A look back at the glory years of the Pontins Holiday Camp in Prestatyn.
Covering 40-acres this purpose built self-catering camp was built in 1971 on land previously occupied by a stock car racing and greyhound track - the distinctive oval track still forms the internal road layout today. Prior to this it was a cricket ground.
It has 820 chalets mostly arranged in two-storey apartment-style blocks with a total capacity of around 4,000 guests. It always was, and still is, the largest camp in the Pontins empire in terms of capacity. Upon opening it was described as "...the culmination of over a quarter of a century's experience of answering the demands of all tastes and ages and providing the very best in holiday value around".
In 1973 the camp took a starring role in the comedy movie 'Holiday on the Buses' and in 2004 a plaque was unveiled by the main entrance to mark the occasion.
In 1974 it hosted the first snooker pro-am tournament where over a thousand amateurs would compete with each other with the final 24 being able to play one of eight pros. This hugely popular week-long event would become an annual fixture at Prestatyn for many years and all the big name players of the day took part.
