Marwell Resort

View prices & book 8.6 919 reviews
Aerial view of the freshwater carp lake
The site and surrounding area from above.
Sunset at the lake
Electric gravel touring pitch

  • Lakeside site on the edge of the South Downs National Park
  • A 15-minute drive from central Winchester; 1.5 miles from Marwell Zoo
  • Fishing, archery, quad biking and other adventure sports
Zebras, tigers and bokibokies await in these handsome Hampshire surrounds – taking the kids to see Marwell Zoo's multitude of beasts is likely to make for some very happy hols indeed. Marwell Resort is within walking distance of this much-loved menagerie and is home to plenty of adventurous action in its own right – head here if you like the sound of oodles of outdoor activities in a pretty lakeside setting. The team at Marwell Resort have been instructing for more than 25 years, so they're well qualified to help you try out sports like archery, quad biking and clay pigeon shooting. Please note that many of these activities have a minimum age restriction applied- please check directly with the site. The site lake has a total of nine swims available for anglers (mega-sized carp can be found in its waters, including whoppers weighing up to 45 pounds). Surrounded as it is by trees, it also looks pretty fine (especially at sundown) and is a popular spot with local wildlife. Marwell Resort has strong all-round facilities, including toilets, showers and wifi. There's also an on-site bistro restaurant that serves up nourishing meals seven days a week. You can set up a barbecue and cook your own grub, too (stock up on fresh meat and veg 15 minutes' drive away at Westlands Farm Shop).

Site type

Rent a tent 6
Touring caravan pitches 25
Tent pitches 25
Motorhome pitches 25
Open all year
Opens
Please note
  • Under 18s must be accompanied by their parents or legal guardians.
  • 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).
  • No hen/stag parties permitted via Pitchup.com.
  • Facilities/activities including fishing, archery, axe throwing, air rifles, junior quad biking, clay pigeon shooting, treetop adventure and adventure golf are subject to extra charges payable on arrival.
  • The bar and/or restaurant is open between 02/01 et 31/12.
  • Commercial vehicles (vehicles used for work-related purposes, carrying goods or fare-paying passengers) and sign-written vehicles are not permitted on site.
  • Reception is unmanned after 6 p.m.. Please inform the site while on your way there should you expect to arrive after this time, so that the team can provide information about your unit/pitch.
  • The bar is open between 02/01 and 31/12.
  • Guests are advised to bring a good quality torch with them as parts of the site are unlit.
  • Swimming in the lake is not allowed.
  • If reception is closed on arrival: please contact the number provided on your booking confirmation.
  • Fires, barbecues and/or firepits will not be permitted in dry, windy and/or hot weather conditions.
  • Please note that the restaurant opening times vary, depending on guest occupancy numbers at the time of stay. Please note these are the age requirements for the activities: minimum age 3 years old: adventure golf minimum age 8 years old: archery, junior quad biking, treetop adventure, air rifles maximum age 10 years old: indoor soft play minimum age 16 years old: clay pigeon shooting Junior quad bikes and treetop adventure are closed during the autumn/winter season. Not all activities are available daily, please check with the site. Fishing bookings must be made in advance. Guest wifi is available in the bar and grill area but may unfortunately be slow. Due to the site location phone service can also be limited, depending on your provider.

Languages spoken

Dutch

English

French

German

Spanish

Pitch types & availability

Reviews

  • 54%
    10
  • 1%
    9
  • 27%
    8
  • 1%
    7
  • 8%
    6
  • 0%
    5
  • 3%
    4
  • 0%
    3
  • 3%
    2
  • 0%
    1
Location
9
Value for money
8
Accommodation
9
Facilities / Activities
9
Customer service
9
Child friendliness
9
Cleanliness
8
Wifi
6

88% would recommend this site to a friend

85% would stay here again

What customers say

Great for families, loads for kids, friendly staff & clean facilities. Bar/restaurant's good. Some bits need updating & activities pricey, but most love it and return.

Summary AI-generated from Pitchup.com customer reviews

Reviews page 1 of 92
Arrival date (latest first)

Brilliant venue just which had a little more co operation with staff.

Overall

7 out of 10
Location
7
Value for money
6
Accommodation
10
Facilities / Activities
10
Customer service
4
Child friendliness
10
Cleanliness
8
Wifi
1
Anonymous

Non-electric grass pitch

Liked Atmosphere in the bar area was great and facilities were well looked after, felt like options and activities were great if you have children it’s a great place lots to do for them.

Disliked Staff were arguing at the bar which was a bit of a downer on a great evening that hosted. Unfortunately I had to leave early too due to emergency and haven’t got anything for it :/

Recommend to friends Visit again

Loved our stay here, great resort, lovely bar and restaurant with good…

Overall

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

Non-electric grass pitch

Liked Loved our stay here, great resort, lovely bar and restaurant with good food and fun entertainment! Would definitely go back and recommend to friends and family

Disliked Only dislike was the toilets, they could do with a bit of a refurb but were kept pretty clean so weren’t too bad.

