Waldegraves Holiday Park

Waldegraves Ln, West Mersea, Colchester, CO5 8SE. Website: Waldegraves Holiday Park

Find on: Google Maps

Date of Visit: June 2025

One of the best family campsites in the UK near a beach.

Child Friendly Score: 6 out of 10

Overview

Pros:

• Large campsite with lots of family-friendly facilities
• Heated outdoor pool on site
• Campsite is directly on a beach
• Large playpark
• Clubhouse, Restaurant, Shop and Takeaway on site
• Kids club programme during peak times and weekends
• Evening Entertainment in Clubhouse

Cons:

• Large site so potentially noisy
• Slightly remote location
• No playpark near touring pitches

Accommodations Allowed:

• Caravans
• Motorhomes
• Campervans
• Tents
• Holiday homes available to book

First Impressions

Travelling to Mersea Island is always an experience. The only way onto the island is to drive over the water. The only road to get on or off the island is covered by water at high tide.

During the particularly high springs tides, the water rises several meters above the road, cutting off access for a few hours. Make sure to check the tide times before you set off! You can find a handy guide to the tide times here.

To get to Waldegraves holiday park, you have to drive through a business park. This made us think we might have made a wrong turn, but it is the way in!

Arrival

Once you arrive on the Wadegraves Holiday Park site, you will immediately see the reception building. There is a very handy large layby next to the building enabling you to pull in and go the reception.

The staff on reception were very friendly and welcoming and quickly had us checked in. We did have to pay a £10 deposit for a barrier key (which is refundable). Although this wasn’t an issue, it wasn’t advertised anywhere on their website or communications so it was a bit of a surprise.

First impressions of Waldegraves Holiday Park were that it was very well maintained and all the pitches were very well laid out and facilitated.

We booked a serviced pitch, so we had water and electric directly on the pitch. The pitch itself was huge and had a lovely hardstanding area, and grass area, with mature bushes separating the pitches.

Beach-Front Location

One of the main reasons for booking the Waldegraves Holiday Park was for its proximity to the beach. I have been considering Waldegraves Holiday Park for a while; knowing there was a hot and sunny weekend due made it a easy choice to cool down at the beach!

Waldegraves Holiday Park is situated right on the beach at Mersea Island. A short stroll through the beautiful gardens and you have your feet in the sand.

The girls and I had a lovely time swimming in the sea and collecting shells and seaglass along the beachfront. We also saw that there is a small section right next to the beach where several tents were pitched. This looked like a wonderful set up!

This was honestly one of the best family campsites UK near a beach.

Family-Friendly Features

If you are looking for a campsite that has a tonne of family friendly features, then this is the site for you!

There is so much to keep the little ones (and big ones!) entertained that they’ll never want to leave!

Swimming Pool

One of the highlights of the trip was cooling off in the onsite, heated swimming pool.

Whilst not the biggest, it was just what we needed. The pool is heated and open all day. At one end the pool gets deep enough for those who love an underwater adventure. The other end is separated off and super shallow to allow for the little ones to cool off in safety.

The staff running the pool were also super friendly and even on a such a hot day, we didn’t have to wait to get in, or have a designated time to get out.

Club House and Play Park

One of the things I loved about Waldegraves Holiday Park was the central clubhouse area.

There is a large indoor space, which features the clubhouse and sports bar. The clubhouse provides a range of children’s activities during peak-times throughout the day for kids to get involved in. They also put on regular entertainment in the evening for the whole family.

Just outside the clubhouse is a wonderful outside courtyard area with plenty of seating and the playpark.

The playpark is huge with several sections to keep the very smallest to the biggest children happy. There is also a multi-sports pitch and a trampoline set up (additional charge) to further add to the offering.

There is also a courtyard takeaway serving a range of hot food, and an outside bar. This means the whole family can play, eat, drink and relax in the same area. On the Sunday there was also a local musician playing outside which was a lovely touch.

On-site Shop and Restaurant

If you need to stock up on a few bits, there is a handy shop on-site. It does have an eclectic mix of stock, but there are all the basics in terms of food, toiletries and camping spares, along with souvenirs

There is also a separate shop that does sweets and ice-creams for a treat for the little kids, and the big ones!

There is also a family-friendly restaurant on site which serves up breakfast, lunch and dinner. We ate dinner here one evening and the breakfast seems very popular!

Toilet and Shower Facilites

The toilet and shower facilities at Waldegraves are wonderfully laid out for families. There is a separate block for toilets and sinks, and one for showers.

There are also family rooms available; you have to request the key from the wardens office, but this is right next door.

To the rear of the toilet block, there is a washing up area with hot water and plenty of sinks. There is also a chemical waste disposal point too.

Pitches and Facilities

There is no shortage of space at Waldegraves Holiday Park.

There are three very large camping fields for those who want to camp without electric and serviced pitches for those who want water and electric on their pitch. There are also some hard-standing pitches.

We stayed on a serviced pitch, which was huge! We had loads of space and the pitch was bordered by hedges for privacy which was a lovely touch.

As we had had a slightly later start to our holiday, I enquired about extending our stay past the check out time. The check out of 1pm is already a welcome feature, however for an extra £15 we were free to stay on site as long as we wanted on the last day!

Things to Do Nearby

As I grew up relatively close to Mersea Island, we didn’t explore far. However I do know that there are some great places if you do fancy exploring the local area.

Crabbing on West Mersea

Sometimes a trip to the beach isn’t complete without a crabbing expedition!

There is a pay and display car park next to the hard at West Mersea and there are specific sections of the causeway on which crabbing is allowed.

Grab yourself a couple of crabbing lines, a bucket and some bacon and spend the afternoon seeing how many crab friends you can make!

Mersea Boating Lake

Mersea Boating Lake is situated on East Mersea, with its own private beach access.

It is a family-friendly lake, offering waters sports for all ages and abilities. There is also a café on site.

Grab a lifejacket and a paddle and take to the water for hours of safe family fun.

Find out more details on the website here.

Colchester and Colchester Castle

If the weather is being British and you want to soak up some history instead of the rain, then a trip to nearby Colchester is a good shout.

Colchester is a roman town, an fragments of the roman walls can be found dotted around the town.

If you fancy even more history, then a trip to Colchester Castle is always a good day out. Find out about the history of the castle, dress up as a solider and get locked in the jail! There is also the delights of the enormous castle park to burn off some energy!

Find out more about visiting Colchester Castle here.

Waldegraves Holiday Park – Conclusion:

Overall Rating

Site Layout and Cleanliness: 8/10

Family Friendliness: 8/10

Facilities: 7/10

Nearby Activities: 6/10

Value for Money: 9/10

Final Thoughts

Would we return?

Yes! It’s a huge yes from us. A wonderfully run family-friendly campsite in the UK by the beach with a pool, with plenty to keep the whole family happy!

Waldegraves Holiday Park will be one of our regular get aways in future.

Who would enjoy it most?

Everyone.

Ideal length of stay?

2 nights to 5 nights.

Still not sure if this family-friendly UK campsite by the beach is for you? Check our our other Family Friendly Campsite Reviews.