Baltic Wharf Club Campsite
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Came for a walk around this site a couple of years ago and managed to finally book a 4 day weekend away here on first outing with new caravan.
On arrival pleased to see that the road outside has been widened to make access a bit easier.
Warden on duty was OK and pointed out the two remaining pitches for awnings, (1st trip out wanted to try awning on van) He said we would have to pitch with car across front of van as no room alongside although there were trees and grass and a nice spot with good sunshine.
Pitched van as far back as possible but, even so car would not go in front of caravan without being in the middle of the road, so had to park behind line of tow-hitch and blocking front box on awning side. This also meant we could not actually pitch the awning to try it as no room to peg it down and still be able to park car on pitch. (Van is 7.45m long). As we were only on site for 4 days decided not to worry about it, but others should be aware of this. I think it was pitch 41.
Everyone on site very friendly, and for a change the grass was not cut once whilst we were there. It has been a standing joke with our group that a lot of wardens cannot wait to jump on the lawn mowers three times a week. It was totally the opposite here the grass really could have done with a trim, not that this site has much grass to worry about.
There is a gate at the rear of the site that goes straight on to the harbour walk and turn left 50m from the Cottage Pub, (Life's so hard), or turn right for a pleasant walk along the harbour, past SS Great Britain, M-Shed, restaurant quarter and into the heart of the city.
Facilities were clean as expected, however on a real negative note, my wife said the ladies toilets, just did not flush properly even trying two or three times. I never used the gents so no idea how they were. Apparently Ladies were entering, coming straight out of one cubicle, and into the next as they were not flushed properly, before flushing and taking a chance, only to have to wait for cistern to refill again and try and flush again. Each lady thinking the previous not bothering to flush until they found themselves in a similar situation a few minutes later. This was in all cubicles. On one visit my wife said the toilets had only just been opened up after cleaning and there were seemingly un-flushed toilets at that point, not good.
I mentioned this to the warden and couldn't really work out if they new about it, were fed up with being told, or more likely I guess assumed people just were not flushing.
A little gem in a prime location
We visited this lovely small site in order to visit Let's Rock Bristol on the first June weekend but there is so much to see and do in the area that you could easily stop a few days and fill every day. The site has only 66 pitches, basically made up of an inner and outer circle. If you arrive in a motorhome or don't want to use your car, it's not a problem as you have gated access at the back of the site directly onto Baltic Wharf which is lovely for walking or cycling. On a lovely sunny Sunday afternoon, you will find numerous couples and families walking the banks of the Wharf, enjoying a drink at the Cottage Inn next door to the site, or parking their picnic chairs on the side of the river and enjoying the activities on the water or simply reading a book and enjoying a picnic. The site is well maintained and the stewards are very friendly, knowledgeable and helpful. They keep the site immaculately clean and feels secure as you are issued with a key fob for the front (road) access and a key for the back gate onto the wharf. The back gate is always locked and the front gate is locked from 8pm. The reception sells some items but there is a convenience store which sells all sorts a short walk from the main gate. The site is close to many pubs and restaurants, in particular the Cottage Inn which is right next door to the site. There is little noise from this pub despite its proximity. It's a nice walk into Bristol along the river with lots to see en route and the SS Great Britain is definitely worth a visit. We will definitely visit again.
Excellent site
This is a small but very popular site in the heart of Bristol. The staff, as usual, are very helpful, knowledable and friendly, There is a popular small pub (Cottage Inn) a couple of minutes walk along from the site. The pub does excellent meals and not the usual boil in the bag or microwave food, we had homemade smoked salmon fishcakes there. The pub is by the harbour ferry stop, the yellow ferries have an unadvertised 3 day ticket which allows unlimited travel on their ferries.
I found Chedder gorge a let down, the parking is very limited and, being run by the National Trust, very expensive. Visitors need to be at the gorge early in the morning to get a parking space. There is very limited parking for disabled visitors, i was only able to find 3 disabled spaces and they were on a bend by the coach park, all in all not very disabled visitor friendly. We tried to visit Wells but there seemed to be even less disabled parking.
Rant over, the site is well worth a visit but you will have to book early.
MalcolmN
Reviewed on 17/05/2018 14:17
GREAT LOCATION FOR BRISTOL AND ITS ATTRACTIONS
We have tried for several years to book this site as a stopover on our way to/from Cornwall, but this was our first successful booking.
The directions in the sites directory were excellent, and we had also watched a video on You Tube of someone's journey to the site, which was helpful.
Everything was as we would expect from a Club site - warm welcome, clean facilities.
The site is less than 10 minutes walk from the SS Great Britain, and about half an hour into the centre of Bristol. There is a small ferry which stops just outside the site gates for those who do not want to walk, although the last ferry into town is 6pm. We saw a show at the Hippodrome Theatre, and a taxi back to the site cost £7. The food in the pub next door was good, although not cheap. The brewery has a "loyalty" scheme which you can sign up for, and they immediately send your membership number and a voucher equivalent to £5. That, combined with the discount on all food on Wednesdays, meant that we had 2 pints and 2 meals for £21! Worth doing just for the one-off visit.
