An ok campsite but not too much to do (Shamba Holiday Park)

Member Name: lyndsey1989

Product:	Shamba Holiday Park
Date:	04/08/09 (84 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Well designed swimming pool

Disadvantages: Not a lot to do

Shamba Holiday Park is located near Ringwood, Hampshire and is in easy reach of the New Forest. Myself, my partner and my niece who is 8 decided to visit Shamba in July with a 4 man tent. We had booked the pitch around a month beforehand and I think we paid around £25 for 2 nights (Friday and Saturday). We had asked to be next to the shower block and was told this would be no problem at all.

Upon arrival we were a bit wary due to the park appearing to be very close to the dual carriageway. However, you turn off from the road and go down a track which is about a mile in length before reaching the park so it is infact a good distance away and you can barely hear the traffic. My partner went into reception to sign in and was told we were right at the top of the site-as far away from the shower block as possible. After questionning this they were happy to move us, but only because somebody had wanted to be further away from the shower block and entertainment.

We had a basic pitch and set about putting the tent up. The ground was extremely hard despite a lot of rain recently and I would recommend using heavy duty tent pegs if you plan on visiting yourself.

The playpark was of a good standard and was of a decent size, it was all of good quality and looked relatively new. The swimming pool is good due to the fact that in good weather it is an outdoor pool but when rain comes it has walls and a ceiling which goes across to make it an indoor pool. I wasn't overly impressed with the pool as it was a bit small and there were no toys or anything for my niece, but it did the job. Please note that there are only 2 changing rooms in the swimming pool itself so be prepared to use the toilets or wait a while.

We were told there was entertainment on site but we could not find this. All there was was a bar/cafe with a number of tables and was not the sort of thing my niece was looking forward to. The games room contains a football table and pool among racing car games and so on.

The shower rooms were of a very high standard and were obviously recently refurbished. They were very warm and there was a good number of both toilets and showers so you never had to wait. They were very clean and the cleaner was often seen. They were also very warm!

I would recommend this campsite if you dont have children or if they are happy to entertain themselves as it was rather boring. The weather didn't help as on our visit we ended up going home early but I do not feel there is enough here to satisfy your standard family. However, I imagine it would be fine for just one nights stay.

Summary: Ok for one night or for people without children