Sandy Balls Holiday Village

View prices & book 7.8 53 reviews
Outdoor Pool
Overhead drone
Pitch
Outdoor pool

  • Surrounded by the scenery of the peaceful New Forest
  • Activities including zorbing, archery and bug hunts
  • Gym, spa, zipwire and two pools
The New Forest is, but of course, fab enough. But when you can retreat back to base for a Jacuzzi session or beauty treatment, or indeed spend days on base getting stuck into activities such as archery and, er, bug hunting... it's fairly safe to say that you've found your New Forest calling. Such forested fun is at Fordingbridge's Sandy Balls Holiday Village, among the spectacular scenery of the forest and set up for couples, friends and families to have long weekends, midweek breaks or (recommended) longer hols among tiptop facilities and absolutely loads to do. Off site, it's about 25 minutes' drive through the forest to Paultons Park and Peppa Pig World, 30 to the New Forest Wildlife Park, and about the same to coast and sandy... toes at Christchurch. The packed activity schedule at Sandy Balls includes varied shenanigans like walking, cycling, bug hunts, arts and crafts activities, football sessions, horse riding, archery, and – if you're here with those you're soppy about – laser combat games. A calendar of special events takes place throughout the year too, and entertainment is available every day during the school holidays and at weekends all year round. Might you now be ready for some pampering? Indoor and outdoor pools, a Jacuzzi, sauna and a beauty suite await your tuckered out self: after full recuperation, you've a pick of two restaurants on site in Aubreys Restaurant and cosy country pub the Woodside Inn. Takeaway and a well-stocked country shop are available too if by this point you just need to stagger back to base after all your active adventures.

Campground type

Lodges, cabins, pods or huts 85
Caravans for hire 100
Tent sites 50
Open now
Opens 1 August

Tourist board rating

Please note
  • Under 18s must be accompanied by their parents or legal guardians.
  • The campground/park does not accept breeds/crossbreeds listed in the Dangerous Dog Act (i.e. Pit Bull Terrier, Japanese Tosa, Dogo Argentino, and Fila Brasileiro).
  • Group bookings of 3 or more units (e.g. tent, caravan, motorhome or accommodation hire) travelling together are not permitted via Pitchup.com.
  • Group bookings of 6 or more adults are not permitted (couples and immediate family members excepted).
  • Single-sex bookings of 3 or more people (couples and immediate family members excepted) are not permitted via Pitchup.com.
  • No hen/stag parties permitted via Pitchup.com.
  • Commercial vehicles (vehicles used for work-related purposes, carrying goods or fare-paying passengers) and sign-written vehicles are not permitted on site.
  • Reception is unmanned after 5 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.
  • Free entertainment is available every day during the school holidays and at weekends throughout the year.

Languages spoken

English

Open from Fri, 1 Aug to

Open from Fri, 31 July to

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Reviews

  • 33%
    10
  • 7%
    9
  • 28%
    8
  • 7%
    7
  • 5%
    6
  • 7%
    5
  • 1%
    4
  • 0%
    3
  • 7%
    2
  • 0%
    1
Location
9
Value for money
8
Accommodation
8
Facilities / Activities
8
Customer service
8
Child friendliness
8
Cleanliness
8
Wifi
4

83% would recommend this campground to a friend

79% would stay here again

What customers say

Great family spot near New Forest. Clean amenities & friendly staff praised. Pitches good. Book ahead for pools/arcades. Minor noise/food gripes. Good value overall.

Summary AI-generated from Pitchup.com customer reviews

Reviews page 1 of 6
Arrival date (latest first)

Grande prairie, sanitaires propres…

Overall

7 out of 10
Location
8
Value for money
8
Accommodation
No rating
Facilities / Activities
9
Customer service
9
Child friendliness
9
Cleanliness
7
Wifi
4
Carine M.

Unpowered grass tent site

Liked Grande prairie, sanitaires propres

Disliked Pas d’ombre, séparé des locations loin des infrastructures
La piscine est accessible par créneau horaire : 1 heure max. Ceci devrait être communiqué lors de la réservation

Recommend to friends Visit again

Lots to do at Sandy Balls…

Overall

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

Unpowered grass tent site

Liked Lots to do at Sandy Balls and in beautiful area. Staff are friendly

Disliked The camp site being confined within the red marked spaces no privacy

Recommend to friends Visit again

The park was nice and the…

Overall

4 out of 10
Location
10
Value for money
10
Accommodation
No rating
Facilities / Activities
2
Customer service
1
Child friendliness
2
Cleanliness
7
Wifi
3
Melissa S.

Unpowered grass tent site

Liked The park was nice and the pools. I’d definitely stay again just not camping.

Disliked We went camping the pitches were too close together.

Recommend to friends Visit again

A lovely, family friendly site. We loved it and hope to return.