Recommend to friends Visit again

I would definitely recommend this site for families with young kids

Overall

10 out of 10
Location
10
Value for money
10
Accommodation
10
Facilities / Activities
10
Customer service
9
Child friendliness
10
Cleanliness
8
Wifi
1
Anonymous

Electric grass pitch

Liked The facilities on site are great for older and younger children, the activities are great for keeping the kids entertained in between playing on the fields and sitting around camp. The bathroom facilities were really good too, always clean and nice hot showers in the ladies bathroom, the mens hot water was hit and miss most days. Great washing up facilities too. The bar/restaurant area was nice to visit in the evenings and we had live music on Friday and Saturday night. The electric points on the tent pitch were nice and close by too and our 15m cable was more than long enough. All the staff were nice and friendly too.

Disliked Not really a dislike, but found it odd that you had to book the activities in advance, although we've not been to a campsite before with activities. The quad biking unfortunately was not on the weekend we camped and most of the activities seem to take place mid week, but we camped a long weekend.

Recommend to friends Visit again

Great site we will return

Overall

10 out of 10
Location
10
Value for money
9
Accommodation
No rating
Facilities / Activities
10
Customer service
10
Child friendliness
10
Cleanliness
7
Wifi
7
Stephen D.

Electric gravel touring pitch

Liked Nice relaxed feeling to the site yet it seemed safe and children were able to run around quite happily. Fishing was great and the restaurant was amazing service we also had water on our pitch which is always good..

Recommend to friends Visit again

This is our 5th visit to the site, fantastic location, live music…

Overall

7 out of 10
Location
10
Value for money
10
Accommodation
8
Facilities / Activities
10
Customer service
8
Child friendliness
9
Cleanliness
7
Wifi
1
Anonymous

Electric grass pitch

Liked This is our 5th visit to the site, fantastic location, live music and pizza Saturday night is really good, food in the restaurant is lovely liked the little shop now staffed for the summer, we had missed this on other visits,

Disliked Showers are normally really good, this time a full lack of hot water maybe due to the site being booked up, but cold showers are not fun when pregnant, only time water was truly warm was silly time in the morning or on Monday when everyone is leaving. Probably could do with a few more cleans when site is full

Recommend to friends Visit again

Well organised place with clean toilets all the time. Very friendly staff.…

Overall

8 out of 10
Location
8
Value for money
10
Accommodation
8
Facilities / Activities
10
Customer service
10
Child friendliness
10
Cleanliness
10
Wifi
3
Krishna G.

Non-electric grass pitch

Liked Well organised place with clean toilets all the time. Very friendly staff.

Recommend to friends Visit again

Highly recommend.

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
6
abbie p.

Electric grass pitch

Liked Everything!
Such a lovely campsite, so much to do for young kids. We’ve been to many campsites and this is by far up there with the best ones, met the owner who was so lovely and all staff very welcoming one man in particular but unfortunately didn’t catch his name! Highly recommend will be coming here again most deffo.
And to start the holiday off we was supposed to come in our caravan, which my partner lost the keys for which we didn’t realise until we was packed in the car ready to go. I phoned up explained the situation and a lovely lady at reception was very nice and took my balance and transferred to a safari tent - which was incredible, very clean. Very comfy beds and the kids loved the little ‘den bed’.

Disliked Nothing.

Recommend to friends Visit again

This is a good site for groups, plus if you want to get to Marwell zoo

Overall

6 out of 10
Location
8
Value for money
6
Accommodation
5
Facilities / Activities
6
Customer service
8
Child friendliness
9
Cleanliness
8
Wifi
2
Anonymous

Non-electric grass pitch

Liked The crazy golf was fun & very imaginative. Also nice that you can just turn up, rather than having to book in advance

Toilet block was clean and the staff in the bar were very friendly

Disliked I wasn’t so keen on an allocated pitch. We were in the middle of the field, so felt fairly exposed, plus other campers walked directly through our pitch, rather than around. We were also quite far from the toilet block (could do with a few more loos), which wasn’t ideal in the middle of the night

There were a few dogs not on leads. It would be good to ask dog owners to keep them on the lead at all times, or if you do, to actually enforce this

There are lots of activities to do, which is great, however, even 4 weeks before our start, there was very little availability to book anything.

Recommend to friends Visit again

We liked the allocated space and parking for our tent, and layout…

Overall

7 out of 10
Location
10
Value for money
10
Accommodation
10
Facilities / Activities
9
Customer service
10
Child friendliness
10
Cleanliness
10
Wifi
10
chris T.

Non-electric grass pitch

Liked We liked the allocated space and parking for our tent, and layout of the whole park, lovely bar / social area , and play park for the kids, staff were very friendly

Disliked The men’s shower block never ever had any hot water and at times never had running water, this was the same for the washing up sinks, very poor

Recommend to friends Visit again

we are in our 70s and this is our third venture out so it’s all new

Overall

9 out of 10
Location
9
Value for money
9
Accommodation
8
Facilities / Activities
10
Customer service
10
Child friendliness
10
Cleanliness
8
Wifi
2
Anonymous

Electric gravel touring pitch

Liked Amenities are good restaurant was good staff were excellent.

