Stimulate and satisfy all 5 senses with these great gadget ideas for your holiday home. As humans we have five senses - sight, sound, taste, smell and touch. They are the ways in which we process information about where we are and what we’re doing. Stimulating and satisfying our senses is essential for connecting us to our environment and enhancing our enjoyment of life and there’s nowhere where it’s more important for you to enjoy life than in your own UK holiday home. Take a look at these gadget ideas. They can add to your holiday home experience and if you let out your holiday home, make it even more welcoming and pleasing to your guests. Let’s start with sight.

From your Suffolk cottage by the Broads National Park or from Clacton on Sea beach - make sure you maximise the view

This might sound a bit ‘old school’ in gadget terms but there is immense pleasure to be had by having a pair of binoculars in your holiday home. Gaze out to sea, stare up at the stars, or become a birdwatcher. Being able to take a closer look, and learn a bit more about your surroundings is a simple but exciting thing to do.

There is a huge range of binoculars available. Top brands to look out for include Nikon, Pentax and Celestron. Avalon is another name, often associated with bird watching. There’s a bit of science attached to choosing binoculars. You need to think about weight, magnification and other factors such as do you wear glasses. You’ll find no shortage of advice and guidance online.

You could consider a telescope too. They’re no longer leather and brass bound sailing antiques involving cries of ‘Thar she blows’. They’re sophisticated optical devices. There are Monucular’s as well. Optical instruments for viewing distant objects with one eye. Just saying and a pair of binoculars or a telescope is a really great thing to have in your holiday home if you let it out. People love finding them there. Let’s move on to sound.

Image: A Smart speaker is the new must have gadget for your holiday home!

Make music in your Mablethorpe caravan and summon up sounds in your Suffolk holiday home

Gone are the days of dragging a box load of cd’s to your holiday home. No longer do you have to stack a selection of discs in your static caravan. Embrace the technology and think about Smart Speakers. We’re increasingly used to telling Alexa to play our favourite tunes when we’re at home, but think about how cool it would be to have a Smart Speaker in your holiday home. ‘Other brands are available’ as they say, so it doesn’t have to be Alexa. Check out the likes of Sonos, Bose, Roberts and - inevitably - Apple.

Think too about Bluetooth and Wi-Fi speakers. Not only are they a great way to immerse yourself in sounds, they make a lot pf practical sense. By definition they’re ‘wireless’ so you’re rid of that whole cables and tangles thing. And, for visiting guests and holiday lets, they’re a real bonus for tuning in to sounds on smart phones and other devices. Now come the smells. And the taste. At the same time!

Image: Coffee shop style coffee for your holiday home!

Be a barista in Broadlands Park, create a latte in the Lincolnshire Wolds

Coffee. Is there any better early morning smell? Is there a better taste to kick start a day? It’s an ancient beverage but the 21st century has brought us more, and better, ways to brew a cup than ever before. When it comes to coffee making kit the choice covers everything from a stove top pot, up through cafetiere’s, to percolators and beyond. And it’s beyond where we want to go. Treat yourself and your holiday home to some coffee shop style. Hear that hiss. Smell that coffee. Get ready for the taste.

Brands like Breville offer ‘one touch’ coffee house style machines. Or you could go full on Italian with a machine from legendary Milanese makers Gaggia.

Putting coffee making kit into your holiday home is a very good move. It’s a sociable thing to do. People like gathering around and waiting while you work the magic. It’s a pretty sophisticated thing to find if you’ve rented the holiday home, so it can only enhance your offering if you want to create some extra income from holiday lets. But when it comes to your own holiday time in your own holiday home, what can we say? Wake up and smell the coffee sums it up. And then comes touch.

Image: Did we turn that iron off in our caravan holiday home? Fear no longer…. with smart switches

From Teesside to Suffolk to Essex, holiday homes by the sea are getting smarter

One of the absolute best things about having a uk holiday home by the sea is that you’re there. By the sea. So you can take a short walk to spend a long day on the beach or strolling around. But, and this is a but you’ll recognise, how many idyllic days out have you ruined because you’ve been worrying about an appliance you may have left switched on? ‘Did I turn the iron off?’ Yes. That one! Try a Smart Switch. Now, with these very clever plugs, you can check on appliances, when you’re out, with a simple touch (see what we did there?) on your smart phone. Samsung is a good starting place. Smart technology like this is something else that works well when you’re letting your property out too.

There’s a host of other gadgets that make holiday home sense. Electric fans, an air conditioner, games consoles and even Smart Sensors (did somebody leave a window open?) all add to the experience by giving you things to enjoy, or by providing more convenience and peace of mind. Some of you might want to go on holiday to release your inner geek. That’s fine. Surround yourself with gadgets. Enjoy. Others of you might just be looking for the easy life; seeking out ways to savour the sights and sounds of holiday time at a slower pace. That’s cool too. Either way, some technology driven treats for the senses make a lot of sense. (We did it again didn’t we? Sorry….)