A UK 'hotel' like the RC Hotel in Corfu

[Leon Lester]

Hi. My friend and I are seasoned Heli and fixed wing fliers. His health isn't so good for EU travel,  so we're looking for a place in the UK that's perhaps like the popular RC Hotel in Corfu. Is there such a place?

[GrumpyGnome]

I'd be pleasantly surprised if there was one - our hobby being so weather dependent....

[John Lee]

Some decades ago there were 'Modelling Weeks' at the likes of Pontins but I've not seen anything similar in more recent years. The RCHotel has been going for over 20 years now and I imagine has soaked up the demand for these types of holidays. 

eg from 1986 & 1994:

 

 

I appreciate the travel can be difficult but Spiros has be accommodating less able guests over all that period, but it helps if you have a sense of humour. This was from the early days:

 

[Andy Symons - BMFA]

Not exactly the same but more and more people are taking flying holidays there.  https://nationalcentre.bmfa.org/

[Martin Fraser]

What about the BMFA national centre? Camping on site or there's a very nice hotel in the village of Buckminster a few miles away. 

The Tollemache Arms (tollemache-arms.co.uk)

 And - it's always calm and sunny.🙂

[Engine Doctor]

Potters at their 5 Lakes site in Essex would be a good place to ask. They have a very large site with a golf course and a long pitch and put plus lots of other open areas. Its also a long way from the nearest town. 

[Duncan Disorderly]

I haven't been there, so can't vouch for it, but they have a flying site & holiday cottages at Heath Farm near Chipping Norton (electric only)

Edited April 4, 2024 by Duncan Disorderly

[Brian Cooper]

Primrose Valley, etc..

 

The Model Aviators Association ran weekly holidays in Yorkshire and Devon for slope soaring and power flying. 

 

The holidays were very popular 30+ years ago, but fashions change and the numbers gradually dwindled away. 

Also, we were at the mercy of the British weather. . . and it could be memorably  merciless on some of those holidays.

 

I used to be deeply involved with running the power sites but haven't been on any of the holidays for several years. 

I am not even sure if the MAA still exists... 

 

Try giving a call to the Grimsby Model Centre

https://www.grimsbymodelcentre.co.uk/ ... They will be able to give any up-to-date information. 

 

For power flying, I would prefer to fly at (BMFA) Buckminster for a week. . . A much better set-up. 👍

 

Edited April 4, 2024 by Brian Cooper

[JOHN MOSLEY 2]

We got snow one year on one of the MAP holidays at Primrose Valley in May, we spent a lot of time watching RC cars Carpet racing in the Ballroom. There used to be a load come from London Thames Mead club I think, we had two power sites. 

[Neville Ford]

I have been looking at organising a holiday involving visiting BMFA Buckminster to fly for a while now, but the schedule https://nationalcentre.bmfa.org/calendar/site-status indicates it is really heavily booked so it is very rare to be able to go for 4 or 5 consecutive days when the main runway is available and when day tickets are available. Maybe I am reading the calendar wrongly, but it looks as though the centre is really busy (which is good) but means it is pretty inflexible for those coming from a distance who want to stay and fly on several consecutive days. I'm hoping somebody will tell me that it is easier than it looks! Thanks.

[Andy Symons - BMFA]

3 hours ago, Neville Ford said:

I have been looking at organising a holiday involving visiting BMFA Buckminster to fly for a while now, but the schedule https://nationalcentre.bmfa.org/calendar/site-status indicates it is really heavily booked so it is very rare to be able to go for 4 or 5 consecutive days when the main runway is available and when day tickets are available. Maybe I am reading the calendar wrongly, but it looks as though the centre is really busy (which is good) but means it is pretty inflexible for those coming from a distance who want to stay and fly on several consecutive days. I'm hoping somebody will tell me that it is easier than it looks! Thanks.

Much easier than it looks. If you were to go Monday to Friday you would be able to fly most days. Contact Manny to choose the best possible dates.

[Jim Hearnden 1]

Did Primrose valley one year, had assistance & some training from the Ghost Squadron guys, John & one of the others. Did Brean Sands one year and flew off the beach.

With Primrose we had our touring caravan there, but at Brean Sands we used a chalet which was really grim, dirty, poorly maintained you name it. 

 

Side story is on the way back from Brean we saved a guys life. We had a big box trailer on my Granada Estate to give more room. We're ambling along in lane 1 of the M4.

Suddenly I spot a guy collapsed by an emergency phone. The phone was out of order, so we phoned 999 on my shiny new mobile. Put a coat over the guy as he was very poorly. Paramedics & plod were there pretty quick. It turned out he was diabetic & felt a hypo starting, so stopped near an emergency phone & then collapsed . The phone was out of order. His body temp was very low, it was getting dark, I reckon he'd have been toast if we hadn't seen him.  It was only because we were doing 45-50MPH that I spotted him. Any faster I wouldn't have seen him.

[Basil]

well done Jim.

Bas

 

[John Tee]

I agree with Jim about the chalets at Pontins. Accomodation was a lot better when Holiday Resort Unity took over just up the road , but then they decided some ten years ago that we weren't worth the trouble. There is  still a group who fly at Brean each September flying on the beach. I think they stay at John Fowler  camp site.

[jrman]

Yes a few of us still go to Brean every year and stay a John Fowlers. I believe I am the only person who has been every year from when it first started. It certainly has changed.

[Robin Colbourne]

Many years ago I went to one of the modeller's weekends at Devon Cliffs Holiday Park.  The modelling side was great, but our family all caught gastro-enteritis.  I remember coming back from one of the modelling activities to find a note on the table in the mobile home from my ex, saying that this was the worst holiday she had ever been on, and never wanted to do anything like it again!  Fortunately my partner now is far more amenable to model flying activities.😊

One approach to such a holiday might be just to find a like-minded group via a site like this and book a stay for the same week at somewhere with the right sort of facilities nearby.  I was up in Scotland recently and noticed that the Sandylands holiday park in North Ayrshire is right by coastal sand dunes that would be great for small slope soarers (Zagis and such like).  At low tide you could probably fly power off the beach without bothering anyone particularly.

Pictures of the beach and holiday camp below.

Edited April 29, 2024 by Robin Colbourne

[Yaho]

You might want to check out the "RC Hotels" or similar resorts in the UK, such as the "Savoy Hotel" in London or the "Cairnryan Hotel" in Scotland, which offer great comfort for those who need a more relaxed travel experience. Another option could be considering smaller, more accessible locations depending on your friend's specific health needs. So see details here.

[Bucksboy]

I try to adhere to the old adage ‘if you’ve got nothing nice to say, say nothing at all’. However I’m perplexed at the above posting, the link takes you somewhere that is undoubtedly a nice hotel, but nothing at all to do with modelling.  In fact I’d go as far as to say that I suspect Yaho may, or may not, be human.  

[Don Fry]

Robot?, or a cheap chip.
Grub is overpriced fussy tat in the Savoy. I would get earache from my lady serving it up. My missus can do harsh criticism.