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In a bit of a catch 22 i think. Me and Mrs Blackflag enjoy camping but find the whole "other people and their noise" seriously off putting. The obvious answer is to wild camp but we enjoy our "stand up in it" tent and Alpkit Dozer mattresses, so need to use the car to get to the site, so that pretty much puts us back at looking at proper camp sites.
So how do you find a quiet one? They all claim to be, but then you find yourself next to a group with a cooler full of beers and feral kids who are up till 2am talking crap. So whats the secret to avoiding this? is it even possible?
The obvious ones would be to steer clear of larger sites, school holidays, weekends etc. But what else? Does going to a Caravan Club site help? Or one of those many "nearly wild camping" type apps?
Maybe its just not for me. Im fully aware of how misanthropic this post makes me sound 😉
Go mid week in October. Preferably when it's raining. I know of no other way.
Find a campsite that has a minimum age? One of ours isnt a remote location at all but doesnt allow young kids, no powered sites and a fairly large pitch spacing as its in a wildflower meadow. Knepp Wildland if your in the SE.
Has the benefit of 2 really good pubs within walking distance and also contributes to a really awesome and important conservation project.
Go to quiet places; like f'rinstance we've camped in lovely sites in the middle of Herefordshire, Worcestershire, Staffordshire, Oxfordshire. You don't have to go to 'obvious' places to be surrounded by beautiful countryside, because that's what most of this whole country is comprised of.
Generally the more basic the facilities the quieter it'll be.
Not a guarantee, but if it has lots of facilities, a pool, kids play area, bar/restaurant, etc. Then it'll attract a certain type.
Also I prefer the type of site where you pitch up wherever there's a space, rather than being told where to pitch. Means you can choose a quieter spot.
Two best of this type I've stayed at recently are Tom's Field near Swanage, and Mount Folly Farm in Bigbury.
They all claim to be, but then you find yourself next to a group with a cooler full of beers and feral kids who are up till 2am talking crap.
Report them to the police for loitering with intent
1. out of season. Especially to the continent.
2. When the weather is crap
3. Sites where the owner is a head torch noise rule enforcement nazi
4. Deal with it
You could ask the campsite their policy on noise & how they enforce it.
We stayed at https://www.karrageen.co.uk near Hope Cove, Devon a few years back, the group next to us ignored the curfew on noise and were chatting loudly into the night despite one of our group & the owners going over and asking them to pipe down. The next morning the owner came over and told them to leave.
Park4Night app
Bed and Breakfasts.
Your chances of finding a quiet campsite at the moment?
Zero
Ear plugs for sleeping. I take them everywhere.
nope, I am exactly the same. Only book a site if I'm sure it's going to be a quiet one! Smaller, definitely not Caravan Club ones (tend to attract noisy families!), no facilities bar toilets/showers. Ideally in the middle of nowhere too... there's one near me, not been to it yet but on my list, accessible only by foot/bike (nearest car park 1.5 miles away) only 10 pitches I think & no group bookings!Maybe its just not for me. Im fully aware of how misanthropic this post makes me sound
Obviously avoid school holidays & even weekends if you can 😂
Actually I said smaller, but I meant less dense. If it's really spread out, it's generally ok, especially if it's "zoned" as well e.g. some woodland or tree-y areas which really soak up the noise rather than just having a single vast field! We went to a big caravan-club style one on Anglesea but they had a really quiet woodland area at the back where they stuck us, it was just us & the red squirrel, amazing! Woodland campsites are just great generally, tbh!
good idea. There's a nice site near me, has a no music policy etc and generally people respect it. But it's a part-time site & staffed entirely by late teens kids who are great but wouldn't say boo to a goose so if people want to break the rules they can do so with impunity! Whereas I've been to a few sites run by hard-as-nails farmers, you wouldn't dare mess around 😂You could ask the campsite their policy on noise & how they enforce it.
also, this.Ear plugs for sleeping. I take them everywhere.
It’s it going to happen at the minute.
I don't find kids much of an issue it's adult groups getting drunk and being loud past midnight. Some sites have clear rules about noise past 11pm or so but doesn't always stop folk. I blame festival camping, where this kind of behavior is normal, for ruining it for the rest of us.
Same issue here. Kids don't tend to be the issue - it's the feral parents who're noisy into the small hours that piss me off.
We've just sold our caravan and bought a big tent, so putting more effort in finding quiet campsites than before. With the caravan we did find the smaller CAMC sites tended to be quieter/less full of selfish twunts on average, but many/most of them don't take tents.
Same mind set as yourself.
One thing that help imo is sites that require you to park different to where you pitch your tent.
