Petruth Paddocks

View prices & book 9.5 468 reviews
Welcome to the site (added by manager 01 Aug 2022)
Shepherd's huts
Peaceful sunny day
Bell tent

  • Spacious, relaxing and free-range camping with clean facilities
  • Stunning views overlooking the Mendip Hills and Somerset Levels
  • Fires encouraged: pits, kindling and logs delivered at a small charge
Want to get away from it all, chill out and do some free-range camping? Check out Petruth Paddocks. Jules and the team have made it their mission to ensure all guests have a seriously laidback time: you won’t find overly zealous wardens prowling about here, and open fires are positively encouraged – fire drums, kindling, logs and lighters can be delivered to your door every evening for a small charge. (Please don't bring your own wood, as the team need to know what's being burnt on site.) Take the Strawberry Line by foot or bike for half an hour from the Petruth Paddocks gate to arrive at Cheddar Gorge, or continue on and take the old railway line path to Yatton, where trains hauled strawberries from the slopes of Cheddar to the early morning markets in east London over half a century ago. The bottom gate of the site goes directly to the Somerset Levels and there are marked walking and nature trails all around from Cheddar Gorge. The site has stunning views overlooking the Mendip Hills in one direction and towards the Somerset Levels in the other. There’s loads of open space for the kids to run about in, get to know other and make new friends; Jules often gives trailer rides to kids at weekends too and farm tours can be arranged depending on guest numbers. Bathroom facilities (with modern individual toilet and shower cubicles – and lots of them too) have been highly praised by previous guests, and the piping hot high-pressure showers, well-maintained toilets and washing-up sinks are all cleaned twice a day. The team operate a strict recycling policy: guests are asked to bring five rubbish sacks and the Petruth staff will explain their system when you arrive. Petruth Paddocks welcomes families, singles, couples and groups. Well-behaved dogs of all shapes and sizes are welcome... as long as they come with well-behaved owners who pick up after them... Food and coffee are served throughout the day on weekends, every day throughout the school holidays.

Site type

Rent a tent 5
Tent pitches 200
Touring caravan pitches 200
Motorhome pitches 200
Lodges, cabins, pods or huts 2
Open all year
Opens
Please note
  • 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).
  • Single-sex bookings of 10 or more people (excluding couples) are not permitted via Pitchup.com.
  • No hen/stag parties permitted via Pitchup.com.
  • A cable measuring at least 10 metres is needed for the electric hook-ups.
  • If making a fire, the fuel, logs and coal have to be purchased on site.
  • If reception is closed on arrival: please contact the number provided on your booking confirmation.
  • 16 and 17 year olds must have written parental permission emailed prior to arrival. Music must be turned off at 10pm in the Family Field and 11pm in the Chill-out Field, after-which fireside chatter is fine; singing, screaming and shouting is not. Guests not respecting this rule will be asked to leave. Pets are allowed on the understanding they are not permitted on the furniture in the accommodation units. Campfires are positively encouraged - fire-drums, kindling, logs and lighters delivered to your door every evening for a small charge. Please don't bring your own so the site knows what's being burnt. Please state a group name in your booking notes if you would like to be pitched as a group – maximum 10 people. Adult groups of 5-10 people will be charged a £150 behaviour bond. The site will contact you 2 weeks before arrival to collect a card payment, which will be returned on condition that: a) We have not had to ask more than once for the group to turn music off at 11 or keep to quiet chatter after. b) Your group has left their pitch clean and all rubbish has either been recycled or taken home.

Languages spoken

English

Pitch types & availability

Reviews

96%

would recommend this site to a friend

95%

would stay here again

  • 81%
    10
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Only showing reviews for the last 30 months.

Perfect place for everyone!

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

Electric grass pitch

Liked: So relaxed, amazing location and facilities. Great that it's set up with different fields for different needs e.g. all families together, people who want to play music together, a quiet field. Very friendly hosts and super dog friendly!

Recommend to friends Visit again

Excellent site , everything we needed

Overall 10/10
Location 10
Value for money 8
Accommodation 10
Facilities / Activities 10
Customer service 10
Child friendliness 10
Cleanliness 10
Wifi 4
Anonymous The reviewer booked through Pitchup.com

Electric grass pitch

Liked: Showers , toilets , location .

Disliked: Nothing

Recommend to friends Visit again

Spacious and dog friendly. We have 4 dogs who love to stop…

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

Non-electric grass pitch

Liked: Spacious and dog friendly. We have 4 dogs who love to stop here and use up some of their energy.

