Herston Caravan and Camping

View prices & book 6.7 399 reviews
Pitches
Pitches
Old harry rocks, three miles away
Bell tents
Aerial view of the site
Night time at the site
Bell tents
Electric grass pitch
Well-spaced pitches
1/190
Old harry rocks, three miles away
Bell tents
Aerial view of the site

  • Holiday park one mile from the beach in Swanage
  • Half an hour's drive from Monkey World and Durdle Door
  • Visitor information, 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 mini market that also functions as a visitor information centre, and a takeaway for grabbing food when you're hungry. The spacious and clean toilet blocks have plentiful hot showers, family bathrooms, disabled facilities and washing-up areas. 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

Dogs

  • 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).

Admission

  • Under 18s must be accompanied by their parents or legal guardians.

Languages spoken

English

No availability here for your search criteria

Pitch types & availability

Accommodation

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

Reviews

6.7

Overall rating from 399 Pitchup.com customers

  • 26%
    10
  • 4%
    9
  • 21%
    8
  • 4%
    7
  • 13%
    6
  • 4%
    5
  • 8%
    4
  • 2%
    3
  • 9%
    2
  • 5%
    1
Location
 9
Value for money
 7
Accommodation
 7
Facilities / Activities
 6
Customer service
 7
Child friendliness
 7
Cleanliness
 6
Wifi
 5
Peaceful

61% would recommend this site to a friend

62% would stay here again

What customers say

Grand spot, a stroll from Swanage with lovely views. Staff get the thumbs up for being sound. Showers and loos are a mixed bag – some say they're grand, others say they're a bit old or could do with a clean. A bit of noise from other campers now and then. Big plans for a new clubhouse and pool are in the pipeline.

Summary AI-generated from Pitchup.com customer reviews. Last updated 18/8/2026

Filter by topic

Reviews page 1 of 40
Arrival date (latest first)

you pay for what you get

Overall

6 out of 10
Location
 9
Value for money
 5
Facilities / Activities
 5
Customer service
 3
Child friendliness
 No rating
Cleanliness
 3
Wifi
 1
Anonymous

Fully-serviced hardstanding and grass touring pitch

Liked cost and location was good

Disliked dog poo around ,mens toilets constantly out of paper , BBQ restriction but no email informing us so no time to change cooking plans . When asked said only knew that morning but solid signs put up Hard to get between 8am and 2pm plus story changed when pushed .

Recommend to friends Visit again

Location and good resources.…

Overall

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

Fully-serviced hardstanding and grass touring pitch

Liked Location and good resources.

Disliked Needs a bit of a revamp,especially at the entrance

Recommend to friends Visit again

Great location Relaxed friendly campsite, the…

Overall

8 out of 10
Location
 9
Value for money
 9
Facilities / Activities
 8
Customer service
 8
Child friendliness
 No rating
Cleanliness
 9
Wifi
 No rating
Tracey R. 2 reviews

Electric grass pitch

Liked Great location
Relaxed friendly campsite, the facilities were clean, good showers.

Disliked Shame there was no shop, building new club house etc so will be greatly improved but hopefully will stay with the same vibe.

Recommend to friends Visit again

I do like herston site and would return

Overall

8 out of 10
Location
 7
Value for money
 8
Facilities / Activities
 6
Customer service
 No rating
Child friendliness
 No rating
Cleanliness
 5
Wifi
 No rating
janice g. 1 review

Electric grass pitch

Liked Size of pitch

Disliked Toilet and shower blocks unfortunately were very unclean .
Allowing people to have fire pits which I witnessed, unbelievable in our extreme weather.

Recommend to friends Visit again

Yes it was nice place to…

Overall

10 out of 10
Location
 10
Value for money
 10
Facilities / Activities
 10
Customer service
 10
Child friendliness
 10
Cleanliness
 10
Wifi
 No rating
robert w. 1 review

Fully-serviced hardstanding and grass touring pitch

Liked Yes it was nice place to stay with my family

Recommend to friends Visit again

Friendly staff…

Overall

10 out of 10
Location
 10
Value for money
 9
Facilities / Activities
 7
Customer service
 9
Child friendliness
 No rating
Cleanliness
 8
Wifi
 No rating
Kristian W. 1 review

Electric grass pitch

Liked Friendly staff

Recommend to friends Visit again

I’d go back

Overall

6 out of 10
Location
 8
Value for money
 8
Facilities / Activities
 5
Customer service
 8
Child friendliness
 No rating
Cleanliness
 5
Wifi
 3
Anonymous

Electric grass pitch

Liked Loved the views from Seaview.!

