Grate Farm

Just returned from a 4 night stay at this fabulous site. This is our 3rd Easter visit and it never disappoints, fully serviced hard standing pitch and breathtaking views. The owners are so friendly and always happy to help if you need anything. As a working farm there is always something going on and at this time of year it is lambing & little lambs certainly put a smile on your face. This site is a 10/10 for us.

0 replies

Just had a 2 night stay at Grate Farm. Pleasant enough site with water and grey waste on each pitch. Hardstanding pitch’s but will need levelling blocks. Chemical waste and bins by house about 50 metres from pitches. Some road noise however this did die down on the night. Very good access to Kendal and the Lakes. Will stay again.

0 replies

Well we have used this site on several occasions now, and after reading some of the review’s just felt like I had to put my own review on… this is an AMAZING WORKING FARM SITE and would highly recommend. Location is amazing as close to Kendal and within a 30-40min drive to most parts of the Lake District - there are also some gorgeous walks across the fields right from the site for your dogs, the site is especially fun when the farm is lambing as you get to see the whole process and the new lambs. Yes it can get muddy, but come on people we are in the Lake District - well know for it’s bad weather, even in summer lol. As for access to the site, other reviews have mentioned the gates… yes the gates are tight but if you take it nice and slow you can happily get an 8ft twin axle caravan through them all (one of the widest and longest caravans you can tow in the UK), maybe that is a question of there inexperience, but my wife who’s a novice to towing was also able to navigate them too. Other reviews also mention not being able to reverse on to the pitches… well again never had a problem, even had enough room to drive in, unhook and then drive back out - again I would maybe hint at inexperience of towing and reversing. Compared to other sites in the area, if you take count of the facilities offered on the actual pitch, this sites is by far the best for value… and people questioning the cost per night are clearly out of touch. Sites run like this by lovely working people should get more of our support and understanding - and this will be the first site we use when our new addition arrives in 2024 as our family loves it, and understand what camping should be truly about!

0 replies

We've just had 3 nights on this farm during their very busy lambing time. Yes its a long drive in, but no problem with that. Was muddy 1st day but had torrential rain recently so what can you expect lots of sheep about & didnt expect a red carpet, it's a farm !!! & we are visiting their land & are grateful to pitch for a few nights in this lovely area. Each pitch has full servicing e h u, water tap & a grey waste point. A gate is a gate, you open it & shut it 2 of them are 10 foot wide you expect this out of respect for their property. You can walk from the end of the site through 2 gates & down 2 fields to a bus stop & you can go as far as Keswick & hop on & off where you want. Free for pensioners ☺️ Had a really good cycle ride from the site by cycling towards Kendal & around quiet country roads. Also had half a day walking from the farm to explore the area. Lovely views as well, yes you can hear traffic but that depends on which way the wind is blowing. Would come again sometime

0 replies

Just arrived back from this site a day early!!! The views from this site are beautiful, there is traffic noise but you know that when you book and the water tap on your pitch was very handy…but that’s where the good points end. The entrance to the site is tight and is long and very uneven and bumpy, that easily could be put right if they filled some of the holes. There is a feeding station next to the drive, up to the site, which made it very difficult to get through because the sheep gather there to feed and stand on the uneven path so you can’t get round my husband had to get out on a couple of occasions to move them (The feeding station could easily be moved to another area). Two gates to get through which are narrow and very hard to open owing to one of them not fitting into the connection and a piece of chain attached that is supposed to help (not if you are an average size woman) Hard standing, well only just! Thick mud everywhere, grass not cut. We asked if they could possibly cut the grass, we were told they didn’t have time! and they didn’t bother to follow up this request in the time we were there. The Elsan point is behind the house which is a long distance and muddy walk to get to. Rubbish emptying is through the two big gates, another very muddy walk, when a bin could have easily been put on the 5 van field. No welcome whatsoever, ( which can be appreciated and isn’t the issue here as they appeared to be in the middle of a busy lambing period), but if you haven’t time to run a CL to a good standard, don’t open till there is time!!! The site was £20 per night which certainly does not reflect the standard of this site at all. We do wonder if the Caravan Club, which we pay for, bother to go out and vet the standard of their sites. Having said all that when sat in your caravan you have a beautiful view and the area around is outstanding. We have never done a review before but felt compelled this time to give our opinion, CL sites are getting far to expensive when they are not up to a good standard.

Comment from the Club

Many thanks for your review. Our CL Adviser for the area has been in touch and would like to advise the following to address your concerns, which we take very seriously at the Club. First of all we would like to assure you that our CL Sites are inspected regularly by our CL Advisers. This CL Site is a working farm and our CL Adviser has inspected the lane and would like to assure you that the lane is not particularly uneven and bumpy, although in very wet weather it can be muddy as expected on a country farm lane.

The two gates from the area in front of the farm house to the CL are 12 feet wide and can be approached straight on, not at an angle. The CL Site has had no other complaints that the gates are difficult to open so we are sorry that you found this an issue and the CL Owner is aware of your concerns regarding this.

Unfortunately the grass could not be cut because of the terrible weather. It had been, and still was when you visited, particularly wet. If grass cutting had been attempted it could have damaged machinery and would have also made an awful mess.

The elsan emptying is behind the house, 200 metres away. The CL owners have looked at ways of relocating it to the CL but it would appear that this is not possible due to the terrain. The dustbins are at the end of the first field, a distance of approximately 100 metres.

As a working farm the CL owner can't always be there to welcome each member but is always happy to help so if any issues arise please contact them. We hope this helps address your concerns and thank you for taking the time to leave your feedback.

0 replies