Glamping and campfire-friendly camping by a pair of fishing lakes in the Leicestershire countryside
On the border between Rutland and Leicestershire, Purple Badger Camping sits happily on the fence. And we don’t just mean geographically speaking; it’s part luxury glamping and part off-grid camping. It’s also part camping ground and part fishing lakes. Plus, while this rural, lakeside location is all about enjoying the countryside, it’s surprisingly close to the city – less than ten miles outside Leicester.
Whether you’re escaping from the city or wanting to visit it during a stay, Purple Badger Camping certainly gives no hint of urban life. The lakes are surrounded by woodland and wildlife, and have been open to fishermen for more than 40 years. They are well stocked; with roach, perch, tench and small carp in the lower lake and larger carp in the upper one. For those who fancy a spot of fishing with their camping, this place is a dream come true but, even for those who aren’t bringing a rod, the watery backdrop is a draw. The fact that campfires are allowed here is another.
There are just nine spacious camping pitches in the site’s car-free lower field with wildflowers left to grow between them. Two of the pitches are occupied by Purple Badger’s own bell tents; unfurnished Val and furnished Millie. Moving further up the site and further up the glamping scale, there are two shepherd huts, Logan and Jude. These are fully furnished with a kitchenette and en-suite facilities. They also enjoy a separate location overlooking the top lake and have their own fishing pegs to boot. The surrounding trees mean campfires aren’t allowed in this spot – but who cares when there’s a log burner inside?
The tents and huts, have been named after the children of site owners, Mark and Helen and you might see the youngest two helping out around site. The family’s years of experience on camping holidays have informed many of the well-thought out touches: the fire pits, mobile phone charging lockers and The Badger’s Den - an undercover shared space for rainy days. There’s a freezer for ice packs and there are separate loo cabins and upcycled horsebox showers with a sink in each; all of which point to owners who know what campers want. You might come here for the fishing or as a quick getaway from Leicester or Nottingham. You might book a stay so you can visit nearby Rutland Water or the National Space Centre but we reckon it’ll be the excellent camping experience that will have you longing to come back.
Read More
Details
Facilities
Shepherd huts are kitted out for two with a double bed, a kitchenette featuring a two-ring electric hob, kettle, toaster, fridge, cookware, tableware and cutlery. Each also has an en-suite waterless composting toilet and shower. Outside, each has outdoor seating and two fishing pegs on the top lake. Bell tents are five metres and pitched on their own decks with outdoor seating, a fire pit and logs included. Millie is furnished with a double bed and two single camp beds and has cooking equipment provided including a camping stove, cookware and tableware. Campers (including bell tent campers) share two toilets and two horsebox showers, each with their own sink. There is also an undercover shelter with seating called The Badger’s Den and another shared area, The Old Chicken Shed, with two washing-up sinks, a communal fridge and freezer and mobile phone charging lockers (extra charge). There’s on-site fishing on two lakes (free for shepherd hut guests, extra charge for campers). Campfires are allowed in designated fire-pit areas and logs are for sale at £6 a bag.
Suitable For
Campers, glampers, fishermen – yes. Dogs, caravans, campervans – no.
Nearby
You need only step outside your camping or glamping accommodation to go fishing (booking in advance is recommended) but for other water-based activities try Rutland Water (20 miles away). This reservoir and waterpark is a popular spot for walking, running, cycling, birdwatching and watersports - not to mention more fishing. There are two more lakes along with thrills and spills at Twinlakes, a family theme and farm park just over 10 miles away just outside the market town of Melton Mowbray. For an undercover activity, try The National Space Centre (0116 2582107), which is just eight miles from site and home to the UK’s largest planetarium. The city of Leicester is also only eight miles away where there’s plenty to see and do. Current events and attractions can be found on the Visit Leicester website – but history buffs won’t want to miss the King Richard III Visitor Centre (0300 300 0900).
