Camber Sands Holiday Park: Parkdean, Beach and Nearby Parks

Seven miles of pale, soft sand. The only dune system in East Sussex. And a big seaside park sitting right across the road from all of it. That’s Camber, a village on the coast just east of Rye, and the beach is the whole reason people book here.

Camber Sands Holiday Park is run by Parkdean Resorts and is located at the quiet, eastern end of the village. Four heated indoor pools, a water flume, an outdoor Splash Zone, Clip & Climb and a Bear Grylls Survival Academy are all on site, so a grey week doesn’t wreck the holiday.

We’ll be straight with you. That park isn’t one we can book, because our holiday homes come from Hoseasons. What we can do is set out its facilities honestly, explain what the beach and the area are really like, and point you at six coastal parks in East Sussex and Kent, within half an hour, that you can book today.

Where is Camber, and how do you get there?

The village sits between Rye and the Kent border at the western end of Romney Marsh, which makes it a good base for exploring either county. The full address is New Lydd Road, Camber, Rye, TN31 7RT. Cross the road from the main gate, take the path over the dunes, and you’re on the sand in about two minutes.

Directions, trains and flights

Most guests drive, and the last stretch is simple enough:

• By car: leave the M20 at junction 10 for Ashford, follow the A2070 towards Hastings, pick up the A259 at the Brenzett roundabout and turn left for Camber
• By train: Rye is the nearest station, with Southern services from Eastbourne, Hastings and Ashford International
• By bus: Stagecoach services stop on Lydd Road, running to and from Lydd and Rye
• By plane: Lydd is a short hop away but hardly anybody flies into it, so London Gatwick is the practical airport

Parking at the beach

This one catches day trippers out. Rother District Council runs three pay and display car parks here, and the 2026 summer tariff reaches £30 for a full day, charged 8am to 7pm between 1 April and 30 September.

Central locks its gates at 8pm on Friday and Saturday evenings in summer and can shut once it’s full, Old Lydd Road is RingGo only, and none of them allow overnight stays. Check the current charges before you set off. Staying on a park nearby, you just walk.

What’s it like at Camber Sands Holiday Park?

Big, loud in the school holidays and aimed squarely at households with children under 14. Parkdean lists around 30 activities, and in peak weeks the entertainment runs from mid morning until late.

Pools, activities and amenities

The pool facilities are the strongest card: four heated indoor pools with a water flume, plus the outdoor Splash Zone for hot spells. Swimming sessions and activities are bookable in advance, and Parkdean suggests doing that around 10 weeks ahead.

The published activity list is long, and most of it gets children outside or making something:

• Clip & Climb climbing wall and a high ropes course
• Laser Tag, Battle Blasters and the Bear Grylls Survival Academy
• Bungee trampolines, bumper zorbs and Water Walkerz
• Family Karts, hoverboards, mini dronez and an interactive wall
• Archery, hover archery and table tennis
• Pirate crazy golf, an adventure playground and a sports dome
• Kiln pottery painting, sand art, Make a Bear and the Arts & Crafts Den
• Paw Patrol Mighty Missions and Milkshake! Mornings for the little ones
• Kayaks, aqua jets and inflatable jet skis

You’ll also find an amusement arcade, soft play, a sports court and kids’ clubs. Add the virtual reality experience and a wet week looks after itself.

Eating and drinking

Six places to eat are available on site, which covers most of the amenities you’d want without starting the car:

• The Boathouse, the main bar and restaurant
• The Fish & Chippery
• Thunderbird Fried Chicken
• Street Eats
• Scoops, for ice cream
• Costa Coffee, plus The Cambiere horse box

A Nisa shop covers the self catering basics and there’s a launderette for sandy towels. Off park, The Owl on Old Lydd Road is the village pub, while The Gallivant cooks modern British food from local producers.

The caravans and lodges

Accommodation is in caravans and lodges spread around the site, from simple older grades up to newer holiday homes with decking. Every kitchen is kitted out with:

• A gas or electric cooker and a microwave
• A kettle, toaster and the usual self catering kit
• A TV with Freeview in the living area
• Wi-Fi available through Park Connect+

Dogs stay in selected accommodation, and there’s a Woof Park agility course for them.

Seven miles of sand right outside

Camber Sands isn’t like the rest of this coast. No shingle underfoot, no steep shelf into the water, just sand running east towards Lydd. At low tide the sea pulls back a long way and leaves warm, ankle-deep pools that toddlers can happily spend a morning in.

