Watercress Lodges Campsite

View prices & book 9.3 80 reviews
Poppies looking lovely over at the campsite
Poppies looking lovely over at the campsite
Safari tent exterior
Safari tent exterior
Safari tent exterior
Safari tent exterior
Interior
Amazing views
Amazing surrounding green area
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Safari tent exterior
Safari tent exterior
Safari tent exterior

  • Family-run site by the Watercress Line: see the trains from your pitch
  • A minute's walk from steam engine events of Ropley station
  • Spotless amenities and friendly vibe 20 minutes from Winchester
Do you have a Thomas the Tank Engine fan or mini trainspotter in the family? They might just go up in a puff of excited smoke at Hampshire’s Watercress Lodges Campsite, so close to the historic Watercress Line that you’ll be able to see the trains’ steam from your tent pitch. Engine-ious. No need to be out of puff when tracking other activities in the area either, as the line’s Ropley station and its railway bridge are both a minute or two’s walk from the site, and it has regular events for all ages including Thomas the Tank Engine and Wallace and Gromit days, dining evenings, real ale trains and Santa bookings. Just the ticket then for a well-conducted family hol… The site is on land the Graham family has farmed for four generations and opened as a campsite in 2014, pulling out all the stops to make this a friendly site with a family vibe. Facilities including the new shower and toilet block are spotlessly kept by Hannah and her team, who are on hand if guests have any problems or questions. Off site, once kids have let off steam at the railway, the small town of New Alresford is three miles away for supplies, shops and pubs, and the city of Winchester within a 20-minute drive.

Campground type

Tent sites 30
Rent a tent 2
Lodges, cabins, pods or huts 6
Open all year
Opens
Please note
  • Under 18s must be accompanied by their parents or legal guardians.
  • No cars/motorbikes by the pitch/unit. All cars must be parked in the designated area.
  • Reception is unmanned after 6 p.m.. Please inform the campground while on your way there should you expect to arrive after this time so that the team can provide information about your unit/site.
  • At least one of the party members must be aged 18 or over.
  • Guests are advised to bring a good quality torch with them as parts of the campground/park are unlit.
  • No naked flames are allowed inside the hired accommodation units.
  • The charging of electric vehicles is not permitted on site.

Languages spoken

English

Site types & availability

Accommodation

Tent sitesCaravan sitesRV & Motorhome sitesLodges, cabins, pods or hutsCaravans for hireRent a tent
Choose your dates
2 adults
0 children

Reviews

9.3

Overall rating from 80 Pitchup.com customers View breakdown

  • 71%
    10
  • 1%
    9
  • 22%
    8
  • 0%
    7
  • 5%
    6
  • 0%
    5
  • 0%
    4
  • 0%
    3
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    2
  • 0%
    1
Peaceful

96% would recommend this campground to a friend

96% would stay here again

Reviews page 1 of 8
Arrival date (latest first)

Really nice camp site, clean facilities, really quite and relaxing no issues…

Overall 8/10

Location
 8
Value for money
 8
Accommodation
 8
Facilities / Activities
 8
Customer service
 8
Child friendliness
 9
Cleanliness
 8
Wifi
 6
Sarah P. The reviewer booked through Pitchup.com

Unpowered grass tent site

Liked Really nice camp site, clean facilities, really quite and relaxing no issues from us

Disliked Not much in the area

Recommend to friends Visit again

Convenient, quiet, pretty much everything!…

Overall 9/10

Location
 10
Value for money
 10
Accommodation
 10
Facilities / Activities
 10
Customer service
 10
Child friendliness
 10
Cleanliness
 7
Wifi
 10
Mel P. The reviewer booked through Pitchup.com

Unpowered grass tent site

Liked Convenient, quiet, pretty much everything!

Disliked Shower looked a bit grim.

Recommend to friends Visit again

A great location on the boundary of the south downs. Quiet and peaceful.…

Overall 10/10

Location
 10
Value for money
 10
Accommodation
 10
Facilities / Activities
 10
Customer service
 8
Child friendliness
 No rating
Cleanliness
 10
Wifi
 2
Anonymous The reviewer booked through Pitchup.com

Unpowered grass tent site

Liked A great location on the boundary of the south downs.
Quiet and peaceful. Good facilities, clean and well maintained.
I'll be back, for sure.

Disliked None

Recommend to friends Visit again

Excellent campsite, couldn't fault it.

