Campsite Reviews (index)

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andrew_s
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Campsite Reviews (index)

Post by andrew_s »

Campsite Reviews
This thread is intended to replace the 6 campsite review sticky threads by a single thread

Any new campsite reviews should be posted as replies to one of the 6 original review threads (linked at the bottom) or to this thread, and I'll add them to the index in due course. I may not notice any reviews posted anywhere else.
Please try to keep to one campsite per post, at least if the campsites aren't close to each other, or don't have a unifying theme such as "Nantes-Brest Canal".
If there are several sites in one post, at the best the index will show a link to "place1,place2,place3", and at the worst it will show a link to "some places visited in 2014".
Separate posts allows me to add extra location info, such as county, region or department, so that people don't have to keep going to a map.


There are links to the original campsite review sticky threads at the bottom of this post, should you wish to just browse generally rather than having a destination in mind. It's probably better to post new reviews to one of these threads, to group sites for browsing.

Campsite entries are ordered by county (Bucks, Cornwall, Cumbria ... Yorkshire), then placename within county.
Foreign places get the nearest equivalent to a county (eg département for France), should the posts be sufficient to permit it.

England

Scotland

Wales

Ireland
----> Draperstown, Co Derry
----> Rostrevor, Co Down
----> Lough Ennell, Mullingar, Westmeath

Europe

Other sites worth checking:
UKCampsite.co.uk,
Cool Camping
Camping and Caravanning Club (undertake to always find space for cyclists & backpackers, backpacker rate £8-£11 for non members)

Original sticky topics
England, Wales, Scotland, Ireland, Other, Original

And, as a supplement, a list of useful posts:
Camping Too Good to Lose

Andrew
Last updated 22-Sep-2019
Last edited by andrew_s on 23 Apr 2021, 11:01pm, edited 37 times in total.
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andrew_s
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Re: Campsite Reviews (index)

Post by andrew_s »

England index post

Ivinghoe, Bucks (SP950164)
Mawnan Smith, Cornwall
Portreath, Cornwall
Redruth, Cornwall
Carlisle, Cumbria
Castle Wray, Windermere, Cumbria
Kirkby Stephen, Cumbria
Silloth, Cumbria
Edale, Derbyshire (SK124856)
Flagg, Derbyshire
Marchington, Derbyshire
Highampton, Devon
Tavistock, Devon (SX524738)
Corfe Castle, Dorset
Langton Matravers, Dorset
Ashleworth, Gloucestershire (SO802262)
Bourton on the Water, Gloucestershire
Perrots Brook, Cirencester, Gloucestershire (SP020055)
Winchcombe, Gloucestershire (SP052299)
Brockenhurst, Hampshire
Hoarwithy, Herefordshire (SO547292)
Michaelchurch Escley, Herefordshire (SO318340)
Freshwater, Isle of Wight
Forton, Lancashire
Silverdale, Lancashire
Folkingham, Lincolnshire (TF070334)
Cromer, Norfolk (TG259392)
Fritton, Norfolk
Holt, Norfolk (TG116371)
Thetford, Norfolk
Thorpe, Norfolk
Weybourne, Norfolk
Alnwick, Northumberland
Bellingham, Northumberland (NY840832)
Dunstanburgh Castle, Northumberland (NU235213)
Haltwhistle, Northumberland (NY684620)
Kielder, Northumberland (NY627938)
Oxford, Oxfordshire (SP518040)
Bishops Castle, Shropshire (SO324897)
Ironbridge, Shropshire
Bath, Somerset
Cheddar, Somerset
Glastonbury, Somerset
Mark, Somerset
Taunton, Somerset
Penkridge, Staffordshire
Penkridge, Staffordshire
Barningham (near Thetford), Suffolk (TL976754)
Dorking (nr), Surrey
Laleham, nr Staines, Surrey
Shoreham by Sea, East Sussex
Haywards Heath, West Sussex (TQ39230192)
Aston Cantlow, Warwickshire
Stratford on Avon, Warwickshire (SP166537)
Wellesbourne, Warwickshire
Devizes, Wiltshire
Salisbury, Wiltshire (SU141321)
Wilcot (nr Pewsey), Wiltshire (SU142610)
Malvern, Worcestershire
Severn Stoke, Worcestershire (SO864452)
Upton on Severn, Worcestershire
Danby Wiske, Northallerton, Yorkshire (SE337983)
Garton-on-the-Wolds (Driffield), Yorkshire (SE985593)
High Paradise Farm, North Yorks Moors (SW)
Kettlewell, Yorkshire Dales
Robin Hood's Bay, Yorkshire (NZ945057) (site link)
York (SE562506)

