Whitehill Country Park 

We spent 9 days at this site over the August Bank Holiday weekend in a family tent. The site is well situated and spread over various fields. The pitches vary in size. Some are well spaced. Others are smaller. We were sited in Coombe Meadow and unfortunately on a sloping pitch right next to the main road. This got very busy at times and was a particular pain first thing in the morning. We camp with a tent and two young children. Our pitch was surrounded by stinging nettles. I asked three times if someone would cut them down because of safety fears with the kids but despite repeated promises this did not happen. In fact my 3 year old son managed to trip one day and got stung all up his arm.

The site was generally clean and tidy but the toilet blocks provided plenty of hot water but were tired and dated. There is even holes in the plastic roof at certain blocks. Despite being further away we used the new showers in Great Orchard. These were excellent, clean and to a high standard. Just a shame the rest are not the same.

The bar and evening entertainment were good. Kids loved it. There is a take away and bar meals are served. There is a craft centre which again the kids enjoyed. The shop is large but poorly stocked whilst we were there. They did not even have replacement gas bottles in stock. Poor for a camp site.

The pool is a good size. It is patrolled by life guards who sadly pay little attention as to what goes on. During a busy period a group of teenagers decided it would be fun to launch footballs at each other as hard as they could. They cared not for those in the firing line. What was the lifeguards response? To carry on her conversation with a group of girls and even throw the ball back in the pool. With a 3 and a 7 year old we decided that for safety it would be best to call it a day at that point. Smoking and glass bottles by the pool seemed acceptable to the pool staff. Nights followed a similar pattern, certainly for the period over the bank holiday. Two nights running there were groups of drunk 14 - 16 year olds shouting and swearing until the small hours. The management's response? It will be okay, they have promised to be good tomorrow night.

All in all this is a site with tremendous potential. However, I could not help but think that all the owners were interested in was how much money could they make? The general impression we got was that once they had taken your money then not a lot else mattered. Some pitches were really great, in lovely countryside near to good quality amenities. Others were on quite a severe slope with poor facilities. It was all very hit and miss. If you are unlucky enough to get a pitch on the slope, by the road and next to a playground then good luck. I would not be staying there that is for sure.

To conclude, this is a nice site with several plus points. But for us it just let itself down in too many areas to be a place that we would either recommend or go back to. It is a shame because it could be turned into something special. With a few rules that made everyone's life better and strong management then this would certainly be worth a visit. It is a site that when everything runs smoothly or when it is only half full will run itself. When it is busy or there are problems then it just does not cope. Overall, disappointing.