Disliked as with any site this large kids will be kids in toilets and there was some blockages but they seem to be cleared quite quickly The water in the washing up unit could be a little bit after Water

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 Soft 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 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 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

Peaceful Wildlife haven

Utilities

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

Nearby amenities

Bar nearby Dog walk nearby Shop nearby

Type

Large (51-200 pitches)

Nearby leisure

Climbing nearby Cycling nearby Fishing nearby Golf nearby Horse riding nearby Indoor pool nearby Leisure/theme park nearby Restaurant nearby Tennis nearby

Touring and motorhomes

Seasonal pitches

Location

Marwell Resort

Hurst Lane

Owslebury

Hampshire

England

SO21 1EZ

Directions

Timezone

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

GPS

50.98572°N
1.27669°W

Nearest transport

Coach
8.7 km Broadway Guildhall
10.1 km Southampton Uni Interchange
10.1 km Southampton Uni Interchange
Rail
5.4 km Shawford Rail Station
5.5 km Eastleigh Rail Station
6.1 km Hedge End Rail Station
Ferry
13.5 km Southampton Vehicle Ferry Terminal
13.6 km Southampton Passenger Ferry Terminal
14.4 km Hamble-le-Rice Ferry Landing
Airport
7.1 km Southampton Airport
45.4 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

Marwell Zoo (five minutes' drive) has over 140 different species to admire – you can also leave the car back at base and stroll over (about 20 minutes) for a pedestrian safari. Paultons Park (25 minutes' drive) is another perennial fave for family-oriented days out – here you can meet Peppa Pig, crash down log flumes or opt for wanders through a dinosaur-filled forest. The South Downs National Park has some truly splendid hiking trails, including the 100-mile-long South Downs Way (the trail starts 15 minutes down the road in Winchester). Mountain bikers also have plenty to choose from around these parts – an exhilarating bike track through the woods is on hand in the nearby village of Bishopstoke (10 minutes). The gorgeous New Forest National Park (25 minutes) is also within easy reach, and one of the best ways to get around is by open-top tour bus. There are three routes to choose from – it all comes down to whether you prefer vistas of heather-covered heathland or coastal explores. Speaking of the sea, beaches like Lepe and Highcliffe Castle (both 40 minutes) are very much worth the journey (make sure to pack jelly shoes and a towel if at all tempted).

Water quality at nearby bathing waters

Name Distance Type 2020201920182017
Hillhead 19.5 km Sea N/AGoodGoodGood
Calshot 19.8 km Sea N/AExcellentExcellentExcellent
Lee-On-Solent 21.2 km Sea N/AExcellentExcellentExcellent
Lepe 23.1 km Sea N/AExcellentExcellentExcellent
Cowes 24.3 km Sea N/AGoodGoodExcellent

Data source: European Environment Agency

Must see

INTECH Science Centre & Planetarium 8.3 km

Winchester Cathedral 8.8 km

Southampton Maritime Museum 13.4 km

Mid-Hants Railway 'Watercress Line' 13.9 km

Mottisfont Abbey Garden, House and Estate 19.3 km

National Trust

Winchester City Mill 8.6 km

Hinton Ampner 10.8 km

Mottisfont 19.3 km

Uppark House and Garden 27.2 km

Newtown Old Town Hall 31.5 km

Cycle routes

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

Other

Upham - Woodcote - Green Hill - Upham 3 km

Upham - Street End 3 km

Shawford - Highbridge - Marwell - Shawford 5.4 km

CRANBURY PARK 6.5 km

COMPTON END 6.6 km

Local events

  • CarFest (Friday, 22 August 2025 – Friday, 22 August 2025)

    Basingstoke, England 25.9 km

  • Farnborough International Airshow (Monday, 20 July 2026 – Monday, 20 July 2026)

    Farnborough, England 47.8 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.

Nearest sites

Unfortunately, we have no nearby bookable sites.

Want to know more about camping in Hampshire?

Frequently asked questions

  • Does Marwell Resort have a swimming pool? No View all features
  • Is Marwell Resort dog friendly? Yes View all features
  • What attractions are near Marwell Resort? Marwell Zoo (five minutes' drive) has over 140 different species to admire – you can also leave the car back at base and stroll over (about 20 minutes) for a pedestrian safari. … Read more
  • When can I check in and check out of Marwell Resort?
    Camping and touring
    Arrive:  noon –  6 p.m.
    Depart by:  10 a.m.
    On-site accommodation
    Arrive:  4 p.m. –  6 p.m.
    Depart by:  10 a.m.
    Read more
  • How much does it cost to stay at Marwell Resort? From R655,14 (for 1 night, 8 people) - prices may change depending on your dates and party.