Ramsey, Isle of Man (separate on account of not being in England)

Kershopehead bothy, Northumberland (NY544862, about 11km SW of Keilder village - not a campsite)
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Last edited by andrew_s on 28 Aug 2022, 2:16am, edited 59 times in total.
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Re: Campsite Reviews (index)

Post by andrew_s »

Last edited by andrew_s on 26 Jun 2022, 12:44am, edited 13 times in total.
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Re: Campsite Reviews (index)

Post by andrew_s »

Europe index post

Belgium
----> Kemmel, south of Ypres (GPS 50.7854384,2.8186825)
----> Ypres (GPS 50.8469492,2.8974637)

Croatia
----> Dubrovnik

Denmark
----> Rødovre (Hovedstaden), Helsingør (Sjælland), Hundested, Sorø (Sjælland), Odense S (Fyn), Spodsbjerg (Fyn), Guldborg (Sjælland), Stubbekøbing (Sjælland), Stege (Sjælland), Karrebæksminde (Sjælland), Køge (Sjælland)
----> and again???
----> Ribe (Sydjylland)

France
----> Lauterbourg, Bas-Rhin (GPS 48.970064,8.1634799)
----> Chateaulin, Brittany (GPS 48.1875085,-4.0853733)
----> Gouarec, Brittany (bretonbikes) (GPS 48.2255814,-3.1819571)
----> Kerlouen, Brittany (GPS 48.6628095,-4.3770436)
----> Roscoff, Brittany
----> Nantes-Brest canal
----> Alencon, Normandy
----> Argentan, Normandy
----> Boulogne, Pas de Calais
----> Chamonix, St Jean de Sixt, Sallanches, Bonneville

----> Camping Municipaux website
----> Contact for France

Germany
----> Hatterheim (near Mainz) (GPS 50.0127189,8.0653542) (website)
----> Speyer (on Rhine, near Heidelberg) (GPS 49.3810399,8.4808399)
----> Titisee (Black Forest)
----> Trier
----> Mörfelden (Hessen), Bad Dürkheim (Rheinland-Pfalz), Speyer, Stuttgart (Baden), Regensburg-West (Bayern), Nürnberg (Bayern), Rothenburg/Detwang (Bayern), Wertheim/Bestenheid (Baden-Württemberg)
----> Norderney, Harlesiel/Wittmund (Niedersachsen), Brunsbüttel (Schleswig Holstein), Nordstrand, Wittdün auf Amrum, Sylt

Italy
----> Venice, Venice (2)

Netherlands
----> Wassenaar (Zuid-Holland), Alkmaar (Noord-Holland), Harlingen (Friesland), Holwerd (Friesland), Groningen (Groningen)
----> Wassenaar (Den Haag)

Switerland
----> Reinach (Basel), Le Landeron (Neuchâtel), Le Landeron (Neuchâtel), Boltigen (Bern), Interlaken-Ost (Bern), Brienz (Bern), Luzern (Zentralschweiz), Wabern (Bern), Aarburg (Nordwestschweiz)


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Last edited by andrew_s on 29 Aug 2022, 12:43am, edited 30 times in total.
johnb
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Re: Campsite Reviews (index)

Post by johnb »

Andrew, very well done, seems a lot easier to navigate.
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andrew_s
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Re: Campsite Reviews (index)

Post by andrew_s »

Camping Too Good to Lose

Index of such interesting topics as I notice

Camping chairs topic
Collapsible water carriers topic
Sleeping mat topic
Trangia topic
Ultralight panniers (follow links in posts for more)
EasyJet bike & luggage rules, 2013
.
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Penfold
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Re: Campsite Reviews (index)

Post by Penfold »

I have no idea if this is the right place to put this but if not I'm sure someone will move/delete it.

I use this website to search for campsites in the UK and abroad.
You are able to pick your location and find all campsites within a certain radius.
Then there are dozens of reviews by the very people who have visited them.