Four things are worth knowing before you walk over:

• At high tide the beach narrows fast, so check the tide before you carry the picnic over
• The dunes are protected and easily damaged, so stay on the boardwalks
• Barbecues in the dunes are illegal, and marram grass goes up in seconds
• RNLI lifeguards patrol Camber Central daily from late May to the end of September, 10am to 6pm, with weekend cover from early April, and Camber West through the school summer holidays

Then there’s the wind, which makes this a perfect spot for anything with a kite attached. The Kitesurf Centre set up here in 2007 and grew into one of the best known kite schools in the country, teaching kitesurfing, landboarding, buggying and paddleboarding from age eight up.

Things to do in Camber Sands with kids

Rain, wind, or simply a break from the sand, these attractions all sit within half an hour of the dunes:

• Rye: cobbled Mermaid Street, antique dealers, and the Ypres Tower, once a fort, prison and mortuary, now a museum where children can handle a sword
• Rye Harbour Nature Reserve: free to visit, with five bird hides, flat buggy-friendly paths, nesting terns and a glass-fronted Discovery Centre
• Dungeness: shingle to the horizon, two lighthouses, fishing boats hauled up on the stones and a National Nature Reserve
• Romney, Hythe & Dymchurch Railway: one third size steam trains have run the 13.5 miles from Hythe to Dungeness since 1927
• Hastings: the Old Town’s tall black net shops, the Smugglers Adventure in St Clement’s Caves and the aquarium on the seafront
• Bodiam Castle: a proper moated castle inland, and an easy trip out with the children

Time your stay around a town event if you can. Scallop Week takes over the restaurants in late February, the arts festival runs for a fortnight in September, and Bonfire Night in mid November ends with a boat going up in flames.

Further along the coast, our guide to holiday parks near Eastbourne covers the Beachy Head end of Sussex, and New Beach at Dymchurch is the obvious base if the Kent coast wins everyone over.

When are the best Camber Sands holidays?

September is the quiet answer: warmest sea of the year, lifeguards still on duty, and the sand yours again once term starts.

Holiday parks near Camber Sands you can book with us

Six parks sit within about half an hour of the beach, all with the amenities you’d expect and all bookable here. Four are on the South East England coast; two are inland, for anyone who’d rather see trees than dunes.

Rye Harbour

Rye – about 13 minutes by car – sleeps up to 8 – pets welcome – pool

The closest one on our books, and the quietest. A peaceful, tranquil setting next to the reserve, two miles from the medieval town, with a small heated pool, a clubhouse showing cabaret and the big sports fixtures, a play park and a restaurant.

Winchelsea Sands

Winchelsea – about 15 minutes by car – sleeps up to 10 – pets welcome – pool

Set between two historic towns, this one features an entertainment venue at its busiest on summer weekends and an open-air swimming pool. Its own write-up picks out Camber Sands as the best beach nearby, which tells you how close it sits. Holiday homes here sleep up to ten.

Marlie Holiday Park

New Romney – about 18 minutes by car – sleeps up to 10 – pets welcome – pool

Countryside rather than coast, set between two Kentish villages with Littlestone Golf Club between the park and the sea. The heated pool was built in 2020, and there’s a clubhouse, a club for under 14s, amusements, a playground and a shop. It’s also our closest park to the Romney Marsh attractions.

Coghurst Hall

Hastings – about 24 minutes by car – sleeps up to 10 – pets welcome – pool – fishing

Hidden in a tree-lined valley on the edge of town, built round a well stocked lake holding some monster carp (a licence is needed to fish it). The clubhouse keeps its old country estate decor, and guests get a heated pool, amusements, a playground, a mini-market, superfast Wi-Fi and a launderette.

Juniper Country Park

Westfield – about 27 minutes by car – sleeps up to 6 – hot tubs – pets welcome

The grown-up choice: two lodges in the High Weald Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, each with open-plan living, doors on to the decking and an outdoor hot tub. Cycling and horse riding trails start nearby. Browse our other holiday homes with hot tubs if that’s the sort of break you’re after.

Shear Barn Holiday Park

Hastings – about 31 minutes by car – sleeps up to 6 – hot tubs – pets welcome – pool

Perched above the old town with sea views, 15 minutes on foot from the shingle and rated 4.5 by guests. It features a heated pool, and some holiday homes are adapted for wheelchair users, with a wet room, grab rails, a shower chair, widened hallways and sliding doors.

Your Camber Sands questions answered

Camber Sands rewards an early start: get on the sand before the car parks fill, keep walking east until the crowds thin out, then head back for chips. Have a look at the holiday parks we can book for you and pick the one that suits your week.