Disliked The showers/toilets need updating, one wasn’t draining, one was cold all the time. If they spent any money over this season then the showers would be a great place to start, just check if people are in there if you are waiting as some people don’t seem to move the vacant to not vacant sign on the doors!

Recommend to friends Visit again

Would recommend and will return again.

Overall

10 out of 10
Location
 8
Value for money
 10
Facilities / Activities
 7
Customer service
 10
Child friendliness
 No rating
Cleanliness
 10
Wifi
 No rating
Brenda N. 1 review

Electric grass pitch

Liked Generous space on pitches friendly staff. Loved the individual showers. Food was good on site.

Disliked No shop

Recommend to friends Visit again

Not a lot…

Overall

2 out of 10
Location
 3
Value for money
 2
Facilities / Activities
 1
Customer service
 2
Child friendliness
 No rating
Cleanliness
 2
Wifi
 1
 suzanne s. 2 reviews

Fully-serviced hardstanding and grass touring pitch

Liked Not a lot

Disliked Toilets no hand dryers floors unstable

Recommend to friends Visit again

Location was perfect. 20min walk into…

Overall

8 out of 10
Location
 10
Value for money
 7
Facilities / Activities
 3
Customer service
 10
Child friendliness
 No rating
Cleanliness
 4
Wifi
 No rating
Anonymous

Electric grass pitch

Liked Location was perfect. 20min walk into Swanage. Had a lovely stay, the manager/owner very friendly and welcoming.

Disliked Toilets not the best, didn’t seem they were cleaned while there. Bit run down and no hand dryers.

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 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 +0100 (GMT+01:00)

GPS

50.61816°N
1.97913°W

Nearest transport

Coach
1.6 km Bus Station
5.8 km East Street
5.8 km East Street
Rail
11.3 km Poole Rail Station
11.9 km Parkstone (Dorset) Rail Station
12.2 km Hamworthy Rail Station
Ferry
7.2 km Shell Bay Ferry Terminal
7.6 km Sandbanks Ferry Terminal
8 km Brownsea Island Ferry Landing
Airport
20.5 km 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 Godlingston 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 Salt Pig the Farm - Putlake, 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 1.6 km Sea N/AExcellentExcellentExcellent
Studland Knoll House 4.2 km Sea N/AExcellentExcellentExcellent
Shell Bay North 7 km Sea N/AExcellentExcellentExcellent
Poole Sandbanks Peninsular 8.4 km Sea N/AExcellentExcellentExcellent
Poole Shore Road Beach 9.2 km Sea N/AExcellentExcellentExcellent

Data source: European Environment Agency

Must see

Swanage Railway 1.6 km

Studland Beach and Nature Reserve 4.8 km

Corfe Castle 6.1 km

Brownsea Island 8 km

Dorset Cruises 13.1 km

National Trust

Studland Beach and Nature Reserve 3.5 km

Corfe Castle 6 km

Brownsea Island 7.9 km

White Mill 21.5 km

Kingston Lacy 21.7 km

Cycle routes

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

Other

Herston - Worth Matravers - Corfe 0.6 km

Swanage to Corfe Circular Walk 3 km

Durlston Castle Historic Landscape 3 km

Studland - Old Harry - Ballard Down - Studland 3.6 km

Worth Matravers - Cliffs, Caves and Chapel 4.7 km

Local events

  • Dorset County Show (Saturday 5 September 2026 – Saturday 5 September 2026)

    Dorchester, England 33.5 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 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:  12:00 –  22:00
    Depart by:  11:00
    On-site accommodation
    Arrive:  15:00 –  Anytime
    Depart by:  10:00
    Read more
  • How much does it cost to stay at Herston Caravan and Camping? From €58.44 (for 2 nights, 6 people) - prices may change depending on your dates and party.