Caravan campsites in United Kingdom with climbing

Misty highlands, rugged sea-cliffs, and idyllic villages await campers in the UK's four nations.

91% (1060 reviews)
91% (1060 reviews)

Popular camping styles for United Kingdom

Dog-friendly getaways

Star Hosts in United Kingdom

12 top caravan sites in United Kingdom with climbing

100%
(5)

Waunbayvil Camping

29 units · Glamping, Motorhomes, Tents40 acres · Crymych, Wales
Waunbayvil wild camping. A teeny pop up campsite for private groups of up to 10 people only .With just 5 pitches . Come alone or bring friends and family. Just 10 mins drive from the sea at Ceibwr on the Pembrokeshire coast. The space Waunbayvil camping is set in its own secluded spot on 40 acres of private wildland and woodlands in the Pembrokeshire national Park, with a pond and views of the stunning landscape. It is the perfect getaway, a place to re-connect with nature and your loved ones in the most peaceful place away from it all. This is not a big campsite with lots of other people, you can book the whole campsite for a private group, or otherwise, only 2 or 3 families very spread out at a time. The pitches are set out with plenty of space in between. There is parking for cars or campervans, and the camping area itself is not accessible for vehicles, making it a lovely car free space with nothing but nature all around you. You will need to carry tents and equipment up to the camping area., only around 100m from the parking area. (We have a wheel barrow for you to use)We also have a small hard standing area for campervan. There is a compost loo, a washing up area, and an off grid shower shack. It is set in the most beautiful surroundings, teaming with wild life and filled with wild orchids and many different species of grasses and wildflowers. It is unique and a treat for people who love natural habitat. The sea is about two miles away where there are spectacular cliff walks for many miles on the Pembrokeshire coast path, and beautiful beaches for swimming. Bring logs and kindling with you. (Can be bought from any garage) If you bring a cool box we can top you up with frozen ice packs. Just ask. NO LOUD PARTIES Guest access Acres of land and woodland, kitchen shack, compost loo, shower hut, pond. Other things to note 40 acres of meadows, wildlife habitat and woods which guests are welcome to roam. You can walk down the track and visit the artists gallery and shop in the big blue barn. "A great site for those who like to be on their own in the wilds but with all essential facilities provided and well designed. Great way to enjoy easy access to some of the best coast line in Britain . Amazing art work too!" Jenny
Pets
Potable water
Campfires
Showers
Trash
from 
£30
 / night
Booked 4 times

