That idyllic picture was reality for Jeanette Edwards, who spent her childhood living at holiday parks in Hihi Beach in the far north, and then Greymouth. The parks were owned by her parents, legendary campgrown owners Rhonda and Doug Levien.
It was a slice of Kiwi heaven she couldn’t give up. Jeanette now has her own park – the Motueka Top 10 – which she has run with her husband Steve for eight years.
“I love everything about it,” she says.
One of the nicest things about running a holiday park is seeing the same faces return every summer.
“Quite a few of our families, especially in Mot’, keep coming back. We’ve got one couple here who I think are in their 39th summer.”
Why do people choose to camp with her?
“A lot of people go camping because they want to give their kids a back-to-basics, authentic Kiwi holiday. You see them playing cards and board games with their families, and trying to avoid the Playstations or computer games.”
While getting back to the basics is undoubtedly one of the charms of camping, Jeanette explains that most people who stay with her aren’t exactly roughing it.
“In the 70s, holiday parks were pretty basic – comfortable, but without much flare. These days you can have spa villas within a holiday park.”
Jeanette and Steve don’t live in a spa villa – or in a tent for that matter. Instead, they live just across the road from the camp with their four daughters, the eldest of whom is six.
Although it might be slightly more glamorous (the Motueka park has a swimming pool, a spa, a giant jumping pillow and a conference facility that plays movies), it sounds like Jeanette’s daughters are enjoying a childhood as magical as their mum’s.
