Woodlands Camping

Woodlands Camping is the go-to place for a back-to-basics, eco-friendly experience at the west end of the South Downs National Park. This Greener Camping Club site is a low impact place to pitch a tent or park up in a campervan. It offers off-grid pitches, simple facilities, and plenty of space. It welcomes dogs, allows campfires, and is generally a relaxed place to stay for a week or a weekend in the Hampshire countryside.

As the name suggests, there are plenty of trees around this site – but that doesn’t mean its pitches are shady. In fact, you’ll find them split between two open areas on the edge of a 200-acre wood: The Clearing and The Meadow. The Clearing, which opens March to October, is about an acre with just six pitches, each with its own picnic bench and fire pit. Come as a group and you can hire the whole area for yourselves. The Meadow, meanwhile, is a much larger space with more open views, open from Easter to September only. There are 10–15 undesignated pitches here so you can put your tent where you please and park up alongside. It’s about five acres so there’s always plenty of room and there are often horses grazing in the neighbouring paddock.

The campsite offers a drinking water tap, seasonal rustic showers, and a mix of compost and portable loos. There’s no indoor space and those who will like it here most will be used to the great outdoors. In fact, they might appreciate the chance to explore it beyond the campsite fences. You can navigate country lanes, footpaths, and bridleways to explore the surrounding beauty of the national park. There’s an hour walk to The Fox, if you fancy lunch, or a longer one to West Meon, where there are more choices for food and exploration. On rainy days, Winchester is always an option as it’s only 11 miles away. On sunny ones, the 30-minute drive to Hayling Island doesn’t seem too long for a day on a south coast beach.