Overall 10/10

Location
 10
Value for money
 10
Accommodation
 10
Facilities / Activities
 10
Customer service
 10
Child friendliness
 10
Cleanliness
 10
Wifi
 10
Anonymous The reviewer booked through Pitchup.com

Unpowered grass tent site

Liked We loved this campsite, clean facilities with heating, freezer, water taps situated liberally, bins for rubbish and recycling. Loved the sound of the steam engines on The Watercress line just over the hedge too. Bus stop down the rd too. There's a shell garage in walking distance which stocks most things.

Disliked Nothing to dislike.

Recommend to friends Visit again

Excellent site, recommended, we will Come back soon

Overall 10/10

Location
 10
Value for money
 10
Accommodation
 10
Facilities / Activities
 10
Customer service
 10
Child friendliness
 10
Cleanliness
 10
Wifi
 No rating
Anonymous The reviewer booked through Pitchup.com

Unpowered grass tent site

Liked Brilliant one night stop off at this campsite. Lovely well maintained camping field, great facilities, the train line was an additional gem. Hannah was super helpful and we had a peaceful nights sleep after a quiet evening around the fire.

Disliked We don’t know why people feel the need to bring music camping! It wasn’t loud, but the low beats are annoying when you are there to enjoy the peaceful countryside. It was great one they turned it off :)

Recommend to friends Visit again

Lovely location, setting was beautiful, would stay again…

Overall 10/10

Location
 10
Value for money
 10
Accommodation
 10
Facilities / Activities
 8
Customer service
 10
Child friendliness
 10
Cleanliness
 8
Wifi
 No rating
Anonymous The reviewer booked through Pitchup.com

Bell tent

Liked Lovely location, setting was beautiful, would stay again

Recommend to friends Visit again

Clean and well organised Close to the historic train so you can peak…

Overall 10/10

Location
 10
Value for money
 6
Accommodation
 10
Facilities / Activities
 10
Customer service
 10
Child friendliness
 10
Cleanliness
 10
Wifi
 No rating
Aleksandra R. The reviewer booked through Pitchup.com

Unpowered grass tent site

Liked Clean and well organised
Close to the historic train so you can peak them from the camp
Easy to park

Disliked Facilities a bit dated
As with all camping, things have become a bit expensive for what it is

Recommend to friends Visit again

Facilities clean. Good view from camping pitches.…

Overall 8/10

Location
 8
Value for money
 8
Accommodation
 8
Facilities / Activities
 8
Customer service
 8
Child friendliness
 No rating
Cleanliness
 8
Wifi
 No rating
Alex L. The reviewer booked through Pitchup.com

Unpowered grass tent site

Liked Facilities clean. Good view from camping pitches.

Recommend to friends Visit again

Stayed here a few times now and always love camping here. Nice to…

Overall 10/10

Location
 10
Value for money
 10
Accommodation
 10
Facilities / Activities
 10
Customer service
 No rating
Child friendliness
 No rating
Cleanliness
 10
Wifi
 No rating
Richard B. The reviewer booked through Pitchup.com

Unpowered grass tent site

Liked Stayed here a few times now and always love camping here.
Nice to see and hear the steam trains going by, excellent facilities.

Disliked Nothing.

Recommend to friends Visit again

Great clean little site, with good facilities and a nice location

Overall 10/10

Location
 10
Value for money
 10
Accommodation
 10
Facilities / Activities
 10
Customer service
 10
Child friendliness
 10
Cleanliness
 10
Wifi
 No rating
Daniel W. The reviewer booked through Pitchup.com

Unpowered grass tent site

Liked Nice clean site in an easily accessible location. Good sized facilities with toilets and showers. Amazing place if you are interested in the watercress line as you can smell, see and hear it the whole time you are there.

Recommend to friends Visit again

Features

No 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 Composting toilet Dog park Drying room Food shop Free wifi Ice pack freezing Internet access Laundry 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 No dogs allowed No pets allowed

Themes

Budget/backpacker Peaceful Spectacular scenery

Utilities

Charging facilities Communal freezer Dump point Electric car charging point(s) Gas cylinders available Recycling available Renewable energy

Nearby amenities

Bar nearby Dog walk nearby Nearby farmers' market Public transport nearby

Type

Medium (26-50 sites)

Accessibility

Disabled facilities

Nearby leisure

Fishing nearby Golf nearby Indoor pool nearby Leisure/theme park nearby Restaurant nearby

Location

Watercress Lodges Campsite

Dean Farm

Bighton Hill

Ropley

Alresford

Hampshire

England

SO24 9SQ

Directions

Timezone

Europe/London +0100 (GMT+01:00)

GPS

51.08875°N
1.10031°W

Route directions

You can also arrive in style on a steam train which links to rail mainline services at Alton. Steam rail services do not run every day: please check train times.

