Riverside Lakes Reviews

Peaceful

An amazing experience. Matt and his partner. Will definitely be back, I came little unorganised so I had to cut the trip short.

Riverside Lakes

A great site, lovely helpful people and well run. Could not fault anything.

Noisy

This is a lovely, well looked after campsite and the owners are very friendly. However, I booked it on the basis of it being advertised as a quiet campsite. Their website actively deters anyone looking to party or generally make lots of noise, and says offenders will be asked to leave. It asks for quiet after dark and no noise at all after 11, which sounded perfect. This was very far from the reality though. I have camped in many many campsites and this was right up there in terms of the noisiest of them. Lots of partying, large noisy groups, kids screaming, yelling and running riot all over the campsite right up to and past 11pm. There was even the national anthem yelled drunkenly out shortly before midnight. Generally lots of campsite noise past dark which in no way could be claimed to be 'quiet'. No one was being unpleasant, just not adhering to the campsite rules, which were not being enforced in any way - or if they were, no one paid any attention. There were a host of noisy groups - some exceptionally noisy. When I spoke with the owner the following morning, whilst she was apologetic, she told me that weekends can get very noisy and that their regulars like to play games until late. I found this quite unsatisfactory - basically she was saying it wasn't a one-off but an ongoing occurrence which they are aware of, and yet still the site emphasises on being a quiet space. We were offered an extra free night as compensation, but really, if you've booked holiday for a certain length of time, this is unlikely to be possible and wasn't for us. A refund would have been more appreciated, but wasn't offered.

Site's response

Thank you for your feedback. As it states on our listing, we are a friendly, family run campsite, we welcome families and quiet groups onto site, most of which can be regulars, but it was lovely to see a lot of new faces this year. Unfortunately noise is sometimes out of our control, as we cannot always hear after we've done our walk rounds, which I apologised for when you came and spoke to me about the next day. Unfortunately, you were pitched in amongst a group which had booked most of their pitches online as well as some bell tents. We managed to catch up with them the next day and they apologised for any noise that was made. I informed you on the morning you came to speak to me that sometimes, Fridays can be a little noisier through the holidays due to the children onsite being overexcited and they play games of hide and seek which we make a point of calming usually around 9.30pm - 10pm. We also mentioned we clean the shower block around 11pm and walk round to calm the noise from adults, sometimes after this time, the noise can creep up once we are indoors. We have phone numbers on the door for any problems onsite. I didn't see it necessary to offer a refund, nor were you leaving site early because of the situation. I think next time, as you can see from our reviews, be best for you to book at quieter times of year, maybe not in the school holidays. To add, and pardon me for fighting my corner slightly, I do believe a camper who arrived when most campers had gone home, was pitched next to you for the evening, and she text us to move because of noise complaints from yourselves early afternoon. Kind regards :)

What a lovely stay!

Though we only stayed 1 night, it more than matched expectations. Great for families, groups or couples we were struck by how peaceful the whole place was. I wish we'd stayed here when the kids were smaller - they'd have loved the animals, cycling safely around the extensive grounds and fishing. For us as a couple we loved the convenience of the very clean shower, washing up blocks and fire pit service; the quietness of our lakeside pitch and morning chorus of different birds and the great location that is off the beaten track yet handy for local towns. A welcoming, well-run site where we would happily stay again.

Bell tent review

Fun, remote, peace and quiet.

Amazing campsite

This was our first camping trip in the UK and with kids (previously camped in South Africa growing up). My expectations for Camping in the UK was low as some campsites we have driven past were not really what we would choose. So after searching and finding this location, I booked and was hopeful. I absolutely loved it and it was better than I could have hoped for. The location is great if you did want to explore, but the grounds were wonderful too. My kids loved the farm animals and walking around the lakes and exploring. The spot we chose was nice, as there was only 3 pitches so it felt semi-private and not just a big field. There are loads of trees and bushes. We have already said how we would come again and again. I loved that each pitch comes with it's own picnic bench and firepit and they come around every night where you could buy wood. The energy in the evening when you walk about with all the fires burning and it looks amazing.

Lovely clean campsite

Well maintained, quiet and peaceful in a lovely location. Will definitely book again.

Enjoyable stay

Really enjoyed the way that the site is spread out, with different areas and pathways in between. The campsite was quiet and felt very relaxed. The service was friendly and personal. The site would be ideal for groups of campers as each area had a handful of pitches and plenty of picnic benches. Travelling alone, I found it helpful that the charges were calculated 'per person' rather than 'per pitch'. Looking forward to returning sometime.

