Last Updated on 2 August 2024 by Colette
This post features a hosted stay
A three night stay at Mablethorpe Camping and Caravanning Club site on the Lincolnshire Coast felt like the perfect way to kick off the summer holidays. We chose the site based on it’s proximity to the coast (much to Ben’s disdain – apparently now he’s almost 15, he doesn’t like sand). Mablethorpe is about a three hour drive from our home in Manchester but as we were going for three nights we decided we didn’t mind the longer drive. Normally we would camp Friday to Sunday but with it being the start of our summer holidays, we chose to set off on Saturday morning rather than rushing across the M62 on Friday night meaning we could be a bit more relaxed about getting set up on Saturday afternoon too!
Mablethorpe Camping and Caravanning Club Site is a large family-friendly campsite with a range of pitches both grass and hard standing with and without electric hook-ups (we didn’t used to camp with electric but now we have an EHU, I wouldn’t be without it, especially on longer stays!)
We set off for Mablethorpe hoping for sunshine but planning for rain as, much as we were dreaming of a sunny beach break, the forecast was suggesting thundery, scattered showers at best. We struck lucky and the forecast rain just never appeared, we saw no more than a few spots of rain throughout our stay – we were even treated to a dry but cool morning for packing up – we couldn’t have asked for better in that sense!
We arrived at Mablethorpe Camping and Caravanning Club Site at around 2pm and were immediately given a warm and friendly welcome by staff who checked us in efficiently and showed us to our pitch – whereupon hit a bit of a problem . . .
Mablethorpe campsite has a mix of grass and hard standing pitches, most of which have electric and are clearly marked with a 6m space between for fire safety. Pitches are pre-assigned according to the details you supply at booking.
Standard sized pitches are 8 x 5m which is big enough for a fairly standard tent however we have a Berghaus Air 6 which is around 7.5 x 3m and once we’ve got the porch on extends out to about 7.5 x 5.5m taking up the whole of the standard pitch leaving no room for us to sit out, pitch our shelter (we were expecting rain so didn’t want to be without it) or Ben’s little tent. This isn’t a problem we’ve ever had before though we also realised we haven’t camped on such clearly defined pitches since upgrading our large family tent.
We quickly realised that we were going to struggle on the standard sized pitch so part way through setting up we ended up going back to Reception and asking if we could pay the difference and upgrade to a jumbo pitch at a much more generous 15 x 7.5m. Luckily there was one available for the duration of our stay so we paid the difference and moved everything over. As it was, the jumbo pitch was tucked away in a tree lined corner of a smaller section of the site which felt much nicer than our original pitch which had been right in the middle of the middle section and felt quite exposed.
Lesson learned – make sure you know the size of your set up and communicate this clearly at booking . . . (I also now need to go back and check our next campsite booking to make sure we don’t end up in the same situation!)
The campsite itself is really big (definitely one of the biggest we’ve been to) and very flat (which is always a joy!). The site is separated into three camping fields with a one-way tarmacked road running through the site. As tent campers, we were very much in the minority on the site – though I do wonder if this is because it’s not quite the summer holidays everywhere yet so the majority of other guests were older couples in caravans and motorhomes.
Mablethorpe Camping and Caravanning Club Site is a really well maintained campsite, everything is exceptionally clean and tidy from the toilet block to the maintenance of the fields themselves (Sunday saw hours and hours of grass cutting and strimming!)
The main reception building is home to a small shop selling essentials including spare tent pegs, tent repair kits, basic groceries and of course ice creams. This is open from 9am to 10.30am and 4pm to 6pm.
The toilet block is extremely clean and well looked after with plenty of toilets (7), sinks (7) and showers (5) – I think more than we’ve seen on any other site. The water is always hot and whilst the pressure in the showers wouldn’t be enough to wash my hair (which is often the case), it was perfectly fine for a good wash. I also appreciated the generous cubicle size and the fold down stools to pop my things on.
The dishwashing area has four sinks, one at a lower height which is perfect for sending younger kids to do the washing up (dishwashing is a standard camping task for kids in our family)! Again this area is very clean and well maintained.
