First hand experience – spending a family weekend at a mobile home

Our children love going to campsites. Our little daughter is only 2 years old, our son is 5 and we haven’t dared to go camping in a tent or caravan yet. But we intend to try it sometime in the future for sure. In the meantime, mobile homes are a quite handy solution for us. They offer the comfort we need while we can enjoy all the benefits of staying in a campsite.

A word about the mobile homes

We wanted to get away from the city again and spend a short weekend in nature and by the sea. While browsing, I came across the brand new mobile homes at Campsite Park Umag – Adria Blue Seaside and Adria Garden.

The pictures looked very promising. These are brand new mobile homes that were set up at the campsite a few weeks ago. There are 2 types – Adria Blue Seaside are closer to the sea and the Adria Garden are about 200 metres from the sea. As the prices were very attractive, we decided it would be nice to try them out. Nice location, lots of fun for the kids (they do love pools) and some relaxation for us as well. The booking experience was easy and straightforward and took just over 2 minutes. The confirmation email arrived shortly afterwards which meant it was time to start packing. Personally I don’t like this part one bit, but when I showed my kids a few pictures of where we were going, they were happy to give us a hand and help.

Check-in

We chose the Adria Blue Seaside because of their location. Our first impression on arrival was very positive. We checked in directly with the provider next to the main reception of the campsite. You can park right next to the reception, which is quite handy. I felt that there was a personal contact and no let’s get this over with approach, which I like and appreciate. Mr. Ivo was very nice, easy-going and he showed us on the map where our home for the next 2 days is.

A note upfront, the campsite is quite large but very well marked. It’s easy to find your way around and we had no problems finding our mobile home. On the way there, we drove straight past one of the children’s pools and we had to do a lot of persuasion and we could drive on only after we made a firm promise that we would only unpack briefly and go straight to the pool.

First impression

As the name suggests, our Adria Blue Seaside was placed towards the sea and the first thing we all noticed straight away was how modern it was and how it didn’t feel like a mobile home at all. Everything was as good as new, high quality, nothing creaked and even in the bathrooms you didn’t get the feeling that it wasn’t stable accommodation, which is often the case with mobile homes.

In the living area there was a table with four chairs and the kitchen was very well equipped. There was every cooking utensil you can think of, as well as a filter coffee machine (including some filters in the cupboard) and a kettle. There was a large fridge with freezer in the kitchen area (not to be underestimated in summer). The air conditioning was included in the price. The beds in the smaller room (in our case the children’s room) were separate and could also be moved quite easily, which we found very practical. Our daughter has only recently started sleeping in the room with her older brother and we prefer it when we can put the beds together and have the up against a wall on one side (for safety).

It was also quite convenient that we could park our car right next to the mobile home. I don’t know about you, but somehow I always get sent back to the car to go grab something which I should have picked up in the first place.

The highlight

The absolute highlight of the mobile home (and we did all agreed on this) was the large terrace (26 m²). As we were in the front row to the sea, we had a view of the sea and in front of it was a large lawn. Our children played football here, painted on the street with some chalk and most importantly, they were in sight the entire time. We actually spent most of our time on the terrace, whether playing, relaxing on the loungers, watching the sunset, having breakfast or climbing up the bars as you can see in the images (they loved this part).

And last but not least, just a word about the beds. The mattresses were great. My wife is actually very sensitive when it comes to comfortable beds, but we have rarely slept as well as we did here. There were practical lamps above the bed – anyone who likes to read before going to sleep will appreciate this. The showers in both bathrooms had plenty of space and, as already mentioned, I didn’t have the feeling that I am staying in a mobile home.

What we were missing

A door on the terrace would have been great. This would have made it even easier for us to enjoy the stay. Although traffic in the area where we were is all but dense, you can’t let small children out of your sight. Many guests use the trick where they place a lounger in the place of doors. This works quite well and I’ve seen people use if for pets too.

About the campsite

Park Umag is one of the largest campsites in Croatia. The first thing we noticed on the way to our mobile home was that there is so much green here. The nature is wonderful, everything is clean and you can see hedges, flowers, lawns and trees wherever you look.

The pools

We looked out for the pool complexes on the map in advance – there are actually 2 here. The first one next to the reception right at the entrance area consists of a children’s pool with pirate ship, a small pool and a slightly larger one where you can also swim a few lengths. Next to the pools is a bar where you can get a refreshment or a snack. The absolute highlight for us was of course the small pool with the pirate ship. We spent most of our time here and were also able to relax a little. The ship is so interesting that it kept us (well the kids) entertained for several hours. As the pool is not deep, we didn’t always have to be on full alert, but were able to relax on the loungers at the edge of the pool.

On the second day, we went to the larger and new pool complex, which was really lovely. This lovely complex has a big, beautiful infinity pool, a fun children’s pool with a water park (slides and spray park included), and a small pool for the little ones. We loved this one the most because it was covered with a sunshade, which kept the sun at bay. There’s a lovely little restaurant with a bar right next to the small paddling pool. And if you’re hungry, you can order something to eat, have a coffee or an ice cream. Just a little tip on the side: don’t let your little ones persuade you to have two scoops – one is more than enough, because they are huge!

Below the Canova pool complex is Canova beach. Here you will find a small sandy playground and sunbeds to relax on. This is a blue flag beach.

When it gets boring

When it comes to entertainment and animation, there’s plenty to enjoy at Camping Park Umag. Unfortunately, it was due to start the day after our departure (10 June), so we couldn’t try it out. But we did do some research and found out what was on offer, which was really helpful!

From 10 June to the end of August, the campsite offers Club 4, which is perfect for children aged 8 months to 4 years. The Mini Club is also available for children aged 4 to 8 years, with daily creative workshops and games. And for the slightly older children, there’s the Junior Club (9 to 12 years) and the Teens Club (13 to 17 years). In the evening, there’s an entertaining evening programme for all the family to enjoy! And for the grown-ups, there’s yoga, Pilates and Aqua Fit to keep you entertained!

Food and drink

As far as the campsite restaurants are concerned, we only ate at the pools during our short stay. This was where we spent most of our time. Otherwise we cooked our own lunches in the mobile home. As already mentioned, we had everything we needed and we liked to enjoy our meals in peace and quiet on the terrace of the mobile home. If you need fresh fruit and vegetables for example, there is also a vegetable stall and a fully stocked supermarket on the campsite. As well as several restaurants, a pizzeria and snack bars by the pools, there are also small snack bars with street food, doughnuts, hamburgers and a bakery. If you need to do some shopping, the town of Umag with its many large supermarkets is only a 5 minute drive away.

About the prices

I checked the prices for a week in a mobile home Adria Blue Seaside and Adria Garden in the high season (July and August) and listed them here for you. This will give you a better overview of what you can expect in terms of price.

Price overview for 1 week in July and August

Conclusion

We really enjoyed our short trip to Umag. The children cried on the way home and didn’t want to leave. I fully understand them, as we would have loved to stay longer, as despite the short time we spent here we were able to really relax.

And one thing’s for sure – we are planning to spend our future trips and family holidays at a campsite. The entertainment and activities on offer for the children are unmatched and can’t be found anywhere else. As we slowly get the children used to camping and sleeping in a tent, mobile homes are the ideal solution for us. And we really liked the new Adria Blue Seaside at Camping Park Umag, which met all our expectations. Now we just have to decide when to come back. If it’s up to our children, it would be right now.