This stops the engine running crowd, reduces the Bluetooth speaker crown and stops the lazy crowd.
Most places like this have wheelbarrows to move your kit from car to camp.
We have a few site that we like but one thing I find suppressing is how hard it is to find site like this in Scotland. Yes I know wild camping but with a family I want to be able to leave tent up, basic facilities etc.
I've used www.campingunplugged.com sites many times in the past.
As recently as last week I took the kids and had a quiet time; always surprises me, especially when you consider it's only about an hours drive from that London.
The sites are in Hampshire, and you can get onto the Wayfarers Way for some gravel biking if you like.
Generally the more basic the facilities the quieter it’ll be.
Single worst night camping in my life was at a site like this! Drunk 20 somethings beating the **** out of each other as one sat on the wrong person's lap at 2 am! Ended up with the police being called and one of the vanishing into the night not to be seen of again! It was awful! And the basic toilet facilities didn't make up for it.
Find that places where the host/family live directly on site also help as they won't tollerate the noise. My parents have been avocating us taking our van to the small 5-berth caravan and motorhome club CL sites - yet to be tried.
I am the same and got called a miserable sod as I asked for Adult only sites....
I use uk campsites and filter by adults only, I also pick the more remote on that list.
Park4Night app
he said quiet spots , not dogging spots
Had the same issue before we had kids and I found the solution was to join the Camping Club and use their certified locations. Generally smaller sites with limited facilities but certainly more comfortable than wild camping.
https://www.campingandcaravanningclub.co.uk/ukcampsites/smallsites/
good shout, thinking about it the best/quietest sites I've been on have had this setup!One thing that help imo is sites that require you to park different to where you pitch your tent.
This stops the engine running crowd, reduces the Bluetooth speaker crown and stops the lazy crowd.
Agree that it's drunken, braying adults staying up till 2am+ that are the biggest annoyance, generally kids are knackered out by running around for a few hours and don't stay up that late!
Join the camping club and use their certificated sites. No more than 5 units - usually on a farm with a look and a tap - what else do you need?
kids are knackered out by running around for a few hours and don’t stay up that late!
Yeah, I'm usually more concerned about trying to get our sprogs to STFU when they wake up too early.
Find a forum member with "farmer" in their user name and ask them if they mind you camping on their flat field next to the river with a composting toilet and firepit in the middle of the Brecon Beacons national park. You may be surprised and end up with exclusive use (maybe some sheep!). 😉
Just not the August bank hoilday WE as I have a group in already.
This, last night, is the secret.
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I've pretty much given up on campsites, with one very discreet exception in the Marches that is unfortunately closed at present because the elderly wardens are understandably cautious given current conditions.
There are also a couple of sites that I've used for years; no longer taking tents, converting everything to hard stands because they were fed up with feral pikey families, but they let me stay and use the facilities when I rock up on a bike.
Ear plugs for sleeping. I take them everywhere.
This. Sometimes it's just going to be the luck of the draw and you are just going to have to deal with it.
I also highly recommend what welshfarmer said! (Hi welshfarmer)
Binners, that's one of our favourites also. Very sad.
Many sites at present are doing reduced residency bookings which hopefully helps.
I think next year is probably going to be just as bad as this year, as given the shambles of quarantine etc. Many people won't countenance going abroad next year or until things are resolved.
Find a forum member with “farmer” in their user name and ask them if they mind you camping on their flat field next to the river with a composting toilet and firepit in the middle of the Brecon Beacons national park. You may be surprised and end up with exclusive use (maybe some sheep!). 😉
Makes a mental note of this 🙂
Experience, IME 😉
But even so, not all have remained quiet over the years. Things have changed, especially with the recent anti-EU/pro-pandemic situation among the fake-tan brigade.
My best bet these days (have given it a miss this last year for the first time ever) would be an autumn camp and revisit old quiet farmsites and agreed ‘wild’ camps that I found years ago. It helps if you aren’t seeking out notable beauty spots
One of our favourites I found a few years back simply by asking in a local pub while returning from a family visit. I wanted to check out my new (to me) tent so chose a quiet village and asked around. Turned out it had a Caravan Club site and only allows a few caravans/tents . I checked in and pitched by a river with the place to myself. This was September/October IIRC. Have since returned in May/June and had glorious two weeks of blissful peace there, along with a handful of quiet campers (some of whom are now good friends and have shared with us other similar sites)
Biggest tip: Set out to find somewhere to enjoy camping. Sounds obvious but this is what I mean:
If you set out to find somewhere to camp anywhere nearby a tourist trap then you’ll miss that little field by the river, nr the village of Nowhereley or Otherington. You’ll miss a place that feels miles from home yet is only an hour away from your door.
