Herston Caravan and Camping

View prices & book 6.3 392 reviews
Well-spaced pitches
Well-spaced pitches
Bell tent
Spacious grass pitches
Bell tent with picnic table
Gather friends and family
Electric hardstanding and grass touring pitch
Friendly site
Bell tents with great rural views
1/123
Bell tent
Spacious grass pitches
Bell tent with picnic table

  • Holiday park one mile from the beach in Swanage
  • Half an hour's drive from Monkey World and Durdle Door
  • Playground, shop and takeaway on site; dogs welcome
Three cheers for this one on Dorset's Jurassic Coast: Herston Caravan and Camping is a family-friendly site only five minutes' drive away from the town of Swanage and its sandy beach. Everyone should find a full programme of stuff to do and see in this neck of the woods: perhaps rides on the steam-powered Swanage Railway, windsurfing down at Swanage Bay or clifftop walks on the South West Coast Path. The popular attractions of Corfe Castle, Old Harry Rocks and Durdle Door are all under half an hour's drive away too. Facilities on site include a playground and a mini market that also functions as a visitor information centre. Grab food from the takeaway on site when you're hungry. The spacious and clean toilet blocks have plentiful hot showers, family bathrooms and disabled facilities, and the site also has a launderette and a washing-up area. Dogs are also welcome at the park as long as they are kept on a lead and cleaned up after.

Site type

Touring caravan pitches 164
Motorhome pitches 164
Tent pitches 46
Rent a tent 57
Open all year
Opens
Please note
  • Under 18s must be accompanied by their parents or legal guardians.
  • The site does not accept breeds/crossbreeds listed in the Dangerous Dogs Act (i.e. XL Bully, Pit Bull Terrier, Japanese Tosa, Dogo Argentino, and Fila Brasileiro).
  • The charging of electric vehicles is not permitted on site.

Languages spoken

English

Pitch types & availability

Accommodation

Tent pitchesTouring caravan pitchesMotorhome pitchesLodges, cabins, pods or hutsCaravans for hireRent a tent
Choose your dates
2 adults
0 children
Other pitch types

Reviews

6.3

Overall rating from 392 Pitchup.com customers

  • 25%
    10
  • 0%
    9
  • 19%
    8
  • 1%
    7
  • 20%
    6
  • 0%
    5
  • 9%
    4
  • 0%
    3
  • 19%
    2
  • 2%
    1
Location
 9
Value for money
 6
Accommodation
 6
Facilities / Activities
 6
Customer service
 7
Child friendliness
 7
Cleanliness
 6
Wifi
 5
Peaceful

52% would recommend this site to a friend

50% would stay here again

What customers say

This campsite boasts an excellent location, with many guests highlighting the easy walking distance to Swanage town and beach. Staff are frequently described as friendly and helpful. Facilities, including showers and toilets, receive mixed reviews, with some finding them clean and adequate, while others report them as dated, in need of repair, or not cleaned frequently enough. Pitches are generally considered spacious, and the on-site amenities like the food van and shop are appreciated. Some visitors note noise issues and a general lack of site upkeep in places.

Summary AI-generated from Pitchup.com customer reviews

Reviews page 1 of 40
Arrival date (latest first)

Everything…

Overall

10 out of 10
Location
 10
Value for money
 10
Accommodation
 10
Facilities / Activities
 10
Customer service
 10
Child friendliness
 10
Cleanliness
 10
Wifi
 10
yones N.

Electric grass pitch

Liked Everything

Recommend to friends Visit again

Great location but far too crowded.

Overall

4 out of 10
Location
 10
Value for money
 3
Accommodation
 4
Facilities / Activities
 4
Customer service
 4
Child friendliness
 No rating
Cleanliness
 4
Wifi
 No rating
Jackie A.

Electric grass pitch

Liked The location and the shower toilet pods.

Disliked Small pitches. More epensive than ones we usually stay on. Overcrowded at the weekend. Tents were pitched with no space between them. It was much better on Monday when quieter.

Recommend to friends Visit again

Super friendly staff

Overall

10 out of 10
Location
 10
Value for money
 10
Accommodation
 7
Facilities / Activities
 7
Customer service
 10
Child friendliness
 7
Cleanliness
 7
Wifi
 No rating
Anna K.

Fully-serviced hardstanding and grass touring pitch

Liked Food was so good 😊

Disliked There is nothing

Recommend to friends Visit again

Location only.…

Overall

1 out of 10
Location
 8
Value for money
 1
Accommodation
 1
Facilities / Activities
 1
Customer service
 1
Child friendliness
 No rating
Cleanliness
 1
Wifi
 1
Anonymous

Fully-serviced hardstanding and grass touring pitch

Liked Location only.

Disliked The whole site was a disgrace!
Do not stay here!!
The facilities were disgusting, filthy, and unkept. Definitely not worth the cost of the site.
Loud disrespectful people, would never recommend to anyone!
If you do have to stay, then just be prepared to be disappointed.

