Maragowan Club Campsite

Rated 4 of 5

Rated 5 of 5

Peace and quiet

Rated 5 of 5

Facilities and cleanliness

Rated 4 of 5

Location

Rated 2 of 5

Good for families

Autumn gold September 2020

This is a lovely site beside the River Lochy just on the east side of Killin. The site was well run, very clean, and the pitches were a good size. During the COVID-19 pandemic the site implemented a number of measures one of which was a Nobo app board booking system for the use of showers in the facilities block ... never seen that before but it did seem to work well. Killin itself has a post office, co-op and a good number of Knick- knack shops along with pubs and eating places. Here’s is a tip about arriving at Maragowan : if you do arrive at the peak time be prepared to queue on the main road as there is limited space to accommodate large numbers of vehicles at the entrance and reception Here is tip if you want to fish the river from the site: Electric overhead cables run for 90 percent of the site riverbank making it unfishable. The only safe area is near reception and more than two fishing is a real squeeze All in all a very good well managed and picturesque site

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nbrown5423

Reviewed on 26/09/2020 17:13

18 reviews

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Rated 4 of 5

Rated 5 of 5

Peace and quiet

Rated 5 of 5

Facilities and cleanliness

Rated 5 of 5

Location

Rated 4 of 5

Good for families

excellent site!!

stayed here 27th August for 12 nights (pitch 23) then had to stay an extra 12 nights due to a problem with the car. this was not an issue for the guys working at the site, they were very accommodating. Anne and Margaret and hubbies are doing a fab job, keeping the site clean etc., due to covid, which the new rules are set out for that site, other sites differ. to be fair I was quite shocked to see how many motorhomers, caravanners where using the shower block due to covid, not knowing who has been in before themself, you maybe clean and sanitised your hands before going in, but what about the person/people before you?? I was there for 24 days and had not used the shower block once or the "emergency" toilet... why would I, when I know I'm the only person using my shower and toilet, yes it might be a bit of a pain emptying waste water and the toilet cassette, but I would rather do that then,use the site facilities, may I add which are cleaned/sanitised twice daily. The other thing I had noticed some people were emptying the toilet cassette into the waste water drain, nooooo!!!! that has to emptied into the chemical waste, I did notice at one of the water/ bin points a notice had been put up, not to do this, but one needs to be put up in the cul de sac area. Anne Margaret hubbies, please dont let other rude motorhomers/caravanners who want 5* service upset you, you are doing a great job hope to be back soon loved our stay. Hope you enjoyed your biscuits. woof from Bruno the Great Dane

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zackblue

Caravanner

Reviewed on 25/09/2020 10:20

2 reviews

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Rated 4 of 5

Rated 5 of 5

Peace and quiet

Rated 5 of 5

Facilities and cleanliness

Rated 5 of 5

Location

Rated 5 of 5

Good for families

A warm welcome and a lovely site

We stayed for an all too brief two nights. We received such a warm welcome and then enjoyed the beautiful site and stunning location. The arrangements for the shower block are different to the usual wristbands, but we were always able to book a time that suited us - there is always a standalone toilet for any emergencies. There are so many great walks or bike rides and we were fortunate enough to see a red squirrel as we cycled round Loch Tay. We would have no hesitation in booking a return visit.

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whitefriar

Motorhomer from Norfolk

Reviewed on 24/09/2020 10:08

3 reviews

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Rated 4 of 5

Rated 5 of 5

Peace and quiet

Rated 3 of 5

Facilities and cleanliness

Rated 5 of 5

Location

Rated 5 of 5

Good for families

Stunningly Beautiful Location

Do not be put off by other reviews regarding the timed slots for the shower blocks. This site is absolutely all about location location location. Yes the showers and loos need a refurb but once you get the reasons for restricting access to timed slots it actually works so well. We wished that we had booked to stay longer because it was just the most beautiful perfect place to stay. It has easy access to great walking and cycling- shops pubs and eateries. It was our favourite place on a a ten day tour of Scotland staying at five different sites.

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GailBignell

Motorhomer

Reviewed on 12/09/2020 16:49

1 review

1 Helpful note

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Rated 4 of 5

Rated 3 of 5

Peace and quiet

Rated 2 of 5

Facilities and cleanliness

Rated 5 of 5

Location

Rated 2 of 5

Good for families

In a league of their own.

We have toured a fair bit during the Covid period, using different sites. Almost all the caravan club sites use the same system regarding toilet blocks and it seems to work well. For some reason Maragowan is keeping to a totally different regime which may suit the staff but makes it very un-user friendly for visitors. The booking of a whole block for a couple for 20 minutes is ridiculous in our view. We had to book our morning shower period in whatever slot was left over. Very difficult to understand why this method is used. And why was the washing up room closed? All the other campsites manage this by only allowing one family group at a time. Does the Caravan club not monitor what happens in their sites? Can a site make up their own rules to suit themselves? I will not be returning until Post Covid.

