Find out more at Norfolk Broads holidays.

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.

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.

Families with younger children often lean coastal, since a beach gives you a ready-made activity that needs very little planning: buckets, spades and a few hours, and everyone's entertained. Couples or those wanting a slower pace, or a base for cycling and walking rather than swimming, often prefer the countryside or Broads setting, where the pace of the Tingdene Holiday Parks matches the pace of the surroundings.

Ask about on-site facilities' actual opening hours and whether anything's seasonal. A pool that's only open during summer months, or a clubhouse with restricted evening hours outside peak season, changes what a break looks like considerably if you're travelling in spring or autumn.

There isn't one single answer to how far ahead you should book, because it depends heavily on when you actually want to go.