The UK has been in LockDown since the 23rd of March. We have been restricted to our home, essential places of work, and essential shopping. But eventually, things will open. What will Camping After Lockdown look like?
As of the time of writing, 8th June 2020, things are slightly easing. But we still seem to be a long way from the freedom and the privileges of unrestricted travel. If you are like me, then perhaps it was a novelty at first.
We have a campervan, so we are fortunate enough to be able to take day trips,
That novelty soon wears off though, and I am now chomping at the bit to get out in the campervan, and see something. Anything!!
And that got me thinking, what exactly can we expect when we want to go Camping after Lockdown. Will Travel be much different?
The Travel Industry, and demand for Camping After LockDown
The Travel industry in the UK is a Billion Dollar industry, according to Visit Britain.
Much of that, with English people visiting other English places. If you read the news, then going camping after lockdown, or visiting holiday homes in campsites is going to be a popular English holiday.
But, will campsites open in time for the summer?
Probably.
Will things be the same as they were?
Unlikely.
Booking to go Camping After Lockdown
As soon as we saw a small light at the end of the tunnel, we booked a few campsites. Our first booking was for Barley Meadow, in Dartmoor National Park for two nights. We then move onto Durdle Door Campsite for another two nights.
We await these dates with excited anticipation.
This excitement then waned slightly, after receiving an email from West Dorset Leisure, who run one of our favourite campsites, Highlands End Holiday Park. I think that once lockdown was lifted, this would have been one of the first campsites we visit.
“We are taking bookings from the 4th July”
The header declared. Awesome. We are free that day, let’s book! I read a bit further down.
We are now taking new bookings from July 4th in the following accommodation / categories:
It then goes on to list the categories. Lodges, Caravans, Apartments, Bungalows, Jurassic Escape Pods. Nope, not for us thank you. It then listed Touring Caravans, Motorhomes and Campervans. YES!! Campervans.
But……
The red text underneath their branded blue text was hard to ignore….with on-board bathroom facilities.
What does this mean exactly? We have a porta-potti we have just bought, is that ok? It is not a bathroom, but it covers the essentials. It is not “on-board” but it will be self-contained in an outdoor awning. That will be enough to ensure we can go camping after lockdown? Won’t it?
So I emailed them, and while I was waiting for a reply, I trawled their website, navigated to the COVID page, and to the FAQ section.
My heart sank.
Q – Can I stay with a tent or VW and use a portable toilet and shower?
A – Sorry, we are not currently taking bookings with portable toilets or showers – on-board facilities only
And their email reply came back saying the same thing. “A camper van with portable toilet is not classified as onboard facility.” So that is their campsites out of the equation.
Hunting for some re-assurances for Showers and Toilets
I then panicked and had to get clarification from other sites. Was this the norm? Were all campsites going to so this, or was this just West Dorset Leisure’s stance? So, I emailed 4 other sites.
Highmoor Farm Campsite, Weymouth
The first, Highmoor Farm Campsite, where we stayed on our first ever campervan trip back in 2017
Their reply was “We are indeed hoping to open on 4 July and have our toilets and showers open.”
Phew, so perhaps it is just West Dorset at the moment. Perhaps camping after lockdown is going to be a reality after all!
Pebblebank Caravan Park
The next one, Pebblebank Caravan park. Never been there, but found it from a random search on Google.
I emailed them, and their first reply was that their showers and toilets were to be closed for the season, due to the social distancing and hygiene regulations that are going to be put in place.
This fitted in with West Dorset Leisure, but not with Highmoor Farm.
My word, sussing out this camping after lockdown thing is sure complicated!
I pressed to see if we could come in a VW Campervan with Porta-Potti:
As long as you have your own toilet/ shower and are happy to use it, then we are happy to book you in.
I went back and explained we have a toilet only, and keep it in a Drive Away Awning.
No problem, we can book you in they said.
So we booked. As it stands our first trip is now on the 4th July, to Pebblebank
Barley Meadow Campsite
It now made sense to check with our next booking, where we were staying the following week, in Barley Meadow. Until Pebblebank, this was going to be the first site we went camping to, after lockdown.
They replied, saying they are not sure what will be open until they have guidance from the government.
They said “We are already preparing for reducing the amount of people allowed in the showers/sinks/loos and making sure the spacing is correct, as well as upping the cleaning – however, if it has to stay closed then yes the chemical waste will be fully open and we welcome campers with their own facilities.
Good, that is that booking relatively secure then.
Shamba Holiday Park
Finally, I emailed Shamba Holiday Park. While out and about, they called back and left a message saying they would be open but their showers and toilets won’t be. I called back for clarification on what facilities we needed to be able to camp there.
Re-assuringly, they are allowing guests with their own toilets, even tent campers.
What about other facilities, such as Shops, Bars, and Restaurants?
These are likely to fall into place with Pubs and Restaurants that are not connected to campsites. I would anticipate that once they get the go-ahead, then the campsites ones would open too.
There is talk the earliest that will be, will be early July too. But, it still won’t be how we know it.
For example, it could be table service only, or only outdoor serving, so this is hugely weather dependant as to whether or not it will be enjoyable.
I have seen campsites offering takeaways from their usual dine-in restaurants, so this could be another option that camping after lockdown offers you.
Pools, Playparks and other entertainment?
I would imagine these would be the last to open. By their very nature, they involve many people getting close together.
And in the case of play parks, having a 5-year-old, it would be very difficult to stifle their play and expect them not to get close to others.
Likewise with pools, and evening entertainment and discos etc. Impossible to control and avoid people getting close together.
Summary of the Campsites I spoke to
| Campsite Name | Showers / Toilets Open? | Will Accept Self Contained Units? | Will Accept Campervan with Porta-Potti | If you have a camper with a Porta Potti, can you visit? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| West Dorset Leisure | No | Yes | No | No |
| Highmoor Farm, Weymouth | If Allowed | ?* | ?* | ?* |
| Pebblebank, Dorset | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Shamba Holidays | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Barley Meadow | If Allowed | Yes | Yes | Yes |
?* = Their answer was “If toilets and showers can’t be open I double any campsite will be able to open as it is licence condition to offer toilets and showers”. The word double in the above sentence I am assuming should read doubt.
I have questioned this, knowing there are plenty of campsites out there without showers and toilets all year round, and that others are opening without theirs. At the time of publishing, they haven’t replied.
So will we be able to go camping after lockdown in July or not?
If I was a betting man, I would say yes, but with certain caveats and certainly not as we are used to.
To start with, it would be wise to have your own toilet facilities, as there are bound to be some that can’t or won’t open theirs.
In the past, we have purposely looked for places with a bar or restaurant as we do like these environments.
This now, is irrelevant, so while disappointing, it does open up a whole new field of campsites for us to try, so that can only be a good thing.
Finally, it is good to have a play area or pool to keep Max entertained, but now, with them certainly being shut for the start of the summer, it is no longer on the list of must have’s.
Certainly, camping after lockdown is going to be a bit different for us, that is for sure.
So that’s where we are, a bit of a mixed bag, which I think proves that no-one anywhere really knows what is going on, and what the guidelines will be.
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