Liked Very convenient for the M5, making it a good stopover on the way to or from the West Country. The site has a relaxed, informal feel, with no real arrival or departure times being enforced. Despite looking quite busy when you arrive, it actually feels less busy than it appears. The reason is that the vast majority of pitches are occupied by semi-permanent setups, many of which are used by Hinkley Point workers who are away from the site during the day. There are really only a handful of pitches available for touring caravans and motorhomes. Facilities are well appointed and generally good.

Disliked There is quite a lot of movement around the site early in the morning, particularly before 6am, as workers leave for Hinkley Point. The ladies’ toilet block is currently out of order, with the disabled toilets and showers having been reassigned for general use. There doesn’t appear to be much work taking place, or any great sense of urgency, to get the main block open again. Overall, a functional and convenient site, particularly for a stopover, but probably not somewhere I’d choose for a week’s holiday.

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Liked Great location for exploring the New Forest, Southampton and Paultons Park. Being just off the M27 makes it really easy to get to and a good base for getting around, although you do get some traffic noise from the motorway. The site is very well signposted, so finding it is straightforward. It’s more of a practical, functional campsite than a scenic one, but that’s absolutely fine if you’re looking for somewhere convenient. The facilities were perfectly decent and everything we needed was there.

Disliked We expected plenty of families because of the nearby attractions, and that wasn’t a problem at all. What was less enjoyable was children riding high-powered electric bikes around the field like a race track, which could have been better managed. Also, some of the seasonal or semi-permanent pitches looked quite run down, and that took away from the overall feel of the site.

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Liked A great site with a genuinely open and spacious feel, run as part of the local rugby club. The large field gives plenty of room to spread out and, if you’re not tied to an electric hook-up, you have the freedom to pick your pitch and enjoy the relaxed, open layout of the site. The electric pitches are a different story — more of a premium spot than a spacious retreat — but that’s the trade-off for having power on tap. The site is very well organised, with a friendly and welcoming manager who clearly knows what they’re doing. The facilities are excellent and look like they’ve had a recent refresh, so no complaints there. The location is a winner. Stow-on-the-Wold is a proper Cotswolds gem and a brilliant base for exploring the area. You’re perfectly placed for all the usual Cotswolds delights, plus the now-famous Diddly Squat/Hawkstone/Farmers Dog triangle — ideal if you’d like to do your bit towards funding Clarkson’s next tractor purchase. Bamford Barn is also within reach and is quite something. A place where white linen appears to be the unofficial uniform and where you can experience the unique thrill of wondering whether you’ve accidentally wandered onto the set of a very expensive lifestyle advert.

Disliked The only real downside is that the electric pitches are a bit of a squeeze. They’re smaller and packed much closer together, so if you need hook-up you’ll be sacrificing some of that lovely open-field feeling. Stow itself can also suffer from Cotswolds traffic — the sort where you can spend longer queuing behind a Range Rover admiring a thatched cottage than you do actually getting anywhere. But that’s the price of being somewhere everyone else wants to visit too.

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From the manager: Hi Paul, Thank you for taking the time to leave such a detailed review. It’s great to hear you enjoyed your stay and found the campsite a good base for exploring the Cotswolds! We really appreciate your balanced feedback and your comments about the friendly welcome and organisation of the site. Thank you also for your feedback regarding the electric pitches. As you say, there’s a trade-off between having electric hook-up and the more open feel of the camping field, but we do appreciate your comments and will keep them in mind as we continue to develop the site. We hope to welcome you back again soon. Kind regards, Vicky Campsite Manager

Liked This campsite strikes a great balance – small enough to feel personal, with friendly service and a relaxed atmosphere, but large enough to offer all the facilities you need. The owners clearly take pride in the place, and everything is well maintained and thoughtfully looked after. Having a pub on site is a real plus, and it adds to the experience rather than taking away from it. The surrounding countryside provides some lovely views and makes it a great place to unwind.

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From the manager: Hi Paul Great review for us Thank you really appreciated your time to complete this . Thanks for praising our Facilities + staff it all helps to let us know we are doing things right 😁 Glad you enjoyed the food etc BE great to see you again . Regards Team Charlies.

Liked We had a really lovely stay here. It’s a small, friendly campsite with good-sized, level hardstandings, which made setting up nice and easy. Each pitch has its own hook-up and water, which is always a big plus for us. The chemical disposal points are well set up and easy to use, and the toilets and showers (shared with the marina) were clean and perfectly decent. One of our favourite things was having a wander around the boats and along the canal towpath, it’s a really peaceful spot. We also enjoyed a trip to The Plough, which is about a 20-minute walk or a quick drive, and well worth it for a nice local pub meal. It’s in a great location too, with easy access to Lichfield, Fradley Junction and other nearby places to explore. All in all, we really enjoyed our stay, it’s a well-run, welcoming site and we’d happily come back.

Disliked We did see some of the negative comments before arriving, but honestly, none of them really reflected our experience, so we didn’t let them affect our stay. The only small thing we’d agree with is the bin situation. There don’t seem to be quite enough of them, or they’re not emptied as often as they could be. When they get a bit too full, especially if it’s windy, it can make parts of the site look a little untidy. That said, it was only a minor issue for us and didn’t take away from what was otherwise a really enjoyable stay.

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Liked Close enough to Abergavenny to be useful and with some lovely views. Good walks along the river which are. Accessible from he rear gate. Set behind a nice pub that serves good food and beer!

Disliked At 6m wide the pitches are too small for modern caravan/motorhome set ups. There is a request for no awnings, which is unrealistic and is not enforced, and is most annoying for the few of us that did comply.

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From the manager: Thank you Paul for the review, the pitches are 9 meters wide not 6??

Liked Good facilities, friendly owners and wonderful views. Overall this is a pretty good campsite, but there was a downers…

Disliked …whilst the size of each pitch was large enough, there were absolutely no breaks, either at the rear or side to side. With many of the tent campers filling their pith to the boundary, the overall feeling was cramped.

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Liked Beyond doubt this is one of the best campsites we have ever stayed at. The owner cannot do enough to make you feel welcome and the facilities are excellent. The pitches are hard standing, and massive. We got our caravan, awning (you will need rock pegs) and car all on the hardstanding, with loads of space to spare. Each pitch has a nice picnic table, which is a good touch. Facilities are more than adequate, don’t be put off by them appearing to be in a shed, it is more of a cabin and they are very clean and well appointed. Then there is the honesty shop, well more of a DIY deli really. The meat, all locally reared is unbelievable, the eggs are fresh from site and everything else is brought in just a few miles. Lastly there is the view, seldom camped anywhere with a vista like this…

Disliked Having to go home,

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From the manager: Thank you for taking the time to leave such a lovely review very thoughtful of you. Glad you enjoyed your stay with us and hopefully we will see you again in the future Thanks a lot Huw