Why did no one tell me camping was so noisy?

[MollieO]

First trip. Don't mind people talking but loud music, dropping bottles in to bins etc and road noise.
Just not used to any of that really and its putting me off.

Where can I go in the South East that is not near noisy roads and is known for being quiet?

[SammyK]

I guess it depends on the site, we go to one where the club house is a good way from the tent field so on a night fairly quiet.

I found the noisiest experience was rain - no one warned me how loud rain sounds when you are sat in your tent, even a shower sounds noisy.

I find the trick is to wear everyone out furing the day, have a relaxing {hic} drink too and you will sleep like a baby.

[theyoungvisiter]

blackberry woods is lovely and very quiet.

It is quite back to nature though - no power near tents, no cars on site, small pitches on the whole.

[slayerette]

I love the sound of rain on the tent - find it really soothing! But I agree about the noise of the site - I am really sensitive to it, to the extent I have asked people to turn their music down saying DS is trying to get to sleep when it's me who can't bear it any longer

I never go without my earplugs because I tend to want to go to sleep before the sites quieten down.

You need to look for sites that have rules about noise after 10.30 or 11 pm, ones which don't have clubhouses on site, ones which let you request a pitch a long way from the road/facilities/shop/children's playground... This is what I do, although failed miserably this year and ended up on horrid and noisy site!

[Heated]

We were in an idyllic spot in Norfolk, except for the first week we were woken every morning by next-door-but-one's noisy 'Ooohs' and screams as they got it on, combined with the pathetic whining of their dog which they shoved outside the tent.

[NumptyMum]

Sheep can be really noisy at 4am/5am/6am... in my experience it's always best to take foam earplugs.

Must go rescue cat (mine, wants food).

[Loshad]

It's stupidly noisy camping - we live in the country side with loads of wildlife around but they don't tend to wake me up - go camping however and the owls wake you, the babbling brook stops you from ever going to sleepand even the bats sound noisy. What's wrong with your own bed

[SixtyFootDoll]

take ear plugs next time!

[Fennel]

I think campsites are getting noisier, more people playing music loudly, more people driving around. You can find quieter sites though, some are much better than others. As other posters say, ones which discourage noise are good, though they don't all enforce it.

[SixtyFootDoll]

take ear plugs next time!

[MollieO]

Earplugs and eye blinds - we now have a group near us taking photos so lots of flash going off.

No clubhouse here but the whole experience reminds me of longhaul flights and I can't stand those. Ds is loving it and is spark out as I write. I'm grateful we only have one more night to go.

I'd love to hear owls but I'd need to go home for that. I never really thought about how quiet it is where we live.

We are supposed to be going camping again next week but now I am having doubts.

[MollieO]

Can't drink lots of wine as don't want frequent loo trips!

Would it be good camping etiqutte to use my mallet to smash this group's speakers and camera? I feel I would be doing a service to all my fellow (quiet) campers!

[Fennel]

If you have toddlers you can encourage them to rise early and play loudly outside the tents of noisy late night party people.

[MollieO]

I have a 5 year old who was keen to be up and out at 5.30 am today so may be tempted to let him loose tomorrow!

[Snorbs]

Avoid frequent loo trips by drinking very stiff G&Ts rather than wine. Pour in the gin, a bit of ice, slice of lime and just show it a photo of a bottle of tonic. That'll do the trick

[drinkyourmilk]

snorbs i feel you're my long lost twin!
Can recommend stiff G&T all the way!

[Ripeberry]

We are back from Oakdown in Devon near the Donkey sanctuary. That has to be the noisiest campsite ever!
Nutter drivers on the road at all hours and the Donkeys kept braying very loudly all night!

[fluffles]

are you really stuck in the south east? if so, you're not exactly going to find wilderness are you?

quieter campsites with no road noise, no noise at all after 10pm and more space so you can pitch further from the next tent tend not to be in the south east i'm afraid... are you not able to travel at all?

[theyoungvisiter]

Actually there are several wildish sites in the SE. THey just tend to be smaller. And there are also farms that do camping.

Blackberry wood (which I recommended further down) is in East Sussex. It has a no car and no radios/music policy and when we were there, the only thing you could hear after 10pm was owls and the occasional crack of a twig as someone walked to the loo.

Obviously it's slight luck of the draw who you are next to, though.

[Loshad]

snorbs, have just snorted red wine at my keyboard

[expatinscotland]

ear plugs and eye masks all the way!

better yet, caravan.

[lyraSilvertongue]

We went to Wowo farm near Haywards Heath, East Sussex, this week and it was really quiet. They don't allow radios and there are no busy roads nearby. They do allow campfire, which is really nice, and have a man coming round selling crates of logs every day.