There’s a laundry room with a large machine and dryer charged at £3 per wash and £1 per 20 mins for the tumble drier. There’s also a small book exchange and a stand with leaflets about the surrounding area.
Ahead of our stay we had read reports of the nearby wind turbines and also a loud bird scarer. Whilst we could see the turbines, we were not disturbed by them, in fact from our position on the campsite we couldn’t hear them at all. We also didn’t hear the bird scarer but I guess that could just be to do with the direction of the wind was blowing during our stay. Either way, I would say don’t let these things put you off booking the campsite.
Campfires are not allowed at Mablethorpe campsite but you are allowed to use a charcoal BBQ if it’s off the grass. We’ve always loved a campfire, especially if the weather is cold, but I have also realised that the reason I often have a stinking headache when we’re camping is from the fire and I definitely don’t miss our hair and clothes stinking of smoke! (We didn’t even miss out on s’mores as we did them over the gas stove – something we’ve never done before for some reason!)
Whilst there are no ball games allowed on site (much to Ben’s disappointment), there is a small children’s play area in the first section of the campsite with a slide, two swings (one flat seat, one toddler one), some monkey bars and a climbing frame where Amy managed to make friends every day.
Dogs are welcome at Mablethorpe Camping and Caravanning Club Site – they must be kept on a lead at all times. We like to use a corkscrew hook for Poppy so that she can have a little freedom and we don’t have to keep hold of her all the time – we also discovered the car tow bar was quite handy for hooking her on while we set up the tent.
You can read our tips for camping with a dog here and also check out our list of essential camping kit for dogs.
There are a couple of dog poo bins around the site so you don’t have to walk all the way to the front of the site to get to the main bins. There’s a dedicated dog walking space and, whilst you are asked to keep your dog on a lead in here, I would think if you are the only one using the space, you can probably let your dog off to stretch their legs.
The main stretch of beach on Mablethorpe seafront isn’t accessible to dogs through the summer months (May to September from memory) but there are other areas of beach where you can walk your dog. We took a short drive down the east coat of Lincolnshire to North Sea Observatory for a walk and some very good food (definitely recommend popping in there if you get chance). The beach at Chapel Point, Chapel St Leonards is a huge open expanse of sandy beach (we visited at low tide) and was perfect for a bit of a paddle (even though the North Sea really didn’t look very inviting!) and a walk.
We spent the whole of Sunday relaxing on they campsite, enjoying the sunshine marred by occasional cloud cover, playing cards, reading books and generally just enjoying the peace and time outside. We had suggested to the kids that we took a walk to Queens Park (about a mile away) but they decided they couldn’t be bothered and were quite content staying on the site.
The main reason for booking a campsite in Mablethorpe was because we wanted to stay near the sea. Mablethorpe Camping and Caravanning Club Site is about a mile from the beach – a perfectly walkable distance though we took the car down mainly because it was still so warm and we were all pretty tired from the drive over and pitching our tent twice!
Mablethorpe itself is the epitome of a tired, rundown seaside town – with amusement arcades, tat shops and the like. If you’re looking for a traditional chippy tea (have you even been to the seaside if you didn’t eat hot, salty chips outside?) then we recommend Salty’s and Mablethorpe ice cream company is worth a visit for different flavoured whippy ice cream!
All in we had a really lovely three night stay at Mablethorpe and it was just what we needed to set the long summer holidays off on the right foot!
If you’re considering booking the Mablethorpe site or any other Camping and Caravanning Club sites, check out this page of offers first!
Check out our guide to camping next for more campsite reviews and camping tips.
If you have enjoyed this post and found it helpful, here are a few ways you can say thanks and support We’re going on an adventure:
Click here to buy me a virtual coffee – it’s like a little tip jar but with caffeine!
I’d love for you to tag me in any photos of your adventures on Social Media if one of my posts has inspired you to visit
Click here to leave We’re going on an adventure a Google Review
Share this post with your friends – you’ll be helping me and them!
Follow We’re going on an adventure on Facebook or Instagram