Overall

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

Unpowered grass tent site

Liked We had the best time at Sandy Balls! Great sized pitches with plenty of space for children to play. The portaloos were kept really clean, contrary to other reviews we had read. Staff were all very friendly and helpful. The short walk to the main site is easy. The children loved the pool and the arcade. The shop was fantastic with lots of quality produce. We hired bikes from the on site shop and the staff there were brilliant; bikes were great quality too. We avoided the paid activities as we found them too expensive, but enjoyed the outdoor cinema; it was relaxed and a lovely way to spend the afternoon. The campsite was quiet at night pretty much as soon as it became dark. It’s a great location within easy reach/walk of the New Forest and all it has to offer.

Disliked The showers on site were a trickle and each push of the button lasted 10 seconds, so not brilliant and hard to wash hair properly. We used the ones in the pool changing rooms, but they were not that much better. The outdoor pool was freezing and, even in the good weather we had, was too cold to use. There was no WiFi on the campsite (just the main site) and phone reception is poor. This wasn’t a huge issue for us, but different to what we had read before arriving. 9:30am check out is early when you have a tent to dismantle and considering there’s not a great deal/any change-over to be done before check in at 11:30.

Recommend to friends Visit again

Great site, great location.

Overall

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

Unpowered grass tent site

Liked The pitch size, had enough room for the tent and our car.
The onsite facilities were great, the toilets/showers were cleaned regularly.
The onsite attendant offered services to charge, refreeze ice packs and a pump.
The bins were cleaned regularly too.
The camp site is a field away from the main resort, we didn’t mind the short walk but have seen on the reviews that it was an issue for some.

Disliked Sadly on our third night a very large rough family moved in and stayed in two tents directly behind us. There were loud, the kids kicked footballs at our tent did not apologise and tried to intimidate us.
Of course this is not the parks fault but they put a cloud of our stay at the site.

Recommend to friends Visit again

Excellent camping area

Overall

7 out of 10
Location
8
Value for money
4
Accommodation
No rating
Facilities / Activities
5
Customer service
4
Child friendliness
3
Cleanliness
8
Wifi
1
michelle w.

Unpowered grass tent site

Liked We camped, the shower block and toilet, wash up area is kept really well. The site is really flat, which makes for a brilliant setup. The staff who man the camping are really nice, helpful with knowledge
The pool is amazing, and the staff too. Young fresh and with great personal skills. Something that the whole site staff needs...Refreshing.

Disliked Within the main site, I found staff could do with some training on children with neuro diversity. There was little to no understanding or compasion with regards to our children in our group who have autism, and adhd. They did not feel inclusive, and quickly became full on anxiety and very upset, only feeling safe in the camping area or pool. Numerous times we had to explain over and over again about them. To which they were actually quite rude regarding. Maybe this is an age thing as quite alot of staff are older. With one very rude man in the arcades area, and a woman in the restaurant.
Drinks are very pricey. We paid £30 for 4 j20's and 2 fruit ciders.
The shop is super expensive and not your ordinary shopping. Organic etc. Great if thats the morning that you eat. With very little choice. Maybe focus more on food that gifts. In the restaurant we paid £12 for 3 portions of chips which came in a burger tray, so you can imagine how many were there!
Child friendly if you kids don't play or make noise!

Recommend to friends Visit again

Level pitches, clean facilities.

Overall

5 out of 10
Location
7
Value for money
4
Accommodation
No rating
Facilities / Activities
6
Customer service
10
Child friendliness
No rating
Cleanliness
10
Wifi
No rating
Ellie L.

Unpowered grass tent site

Liked Camp site a nice field with clean toilet, shower facilities

Disliked I feel like sandy balls focus A LOT on the lodges and not enough detail to care for camping..
there is no play ground for the children it is just a field and have to walk through a woodland trail to get to the site. Could do with including camping more to the business. But had a lovely time just wish they would put a little bit more in e.g. playground for the camp site.

Recommend to friends Visit again

Excellent , had an amazing week here!!

Overall

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

Unpowered grass tent site

Liked lovely campsite, ideal for families.
There was lots to do, our daughter loved the off road jeeps, swimming & also the kids party on the evenings.
staff member Kayleigh in the camp field was always helpful & friendly. The whole place was nice & clean and there was always someone to help if we had a question about anything.
We had an amazing week here!!

Disliked Nothing to dislike

Recommend to friends Visit again

Lovely place in a beautiful part of the country!

Overall

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

Unpowered grass tent site

Liked We recently stayed in the camping field very near the Sandy Balls Holiday Village.
The young lady Kayleigh was very helpful and informative and so were the other guys that she worked with.
We had great weather which always makes a difference if your camping.
The facilities were good with toilets and showers and washing facilities as you would expect.
The Sandy Balls village was great. The outside pool was the highlight for our girls who played in the pool most of the weekend.
There was plenty to do and even a foam party that they loved.
We didn't have time to do everything as we only had three nights there but I would certainly recommend this place and would hope to come back another year!

Recommend to friends Visit again

Fab weekend camping at Sandy Balls! Will definitely return

Overall

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

Unpowered grass tent site

Liked The facilities - pools, arcade, play areas, entertainment; the range and quality of food, everything we ate was really yummy and was good for allergies; the location - campsite is a short walk from the main park which is in the middle of the forest, there are great cycling and walking routes. So much to do to keep us entertained. The staff were (nearly) all lovely and helpful. Especially the lady on the campsite who was so lovely and even helped us put up our tent 😀
The toilets and washing facilities in the campsite were nice and clean, they were regularly cleaned, had nice warm water, always stocked well with toilet paper and paper towels. Good showers.