We only have two comments to make: -
1) SECURITY - there are no barriers at the entrance to this site and we noticed quite a few cars driving in, around, and straight back out. This concerned us a little when leaving items such as BBQs etc outside the caravan. Also, the entrance gates were supposedly locked at 8pm, with a fob for members to get back on to the site after that time. We arrived back from the theatre just before midnight to find that the gates did not actually lock, the gate was ajar, and we did not actually need the fob to get back in.
2) Allocation of pitches. When we made our reservation we wanted an awning pitch, but none were available. We had checked availability frequently since booking with a view to changing pitch, without success. It was very frustrating therefore to find that there were only 3 or 4 awnings actually erected on these pitches. Most of the others were being used by units who didn't even have an awning. Whilst we understand the warden's explanation that people would just book what was available, I do not believe that all those awning pitches became available AFTER our original booking. We would ask members to be considerate and not just book these pitches because they are bigger. Only book if you intend to use your awning.
Otherwise a comfortable stay.
Location Location Location
As the heading says this site is all about the location. We have been here several times now ( In all weathers including the bad snow this year when we had to stay a bit longer than expected) The staff are always friendly and helpful and it is a pleasure to keep coming back.
Excellent Facility
First visit and all being well we will be back again next year as we gave already booked!! Ideal for visiting the floating harbour and its walks, the SS Great Britain viewing Brunel's fantastic Clifton Suspension bridge and crossing by ferry to take the opportunity of enjoying the many eating places although there is a cracking pub just outside the gated site. We have had a fantastic stay although the weather was not good it didn't spoil our enjoyment
A real gem of a site and will be a loss when it closes ...
We stay at Baltic Wharf as often as we can ... a real gem of a site with easy access into Bristol and surrounding areas ... so much to do and to see for all the family ... great for cycling or for ambling into Bristol along the harbourside or via water taxi ... superb museums, theatre, restaurants and pubs ... a real vibrant, cosmipolitan city with a rich and varied history ... site wardens Anthony and Christian do a fantastic job at maintaining this site ... a real shame it's now likely to close this year and will be a real loss to the network when it does ... although not a peaceful site (after all, it is located in a busy city) it is restful and a wonderful location...
Baltic wharfe
Managed at long last to get 5 days on this fantastic site. Been trying for over 3 years. The time before that was when it opened, how long ago was that!! It was nice to see that the outside tall hedges have been cut down so that the harbour views can be seen once again. It's so nice not to have to use the car when on site as everything you could wish for is only a short walk away. Pitcher and Piano bar on the opposite side of the harbour serve the best Latte Coffee in Bristol by far, with a riverside view in the sun at prices cheaper than Costa.
The X39 bus from the stand at the waterfall is direct to Bath, and if you are of a certain age, it's free!! This site has it all, for a break in Bristol and its environs, its unbeatable. Let's hope the club manages to hold on to it for many years to come.
Malcolm and Pam
cornish cream
Reviewed on 29/03/2018 11:51
Excellent Site
We stayed at Baltic Wharf in our Motorhome for five nights in March '18
Antony and Christian could not have been more friendly or helpful, a credit to the Club.
The facilities were kept spotless.
This was our first visit to the Bristol area, so much to see and do, we will be back again (obviously subject to cancellations !!!)
brisey
Reviewed on 28/03/2018 20:36
ANOTHER WONDERFUL VISIT
Finally got here after the Beast from the East tried to stop us twice! The wardens were so helpful in finding us cancellations, so we were still able to stay for six nights. Enjoyed every minute on this amazingly quiet site, considering it is so near the centre of Bristol. The hedges against the Floating Haebour have been cut down, so we had an amazing view out across the water and beyond - we could even see one of Clifton Bridge's abutments from the Motorhome. Facilities were spotlessly clean, showers hot, and the facilities building lovely and warm. This site has to be one of the most perfectly situated on the network. We have been visiting for years and will never tire of it. Fingers crossed that the Club doesn't have to relinquish it just yet. We were very lucky to be one of the first visitors to walk through the door of the new museum, Being Brunel, housed next door to SS Great Britain, when it opened on Friday 23rd March. An amazing experience for all Brunel fans. With the new area of Gaol Ferry Steps in full swing, only 10 minutes walk from the site, there is no shortage of places to eat. The Cottage Pub next door is perfect for tasty meals and the ferries are a help if you've walked all around Bristol and need to rest your legs! A fabulous site, but as it is so difficult to book into, wish the Club would restrict it to members only, then perhaps more of us members might be able to visit more often. Can't wait to go again - already on the cancellation list!