News

Back of Beyond Touring Park at Christmas

12th November 2024

Festive events happening near Back of Beyond

As we begin to get our park looking all Christmassy, we’ve taken a look at some of the festive events that you can get involved with. All of these events are within a short drive of our campsite.

Christmas comes to Beaulieu

11-28 November

With beautiful decorations at Palace House and pantomime rehearsals, plus all the benefits of vising the National Motor Museum and additional attractions too. Plus, save up to 40% with Beaulieu’s Festive Early Bird offer on general admission tickets for selected dates when you book before 29 November 2024*.

Bournemouth Christmas Tree Wonderland

15 November-31 December

Follow the illuminated Christmas tree trail from Bournemouth seafront into the Lower Gardens and beyond onto Southbourne, Boscombe and Westbourne.

Bournemouth Christmas Market

Daily from 17 November

The perfect place to pick up some special gifts and enjoy a spot of seasonal cheer. The Christmas market stalls open until 8pm (7pm on a Sunday). Join in with the fun at the ice rink and look out for other festive events taking place nearby.

Poole Christmas Maritime Trail

23 November-1 January

This free Christmas event takes you on a nautical journey from Lighthouse (arts centre), through Poole High Street and onto Poole Quay. Stop by at some of the eateries along the way or do a spot of Christmas shopping from some of Poole’s indies.

Wimborne Minster Christmas Lights Switch On

30 November

Spend time in this charming Dorset town for their annual Christmas lights switch on. The light switch-on ceremony starts at 4:15, with the lights turned on at 4:30pm. The Wimborne Militia will then be firing a display at Minster Green at 5pm.

Exbury Gardens’ Christmas Fair

30 November-1 December and 7-8 December

A festive shopping opportunity with a great line-up of local producers offering Christmas gifts and seasonal food and drink. Explore the wider gardens and spend time outdoors in this beautiful space.

Ringwood Winter Wonderland

1 December

Our nearest town of Ringwood will be buzzing on Sunday 1 December with street performances in the Market Place, a Christmas market plus music. At 5.45pm, there will be a parade from the Long Stay Car Park down Meeting House Lane to the Market Place. At 6pm, Father Christmas will be switching on the town’s lights.

Jack and the Beanstalk, Bournemouth Pavilion

7 December-5 January

A giant panto full of fun for all ages and featuring Coronation Street’s Calum Lill as Fleshcreep.

What’s happening at Back of Beyond this Christmas?

We’ve got a couple of live music events happening in the lead up to Christmas including Peter Burns ‘It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas’ (7 December) and Otis Jay Blues Band (14 December). Added to this, Peter Burns will be singing at Monty’s Bar again on Christmas Eve.

If you haven’t booked to stay with us yet, we do have availability right up until Christmas. We are fully booked for New Year but are taking bookings for New Year 2025. Bookings can be made online or by calling us on 01202 876968.

Please note: events are subject to change so do double check them before travelling.

Back Of Beyond Touring Park Autumn Xmas 2023

18th September 2024

Top autumn highlights when staying at Back of Beyond

Back of Beyond / News /

With autumn now in full swing, there are some beautiful autumnal days out you can do from our park.

The New Forest

With the New Forest just a short distance away, make the most of one of the most stunning times of year in the National Park.

Take an autumnal walk through the New Forest and soak up the gorgeous displays of rich red, orange and gold from the falling leaves. Visit the New Forest features a number of interactive walks.

Also, during the autumn months, you may get to see some of the New Forest’s pigs. Released in the autumn months, the pigs eat the fallen acorns which are poisonous to the New Forest Ponies and cattle.

Bournemouth

Take a stroll on Bournemouth’s beach during the autumn. A quieter time of year, ideal for seeing this popular seaside town, grab yourself some fish and chips and watch the sunsetting.

Brownsea Island, Poole Harbour

Take the short boat trip from Poole Quay over to the National Trust’s Brownsea Island. During the autumn is one of the best times to see the red squirrels gathering acorns and nuts ready for the winter months.

