North Yorkshire
Adults-only five-star park beside the Ouse, four miles from the Minster
York Naburn Lock sits in around thirty acres of quiet countryside beside the Victorian lock on the River Ouse, four miles south of York city centre. It is an adults-only park, which sets the tone: this is a calm, well-ordered site aimed at couples and older visitors rather than families, and the absence of children is the main reason many guests return year after year. The park holds a five-star AA rating and has picked up TripAdvisor Travellers' Choice awards.
Pitches are generously spaced and come in three grades: grass, hardstanding and fully serviced, with several having their own picnic table and patio area. Electric hook-ups are available across the site and the fully serviced pitches add water and waste drainage. The facilities block was rebuilt to a high standard and offers hotel-style individual shower rooms rather than communal blocks, along with toilets, an accessible suite, a pot-wash area and laundry. Free wi-fi covers the park, and there is a small shop on site for essentials. Dogs are welcome and there is plenty of space to walk them along the riverbank.
The location is the other selling point. The traffic-free Sustrans cycle route runs from beside the site straight into the centre of York along the old railway line and the riverbank, which takes around twenty-five minutes by bike or a little over an hour on foot. There is a good village pub within walking distance in Naburn, and the A64 is close enough for day trips to the North York Moors, the Wolds and the coast at Scarborough or Whitby. The park closes over the winter months, generally opening from March to the end of October.