Location: Seaford, East Sussex
Website: www.buckleholidaypark.co.uk
This small holiday park was the first stop for Brian the Campervan since we acquired him late last year. We were looking for a campsite in Brighton, but the only one we could find was rather pricey and still some distance from the centre. Buckle Holiday Park appeared on a trawl of the local area on the Internet and is located just a stone’s throw from Bishopstone station on the Seaford Branch Line. From here it’s a pleasant 30 minute train ride into Brighton (off peak day return with Railcard for 2+3 was just £8.70). This combined with a cheap price and beach-front location made the decision for us.
From the website and a quick look on Google’s satellite imagery it was clear this was a small site, and from various user reviews on UK Campsite it looked like it was of the “cheap and cheerful” variety. It was obviously close to the railway and a main road. Some reviewers were disappointed by the facilities, but we found them perfectly adequate. All we needed was a water supply, hook up, washing up facilities, clean toilets and showers. Buckle Holiday Park provided all of these, everything was clean but rather low-key.
The site itself is visually uninspiring, and clearly work was ongoing to add or improve some hard standings. The site was quiet (April, out of school term) and the road and railway were not intrusive – on the first night the wind was much noisier! The site has direct access onto the broad shingle beach, with opportunities for walking or cycling, or just sitting watching the ferries as they come into nearby Newhaven Harbour. We also spent a pleasant evening stargazing on the beach.
The site is lower than the top of the beach level, so is afforded some protection from the sea “breeze” but when the wind picks up you will feel it. We gave up on trying to put our awning up the first night (though that may be more down to never having done it before than anything else).
The pitches were not huge. Our combination of LDV Convoy and 3m awning took most of the width up, so those with larger outfits may struggle to fit in, and at busier times it could all get a bit tight.
Overall we were quite happy, and at £20 per night for an electric pitch with no extra charge per person or for the awning it proved good value for money.
N.B. As with our other reviews the comments in this review of Buckle Holiday Park are our own opinions, normally based on a single experience. You are welcome to add your own views in the comments but please keep them measured and reasonable! If you want to see more users views we suggest you try sites like UKCampsite.
[...] campsites so we picked one on a railway line nearby called Buckle Holiday Park. You can read our review of Buckle here. Much struggling with awning+high wind taught us fairly swiftly that this was not an [...]