What can go wrong? Try it or you will never know.

http://www.ukcampsite.co.uk/sites/

Oh, and also this site for travels further from home.

http://www.eurocampings.co.uk/en/europe/
Last edited by Penfold on 26 Apr 2013, 10:01am, edited 1 time in total.
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andrew_s
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Re: Campsite Reviews (index)

Post by andrew_s »

The best campsite in the Aviemore area is the Rothiemurchus campsite at Coylumbridge, about 100m the Aviemore side of the Glenmore/Nethybridge junction.

The tent area is under Scots Pine trees (inhabited by red squirrels), at fairly low density. Capacity is limited by toilet/washroom facilities. At least 2/3 of it is no car access to the tents themselves. Apparently, the camping is about half booked, half first come, though they said they would always find room for cycle campers. Probably space for 40 or 50 tents. Showers are pushbutton, in separate washrooms (shower/toilet/sink, just like your bathroom at home). Cost is £8 low season,£10 high season (solo), with a £10 deposit for the proximity card that allows access to the toilets/shower and lifts the road barrier after hours. A drawback is that you can't reclaim the deposit before 9am, so no early start the last day.
There were midges, but at a pretty low density as the ground under the trees was dry (perhaps a dozen at any one time, rather than thousands).

Aviemore Tesco is 2 miles (off road cycle track to town), no shop on site. There are good cycle tracks in the forests to Glenmore and onwards to Nethybridge, and as far as Feshiebridge in the other direction, so you can do 2 or 3 days worth of cycling without meeting a car (probably).

The campsite at Aviemore itself is mostly for motorhomes & caravans, with a small tent area right next to the A9 (noisy). There's a large campsite at Glenmore (by Loch Morlich). People I spoke to didn't like it (noisy neighbours, midges).

Update: price is £11 for 2014 high season
Apparently there are also pine martens just behind the site. Dog walkers were (when noticed) being warned to keep their dogs on leads - apparently last year someone's terrier had to be put down after tangling with one.
Last edited by andrew_s on 29 Aug 2022, 1:09am, edited 2 times in total.
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Re: Campsite Reviews (index)

Post by Slowroad »

Low Farm Park, Folkingham, Lincolnshire. http://www.lowfarmpark.co.uk/
Straightforward site in very pretty village. Lovely lanes in all directions, undulating arable farmland, lots of old churches. Site has toilets, showers and two washing-up sinks, all nice and clean. There is a field with mainly caravans and large tents, and a field with an orchard area for smaller tents.
Update July 2018 - new owners last autumn - now fees are £16 for solo cycle tourer, same as 2 people and car :-(
Last edited by Slowroad on 29 Jul 2018, 8:47pm, edited 2 times in total.
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pal
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Re: Campsite Reviews (index)

Post by pal »

'Silly Moos' Campsite, nr Ramsey, Isle of Man: http://sillymooscampsite.co.uk/ Simple campsite (just a big, flat field, really), but very well run, and in a nice, quiet location. A couple of toilets/showers (supplemented by portaloos), and a washing-up area: all very clean, with plentiful hot water. One of the barns has been kitted out with picnic tables, a couple of kettles and a toaster, so there's somewhere dry to eat if (when!) the Manx rain comes cascading down. In the summer, there are activities for kids during the day, so there's a bit of noise (on the plus side: there's also a tent selling ice-cream, etc), but everything was very peaceful by the evening. Recommended.
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braz
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Re: Campsite Reviews (index)

Post by braz »

French campsites, anyone?

I've now got over 1000 catalogued, mainly on the route that follows the Nantes-Brest canal, Loire a Velo route, Saone, Rhone, Med, Canal du Midi, Garonne canal, and then back up through Charente, Vendee, and Bretagne again, stating and finishing the ride at Roscoff. (Took me a month to get round the route earlier this year, on my first long ride after a couple of years in hospital - a sort of 'do the ride or die trying' stupid bloody minded thing to do. Still here and typing after over 2,500 miles, which I've now doubled in day rides - so when I do go, I'll go out in a blaze of tyre smoke!).

A mixture of municipal and private camp sites, costing from E3 pppn to over E25 pppn - depends if you want to play crazy golf or not.

I started the task whilst unwell last year, but have now managed to visit over 200 sites this summer - some good, some bad, and some absolutely awful (and those are usually the most expensive, private sites!.)

