After a trip to Efteling and stay at Center Parcs De Kempervennen with friends, we spent a few days – just the four of us – at Marvilla Parks Kaatsheuvel.
You would not think it is only a 10-minute drive from Efteling theme park as it really feels that you are in the middle of the countryside. For that reason, we saw plenty of families going on daily bike rides but we unfortunately did not take our bikes on this trip.
Though it is a bit of a drive from the ferry crossings: 3 hours from Calais and 2.5 hours from Dunkirk, I would still chose this park for a summer holiday for toddlers solely for the outstanding facilities.
Just to clarify I consider this great value for money, this is not the ritz for toddlers but it is a incredible cheap holiday park for families with young toddlers.
Marvilla Parks are similar to Eurocamp sites and owned by the same parent company: The European Camping Group. Which does mean you can book through Eurocamp and search for discount codes.
Accomodation at Camping Marvilla Parks Kaatsheuvel
As the name suggest, there are fields dedicated for camping with motorhomes and tents but I am yet to be brave, or suicidal enough, to try camping with toddlers.
Instead, we opted for the cheapest ‘comfort’ lodges (i.e mobile homes) and was actually pleasantly surprised.
What we really enjoyed was the outdoor area and was lucky to spend most of our time here as the weather was beautiful.
It had comfy seating, a BBQ, and new decking with a gate to keep wandering toddlers safely inside.
Even when it rained one afternoon the cover was sufficient enough to keep us dry.
I think if we didn’t have such nice outdoor space we would have really struggle as the inside living area was basic.
It is quite common for European accommodation to not have TVs (apparently they enjoy each other’s company) but our caravan didn’t even have a proper sofa, just a sofa bed seat that was less comfortable than labour.
It is also worth noting that there was only a microwave and hob in our accommodation – no oven. As we knew this in advance, we actually took our air fryer.
Just like Center Parcs, a really annoying feature of Eurocamp accommodation is that bedding is not included.
However, unlike Center Parcs, average king size sheets fit on the double beds and we take double sheets for the kid’s singles.
You can also just pay for the bedding but I always love the thrill of saving money wherever I can.
A real positive of Eurocamps / Marvilla Park accommodation is that you can request a potty, baby bath and travel cot for free!
We always request a baby bath when we can and my children love playing in it with their water toys or literally playing in it.
There are more expensive and luxurious accommodations available that do have TVs, ovens and comfy corner sofas but whenever we do a camping style European trip we like it to be as cheap as possible. These are the trips we want to thrive in simplicity so like to keep it just that.
Swimming with toddlers at Marvilla Park Kaatsheuvel
The swimming facilities at Marvilla Park Kaatsheuvel are fantastic for toddlers and this is now my husband’s litmus test for all future holiday parks.
There is a small indoor and outdoor splash park totally accessible for toddlers as well as a small normal indoor swimming pool – which is worth noting that children are not allowed in without a swim vest – which they do not provide.
There are also two stand-alone water flume slides but my two were too young for this. I do think the swimming facilities were perfect for babies and toddlers, but older children could possibly get bored here.
Our favourite thing about the indoor toddler pool is that there was built in seats around the edge of the pool to keep you in close proximity to your toddlers but not having to do that awkward crouching position in shallow water.
Though a bit nippy, the outdoor splash park is also fantastic for toddlers and gave our two hours of fun.
We took little water toys for them to play hide and seek around the apparatus.
As this trip was before my website I know these are not the most helpful images of the facilities but you can find a better idea of what to expect on the official website, just with less cute faces!
Play areas for toddlers at Marvilla Park Kaatsheuvel
The only thing that impressed my husband more than the toddler pool with seats in was the outdoor play area at Camping Marvilla Park Kaatsheuvel
I do have to say it was rather impressive.
Not only is it right next to the bar, it’s full of sand and plenty of toddler friendly apparatuses that kept my two happy long enough for me to have an uninterrupted sip of Sauvignon Blanc.
One side is a typical playground with a huge bouncy pillow (which my two loved) and some apparatus that was not as toddler friendly. The other side, also with sand, had a huge water and tunnel system.
There are also mini playgrounds dotted around the campsite for closer free play to your accommodation.
As well as the fantastic outdoor play area there is also a great indoor soft play which is well suited to toddlers.
It is like any other soft play but what was really impressive and something we have not seen before was a little slide where children sat in sled type box down a gravity conveyor.
It is next to the coffee shop so you could let older kids roam whilst having a latte but with toddlers we had to fight for the few seats available inside the play area.
Entertainment for toddlers at Marvilla Park Kaatsheuvel
Though there was an advertised Kid’s club at Camping Marvilla Park Kaatsheuvel, it was more like just a craft session which parents had to stay for.
There was evening entertainment near the outdoor play area but it was always too late for our toddlers.
We find this a lot with European holidays, that children’s entertainment is not until really late and past our toddler’s bedtime.
Unless you have the time to research hundreds of holiday camps it is hard to find this information until you are actually there.
If you don’t have the time to scroll through all the different accommodation options, check out my travel services where I can help plan your next family holiday.