Shirleywich farm holidays camping

26 units · Motorhomes, Tents7 acres · Uttoxeter, Staffordshire, West Midlands
7 acre private field for hire, great access from main road, ideal for campers, Motorhome or caravans, set in an additional 17acres, with stream, and access to the Trent and Mersey canal towe path walks with fishing access. Parking on site, private hire or shared separate plots, Maximum 3 caravans or Motorhomes at one time, with additional tents. Prices start from £19 per day, for Upto 1 structures 4 guests max or Motorhomes, pop up camping or Motorhome, toilet hire included, lots of local amenities. Minimum 1 day stay. Extra car £5 Extra pup tent pet £5 Extra awning £5 Wood bags £10 Free fire pit Rachael 07837654508 We are pleased to offer our pop up camping Motorhome and caravan field set in the beautiful fields of 7.5 acres with access and parking from the main road, set in our 17.5 acre private site, Bring your own tent! Or Motorhome - pop up / no frills camping optional barn hire at Shirleywich holidays fully- booked until September! We are pleased to offer for rental our 7 acre pop up camping field adjacent to our restored barn Complex, Dating back to 1604 set in 17 acres with canal and country field views. our beautiful complex is nested in a conservation area and consists of a Georgian farm house, 5 beautiful barn conversions, set in 17.5 acres land which runs to the canal and with ample, riding, our spot has many attractions, and offers a beautiful setting for private camping or teepees, caravans and motorhomes. we welcome any type of structures, and offer field only Private rental tents, Motorhome Or caravans towed. We offer a special rate for weekly or fortnightly as well as for monthly longer stays. We offer a low key private no frills site, with the option to have On site chemical toilet No shower or water facilities Bottled water provided Pit fires provided Optional wood purchase available Parking gates fenced over looking horse fields with canal access for fishing, canoe launch or kayak. Pets welcome On site fire pit, Attraction pack, gardening boxes, hamper can be included. In high demand new for 2024 Large groups welcome for private hire Locally sourced hamper Free fishing at canal access and pets at £5 per pet Please pick up any dog mess Please take your rubbish with you if the waste bins are full. Green and blue bins provided There's certainly ample space for family stays at Shirleywich Farm Holidays, where seven out of the site's 17 acres have been turned over to folks looking to pitch up – that's about 41% of the total, or just over five football pitches if sporting analogies speak to you more than figures do. Whichever way you run the numbers, this easily accessed site equals one stonkingly good spot for varied Staffordshire stints. Shirleywich Farm Holidays is a secure site, accessed via a lockable gate, and is just off the A51. These grounds are kept in tiptop shape by the site crew, who ensure the hedgerows are neat and the field in good condition. Also around are five old barns and a handsome farmhouse dating back to the 1600s. Pets large (horses) and less large (dogs) are welcome here, with lots of bridleways and pup-friendly paths on hand in the nearby Cannock Chase Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The facilities here are on the low-key end of the spectrum: there's a gravel amenities area with a portable toilet, toiletry supplies and a chemical disposal point. Bring bikes, canoes and fishing rods along to Shirleywich Farm Holidays – the adjacent Trent and Mersey canal towpath and the river Trent, a few metres further away, should sort you out with bags of opportunities to put all three to use. Heading south along the water's edge, you'll soon reach Great Haywood, a village a couple of miles downstream where there's an independent café and small supermarket (five minutes' drive). Please see below more information on our site and barns, we currently have 5 star reviews and are super host status. We have the Stables sleeps 6-8 please see other listing and below THE SMITHY, Dating back to 1604 , history buffs can research the property and see the local sign at the rear of the site by the canal, which tells of the life of shirleywich farm over its many decades, our beautiful complex is nested in a conservation area and consists of a large double fronted Georgian farm house, 5 beautiful barn conversions, set in 17.5 acres of our own private land which runs to the Trent and mersey canal at the rear, and with ample, epic safe riding and hacking galore, our spot has many attractions, for anyone who wants to bring a horse or 2, with grazing and stabling available, pets are welcome as we are a farm with horses and dogs of our own. you are welcome to bring fishing, bikes, canoes etc,,, to take advantage of the spot and the canal at the rear, or a short trip to the river Trent down the wonderful private Trent drive which leads to ingestre and one of the worlds top riding stables, a short walk further brings you to the ingestre golf club, and then off onto the delights of shugborough hall, and Cannock chase, national heritage forest. Ideal for walkers, bikers, riders, or anyone who wants a break away in the beautiful English countryside, we are surrounded with fields, and countryside so you will not be disserpointed, excellent road connections to many neighbouring towns and heres just a few of the local attractions listed below, so if you are wanting a break away to relax or an adrenaline fun filled adventure holiday theres plenty to fill your boots with, from fine dining and spas, to zip wires and hardcore mountain bike trails, horse riding to hot air balloons, narrowboat trips to family days out, you will not be board unless you decide to, and appreciate the calm tranquility of our unique complex.
Pets
Campfires
from 
£15
 / night

Under £50

Available this weekend

Value Prop
Value Prop
Happy farmer sitting in a truck in a grassy field
Happy farmer sitting in a truck in a grassy field

Caravan campsites in United Kingdom with climbing guide

Overview

From tent-only campsites in the Scottish Highlands to campervan-friendly campsites on the Cornish coast, the United Kingdom is a beautiful and varied landscape. And, when it comes to camping, the difference between pitching your tent at one campsite and parking your campervan at another can be extreme. The one thing that we know, however, is whether it’s a tiny, tents-only getaway on a Scottish island or a mountain glamping retreat in the Welsh Hills, our recommendations are all checked, approved and recommended as some of the very best places you can stay. Camping in the UK is fun and suits every type of camper—think glamping sites dotted with tipis, yurts, or bell tents; a treehouse getaway in the heart of the forest; or family-friendly holiday parks with a sea view. Showers are a mainstay of the British weather, but camping and outdoor adventures are still possible year-round. Take your pick from the nations—England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland—to explore the lakelands, moorlands, and woodlands, where the landscapes transform with the seasons. Browse our collection of the best campsites in the UK, then simply pick your favourite UK campsite, book online, pack the car and head on your UK camping holiday.

The best campsites in the UK

We’ve toured the UK by bike, car, campervan and everything in between to discover the very best campsites out there. We don’t go doing it with any specific criteria at hand—we’re not looking for a strict number of facilities or a certain number of stars—we’re more interested in the atmosphere of the campsite, the friendliness of the owners and the all-round camping experience. Put simply, we look for the very best campsites in the UK and, if we love them, we recommend them.

This collection brings together what we feel are the very best campsites in the UK. Forget noisy holiday parks and big waves of caravans and instead think of independently run, friendly farm campsites where campfires are permitted, tents reign supreme and children can make new friends in the long wild grass of the camping meadow. If you’re planning a camping holiday in the UK, then you’ve come to the right place.