Moors Valley Country Park and Forest

Take a bike ride along the Castleman Trailway (ask us for details on how to get onto it from our park) and ride up to Moors Valley Country Park.

At Moors Valley you’ll find a café and visitor centre, golf course, miniature railway and Go Ape (which tends to be free from too many children outside of weekends and school holidays).

Exbury Gardens

Make a trip to Exbury Gardens, near Beaulieu. These beautiful gardens are dog-friendly and feature a miniature railway (which is also dog-friendly!).

Band nights at Monty’s Bar

We’ve got some fabulous band nights coming up over the following weeks. Take a look at our events page for details of who’s coming and when. Plus, don’t forget that on the last Sunday of the month, we run our popular pub quiz, also at Monty’s Bar.

Book your autumn break to Back of Beyond

Take a look at our availability on our booking page or give us a call on 01202 876968.

19th August 2024

What’s On around Back of Beyond over the August bank holiday weekend

Back of Beyond / News /

Staying with us over the Bank Holiday weekend? We’ve put together some information about what’s happening in the local area which might be of interest.

Exbury Festival of Music: Upbeat Beatles at Exbury Gardens & Steam Railway (Fri 23)
Car Night on Poole Quay (Fri 23)
Bournemouth Fireworks by the sea (Fri 23)
Lymington Market (Sat 24)
Heritage Day, Hythe Pier (Sat 24)
Exbury Festival of Music: Motown by Moonlight at Exbury Gardens & Steam Railway (Sat 24)
Solent and Southern Art Collective Exhibition at Exbury Gardens & Steam Railway (from 24th)
Beer Festival, The Vibrant Tap, Lyndhurst (23rd-26th)
Hampshire Open Studios (across the weekend)
Burley Art Club exhibition (across the weekend)
The Art of Buckler’s Hard (across the weekend)
Wildlife Photographer of the Year Exhibition at Dorset Museum, Dorchester (across the weekend)
Pieces of our Past at Highcliffe Castle (across the weekend)
Light the South Art Trail, Southampton (across the weekend)
Sunset Chasers Paddling Tours with New Forest Activities (26-27 Aug)

Added to this, Monty’s Bar will be open across the weekend for cocktails, local beer, wine and soft drinks. We’ll also be hosting our monthly pub quiz this Sunday night from 6pm at Monty’s Bar.

A Back of Beyond Welcome pack with local produce

10th July 2024

Taking pride in local produce

Back of Beyond / News /

Here at Back of Beyond, we take great pride in supporting the local economy. One of the ways we do this is via our campsite shop. Where possible, we always try to source local produce from companies based in Dorset, Hampshire and our surrounding counties.

Sitting on the Dorset/Hampshire border, we are so blessed to have some wonderful food and drink producers locally. From local dairies through to some award-winning breweries and distilleries in just a short reach of our campsite.

Here are some of the local suppliers that we stock…

Dairy and fresh produce

Meggy Moo’s cream and milk – Dorset
Lyburn Cheeses – Hampshire/Wiltshire border
Isle of Wight soft cheese – Isle of Wight
Maryland farmhouse butter – Somerset
Thorner’s of Somerset meats, pies and quiches – Somerset

Drinks

Lilley’s Ciders – Somerset
The Purbeck Cider Company – Dorset
Downton Brewery beers – Wiltshire
Ringwood Brewery beers – Hampshire
Lyme Bay gins, mead and wines – Devon
Mermaid gin – Isle of Wight
Conker gin and coffee liqueur – Dorset
Black Cow vodka – Dorset
Wines supplied by New Forest Wines – Hampshire
Dorset Tea – Dorset

Savoury snacks

West Country Legends wafers and cheese straws – Somerset
Robert’s Dorsets peanuts and pork crackling – Dorset
Burts Crisps – Devon
Olives et al – Dorset

Sweet treats

Fordingbridge Fudge – Hampshire
Moores biscuits – Dorset
Honey – made on-site by BOB’s very own bees!

Other grocery items

From Dorset With Love chutneys, jams and marmalade – Dorset
Hunt’s – Dorset
Dine with Atkins & Potts mayonnaise – Berkshire
Green & Wild’s dog treats – Wiltshire
Plus, camping supplies from a Dorset-based company.

