Gloucestershire
Camping on a working rare-breeds farm high on the wolds near Guiting Power
Cotswold Farm Park sits high on the wolds at Guiting Power, near Cheltenham, on Adam Henson's working farm. The campsite is part of a rare-breeds centre, so you are pitching in among Gloucester cattle, Cotswold sheep and a good deal of agricultural activity, and entry to the farm park itself is included in the price of a stay. That combination makes it one of the strongest family options in the region.
There are 25 premium pitches, roughly half hardstanding and half grass, fully serviced with electricity, water and waste, plus a further 29 grass pitches with electric hook-up. Facilities include a heated shower and toilet block, chemical disposal, a farm shop and the Ox Shed restaurant. Children get bouncy pillows, a zipwire and substantial outdoor play areas, and there is a two-mile wildlife walk leading straight off the site into the surrounding farmland. Dogs are permitted on the campsite, in the glamping tents and lodges, and in the outdoor seating at the cafe, though the usual working-farm rules about livestock apply.
Alongside the pitches there are camping pods, which use the shared shower block and kitchen, and larger safari tents sleeping five with their own bathroom, kitchenette and decked area with a barbecue. Pods start from around 50 pounds a night and safari tents from around 135, which makes the site a reasonable shoulder-season choice if you would rather not be under canvas in April. Touring pitches are considerably cheaper. The location is genuinely rural and exposed, roughly fifteen minutes from Stow-on-the-Wold and twenty from Bourton-on-the-Water, so bring warm layers and expect wind on the high pitches. Book early for school holidays.