Family holidays are a bit of a giggle

Sandy Balls. Go on, admit it, you’re sniggering, aren’t you?

There’s not a single person who didn’t when I told them I was taking my children to Sandy Balls Holiday Village in the New Forest for a long weekend.

But get beyond the name and you’ll find it’s the perfect place for a spot of rest and relaxation.

Before I go through the reasons why, let’s get that name explained. ‘Sandy Balls’ can be traced back to the reign of Henry VII, King of England from 1485 to 1509. It appeared on maps and documents of the time as Sandyballas, the description given to the dome-shaped sand and gravel outcrops on the village’s western boundary.

Over the years the management team has toyed with renaming the village to something more in keeping with a five-star holiday centre. But it has become so well-known that it’s now part of the village’s charm and is very much here to stay.

Charm is a very apt word because from the moment we arrived late on the Friday evening we were greeted by friendly staff who couldn’t do enough to ensure we were getting the most from our stay.

You’ll find Sandy Balls in Godshill, close to Fordingbridge in the heart of the Forest. It is set in 120 acres of woods and parkland, with 114 woodland lodges, 40 caravan holiday homes, eight luxury camping pods and 225 touring pitches for caravan and camping.

You might think that’s accommodation for an awful lot of people, but the very fact you’re surrounded by the huge expanse of the Forest means there’s enough space for visitors to truly unwind and forget the daily grind.

We were staying in a pet-friendly Pine Lodge, which provided space for me and my daughters Megan 15, and Millie, 13, son Austin, 10, and Megan’s boyfriend Ryan, 16.

On the Saturday we’d lined up a busy day of activities away from the village. Take a drive along the B3078 and B3079 towards Brook and Cadnam and you’ll get a full sense of the beauty of the New Forest, with its ponies and cows sauntering across the road without a care in the world.

After an energetic day of rope climbing and kayaking we were all relieved to return to our holiday base with a reservation at The Woodside Inn to look forward to.

On the night we attended, the restaurant was busy and high on atmosphere.

We all tucked into cheesy garlic bread as a starter, three of the party enjoyed New Yorker burgers, Megan a rib-eye steak and myself a fish finger sandwich. All came with delicious fries and we were well satisfied with our choices.

If the meals were good, the desserts were even better.

Megan plumped for a New York cheesecake, Millie a Marshmallow Sundae and the three boys in the group (yep, me included) delicious Honeycomb Dreams containing vanilla ice cream, lashings of creams and oodles of honeycomb chocolate chunks. Yum, yum.

By now a band had whipped guests into a frenzy and my children looked on almost in bewilderment as a hen party had a dance off with another group celebrating a wedding anniversary.

It was all good-spirited fun and gave my lot plenty to giggle about on the short walk back to our lodge.

As much as you’ll be tempted not to leave the holiday village the entire time you’re there, it’s well worth hiring a bike and getting out and about.

That was my intention when I organised to hire five bikes from the Cycle Centre. But I should have known better trying to budge three teenagers and a 10-year-old from their beds on a Sunday morning! So it was left to me to show willing and pick up a mountain bike.

A helpful member of the cycle team was keen to provide me with my directions for a 10-mile ride out to Fritham.

The A4 sheet suggested it would take one hour at a fast pace and three hours pottering.

Sadly, I didn’t have time for either as I’d failed to coax the teen brigade to join me.

I did manage to cycle to nearby Fordingbridge and the mountain bike was truly excellent, but I can’t help thinking I failed to get the most from the experience. Oh well, maybe next time...

Back at Sandy Balls I did manage to persuade Austin to join me on a walk down to the River Avon.

And he loved using the indoor and outdoor swimming pools, which were particularly popular for those with younger children.

As for the rest of my lot, surprise, surprise they didn’t need much coaxing when I suggested a visit to Pizza in the Piazza.

This clean, spacious restaurant was a definite hit, providing our pizzas and refreshing salads within a flash.

There were a host of activities we didn’t have time to try, with the holiday village providing plenty of options within its Get Active, Wet and Wild , Explore the Forest and Get Creative programmes.

So the centre got the big thumbs up from my tribe and is definitely somewhere we’d return to.

Thanks, Sandy Balls... You’re not still sniggering, are you?

• To stay at Sandy Balls for a three-night weekend or four-night midweek stay starts from just £159 for four people. To book or for more information see www.sandyballs.co.uk or call 0844 693 1434.