Food & Drink
During the summer, The Coffee Cart is open on site serving fresh coffee, tea and bacon and egg sandwiches, as well as other treats seven days a week from 8.00am-4.30pm. There are plenty of pubs in the villages near site including The Golden Fleece (01664 840275) in South Croxton which is the closest, just a mile-and-a-half away, and The Malt Shovel (0116 2692558), three miles away in Barkby. The Cheney Arms (01664 840260) is a little further but still within five miles. There’s a recommended coffee shop and farm shop three miles down the road, Roots at Thorpe Farm (0116 2608531). Also recommended is cafe and cycle centre, Cafe Ventoux, about nine miles from site where there are often sporting events and meets too.
Open
Camping and bell tents March–October. Shepherd huts all year.
Reviews
Add Your Review
Rated ★★★★★ over 24 reviews
★★★★★
A totally chilled break with the kids
This place is beautiful, has everything you could possibly need from toilets and showers tastefully decorated to fridges, food/coffee hut, ice packs and even charging points for phones and hair straighteners which made all the difference to me! We stayed in the furnished Millie tent and it’s huge. The boys fished on the lake a few days and caught plenty of fish. Plenty of space between pitches too so you don’t feel hemmed in by others. Mark the owner is really helpful. Our lamp had ran out of batteries so he came straight down with a couple of torches and a head torch then the following day he delievered 2 brand new lamps. Would definitely highly recommend!
★★★★★
Lovely chilled campsite with everything you need!
We stayed here (2 adults & an 11 year old) for 4 nights as a base to explore Leicestershire and were really pleased with this lovely campsite. Easy access to Leicester and surroundings. Very peaceful and friendly. Loved the quirky showers! Our son enjoyed the table football especially and there were several other nice kids for him to play with over the four days. Toilets, showers and washing up facilities were always clean and well-stocked (loo roll etc). We really appreciated being able to use the fridge and freezer as well as power points for charging our phones. Each pitch is spacious, private and has its own fire pit, which was lovely, and wood is available to buy. There is a great coffee cart open 8-4:30 selling barista coffee, muffins, snacks & hot rolls. Would have been great to have had vegan options though. However there are veggie marshmallows for sale for toasting on the campfire, which is great. The lake is lovely and very peaceful to walk round/sit and gaze at! Would recommend this to anyone wanting a small, chilled campsite. They’re also in the process of building a pizza oven!
★★★★★
Lovely quiet little campsite with everything you need
We stayed here (2 adults & an 11 year old) for 4 nights as a base to explore Leicestershire and were really pleased with this lovely campsite. Easy access to Leicester and surroundings. Very peaceful and friendly. Loved the quirky showers! Our son enjoyed the table football especially and there were several other nice kids for him to play with over the four days. Toilets, showers and washing up facilities were always clean and well-stocked (loo roll etc). We really appreciated being able to use the fridge and freezer as well as power points for charging our phones. Each pitch is spacious, private and has its own fire pit, which was lovely, and wood is available to buy. There is a great coffee cart open 8-4:30 selling barista coffee, muffins, snacks & hot rolls. Would have been great to have had vegan options though. However there are veggie marshmallows for sale for toasting on the campfire, which is great. The lake is lovely and very peaceful to walk round/sit and gaze at! Would recommend this to anyone wanting a small, chilled campsite. They’re also in the process of building a pizza oven!
★★★★★
Great camping site
We have had a great time at Purple Badger fishing and camping site. Everything was very nice and clean , we stayed for 3 night in Val tent and was a very nice experience as first time camping for us and our 2 kids. We enjoyed seeing so many families with their kids and watch the children playing together in a nice and safe place . Will definitely go back and recommend to our friends and family.
★★★★★
Gorgeous small & friendly site
Spent 3 nights in early Aug here, 3 adults, 2 kids- booked 2 pitches so we could have 2 tents but the pitches are a really good size so we could have managed with 1 and a huge tent! Really carefully thought out site, with pre-booked pitches clearly laid out- meadow down the middle (covering a small stream) divides the site, and there are only a few pitches anyway so didn't feel at all crowded even when full. Toilets and showers really nice - well designed and nice quirky features. Converted barn for washing up (& table football!) and a covered seating area really nice for wet mornings. Seemed to attract really lovely people- there was a range of kids there (mainly primary school age) who were really well behaved/ ready to make friends. having a table football was brilliant idea and also a mud kitchen for the little ones, also lovely to have the covered seating for colouring/ quiet games. Great to have the coffee cart on site, and also wood delivered each day! Only thing it was lacking was more space for kids to play but they managed by taking over an empty pitch for a mini game of beachball-footie : )
Response from Purple Badger Camping
Thank you Laura for the lovely feedback on the site and your stay with us.Its always appreciated to hear. We look forward to you visiting again. Mark and Helen.