I look for somewhere with the plan to stay on site most of the time, cooking, wildlife-watching, reading books, sunbathing, messing around with tent stuff/improving the pitch/setup/maintenance, driving out for a daytrip, return with a takeout curry.
Tourist traps IME are better for an out of season day trip/overnight bnb or not at all. Camping IME is best for wild camping/outdoor activities or a getawayfromitall - which often means going somewhere ‘dead’. When the tent is pitched and the sun rises next morning, you realise that the luxury of having nowhere to go (except by foot to the local village, footpaths etc) is luckily for you thought not so much of a ‘luxury‘ by the thousands who prefer to be sardines paying through the nose at packed site within driving distance of The Giant Parrot Park or whatever.
I am Keith Pratt and I’ll keep that fiver thanks.
Going by my recent experience, choosing a static caravan park with a camping field works a treat. It's basically a pensioners summer retreat. Some loud teenagers turned up and within 30 minutes had some of the regulars round at their tent telling them to be quiet. They calmed down but still I woke up in the morning and they were gone, we concluded they must have been kicked off!
This is at st bees head. Wouldn't recommend it as they did a shit job of camping provision but it was certainly quiet...
There are different kinds of campsites.
1. Loads of amenities, fancy shower blocks, marked out pitches - usually busy but well spaced out and sometimes loud but usually have strict policies which can be policed.
2. Large fields near seaside areas with loads of people packed in, these can be noisy too.
3. Large fields in the hills with fewer people packed in, sometimes a shower block sometimes not - usually decent due to the space but sometimes noisy.
4. Small fields way out in the countryside, only a few people, usually cheap, sometimes rudimentary facilities sometimes nothing.
Choose the small ones and you'll be guaranteed a quiet stay. Finding them is easy if you are a member of the Caravan and Camping club (or Caravan and Motorhome club if you aren't tent camping) as they call them Certified Sites, they are limited to 5 caravans/tents and they are cheap. This is the reason we joined the CAMC incidentally.
However you can also stay on independent ones like the one in the pic. Just pick a quiet out-of-the-way area on Google Maps and type 'campsite' into the search. You can then switch to satellite view to see if it's a canvas megalopolis or a field with a tap or whatever inbetween.
The small ones are usually £10-15/night rather than £45 too, which really helps.
The Camping & Caravanning Club is also worth joining if you go to Europe usually as you get reductions on ferries and the Channel Tunnel. We often stay on their Certificated sites - as above, small sites that are fairly basic but quiet.
FYI, the Caravan and Motorhome Club used to be called The Caravan Club. They changed their name due to an image problem as they were seen as being very snooty, unfriendly and site wardens were little Hitlers. This is a generalisation but there is some truth in it.
Not advertising it on the internet when you find one.
So, this thing about empty campsites - in my (quite limited) experience - I've found it doesn't really matter how few people there are in the campsite, whereever you erm camp, the next JOLLy, FRIENDLY, LOVELY CAMPER type family will drive up and park (I meam camp) right next to you so that they have a FWEND for the week. And continue to point out in a JOLLY FRIENDLY lovely way how you're not as experienced at camping as them because, I dunno they watch every bloody thing you do and have nothing better to do than to talk to people who are actually trying to get away from pests like them..?! Just me?
Just me?
I've never experienced that thankfully.
I’ve found the below really good indicators by accident when on the road with biking friends that don’t like hotels.
Never actually looked for a quiet campsite but the below seem to offer that alongside last minute availability.
* Mostly used by camper van people with just a few tent spots.
* No playground, bar or restaurant. Maybe a shack selling crisps and water with really odd opening times.
* Slightly more expensive than others.
* Long list of off putting / unclear rules.
* Nowhere near public transport or walkable to anything.
* Requires some kind of random unfashionable membership that usually costs just a few pounds a year.
The above makes interesting reading because, over here at least, any Brit families who pitch up are always quiet and it's the Spanish who are doing noisy sobremesa until 1.30am - with zero thought for their through-hiking neighbours sleeping under tarps who've got a 5am start.
Pity about the quarantine OP but if you are in the southern half of the country, nipping over the channel is worth it because French sites are usually dead by 11pm - moreso in the last week of August.
Join the camping club and use their certificated sites. No more than 5 units – usually on a farm with a look and a tap – what else do you need?
Be aware that certificated sites often don't have loos, just a disposal site. Good for self-contained vans and caravans, though
Be aware that certificated sites often don’t have loos
They often do though, and showers, and leccy. You just need to check when you book.