Do help us to support these local businesses if you can.

If you’d like to know any more about any of our suppliers, please just ask a member of the team.

From Dorset With Love jams and chutneys.

10th June 2024

Upcoming events near Back of Beyond

Back of Beyond / News /

If you are looking for things to do in when staying at Back of Beyond, we’ve put together this handy list of some events which are taking place locally over the next few months.

Please note, events are subject to change so we’d always recommend double checking dates and times before heading to anything.

Upton House Food and Music Festival – 14-16 June

The Custom and American Show, Beaulieu – 16 June

Adventure Cinema (outdoor cinema), Somerley House – 21-23 June

Moors Valley guided cycle ride from Back of Beyond – Tuesdays from 25 June-end August

Tankfest, The Tank Museum – 28-30 June

Lymington Seafood Festival – 12-14 July

New Forest and Hampshire County Show – 30 July-1 August

Beaulieu Supercars Weekend – 3-4 August

The Ellingham Show – 10 August

New Forest Food Festival – 17-18 August

Romsey Show – 9 September

Southampton International Boat Show – 13-22 September

21st March 2024

Back of Beyond scoops Best Campsite in the UK award!

Back of Beyond / News /

Hot off the press is the news that we have just won Best Site for Camping in Practical Caravan’s Top 100 awards!

Added to this, we’ve been awarded Regional Winner for Dorset, the fifth consecutive year in a row we’ve achieved this accolade.

The team here are, understandably, absolutely thrilled!

A big thank you has to go to each and every one of our customers who took the time to vote for us over the year.

Voting for the 2025 awards will shortly open, so look out for the link shortly.

We hope to see you at our park very soon whether for touring, camping or glamping.

Book your break

1st March 2024

Enter our 2024 Photography Competition!

Back of Beyond / News /

Enter our 2024 Photography Competition to win a £100 voucher!

Snap away and capture your best moments this season at Back of Beyond for your chance of winning a £100 voucher to use towards a pitch of your choice in 2025.

This year, we have five themes:

1. Camping under canvas – take photos of your camping set up, whether you are in our wild camping area, Emma’s Glade or are in the Warren.

2. Touring – share your snaps of your campervan or caravanning set ups.

3. Dogs – we do love to see pictures of your four-legged friends enjoying our woodlands, chilling on your pitch or joining you at Monty’s Bar.

4. Nature – there’s so much nature around you. Head to our lakes or stroll through our woods – we’d love to see some of the beautiful fauna and flora you’ve spotted here.

5. Glamping – whether it’s cooking up a storm on the outside kitchen or cosying up, share your pics of your glamping adventures here.

The main prize will be the £100 voucher. We will also have five runners up prizes of £25 (one per category).

Your photos should be taken at Back of Beyond.

How to enter:

Email your photos to info@backofbeyondtouringpark.co.uk by midnight on 31/12/24.

Terms & Conditions apply.

Terms & Conditions

• Photos must be emailed over to info@backofbeyondtouringpark.co.uk by midnight on 31 December 2024.
• The main prize consists of a £100 voucher to be used towards any pitch type of your choice at Back of Beyond Touring Park in 2024. There will be five runners up prizes of £25 each to be used towards a pitch in 2025 or exchanged at Monty’s Bar for drinks.
• There is no cash alternative.
• By entering the competition, the participants agree to Back of Beyond using images for promotional purposes.
• The prize is as stated. There is no cash alternative, and the prize is not transferable.
• Our decision as to the winner is final and no correspondence relating to the promotion will be entered into.
• The winner will be notified within 30 days of the close of the promotion by email.
• We reserve the right to amend these terms and conditions or to cancel, or alter, or amend the competition promotion at any stage, if deemed necessary in its opinion, or if circumstances arise outside its control.
• If the winner is unable to be contacted within 1 calendar month of the closing date of the competition, we reserve the right to offer the prize to a runner-up.
• The promotion is subject to the laws of England.