Recommend to friends Visit again

Great

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
Sarah R. The reviewer booked through Pitchup.com

Electric hardstanding and grass touring pitch

Liked: A lovely campsite ideally located 20 minute walk to Cheddar Gorge. Staff were friendly, welcoming and helpful. They have local maps for Walks in and around Cheddar (I didn't have the time on this visit next time though ). Facilities were great both the toilets and showers were of a good size which made a nice change. Washing up area was good too. All in all 5 Stars

Disliked: The showers are great for space including a few large ones. However the changing area floor gets wet as it's at same level as the shower. A slatted floor would be an Ideal upgrade

Recommend to friends Visit again

Facilities were clean and numerous. Pitches were a nice size and the…

Overall 10/10
Location 10
Value for money 8
Accommodation 10
Facilities / Activities 10
Customer service No rating
Child friendliness 10
Cleanliness 10
Wifi 4
Rob P. The reviewer booked through Pitchup.com

Electric grass pitch

Liked: Facilities were clean and numerous. Pitches were a nice size and the place was generally quiet

Recommend to friends Visit again

Would love to stay there again

Overall 10/10
Location 10
Value for money 10
Accommodation 10
Facilities / Activities 10
Customer service 10
Child friendliness 10
Cleanliness 10
Wifi 4
Nichola T. The reviewer booked through Pitchup.com

Non-electric grass pitch

Liked: A fantastic site with a great atmosphere, the facilities were really well thought out and staff were always friendly and helpful. Very handy for visiting Cheddar Gorge.

Recommend to friends Visit again

Frustrating and excellent at the same time

Overall 4/10
Location 10
Value for money 10
Accommodation 2
Facilities / Activities 10
Customer service 2
Child friendliness 10
Cleanliness 10
Wifi No rating
Amy R. The reviewer booked through Pitchup.com

Electric hardstanding and grass touring pitch

Liked: Apart from my dislike which was a big deal and really frustrating, we loved everything! Check in - We arrived about 7:30pm. We stayed in our van and a member of staff came out to us. A quick confirmation of our booking and we followed him to our pitch. Facilities - Plenty of showers and toilets. We were right by them which at first we thought may mean we are in a noisy, busy area but it wasn’t at all. The shower rooms had loads of room to get dressed in so great if youve got little ones with you. They heat up quick and are quite powerful. Toilets are separate pods so complete privacy with working hand dryers and most are constantly stocked with toilet paper. Electric - You’re given £3 to start with which I think lasted really well. That lasted us from the Friday night until the Sunday 12pm, running a small fridge, the inside van lights in the evening and charging vapes and phones a couple of times. Site - The site is really well maintained. We went to use the shop at 9:10pm for some wine (we were told by a staff member it was open till 9:30pm) but as we walked up the lights were turned off. The staff seem very friendly and it’s lovely to see the inclusiveness of so many young members of the team and they all work hard. There is a buggy that comes round in the evening with the wood and fire pits which is great. We paid £15 for the bag of kindling, few sheets of paper to get the fire going and enough logs to keep the fire burning for a good few hours. We used the food shack for dinner and breakfast. We had 4 burgers and 4 lots of chips for £52 and 2 x bacon and egg baps for £14. Quite expensive but they were delicious! Slightly off site there is a pizza place (not run by the site). We went to get one but they had ran out so I’d definitely recommend getting there early. Even after the disaster we would actually come again but I had to give low stars due to the inconvenience it caused us. I’m just grateful our kids weren’t with us with how stressful it was on the first night.

Disliked: We booked a grass and hard standing pitch with electric. When taken to our pitch it was all hard standing. We asked the staff member why as we had booked grass as well for the awning and he said they have non available. It was 7:30pm (I had to wait for a babysitter to have my children and it took us almost 3 hours to get there) so the last thing we are going to do is argue when nothing can be done. We needed to get pitched up before losing the daylight. We didn’t have suitable pegs for the ground (that’s why we booked grass) and our pegs bent. The pegs that did manage to work were hardly in the ground. It was extremely windy and all night we were worried the tent was going to cave in. I had two hours sleep and my partner had no sleep whatsoever. The next day we walked into cheddar trying to find somewhere that sold the rock pegs. We ended up spending over £50 on more pegs and a stronger mallet. We were only there for two nights and I didn’t want to waste any time by complaining because of it was what it was and nothing could be done. If we could’ve been moved on the last remaining night it would have taken us time away from our little break away by packing everything up again. No apology or partial refund which I really think we should have got.

