Crossways Country Park

Polubione Beautiful and quiet campsite. Very friendly and helpful hosts.

Polecane znajomym Odwiedź ponownie

Polubione Space . Cleanliness. Friendly

Niepolubione Shower block dated

Polecane znajomym Odwiedź ponownie

Polubione Overall: I really liked the setting. It's green, quiet, close to Barnstaple and has some genuinely lovely countryside walks along old train track bed directly from the site. The hot showers and decent water pressure were a pleasant surprise, and the almost-empty site suited us perfectly.

Lovely location, incredibly peaceful.
We stayed here because we wanted somewhere green and peaceful close to Barnstaple with showers and laundry facilities, and in that respect Crossways really delivers. There was only one other unit staying while we were there, so it was wonderfully quiet — exactly what we like.
The fenced in dog exercise area was good but not as good as the walks through the gate along the same hedge.
The best surprise was discovering a lovely walk directly from the site along the old railway trackbed, through woodland and open meadow and past a pond, eventually heading towards Swimbridge. It's a beautiful bit of countryside and, personally, I think this should be mentioned to guests because we would never have known about it otherwise.

Niepolubione The site itself has a lot of potential, but it's definitely on the scruffy/basic side.
There were several handwritten signs around the facilities, some of which were rather entertainingly misspelled. The Elsan had a handwritten notice reminding people to clean up after themselves, and the pot-wash/laundry room had a notice saying "linnin" must be washed before using the dryer. 😂

The wash block is, as other reviews have said, rather reminiscent of Prisoner: Cell Block H. The showers were actually perfectly good though — hot water and decent pressure — and the facilities were reasonably clean. The wash blocks are labelled "Peahens" and "Peacocks", which is... unusual.

There were four drinking-water taps that I could see. Two were in the touring field, although one had an unusual connection that I couldn't use and the other was usable with a standard Hozelock fitting. Two more taps between the wash block and the manager's house had locked covers, so they weren't available for general use, although still with signs saying drinking water.

The ground immediately outside the facilities was quite mossy and slippery, and I actually slipped there. There was also a lovely big motorbike parked directly in front of the laundry/pot-wash room throughout our stay, which made access rather awkward.

There were several older caravans tucked away in the top corner of the site which appeared to be seasonal/long-term units. They were empty during our stay and the grass around them was quite overgrown. There were also a few touring caravans grouped together near the facilities which appeared to be occupied more permanently. They weren't really an issue for us, but the whole area contributed to the slightly run-down feel, which isn't likely to improve as the site is currently being managed on behalf of the administrators.

The laundry was probably the most frustrating part of the stay. I bought £20 worth of tokens and was shown how to use the washing machine. I did two loads successfully. The following day I put four tokens into the tumble dryer before realising it wasn't actually working. After some investigation, it turned out the dryer wasn't plugged in and its plug was missing the fuse and fuse cover. The manager eventually replaced the fuse using one from the washing machine and it worked.
I later used another token for my towels, leaving me with five tokens. When I tried to exchange those for cash before leaving, I was asked how much I intended to "contribute" for using the dryer. I explained that I'd assumed the four tokens lost while it wasn't working would cover it. I was then told that the token box had been checked and there were no tokens in it. I found that upsetting because it left me feeling that my account of what had happened was being questioned. I eventually received £5 back.

One other small thing: the written rules in the laundry said departures were by 10am, whereas the Pitchup listing says 11am. I only discovered the latter afterwards, so I needn't have felt quite so rushed on departure morning.

