How do you choose quieter family campsites after a difficult first trip?

[PaperLanterns]

We’ve just been on our first camping trip as a family of four - I’ve got 2 DS (7 and 5) and it was a nightmare. We’ve hired motorhomes around Scotland and Norfolk and glamped in a couple of places and really enjoyed the vibe so I bought a tent off eBay (Berghaus 4XL) and kitted up.

The problem wasn’t the kit.

It was the other campers. People were staggering about drunk around the play area, smoking, the amount of shouting and swearing that was going on (from the adults and even more alarmingly, the young kids) made me cringe - my kids aren’t used to this. People just camped where they liked, ignored the rules about gas and bbqs due to the drought and a dog in the field behind barked all day and all night. We paid for four nights and we stuck with it - going for big days out on day 2 and 3 but it’s made me really concerned about going again.

I know this makes me sound snobby but I’m a DDSL in a school and spent the whole time wondering if I should be reporting people.

I guess what I’m asking is - is there a hack to choosing campsites? We went for this one because it had a play area, electric (first time campers making it easier) and walking distance of a National Trust and heritage railway. There was also a 10pm noise shutdown (didn’t happen) and wardens were meant to patrol.

It was just disappointing as it took loads to convince DH to come along with this and then was a disaster!

Farm based campsites are great. Farmers take no shenanigans, they've land and livestock to look after!
Less facilities the better (we don't mind a bucket wash!)
Camping field without EHU are usually quieter (no TVs or projectors etc)
You can totally camp without leccy, takes a bit more effort - get the kids involved it's all part of the fun!

My kids are older, but we've liked Greener Camping Club sites. Usually low on facilities like electricity, but high on quiet and lovely experiences for younger children like woodlands to explore or a mud kitchen.

Pitchup.com is a great website for finding a campsite. Loads of pictures and unbiased reviews and lots of filters allow you to find just what you want.

Compost toilets and eco showers are usually a good bet. These sites sometimes have rope swings on trees or rivers to play in rather than dedicated play areas.

Re: no electric we take tinned food. Pasta and sauce, mince and tinned potatoes with tinned veg. Keeps people off their phones too to save the battery.

Admittedly we don't drink tea or coffee so we don't have any issue around milk 😊

I have two toddlers but avoid ones with too many amenities or play areas for this reason! Hipcamp is a good app to search as it’s more remote. Look to see how many pitches a place has as well and that will give you an indication as to noise levels. 😅

We have a campervan and have travelled around lots of places in the UK over the last five years. We always have EHU so I don’t think ruling out electric hook up guarantees it will be more peaceful. We have only had a few bad experiences over the years. I think unfortunately it can just be bad luck with who is there at the same time as you, if you went back to that same campsite next week it could be a completely different experience.

As a PP suggested maybe if you tell us where in the UK you want to go we could suggest some campsites for you? 😊

We've just had a dreadful experience on a farm in Yorkshire. Kids running directly around our tent very late at night. Lots of little boys running horribly close to fire pits and BBQs and no one seeming to supervise them. I was quite shocked, as haven't really had a bad campsite experience before! We're on a C&C site now and it's much more civilised (even with a nice small play park for the children).

I found a place where there was only us onsite 😅

Camping and Caravan Club sites are usually pretty good. We've never had troubles there with late night rowdyness and general bad behaviour. They can be more pricy, which possibly puts off some elements of the behaviour you descibe. If you don't want to use those sites they also offer CL sites, (you have to be a member to use them), which are affiliated sites with great rates and are normally more simple sites - often offering electric and basic toilet/shower facilities - but maybe not playgrounds for example.

If you don't want to go with this avoid sites that have bars, restaurants, are big and often (not always) really close to holiday hot-spots.

Definitely French campsites! We’ve done Yelloh and Les Castels. The pitches are separated by hedges so you have your own area that is private to a point.

Yes there was entertainment and lots going on on the bigger sites but all went quiet at 10/11pm and security patrolled all night dealing with any antisocial behaviour or noisy people. (To be fair there wasn’t any)

Some of our favourite holidays when mine were young.