Never again

I'd avoid this site if you are there for a good time as adults. There were people on the site that were complaining about my Makita radio playing the radio at 9:30. It seems as a couple of groups focused together on complaining and getting the land owner to come and tell us to turn the radio off or down, so I turned it down to a point where sitting next to it, it was just listenable. Then, a guy came up saying that it's 10:30, I live in a tent and it's travelling through.

Site's response

Thank you for your feedback, we appreciate your side of the situation. We are advertised as a quiet family campsite, and really want our guests to have a good time. We very much encourage this, but we do at times have to keep the peace when it comes to music playing. It may have been different with different neighbouring campers who wouldn't have minded the music, and I'm sorry you felt like your evening was cut short.

Great stay

Great little place, very well looked-after, everyone was so friendly. Only downside was no internet my 13 year old wasn't happy haha! Would stay again.

Excellent

Great location surrounded by countryside, but easy to visit Hampshire or Dorset. Very tidy, spacious pitches and good facilities. Would recommend.

Great site

Riverside is a very nice, pleasant and friendly site. The animals were good to see and the fishing lakes, although a bit weedy, were very nice to fish. The owners of the site and others that work there were very accommodating, polite, helpful and very approachable. The pitches were of a very good size and the site was kept very neat and tidy. The showers were very adequate and it was good to see both warm and cooler water temp cubicles. The toilets were very clean and I would thoroughly recommend a visit. The directions to the site were very easy to follow which made the journey easy. Well done all at Riverside!

A great escape

I really enjoyed my stay here. It was very relaxing, the staff are perfect and the facilities are as clean as could be. The lakes are a nice touch for the campsite and I hope to try fishing with my son on my next visit. I loved the fire pits that are available to use. I was able to enjoy a cosy outdoor fire while cooking my food, amazing. I didn't find any flaws with this place, including that it was the best priced campsite I'd seen online. I would recommend to anyone to try this campsite out.

Fabulous - wished we stayed longer

Really enjoyed staying here for a quick overnighter. Wished we 'd stayed longer and enjoyed the facilities. Our children are all grown up now, but if you've got kids this must be idyllic for them and give you a great holiday too! We stayed during term time and it was quiet and relaxing.

A jewel of a place

If you are looking for somewhere quiet to stay, you will love this beautiful hidden away place. A really well-maintained site with superb, spotlessly clean facilities, and friendly, welcoming people. Excellent value for money. Perfect for access to the coast, Cranborne Chase and the New Forest from here.

Great escape

A place you can escape all the city noise and be still within easy reach of big town entertainment. Loved this campsite, lovely and welcoming owners, tasty pizzas, delicious ice cream. Just a few extras and it makes such a difference to your stay. Beautiful campsite.

My visit

I have always wanted to experience a night/weekend in a glamping bell tent and it could not have been more amazing. Kelly, and her partner, were absolutely fabulous and always accommodating. The grounds are kept tidy, and the shower rooms are perfect. We even had lovely fairy lights in our tent. I would highly recommend staying at this Lakeside camping site whether it's camping or glamping, it was absolutely amazing and I will be telling all of my friends. Such a lovely family and a beautiful location. A slice of paradise. Thank you so much.

Great stay on a lovely site

Great stay on a very well kept site with rural views and lots of wildlife. Owners took the trouble to run a electrical hookup to a quiet pitch far from other campers as I was concerned my dog might get anxious. Pizza night is great.

A little piece of heaven

A beautiful site run by a beautiful family. Could not recommend this site more highly. Attention to detail and helpfulness was above and beyond. This was our first visit here and will definitely not be our last.

Fantastic

I challenge you to find a better campsite anywhere. The hosts are brilliant and so so helpful and freindly . Bella is a star. The site is immaculate the lakes are beautiful and really well stocked, even I caught a couple of fish. We will definitely be back.

Beautiful campsite

Beautiful campsite and facilities were always clean. Lovely welcoming hosts. The only thing was the showers were a little cold. But would definitely be returning again soon.

Site's response

It was so lovely meeting you guys, and thanks for your support. Appreciate the feedback too, as we usually get told our showers were too hot so we got 2 turned cooler, but haven't yet put stickers on the door. I shall get them sorted this week, and maybe warmed up a little. See you guys again soon - Kelly & Matt

Lovely bank holiday stay

10/10 had a lovely 3 night stay over the bank holiday with our dog. Kelly, her partner & Bella were all so friendly and welcoming. Our bed was damaged and they had one in the shop for us to purchase last minute. Also, when our electrics weren't working, they came out and helped us sort it in the dark and gave us takeaway numbers and local info! Really nice to be able to have a camp fire and plenty of privacy as the site was nice and quiet on our visit. The site itself is beautiful, with lakes and the cutest pigs ever (and goats and alpacas) and nice clean facilities. Will definitely be coming back again with friends and family. Thanks for a lovely weekend xx