5th February 2024

What’s new at Back of Beyond in 2024

Back of Beyond / News /

Whilst our site has been closed, it’s been a busy couple of months here at Back of Beyond as we prepare for our 2024 season.

2024 takes us into our 10th year here and our park continues to go from strength to strength.

Not only have we been training up some new members of the team (some of you may have met some of them over the Christmas and New Year period) but we’ve been making the following improvements:

Adding a new driveway into Fir

We’ve added a driveway to the astroturf pitches at Fir so this area of our park is now winterised meaning guests can stay here throughout the season.

More fully serviced pitches

We’ve increased the number of fully serviced pitches that we offer with our new “large hardstanding fully serviced pitches”. We’ve seen more of a demand for these types of pitches – we do hope you like them!

New land drains

Now this may not sound too glamourous, but we’ve added 400 metres of drains in to help our park deal with any adverse weather.

Privacy screening at our shepherd huts

Fox and Sorrell shepherd huts now have new parking areas and privacy screening means that each one has its own private garden now.

Hedgerows, trees and our lakes

We’ve planted 1,000 further small trees into our native hedgerows between pitches to help increase privacy for our guests. Added to this, our tree surgeon has been working on trimming back some of our eucalyptus trees. Our lakes have also had some TLC with the removal of weed.

Monty’s Bar extension

We’ve added an extension onto Monty’s Bar to create new seating areas and will shortly be changing the flooring in the bar area to a solid one, making it more accessible for guests with mobility issues.

Two electric car charging stations

We’ve added two electric car charging stations near to our entrance. Guests are welcome to use these (charges apply). Please enquire at reception about our charges.

Added to this, we have retarmacked our section of our access lane.

Why not come and see for yourself?

Our park re-opens from 1 March 2024, so there’s less than a month to go.

Bookings are already coming in thick and fast so we’d strongly recommend booking now to avoid disappointment, especially during peak times.

Book your 2024 break

Back of Beyond Touring Park with a rainbow

16th January 2024

Winners of our 2023 Photo Competition

Back of Beyond / News /

We had some amazing entries into our 2023 Back of Beyond Photo Competition!

We’d like to thank each and every person who took the time to enter.

Judging them wasn’t easy and we ended up awarding some runners-ups in some of the categories as the competition was tough.

This year’s overall winner was Emma Reid, with this stunner of a photograph:

Our category winners are as follows:

Dogs – Mike Rowe with his gorgeous spaniel, Saffy.

Camping – Elena Pott.

Food – Amy Terry.

Nature – Paul O’Connor.

The following photographers were awarded runners-up prizes:

Pauline Potter for her two dogs.

Debbie Thomas for her happy camper.

Emma Cairns for her amazing Royal set-up.

And John and Julie Ford for their Old English Sheepdog.

We will be running a new photo competition for 2024 so watch this space, we’ll be announcing details of it soon.

In the meantime, don’t forget that bookings for 2024 are now open.

Some of the Back of Beyond Touring & Glamping Park team with the AA Most Improved Campsite of the Year 2023 award

8th November 2023

Back of Beyond is awarded AA Most Improved Campsite of the Year 2023

Back of Beyond / News /

We are pleased to announce that we have just been announced as the AA’s Most Improved Campsite of the Year 2023!

This comes after the declaration that we’d been upgraded from a 5-pennant gold campsite to a 5-pennant platinum one after our annual inspection earlier this year.

Victoria Bowrey, owner of Back of Beyond Touring & Glamping Park adds:

“We were absolutely over the moon to open our award.

“10 years ago, when we purchased Back of Beyond it was beautiful but it was tired and in desperate need of modernisation.

“To have had our blood sweat and tears acknowledged by the AA was beyond our wildest dreams when we set out on our adventure.

“We’d like to thank the AA for acknowledging our hard work and we want to take this opportunity to thank all our teams past and present for helping us make our journey so far such a special one.”

Here are some photos from when we started out at Back of Beyond:

Back of Beyond’s reception around 2014

The main field at Back of Beyond Touring Park in the early 2010s

Bookings for 2024 are now open.

Book your break

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