Disliked The only problems we had were with the pool, we queued I think 4 times to get in and were told it was too busy/couldn’t get in yet, so had to come back later. On the first day the indoor pool was closed, which seems silly in the heat. It seems like the system could do with a bit of a rethink, queuing out the door to be told was full. When we did manage to get in on the Sunday, we sat around the outdoor pool and it was really quiet. The pool was lovely once we weee in though.
The only other thing we weren’t happy with was one of the staff members on the campsite. We couldn’t find my nephews tub of cards he was collecting, we thought he’d left them by the washing up sinks that morning, but when we went to ask the man on the gate (shed) he was slumped in his chair and couldn’t be bothered to talk to us or look for them, said he’d not seen them but when we looked, they were in the shed, so had been handed in.

Recommend to friends Visit again


Features

Leisure on site

Bar or club house Cycle hire Evening entertainment Fishing Fitness centre Games room Indoor swimming pool Kids' club Massages On-site cafe On-site restaurant On-site restaurant/cafe Outdoor swimming pool Play area Sauna Soft 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 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

Family friendly Motorcycle friendly Single-sex groups welcome Student groups welcome

Rules

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

Themes

Bush Gastronomic delight Luxury Peaceful Spectacular scenery Walkers' paradise Wildlife haven

Utilities

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

Nearby amenities

Bar nearby Convenience store nearby Dog walk nearby Public transport nearby

Type

Large (51-200 sites)

Nearby leisure

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

Location

Sandy Balls Holiday Village

Godshill

Fordingbridge

Hampshire

England

SP6 2JZ

Directions

Timezone

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

GPS

50.9296°N
1.7609°W

Nearest transport

Coach
9.4 km Meeting House Lane
12.9 km Red Rover
13.1 km Canada Corner
Rail
15.4 km Dean Rail Station
16 km Salisbury Rail Station
17.1 km Ashurst New Forest Rail Station
Ferry
22.2 km Christchurch Quay Ferry Landing
22.3 km Tuckton Tea Gardens Ferry Landing
22.3 km Wick Christchurch Ferry Landing
Airport
17.6 km Bournemouth International Airport
28.3 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

This is an excellently set site, within easy reach of forest wanders and activities, coast and beaches, family days out and heritage highlights. For families and other animals, it's 15 minutes' drive to the critters at the New Forest's Liberty’s Owl, Raptor and Reptile Centre, and about 25 to the inhabitants, activities and tractor rides of Longdown Activity Farm at Ashurst. Marwell Zoo is 40 minutes to the east at Winchester. History is all around here too: within the forest at Beaulieu's National Motor Museum and at the 18th-century village of Buckler's Hard (40 minutes); at Henry 8's Hurst Castle (45 minutes) and at the many sights of Portsmouth’s Historic Dockyard, 50 minutes away. To find out about New Forest pony rides, hikes and other foresty activity, drop into the New Forest Centre Museum, within 25 minutes' drive at Lyndhurst.

Water quality at nearby bathing waters

Name Distance Type 2020201920182017
Christchurch Highcliffe Castle 21.8 km Sea N/AExcellentExcellentExcellent
Highcliffe 21.9 km Sea N/AExcellentExcellentExcellent
Christchurch Friar`S Cliff 22.1 km Estuary N/AExcellentExcellentExcellent
Christchurch Avon Beach 22.4 km Estuary N/AExcellentExcellentGood
Christchurch Bay 22.8 km Sea N/AExcellentExcellentExcellent

Data source: European Environment Agency

Must see

Breamore House 4.8 km

Exbury Gardens and Steam Railway 14.5 km

Paultons Family Theme Park 15 km

Salisbury Cathedral 15.2 km

Wilton House 18 km

National Trust

Mompesson House 15.4 km

Mottisfont 19.8 km

Little Clarendon 23 km

Kingston Lacy 23.2 km

Philipps House and Dinton Park 23.5 km

Cycle routes

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

Other

Godshill - Pitts Wood Inclosure (New Forest) 2.1 km

Godshill - Frankenbury - Castle Hill 2.1 km

HALE PARK 4.4 km

Linwood - New Forest 4.7 km

BREAMORE 5 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.

Want to know more about camping in Hampshire?

Frequently asked questions

  • Does Sandy Balls Holiday Village have a swimming pool? Yes View all features
  • Is Sandy Balls Holiday Village dog friendly? Yes View all features
  • What attractions are near Sandy Balls Holiday Village? This is an excellently set site, within easy reach of forest wanders and activities, coast and beaches, family days out and heritage highlights. For families and other animals, it's 15 minutes' drive … Read more
  • When can I check in and check out of Sandy Balls Holiday Village?
    Camping and caravan
    Arrive:  11 a.m. –  5 p.m.
    Depart by:  10 a.m.
    Read more
  • How much does it cost to stay at Sandy Balls Holiday Village? From $183.22 (for 2 nights, 6 people) - prices may change depending on your dates and party.