Yew Tree Park
Kent
Family-run park with an outdoor pool, five miles south of Canterbury on Stone Street
About Yew Tree Park
Yew Tree Park sits on Stone Street, the old Roman road running south from Canterbury towards Lympne, about five miles out and squarely inside the Kent Downs. It is a small, family-run caravan and camping park rather than a holiday complex, and it has built a following among returning visitors who value quiet fields and grounds that are visibly looked after. The setting is proper downland: rolling chalk, thick hedgerows, sheep in the next field and dark skies at night, which is a genuine novelty this close to a city.
The headline facility is an outdoor swimming pool, unusual for a site of this size and very welcome after a hot day walking the Downs. There is also a children's play area, and the surrounding land offers footpaths, fishing and horse riding within easy reach. Pitches take tents, touring caravans and motorhomes, with hook-ups and shower and toilet blocks on site. One thing to check before booking: dogs are not accepted here, which rules the park out for a good many campers but does keep the fields notably peaceful.
For sightseeing the location is hard to fault. Canterbury is a ten-minute drive or a manageable cycle downhill, with the return journey rather more of a commitment. Petham and Waltham are the nearest villages, Chilham with its square and castle grounds is a short drive west, and the coast at Hythe and Folkestone is around twenty-five minutes south. The park operates through the main touring season, roughly spring to autumn, and being small it fills quickly for school holidays and bank holiday weekends, so book ahead rather than turning up on spec.