Hoburne Holidays

At insight6, we believe exceptional client experience (CX) is more than good service—it’s a critical business driver. Discover how we partner with Hoburne Holidays to understand their guests’ experiences and encourage them to return again and again.  

In this case:
The Challenge
CX Solutions
Results 

About Hoburne Holidays 

With a proud history dating back to 1912, Hoburne Holidays has evolved from the classic British holiday camp into a modern holiday experience offering everything from forest lodges to coastal escapes. The company operates seven holiday parks across the South and South West of England.

Still run by the founding family, now in its fifth generation, Hoburne remains rooted in its values of care, hospitality, and quality. The group also includes residential home parks, a property development arm, and three golf clubs, all unified by the same commitment to exceptional service. 

Creating Memorable Stays Through Customer Experience 

Hoburne Holidays, one of the UK’s most established leisure providers, partnered with insight6 to enhance every aspect of the guest experience, from initial impressions to final farewells. The goal is to ensure that every holiday not only meets expectations but exceeds them. 

By embedding mystery visit insights directly into daily operations, Hoburne’s teams can quickly identify issues, resolve them efficiently, and continue delivering the warm, seamless service that keeps guests coming back year after year. Their commitment to real-time improvement ensures that even small service gaps are closed, transforming great holidays into unforgettable

The Challenge 

Setting a Higher Bar for Holiday Experiences

How Hoburne identified the need for consistency, connection, and service excellence across all parks. 

With holiday parks across the South of England, Hoburne Holidays set its sights on one clear goal: delivering a consistently outstanding experience at every location, every time. 

In an increasingly competitive leisure and tourism sector, Hoburne recognised that excellent facilities alone aren’t enough. Emotional connection and service excellence are what truly inspire guests to return and recommend their services. 

To build lasting loyalty, the team sought a deeper understanding of how guests felt about their stay. Were they being welcomed with warmth? Was every touchpoint adding to their holiday memories? And crucially, were staff interactions turning good holidays into great ones? 

Understanding and improving the guest journey from start to finish became a strategic priority, one that required unbiased, real-world feedback to guide meaningful change. 

Turning Insight into Action

Partnering to design a customer journey programme built around real experiences and operational impact. 

To define what an exceptional guest experience should feel like across all of Hoburne’s parks, Lucy Knight and Richard Knight from insight6 partnered closely with the Hoburne Holidays leadership team. The goal was to map the ideal customer journey and uncover opportunities to enhance it at every stage. 

Together, they developed a tailored programme that combined regular mystery guest visits, online experience testing, and real-time feedback via the insight6 platform, instant insight. 

Trained researchers posed as holidaymakers to objectively evaluate the guest journey in real-world conditions. At the same time, ongoing website reviews tested the functionality and responsiveness of online enquiry forms, helping to improve digital touchpoints. 

All insights were compiled into bespoke reports for each park, providing General Managers with the information they needed to act quickly and make meaningful improvements, ensuring that guests consistently enjoy the warm, seamless experience Hoburne is known for. 

Sandra Mueller, Director of Operations

“When a B2B relationship isn’t about buying or selling a physical product, but about a service that can significantly impact your business, it can feel like a real gamble. With Insights6, however, we’ve found a partner who genuinely cares about our success and supports us beyond just providing a service. We couldn’t be happier working with them.”

-Sandra Mueller, Director of Operations

From Insight to Implementation

Blending mystery visits, real-time feedback, and digital reviews to enhance every touchpoint of the guest journey. 

Each year, three rounds of mystery visits were carried out across Hoburne’s holiday parks. These visits provided detailed, objective insights into the quality of guest interactions at every key touchpoint, from arrival and check-in to facilities and departure. 

Using this data, the insight6 team created bespoke reports for each park, highlighting what was working well and where improvements could be made. Any areas of friction or inconsistency were flagged for attention, helping the team maintain a high standard of service across all locations. 

The findings informed a live-action plan, tailored to each park and reviewed regularly. General Managers used the plan to guide improvements, while the insight6 team provided ongoing coaching and support to help implement new processes and embed best practices. 

“We use the Mystery Guest reports primarily as a training tool. They provide deep insight into each guest’s experience, offering a wealth of valuable feedback in every report. It’s clear that a great deal of care and attention goes into compiling them.  

Our reports now cover all operational areas—from the booking centre to every aspect of the on-park experience. The audits combine clear checklists to confirm standards with detailed written summaries for each department, helping us truly understand the guest perspective. They also align closely with our commercial strategy and are easily adaptable.” 

-Sandra Mueller, Director of Operations 

Real-time Feedback 

In addition to mystery visits, the programme leveraged instant insight, a powerful real-time feedback tool. Guests were prompted to rate the cleanliness of their accommodation on arrival and could quickly report any maintenance issues. These alerts were sent instantly to the housekeeping and reception teams, enabling them to respond rapidly, often before a guest’s stay was impacted. 

To support a seamless digital experience, online enquiry forms and website navigation were also regularly assessed to ensure that the booking journey matched the high standards delivered on-site. 

Turning Data into Delight 

Clear improvements in team performance, guest satisfaction, and service consistency across all locations. 

CXD Lucy Knight presenting Sandra Mueller with the insight6 CX Excellence Mark

Since launching the Customer Experience (CX) programme in June 2022, Hoburne Holidays has seen consistently strong results across its parks. To such an extent that in October 2024, the team raised its internal CX target from 80% to 85%, a reflection of both its high standards and commitment to ongoing improvement. 

Regular mystery visits have enabled Hoburne to track key performance indicators and pinpoint development opportunities. As a result, the business has achieved a 25% improvement in sales skills since the programme began, empowering teams to serve guests with more confidence, clarity, and care. 

Beyond training outcomes, the programme has made a real operational impact. In under a year, the instant insight tool helped identify and resolve over 1,000 maintenance issues, often before guests even noticed. By acting in real time, the parks protected the customer experience and minimised disruption to guests’ stays. 

For Hoburne Holidays, mystery visits are far more than an audit—they’re a strategic tool for understanding and improving how guests feel at every stage of their holiday. By combining quantitative measures with rich qualitative insights, the CX programme provides a clear view of guest sentiment, driving more informed decisions and shaping memorable stays. 

“When a B2B relationship isn’t about buying or selling a physical product, but about a service that can significantly impact your business, it can feel like a real gamble. With insight6, however, we’ve found a partner who genuinely cares about our success and supports us beyond just providing a service. We couldn’t be happier working with them.”

-Sandra Mueller, Director of Operations

Recognised for excellence

Hoburne Holidays is proud to be among the first groups of holiday parks to be awarded the insight6 CX Excellence Mark – recognition of a sustained, values-led commitment to exceptional customer experience. Learn more about the CX Excellence Recognition Scheme and how to apply.