Hi, I should know better being a local, but I’m looking for recommendations for a good family camping weekend near Bakewell. There’ll be a group of about 5 families so having our own area would be great. A nearby pub with beer garden / playground would be good.

We traditionally go to Lathkill Dale Campsite but are looking elsewhere as well. Somewhere near Monsal / Tissington trail would be good for the kids to go biking on.

I always recommend birchwood farm up at whatstandwell as it’s proper relaxed and has two huge camping fields where big group’s can get their own little set up going. Backs on to woods full of rope swings, bivvy shelters and loads of bike trails. All a bit basic but for 15 quid a night what do you want. Only thing is it’s shut over winter. Are you looking at going soon? If so fair play, you’re a brave bunch!

No, in May / June. I think the main priority is a decent toilet / shower block. I’ll have a look at that.

Have you tried the campsite at Alstonfield? Its about 100yards from a decent pub (Think the food might be pricy in the evenings) 1km off the tissington trail and about half that off the top of Dovedale.

Barn Farm at Birchover has the facilities and the pub but is about 3miles (along fairly quiet back roads, if you chose the right ones) off the High Peak Trail.

There’s also a farm campsite at Newhaven straight off the High Peak Trail (Not the big caravan park) which always looks tempting but I couldn’t say what the facilities or the local pub was like.

There are a couple of campsites at Hulme End on the Manifold Trail which are good (can’t remember which one is which though) with a decent pub

Cheers for that. Birchover is a good choice but last time I was there it was like Glastonbury, although I think it was a Bank Holiday wekdn but even so it was a bit crazy!

I live in Birchover so I won’t disagree with that. They are the masters of the ‘retrospective’ planning application (for the shop, for several increases in the size of the campsite etc) but it seems to provide what people want and it does a reasonable job at keeping the village pubs in business (unless they have opened a bar up there)

Given what you were looking for I would personally go for Hulme End, although at least one of those campsites can get busy

The one at birchover does actually do like a festival weekend I believe. Always looks a good laugh.
As for birchwood it’s a bit old school re the showers and toilets but if you can get over that it’s location is brilliant. Our kids have loves it for the last 7 or so years that we’ve been going. So much to do from the tent door if you like the big outdoors, black rocks, geocaching down at the canal, family tree cafe on the bridge but it all requires a bit of walking or more importantly ace riding to get there.

Birchover is supposed to be pretty good as above. Your closest to Bakewell is probably Greenhills, which is also supposed to be good and is inbetween Bakewell and Ashford in the Water. It’s about a mile into Bakewell and less than half a mile into Ashford

Linky

+1 for Greenhills. A lovely site with a quiet licensed bar, short walk into bakewell on the road and about a mile to ride onto the cycle trail (old railway line – Monsal?)