Woodsman Kent Wild Camping

9.8 51 reviews
Forest floor in bloom
Forest floor in bloom
Visitor image of tent pitch
Bluebell woods
Bluebells in the woods
Spacious woodland for wild camping
Towering trees in the woods
The woodland
Looking up through the trees - a view to wake up to
1/75

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  • Stays for over-16s in 200 acres of ancient Kent woodland
  • A 20-minute drive to Ashford train station; five minutes from Pluckley
  • Campfires welcome and firewood sold on site
This Kent site is well named, for Woodsman Kent Wild Camping is indeed wild and surrounded by woods… 200 acres of ancient woodland in fact. This is a good place to head for if you're escaping from London, as it takes about 40 minutes to get to the site from St Pancras via the nearest Kent station at Ashford nine miles away; from there, take the train to Pluckley and it's about 40 minutes' hike to the site (or drive down from London in about an hour and a half). And it's all very simple on site too: this is proper wild-style camping with only minimal amenities – essentially it's just you, your tent (or tarp, or bivvy) and the forest floor (although there is a compost loo available). Water can be bought for an extra charge. Woodsman is on 200 acres of ancient oak, ash, birch, poplar, hazel, hawthorn and hornbeam forest. Wood for small cooking fires is sold on site – but please do keep fires small (no large heating fires) and please do not forage for wood from the forest floor, as this disturbs the ecosystem. The site asks that all guests respect the countryside code during their stay, operating on the main principle of leaving no trace (for ecological reasons, no foraging from the woodland, please).

Site type

Tent sites 7
Rent a tent 1
Open now
Opens July 2

Languages spoken

English

Open from Wed, Jul 2 to

Nearby sites that are bookable on Pitchup.com

Unfortunately, we have no nearby bookable sites.

Want to know more about camping in Kent?

Features

No dogs allowed

Adults only

Campfires allowed

Leisure on park

Bar or club house Cycle hire Evening entertainment Fishing Fitness centre Indoor swimming pool Kids' club On-site restaurant/cafe Outdoor swimming pool Playground Recreation room/arcade TV room Takeout Tennis Watersports

Amenities on park

Bath available Car parking by site/unit Composting toilet Dog park Drying room Free wifi Grocery store Ice pack freezing Internet access Laundromat Parent & baby washroom Payphone Pick-up from public transport Portable toilet Pub toilets Restrooms Shower available Washing-up area Wifi

Groups welcome

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

Rules

Adults only Barbecue grills allowed Barbecue provided Campfires allowed Commercial vehicles allowed Dogs allowed No dogs allowed

Themes

Budget/backpacker Forest Hikers’ paradise Peaceful Remote location Spectacular scenery Wild camping Wildlife haven

Utilities

Charging facilities Dump station Electric car charging point(s) No drinkable water point No hot water No running water Propane/gas cylinders available Recycling available Renewable energy

Nearby amenities

Bar nearby Dog walk nearby Public transportation nearby

Type

Tiny (1-10 sites)

Location

Woodsman Kent Wild Camping

Pluckley

Egerton

Ashford

Kent

England

TN27 0SY

Directions

Timezone

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

GPS

51.17224°N
0.72135°E

Nearest transport

Coach
11.1 km Park Street
14.2 km Tesco Crooksfoot
14.2 km Tesco Crooksfoot
Rail
2.5 km Pluckley Rail Station
6.3 km Charing (Kent) Rail Station
6.6 km Headcorn Rail Station
Ferry
29 km Folkestone Eurotunnel Terminal
39.1 km Gravesend Pier
39.7 km Tilbury Ferry Terminal
Airport
28.5 km Lydd London Ashford Airport
44.2 km London Southend 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

You may well wish to spend much of your time contentedly wandering through the woodland or finding a serene spot to sit and read… but if you're up for exploring a bit more, there's quite a bit to do close by. Access the North Downs Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty from the ancient village of Westwell (10 minutes' drive) at Westwell Downs (where locals of yore erected beacons to signal the approach of the Spanish Armada). From the Downs, you can also stride along some of the nearby 119-mile Pilgrims Way, the route taken by the devout from Winchester to Canterbury and the shrine of Thomas Becket at the city cathedral. Heading towards the coast, it's a 40-minute drive from Woodsman to Whitstable, home of sandy and shingle beaches, an 18th-century castle, waters popular for yachting and waterskiing, and the tasty samples of the Whitstable Oyster Festival. Other Kent highlights are within easy day trip distance: try Leeds Castle (25 minutes), Port Lympne Reserve (30 minutes), Dover Castle (40 minutes) and more beaches at Folkestone and Rye (35 and 40 minutes).

