Lee Valley Campsite, Sewardstone
Essex
Four-star campsite on the Epping Forest edge, around 12 miles from central London
About Lee Valley Campsite, Sewardstone
Lee Valley Campsite at Sewardstone stands on Sewardstone Road on the Chingford side of the Essex border, with Epping Forest rising immediately behind it and the King George and William Girling reservoirs below. Of the campsites within easy reach of central London this is the one that feels least like a city site: the ground is open and green, the forest starts at the boundary, and the outlook is over water and woodland rather than rooftops. It holds a four-star Visit England accreditation as a touring and camping park.
Pitches are a mix of hardstanding and grass and take caravans, motorhomes, tents, trailer tents and larger American units, with electric hook-ups and fully serviced pitches available. For anyone who would rather not pitch at all, there are woodland cabins, cocoon pods and glamping pods on site. Facilities run to heated toilets and showers, accessible rooms, a launderette, washing-up area, chemical disposal, a shop with takeaway hot drinks, a playground and cycle hire, plus fire pits and barbecues for hire. Dogs are welcome on designated pitches and in some of the accommodation.
Chingford station is a short bus or taxi ride away and runs into Liverpool Street in about half an hour, so a day in the centre is straightforward. Most people who stay here, though, end up splitting their time: Epping Forest offers nearly six thousand acres of ancient woodland with waymarked walking and riding trails right on the doorstep, and the Lee Valley path network runs south towards the Olympic Park. The site opens from March to January, closing only for February, which makes it one of the more useful year-round options near the capital.