Our Top 10 Picks for Summer Vanlife Campsites in the UK

As campervan owners we all look forward to making our adventure plans for the spring and summer. After over 6 years of campervan ownership and 100000 miles we have collected together our top 10 favourite campsites that we think are ideal for a summer getaway.
From stunning coastal spots to picturesque countryside retreats, we've created a list of must-visit destinations to inspire your next journey. Join us as we explore the beauty of the British landscape and discover the perfect places to park your van for a memorable summer getaway. Whether you're a seasoned vanlifer or new to the lifestyle, there's something for everyone in our selection of campsites. Get ready to pack your bags, fuel up your van, and set off on an epic adventure across the UK!
We are Richard and Jackie and we live in the UK. We retired from teaching at the age of 51 in the summer of 2022. Our plans for early requirement include relocating to the Yorkshire Dales, developing our forever home and travelling the UK, Europe and eventually the world in our VW campervan Nelson.
Please subscribe and like our videos if you like what you see.
Check out our blog earlyretirementwanderlust.com
Many thanks,
Richard & Jackie
Timeline
00:00 Introduction: our top 10 less wild UK campsites for the summer
01:38 Ocean Pitch campsite- Devon
02:50 Middlewood Farm camping- Robinhoods Bay
04:46 Waterside Farm camping- Ullswater
06:39 Llyn Gwynant campsite- North Wales
09:27 Mother Ivey's Bay campsite- Cornwall
11:25 Studfold Farm camping- Yorkshire Dales
12:55 Fforest Fields camping- Mid Wales
14:35 Catgill Farm & Howgill Lodge camping- Yorkshire Dales
17:34 Towyn Farm camping- North Wales

[@peterjohnson653]

Good recommendations but prices are getting ridiculous. And I wouldn’t fancy staying at a big packed site in high season. For us in our small camper van, we now tend to stay at CL sites overseen by the Caravan and Motorhome Club. Prices with electricity are generally £20-£25 a night and a fair number have toilets and sometimes showers. Off-grid basic CL sites are even cheaper. With a five-pitch limit you are sure to find peace and quiet and there are 2,200 to choose from all over UK. PS As an early retirement couple ourselves (I’m 71 now and retired from journalism at 57) your channel really resonates with us. We can see ourselves in so much you do and say!

[@earlyretirementwanderlust]

We have recently joined the caravan and motorhome club (primarily for the ferry discount) but are looking forward to trying out lots of their sites. Like you say out of season, mid week is our favourite time to travel now as it is cheaper and quieter! We do love the hustle and bustle of the seaside towns and we are planning a few weeks down on the south coast, Cornwall and Devon in late spring but after researching the costs for the video (which we were shocked at for some places), we will need to be more creative and search out some of the cheaper small CL sites. I bet you have had some wonderful adventures in 14 years of retirement! We are just still at the start of our journey now the house is completed and we are loving the freedom to just get out and about. We did stay at a CAMpRA site in Shropshire this week that luckily had a toilet which was lovely and very remote - complete with 2 resident peacocks and 3 alpacas just down the road. Thanks for watching our videos x

[@jamiedixon9888]

Thanks guys for all your efforts Vlogging tirelessly. It’s appreciated

[@earlyretirementwanderlust]

Thank you ☺️ we are still really enjoying the process x

[@bethanymayer3632]

Thank you so much for this. My family have just taken up camping we've booked are forst holiday on She'll Island in Wales. We can't wait 😊

[@earlyretirementwanderlust]

Have a great time - shell island is on our list of places to visit - it is supposed to be fantastic in the sand dunes 😊

[@user-kc8im8dx5b]

Great video will definitely add to our list of places to go, thank you

[@earlyretirementwanderlust]

Thanks - there are so many fab places out there - we just enjoy getting our there and discovering them.

[@janehutchinson9999]

Thanks so much for this video, this is just what I need, recommendations of good sites. I would go to any of these sites and will add them to my list. Looking forward to your next video. I so look forward early on Sunday morning getting my coffee and breakfast, putting my laptop on and there you both are 😀😀

[@earlyretirementwanderlust]

You're very welcome! We love getting out and exploring and many of the places that we find are usually through chatting to fellow travellers or inspiration from peoples Instagram or KZbin channels. Happy travels x

[@motorroamingaround]

Loved the video guys. Some great recommendations amongst that lot for sure. Keep safe. Irvine & Karen.