Polecane znajomym Odwiedź ponownie

Od administratora: Thank you for your review, which you posted on 03.09.2026. I would like to respond to the points you raised in your review.
The park is by no means a scruffy site. The two pitches primarily used for camping and caravanning are always kept immaculately by our Maintenance Manager, who takes great pride in maintaining them to a high standard.
There are no handwritten notices around the park. The notices are clearly explained and typed, except for one typographical error where an additional "N" was added to the word "Linen". I do apologize for this typing error.
The toilet block is certainly nothing like "Prisoner: Cell Block H". However, I did enjoy your description of it. The facilities are always kept very clean, as reflected in our 100+ reviews. As you mentioned that you live in your campervan and travel from park to park, I am sure you appreciate the importance of cleanliness.
"Peacocks and Peahens" is a unique name for our toilet block, which is why we decided not to change the names.
All the water throughout the park is drinking water. One tap was marked "Drinking Water", and that sign has now been removed. The locked covers are in place to prevent people who are not staying on the park from accessing the water to fill their caravans or motorhomes without permission.
There is moss around the park, which is a natural occurrence, particularly during periods of wet weather. The motorbike was also not blocking the entrance to the laundry room, there was plenty of space to enter the door..
There are three caravans tucked away in the top corner of the park. These are seasonal caravans, and their owners may visit at any time between March and October. We are not permitted to cut around them in case anything is damaged, as we would not be liable for any resulting damage.
The three caravans near the toilet block are privately owned and are permanent residents. They are not run down and, in fact, are very well maintained. This is why there is a "Private" sign on the driveway to prevent people snooping around their homes.
The laundry facilities were certainly not an issue from our perspective. You purchased £20 worth of tokens and were shown how to use the washing machine. You mentioned that you had four loads of washing and, as you had set up a washing line attached to the park fence, you said that you did not require the tumble dryer.
The dryer was not an issue either. There was no fuse in it because the fuse is removed to prevent people from using the dryer at their own discretion. If a guest requires the dryer, the fuse can be replaced.
Yes, you were asked to contribute towards the use of the dryer because it had been placed on a free cycle. At the time, I had an important appointment to attend and explained that I would sort the matter out later. Your money was reimbursed with no problem at all.
Finally, regarding your departure, the departure time shown on Pitchup is 12 noon. You were certainly not rushed & under any pressure to leave, as you mentioned you had to wait for your husband to finish his social care shift before travelling to your next camp site.
That typed sign on departure time has also been removed from the Laundry so and not to confuse anyone else.
I hope this clarifies the points raised in your review.

Polubione Extremely friendly owners, willing to help anyway possible, lovely pitches, showers and toilets do the job, peaceful site, local cider maker over the road well worth a visit, bus stop right outside the campsite, local pub the Castle Inn was very nice and food lovely, would definitely come again 5*

Niepolubione Nothing

Polecane znajomym Odwiedź ponownie

Polubione Very friendly, quite camping

Polecane znajomym Odwiedź ponownie

Polubione The owners were very friendly and helpful. The site itself was fabulous - really peaceful and had everything we needed.

Polecane znajomym Odwiedź ponownie

Polubione Nice quiet site, welcoming helpful owners.
Nice shepherds hut, with all you need for a short stay.

Niepolubione Facilities well maintained but a little dated. A basic site with no shop etc

Polecane znajomym Odwiedź ponownie

Polubione Peace and quiet
The owners were wonderful
Bus stop outside entrance
Lovely pub in nearby village

Niepolubione Nothing

Polecane znajomym Odwiedź ponownie

Polubione Peaceful campsite in nature and very friendly hosts

Polecane znajomym Odwiedź ponownie

Polubione Friendly, accomodating, direct and easy-going. Helped us choose a good spot on the site based on our needs and wants. Were able to put my disabled partner close to toilet block, which is important for us.

Bunnies lolloping around in the field late in the evening.

Don't know about WiFi because I had good phone signal, better than at the majority of sites I've stayed at.

Niepolubione Some road noise but not as bad as I've had at some sites and it wasn't a major issue and didn't wake me up once I was asleep.

Fields are not flat but I got my vehicle level enough with levelling blocks. Had to be slightly careful with positioning of table and chairs but everything was perfectly useable and I felt safe enough cooking on the table with gas so enough said really!

Polecane znajomym Odwiedź ponownie