The 10 best campsites in the Peak District

The Peak District is Britain's most reachable wildness. Sheffield and Manchester press right up against its edges, and half the country's big cities are within an hour or two, which makes it the natural home of the weekend camping trip. It is really two landscapes in one national park. The Dark Peak in the north is gritstone country: high moorland plateaux, peat groughs, and the long escarpments of Stanage and Kinder Scout. The White Peak to the south is softer limestone country, all drystone walls, green dales and clear rivers like the Dove and the Wye.

That split shapes the camping. Dark Peak sites tend to be walkers' bases, simple fields at the foot of big days out. White Peak sites lean towards families and tourers, with village pubs, cycling trails and stately homes close by. Both fill quickly, because this is walking country above all: the Pennine Way starts here, the Edale Skyline and Kinder Downfall rounds are national classics, and even the gentler dales reward a full day on foot.

As for timing, late spring and early autumn are the sweet spots, with long days, quieter paths and midges rarely the problem they are further north. Summer weekends are lovely but busy, and plenty of these sites stay open, and stay beautiful, well into the shoulder seasons. Whenever you go, pack for wind and rain. The Peak District rarely lets a forecast stand.

How we chose

A spread across both Peaks, a bias towards sites you can walk from without touching the car, and the basics done well: clean showers, honest pitches, welcoming owners. All are established favourites rather than new discoveries, and we checked each one's current offering and recent review sentiment before including it.

1. Fieldhead Campsite, Edale

4.6 ★ Google rating from 350+ reviews

A small tent-only site of around 45 pitches tucked behind the national park's Moorland Centre in the middle of Edale village, with a stream running along its edge and Kinder Scout filling the skyline. The Pennine Way starts a few minutes away, and Edale station is a short stroll, which makes this one of the few great British campsites you can reach easily by train. You book a grass tent pitch (there are no electric hookups) and, if you drive, a separate car parking space, since vehicles stay off the camping fields. Up to two well-behaved dogs are welcome per pitch for a small fee, and larger campervans are only taken by prior arrangement in quieter periods. Reviewers consistently praise the spotless toilet block, hot showers and friendly staff, and many single out how peaceful the car-free fields feel at night. One practical tip: parking spaces sell out weeks before summer weekends, so book the car in when you book the tent, or come by rail and skip the problem entirely.

2. Upper Booth Farm, Edale

4.6 ★ Google rating from 190+ reviews

A working National Trust hill farm under Kinder's southern slopes, a mile or so up the valley from Edale, with two camping fields and a camping barn. This is deliberately simple camping: tents and small campervans only, no motorhomes or caravans, no electric hookups, and limited numbers, which keeps the fields quiet even in high summer. What you do get is a modern shower and toilet block cleaned daily, a washing-up area, a drying room that earns its keep in Peak weather, and a barn space with a stone shelf for stoves and sockets for charging. Dogs are welcome. The Pennine Way passes through the farmyard, so Jacob's Ladder and Kinder Scout start at the gate, and the walk over the fields to the Nags Head in Edale is a fine end to a day. "Possibly the best campsite in Derbyshire", one Tripadvisor reviewer calls it, and the sentiment is common. Know before you go: there is essentially no mobile signal, so download maps and tell people where you are.

3. North Lees Campsite, Hathersage

4.6 ★ Google rating from 200+ reviews

In a sheltered wooded valley a mile and a half above Hathersage, directly below Stanage Edge, the most famous gritstone crag in the country. Run by the Peak District National Park Authority, it is made for climbers and walkers: the site suits small tents best (larger tents up to about five metres fit on some pitches), there are seven camping pods for anyone travelling light, and a handful of dedicated campervan bays with optional hookup were added recently. Facilities are modest but well kept, with clean toilets and showers, a drying room and washing-up sinks, plus an accessible pod and wet room. No fires or barbecues of any kind are permitted, so plan to cook on a stove. Reviewers score it highly and keep coming back to the same things: the setting, the plentiful hot water, and staff who go out of their way to help. Book well ahead for weekends, because when the crag empties at dusk, this is where everyone wants to be.

4. Hayfield Camping and Caravanning Club Site, Hayfield

4.7 ★ Google rating from 500+ reviews

Riverside camping in the old showground beside the River Sett, mostly ringed by woodland, on Kinder's quieter western side. It is a strong all-rounder: grass and hardstanding pitches with electric hookups for tents, caravans and motorhomes, plus camping pods if you want a roof. The facilities are what club sites do well, with spotless toilets, warm showers, a family shower room, laundry, a small shop for basics, a children's play area and a walkers' hut with a freezer for cool-box blocks. Dogs are welcome. Hayfield village, with its pubs and cafes, is a pleasant stroll along the river. Review scores are excellent, and one Tripadvisor review sums up the appeal as a "perfect site for walking holiday in the Kinder Scout area". The classic day here is the round from Bowden Bridge up to Kinder Downfall, which starts practically at the gate. Tip: the waterfall is at its dramatic best after rain, when a strong westerly can blow it back uphill.

5. Laneside Caravan Park, Hope

4.7 ★ Google rating from 900+ reviews

A well-kept, family-run park on the river at the edge of Hope, right in the middle of the Hope Valley, with the village shops, cafes and pubs five minutes away on foot. It suits tourers and families who want everything close: grass and hardstanding pitches with hookups, adults-only areas for those who want them, and a shepherd's hut and holiday caravans for the no-tent contingent. The heated shower blocks are the thing reviewers rave about, with free power showers that guests regularly compare to the best European sites, alongside a shop, laundry and a dog walking field. Nearly all recent reviewers say they would recommend it, praising the spacious pitches and how clean everything is kept. Win Hill and Lose Hill rise on either side of the valley, Castleton and Mam Tor are close, and Hope station connects along the valley to Edale and Sheffield. Tip: use the train for linear walks, so you can finish in a different village to the one you started in.

