything that is still original Butlins at Craig Tara, Ayr?
outdoor pool? prince's building? funfair? redcoats? (ok, well just a thought!)


In all seriousness, there was the chalets as ayrfan23 says but other than that, the one and only thing we saw was near the chalets... one disconnected, rusty and forlorn looking Tannoy on a pole.
I don't mind admitting.. 'fair brought a tear to my eye.

[greenghirl]

Craig Tara, I feel, is just like any other general caravan park.
It is good for a short break, but if youre taking kids with you, all I can say is remember your credit card!! Because of lack of things to do, I feel you are handing the kids money, morning, noon and night to keep them amused.

A couple of big main halls for entertainment, lots of arcades, indoor swimming and a small park is about all there is, apart from a couple of food places.

At least when it was the old Butlins, you had several night venues to choose from, two theatres with shows on every night, fantastic fun for the children at night too, and during the day you had the free fairground, indoor and outdoor swimming, large supermarket and eateries, bookies, roller rink, boating lake, pool/snooker halls, large play park, chairlifts, and a Programme booklet with all the daily entertainment and happenings with numerous competitions etc etc.

I really think they should have left Butlins the way it was, everyone loved it that way, and Craig Tara is no comparison.

[ayrfan23]

I agree!

[catmad]

As an x Ayr red I am heartsick over what they have done to the camps especially my beloved Ayr. Not everything changes for the better, that's blatantly obvious. :rant:

[penychainphil67]

As an x Ayr red I am heartsick over what they have done to the camps especially my beloved Ayr. Not everything changes for the better, that's blatantly obvious. :rant: I will be in touch soon Cat.

[Frank]

I saw some photos of the place and what a sad demise.When it was built it was coulorfull and had that happy 'feel' to it.The designers of the new caravan park have succeeded in giving it that grey drab look about it (minus the facilites),why on earth would you downgrade to such an extent that a place loses all charcter and feel to it.

[penychainphil67]

I saw some photos of the place and what a sad demise.When it was built it was coulorfull and had that happy 'feel' to it.The designers of the new caravan park have succeeded in giving it that grey drab look about it (minus the facilites),why on earth would you downgrade to such an extent that a place loses all charcter and feel to it.

I thought exactly the same about Pwllheli, Frank. Totally denuded of all their wonderful facilities, and then looking like just like another run of the mill so called all-action park.

[penychainphil67]

I will be in touch soon Cat.

Dear Cat, it's terrible what has happenned to Ayr and indeed Pwllheli. Fellow ex reds and ex-campers have commented on how we should be lucky that the base of our beloved camps are still there. However, unlike Filey and Clacton - which I still believe was a crime the way they were terminated - there seems to be no closure once and for all because the geographical sites are still being used by these financial hoovers who are happy to put all-weather football pitches were there was great bars like the Regency bar and ballroom. The Spanish and French bars etc. I know we can all dream and hope one day that the camps will rise again out of their Bourne Leisure mothballing; but I wouldn't hold my breath, not in this lifetime anyway.

[catmad]

What on earth is LUCKY about it. That's like having your house burnt down and someone saying , oh you're lucky the foundations are still there ??? Unless it's built back exactly as it was it ain't your house anymore!
It is never gonna be Butlins again as far as I'm concerned, not even the camps they are still calling Butlins. Oh well as you say Bourne is not going to change it now. Sad the world we live in.

[verdant1]

Hi Catmad

I agree whole heartedly with what you have said Bourne Leisure are a business and if they don't make money they will scrap it,there is never going to be a BUTLINS as we knew it again and nor do BL want there to be ,I suppose in all fairness that we are "lucky" to have retained 3 camps however the butchering of all the other perfect centres of enjoyment in my opinion was totally unacceptable.The real sad situation we have here is that I think we already all know that Butlins is living on borrowed time and unfortunately for all us die-hard fans,Butlins will soon be one big memory.In 5 years time certainly less than 10 we will be posting threads on here .....Minehead Pics After Demolition, Any Ex Redcoats From Bognor 2012 , Has Any One Got Pics Of Skegness Before BL sold The Site To A Building Developer.......etc ,etc

[Bionic Redcoat]