Camped in the UK once. Probably wouldn’t again!

We hated tge one C&C site we stayed on. The wardens were rude and nasty to everyone who wasnt part of their select group (basically retired people... anyone with children was instantly in the wrong). You could barely breathe without complaint.

I agree @BirdLandedonmyHead we’ve only stayed on one Caravan and Camping Club. The wardens were really rude. There was no hot water in the washing up area. It was self check in so you had to drive around trying to find your own pitch and other people were getting out of cars and running to stand on pitches they wanted to reserve whilst their family drove round the one way in their car. Add to this they are really regimented and pack you all in to rows 6m apart, looking directly into the pitch opposite across a road where cars drive around. Not for me! Much prefer a field and open green space.

We're just back from a very basic (and quiet) campsite in Dorset. There was a pub about a mile away, but honestly the loudest thing there was the sheep in the next field! It had electric hook up and a very basic shop (open a few hours a day)
Weve been 2 years running with our teen son , there were a few families with young children but on the whole it was very quiet
There were people ignoring the no bbq rule though....😬
Apart from that the biggest problem was lack of WiFi for DS!

Weve camped at yelloh sites when the kids were little which were mainly good

We stayed in fallow fields lathe barn with a 2 & 5 year old - no music allowed at all and there was a soft play on site - there was a cafe/bar that only opened weekends for pizza and brekkie but closed at 8

Never hears a peep after 10pm everyone obeyed the after 10 quiet time

not sure if we were just lucky or if it’s always like that

reviews were good and said as much

we stayed 10 days as a base to just be at the seaside every day

We were on the Kent/Sussex border - the surrounding villages were beautiful but just not the campsite. We got the electric hookup as DH usually has to work on our holidays (self employed) so he’d be able to charge iPad etc but we had literally no signal.

Live on the Surrey/London fringes so somewhere easy as we are v squashed in the car. I like the seaside/countryside and I like doing stuff like NT or interesting days out. I’m all for letting the kids entertain themselves until they start bickering and then it just becomes a pain.

This sounds nice!

I think this might be one after I get a bigger car! Currently a Fiat 500x 😂

We are currently on a family campsite in Norfolk, our 8th time to this site, the reason we keep coming back is because its well managed, and doesn't seem to attract idiots, only had one year where a group were loud until 3am, they were reported and the campsite manager read them the riot act, they were quiet the next night. We've been to some very strict ones where they have patrolled at night and knocked on tents.

This site has a pub on the caravan part of the site, but draws a much older crowd. Long Beach Tent and Touring in Hemsby, has a lovely beach.

The Camping and Caravan club sites are another we have never had an issue with, have done their Malvern, Newquay, Dorset and Chipping Norton ones, although the latter was a pain because of boy racers racing up the road I assume to attempt to impress Jeremy Clarkson in case he was there 🙄

We stay at naturist sites and they are perfect. Everyone is quiet and respectful.
There are usually kids play areas and more often a bar/cafe/social area, but people are quiet in the evenings and during the day no radios or personal music playing.
You can plug your mobile into the communal charging areas, go off for hours and it will be there when you get back.
No one locks their vans or closes their tents during the day. Toilets and showers are kept clean.

You don’t even have to be nude if you’d prefer not. Nudity is only mandatory in the swimming pools and saunas. Most gave tennis courts, table tennis, pétanque etc free to use with equipment you can borrow if needed.

They are also very cheap to stay. Less than £30 a night usually and drinks and food sold at cost as they’re generally non profit.

The above cost includes electric and a van pitch. Tents much cheaper.

Well, that would save on the 500 loads of washing I now have to do!

I only go to ‘wild style’ sites.
Search Pitch Up with filters for ‘peaceful’ etc.

Rustic sites with woodland, where you pick where you like but there is loads and loads of space and you are not close to other campers.

They don’t tend to have ‘play areas’ but there is space to play!

Can stand sites where everyone is in rows of set pitches.

Camping is holidaying in conditions that you wouldn’t tolerate at home.

Are you suggesting OP travelling as a family should avoid sites that attract families?