FYI, the Caravan and Motorhome Club used to be called The Caravan Club. They changed their name due to an image problem as they were seen as being very snooty, unfriendly and site wardens were little Hitlers. This is a generalisation but there is some truth in it.
It wasn't just that, it was because motorhomes are now far more popular so they wanted to include them in the brand. But yes, it is full of the kind of caravanners that Top Gear likes to mock and who are quite up themselves. I only use it for access to the CLs but I am considering switching to the caravan and camping club. Although I'd add that the only time I've ever faced grumpy site Hitlers has been on independent sites.
We've been to 2 different campsites this summer, in the lakes, both quite. 1 was the YHA Borrowdale, any sniff of trouble was quickly extinguished, and Lanefoot farm near Bassenthwaite. We walked through the scenes at Stonethwaite site in Borrowdale and it looked horrendous, at least 4 big festival/stag do groups who you could tell would ruin it for everyone. Site has closed down now to focus on the core farming business
So I think they are there, and they are easy to find personally
Following this thread with interest as I’ve a week off in a 3 weeks. Want to escape and want to be as anti social as possible and avoid anywhere with covidtwonks.
Noted Welshfarmers post
Get the Cool Camping book/website. NEVER go to any of the sites in it.
Real shame about Stonethwaite, some great wild swimming spots nearby also 🙁
I tried a campsite for the first time recently.
It was a miserable experience.
The couple in the tent next to me were up at 6 clinking pans and TALKING! AT 6 A.M!!!!
Never again.
Wild camping every time from now on.
Get the Cool Camping book/website. NEVER go to any of the sites in it.
🙂
I found a site near us (Dales) at the back of a pub, with no shower, and the toilet literally inside a tiny shed.
Everywhere else is absolutely heaving, this, for some reason, was lovely and quiet.
So, this thing about empty campsites – in my (quite limited) experience – I’ve found it doesn’t really matter how few people there are in the campsite, wherever you erm camp, the next JOLLy, FRIENDLY, LOVELY CAMPER type family will drive up and park (I meam camp) right next to you
If it ever happened I’ve moved on! Unless they’re awesome people and we’re on the last night/somehow glad of the company.
I usually park the car and pitch tent in a way that might prevent/lessen a close-pitch form whomever. If solo camping then I find the Place Farthest From Amenities and am prepared to move/move-on. It’s rarely been a problem in nearly 40 yrs of camping holidays.
Call me grumpy but I tend not to publicise my favourite quiet sites on forums/social media for the same reason I don’t sit outside the tent blowing the car-horn.
Places with crap/no websites are usually a good shout
Sites that allow Duke of Ed but are far from any pubs are usually good. The kids are so knackered they're asleep by 9pm.
Loads of great advice here. Thanks everyone. Really appreciated.
@BlackFlag - which area are you going to?
Maybe we could recommend some sites via the message facility (to avoid publicity)?
ElShalimo - Thanks. Not sure yet as it more of a general question. Possibly down south / Cornwall or Devon.
I'm not sure south and quiet are going to work so well this year...
Now if you'd said Welsh borders, mid-Wales, Pennines, Eden Valley, Borders and Galloway, there might be a chance of some peace...
What’s the secret to finding quiet campsites?
In most places, turning up with loud kids and/ or walking around very ostentatiously naked normally does it. If it wasn't quiet before you arrived, it will be shortly afterwards
Shropshire's not a very popular county, have a look round there, Much Wenlock area. Loads of lovely countryside but bugger all stuff for tourists to do.
I'm watching this with interest!
Me and the other half have around half a dozen that we use. Some in the lakes are like Glastonbury - Pooley Bridge to be precise... There were adults doing coke in the loos last year! We foxtrot oscard the next day...
Anyway, I digress.... For a campsite, that has a no music policy, no noise after 11pm, no groups, showers and plenty of space with bushes for pitch dividers to help reduce any noise.... What would you be prepared to pay for a night? £30?? Serious question.
Also, no slamming of car doors... Who are these people that are in and out of their cars first thing in a morning? Just leave the door open!!
Also, no slamming of car doors… Who are these people that are in and out of their cars first thing in a morning?
They are very nearly the worst type of people. Nearly up there with the ones that arrive and pitch at 12-1am and leave the engine running with headlights on full beam talking the whole time in the language of fast, semi-hushed arseholery. I wish to burn their stupid tent* in front of their eyes before doing something creative to silence their car. Handbrake off -down slope - hello lake*
*disclaimer: this is merely hyperbole and fantasy. A scintillating, sociopathic fantasy novel in my head, full of thrilling action and dialogue. Put it this way - I understood Keith. I don’t like him at all, yet do wholly sympathise with all of his positions on ‘those people’ 🤣.
https://twitter.com/KeithPrat/status/1266801481178648576
Not sure yet as it more of a general question. Possibly down south / Cornwall or Devon.
