Camp Bongo

A aimé Live music, friendly staff

N'a pas aimé Food truck was very disorganised and took 40mins to make some nachos. Given this we decided to get breakfast elsewhere than risk waiting this long again. Camp was loud later into the night than the quiet hours with security having to quiet the same groups multiple times.

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A aimé Friendly camp with a good atmosphere and stunning views, really enjoyed the entertainment and food.

N'a pas aimé Field is on a slope so finding a flat pitch can be tricky. Enjoyed my stay but as the activities are at additional cost, I felt the price was quite high for the facilities available.

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A aimé The location .and some friendly people on the site.

N'a pas aimé A number of things really , for the price to pay for a 2 night break was a little expensive as all the activities had to be paid for , this I thought was included in the price . The entertainment area was a tad too small as people had to sit out in the rain on Saturday night . The toilets were cleaned on Sunday morning at around 10:00am but they never got serviced on the Monday which was a little disappointing . The queue for the single shower was a bit of a wait . The bar ran out of draught beer on Sunday at around 8:30 just when the entertainment was about to start so had to pay through the nose for little stubby cans as you can’t take you own ale over . There was a little cooker up near the shower block with a kettle and a couple of dirty pans somebody couldn’t be bothered cleaning .

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Réponse du gestionnaire : Hello, and thank you for taking the time to leave your feedback.

We genuinely appreciate all feedback, whether positive or negative, as it gives us an opportunity to look at what we can improve. However, we do feel it is important to respond to a few of the points raised, as some of the comments don’t quite reflect the circumstances or what we actually provide.

Firstly, regarding the toilets, our facilities are cleaned and checked every couple of hours. They were also serviced and emptied by our toilet company on the Sunday. By Monday morning, they were only around half full, and with all guests due to check out by 12pm, there was no practical reason for them to be emptied again before collection. The toilets were collected shortly afterwards.

We appreciate that toilet facilities are important, which is why we have a regular cleaning and servicing schedule in place throughout the weekend. We are also a pop-up campsite operating on a field, so portable toilets are currently our only practical option, as we cannot put permanent structural buildings in place. We previously used composting toilets for two years, but unfortunately the feedback from guests was that they were not well received, so we made the decision to change to portable facilities.

Regarding the activities, what you are paying for is a unique a adults only campsite in a stunning location, approximately a 25-minute walk into the centre of town, with live entertainment, access to our bar and food, and a range of optional activities. We are not your standard camping experience.

At £52.80 per night for two people, it would simply not be realistic for that price to also include cocktail making, wine tasting, yoga, holistic therapies (massage, crystal healings, tarot readings etc), archery, axe throwing and laser clay shooting, alongside the other facilities and live entertainment we provide. These activities are optional extras and we have never advertised them as being included within the pitch price.

That said, we appreciate that there may have been some confusion, so as a result of your feedback, we will now make this even clearer in bold across our booking platforms to avoid any misunderstanding for future guests.

There are significant costs involved in creating the experience we provide. Our performers, staff, facilities, entertainment, licensing and land all come at a cost, and we have to price our pitches accordingly.
Regarding the entertainment area, our stretch tent like any venue or event space, operates on a first-come, first-served basis, particularly during busy periods. There was also a covered gazebo area available for guests to use.

We appreciate that some guests may have had to sit outside of the stretch tent or the gazebo area during the Saturday evening, but Camp Bongo is an outdoor camping and events experience. Unfortunately, the weather is outside of our control. As with any busy venue or event, if guests particularly want to sit in a specific area, they do need to arrive early enough to secure a space.

Regarding the keg, you're absolutely right that we did run out of our draught options. We sold considerably more draught beer than usual that weekend and, unfortunately, that particular keg ran out around two hours before closing on our third and final night. As you acknowledged in your review, there were other drink options available.

You also mentioned that guests cannot bring their own alcohol into our social/bar areas. This is correct and is standard practice for licensed venues — just as you wouldn't normally be able to take your own alcohol into any other bar, including bars at other campsites. We do, of course, allow guests to enjoy their own alcohol at their pitches.

Regarding the kitchen, the kitchen you refer to was not a communal kitchen available for general campsite use and therefore should not have been used by yourself. There is signage on the kitchen wall clearly stating that it is for pod guests only, and those guests have sole access to that kitchen area.

There were a couple of pots left there which may not have been washed as quickly as you would have liked. However, this was a private facility belonging to the pod guests, who are on a self catering basis, rather than a communal campsite kitchen.

The kitchen you are referring to is also not within the main campsite area. Guests staying on pitches would have passed the Camp Bongo dishwashing area, which has clear signage directing guests to use this facility.

We absolutely accept that the campsite experience won't be perfect for everyone, and we are always happy to hear constructive feedback. We just feel it is important that responses to reviews also provide the full context, particularly where facilities, pricing, what is included in a stay and the nature of the event are concerned.

We are continually looking at ways to improve the experience for our guests, and we will take the constructive points raised on board.

Thank you again for taking the time to leave your feedback.

Mikey

A aimé Location and evening music

N'a pas aimé Dirty toilets , exspensive for just a pitch as you have to pay for any activities seperate , had to wait 1 hour 30 for 1 pizza and ran out of ingridients for certain cocktails and field was on a hill side with not many flat spaces to pitch .

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Réponse du gestionnaire : Thank you for taking the time to leave a review. We’re sorry to hear that some aspects of your stay didn’t meet your expectations. We would, however, like to clarify a few points for anyone reading your review.

Our pitch price gives you access to Camp Bongo, your camping pitch and our live music. Activities and classes are optional extras, rather than something included in the pitch price. We offer a wide range of additional experiences, including paragliding, cocktail making, wine tasting, axe throwing, holistic therapies, yoga, archery and clay shooting. These are all priced separately and, we believe, very fairly. It would be a little unreasonable to expect all of these activities to be included in the price of a camping pitch.

