Hammer and Pincers Caravan and Campsite

View prices & book 8 52 reviews
View across the site
View across the site
Hardstanding and grass pitches
Pub at the front of campsite available for food and drinks
Beer garden
Level grass pitches surrounded by fields
A general view of the site
Camping field protected by mature trees
Plenty of seating in the pub beer garden
1/31
New
Hardstanding and grass pitches
Pub at the front of campsite available for food and drinks
Beer garden

  • Quiet family site at a County Durham pub just outside Newton Aycliffe
  • Durham and Raby Castle, Park and Gardens both 25 minutes’ drive
  • Restaurant and beer garden; delicatessen and gift shop on site
There’s much to see and do in County Durham, so it’s only right that you pick a quiet base to unwind after a day’s exploration. And a very good choice would be Hammer and Pincers Caravan and Campsite, a laidback spot barely five minutes’ drive from Newton Aycliffe and with one very important USP. Yes, the site has well-kept grass pitches tucked in between the trees, plus a facilities block with showers, loos and a washing-up sink. But much more importantly, it has pedestrian access to the Hammer and Pincers – a pub with a restaurant and spacious beer garden, where you can dodge any self-catering issues with a menu of good home-cooked food for breakfast, lunch and evening meals. Should you need to stock up on anything, there’s a deli and gift shop on the premises selling homemade jams, chutneys, cakes and takeaway savoury dishes as well as beers and wine. If you’re after entertainment, there’s an occasional schedule of live music events at the pub too.

Site type

Caravan sites 30
Tent sites 30
Motorhome sites 30
Open all year
Opens

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).
  • Discount cards and gift vouchers cannot be applied to bookings made via Pitchup.com.
  • The charging of electric vehicles is not permitted on site.
  • Electricity is metered on site at £0.30 per kWh and must be paid onsite using a pre-paid topup card.

Languages spoken

English

Pitch types & availability

Accommodation

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

Reviews

8

Overall rating from 52 Pitchup.com customers

  • 42%
    10
  • 3%
    9
  • 28%
    8
  • 3%
    7
  • 7%
    6
  • 1%
    5
  • 3%
    4
  • 1%
    3
  • 1%
    2
  • 3%
    1
Location
 9
Value for money
 9
Accommodation
 8
Facilities / Activities
 7
Customer service
 9
Child friendliness
 8
Cleanliness
 8
Wifi
 6
Budget/backpackerPeaceful

75% would recommend this site to a friend

73% would stay here again

What customers say

Great staff and pub with tasty, affordable food. Enjoyed the views and spacious pitches. Facilities are a bit dated. Train and road noise noted, but generally manageable. Some uneven pitches.

Summary AI-generated from Pitchup.com customer reviews

Reviews page 1 of 6
Arrival date (latest first)

Good pub, but very noisy with passing trains.

Overall

6 out of 10
Location
 5
Value for money
 6
Accommodation
 6
Facilities / Activities
 7
Customer service
 10
Child friendliness
 7
Cleanliness
 7
Wifi
 3
Anonymous

Unpowered concrete and grass site

Liked The pub is lovely. Small play area for the children.

Disliked The tent field is right next to the main train line. Very noisy but you do start to get used to it. This place is not for you if you're wanting peace and quiet. Also a popular venue for weddings etc, so it's very noisy with loud music. Field has a little slope so pitch with this in mind.

Recommend to friends Visit again

Very good for price would stay again

Overall

6 out of 10
Location
 6
Value for money
 6
Accommodation
 10
Facilities / Activities
 5
Customer service
 10
Child friendliness
 3
Cleanliness
 5
Wifi
 1
Andrew H.

Power optional concrete and grass site

Liked Pub

Disliked Noise neighbours

Recommend to friends Visit again

Great site

Overall

8 out of 10
Location
 10
Value for money
 10
Accommodation
 10
Facilities / Activities
 10
Customer service
 10
Child friendliness
 10
Cleanliness
 10
Wifi
 10
Amanda C.

Unpowered concrete and grass site

Liked Good position to motorway, friendly staff, very accommodating when we were late because of traffic

Disliked This isn’t a site for you if you want quiet, it’s was quite noisy

Recommend to friends Visit again

A perfect overnight stop

Overall

10 out of 10
Location
 6
Value for money
 10
Accommodation
 No rating
Facilities / Activities
 7
Customer service
 10
Child friendliness
 No rating
Cleanliness
 10
Wifi
 No rating
Anonymous

Unpowered concrete and grass site

Liked Our host was really welcoming - he stayed around to greet us until we arrived at 11pm. All this whilst he was hosting a birthday party and a wedding the following day.

Recommend to friends Visit again

Location and amenities camp site was very clean with a lovely atmosphere…

Overall

10 out of 10
Location
 10
Value for money
 10
Accommodation
 10
Facilities / Activities
 10
Customer service
 10
Child friendliness
 10
Cleanliness
 10
Wifi
 10
Alex M.

Power optional concrete and grass site

Liked Location and amenities camp site was very clean with a lovely atmosphere , owners where very helpful and friendly

Disliked Nothing to dislike will definitely be back

Recommend to friends Visit again

I enjoyed my visit, but I wouldn't go back, because of toilet area.

Overall

5 out of 10
Location
 10
Value for money
 10
Accommodation
 10
Facilities / Activities
 No rating
Customer service
 10
Child friendliness
 No rating
Cleanliness
 2
Wifi
 10
Anonymous

Power optional concrete and grass site

Liked I liked the campsite and we had a lovely meal in the pub attached to the campsite, the staff were so friendly and made us feel very welcome.

Disliked Two things I disliked about here:
1. The toilets and shower were terrible, they weren't clean at all. One visit was enough for me.
2. The railway line running along side the campsite.

