Friday 13 April 2012

A Review: Mason's Campsite in Appletreewick

The standard of campsites can vary greatly, from the very basic to over the top. I have to admit, I've seen the varied quality myself. From a field and single toilet at the foot of Tryfan in the Ogwen Valley in Wales to a campsite in Devon with swimming pool, TV room, bar etc. Most people have different ideas about what is an acceptable standard. For me, clean and an ability to keep myself clean after a long walk. I think that the Mason's Campsite has that.

Up to a few months ago booking at Mason's Campsite had been a case of ring the phone number on the site and either speak to someone on the other end or leave an answer machine message. To be fair, they are very good at returning calls. I have now stayed three times and had no problems booking. This year though they have started to use a booking system on their website, increasing your options for booking.

The staff at the site are very friendly and helpful. They are on the ball and quickly show you to your plot so that you can get set up as soon as possible. There is a small shop within the office which stocks most essentials from food, to cleaning items and camping essentials.

The plots themselves are well looked after with care taken to rotate plots to ensure the grass is maintained. no patchwork grass here unlike a campsite I used in Dorset. There are power points for anyone that needs them and the plots are of a reasonable size.

One thing that hits you is the scenery where the campsite is located with hills all round, Simon's Seat being quite a dominant feature.

The campsite from the Dales Way heading east.
Simon's Seat which can easily be seen from the campsite.

The services on the site are excellent. The toilet blocks are very clean, warm and always working. They are very up to date so no fears of what you might find here. There are plenty of sinks at the side of the block for washing pots and plenty of taps for drinking water placed around the site. The only thing I would suggest is hooks in the men's toilets opposite the wash basins to hang items on.

Price wise, they aren't the cheapest, but then again I've stayed on cheap sites that have then required you to pay for showers etc, or simply not had them. I think in this case, you get what you pay for, a nice clean none over-commercialised walker friendly campsite.

No comments:

Post a Comment