Recommend to friends Visit again

Close to the beach the pitch sizes were decent…

Overall

4 out of 10
Location
 6
Value for money
 4
Accommodation
 3
Facilities / Activities
 3
Customer service
 4
Child friendliness
 2
Cleanliness
 3
Wifi
 4
Anonymous

Electric grass pitch

Liked Close to the beach the pitch sizes were decent

Disliked Not enough toilets.

Recommend to friends Visit again

Great location

Overall

6 out of 10
Location
 10
Value for money
 6
Accommodation
 6
Facilities / Activities
 5
Customer service
 9
Child friendliness
 9
Cleanliness
 1
Wifi
 No rating
Anonymous

Fully-serviced hardstanding and grass touring pitch

Liked Location- it is just a 20 minute walk across fields into the edge of Swanage and just 10 minutes further to the beach
Well organised booking and reception
Fast food van at weekends - serves breakfast rolls and burgers in evenings

Disliked Shower blocks and toilets are disgustingly dirty

Recommend to friends Visit again

Having said this, we would be happy to stay on the site again.

Overall

8 out of 10
Location
 9
Value for money
 8
Accommodation
 No rating
Facilities / Activities
 7
Customer service
 No rating
Child friendliness
 No rating
Cleanliness
 6
Wifi
 No rating
Anonymous

Fully-serviced hardstanding and grass touring pitch

Liked A lovely pitch location overlooking Swanage, and with easy access to the Town.

Disliked The site seemed rather run down in places, and the grass could be kept slightly tidier, and the chemical toilet disposable points could have been better.
We also had a fully serviced pitch, but there didn’t seem to be a defined drain for the green wast water pipe !

Recommend to friends Visit again

It's a dump.

Overall

1 out of 10
Location
 8
Value for money
 1
Accommodation
 No rating
Facilities / Activities
 1
Customer service
 1
Child friendliness
 1
Cleanliness
 1
Wifi
 No rating
Anonymous

Fully-serviced hardstanding and grass touring pitch

Liked Location as it was within walking distance of swanage.

Disliked The whole campsite. Looks like a gypsy site, upon arrival you drive thro what can only be described as a disused scrapyard for occupied static vans, the fully serviced pitches are unkept, the concept of mobile toilet and shower facilities is OK if you provide hot water, there was none. The existing shower and toilet facilities are a disgrace, dirty. I've seen better facilities on a building site. My advice along with several others who have left reviews past and present is don't waste your money. It's a shithole. The worst site I have stayed at in 20yrs of using a motorhome.

Recommend to friends Visit again

Excellent site well done 👏

Overall

9 out of 10
Location
 No rating
Value for money
 No rating
Accommodation
 No rating
Facilities / Activities
 No rating
Customer service
 No rating
Child friendliness
 No rating
Cleanliness
 No rating
Wifi
 No rating
Anonymous

Electric grass pitch

Liked Liked the site very pleased the shower,s were excellent safe site will be coming back,10,10,

Recommend to friends Visit again

Nothing was acceptable.

Overall

1 out of 10
Location
 10
Value for money
 1
Accommodation
 1
Facilities / Activities
 1
Customer service
 1
Child friendliness
 No rating
Cleanliness
 No rating
Wifi
 1
Anonymous

Electric grass pitch

Liked Nothing.

Disliked The place was like a building there are renovations taking place. The pitch we were given was the usual slanted one which our levellers couldn’t really make any difference. This is the 3rd time we have had this pitch. Will not be going there again. Toilets and showers were dirty, showers were freezing except for 1, ridiculous.

Recommend to friends Visit again

Features

Dogs allowed

Campfires allowed

Leisure on site

Bar or club house Cycle hire Evening entertainment Fishing Fitness centre Games room Indoor swimming pool Kids' club On-site restaurant/cafe Outdoor swimming pool Play area TV room Take away Tennis Watersports

Amenities on site

Bath available Car parking by pitch/unit Composting toilet Dog park Drying room Food shop Free wifi Ice pack freezing Internet access Launderette Local produce Parent & baby washroom Pick-up from public transport Portable toilet Pub toilets Public telephone Shower available Toilet block Washing-up area Wifi

Groups welcome

D. of E. welcome Family friendly Motorcycle friendly Rallies welcome Single-sex groups welcome Student groups welcome

Rules

Barbecue provided Barbecues allowed Campfires allowed Commercial vehicles allowed Dogs allowed Dogs allowed all year

Themes

Budget/backpacker Forest Leave the car at home Luxury Peaceful Remote location Spectacular scenery Walkers' paradise Wildlife haven

Utilities

Charging facilities Chemical disposal Electric car charging point(s) Gas cylinders available Recycling available Renewable energy

Nearby amenities

Bar nearby Dog walk nearby Public transport nearby Shop nearby

Type

Large (51-200 pitches)

Nearby leisure

Canoeing/kayaking nearby Climbing nearby Cycle hire nearby Cycling nearby Fishing nearby Golf nearby Horse riding nearby Indoor pool nearby Leisure/theme park nearby Mountain biking nearby Outdoor pool nearby Restaurant nearby Sailing nearby Surf school nearby Tennis nearby Watersports nearby

