Thinking of ditching this camping lark - noise!

[Alabasterangel6]

I think I’m done. Unless you tell me what we’re doing wrong.

We’ve had a 5m Bell for years and we love it except noise. We’ve had great times (ironically) in spaced out places like pubs with camping but anytime we tried be on a site we have such issues with noise it’s hell.

I won’t bore with the backstories but this time we have driven 7 hours in a hired motorhome to a remote beautiful place (to see if that makes a difference) to a site with a ‘strict’ 10.30 curfew (signs all over the place) but at midnight last night i was still listening to next doors shitty music and roaring laughter for night no.2. night before they packed in at 1.30am and kids have been in a grumpy mood through tiredness all day. We are in the end of a run and they are last so we’re the only poor saps being kept awake. Prior to now we’ve had snorers, dog barkers, and the most frequent one late night family packs who jibber jabber and roar with laughter till stupid hours. Even inside their tents or caravans you can hear it all as the windows are open?

I come away for some peace and always with such high hopes and always so dissapointed!

Earplugs fall out and hurt and the kids can’t wear them? They’re just as awake as us at the moment!

I just don’t understand why people can’t realise the noise they are making!!

How does everyone else cope?

We stick with the same quiet sights. For example we went to one place two weeks ago. My son was weeping with exhaustion as the noise kept him up. Never going again and will leave a review saying as much!

But our usual site is quiet and has quiet fields - it’s a massive site with several fields. That’s my preferred option, places with more than one field.

Sites not sights!!

We've had this twice this year. It's putting me off too..

People are so inconsiderate. Loud swearing when they know kids are about; two people drank a bottle of vodka, 24 cans of beer and a bottle of wine between them and threatened a lady who asked them very politely if they could rein it in a bit because her daughter was scared.

We've also had a "father" try and fight his 8 year old at 3 in the morning followed by a massive domestic (his "mother" however wasn't sticking up for her son).... smoking weed in front of the kids, again, through a box of beer at 12.00.... it goes on.

I like a drink and I also swear like fuck but never in front of children and I would never inconvenience the rest of the site like that.

This is going to sound snobbish - the more expensive NTS sites tend to be better IME. Also, avoid the ones with too many facilities.

Before smoking was banned in pubs we were at one with a pub. There was a heavily pregnant woman smoking and her 6 (?) year old drank about half a pint of her Dad's beer. I did judge and we never went back there.

I also got the noisy people from the other week banned from the site. Site manager lovely and girls who run the shop on site also lovely.

I hate this. I thought we had it sussed when we found a campsite with loads of space, but they only have one permanent site and the second field is only open when they feel like it. So last time we went we had exactly the same issue. On the whole we tend to go for small sites with no facilities. Or ones with huge amounts of space. Also ones where you have to pay for a pitch can be good (as opposed to "pay your money and find a spot, if you can" because you know the site will limit the number of people. In Scotland we go wild camping (because we can) so there are rarely people around.

Thanks I feel better I’m not the only one!!! This is a remote site on the most stunning beach I’ve ever been on, the only facilities are a small shower and toilet block. The nearest shop is 6 miles away. I thought this would be it! Nope!

Also slightly irritating is the ‘rows’. We are on a hard standing row and have been given the ‘driveway’ bit and a bit to the right of green. He circled it as our space/pitch and it’s got logs round the edge to delineate. The shower block is in one direction and the tents are behind us in the other direction. There is a path round the edge of the field for the campers in the tents to use. However because the line of sight from the tents to the loos is through our pitch it is used constantly as a walkway - I was tempted to put my seats in a row in a passive aggressive way but I thought that was just churlish. But it’s mighty irritating. Eating last night people were walking within inches of us and staring at what was on the table, and now this morning walking past wrapped in towels. I feel like I paid for a walkway not a pitch. We’re moving on tomorrow but it’s a shame as the location is breathtaking...

And what did they say when you asked them to be quiet?
What did the owner of the site say when you told them about the noisy families?

monkey at almost 1am when DH knocked on their caravan and politely said ‘I don’t want to be a killjoy but you probably don’t realise we are struggling to sleep as the noise is carrying a lot’ they huffed and puffed and shut the windows. Then reopened them again half an hour later. Then spent about 15 minutes outside loudly saying goodnight to each other and talking about what time to get up and breakfast.

Site office is only open midday onwards but DH will speak to them then.

We are not frightened to ask! DH is an ex policeman who is very used to confrontation when needed. I just wish we didn’t have to.

plar that sounds horrible!!

We camped for three weeks every year round the UK and Europe. We have had inconsiderate neighbours only twice. Both times was on 'family' type campsites with facilities like pools, restaurants and entertainment.

We usually go for out of the way rustic type places with basic facilities and even though they can be packed out they are usually silent by 10.30 and no sound until well past 8 am. They seem to attract the kind of camper who likes basic peace and quiet in beautiful surroundings: usually all ages from families, older couples, young couples young groups of friends but all very respectful and quiet. Certainly never experienced music or yelling.

The more facilities a place has the more it seems to attract the kind of person who is going to make the most of it and sod everyone else.