Recommend to friends Visit again

Excellent site with clean facilities, friendly staff and level pitches

Overall

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

Power optional concrete and grass site

Liked Very Friendly staff, Lovely views from the pitch, which was a generous size. The Pub was not open on a Monday and Tuesday, we had a meal on Wednesday which was a good price and tasty. Some reviews have been negative regarding noise from the Trains and the A1 Which run nearby, but we didn't find this a problem. Toilets and showers were clean if a little dated.

Disliked Electric hookup was metered and a bit of a pain. If I had the site I would dump the system and charge more per night with electric, as the nightly charge was pretty cheep anyway.

Recommend to friends Visit again

Will not be returning.

Overall

1 out of 10
Location
 4
Value for money
 2
Accommodation
 1
Facilities / Activities
 1
Customer service
 1
Child friendliness
 1
Cleanliness
 1
Wifi
 1
Robert H.

Power optional concrete and grass site

Liked Nothing.

Disliked Overcrowding, poor customer service no apologies to our complaints. Separate electric payments. Pub was shut for most of our stay, no coffee shop, shop or delicatessen as advertised. Not a quiet family site.

Recommend to friends Visit again

Good location and communication. Facilities clean. Pub on site. Unfortunately pub was…

Overall

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

Power optional concrete and grass site

Liked Good location and communication. Facilities clean. Pub on site. Unfortunately pub was closed day we were there (Mondays)

Disliked Not enough toilet/shower for men (only 1).

Recommend to friends Visit again

pub food was great, staff were really friendly and helpful.…

Overall

8 out of 10
Location
 6
Value for money
 6
Accommodation
 5
Facilities / Activities
 6
Customer service
 10
Child friendliness
 No rating
Cleanliness
 8
Wifi
 No rating
Jenny B.

Power optional concrete and grass site

Liked pub food was great, staff were really friendly and helpful.

Disliked stagnant water near pitch was a bit smelly.

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 Car parking by site/unit 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

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

Utilities

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

Nearby amenities

Bar nearby Dog walk nearby

Type

Medium (26-50 sites) Pub campground

Nearby leisure

Cycling nearby Fishing nearby Golf nearby Restaurant nearby

Location

Hammer and Pincers Caravan and Campsite

Preston Lane

Newton Aycliffe

Co. Durham

England

DL5 6JH

Directions

Timezone

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

GPS

54.60898°N
1.54143°W

Nearest transport

Coach
9.5 km Dolphin Centre
15.6 km Roseberry Road
15.6 km Swan Hotel
Rail
2.9 km Heighington Rail Station
3.2 km Newton Aycliffe Rail Station
6.4 km Shildon Rail Station
Ferry
20.4 km Transporter Bridge South Side
20.5 km Transporter Bridge North Side
43.1 km Newcastle International Ferry Terminal
Airport
13 km Durham Tees Valley 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

There are loads of outdoor activities to keep the family happy: golfers can be out on the greens within 15 minutes’ drive, and there’s much alfresco fun to be had on wake boards or kayaking at the North East Wake Park (10 minutes’ drive). There’s plenty of options of a cultural nature in the region too. Raby Castle, Park and Gardens (25 minutes) has tours of opulent interiors, fabulous gardens, a kids’ adventure playground and a deer park for family walks. Visit The Bowes Museum (35 minutes) for its important collection of Spanish paintings, and in summer, book tickets for the historic outdoor extravaganza ‘Kynren’ in Bishop Auckland (15 minutes). If the kids are not objecting to all the history, set off for Durham (25 minutes) to explore the UNESCO-listed cathedral and castle. However, if tiny tempers are getting fractious, make a detour to Adventure Valley (35 minutes) for an afternoon of blowing cobwebs away on the crazy golf course and go-kart track.

Water quality at nearby bathing waters

Name Distance Type 2020201920182017
Crimdon 23 km Sea GoodExcellentExcellentExcellent
Seaton Carew North 23.7 km Sea N/AN/AGoodGood
Seaton Carew Centre 23.9 km Sea N/AExcellentExcellentExcellent
Seaton Carew North Gare 24.7 km Sea N/AExcellentExcellentExcellent
Seaham Beach 29.6 km Sea N/AGoodExcellentExcellent

Data source: European Environment Agency

Must see

Locomotion:The National Railway Museum at Shildon 6.8 km

Durham Cathedral 18.3 km

Durham Castle 18.7 km

mima 20.2 km

Captain Cook Birthplace Museum 21.8 km

National Trust

Moulton Hall 21.6 km

Ormesby Hall 24.3 km

Mount Grace Priory 29.4 km

Washington Old Hall 32.6 km

Gibside 36.7 km

Cycle routes

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

Other

Brafferton 2.6 km

WINDLESTONE HALL 5.5 km

Hardwick Hall Country Park (Durham) 7.1 km

HARDWICK PARK 7.3 km

Ceddesfeld Hall Gardens 7.7 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.

Nearest sites

Unfortunately, we have no nearby bookable sites.

Want to know more about camping in Co. Durham?

Frequently asked questions

  • Does Hammer and Pincers Caravan and Campsite have a swimming pool? No View all features
  • Is Hammer and Pincers Caravan and Campsite dog friendly? Yes View all features
  • What attractions are near Hammer and Pincers Caravan and Campsite? There are loads of outdoor activities to keep the family happy: golfers can be out on the greens within 15 minutes’ drive, and there’s much alfresco fun to be had on wake … Read more
  • When can I check in and check out of Hammer and Pincers Caravan and Campsite?
    Camping and caravan
    Arrive:  noon –  6 p.m.
    Depart by:  10 a.m.
    Read more
  • How much does it cost to stay at Hammer and Pincers Caravan and Campsite? From $45.23 (for 1 night, 2 adults) - prices may change depending on your dates and party.