Gallows Hill

Liked Spot on little campsite toilets and showers clean, two fields walk to a little pub in the village in which we were welcomed in prices were reasonable, was quiet we stopped two nights enjoyed it and will be going back 5 minutes drive to Barnard castle

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From the manager: Glad you enjoyed your stay with us. Hope to see you all again. Thank you

Liked - Gorgeous views at a very convenient location right off the a66.

- Lee was very friendly and helpful.

- The campsite wasn't busy.

- Great showers.

- Close to walks, historic monuments and swim spots. Some walks accessible straight from the campsite, others as little as 5 min drive away.

Disliked - Don't forget to bring a washing up bowl as I couldn't find washing up facilities.

- The traffic noise is noticeable as expected for such a convenient location, Lee recommended the lower tier of the campsite which was slightly quieter and I used to the sound after a while. A reasonable trade off for a lovely site.

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From the manager: Thank you for you're very kind words. Glad you enjoyed your stay

Liked Easy to book, great communication & friendly welcome to the site from Lee. Was easy to use as a base for Kynren, great night sleep with respectful, quiet neighbours, a lovely view to wake up too and clean, basic facilities. Thanks so much.

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From the manager: So happy you enjoyed your stay with us. Hope Kynren was great :) thanks again

Liked It's nice and secluded with fantastic views. Has a kids play area which you can see from the pitches so you don't need to worry. The owner is always on hand and couldn't be more helpful if you need him. Clean toilets with a decent shower. The water was always warm. We will be back for sure!

Disliked There is a bit of noise from the main road but you do forget about it after a while.

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From the manager: Thank you 🙌🙌🙌 glad you had a lovely time

Liked Nothing .
Kids slides available

Disliked Dangerous turn in across dual carriageway. Very close to road, so very noisy with traffic all night. No reception. Nobody on site. Only narrow muddy grassy strips split over two levels, alongside old farm equipment lying about. Not a proper campsite by my standards. Very basic toilet block, 1 plastic shell shower in portacabin. No inside bins. Very tepid water , only after long "tap pumping". No hooks for towels or toiletries. No dish washing facilities. 1 exterior tap.

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From the manager: We're sorry the stay didn’t meet your preferences or our description of the site for that matter. Your review seems to evaluate a simple rural site against higher cost commercial standards, which we have never claimed to meet.... We are transparent about our facilities, layout, and pricing, and we provide thorough communication in advance to help guests prepare accordingly including an email with tips for accessing the site. We don't advertise dish washing facilities so I'm not sure why you expected them. If 10m x 10m pitches are narrow then I'm starting to understand your difficulty on a dual carriageway. Anyway I digress ..

Gallows Hill is ideal for campers who enjoy wide views, a relaxed atmosphere, and easy access to both the A66 and the surrounding countryside. For those seeking a polished holiday park, we may not be the right choice—but for many others, we offer a clean, affordable place to stay in the heart of Teesdale with fantastic views even the most hardened soul could appreciate

We continue to improve year on year and welcome all feedback that helps us do so constructively.

Kind regards,

Liked Quiet site, good amenities. Very good value.

Disliked Quite easily missed off the main road, satnav took me past a few times.

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Liked The view

Disliked The whole site is terrible.
Firstly finding the place from the directions given was not only terrible but dangerous as you have to cross a duel carriage way twice to access the entrance that was poorly signposted.
On arrival there was no one on site to ask any questions or obtain help about where we should park our vehicle.
The whole area was covered in rubble and stones which made walking very difficult.
The site was littered with rubbish and old farm equipment.
The toilet and shower block was old and there was no hot water in the showers, male and female.
It is by far the worst campsite we have ever stayed on… and don’t be fooled by the photos on pitchup they are years out of date…
All in all a bad experience and a campsite!! That I would not recommend to anyone.

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From the manager: Thank you for your feedback. While we are always open to constructive criticism and genuinely regret that your stay did not meet your expectations, I feel it’s important to respond to the public review by addressing a number of inconsistencies between it and your original private communication.

1. Shower Facilities. In your original message, you stated that the female shower was cold. In your public review, however, you claimed both male and female showers lacked hot water. This contradicts your initial account and does not align with our maintenance records: the system was checked the morning of your arrival and again after your departure, and both showers were fully operational and providing hot water and with several other camping guests on site no others reported an issue. Had you contacted us at the time, we could have addressed this immediately and helped you to turn on the shower.... Please explain why repurposing of used shower blocks is an issue? They are always clean and fully functional. Do you realise the cost of new shower blocks? I charge £18 per night!

2. Access Instructions – Received but Ignored: In your email, you mention, "I am aware of the explanation on Pitchup regarding the whereabout" and "we later learned that the gate had a key code" which confirms you had access to the arrival instructions we provide all guests in advance and ignored our email to you that included the gate code and further directions clarifying the entrance. Yet your review states, “there was no one on site to ask any questions,” and implies you had no way of gaining access. These two accounts do not align. We can only assume the email was not fully read prior to arrival and you made no attempt to contact me to render you assistance.

3. Safety and Location – Misleading Description: The review claims the entrance requires crossing a “dual carriageway twice.” This is factually incorrect as you'd be going backwards surely? .The entrance is on a standard B-road directly off the A66 and there is no need to cross it more than once. While the sign is modest due to planning rules, this is explained clearly in the instructions sent to you ahead of arrival... That you ignored on the website and via email.

4. You claim the site was “littered with rubbish” and “the worst campsite we’ve ever stayed on.” For clarity: items described as “rubbish” include **working farm equipment, two broken mowers awaiting repair, and materials** for planned improvements. These were located in non-pitch areas. Again, we would have happily clarified this on the day if you bothered to contact us half as much since you left badgering us over £20 odd pounds

5. Your private message was framed as constructive and helpful. The public review, however, shifts drastically in tone, describing the entire experience as “terrible” and the photos as “years out of date”—which is simply untrue - the shower unit is new to site this year as are the static caravans that replaced older accomodation. All images on our listing are current and representative of the site as it is today. It is a farm, don't expect a putting green

We welcome all feedback that helps us improve. However, when a review presents conflicting information and exaggerated claims, it’s important for us to clarify the facts to help future guests make an informed decision.

Gallows Hill is a simple, rustic, and affordable campsite on a working farm. We’re not a luxury resort, but we work hard to provide clean facilities, hot showers, and a warm welcome to all guests—many we hope to return regularly and appreciate our honesty and authenticity.

If any potential guests have questions or concerns, we encourage you to reach out directly before booking.

Kind regards

Liked Stunning views. Friendly owner left us a bag of wood for a fire. Level pitches. Clean shower block. Reasonable priced pitch.

Disliked A bit close to a dual carriageway so noisy, but the stunning views made up for that.

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From the manager: Thank you for your fair review. We find pitching further down the row to be a bit quieter. Hopefully you guys can join us again

Thank you

Liked The views & facilities

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From the manager: Thank you for a fair and honest review. We hope to see you again soon