Was I unreasonable? Camping politics!!

[Seagullsbythesea]

Just been bank holiday camping. On the last day we were there, new people turned up on the pitch next door. We had our tent width ways accross the pitch so the sleeping end was right next to their pitch. They had a camper van & 2 kids also. There is an 11pm noise curfew on the site.

Last night they were up sitting outside their van with their friends talking really loudly at 11.20 right next to our heads!! My kids were trying to get to sleep.

So I went and asked them to keep it down - they really weren’t happy & just carried on. Eventually they did STFU but it was past midnight.

Was i a party pooper on their first night? Or right to just tell them to keep it down- I was polite & just said ‘it’s right by my kids heads’

We are actually leaving today whereas they are staying - I think I was feeling tired & grumpy yesterday & my kids were knackered!!

Yanbu to be annoyed but I'd be a bit annoyed at being shouted at for just talking. 11.20pm isn't late. Far more annoying is those who let their kids runaround at first light noisily. I only book adult sites or those which are remote now after too many bad experiences at 5am

We are camping. 10:30pm curfew, and a bloke on a golf buggy driving round enforcing it. Mainly a family site with children and although there are multiple groups who sit chatting by 11pm the site is all in bed.

Such a contrast to the teenage camping at festivals I used to do 🤣

One of the reasons why I don't go camping anymore!

This is why I bought a caravan and only stay on caravan club sites. Too many experiences like this.

As a very very frequent camper generally this would be considered ok. Thoughtless but ok.

So it's a risk with camping because "unreasonable" would be music or talking that carries beyond your surrounding pitches after midnight. Frustrating.

Some sites have different cultures to others. The written rules are not much of an indication.

FWIW what I hate most on campsites is screaming kids all afternoon and up to evening...probably without meaning to in getting up early as a family you got your revenge.

Not unreasonable of you to ask. I have in the past but tends to get a lot of mocking and eye rolling.

I hate people who don't adhere to noise rules. It's one of the reasons we got a caravan instead of a tent because the sound insulation is better.

We were on an Italian campsite last year. Very strict with the noise curfew. A guard used to drive round making sure no one was talking loudly after 11 pm. It was a very peaceful campsite.

Some people are very selfish.

We camp in France every year and nobody makes any noise after about 10.30. There seems to be very much an early to bed, early to rise culture. I have only been disturbed by noisy campers in the UK.

Depending on their noise level YANBU to ask them to keep it down. However the orientation of your tent has got very little to do with it. It’s a v thin bit of material, makes practically no difference if they were 1m or 3m away and YABU to expect them to ‘go to their friends tent’.

No you were reasonable. There’s a curfew and it was after that.

My main advice on that sort of complaint is not to make it about kids but just be factual “hey guys, not sure if you realised the time but there’s a curfew at 11, it’s 20 past and we can’t sleep because you are a bit louder than you realise. Can you keep it down?”

otherwise people starting bleating about bloody kids and entitled parents which isn’t the point…

Talking after 11 is to be expected.
mug they had been playing music or had a game of football outside I would have told them tk stop but die just talking, that’s what people do at camp sites.

Most campsites ask for no noise after a certain time, which includes talking. Part of the problem is increasing numbers of people thinking talking is an exception to the no noise rule when it isn't.

not unreasonable, rules is rules

It's only the "joy" if you're the one up until midnight... which I expect you are.

I told off several children running around late last night who were hiding behind our cars and our tents! They disappeared after that.
I now actively look for campsites with a quiet policy and then check out the tripadvisor reviews - if the one star ones grumpily say we were told to be quiet after X time or told off for playing music. That’s my sort of site! Currently on a lovely site where someone drives round at 10pm and makes sure that kids are back in their tents and then goes round at 11 too to make sure everything is quiet. One of the loveliest campsites I’ve stayed on. (You have to sign to say you agree to abide by the rules!) There’s lots of groups here too but it’s very quiet at night.

Groups of people talking on a table by a tent can be pretty loud on a quiet campsite where people are trying to sleep.
Especially if it's "social " talking with drinks involved, laughter etc.

If there is a curfew, respect the curfew

There's talking and there's talking.

Talking in a group of friends after lots of drinking is bound to be loud even if those talking just think they're being normal.

Talking quietly with your partner about plans for the next day or whatever in hushed tones because you're aware of the noise your making is very different.

Just came on to say camping is fantastic for making you appreciate the simple joys of your own lovely house. Enjoy your first night back home OP, you’ll be delirious with happiness tonight if you’re anything like me.

I think it's hard to tell if you were unreasonable or not without knowing a few things:

First, were they being really loud, or was it just that they were very close to your tent? Because the first is them being unreasonable, the second is kind of your own fault for how you set up your tent.

Second is are the rules of the campsite no noise at all after 11pm including talking, or just no loud noises like music or kids playing? Because same again, first is them, second is not them.

Tbh, so long as you were polite then them being up after midnight after you'd asked them to please keep the noise down was unneighbourly, even if you were in the wrong.

You were not unreasonable.

I'm another who is going to pack in camping after 40 odd years of happy, relaxed camping.

Totally agree that since lockdown there is a different type of camper. Also many, many more camper vans and mobile homes all with the 'benefit' of electric hook up. I've found myself in my little tent between rows and rows of vehicles all with TVs blaring, lights blazing and air beam compounds full of gas bbqs and other gadgets.

I have a nostalgia for kids playing pit pat ball games and parents drinking a quiet beer outside of the tent before complete dark and silence from about 10 o'clock on because there was no electric light to read by let alone a TV. Lovely. But then I'm old.

It seems that a van insulates you from the noise in a way that a tent doesn't and that makes (some) van campers selfish.

This.

We've camped for man, many years - tents, trailer tents and caravans.

The site we use is excellent with lots of space and sells itself on being quiet and peaceful (no clubhouse or activities apart from a children's play area).

It was noticeable that during covid there were groups sitting outside and talking till very late into the night. Not many, but enough to make their presence felt and not in a good way. I assume these are people who had never used that site before or never camped at all. Really annoying and anti-social.

One particular group who were very noisy also had an outside screen and had a film on until late in the evening. I've seen outside screens twice in the last couple of years. If it becomes a "thing" we may give up the caravan for good. Just because you can do something doesn't mean you should. There will always be selfish people, sadly.

If they were just talking then YABU. Keeping noise down doesn't mean no talking. If i was then they woukd have to specify that it should be silent after 11pm.

We don't really do camping, we don't stay up after 11 as go to bed with the kids. But others don't. Just part of camping. I wouldn't head over to the pitch next to me and ask them to stop talking. Turn music off fine, but talking?

All depends on the talking. People in a group, laughing, drinking and talking can be very loud.

Which is not keeping the noise down.
It's making noise.

You say you don't really camp and I think it shows.

It's normal on many sites to have a guiet rule after a certain time and that includes talking. Sound carrys in a quiet place and there is really no noise level that won't disturb other people.

We have a group of friends who like to camp and like to stay up late talking. They hire a whole field for that very reason. They aren't disturbing anyone else.

There's talking and talking isn't there. Quietly chatting is one thing. But after a few drinks the volume can ramp up a bit and get very intrusive. Especially if you can't quite catch one person's contribution so you get "so how did he react to that" really loud then mutter, mumble followed by raucous laughter. That's the worst.