Touring and motorhomes

Drainage hook-up points for tourers Seasonal pitches Water hook-up points for tourers

Location

Herston Caravan and Camping

Washpond Lane

Swanage

Dorset

England

BH19 3DJ

Directions

Timezone

Europe/London BST (GMT+01:00)

GPS

50.61816°N
1.97913°W

Nearest transport

Coach
1 mi Bus Station
3.6 mi East Street
3.6 mi East Street
Rail
7 mi Poole Rail Station
7.4 mi Parkstone (Dorset) Rail Station
7.6 mi Hamworthy Rail Station
Ferry
4.5 mi Shell Bay Ferry Terminal
4.7 mi Sandbanks Ferry Terminal
5 mi Brownsea Island Ferry Landing
Airport
12.8 mi Bournemouth International Airport

Please note: All distances on this page are calculated "as the crow flies" - please check actual distance depending on your mode of travel using the Get directions button above.

Local attractions

A five-minute drive gets you into Swanage for sandy walks, sandcastle building, splashing about and more serious watersports. To kayak round the cliffs and coves of the Jurassic Coast, make for Knoll beach (10 minutes' drive) or Lulworth Cove (40 minutes) to hire your craft and see the place from sea level. The 630 mile-long South West Coast Path passes through town: pick it up and head eastwards to the Studland and Godlington Heath Nature Reserve to see the wild and nature-filled Wessex that inspired Thomas Hardy (or hire a steed from the trekking centre for extra historical detail). Going west, the path goes past the splendid sights of Stair Hole and Durdle Door (40 minutes), while descents of varying steepness lead down to quiet and cove-like beaches like Winspit (accessible only on foot from Worth Matravers, 10 minutes away) and Kimmeridge (half an hour). For a spot of time travel, pick up the Swanage Railway for a nine-mile steam trip to Wareham, perhaps stopping off en route for a clamber round the ruins of Corfe Castle (10 minutes). Younger visitors should have a ball among the play barns, pedal go-karts and pettable animals at the Putlake Adventure Farm, five minutes away. Further afield, there are pony rides, deer safaris, tractor trips and bouncy castles at Farmer Palmer's Farm Park (30 minutes), and at a similar distance the heavy hardware in The Tank Museum and the charming residents of Monkey World should keep everyone's monkeys out of mischief.

Water quality at nearby bathing waters

Name Distance Type 2020201920182017
Swanage Central 1 mi Sea N/AExcellentExcellentExcellent
Studland Knoll House 2.6 mi Sea N/AExcellentExcellentExcellent
Shell Bay North 4.4 mi Sea N/AExcellentExcellentExcellent
Poole Sandbanks Peninsular 5.2 mi Sea N/AExcellentExcellentExcellent
Poole Shore Road Beach 5.7 mi Sea N/AExcellentExcellentExcellent

Data source: European Environment Agency

Must see

Swanage Railway 1 mi

Studland Beach and Nature Reserve 3 mi

Corfe Castle 3.8 mi

Brownsea Island 5 mi

Dorset Cruises 8.1 mi

National Trust

Studland Beach and Nature Reserve 2.2 mi

Corfe Castle 3.7 mi

Brownsea Island 4.9 mi

White Mill 13.4 mi

Kingston Lacy 13.5 mi

Cycle routes

Find local routes on the National Cycle Network - over 12,000 miles of cycling routes.

Other

Herston - Worth Matravers - Corfe 0.3 mi

Swanage to Corfe Circular Walk 1.8 mi

Durlston Castle Historic Landscape 1.9 mi

Studland - Old Harry - Ballard Down - Studland 2.2 mi

Worth Matravers - Cliffs, Caves and Chapel 2.9 mi

Local events

  • Dorset County Show (Saturday 6 September 2025 – Saturday 6 September 2025)

    Dorchester, Dorset 20.8 mi

Please note: All distances on this page are calculated "as the crow flies" - please check actual distance depending on your mode of travel using the Get directions button above.

Nearest sites

Unfortunately, we have no nearby bookable sites.

Want to know more about camping in Dorset?

Frequently asked questions

  • Does Herston Caravan and Camping have a swimming pool? No View all features
  • Is Herston Caravan and Camping dog friendly? Yes View all features
  • What attractions are near Herston Caravan and Camping? A five-minute drive gets you into Swanage for sandy walks, sandcastle building, splashing about and more serious watersports. To kayak round the cliffs and coves of the Jurassic Coast, make for Knoll … Read more
  • When can I check in and check out of Herston Caravan and Camping?
    Camping and touring
    Arrive:  12 p.m. –  10 p.m.
    Depart by:  11 a.m.
    On-site accommodation
    Arrive:  3 p.m. –  Anytime
    Depart by:  10 a.m.
    Read more
  • How much does it cost to stay at Herston Caravan and Camping? From £50 (for 2 nights, 6 people) - prices may change depending on your dates and party.