The ultimate guide to camping in Devon

If you’re looking for beach campsites in Devon, look no further. Unzip your tent and taste the sea air at the aptly named, Ocean Pitch Campsite. Tents, campers and a few glamping pods are your options on this 35 pitch site perched right on the edge of Croyde beach. Their prime location on one of Devon’s best surf beaches comes with a surfboard hire option – and the chance to take a lesson or two with the local surf school. Ocean Pitch’s onsite snack shack serves up curries, wraps and bowls to hungry campers and surfers looking to fuel up for a day on the beach. And, the free WiFi is handy for uploading your best wave of the day to your Insta-stories. 

Can a stay in this 5 star tree house ever be described as camping? Let’s not get bogged down in technicalities, because a stay in North Devon’s best kept secret is so worth it. You’ll rarely find the TreeTop Escape in a Google search – largely because the 32 acre Millbrook Estate caters almost exclusively to tiny, elopement weddings. But those in the know can book the treehouse for a romantic getaway. And, because the team here are used to laying on the most important day of any couple’s lives, there’s the opportunity to book a couple of fancy extras. Hire a private chef to come and cook up a storm for you or invite a reiki master to help you unwind in the tree house’s very own pamper nest. The pinnacle of glamping all set within acres of North Devon countryside. 

Glamping in Devon comes in many, many imaginative forms. Buses, pods, huts, yurts, railway carriages. But perhaps nothing whips up some romantic whimsy like a stay in a Gypsy cabin. The Travellers Rest site has three, all set in individual woodland glades on their working farm in Mamhead. Minutes away from one of the best beaches in Devon, Dawlish Warren, where wild orchids bloom in the sand dunes and fairground rides and a go kart track add some thrills and spills to a day at the beach. Back at your cabin, you can dream of the day’s adventures on a memory foam mattress and live the glamping life to the max.  

If you can’t quite embrace wild camping, Devon has the perfect answer. The pop up campsite at Wolf Meadows Farm delivers on the wild side – with a small side order of basic facilities. You’re free to pitch your tent in their sweeping meadow – or along the river bank, safe in the knowledge there’s a couple of eco-toilets and outdoor showers. A sink to wash your camp kitchen kit helps too. Other than that, you’re embracing the wild side of camping in North Devon. Swim or paddle in the river, meet the cattle on the organic farm or lie in your tent and listen to the dawn chorus. When you get up, scan the river for sightings of curlews, otters, salmon and geese. 

It doesn’t get more wild than this. Wandering out onto the moor and spending one to two nights away from every convenience imaginable is the ultimate wild camping experience. Yes, you’ve got to adhere to Dartmoor’s stringent rules on wild camping, but it’s worth dealing with a few t’s and c’s to camp in the midst of this wildlife rich national park. You’ll need a fair bit of outdoorsy experience under your belt here though. The ever-changing weather, free-roaming ponies and the occasional boggy patch means you’ll always need your wits about you.