So, where to now I wonder??

[Colinn]

For the last few years, caravanning bliss for the wife and I has been in the New Forest - beautiful wildlife, endless walks, terrific scenery..

We liked it so much that our early retirement - joy, oh joy - has given us the freedom to go one better, and we're now buying a house down there.

But that begs the question - if we're going to live there, where the hell are we going to go caravanning??

Any suggestions please for really nice sites along the south coast, preferably for a seasonal pitch, say in Dorset, Devon or Somerset??

It will need to be reasonably quiet, possibly near the coast, but definitely with interesting and varied rambling. The sort of place that will make us want to leave the New Forest to find new pleasures!

Can such a place exist I wonder? If not, anyone want to buy a nice top spec caravan???!!

 

[Hamer_5041128]

Colinn,

Congratulations on joining the ranks of the retired. Why not use your new found freedom to tour/see some of the most wonderful areas of the UK, as a lot of us retireds do,without any time constraints.

If you like rambling there are some peaceful out of the way Caravan Club sites in either flat or mountain areas, many of which are open all year round.

If you want varied wildlife, stunning scenery and views to die for try the Lake District, Snowdonia ( my home territory),Derbyshire, North Yorkshire, Northumberland or Scotland. By touring between say the middle of September to end of April you avoid most of the crowds. Quite often i have spoken to retired caravanners, most recently at Malvern Caravan Club site, who set off for 2 to 3 weeks and stayed out for 4 plus weeks.

Our next trip out is a 5 week trip to see grandchildren, meet up with caravanning friends and finishing up at Chatsworth Caravan Club site for Christmas.

We had a seasonal pitch for a couple of years in Derbyshire, however when we got talking to other caravanners and they told us about areas and sites we got restless and started touring again. We have never looked back. I am only 66 at present and who knows in about 10 years time we may end up on a seasonal pitch again. There may be good reasons for you wanting a seasonal pitch but if you are reasonably fit and able why not give touring a few years first.

Hamer

 

[Happy-Lappy]

Colinn,

I agree with Hamer here, the main joy of owning a caravan, is the freedom to tour at ones own pace. There are so many places I have not yet seen, that when I reach retirement age I hope to travel to various parts of the UK and if money permits, europe too,

best regards, Martin

 

[Guest]

Congratulations on your move. However, I hope that it does not turn out to be a disappointment as often visiting a place is immensely more pleasurable, than actually living there. Now of course, your time in the New Forest will have to encompass looking after the house, and presumably garden, so 'nipping away' may be slightly more difficult, certainly for long periods of time. And of course you will now also have to live with all those 'damn tourists' visiting the place and cluttering up everything? You have mentioned the South Coast as a destination so I am guessing you plan on short trips away, possibly for some of the above reasons. Good Hunting, and I hope you find what your looking for.

 

[Graham1955]

Hi Colin

We are just back from our first trip to south wales. We stayed at the caravan club site at Freshwater East. A fairly easy drive from the {pipe delimiter}New Forest. The walking on the Pembrokeshire Coastal was amazing. You can walk from the site. The Coastal Hopper bus service although infrequent is very good. Good Supermarket at Pembroke a few miles from the site. Our first visit but we will certainly be back.

Graham

 

[Chrisbee]

I grew up in the New Forest and while I agree it's a lovely place to visit I found it very frustrating trying to get anywhere in the "season" due to the amount of holiday makers and every one stopping without warning to take photo's of the ponies. However, if you're not on your way to work and have plenty of time it's not an issue and it's a great place to live.

 

[Colinn]

Many thanks for all comments and suggestions. We have been "living" in the New Forest area as caravanners for two or three years now so feel we know what we are letting ourselves in for. True, it can get busy with visitors but there are ways and means to avoid the tourist areas. (Where isn't busy these days??) More to the point are miles of walks in every direction, beautiful scenery, abundant wildlife, proximity to the coastal areas - that'll suit us fine! But we would still be interested in finding nice sites along the coast - to keep the caravanning going!