[@earlyretirementwanderlust]

Thanks - hope the weather has improved for you in Florida x

[@motorroamingaround]

@@earlyretirementwanderlust It has thanks. It’s much better than it was over Christmas & New Year.

[@treklinda1309]

Very good recommendations... love yorkshire coast too.

[@earlyretirementwanderlust]

Both of us spent most of our childhood holidays there in either Whitby or Scarborough - so many happy memories!

[@treklinda1309]

@@earlyretirementwanderlust Oh I used to live in Scarborough :) Lovely place.

[@whereveraway]

Used to pay £30per night etc.. now it's max £22 and farmer Giles can keep the electric. Better to go to sites which are not segmented with allocated site spaces and for it to be open, that way availability is plentiful and it's a lot cheaper and away from the White Boxes and Big Motorhomes.

[@earlyretirementwanderlust]

We were really surprised how much campsite fees in general have gone up! Most sites we stay at are basic and a little rustic - and cheap. But some of these places have such happy memories and in great locations so we will still go back. Probably in the cheaper quieter out of season!

[@VictoriaGetsVocal]

Great info again. 🤩 Do you always stay on campsites? I’ve been staying on a few but mainly stay off grid and hook up once a week or so to make sure my batteries are charged, sometimes a bit longer if it’s particularly cold, aka minus temperatures. Mind you, I do have a composting loo on board. BTW, my van is a 7m long Crafter and it is surprisingly easy to drive and park. 😂

[@earlyretirementwanderlust]

Hi, We tend to stay on campsites every 2-3 nights so we can shower and top up electricity. In the Alps we stayed on the site for the duration as it was so easy with the facilities it had in the very cold temperatures. In the warmer months we have stayed away for a week at a time off grid, just finding public loos and pubs for their facilities. 7m sounds like so much space! Ours is only 5m long and we can't stand up unless the roof is up!

[@philiprose9087]

Hi there, I have just found your channel and is perfect for me as I am a 52 yr old paramedic that is looking to retire in a couple of years so am busy planning for a similar life. Can you just tell me about your orange awning. Is it a standard bit of flysheet and separate telescopic poles or is it a complete made to measure thing? Also, what make are your chairs please? Keep up the good work, thanks

[@earlyretirementwanderlust]

Glad that our channel resonates with you - it was really exciting planning our early retirement and what we were going to do, as well as being a little scary and daunting! However once we had both handed our notice in and the plans were in motion, there was no looking back! We bought the orange awning online as a kit from Funky Leisure which we have loved. The poles can go in a variety of formations and heights depending on where you need the shade and how wet it is (It's not great in the wind) We have been through several sets of chairs over the years so treated ourselves to a pair of helinox chairs which we felt were eye wateringly expensive but we have had them for 3 years and they have been really durable and they pack up into a small bag that is easily stored. Thanks for watching our channel. Good luck with all your retirement plans and happy travels x

[@TNTgamer333]

I wonder if some campsites will price themselves out of the market when they're charging £65 a night? For that money, you're very close to being able to book a cheap air bnb, holiday cottage, or even a hotel! We're off to a 2 bed cottage in Reeth this week, which sleeps 4. Between 2 couples its cheaper than an off season week at some campsites. Maybe they're totally different markets, but we're looking at possibly buying a camper and are put off by the high prices of some (admittedly great) sites.

[@earlyretirementwanderlust]

Most of the sites we go to are smaller, rustic farm type places and we still find loads between 15-30 a night plus a little off grid camping in between. But it is something we have definitely noticed - the Cornwall campsite was always more expensive but when it was our main 2 week holiday for many years it is still so much cheaper than going abroad or renting in Cornwall - and idyllic so we felt it was worth it with our kids in our tent 🤣 we have joined the motorhome club as they have many small CL sites (5 vans only) which are cheaper - most need on board facilities though! The freedom the van gives us to get away on short breaks off grid regularly and for free or cheaply is definitely worth it 🚐 have fun in Reeth. We have still never ventured that far up the dales!