Recommend to friends Visit again

From the manager: Lisa Thank you for your review. I’ll respond in two parts as you have 1. The part that went well: I’m so pleased that you were happy with the quantity and quality of our toilets and showers. We’ve invested a lot into them and continue to invest in their cleaning and also the ongoing maintenance both of our amenities and grounds. It’s also good to hear that you felt our power costs were reasonable and that our team were friendly and welcoming. We deliberately take on young people from the age of 14 who we can mentor and introduce people skills – something that seems to be missing these days sadly. The campfire provision always goes down well and whilst our food provision may be a little on the expensive side, it’s because we only source locally grown food and that comes at a premium. 2. The part that didn’t go well: The pitch you were shown to by 16 yr old Eryk had just been vacated by a seasonal pitch holder who unbeknown to us had overlaid the 25% grass area with scalpings – something we did not approve, were not aware of and hadn’t spotted before your arrival. You explained your concern to Eryk who offered you the opportunity to move to a Powered grass pitch – firm and dry and the best solution to the problem. You declined this offer so Eryk (who like the rest of our amazing team) took it upon himself to try to find some ground anchor pegs and brought them to you. He had thought that he had left you happy and was very upset to read your review. I appreciate that he did not provide enough pegs however he had no idea of the large size of your awning which would in any event have been half on hard standing as the grass area only accounts for 25% of the pitch. Whilst I am truly sorry that this lack of grass or anchor pegs spoilt your stay it really needn’t have had you simply escalated the issue there and then to an adult member of my team or indeed me – there were 6 of us on duty until 10pm. Had you have done so, we would have raided our store room for as many anchor pegs as you needed and either I or one of my team would have secured your awning with you thereby ensuring a good night’s sleep without worry. You have stated how friendly we all were – why on earth did you not speak to us at any point during your stay? I spoke to Eryk to understand what went on and have explained to him that he could not have done more and given him a bonus for trying his upmost to help you. Had he thought that you were still not happy he would have escalated things to one of us. Since receiving your review, I have emailed you 3 times and left 2 voicemails – its now a week and you have chosen not to respond. I simply wanted to ensure that I had all the facts before making you an offer by way of apology however I can only conclude that your decision not to reply to any of my 5 messages means that on reflection you have decided that everything possible was done by a 16 year old lad and that you should have spoken to an adult member of the team to reach an acceptable resolution. I’d far rather have dealt with all of this in person on the day or failing that offline via a one-to-one discussion however as you have chosen not to respond, I’ve had no option but to reply publicly so that those reading your review can make their own decision as to how we would have immediately resolved things had you given us the opportunity. I’d still very much like to discuss all of this with you and indeed welcome you back so the balls in your court. Kind Regards Jules Owner

Family freindly pitch in a lovely green location…

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

Non-electric grass pitch

Liked: Family freindly pitch in a lovely green location

Disliked: Nothing

Recommend to friends Visit again

Will go again, hopefully with the grandchildren, they would love it!

Overall 8/10
Location 10
Value for money 6
Accommodation 8
Facilities / Activities 6
Customer service 10
Child friendliness 10
Cleanliness 6
Wifi No rating
Anonymous The reviewer booked through Pitchup.com

Electric hardstanding and grass touring pitch

Liked: Extremely friendly and helpful staff. Plenty of room even though it is high season. Good location for local attractions. Next to cycle path for exploring the area. Very quiet even though there were a lot of children around (summer holidays). Much nicer site than it looks in the photos.

Disliked: Electric cut out after a very short time. We could have bought more but decided to run on gas. Don’t get much for £3.00! Toilets could have been cleaner

Recommend to friends Visit again

Lovely facilities, plenty of space and the option for a quieter stay…

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

Non-electric grass pitch

Liked: Lovely facilities, plenty of space and the option for a quieter stay in a separate field. Breakfast and coffee on site in the morning was amazing and fresh.

Disliked: Nothing, would definitely come back!

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 cafe On-site restaurant/cafe Outdoor swimming pool Play area TV room Take away Tennis Watersports

Amenities on site

Bath available Car parking by pitch/unit 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 Tents for hire 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

Camping 2.0

Jumbo tent pitches

Themes

Budget/backpacker Peaceful Spectacular scenery Walkers' paradise

Utilities

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

Nearby amenities

Bar nearby Dog walk nearby Nearby farmers' market Public transport nearby Shop nearby

Type

Very large (over 200 pitches)

Accessibility

Disabled facilities

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 Tennis nearby

Touring and motorhomes

Drainage hook-up points for tourers Seasonal pitches Water hook-up points for tourers

