Fontmills Farm Campsite

No availability at present on Pitchup.com 9.9 69 reviews
The site in summer (added by manager 21 Dec 2022)
Visitor image of the generous level pitches
Wendy the shepherds hut
Floss checking on guests

  • Family-run farm site within a couple of miles of the South Downs
  • Access to the traffic-free Cuckoo Trail at the bottom of the farm
  • Barbecues and campfires allowed
Set up for stays of all sorts… friendly family-run Fontmills Farm Campsite in the Low Weald of East Sussex between Eastbourne and Tunbridge Wells welcomes all sorts guests, from weary city dwellers seeking a countryside break to active types looking for adrenalised family hols. Whatever flavour of holidaymaker you are, pitching up here will have you within easy access to countryside trails and cycling along the tree-lined Cuckoo Trail, wandering the local coastline and villages, and visiting local sights including Seven Sisters Country Park, Beachy Head… and some of Sussex’s best-known pubs. Pitches at the farm are on grass, in a spacious field with plenty of room for running around. There are toilets, showers, a washing-up area and facilities for ice pack freezing. Campfires and barbecues are both allowed: if you fancy frying up eggs in the morning, ask the farm team if the hens have laid any ready to buy. Nearby, Heathfield farmers' market on the third Saturday of every month is the place to pick up fresh local produce, fruit, veg and meat.

Site type

Tent sites 30
Lodges, cabins, pods or huts 2
Rent a tent 3
Motorhome sites 30
Opens
Please note
  • Under 18s must be accompanied by their parents or legal guardians.
  • Group bookings of 20 or more adults are not permitted (couples and immediate family members excepted).
  • Single-sex bookings of 5 or more people (couples and immediate family members excepted) are not permitted via Pitchup.com.
  • No hen/stag parties permitted via Pitchup.com.
  • Bookings must not be for more than 21 consecutive nights.
  • No cars/motorbikes by the pitch/unit. All cars must be parked in the designated area.
  • Commercial vehicles (vehicles used for work-related purposes, carrying goods or fare-paying passengers) and sign-written vehicles are not permitted on site.

Languages spoken

English

Reviews

99%

would recommend this site to a friend

97%

would stay here again

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Only showing reviews for the last 30 months.

Good facilities, spacious family showers, great location with views.

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

Unpowered grass tent, campervan or trailer tent site

Liked: Nice fields, with woodland nearby and direct access to the cuckoo trail. Facilities were excellent: spacious and clean showers, well-equipped; warm, well lit toilets. Warm welcome from the owner. Shop selling a good selection of food.

Recommend to friends Visit again

We spent 3 nights with other family members in tents, we had…

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

Unpowered grass tent, campervan or trailer tent site

Liked: We spent 3 nights with other family members in tents, we had a wonderful stay and the facilities were very good and always clean, the shop site was lovely and the owners were very nice and made sure the rules of the site were adhered to, will be going back very soon and would highly recommend the site.

Disliked: Maybe could do with a couple more showers

Recommend to friends Visit again

Beautiful site. Really quiet, lovely views. Friendly, helpful staff. Good facilities…

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

Unpowered grass tent, campervan or trailer tent site

Liked: Beautiful site. Really quiet, lovely views. Friendly, helpful staff. Good facilities that were always clean. Loved being able to access the Cuckoo Trail directly from the campsite.

Recommend to friends Visit again

Great little campsite, super clean and really well run

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

Unpowered grass tent, campervan or trailer tent site

Liked: extremely well run and tidy with great facilities in a lovely setting. They have hot showers with flushing toilets plus some additional composting toilets. All extremely clean and kept really well. Supplies are available at little shop and the staff are super friendly and helpful

Disliked: Because it’s so well, it is very popular and pitches were a bit closer to other tents than I’d like. Way more spacious than park type sites but I personally prefer the more wild camping vibe.

Recommend to friends Visit again

Excellent site with clean facilities, friendly staff & great location

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

Unpowered grass tent, campervan or trailer tent site

Liked: Friendly staff Well maintained field Good facilities Clean & tidy toilets & washing up areas Great location for the Cuckoo trail

Disliked: Nothing!

Recommend to friends Visit again

We will be back! Next time for longer.

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

Unpowered grass tent, campervan or trailer tent site

Liked: Chilled out, family vibe campsite. The type of place you go with your small child to read aloud books and play puzzles. Super helpful and friendly owner on site everyday 3-7pm. Clear signage, welcome info pack on arrival, info about local cafe/takeaways, route to Cuckoo Trail. Single woman and young child travelling and we felt very safe and happy here. Owner super helpful when our air bed deflated, he directed us to nearest Argos. No dogs or music allowed... a winner. Daytime plenty to do. By night, sit by campfire. Facilities were great: even provided dish soap. Freezer v helpful (no storing food allowed) but useful for ice packs. Thank you so much for a lovely holiday.

Recommend to friends Visit again

Simple countryside campsite on a small farm. Scenic location. Friendly and helpful…

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

Unpowered grass tent, campervan or trailer tent site

Liked: Simple countryside campsite on a small farm. Scenic location. Friendly and helpful owners, small shop and farm produce for sale. Large field and plenty of space for pitches. Simple clean facilities. The cuckoo trail and other footpaths run by the campsite, some nice country pubs in the area too.

