Campsites in Dumfries and galloway please?

[SheherazadetheGoat]

any recommendations please?

[SheherazadetheGoat]

please!

[midnightexpress]

HI there. I was asking this the other week. Someone recommended Brighouse Bay. The bay itself is lovely - sandy and shallow, so great for kids. We did a drive-trhough of the campsite when we were down there on hols and it's quite big (has swimming pool, shop etc), though not mad busy (this was last week in April, so don't know what it's like in summer). If that's the kind of thing you're looking for it might be quite good. If you do a search you can probably find the thread, there were a few otehr suggestions onthere (I was looking for something a bit smaller).

[PurpleFrog]

We went to Brighouse Bay for 10 days in July 2007. There is lots to do on site - sandy beach, rock pools, putting, pony trekking, nice little swimming pool, bar/restaurant with reasonable meals, golf, fishing ponds, ducks, play area. DP suffers from ME so our plan was to spend every second day on site - there were enough facilities for us to do this and keep dd, then 10, amused. We did have some noisy neighbours at times (we were in a tent), but I suppose that is the luck of the draw. We needed an electric hookup so had limited pitches where we could go. There was a field for tents without electricity where tents were a bit more spaced out.

[midnightexpress]

and it's quite near the ice cream factory (always a plus).

[SheherazadetheGoat]

thanks - i am quite taken with ken loch from the other thread.

any recommendations on things to do and see?

[midnightexpress]

How old are your children? We were down there a few weeks ago with our DSs (3 and 2). They loved the Cream O'Galloway ice cream factory. We didn't do the tour, just the ice cream and the outside play park bit. The rest of the time we mostly spent on beaches - lots of lovely ones to choose from. Kippford and the other place near there I can't remember the name of are pretty villages. There's a nice forest park place at Kirroughtree - it has a playground for wee ones and lots of bike trails for older ones. There's also a bike hire place there where you could rent bikes with the wee trailers to carry litle ones in or with seats on the back for older kids so could easily do that if you're that way inclined.

[SheherazadetheGoat]

dd is 5, icecream place is now top of list. thanks!

[Lucycat]

Was it me that recommended Loch ken - stunnning place, the red kites that you see everywhere are really impressive.

The play area at Cream O' is great for adults too and the Raiders Road Forest Drive through the forest has some lovely picnic spots, there is one place with flat smooth rocks on the Black Waters of Dee that you can cross the river and play - we have swum there in the past.

this photo doesn't really do it justice though

[AitchTwoOh]

omg brighouse bay. we used to go there when i was a kid. LOVED IT. that's a recommendation from my nine-year-old self.

[SheherazadetheGoat]

the guy with the drums is really selling it to me!

yes lucycat it was you who recommended it so thank you.

dh had to listen to his mum telling the story of uncle bill and the quicksand in dumfries and galloway for the zillionth time tonight.

[AitchTwoOh]

omg the quicksand! my nine year old self was petrified.

[SheherazadetheGoat]

so was uncle bill!

[AitchTwoOh]

please tell me that uncle bill's wife isn't called anita or we may be related.

[SheherazadetheGoat]

no not anita and i can't tell you her name as dh is freaked out and made me sign the official secrets act regarding his family and their dull anecdotes

[troutpout]

We were in the area last week
There was quite a nice looking campsite right on the beach at sandyhills near colvend.
Lucycat... Marthamoo and i sat and picnicked on those rocks (by the black waters of dee )last week in the sun...while the kids played
It was absolutely lovely
We cheated and were in lodges ...but it was so lovely (despite stunning lodges) i was missing my tent.

[SheherazadetheGoat]

sandyhills does look lovely!

[fluffles]

this has been done before very recently... my vote is for drumroamin farm..

www.drumroamin.co.uk/

it's camping 'au natural' - lovely showers and washing machine and sinks and freezer for packs but no horrid 'entertainment' just a big field in a beautiful location.

[SheherazadetheGoat]

that is a lovely campsite but dh is still wild with excitement at having a ehu so we might try it out when he calms down or realises we can use gas!

[SheherazadetheGoat]

booked loch ken for this weekend but now thinking i will have to have at least another 2 trips to check out the other sites.

[PurpleFrog]

I'd be interested in your reviews of Loch Ken, as we had thought about that one before booking Brighouse Bay.

I give another vote to Cream O'Galloway. We did the ice-cream tasting and although dd didn't like very many, dp and I thoroughly enjoyed it! She did enjoy the adventure playground, though.

We also went to the small chocolate factory on a wet day where dd got to make various things - really good value.

The David Coulthard museum is also worth a visit if you are a fan.

And the daily red kite feeding at Bellymack Farm is definitely worth a visit. I have never seen so many birds of prey at any one time!

[DeepGoat]

hi, had a fabulous weekend, the raider trail is great so thanks for the recommendations.

loch ken campsite is beautiful, great location and grounds etc great. sadly the facilities were disgusting. they are pretty old which is fine by me but when we arrived they were dirty. i thought fair enough after a day of fishermen etc traipsing round the place but they were not cleaned the whole weekend and by the end i couldn't face showering in there. shop closes too early and opens too late. bit of a shame as it spoils what could be a really special place. having said that i would go back but will be bring by disinfectent wipes!

[DeepGoat]

just to add dumfries and galloway is unbelieveably beautiful. will definitely be going back. lots of buttercup meadows and beautiful rivers to paddle in.

[troutpout]

It is lovely isn't it. The countryside is spectacular.
I didn't want to come home the other week
It's like the tourist 'industry' hasn't quite got there properly. It's so beautiful and unspoilt
....and it's 'cheap'.Entrance fees to things seemed so much cheaper.Parking too. We usually go to cornwall at whitsun and spend a fortune if we go out for the day.
Glad you had a nice time...despite nasty toilets

[Lucycat]

so sorry about the disgusting toilets/showers. We don't use campsites when we are up there as we have friends who have 25 acres near Dalry so we camp next to their burn (early in the season to avoid the midges!)

make sure you submit a review to mn campsite section!

[DeepGoat]

i meant to say something before i left but i was too grumpy. teh shop didn't open until 9 and you need to buy a token to have a shower. so i didn't trust myself to go in unshowered and discuss toilet filth. they seemed really nice. i might phone up and see what they say.

there was so much to do and real adventures to be had with all the rivers and woodland. we saw a swallows nest complete with swallow peering out at us. idyllic.

dh thinks i am hilarious. i used to be all about teh highlands and stomping up hills now i am all about buttercup meadows and national trust gardens.