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We had a brilliant February half term break at the luxury Hof van Saksen resort in the Netherlands. This is one of our most popular featured parks and although Jane, the other half of Little Clogs, has been before with her family I was still yet to experience everything that’s wonderful about Hof van Saksen! I had begin to think we were never going to get there having had to cancel it twice over the last 2 years, so the fact that Hof van Saksen is in the hamlet of Nooitgedacht, loosely translated as “never thought”, I thought was very apt!
Hof van Saksen is completely doable without a car. It is handy to have a car for exploring the area but as we had just booked a mid-week Monday to Friday stay we decided to be car-free and it was a lovely adventure for our children who are 5 and 7. We booked cheap Easyjet flights from Manchester to Amsterdam (£26.99 each way plus bags) and then got the train directly from Schipol airport to Assen train station. This cost approximately €60 and took 1h50. Then we jumped in a taxi for a 15 minute ride to the resort. So, a very easy journey indeed.
My first impression as we walked through the main central building to the check in desk really was “wow”. It felt like a 5 star hotel lobby with a grand piano and expensive art on the walls. We were swiftly checked in and given the key cards to Farmhouse number 927 which was to be our home for the next 4 nights. This was a very handy location as it was close to the lake beach and play area and the central building where the swimming pool and restaurants were. What I love about Hof van Saksen, which adds to its luxurious feel, is the many quirky sculptures we saw dotted about the grounds and the twinkly fairy lights which light up the main paths on an evening.
Our House:
Our accommodation was gorgeous. We booked the Farmhouse 4C which is their most standard accommodation but was beautifully thatched and it certainly had more than a standard feel inside. Spacious and on 2 floors there were 3 bedrooms, one with a huge double (one advantage of staying in Holland, the beds are big!) and 2 singles. Our children decided they wanted to sleep together in one room so we used the other room as their dressing/luggage room. The bathroom had a good sized shower and a bath and downstairs the open plan kitchen, dining and lounge area was modern, spacious and cosy. We had a Nespresso machine and my Belgian partner, Stijn, was very pleased to discover there were Duvel beer glasses in the cupboards (Belgians can’t have their beer in just any glass you know!).
As we were there during the storms we really appreciated the cosy gas log fire on an evening! The houses at Hof van Saksen also have a built in bike storage section but we decided against hiring bikes due to the weather. Hof van Saksen does have an extensive bike hire service and lots of places to explore directly on bike from the resort so this is something we will do next time!
The Pool Area:
We visited the pool on every day of our stay and stayed a good 2 hours each time. Amelie and Jonas loved swimming in the pool and we bought them some snorkels which they got the hang of really quickly and spent ages exploring the pool with. There are 3 pools, a larger pool with diving boards, a medium sized slightly shallower pool and a very warm toddler pool which had little slides and toys and a piano to walk along. There were also 2 jacuzzis which we spent quite a lot of time in and children were allowed in too. As we were there outside of the Dutch holidays it was very quiet and we didn’t have to queues for the slides or the outdoor rapids. In fact, we were the only ones on the rapids most of the time!
The Waterslides
WOW!! These waterslides are something else. Hof van Saksen is famous for having the largest indoor waterslide in the world (the Bombo) and the longest indoor funnel waterslide in the world (the Saltato). There is also the Presto which I went on and it takes you at speeds of 60 kmh!! and the Intenso. As Amelie is over 1.20m she was allowed to go on the Saltato and the Intenso but for the other 2 you had to be 8. For all the slides apart from the Presto you go down in inflatable rings. You can select which type of lights you want on your ride and Amelie enjoyed pressing the button on the “menu” of lights to select hers! The highlight for me I think was going on the Bombo with Stijn. This is a ride you have to go on with another person, which was tricky for us being with the kids. However, the lovely lifeguard offered to look after the kids for us so we could go on as it was so quiet! You go so high; it was a real thrill!!
The Wellness Centre:
Hof van Saksen has a swanky wellness centre and beauticians where you can book treatments and enjoy the saunas and a steam room. I felt I couldn’t leave without treating myself to a massage and it was wonderful! An added bonus was there was no one else in the spa area so I got to enjoy it all on my own. Bliss!
Outdoor Play:
Although it was blustery and rainy at times there was still ample opportunity to enjoy the outdoor play areas. Some of the accommodation areas have their own small playgrounds but we spent our time at the main playground on the lake beach. This has a large jumping air pillow, a big slide and lots of wooden play equipment including a wooden play ship on an island across the water. In the summer you would just paddle over but Amelie and Jonas went through the tunnel and across on the monkey bars! There is another jumping air pillow outside the Brink building which houses the Bounz trampolining, the bowling, the many academies and the large indoor play.
Indoor Play:
The indoor play is large and beautifully done. There was a separate toddler area at the back and a large climbing area in the middle with a huge ball pool and a small zip wire. I loved the décor and luxury feel of this area and the fact it had comfy sofas and served nice food and drinks. They also serve strong Belgian beer in case you need a pick me up at the end of the day! (might reword this bit).
While we were there we booked a bowling session which was lots of fun although I did get beaten by the 5 year old! We also spent some time in the arts and craft academy. This is free of charge and children can paint and draw or make things. Amelie and Jonas chose to paint a unicorn and a rabbit so there was a small nominal charge for these items. But if you just go to paint then it is free.
Restaurants:
Hof van Saksen has 3 restaurants and a fast food snack bar. We ate in 2 of the restaurants and self-catered the other 2 nights. The on site supermarket is very well stocked and they also have a pizza delivery service which we used on the last night. We ate in restaurants Gusto and Grand Café which both have excellent service, gorgeous décor and delicious food. Both restaurants have a 7m long Lego wall too which Amelie and Jonas spent most of their time playing at!
In Summary:
Hof van Saksen is amazing! It has a very high end feel, like a 5 star hotel but has the perfect combination of 5 star facilities and outdoor living with authentic thatched farmhouse accommodation. It has facilities which are suitable for toddlers up to older children and teens and it is very easy to get to from the UK. It is open all year round and is weather independent so whilst we weren’t lounging around on the lake beach in February there was so much to do that the weather really didn’t matter.
Whilst being the most luxurious holiday park in the Netherlands it handy to know that it also competes price wise with many well-known holiday parks in the UK. Although our half term week was the week before the Dutch holidays we only paid €379 (plus local taxes) for our accommodation which, including travel still worked out about half the price of some UK holiday park alternatives!
I am completely in love with this type of holiday, not because we recommend them, but this is why we recommend them!! These are relatively unknown resorts in beautiful locations with heaps for children to do and with some gorgeous accommodation. We will definitely be back!
For more info about Hof van Saksen or to book click here or drop us a line.
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