With regard to the pizza, it was extremely popular on the evening of your visit. When ordering, guests are advised of the expected wait time so they can decide whether they are happy to wait. The longest wait that evening was just over an hour. We appreciate that this is longer than anyone would ideally like to wait, but we were upfront about the wait time when orders were placed.

Regarding the toilets, unfortunately we were let down at very short notice by our usual toilet provider. We managed to secure a replacement company just 24 hours before opening, which meant we were able to open as planned. The toilets were cleaned every few hours and were not dirty. On the final morning, however, they were understandably at full capacity as a large number of guests were checking out at the same time. We’re sorry if this impacted your experience, but this was a short period on the final morning rather than an ongoing cleanliness issue.

This is an issue we have already rectified by arranging even more toilets for this weekend. Camp Bongo takes great pride in reflecting and reviewing every weekend, and we always strive to improve as well as recognise the key things we do well. This is why we have a large number of returning guests, weekend after weekend and year after year.

It’s important to also note that we are not your typical campsite that offers toilets and showers in structured buildings or pitches that are marked out. We are a pop-up campsite, and this is very much part of the Camp Bongo experience.

You have also mentioned the field being on a hillside and having limited flat areas. We have two camping fields, one of which is considerably flatter than the other. Pitches are not allocated, so guests are free to choose where they would like to camp. Had you mentioned this to our team during your stay, we would have been more than happy to point you towards a flatter area.

We were also surprised to see customer service marked down, as our team are renowned for going above and beyond to help guests and make their stays enjoyable. This is exactly why we encourage guests to speak to us while they are here. Had you approached either of the owners (who are on site throughout our weekends), or a member of our team about any of these issues, we would have had the opportunity to try and rectify them for you at the time. Unfortunately, we can’t fix something we don’t know about.

Finally, regarding the cocktails, a busy bar can occasionally run out of individual ingredients towards the end of an evening. Stock is replenished each day, so this can happen temporarily during particularly busy periods. Our converted horsebox bar offers a huge range of drinks, including wines, beers, ciders, spirits, non-alcoholic options and, of course, cocktails.

If our team had known that you were upset by your chosen cocktail running out of stock, they would have been more than happy to make you a cocktail that suited your taste buds or pointed you in the direction of one of our other 11 cocktails that we have on offer (we have 12 in total).

We absolutely accept that Camp Bongo may not be for everyone, but we do feel it’s important that the full picture is represented. We work very hard to offer a unique camping experience with live music, a wide range of optional activities, friendly staff and the freedom to make your stay as relaxed or as adventurous as you wish.

We are transparent across social media, our website and partner sites about what we offer and what we are. We are a pop-up campsite for adults only, with that festival vibe. Nowhere do we state that activities are included in the price.

We’re sorry that your experience wasn’t what you hoped for, but we do wish you all the best for your future travels.

Many thanks,

Mikey

Camp Bongo

A aimé Lovely location, nice people.

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A aimé All staff so friendly, enthusiastic and informative. Easy to find, price was spot on. Lots of toilets on both fields. Plenty of room to go round.

N'a pas aimé Would of liked later entertainment. Seemed early as an adults only site and so remote that the entertainment went off early.

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Réponse du gestionnaire : Hello,

Thank you for taking the time to give us your feedback.

We’re super happy to hear that you enjoyed the Camp Bongo experience and, in particular, our wonderful and friendly team. We’ll be sure to pass your kind comments on to them.

We would, however, like to address your comments regarding the music finishing at 11pm. We’re sorry that this impacted your stay. While we are in a remote location, we still have neighbours around the valley, and it’s incredibly important to us that we respect them and don’t cause disruption late into the evening.

The 11pm cut-off for live music is also not something we have chosen ourselves. It is a condition of our licence from the council, which we have to follow. Without this licence, we would not be able to provide the live music, bar or food offering that forms such a big part of the Camp Bongo experience.

It’s also worth clarifying that Camp Bongo is not a festival. We are a campsite with a mini festival vibe. We completely understand that, because we are adults only, some guests may expect the music and partying to continue later into the night. However, being an adults-only campsite doesn’t mean we can simply do as we please. We still have to follow our licensing conditions, council guidelines and, importantly, respect our neighbours and every guest staying with us.

We also have a midnight quiet time. Not every guest wants to stay up late and party, and we have to find the right balance so that guests who want to enjoy the music can do so, while those who want to relax and sleep can also have an enjoyable stay.

We really appreciate your feedback, and we’re pleased that overall you enjoyed your Camp Bongo experience. We hope to welcome you back again in the future.

Many thanks,

Mikey

Camp Bongo

A aimé Chilled, great activities on site, amazing food and drinks!

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A aimé Really enjoyable experience, bar and food were excellent. Staff were fabulous and worked really hard, entertainment was excellent on both nights. Great atmosphere.

N'a pas aimé Never a fan of portaloos 😂 although they were cleaned every morning and always had toilet roll.

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Réponse du gestionnaire : Hello

Thank you for taking the time to give us your wonderful feedback.
We will pass this onto the whole team and our performers who all work incredibly hard to create and offer that Camp Bongo experience you have so kindly shared.

Hahah, porta loos! Thank you for taking the time to reflect and review the cleanliness. It’s not a job that anyone wishes to do but our team do it throughout the day and still with a smile on their face. Thank you for recognising this.

We hope to welcome you back again in the future to Camp Bongo.

Many thanks
Mikey

A aimé Fantastic stay! Brilliant people!

We will be back

Thank you

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