6. Barn Farm Campsite, Birchover

4.7 ★ Google rating from 440+ reviews

A working farm on the edge of Birchover in the south-eastern White Peak, bordering Stanton Moor and its Nine Ladies stone circle. Few sites in the Peak have this much character: big sloping fields with long views, four well-appointed camping barns for groups and walkers, and shower, toilet and laundry facilities that reviewers rate among the best in the Peak. Guests consistently describe it as spacious, friendly and exceptionally well run. It is a superb walking base too, with the moor's Bronze Age circle a few minutes uphill, Robin Hood's Stride and its boulders nearby, and the Limestone Way passing close, while Birchover's two pubs are a short stagger away. The one thing every review mentions is the resident peacocks, which are beautiful, bold and fond of announcing dawn at around 5am. Pack earplugs, and use the early start for a sunrise wander to the stone circle before anyone else is up.

7. Longnor Wood Holiday Park, Longnor

4.5 ★ Tripadvisor rating from 600+ reviews

An adults-only park high on the plateau between the Dove and Manifold valleys, a mile from the old market village of Longnor. This is the pick for couples who want peace: no children, no clubhouse, just birdsong, big skies and some of the darkest night skies in the national park. You can book hardstanding and grass touring pitches, tent pitches, en-suite glamping pods, and holiday caravans and lodges, some with hot tubs. Facilities go well beyond the usual, with a licensed shop, a sauna, a small gym, a games room, and a dog wash and dog exercise field. It holds an AA five-star rating, and reviews return again and again to the immaculate upkeep, the landscaping and the warmth of the owners; quiet and spotless is the recurring verdict. The walking is gentler here than in the Dark Peak, with lovely rounds into both valleys. Tip: come in the shoulder seasons and bring binoculars, because clear nights up here are genuinely starry.

8. Greenhills Holiday Park, Bakewell

4.4 ★ Google rating from 800+ reviews

A friendly park in the green bowl of hills just outside Bakewell, towards Ashford in the Water, and one of the easiest introductions to Peak District camping you can find. Electric grass pitches for tents and electric hardstandings for tourers all come with 16 amp hookups and countryside views, and there are holiday caravans if you want beds and a kettle. On site you get two amenity blocks, a bar, a games room, two children's play areas and a big field for ball games, and dogs are welcome. Reviewers give it strong scores and consistently mention the clean facilities and attentive, helpful staff. Bakewell itself, with its market, riverside and famous pudding, is walkable, and Chatsworth, Haddon Hall and the traffic-free Monsal Trail are all a short hop away. Best for first-time campers and mixed groups where not everyone is sold on the idea yet. Tip: walk into Bakewell along the quiet lanes rather than driving, because parking in town on a summer Saturday is a sport you will not win.

9. Callow Top Holiday Park, Ashbourne

4.3 ★ Google rating from 900+ reviews

A big, well-run family park on a hilltop a mile from Ashbourne, at the southern gateway to Dovedale and the White Peak. This is the list's full-facilities option: grass pitches for tents, hardstandings with hookups for caravans and motorhomes, trailer tents, and holiday cottages open year-round. The camping season runs from late March to early November. Families come for the heated outdoor pool (open roughly May to September), the play areas, the games room, the fishing lake and the Callow Inn, the park's own pub with a microbrewery attached. Reviews praise the large pitches, the well-maintained grounds and the friendly staff, and for many children the pool is the holiday. The Tissington Trail starts in Ashbourne for easy traffic-free cycling, and the famous stepping stones at Dovedale are a short drive. Tip: do Dovedale first thing in the morning or towards evening, because by late morning on a sunny weekend the stepping stones have a queue.

10. Grin Low Caravan and Motorhome Club Site, Buxton

4.6 ★ Google rating from 500+ reviews

Sheltered in the trees below Solomon's Temple on the southern edge of Buxton, this Caravan and Motorhome Club site is a solid, well-drilled base for exploring both Peaks. It is primarily a touring site, with over a hundred hardstanding pitches with hookups and a motorhome service point, plus a small number of tent pitches, and non-members are welcome. Facilities are exactly what the club is known for: a spotless amenity block with private washing cubicles, a family washroom, laundry and dishwashing areas, good accessible facilities and a dog walk. Charcoal and gas barbecues are allowed. Reviewers describe generous pitches, beautifully maintained grounds and wardens who cannot do enough to help. You can walk from your pitch through Grin Low Woods to Poole's Cavern and on into Buxton, whose baths, opera house and bookshops rescue any rainy day. Tip: with only a handful of tent pitches, tent campers should book much further ahead than tourers.

Before you book

Peak District weather changes by the hour, so favour sheltered pitches, peg out properly and pack for wind whatever the app promises. Weekends fill fast all year because the cities are so close: book early, or come midweek when the dales feel like your own. Open fires are forbidden at most sites on and around this fragile moorland, and several ban barbecues too, so check the fire policy before you pack the charcoal. If you are coming for the hills, remember the Hope Valley railway line: Edale, Hope and Hathersage all have stations, and some of the best sites on this list barely need a car at all. Finally, book the dog in when you book the pitch, since most sites cap numbers and some fields are dog-free.

When you are ready, find a campsite and get the tent out of the loft. For more hill country, see our guides to the best campsites in the Yorkshire Dales and the best campsites in Snowdonia.