In England, we took our trusty VW campervan Tallulah and hit the roads in Cornwall, taking in some of the best seaside campsites around before packing our tent and venturing into Devon and beyond into the rest of South West England. Meanwhile, more of the team has explored the countryside of the South East, the rolling down lands where sheep farmers have turned fields into superb summer campsites and foodie adventurers have planted vineyards or apple orchards. Across the border, Wales has become one of the most popular UK destinations for camping, the mighty mountains of Snowdonia set in contrast to the dramatic coastline around Pembrokeshire where eco-friendly campsites have opened in their dozens in recent years, offering smaller places to pitch your tent and enjoy the seaside.

In Scotland, space is never at a premium and campsites can generally be booked at slightly shorter notice. Nevertheless, our journeys here have taken us from busy campsites at the foot of Ben Nevis to truly hidden treasures on the Orkney Isles or out on the Outer Hebrides. South of the border, the north of England also has scenery to match, whether it’s the waters and peaks of the Lake District or the glorious Yorkshire Dales. The Yorkshire coast is a particularly fond spot of ours too, quieter than the UK coast further south but just as spectacular.

Tent camping in the UK

While fun-filled holiday parks with music nights, late night bars and indoor swimming pools all have their time and place, we prefer to focus on the other side of camping. That’s campsites on farms, country estates and in private meadows; independently run campsites where you meet the owner on arrival, not just a member of staff and you really get to camp amongst nature.

Many of our UK campsites are for tents only, with no caravans permitted. Most, however, do allow campervans—especially smaller campervans like VWs—to pitch up, and some welcome campervans, motorhomes, caravans and trailer tents as well. It all depends on what kind of campsite you're looking for.

You can’t beat proper camping in a tent. Arriving, setting up the tent, trying to find the right poles, bending a peg or two...it’s all part of the fun of camping. A family trial that brings everyone together. And, once it’s up, there’s something about the impermanence of a tent that gives you that extra closeness to nature—the idea that you are temporarily encroaching on a wild environment, not that it is encroaching on you. With a campfire going, children making new friends and the sun setting, you realise that taking a tent and camping the good ol’ fashioned way is just as exciting as it ever was.

The UK's most popular camping regions

Unsurprisingly, there is no one single place in the UK that we can pick as the very best place to go on a camping holiday. Campsites, of course, each have their own individual merits, as do the regions of the UK and Britain. Campsites in Scotland are touch to compare with those in the south of England, for example, and the landscapes of Wales, England and Scotland are all beautiful but very different.

So what do the stats show? Where are the most popular camping destinations? Which UK campsites are most campers heading to these days?

For the most part, the South West of England is undoubtedly one of the most popular camping destinations. It has one of the highest number of online searches of any region and, when summer rolls around each year, campers in their droves line up to drive to the Cornish coast, to Devon and to Dorset to pick their way along sandy beaches or walk the coastal paths. While reliable summer weather (reliable for the UK, at least) and miles of coastline give an obvious appeal, the south west is quieter during the winter season when some campsites are still open for business and many UK glamping sites are also welcoming visitors all year round. Further north, the mountainous regions of England and particularly the national parks, also attract some of the highest number of campers. The Lake District remains one of the most popular areas of hills, while the Peak District National Park has speedier access for those in the well-populated south east of England, who also tend to camp close to home in campsites around London or in more local national parks such as the South Downs or the New Forest.

In Wales, the mountains of the Brecon Beacons are a popular highlight in the south, while Snowdonia dominates the north. The latter also gives rise to a dramatic coastline where mountains plunge into the sea, while Pembrokeshire and places like the Gower are arguably the most popular coastal spots. For real seclusion, the best bet is sometimes to retreat slightly inland and find smaller farm campsites, where a real rural location lends a quieter, less crowded feel in the height of summer.

In Scotland, discerning the most popular camping holiday destinations isn’t easy. The freedom of wild camping and the popularity of freely moving by campervan or motorhome makes the whole country, rather than any one region, a camping haven. Road-tripping through Scotland is hugely popular and the north west of the country is considered one of the most popular areas for this. Taking in the Isle of Skye and some of the remote peninsulas in the west is a real highlight, then catching the ferry and hopping between islands off the western coast. National parks like the Cairngorms are popular with hikers and Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park lends itself to watersports enthusiasts too. Of course, highly populated regions like Glasgow and Edinburgh mean local camping for city dwellers is also popular, with campsites nearby for those who only want the shortest of short breaks.

