Alderford Lake

Liked We had so much fun at the weekend. The staff were absolutely amazing really friendly and helpful. The site was spotlessly clean and the bell tents made camping for a single night so easy!

Disliked As has been mentioned in other reviews the toilets are rather pungent. They are still spotlessly clean and the showers piping hot but do have chemical toilet smell.

Recommend to friends Visit again

Liked The lake and cafe.

Disliked This should be advertised as a basic, temporary campsite and priced inexpensively to reflect that just for proximity to the lake. But it’s not and at £35 per night it’s actually an expensive site and facilities are beyond poor.
Very basic, dirty facilities- the toilets and showers were disgusting. They were blocked, not replenished and stank. Also nowhere for handwashing in hot water other than the 1 washing up sink which doesn’t seem very hygienic.
The showers were so hot everyone was coming out with red raw skin and they can’t be adjusted. Not what you need after a day in the lake. They also lost pressure if more than one person was using them at one time so turned to a scalding dribble.
The lake and playarea can only be accessed if you pay entry to lake and until 5pm so advertising a playarea as a campsite facility is not accurate.
There was one bin on the site which was not emptied or swapped so was overflowing and smelly.
The road is noisy all night- nothing can be done about that but worth knowing.
It’s a real shame as it could be so lovely, and the lake itself is great. I appreciate its early days for the campsite and they are still finding their feet with it and maybe have plans to upgrade facilities but that doesn’t excuse unhygienic and unusable facilities. Until it’s upgraded it should be advertised as a very basic, cheap campsite and then people would know what to expect.

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Liked The proximity to the lake and cafe.

Disliked The campsite was the worst one we have ever stayed at. The facilities are beyond basic, and disgusting. When we arrived on the Friday the toilets were already over flowing and the smell was revolting (there were only 3 other campers on site). To top this off the only hot water to wash your hands is at the washing up sink, incredibly unhygienic. The showers are pointless, when more than 1 is being used it’s just a dribble, a boiling hot dribble, again very unhygienic and unsafe after a day swimming at the lake. The water actually turned our children’s skin bright red. The site is totally unmanned, rubbish bins over flowing (at the start of the weekend) it was particularly busy, so I dread to think how bad it can get. I have had better facilities at festivals….. I understand it’s a new site and there may be teething troubles but the state of the facilities goes far beyond this. It’s not a cheap site, and should be advertised as a temporary camp site, the price should reflect that, but even so it’s so unhygienic and not looked after. It’s such a shame as alderford lake is amazing and the site could be wonderful. It’s clearly a temporary site for the festival but when your paying so much a night at the very least you expect cleanliness and hot water to wash your hands.
Nothing the owners can do, but be aware the noise from the road is constant, all night too!

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Liked Very neat very clean very welcoming very simple. Right next to the lake. Could do with more easy food to buy like a stall would be great with baguettes and pastries. Simple.

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Liked The pitches were large
Toilets ok, good idea with the green and red lights to show occupancy
Showers were hot and good pressure
All the staff around the lake were helpful and friendly

Disliked Not being able to access the play area after 5pm
Day visitors parking and having access too tent pitches
Campers to have similar to a fast track to get inside the park

Recommend to friends Visit again

Liked The bell tent was comfy cosy liked the lanterns and info book facilities good

Disliked Check in was terrible never received email giving info which tent, went to reception they had no idea just told me drive down not knowing there's 7 tents and didn't know which one, went back to reception and the email that I should of received then came through with details etc and within this email I then got a 20 % code which in my opinion be a few days before because I like to plan definitely think a few teething issues

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From the manager: Thank you for your review. We’re so pleased to hear you had a relaxing stay and enjoyed the comfort of the bell tent, the lanterns, information book and facilities.

Thank you as well for highlighting the issue with check in communication. In this case, this was completely our fault due to a miscommunication from the admin team and we appreciate your patience whilst it was resolved. We completely understand your point regarding receiving arrival details and discount information earlier to help with planning ahead.

We’ve already put measures in place to improve this process and make arrival information clearer and more timely for future guests.

Thank you again for your feedback and we hope to welcome you back again soon.

Liked The lake was beautiful.

The inflatable aquapark was great fun and well priced.

Great place to wild swim, kayak and paddle board.

The bell tent was a great size and the outdoor space was good with a picnic bench per bell tent.

Would definitely return to the lake for a day.

Disliked The campsite toilets were disgusting, whilst relatively clean they smelt like festival toilets. My nephew was physically sick due to the smell.

The campsite is located too close to a very busy and noisy A road it is impossible to sleep throughout the night. The campsite would have been better situated where the car park was and the car park next to the loud road. Whilst you can't hear the road much during the day it's very apparent when the lake closes, (which is early) and the place is no longer buzzing with people.