Nearest transport

Coach
15 km Broadway Guildhall
15 km Dragon Street
15 km Dragon Street
Rail
11.7 km Alton Rail Station
14.4 km Petersfield Rail Station
15.3 km Micheldever Rail Station
Ferry
29.7 km Hamble-le-Rice Ferry Landing
29.8 km Warsash Ferry Landing
30.4 km Southampton Vehicle Ferry Terminal
Airport
23.9 km Southampton 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

Puff along on the Watercress Line or walk along the River Itchen to sightsee at Georgian New Alresford, or go in the other direction along the 10-mile route to its other terminus Alton, home of historic buildings, art gallery and the Curtis Museum. The ancient market town of Petersfield is about five miles to the east of Watercress: head here for markets, museums and scenic walks/pedals into the South Downs (Petersfield is in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and is in the South Downs National Park and on the South Downs Way). Winchester and its museum and castle is about 10 miles away: if the kids aren’t suitably awed by the 900-year-old cathedral (tsk), take them to Marwell Wildlife at Owslebury near the city to marvel at the 1,200 or so-strong menagerie of animals from all over the world, or to the simply super INTECH Science Centre and Planetarium on Winchester’s Morn Hill.

Water quality at nearby bathing waters

Name Distance Type 2020201920182017
Hillhead 31.8 km Sea N/AGoodGoodGood
Lee-On-Solent 32.8 km Sea N/AExcellentExcellentExcellent
Eastney 34 km Sea N/AExcellentExcellentExcellent
Southsea East 34.5 km Sea N/AExcellentExcellentExcellent
Calshot 34.6 km Sea N/AExcellentExcellentExcellent

Data source: European Environment Agency

Must see

Mid-Hants Railway 'Watercress Line' 4.3 km

Jane Austen's House 9.2 km

INTECH Science Centre & Planetarium 11.9 km

Winchester Cathedral 15.2 km

Birdworld 20.9 km

National Trust

Hinton Ampner 6.2 km

Winchester City Mill 14.8 km

Uppark House and Garden 21 km

The Vyne 24 km

Hindhead Commons and The Devil's Punch Bowl Caf� 25.8 km

Cycle routes

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

Other

OLD ALRESFORD HOUSE 4.1 km

Battle of Cheriton, 1644 4.6 km

BRAMDEAN HOUSE 4.8 km

Abbotstone Down - Abbotstone - Old Alresford - Abbotstone Down 5.8 km

Cheriton and the Civil War Battlefields 6.7 km

Local events

  • CarFest (Friday 22 August 2025 – Friday 22 August 2025)

    Basingstoke, England 18.1 km

  • Farnborough International Airshow (Monday 20 July 2026 – Monday 20 July 2026)

    Farnborough, England 30.9 km

  • Goodwood Festival of Speed (Thursday 10 July 2025 – Thursday 10 July 2025)

    Chichester, England 34.9 km

  • Reading Festival (Thursday 21 August 2025 – Thursday 21 August 2025)

    Reading, England 42.4 km

  • Arundel Festival (Saturday 16 August 2025 – Saturday 16 August 2025)

    Arundel, England 46.2 km

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.

Offers

Conditions apply - see site type section for details

Nearest campgrounds

Unfortunately, we have no nearby bookable campgrounds.

Want to know more about camping in Hampshire?

Frequently asked questions

  • Does Watercress Lodges Campsite have a swimming pool? No View all features
  • Is Watercress Lodges Campsite dog friendly? No View all features
  • What attractions are near Watercress Lodges Campsite? Puff along on the Watercress Line or walk along the River Itchen to sightsee at Georgian New Alresford, or go in the other direction along the 10-mile route to its other terminus … Read more
  • When can I check in and check out of Watercress Lodges Campsite?
    Camping and caravan
    Arrive:  noon –  6 p.m.
    Depart by:  noon
    On-site accommodation
    Arrive:  3 p.m. –  7 p.m.
    Depart by:  10 a.m.
    Read more
  • How much does it cost to stay at Watercress Lodges Campsite? From $54.35 (for 1 night, 2 adults) - prices may change depending on your dates and party.