Camping on the UK coast

Ah yes, what a joy it is to live on an island. One of the best things about Britain being and island nation is that, wherever you live in Britain and, indeed in the UK, you are never more than 70-odd miles from the seaside. Our coastline is twice as long as Spain’s and three times that of France and, when it comes to coastal camping, we really are well and truly blessed with some of the best seaside sites that Europe has to offer. In fact, seaside camping in this country is so good that, in 2018, we even went ahead and wrote an entire guidebook about it – Hipcamp Coast – which, really, was just a good excuse for us to do yet more exploring around the coastline of Britain. Those fish and chips won’t eat themselves.

Camping on the UK coast isn’t just about the mainland either. We’re blessed with a number of smaller islands off our coastline, whether it’s the almost tropical feel of the Isles of Scilly off of Cornwall or the wind swept islands off the coast of Western Scotland. The Isle of Wight in the south is particular popular with summer holiday makers and hosts a number of music festivals each year, while, for a really remote escape, we also recommend some incredible campsites on the Orkney Islands.

For the best seaside campsites we’ve already put together a dedicated online guide and there are heaps of seaside glamping options too. So whether it’s the North Norfolk coast or a family trip to Pembrokeshire, we’re bound to know of a campsite that’s right for your holiday.

Wild camping in the UK

Wild camping – pitching your tent in an area that is not an official campsite – is not a public right in the UK and the rules and regulations on wild camping will vary depending on where you are. In much of Scotland, for example, wild camping is legal and permitted, while in almost all of England, wild camping is not allowed. To a certain extent, the laws on wild camping are a technicality. After all, the etiquette of wild camping – that you will be unobtrusive, unheard and leave no trace – mean that, if you do it properly, no one will ever know you were there.

From a legal point of view, we always recommend checking the laws within the area you want to go camping to make sure you’re doing things right! A handful of well known places do allow wild camping – Dartmoor National Park is a popular wild camping spot in the South West and wild camping is always popular in Scotland (though recently some national parks have banned wild camping in certain areas). Your best bet is to check before you go and, if you do wild camp, always follow the wild camping code of conduct. For more information, there are plenty of wild camping blogs and advice pages on our website.

If you love the idea of wild camping but are worried about the laws or don’t want the stress associated with being truly ‘wild’ then there are plenty of almost wild campsites out there that offer a back-to-basics camping experience but still with the security of a proper campsite. Check out our almost wild camping guide for a full collection of campsites where things like showers and proper flushing loos aren’t important and getting back to nature is the name of the game.

Where to go

Where to Go

North England

Rolling green hills, glassy lakes, and windswept heathlands await campers in the north of England. Pitch your tent by the lakeside in the Lake District National Park, where you can hike Wordsworth’s walks, enjoy kayaking or paddleboarding on the lakes, then drink a beer with the locals in a traditional country pub. Further north, the North York Moors are blanketed with purple heather through the summer months, while the woodlands of the Yorkshire Dales dazzle with red and orange leaves come fall.  

South England

From the pretty stone villages of the Cotswolds to the lively beach resorts of Brighton and Devon, the south is home to some of the most picturesque UK campsites. Southeast of London, the verdant countryside of Kent is the destination-of-choice for glampers escaping urban life, while woodland walks and caravan parks are found throughout the New Forest National Park. To the west, the wind-beaten coastline and surf beaches of Dorset and Cornwall provide a dramatic backdrop for summer camping.  

Scotland

Scotland’s rugged highlands and mist-shrouded lochs are beloved by hikers, and you can enjoy everything from short walks to epic long-distance trails. Head to the Cairngorms, the UK’s largest national park, to hike and camp in summer, or hit the ski slopes, then cozy up with a haggis dinner in the winter months. Intrepid campers can spend a night in a remote shepherd’s hut, check into a glampsite with a hot tub, or even go wild camping—Scotland is the only place in the UK where it’s permitted.

Wales

Don’t be fooled by its small size—Wales offers plenty of opportunities for adventure. Hike between sandy beaches and soaring sea cliffs along the Wales Coast Path, try surfing or coasteering along the Pembrokeshire coast, or explore the Snowdonia and Brecon Beacons national parks. Hire a campervan or motorhome, and you can easily hop between city, beach, and countryside all in one day. 

Northern Ireland

A short flight or ferry ride from the mainland, the UK’s smallest country has medieval castles, ancient forests, and jaw-dropping coastal panoramas. Take a road trip along the Causeway Coastal Route, stopping to marvel at the Giant's Causeway, or visit Game of Thrones filming sites. Camping and glamping sites are plentiful, whether you choose to bring your own tent, hire a caravan or motorhome, or even check into a holiday park with a swimming pool. 

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