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penrosel

Motorhomer

Reviewed on 09/09/2020 15:51

7 reviews

1 Helpful note

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Rated 4 of 5

Peace and quiet

Rated 1 of 5

Facilities and cleanliness

Rated 5 of 5

Location

Rated 1 of 5

Good for families

Access to facilities during COVID

As already mentioned by many others the draconian approach to use of the facilities was dreadful. There is nothing on the Maragowan website to indicate the limitations to using the facilities. (Please note this site is not suitable to visit unless you have excellent on board facilities) Twenty minutes a day to be booked the previous day is ridiculous. The single “emergency use” toilet in constant use. I do not understand why they did not follow the guidance of the C&H Motorhome club as this has worked quite well at other sites.

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PHG1951

Motorhomer

Reviewed on 07/09/2020 19:10

1 review

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Rated 4 of 5

Peace and quiet

Rated 1 of 5

Facilities and cleanliness

Rated 4 of 5

Location

Rated 3 of 5

Good for families

En Route Stop

The site is located nicely close to shops and all the small town can offer. We were placed in a queue at the entrance as whilst the staff were there, no one could book in till 1300 (we arrived after a 9 hour drive at 1240). The situation became worse as more people arrived and were left dangerously queuing in the road, unable to move, causing very difficult overtaking for passing traffic. This situation was finally noted and people were booked in just before 1300. We then found the strange booking system for the showers and toilets which involved putting your name on a board. So the earliest we could get a slot was at 2100 hrs the next day! We noted that someone ignored the system and a warden had to try to resolve a rather irate situation. When we finally were able to use the facilities, they were old and freezing cold (not what we are used to with the C & MH club). Why could the staff not queue units on site if there was a genuine reason why someone could not have booked people in, and why the strange facility booking system that didn't work. Location was good, but site would be challenged by good independent local site on value for money.

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Beetle47

Motorhomer from Suffolk

Reviewed on 07/09/2020 17:35

14 reviews

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Rated 4 of 5

Peace and quiet

Rated 3 of 5

Facilities and cleanliness

Rated 5 of 5

Location

Rated 4 of 5

Good for families

A short stay in August

The site itself is in a great location, with a short walk to nearby Dochart Falls and Killin. Wardens seemed polite a courteouson the couple of occasions we spoke to them. As mentioned by most other people, the thing that let this site down was the shower/toilet situation. Personally it wasn't a massive issue for us to get a morning slot for the three of us to shower - however, only having one toilet for the whole site seemed a little silly. The signs asked people to use their own facilities where possible, but most people appeared to still use the toilet for certain situations - which, I do understand to some extent, but as someone who has a VW Camper without any of their own facilities, it was a little frustrating what quite a lot of the time, we had to queue to use the toilet. We stayed at a few other sites on our trips - and each appears to have their own way of doing things. Some just used common sense, ensuring that people didn't crowd the facilities - which in my opinion worked. Some used the wristband system, which also worked as long as people remembered to pick up their wristband on the way out. I wonder why the Club haven't used a blanket approach across all sites? Overall a good site, and would come back again for a night or two once the restrictions are over.

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BonsandSeb

Motorhomer

Reviewed on 31/08/2020 18:35

6 reviews

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Rated 4 of 5

Peace and quiet

Rated 1 of 5

Facilities and cleanliness

Rated 5 of 5

Location

Rated 1 of 5

Good for families

A week in Killin

The location is excellent, nestled between the overlooking Scottish highlands on the edge of the unspoilt and beautiful small town of Killin. We stayed a week here which seemed unusual as most of the people we meet used it as a short stay or stop over. Reading the other reviews before and after our stay, sadly I have to agree that the shower block and the method used to stay COVID safe totally let the site down. The system requires you to pre book a 20 minute family slot in either of the 2 blocks using a white board booking method. You are not permitted to do this until midday, each day, otherwise you slot is wiped off. Twice during the stay my family of 4 couldn’t shower because we were out in the morning and missed any available slots. We spoke with the wardens to explain we had just climbed Ben Nevis and we were wet and cold and they refused to help us get a shower as our slot had been erased. The block itself needed a complete refurb many years ago and it surprises me that it meets the Club standard. Other reports of the shower block resembling a crime scene are true. On top of this there is only one toilet available for a site of over 90 pitches. Now I fully understand how difficult it has been to put practical measures in to stay COVID compliant but it could have been done far better than this, and all the visitors we spoke to said the same. All that apart we had a fabulous week and Killin is definitely worth a visit.

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LawrieB1

Reviewed on 30/08/2020 07:40

1 review

1 Helpful note

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Rated 4 of 5

Rated 5 of 5

Peace and quiet

Rated 1 of 5

Facilities and cleanliness

Rated 5 of 5

Location

Rated 5 of 5

Good for families

Very poor approach to Covid-19 precautions

As other reviewers have stated, this site gives each pitch one 20 minute slot per day with exclusive use of either the ladies or gents' shower and toilet block, which you need to book the day before. Thankfully we had a toilet and tent packed with us, intending to use it at another site. The alternative (if you can't go just once a day at a set time) is a small single toilet, which when we stayed, had no disinfectant available for use, and has a working hand drier in a very confined space. There was also very limited provision of hand sanitisers at shared outdoor taps etc. So the balance of precautions taken seemed excessive and at the same time very risky. We have been to other campsites which have sensible precautions in place and where we felt much safer than we did at Maragowan. It's a pity, because the site and location are fabulous.

2 replies

Her Outdoors

Motorhomer

Reviewed on 29/08/2020 16:00

1 review

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