As a rough guide: book six months or more ahead for summer holiday weeks, two to three months ahead for half terms and bank holidays, and anywhere from a few weeks to a couple of months ahead for a standard term-time week. If you're flexible on exact dates, you can comfortably push closer to the wire; if you're fixed on a specific week, particularly a school holiday one, earlier is always safer than later.

The first thing to check is whether you can move outside a Friday-to-Friday or Saturday-to-Saturday week. Many parks release short breaks, three or four nights rather than a full week, and these tend to have more late availability simply because fewer people search for them. If your dates can flex by even a day or two, you'll usually see more choice.

More information is available at www.tingdeneholidayparks.com.

If you've never stayed in a static caravan before, it's worth knowing roughly what you're walking into, because it's usually a pleasant surprise rather than anything to be cautious about.

Space is often the deciding factor for families. A static caravan holiday gives everyone a bit of breathing room, somewhere for the kids to watch television while the adults have a cup of tea in a separate area, which a single hotel room rarely manages without someone being under everyone else's feet.

Packing for a coastal caravan holiday is really about planning for a British summer rather than a guaranteed one, so flexibility matters more than any single item on the list.