Evergreen Escapes Group is set to acquire two holiday parks in Cornwall from Hoburne Holidays in a multi-million pound transaction, with the deal scheduled to complete on February 12. The parks, Hoburne Doublebois and Hoburne St Mabyn, will be rebranded as Doublebois Lodge Escape and St Mabyn Lodge Escape. Both will continue to be sold via travel agents through Hoseasons.
This acquisition follows Evergreen’s purchase of the Manor and Ashbury Resorts in Devon in September last year, signaling the group’s ongoing strategy to expand its portfolio of leisure and holiday parks. The company has indicated plans to invest in both Cornish parks, with upgrades to accommodation and facilities aimed at attracting new guests and lodge owners.
Chief executive Geoff Cowley said, “With our planned investment and development plans in place, Doublebois and St Mabyn will truly bring to life the ‘escape the urban’ ethos at the heart of our brand and growing portfolio, embodying our core values of space, tranquillity and exceptional quality.
Both parks have benefitted from years of outstanding stewardship by Hoburne, and we are proud to be able to continue that legacy with plans already in place for enhancements designed to further elevate the guest experience and drive performance.”
According to TravelWeekly, Hoburne Holidays chief executive Jim Forward commented:
“We’ll be sad to see them [the parks] leave the Hoburne family, but having worked closely with the Evergreen leadership team on this deal, we have no doubt they are in very safe hands. The sale of these two parks helps clarify Hoburne’s position as a provider of great parks, in amazing locations, and with a full range of quality activities for families to enjoy, including restaurants, pools and leisure facilities.”
”Seeing our Cornish parks leave the business will create new opportunities for investment in our remaining locations as we continue to grow the brand and provide our visitors with quality, family time.”
Cowley confirmed that operations at the parks will continue as usual, with all existing employees offered the opportunity to remain with Evergreen. The acquisition aligns with the group’s longer-term objective of developing a scalable portfolio of 15 to 20 holiday parks and leisure resorts over the next five years.
Evergreen has also indicated that it will expand its sales channels beyond trade partners in the future, with a particular focus on maximizing bookings across all resorts, including the Manor and Ashbury Resorts, which are currently available only through direct booking or specialist golf operators.
For business owners in the outdoor hospitality sector, the acquisition highlights ongoing consolidation trends in the market and the potential for investment in park enhancements to drive guest experience and revenue growth.