I'm on my second camping trip for the first time in a week (after never having camped before). I camped with my children, with a group of friends at Bedgebury for the weekend and it was so peaceful and quiet. No issues at all. We couldn't hear anyone from any of the other tents. We're now camping in the New Forest, very close the Southampton and it's equally very quiet. Maybe I've just had two good experiences.

In pursuit of peace and quiet I avoid;
Anywhere with EHU
Anywhere that doesn’t ban amplified music at all times
Places with a pool or onsite clubhouse.

I favour:
Places with compost toilets
Woods
Pitch where you like, miles from anyone
Places that allow campfires
Places with a stated curfew where the owner / warden strolls round and reminds people.

I see Facebook Groups like Tent Talk UK and it is obvious that campers are split into two groups.

I avoid one group!

The pictures of the massive amounts of alcohol, the TVs, the “aww, kids need to enjoy themselves, if you want to sleep past 5am go to an adult only site. My kids should be allowed to yell and run about as soon as it’s light” “chill out so what if my kid gets bubble mix all over your tents, their kids enjoying themselves, can’t do anything these days’.

Small sites with minimal facilities don't always work. We went to a "quiet, back to basics" site in Pembrokeshire where a group of about 30 young adults turned up one night and partied till 3am. They were drunk and intimidating and the site owner was happily joining in, so there was clearly no point complaining to him.

Also had a week in Yorkshire ruined by an extended family that occupied three out of a dozen pitches and dominated the entire site. The trouble was they weren't technically breaking any rules - they just all had really loud voices, constantly talked all at once and never left the site for the entire week so there was no respite.

We a have one more or less guaranteed quiet site, which is very remote and infested by midges. Any noisy groups that make it that far tend not to be prepared for the midges, so don't stay long. And there's a river running past the site which creates enough white noise to drown out most things. And no I'm not telling you where it is because we're going there next week!!

Tonight it is deadly silent. The family concerned were two couples and one couple has left tonight. Bliss. We watched the sunset over the sea and saw seals and sea otters, and a man doing mediation on a cliff in silhouette which sounds cheesy but was very lovely. The sunset was in isolation literally no one else on the beach!

It really does only take one arse to spoil the lot.

We really are so selective - the only facility we’d like (in bell or mororhome) is EHU and water the rest we can do. But some sites have been perfect and others bloody awful. A parade curfew would be so welcomed.

I’d really welcome some recommendations nearer home (Peak District) so we could test for the odd night back in the Bell....

Pic ...

We had this when camping once some fucking moron idiot was singing badly and playing guitar at 2-3am in the morning. Even DH who never hears anything at all at home was disturbed by it and complained. The offending person was asked to leave the next day as many people had complained. The last time we went camping some really pesky and bloody noisy crows woke us at 5.30 every morning. Sadly they weren't asked to leave!!😂😂😂

I don’t really go on holiday and thought about camping as a way to get peace and quiet, I live in a flat

All my friends who’ve done camping holidays said no, the noise will be worse! I’m glad it’s quiet for you now OP.

I'd recommend Camping and Caravan club sites. They're always really well patrolled. Never had a problem with noise after 11pm.

We camped in France one year on a family site. My children couldn’t get to sleep because if the absolutely feral noise and behaviour of other children. It spoiled the day trips we had planned - kids tired and grumpy. Never again!

We don't camp at big commercial sites for this reason. We have occasionally gone to the 'upmarket' independent but large sites which actually have been lovely and up to expectations. I agree that the simpler sites seem to have more considerate people. They are camping for the joy of the camping experience, not for a cheap pitch to drink shitloads of alcohol (don't get me wrong, I'll enjoy a few glasses sometimes but don't go mad) while the kids get up to god knows what.

Sounds bloody awful. For 40 notes a night you could stay in travel lodge warm dry and a proper bed

kidding really but it does sound awful

I have misophonia so I’d have killed someone by now.

As pp above says, we always go to the same site in Anglesey. No noise after 10:30pm and the owners patrol at this time to make sure.

Having said that, it’s the early morning noise I struggle with. The children who are up at the crack of sparrows and allowed to crash about outside.

I check trip advisor reviews quite carefully looking for the 1 star reviews complaining about “crazy killjoy owners” and “eavesdropping security guards”. These always turn out to be the best sites!

Lots of sites claim to have a noise curfew but you need to read the reviews to find the ones that actually enforce it.

I also look for reviews slating “child-hating owner with no social skills” which is code for badly behaved brats not allowed to run riot.

Actually went to a lovely site in Cheshire this weekend and there were two annoyingly loud couples but because we are in a caravan I just closed the window and it didn't disturb us. However when I woke up in the morning they'd gone so obviously somebody had complained about them and the owners had turfed them off in the middle of the night.

We had quentin crashing through his time tunnel at 715 ^at a fucking festival where everyone had been awake till 2am. Complaining to his parent did help.

Does.anyone do wild camping,? I'm quite tempted ....As long as I can get food.

Wax earplugs are your friends, btw.. i used to make my 8yo wear them at fedtivals.