Josie Belasco and family – including pet dog Zelda – head to North Devon for an action-packed mid-week break

Having booked a deluxe chalet for four well in advance, we had to rethink our holiday plans when Zelda came into our lives.

But forsaking a certain level of luxury for the company of the teething four-legged addition to our family seemed like a no-brainer, although I did mourn a private Jacuzzi a tad.

The holiday centre is set in beautifully-manicured parkland with the big sands of Woolacombe in the distance. There are four different parks in the family, each with its own character and we chose Golden Coast, mostly to cater for the tastes of five very different customers.

Our nine-year-old was close enough to nip down to the supermarket, play tennis, pitch & putt or take the dog for a walk round the special dog path.

Our 14-year-old could stroll down to the internet café or the EX34 adventure centre, and he even joined in doing some pottery painting.

It is easy to get carried away at the pottery as there is a huge selection of china to paint, from a practical dog bowl, which I chose, to a fantasy dragon which I wanted to choose! It’s a very nice way to bring home personalised mementos.

The lovely, 18th-century Old Mill Inn was conveniently situated near our chalet so I could even keep an eye on my husband's coming and goings in that direction and joined him there with the kids for a delicious dinner in the garden.

You could cook all your food in the chalet, which had everything you needed and a handy barbecue in the garden area, but with take-away meals temptingly close, we didn’t use much of the washing up liquid which was part of a handy holiday welcome pack.

We walked from the holiday park down the hill to inviting Woolacombe Sands where dogs are allowed all year in large areas.

But sea air, more walking and a large picnic necessitated a bus trip back up to Golden Coast.

We could have brought more towels as there were opportunities to get wet left, right and centre: two indoor pools and a flumed outside pool with ‘waterwalkerz’, which was flanked by the EX34 centre with its surfing simulator (where Tristan our-nine-year-old got stuck in pretty quickly) and if you wanted to try the real thing there was also a surf school down at the beach.

The centre also boasts a high-ropes course, a climbing wall, a bungee trampoline and bungee run.

There was a huge choice of activities, from snooker to short-mat bowls, a couple of coarse fishing ponds and the stables down the road were highly recommended for a woodland hack or evening beach ride, but we ran out of time for that.

Factor in the evening entertainment, including comedy shows and musicals, plus a wide range of kids’ clubs and we could have kept ourselves entertained at Golden Coast for five weeks, never mind the mere five days we had.

Factfile

There are four parks in the Woolacombe Bay family.

Golden Coast is the high-octane flagship, with the widest range of facilities. Woolacombe Bay is closest to the beach, a 15-minute stroll or hop on the bus. Twitchen House has a relaxed atmosphere of leisurely elegance and is set in scenic woodland.

Easewell Farm is a smaller park set amongst the dunes, which boasts a nine-hole professional golf course.

A week's stay at Golden Coast costs between £144 and £749, depending on the time of year, but there are many deals available.

Many of the activities cost extra, but the cost can be greatly reduced with special packages available.

For more information, call 0843 2080 377 or visit woolacombe.co.uk.