PM me for further information - replies within a week or so.

regards to all, Braz
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Re: Campsite Reviews (index)

Post by andrew_s »

(June 2007)
1) Lerwick, (Clickimin Leisure Centre at the opposite end of the loch from the broch)
The Lerwick campsite is closing (being built on) Now officially shut
2) Levenwick, by A970 about 10 km N of Sumburgh.
Good flat grass. Handy room in adjacent community hall for laundry, washing & cooking (stoves on draining board), with table & chairs. Someone was meant to turn up between 7 and 8pm to collect payment, but I ended up leaving my £5 in the honesty box. Small shop about 300m down the hill.
3) The Westings Inn, on A971 above Wormadale, about 8km NW of Lerwick.
Camping in pub garden, room for 5 or 6 small tents on flat grass. Pub is GBG listed, does meals. key for after hours access to toilets/shower. Shop about 1.5km (and 100m) down the road to the W.
4) Braewick, on B9078 about 4km short of Esha Ness. Advertised mainly for caravans/motor homes, tents on the grass. Adjacent cafe/restaurant (closes 5pm?) with side door access to toilets/showers. Shower temperatures seemed dodgy if both in use at the same time. No nearby shops.
5) By pier at Easter Skeld (HU312447). In the process of being set up. Looks like good grass area (about 40x20m?). Don't think there's much in the way of nearby shops.
6) Tresta (Fetlar). Exposed hilltop site. Grass OK. Toilet block has wash/laundry room you can cook in. Book in at the shop about 1 km down the road in Houbie (open 1100-1300 except Sunday and Thursday), or knock on house next to shop if closed.
7) Uyeasound, Unst - camping in garden of (independent) youth hostel, with full use of YH facilities. Good grass, but a lot of it isn't level. Nearest shops at Baltasound (8km).

Other places marked with a campsite symbol on the 1:250,000 OS and other maps are "camping bods" - buildings with bunks and other facilities to varying standards. No bedding - sleeping bags required. The one I stayed in (Mid Yell) had 8 bunks, toilet/shower, kitchen sink, table and kettle. 50p in the meter for electricity for light and hot water. Probably should book in advance, but the two I saw had warden's contact details on a card in the window if you hadn't (like me).

Link for more recent info
Last edited by andrew_s on 14 Jul 2017, 7:43pm, edited 6 times in total.
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Re: Campsite Reviews (index)

Post by Weekender »

Lacasdail camp and caravan site on Stornoway. An excellent site with spotless facilities, showers are free and there is a shed type thing for campers with worktops that you can cook in using your own stoves. Bunkhouses with four bunks in each with communal kitchen at £15pppn. Three of us spent three nights there as a base for a cycle around Lewis and found the pricing strange. £9pppn for a backpacker, cost us £81 for three nights with three small tents. Three guys in large tent with landrover parking cost £10 pn + £2.50 pp cost for three nights for them £52.50. Caravan tourer is £10 + £2.50pppn.
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Re: Campsite Reviews (index)

Post by mercalia »

YHA Holmbury St Mary
YHA Tanners Hatch both nr Dorking, Surrey England

Holmbury St Mary
Nice flat stoneless grass "garden" area with tree cover but sky is also visible. I didnt get any tree sap on my tent when I was there August 2013. The garden is big enough not to be troubled by YHA visitors. Can get school parties if you are unlucky. The nice thing about camping at the YHA is that you have access to the other facilities like kitchen and showers for free. Futhermore access is allowed during the day as you are given a pass code. There is a nice forest walk just 1 minute away if u bring a mt bike. I Have stayed here a number of times both camping and in the hostel.There is a pub nr by but shops are about 2 miles away Abinger Hammer. My favourite for having a cheap few days out of London! A good way to "do camping" without the pain lol

Tanners Hatch
The other YHA one is Tanners Hatch.
I have never camped here but have stayed at the hostel many times.
Tanners Hatch is an old game keepers cottage at the edge of the the Polesden Lacey estate ( NT). It is at the edge of woods and accessed by a 1 mile track from the main road or over the fields from a road leading to Polesdan Lacy ( Winter time can be muddy and clog up mudguarded wheels!) They allow camp fires here but not at Holmbury. Camping is in the woods so could be a bit cold as I dont think you'll get much sun.

The notable thing about these camp sites is that they are probably the only two with 20-25 miles of London at a reasonable price. YHA membership means u get a £3 reduction on cost. For places so near to London both are surprizingly secluded. Both are nice places to get away from civilisation by not traveling very far ( if u live in London)


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