I'm looking for a site near New Forest for October half term. Preferably with playarea to keep ,my 9 year old amused, bar or pub within walking distance to keep us amused in evenings and an indoor pool for those wet miserable days. I've searched site directory and found Sandy Balls, Shamba and Ulwell Cottage but the reviews have got me totally undecided. Has anyone got any comments on these three sites or any further suggestion. Thanks.
Don't forget to leave a review of the campsites you have visited this year or last!
We went to Sandy Balls in August and it was ok. It really depends what you like.......the pitches are marked and quite close together, the play area was great although noisy at night with teens, the indoor pool is smallish and at busy times you will have to wait and are limited to an hour, the eating places (2 of) serve nice food but are quite pricey. The evening entertainment was good but the area is quite small so you may need to get there early to get a table.
The facilities are clean and there are plenty of them. There is a Tesco Express and a Co-op in Fordingbridge Village which is not to far away.
We still enjoyed ourselves and my two little monkeys (5 & 2) had a great time.
We have been to Sandy Balls and Ulwell Cottage. Ulwell Cottage will be a bit of a trek to the New Forest, however it's in a lovely setting with loads of walks etc. Sandy Balls is a huge camp site, very different to most other sites we have been to. It reminded me a bit of Centre parks rather than Haven! We have been there when it was full to bursting (bank hol) and still enjoyed ourselves. My children are 7 and 14 and enjoy both sites. However if it was me and we were going in Oct half term I would pick Sandy Balls. Simply because there is more to do on site - especially if weather is wet. We love Ulwell Cottage and it's fab if you get beach weather due to its location and the pool is very nice, however children's park not so good and not much else going on on site. The pub and eating places at Sandy Balls are a bit expensive, however for convenience you can't beat it! We love Ulwell but would mainly visit in warmer weather. We are off to Sany Balls again in two weeks to celebrate my daughters 8th birthday and she can't wait! Hope this helps a bit
Mandy