The lake closes far too early - closes at 16:30. We were experiencing a heatwave in the May school holidays and having to leave the lake so early was frustrating. Should consider opening until 18:30 especially during school holidays and when the weather is good.

Due to the park being located on the lake site it is not accessible to campers when the lake closes.

Better to take your own kayak/paddle board as 50min rentals aren't long enough slots.

Recommend to friends Visit again

From the manager: Thank you for your detailed review, Stuart. We’re really pleased to hear you enjoyed the lake itself and made the most of the activities, and that you found the bell tent spacious with a good outdoor set up. It’s great to hear you’d return for a day visit.

As this was only our second opening weekend for camping, we really appreciate you taking the time to provide such detailed feedback. We recognise the comments raised regarding the toilet facilities and have already begun making improvements following feedback from opening weekends, including additional servicing and facility upgrades.

We also appreciate your comments regarding road noise. Whilst the location itself isn’t something we can change, feedback like this is helpful for future planning and setting expectations for guests.

Thank you as well for your suggestions around lake opening times, access to facilities after closing and activity hire durations. Guest feedback like yours is incredibly valuable as we continue developing the camping experience alongside the lake offering.

Thank you again for visiting and we hope to welcome you back for another day by the lake soon.

Liked The lake was spectacular

Disliked The toilets absolutely stank and the road so close behind was so so noisy

Recommend to friends Visit again

From the manager: Thank you for your review. We’re pleased to hear you enjoyed the lake and found it spectacular.

As this was our very first opening weekend for camping, we know there are areas that need refining and we appreciate you sharing your feedback. We’ve already taken steps to improve the toilet facilities and servicing schedule following guest comments from opening weekend.

We also appreciate your comments regarding road noise. Whilst this isn’t something we can directly control, it’s useful feedback for future guests when choosing the setting that suits them best.

Thank you again for taking the time to share your experience.

Liked We stayed over night at Alderford lake. The tent was spacious, beds comfortable. Really enjoyed the set up with a camp fire in the middle. Separate toilets and shower with small kitchen area.
I am a regular user of Alderford lake and hold a membership, this is a fabulous addition to the site.

Disliked On arrival, set up and went on to the lake for an hour, unfortunately we paid full price for admission. We raised this in the morning and was given free access to the lake for the day. The staff are amazing and do resolve your problems. Just something to be aware off when arriving late on.

The showers weren’t working in the morning and the toilets had a bad smell about them (but maybe that’s part of camping) Could be mindful of more toilet rolls in each toilet and a mirror in the shower cubicles.

Recommend to friends Visit again

From the manager: Thank you for your lovely review, Tash. We’re so pleased to hear you enjoyed your overnight stay and found the bell tent spacious and comfortable. It’s great to know you enjoyed the campfire set up and, as a regular lake visitor and member, it means a lot to hear that camping feels like a great addition to the site.

Thank you as well for mentioning the team and recognising how they helped resolve the lake access issue for you. We’ll make sure that feedback is shared.

As this was our very first opening weekend for camping, we really appreciate your feedback regarding the showers, toilet facilities, stocking levels and adding mirrors in the shower cubicles. We’re already making improvements following guest feedback and comments like yours really help us shape the experience going forward.

Thank you again for staying with us and we look forward to welcoming you back again soon.

Liked Large pitches
Close to lake and activities
Good location
Very basic at the min
If the washing and toilet facilities were improved would return

Disliked -Toilet and washing facilities are very poor for price - if site was fully booked unsure how 3 female toilets and 3 male would cope
-could not control shower temp and found it very hot during the heatwave with little ventilation so was very uncomfortable
- no area to wash face, teeth or hands etc
-luckily staff was on site to discuss showers which were not working after closing but had tried number first which did not work - luckily staff members still on site
-no real check in and during extreme busy periods day visits parked in camping bit(secure for tent?)

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From the manager: Thank you for your review, Kate. We’re pleased to hear you enjoyed the spacious pitches, the location and being so close to the lake and activities.

As this was our very first opening period for camping, we really appreciate you taking the time to provide such detailed and constructive feedback. Your comments regarding toilets, washing facilities, shower temperature and dedicated wash areas have all been taken on board and improvements are already being implemented as we continue developing the campsite facilities.

Thank you as well for highlighting the contact number and check in experience. We’re reviewing guest communications and site processes to make arrival and support clearer and smoother going forward.

Regarding parking, day visitors should not be parking within camping areas and we’ll continue reviewing how this is managed during busier periods to ensure campers feel comfortable and secure on site.

Thank you again for your feedback and we hope to welcome you back again in the future to see how the site develops.