South East•Hampshire•50.931° N, 1.758° W

Croft Cottage Camping

Bill and Helen's smallholding in the northwestern New Forest corner: alpacas, a volleyball net, and a view across the orchard.

Croft Cottage Camping sits in Godshill, on the quieter, less-visited northwestern edge of the New Forest National Park. The pitches look west across the cottage orchard and north towards the vegetable plot and paddock, which means mornings are genuinely pleasant and the eye has somewhere to go. Fordingbridge is 2km east if you need a town; the Avon Valley Path starts close enough to walk to from your pitch.

This is a working smallholding run by Bill and Helen who are conspicuously present. Guests get alpacas and chickens in the morning, volleyball in the evenings, and an owner who actually knows their name. That owner-presence shapes the whole feel of the site: it's sociable in the way that a good host makes things sociable, not in the way that a busy site is merely noisy. Facilities are straightforward, toilets and showers kept clean, pitches large enough for a family tent and a car.

The site takes both tent and glamping pitches. Families with small children do particularly well here: the play equipment, animal feeding, and enclosed layout mean children are occupied and contained without anyone having to try very hard. Couples looking for peace in the National Park rather than activities will find the setting does the work, as long as they don't mind the occasional sound of an enthusiastically umpired volleyball match.

Before you book

Sandy Balls Holiday Centre is 300 metres away but its facilities are not available to Croft Cottage guests, do not book expecting shared access.
This is the northwestern, less-touristy corner of the New Forest: further from the coast and the main forest attractions than central or southern park sites.

“A family-run smallholding with real soul: alpacas, an orchard view, and an owner who creates a community out of whoever's on site that week.”

Why it made the cut

Bill and Helen's personal presence turns an evening into a volleyball match and a morning into an alpaca-feeding session
Sits in the quieter northwestern corner of the New Forest National Park with Avon Valley Path walking from the doorstep
Pitches overlook the orchard and paddock rather than a car park
Strong track record of cleanliness and a genuinely welcoming atmosphere

The Feeling

Soulful handmade · Curated rustic · Sociable tempo

Alpaca alarm clockOrchard view morningsBill umpires volleyballNew forest edge quiet

Good For

Family
Solo
Date

Best For

Walking the Avon Valley Path from your pitch
Two-minute walk to the Woodside Inn pub
Close to New Forest National Park and coastal access

In Campr's collections

Farm fields properAlpacas, chickens, a vegetable plot and an orchard view: this is a proper smallholding at the edge of the New Forest, run by people who live there.
Slow familyBill arranges animal feeding in the mornings and volleyball in the evenings so children are occupied without anyone breaking a sweat, the enclosed site and gentle pace do the rest.
Soulful handmadeThe facilities are simple; the personality is not. Bill's evening volleyball tournaments and Helen's welcome are the things guests remember.