Recommend to friends Visit again

Would definitely come again

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

Unpowered grass tent, campervan or trailer tent site

Liked: Stand was a good size. Had decent views. Toilets were clean and well maintained. Showers were clean, spacious and plenty of hot water. Access to firepits and a supply of wood.

Disliked: Only two showers for the whole site so there was a bit of a wait. Could do with a couple more showers.

Recommend to friends Visit again

Lovely quiet site. Owners extremely friendly and welcoming. Good clean facilities. The…

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

Unpowered grass tent, campervan or trailer tent site

Liked: Lovely quiet site. Owners extremely friendly and welcoming. Good clean facilities. The children loved visiting the animals on the farm.

Recommend to friends Visit again

The owners was very warm and welcoming, the showers and toilets very…

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

Unpowered grass tent, campervan or trailer tent site

Liked: The owners was very warm and welcoming, the showers and toilets very clean and hot water was excellent. The little touches like fires, shop and coffee van were fantastic.

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 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 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 No dogs allowed

Themes

Peaceful Remote location Spectacular scenery Walkers' paradise Wild camping Wildlife haven

Utilities

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

Nearby amenities

Bar nearby Convenience store nearby Dog walk nearby Nearby farmers' market

Type

Farm Medium (26-50 sites)

Accessibility

Disabled facilities

Nearby leisure

Cycling nearby Fishing nearby Golf nearby Horse riding nearby

Location

Fontmills Farm Campsite

North Street

Hellingly

Horam

East Sussex

England

BN27 4EB

Directions

Timezone

Europe/London GMT (GMT+00:00)

GPS

50.90609°N
0.25101°W

Nearest transport

Coach
4.7 km Tesco
4.7 km High Street
5 km Golden Cross Inn
Rail
9.4 km Berwick (Sussex) Rail Station
9.4 km Polegate Rail Station
11.3 km Pevensey & Westham Rail Station
Ferry
18.9 km Newhaven Harbour Ferry Terminal
Airport
39 km Shoreham Brighton City Airport
40.2 km London Gatwick Airport
40.3 km London Gatwick Airport South Terminal

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

Access the walks and flat cycling of the Cuckoo Trail direct from the bottom of the farm, the old railway track between Heathfield and Polegate made into a safe and traffic-free 14-mile path. More walks of the highly scenic variety can be had among the spectacular coastal views of the famed white cliffs at the Seven Sisters Country Park and Beachy Head, or among the South Downs a few miles from the farm. You could also wander through Sussex flowers and wildlife in Friston Forest, or among the paths and scenery of Winnie the Pooh's Ashdown Forest, nearby in the High Weald Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and home of the bear with very little brain. The farm is a few miles from Eastbourne if you fancy a day on the beach, and less than 20 from the shops, shingle and nightlife of Brighton. Hastings, Battle and Tunbridge Wells are also within 20 miles. For kids, have a day out at Drusillas Park, aimed at ages two to 10; get them thoroughly tuckered out quad biking and more at Knockhatch Adventure Park, or get along to Blackstock Farm near Hailsham, with indoor and outdoor play areas, a farm shop and a café. Heaps of history is easy to get to too, like 15-century moated castle Herstmonceux Castle, also home of the famed astronomical Observatory Science Centre; and the former home of Rudyard Kipling at the National Trust's Batemans. The old village of Alfriston is a handsome place to stop for a pub lunch. For full-on culture, the world-famed Glyndebourne opera house, site of the annual Glyndebourne Festival Opera, is within easy driving distance.

Water quality at nearby bathing waters

Name Distance Type 2020 2019 2018 2017
Pevensey Bay 12.8 km Sea N/A Good Good Good
Norman`S Bay 13.3 km Sea N/A Good Good Excellent
Eastbourne 16.3 km Sea N/A Good Good Excellent
Bexhill 17.2 km Sea N/A N/A N/A Good
Birling Gap 18.5 km Sea N/A Excellent Excellent Excellent

Data source: European Environment Agency

Must see

Drusillas Park 11.1 km

Alfriston Clergy House 12.9 km

Batemans 12.9 km

Eastbourne Pier 15.7 km

1066 Battle Abbey and Battlefield 16.6 km

National Trust

Bateman's 12.8 km

Alfriston Clergy House 12.9 km

Monk's House 18.2 km

Sheffield Park Garden 19.8 km

Bodiam Castle 23 km

Cycle routes

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

Other

HEATHFIELD PARK 6.7 km

HERSTMONCEUX CASTLE AND PLACE 7.3 km

WOOTTON MANOR 9.5 km

Berwick - Alciston - Firle - Glynde - Lewes 9.5 km

Berwick - Alfriston - Jevington - Eastbourne 9.5 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.

Nearest sites

Unfortunately, we have no nearby bookable sites.

Want to know more about camping in East Sussex?

Frequently asked questions

  • Does Fontmills Farm Campsite have a swimming pool? No View all features
  • Is Fontmills Farm Campsite dog friendly? No View all features
  • What attractions are near Fontmills Farm Campsite? Access the walks and flat cycling of the Cuckoo Trail direct from the bottom of the farm, the old railway track between Heathfield and Polegate made into a safe and traffic-free 14-mile … Read more
  • When can I check in and check out of Fontmills Farm Campsite?
    Camping and caravan
    Arrive:  3 p.m. –  7 p.m.
    Depart by:  11 a.m.
    On-site accommodation
    Arrive:  3 p.m. –  7 p.m.
    Depart by:  11 a.m.
    Read more