I know of a quiet little camping spot in South Hams, Devon. It’s very informal, you turn up, pitch your tent, and stick a tenner in an honesty box for each night you stay. There’s a basic loo block, just two loos with hand basin just inside the entrance, and a short length of hedge dividing it in two. It’s basically the fenced off top of a field, with a view across Start Bay towards Dartmouth. I’d driven down intending to camp at a wild camping spot a friend knew about near East Prawle, but decided to drop into Beesands first for a pint and dinner in the pub, and I spotted the sign for the site just outside Beeson and had a look. I was there for nine days, had a fantastic time.
Shropshire’s not a very popular county
Two of the sample pictures I posted are in Shropshire 🙂
The problem with noisy kids for me is that you can often have the worst of both worlds. The adults are making noise late at night, and then the kids are the tag-team who are up and running around noisily from 6am the next morning.
Sites that allow Duke of Ed but are far from any pubs are usually good. The kids are so knackered they’re asleep by 9pm.
We stopped at a site in Shropshire that had a load of D of E kids turn up.
Heard them complaining to one of the adults with them the next morning that the sheep were to noisy and had kept them awake.
Saw them go into their tents at 7.30 and not come out again at until the morning.😂
@molgrips picture number 3, handy for the bridges?
I hear that's closed down now so no point in anyone going there...
@molgrips picture number 3, handy for the bridges?
Brow Farm campsite near Little Stretton - and yes, that pub is called the Bridges but I'd forgotten that.
Take your bike.
I hear that’s closed down now so no point in anyone going there…
Agreed, Shropshire too. Terrible place the further West you go. Nice around Market Drayton and Adderley etc.
#quietsecretplaces
Get the Cool Camping book/website. NEVER go to any of the sites in it.
I found the site I'm staying at right now a couple years ago on Cool Camping. All I can hear is the river and a bird singing.
Anyway, I digress…. For a campsite, that has a no music policy, no noise after 11pm, no groups, showers and plenty of space with bushes for pitch dividers to help reduce any noise…. What would you be prepared to pay for a night? £30?? Serious question.
Other than the pitch dividers I have that where I am now. It is £8 / night. Who pays £30 / night to go camping? That's insane.
At one campsite where a group of adults in the pitch opposite were still braying loudly at 2am, I found that shouting “F-ing shut up!!!!” worked instantaneously 😆
We had a lovely camp near Monmouth last week, we were booked into Hylands campsite near Trellech, teeny site with only seven pitches but our tents were a bit big for the spot they'd set aside for us in their orchard, so Rob the owner popped us in their overflow field which is owned by a friend of theirs four minutes driva away (I timed it sadly). We had about half a dozen acres with beautiful views from a nice flat pitch at the top of the field and a huge sycamore tree with a rope swing underneath all to ourselves for five days, lovely, good job too as with six kids between us they made quite a bit of noise but there was no one within five hundred yards of us so it was perfect. There was just a portaloo and a tap but we could pop to the main site for showers etc whenever we fancied.
There were also lots of local footpaths for gorgeous walks through beautiful woodlands and a nice pub at the bottom of the hill next to the river Wye if you fancied a paddle.
Camping isn't something to do if you want a quiet night IMO.
If you find an empty site with no other humans around, you can bet there'll be an owl sat in a tree 20ft from your tent all night, or a Fox barking, and the sheep which start Baa'ing to each other at 5am, every. single. day.
Camping & quietness? No chance!!
Adopt the Boris Johnson approach.
Hire a remote cottage somewhere in Scotland where there is no mobile network coverage and loads of midges.
Jump over the fence next to the cottage and erect a tent in an enclosed field without permission. Claim you thought the field was part of the cottage if challenged.
Sit in the tent in your midge net.
Sleep in the cottage overnight.
Go home the next day after the annoyed farmer whose field you used has alerted the media.
Distracting the media by getting your partner to distribute photos of your baby is optional.
'tis a shame the farmer didn't shoot the trespasser!!
Camping & quietness? No chance!!
That’s what earplugs are for! That campsite in the photos above, as can be seen, has a hedge behind my tent, with another along the edge of the field with trees in it. While I was there, the wind was easterly, which meant it was blowing from the far side of the bay, which is unusual, plus it was blowing at about Force 6-7, and I could hear the sea against the beach, as well as the trees and hedge, for all bar one day! My earplugs really came into their own, even more than being at a festival.
Campsite still quiet and the mountains were almost empty today. Saw 6 people in 8 hours 🙂