Water quality at nearby bathing waters

Name Distance Type 2020201920182017
Dymchurch 25.3 km Sea N/AGoodGoodGood
St Mary'S Bay (Kent) 25.6 km Sea GoodN/AGoodGood
Camber 27.1 km Sea N/AExcellentExcellentGood
Littlestone 27.7 km Sea N/AGoodGoodGood
Hythe 27.8 km Sea N/AExcellentExcellentExcellent

Data source: European Environment Agency

Must see

Leeds Castle 10.6 km

Ashford Designer Outlet 11.2 km

Sissinghurst Castle Garden 11.6 km

Kent & East Sussex Railway 11.7 km

Great Dixter House and Gardens 21.3 km

National Trust

Sissinghurst Castle Garden 12.5 km

Stoneacre 13.4 km

Smallhythe Place 14.9 km

Sprivers Garden 21.5 km

Bodiam Castle 22.7 km

Cycle routes

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

Other

CHILSTON PARK 5.3 km

GODINTON PARK 8.2 km

LEEDS CASTLE 10.6 km

SISSINGHURST CASTLE 11.7 km

Hollingbourne 11.8 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 pitch type section for details

Reviews

9.8

Overall rating from 51 Pitchup.com customers View breakdown

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    1
ForestWild camping

100% would recommend this site to a friend

98% would stay here again

Reviews page 1 of 6
Arrival date (latest first)

Great site for those who are happy to (almost) camp in the wild.

Overall 10/10

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

Primitive forest floor campervan or tent campsite

Liked Quiet small site
Friendly and welcoming owner
Campfires allowed
Simple site without complications

Disliked Not the easiest to find

Recommend to friends Visit again

Nice site, clean, good facilities and friendly staff

Overall 10/10

Location
 10
Value for money
 10
Accommodation
 10
Facilities / Activities
 10
Customer service
 10
Child friendliness
 10
Cleanliness
 10
Wifi
 4
Anonymous The reviewer booked through Pitchup.com

Primitive forest floor campervan or tent campsite

Liked Felt secluded
Nice campsites
Super nice guy who runs it, opened the gates early for us.

Recommend to friends Visit again

Amazing woodland site Really enjoyed my stay at the site, pitch was great…

Overall 10/10

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

Primitive forest floor campervan or tent campsite

Liked Amazing woodland site
Really enjoyed my stay at the site, pitch was great and the site was peaceful and quiet. Owner was great and explained what wildlife lived in and around the woods. The composting toilet was really good and was very clean.
I will 100% be back to stay here again!

Recommend to friends Visit again

A lovely woodland site, a real get away from it all

Overall 10/10

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

Primitive forest floor campervan or tent campsite

Liked Being in the middle of beautiful woods, back to nature, simplicity.

Recommend to friends Visit again

We liked being in the middle of the forest ,nice quiet .perfect…

Overall 10/10

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

Primitive forest floor campervan or tent campsite

Liked We liked being in the middle of the forest ,nice quiet .perfect place to decompress from a busy work life .Will be back soon again . Really loved it my wife now has the camping bug and can't wait to go again

Disliked None at all

Recommend to friends Visit again

For a real camping experience

Overall 10/10

Location
 10
Value for money
 6
Accommodation
 10
Facilities / Activities
 8
Customer service
 10
Child friendliness
 No rating
Cleanliness
 No rating
Wifi
 No rating
Ali H. The reviewer booked through Pitchup.com

Primitive forest floor campervan or tent campsite

Liked Loved it, wild camping in Kent woodland. It was like camping should be, in a beautiful natural woodland setting that felt private. There was a nice pub about a 15 min walk away.

Recommend to friends Visit again

Woodland camping at its best

Overall 10/10

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

Primitive forest floor campervan or tent campsite

Liked Isolated pitch in woodland clearing.
Compost toilet, water butt and campfire wood - what more do you actually need.

Recommend to friends Visit again

Brilliant wild camping

Overall 10/10

Location
 10
Value for money
 8
Accommodation
 10
Facilities / Activities
 8
Customer service
 10
Child friendliness
 2
Cleanliness
 6
Wifi
 2
Alistair E. The reviewer booked through Pitchup.com

Primitive forest floor campervan or tent campsite

Liked Amazing wild camping in a great private wood that looks after nature.

A compost toilet, firewood is supplied and all that’s needed to forget your worries and immerse yourself in camping in a forest.

A knowledgeable and friendly host

Recommend to friends Visit again

Wonderful peace and quiet. Handy compost toilet. Michael was very helpful and…

Overall 10/10

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

Primitive forest floor campervan or tent campsite

Liked Wonderful peace and quiet. Handy compost toilet. Michael was very helpful and friendly. Pitch was very level for the vans. No Wi-Fi or phone reception so a good retreat

Recommend to friends Visit again

Quiet and immersed in nature

Overall 10/10

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

Primitive forest floor campervan or tent campsite

Liked Tent pitches immersed in the trees. Quiet and serene. Beautiful bird song to wake up to.

Recommend to friends Visit again

Frequently asked questions

  • Does Woodsman Kent Wild Camping have a swimming pool? No View all features
  • Is Woodsman Kent Wild Camping dog friendly? No View all features
  • What attractions are near Woodsman Kent Wild Camping? You may well wish to spend much of your time contentedly wandering through the woodland or finding a serene spot to sit and read… but if you're up for exploring a bit … Read more
  • When can I check in and check out of Woodsman Kent Wild Camping?
    RV, travel trailer and tent sites
    Arrive:  noon –  6 p.m.
    Depart by:  noon
    On-park accommodation
    Arrive:  noon –  6 p.m.
    Depart by:  noon
    Read more