[@TNTgamer333]

Thank you. If you do venture that way, I recommend The Orchard campsite in Reeth, just outside the beautiful village. ❤

[@earlyretirementwanderlust]

@TNTgamer333 thank you I will have a look. We want to stay at Usha Gap In Muker later in the spring when it opens so could combine the trip 🚐

[@nicolacoombes6709]

How do you manage without a toilet on the van, do you find it hard when abroad or on a small, rural site where you are parked up quite a way from the facilities? We are older than you, at 61 and nearly 65 but it's pretty much the only thing I would miss with a smaller van than ours. I, personally, am slightly obsessed 😂 by this issue now we are looking to slightly upgrade our old van. Nicola x

[@peterjohnson653]

We’re both 71 and have a Wellhouse pop-top van based on a Ford Tourneo Custom (a plusher Transit) and manage fine with a Dometic flushing porta-potti which shuts away into its own cupboard. With dark tinted privacy windows and a towel placed over the front headrests, no-one can see inside. We prefer sites with a toilet but manage happily for two or three nights staying at no facility CL sites or French aires. An all over flannel wash keeps us clean after cycling, running or walking trips. On touring trips, we stay at a proper campsite for a night or two so we can shower and do the laundry. The inconvenience of not having a washroom is outweighed by a small van’s ability to be an everyday vehicle, its ease at tackling narrow lanes, parking and tight streets, plus its nicer driving experience, better fuel economy and higher performance than a motorhome. I know everyone has different needs and desires, but for us, a camper van is luxury after doing years of cycle camping in tiny tents!

[@nicolacoombes6709]

Thank you. Do you use it at night because it's the noise and faff of getting in and out of the van with someone trying to sleep that worries me? X

[@peterjohnson653]

At our age, we both need to use it at night. The loo sits at the foot of the downstairs bed in our van (we don’t bother to use the upstairs bed in the pop-top) and it’s no more problem to use it for a pee than it is to use the bathroom at night in our home. Much less hassle than waking the whole site by opening and shutting the van’s sliding door to trudge off to the facilities. We use the campsite loo in the morning for a poo. If we are on aire or off-grid we use loo paper in a sort of petal pattern round the hole to keep it clean. Elsan green organic fluid and rinse goes into both the flush and waste water sections of the loo and smell isn’t an issue. The loo separates into two and the waste section needs emptying every 1-3 days depending on use. My wife was initially reluctant to use it but says the fear was worse than the reality. However, she much prefers a proper campsite or public loo for number twos!

[@nicolacoombes6709]

@peterjohnson653 Thank you so much. That is really great information, and we will now consider a pop top in our plans as the seats are comfy and the info about the bed topper for a rock and roll bed has made me think that I would be comfortable enough in bed as well. I'm a bit achey with my back and joints. I really appreciate you taking the time to message. X

[@peterjohnson653]

Glad to be of help, Nicola. Our van has a RIB-style bed which flips over so you sleep on the flat back side of the seat. More comfortable than a rock and roll bed which slides forward and you sleep on the same contoured side as you sit on. We use a standard double size thin wool mattress topper which I think we got from Dunelm for use at home but you can get custom camper foam toppers for more luxury. One extra tip - our van has a back seat/bed on slider rails. You can push it all the way to back window to create a big lounge area for eating and relaxing or you can push it all the way forward to create a massive cargo area. This is brilliant for carrying old furniture, mattresses etc to the tip.

[@McKen67]

Decent review of England and Wales campsites, but not really UK, as it says in the title. I kept waiting for the Scottish sites, but alas, there were none, sadly.

[@earlyretirementwanderlust]

Sorry, we realised that all the Scottish campsites we were going to include we had already featured on our previous video of wilder and remote UK campsites. We did considered putting in Glenmore campsite nr Aviemore- but we were sadly lacking in footage from our pre- KZbin visits there. Wouldn’t have been a great viewing experience- but a fab site by a lake in the mountains that we love. Thanks for the comment.

[@tripswithgriff]

Great liat - thanks. Stayed at several of those before incl Howgill, Waterside and our 1st ever van nights away at Ocean Pitch! Sadly the entire place is dog free so no good for us anymore 😢 Will definitely try a few more on your list in the near future but the prices in the SW these days and seemingly anti-van atmosphere make me want to avoid that area I'm afraid.

[@earlyretirementwanderlust]

I know what you mean - we are real northerners! We are wanting to go on a trip on the south coast including Cornwall and Devon this year and have found a few more rustic sites that look good so we will see how we get on! However - for old times sake and it being low season we will definitely visit mother iveys and Ocean Pitch 🚐