I think we have to accept that the holiday camps as we knew them are a thing of the past. The way forward seems to be caravan parks. I’m not saying I agree with it, it’s just that these days companies are invariably run by accountants and everything is about balance sheets/financial years. My local working mens club has adopted this approach, which is one of the reasons I don’t go in as much anymore. Maybe I’m old fashioned, but I believe in giving a quality product at a fair price, building customer loyalty in the process. It is an economic fact of life that people only have so much money to spend and when it’s gone, it’s gone. They don’t magically find more just because companies hold entertainment in venues full of fruit/gaming machines and food takeaways. There is an old saying ‘Perception is reality’. This simply means that what a person sees is real to them, despite a companys belief that they are offering good value. For example, I would not feel paying £3.05 for a pint of lager (as I was charged at Skegness last year) is value just because Butlins say that is what I would pay in any city centre bar. I feel it is a rip off and simply drink less, or go elsewhere. One customer lost! Billy Butlin had the right idea, a weeks holiday for a weeks pay, plenty of free facilities and many campers feeling they had great value for money. Donkey Derby was a big money spinner (tote and forecast) but most people saw it as the children taking part in a donkey race.

My advice – Think long term, get rid of the accountants (and HR professionals), give great value for money, great entertainment and facilities, build customer loyalty and have a product that is copied, but seldom equalled. This used to work.

[catmad]

ha ha, I remember last year at skeggy very well, I hardly had a drink at all because of the outrageous prices, and those plastic glasses we were served in, in that bar I forget the name, were a disgrace. The barman explained it was because of the children running about, then I saw him hand over a bottle of beer, obviously the bottle wouldn't cause any injury! what a joke!

[penychainphil67]

I think we have to accept that the holiday camps as we knew them are a thing of the past. The way forward seems to be caravan parks. I’m not saying I agree with it, it’s just that these days companies are invariably run by accountants and everything is about balance sheets/financial years. My local working mens club has adopted this approach, which is one of the reasons I don’t go in as much anymore. Maybe I’m old fashioned, but I believe in giving a quality product at a fair price, building customer loyalty in the process. It is an economic fact of life that people only have so much money to spend and when it’s gone, it’s gone. They don’t magically find more just because companies hold entertainment in venues full of fruit/gaming machines and food takeaways. There is an old saying ‘Perception is reality’. This simply means that what a person sees is real to them, despite a companys belief that they are offering good value. For example, I would not feel paying £3.05 for a pint of lager (as I was charged at Skegness last year) is value just because Butlins say that is what I would pay in any city centre bar. I feel it is a rip off and simply drink less, or go elsewhere. One customer lost! Billy Butlin had the right idea, a weeks holiday for a weeks pay, plenty of free facilities and many campers feeling they had great value for money. Donkey Derby was a big money spinner (tote and forecast) but most people saw it as the children taking part in a donkey race.

My advice – Think long term, get rid of the accountants (and HR professionals), give great value for money, great entertainment and facilities, build customer loyalty and have a product that is copied, but seldom equalled. This used to work. Dear BR, you have made some excellent points and summed up your argument perfectly. The weeks holiday for a weeks pay was Billy Butlin's master stroke.He identified the arrogance of the boarding house landlady and lack of entertainment and facilities to a country just about recovering from war.What is not wildly known was Billy Butlin's battles with accountants and hostile takeover bids even in the early 1950's and beyond. I firmly believe that like me and you he believed in people and as you have rightly said offered a quality product for a weeks pay to his campers.I would love to talk to you again and expand on this subject, thanks for a quality appraisal.pen.

[KAF2]

"The real sad situation we have here is that I think we already all know that Butlins is living on borrowed time and unfortunately for all us die-hard fans,Butlins will soon be one big memory"

I don't agree with this - surprisingly it seems more popular than ever. But I do think that Butlins is going to change for the worse, with even more facilities like spas & high ropes etc with extortionate prices. And the hotels! :(

I do believe that there is a gap in the market for a short break value holiday with lots of free activities and entertainment, like Butlins used to be. If Richard Branson set one up (!!!), or Mosney Holiday Centre or Barry Island Resort were still on the go, I know my Butlins loyalty would quickly evaporate.

But at the moment, it's the best on offer. Although Butlins is poor, Haven is far worse.

I blame the people who sit through the poor entertainment buying rip-off drinks & and using pay-facilities - and also people who go on holiday to places like Haven and Centre Parks. Why do places like these and sprawling caravan parks do so well? I can't believe Filey Butlins has gone and rubbishy Primrose Valley is still thriving. It's down to people today accepting these things that Butlins gets away with providing so little compared with in the past, and less each year. It is quite upsetting comparing Butlins today with my holiday memories!

KAF