Location

Petruth Paddocks

Labourham Drove

Cheddar

Somerset

England

BS27 3XW

Directions

Timezone

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

GPS

51.26792°N
-2.77276°W

Route directions

Use postcode BS27 3XW for your satnav but please stop following it and start following the directions below when you are a couple of miles away - that way you'll not end up on an unmade road or on the site drive. If you are approaching Cheddar from the west, and you are towing a caravan or driving a large motorhome, then please exit the M5 motorway at junction 22, not 21. Travel along the A371 through the centre of Cheddar village. You will pass Tesco on your right and the Bath Arms on your left. Continue on this road passing St Andrew's Church followed by Cheddar Football Club on your right. After a further 250 yards, take a right turn off the A371 into Labourham Way. Take an immediate left, slow to walking pace and you’ll see our large sign in front of you – simply take a sharp left through the gateway and follow the track into the carpark. If you are approaching Cheddar from the east, and you are towing a caravan or driving a large motorhome on the B3135, please do not turn left signposted Gliding Club, but continue down the Gorge. Travel along the A371 through Draycott. You will pass the Cheddar Garden Centre and the Kart track followed by a nasty S bend. On exiting the bend, take an immediate left off the A371 at the "Welcome to Cheddar" sign into Labourham Way then another immediate left, slow to walking pace and you’ll see our large sign in front of you – simply take a sharp left through the gateway and follow the track into the carpark. Public transport: The bus stop is just a 10 minute walk away and will take to you either Weston Super Mare or Yatton train stations within an hour.

Nearest transport

Coach
10.9 km Wells Bus Station
13.9 km Airport Terminal
14 km Glastonbury Town Hall
Rail
13.8 km Worle Rail Station
14.2 km Yatton Rail Station
14.8 km Weston Milton Rail Station
Ferry
17.7 km Weston-super-Mare Knightstone Harbour
20.6 km Clevedon Pier
20.7 km Bridgwater Ferry Terminal
Airport
13.9 km Bristol International Airport
42 km Cardiff 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

There’s loads within walking distance of the campsite to keep you entertained. Fancy sampling local produce? Cheddar Ales Brewery, Tap Room and Shop (five minutes’ walk) has a range of award-wining ales. Walk a bit further on a Sunday morning and you’ll come to Cheddar Car Boot and Market (10 minutes), with a lakeside setting and lots of bric-à-brac to browse. Cheddar itself is a 10-minute meander along the Strawberry Line footpath, crossing the Cheddar Yeo river into the village, where there’s a posh pub (all the more reason to leave the car behind), a butcher, baker and supermarkets. A few more minutes’ stroll gets you to Kings Fitness and Leisure with a pool (handy for rainy days), Ocean Adventures Soft Play and sailing on the reservoir. Cheddar Gorge and Caves is a 20-minute amble from your door and is home to restaurants, a cheese factory, a cider mill and souvenir shops, as well as caverns and tunnels running deep under the Mendip Hills. A short car journey takes you to Wookey Hole Caves (15 minutes’ drive), with spectacular subterranean caverns and family entertainment like pirate ships and dinosaur trails. Wells (20 minutes) is the smallest city in England and has a landmark cathedral and a medieval bishop’s palace in moated gardens. Within half an hour’s drive you have a choice of sandy beaches: Weston-super-Mare, Burnham-on-Sea and Berrow, and at Mendip Activity Centre (20 minutes) you can learn to ski, go twilight tobogganing or play golf-frisbee on woodland trails.

Water quality at nearby bathing waters

Name Distance Type 2020 2019 2018 2017
Weston-Super-Mare Uphill Slipway 16.4 km Estuary Poor Poor N/A Poor
Weston Main 16.8 km Estuary Poor N/A Poor N/A
Berrow North Of Unity Farm 17.1 km Estuary N/A Excellent Good Good
Weston-Super-Mare Sand Bay 17.2 km Estuary N/A N/A Good Good
Brean 17.6 km Estuary N/A Excellent Excellent Excellent

Data source: European Environment Agency

Must see

Cheddar Caves & Gorge 1.6 km

Wookey Hole Caves & Papermill 8.4 km

Ebbor Gorge National Nature Reserve 9.8 km

Wells Cathedral 10.9 km

Glastonbury Abbey 14 km

National Trust

King John's Hunting Lodge 3.8 km

West Pennard Court Barn 17.5 km

Clevedon Court 19.5 km

Tyntesfield 19.6 km

Stembridge Tower Mill 22.1 km

Cycle routes

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

Other

Cheddar Gorge - Black Down - Rowberrow 1.2 km

Charterhouse - Black Down - Velvet Bottom - Charterhouse 5.2 km

Burrington Combe - Black Down - Rowberrow - Dolebury 6.5 km

Burrington Combe - Rowberrow - Dolebury 6.5 km

Winscombe 6.7 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 Somerset?

Frequently asked questions

  • Does Petruth Paddocks have a swimming pool? No View all features
  • Is Petruth Paddocks dog friendly? Yes View all features
  • What attractions are near Petruth Paddocks? There’s loads within walking distance of the campsite to keep you entertained. Fancy sampling local produce? Cheddar Ales Brewery, Tap Room and Shop (five minutes’ walk) has a range of award-wining ales. … Read more
  • When can I check in and check out of Petruth Paddocks?
    Camping and touring
    Arrive:  2 p.m. –  8 p.m.
    Depart by:  noon
    Read more
  • How much does it cost to stay at Petruth Paddocks? From R648.52 (for 1 night, 2 adults) - prices may change depending on your dates and party.