★★★★★
Absolutely brilliant!
This was one of the best camping experiences we've had. Some gorgeous quirky touches and so peaceful. We are definitely coming back again without any hesitation. The wheelbarrows to get your luggage were such a great touch and the kids loved helping because it was fun! The badgers den and chicken shed were great places when the weather was a bit rubbish. The fire pits per pitch were great and so helpful having the logs waiting for you if you needed them in cages and a pay as you use kind of scheme. Really lovely for sitting around in an evening. The owners were so lovely, chatty and friendly and super helpful with discussing future group bookings. Literally couldn't fault a thing! Thanks guys 😊 Jo T and family x
Response from Purple Badger Camping
Thank you Jo and family for the lovely feedback! It’s really appreciated and we are glad that you had such a brilliant stay with us. We look forward to seeing you on your next stay 😀. Thanks
Mark and Helen.
★★★★★
Lovely Site
This site was 10/10! Beautifully maintained and really clean and nice facilities. The owners were super friendly towards us and accommodating, happy to help with everything both in communications prior to our visit and during. Would recommend to anyone wanting to go any kind of camping as the site has lots of options as to what you stay in.
Response from Purple Badger Camping
Thank you for the recommendation Liv! It sounds like you all had a great time and we will hopefully see you for another stay. Mark and Helen
★★★★★
Little paradise on earth
What an amazing experience! We stayed for 3 nights in one of the Shepherd’s huts and we absolutely loved it. The cabin had all the essential and was comfortable, spotless and surprisingly roomy. The weather was amazing and after visiting few places around we just enjoyed relaxing outside the hut with few drinks and stunning views. The hosts were very friendly and helped us with any questions we had. Another added bonus to this wonderful stay was morning trips to get a coffee and a bacon sandwiches from the coffee cart on site - what a wonderful idea! We were so sad to leave but cannot wait to come back again soon! Thank you!
★★★★★
Lovely family campsite
We stayed one night at Purple Badger campsite in our own tent. The site is cosy as it's not massive and feels safe to let the kids run about and explore. The lakes are lovely to walk around and feed the ducks. Each pitch has a fire pit and bench and territory is clear between pitches. The amenities are really nice and clean, I was very impressed! We would definitely return as we were made to feel very welcome and safe. The kids loved it. Thank you
Response from Purple Badger Camping
Thank you sam for the recommendation, it's appreciated. really pleased that you enjoyed your stay and we look forward to your next visit.
Thanks Mark and Helen.
★★★★★
A wonderful weekend
We stayed for two nights in the lovely bell tents Millie and Val for a hen party and were really impressed with every aspect of our stay. The furnishings of Millie were brilliant, with all the little details taken care of - lovely beds and bedding, pretty decor, a great little hut with crockery, cutlery and cooking supplies. All facilities from the shared washing up/ fridge and freezer space in the chicken shed, to the coverd seated area with plugs available, the toilets and especially the showers were all great quality and clearly well maintained and looked after. Food and drinks from the coffee cart were just what we all needed in the mornings. Would highly recommend and hopefully will be back again in the future.
Response from Purple Badger Camping
Thank you Sarah for the kind feedback. its always appreciated to hear how wonderful a time our guests have when they stay. It sound like it was a great weekend for your gathering and that you fully enjoyed the site. We hope to see you again in the near future. Mark and Helen.
★★★★★
A well needed break
I brought my 6 year old daughter here for a few nights for an escape, and it was perfect. We stayed in one of the huts, which had everything we needed and was very well laid out. We walked around the lakes 2 or 3 times a day, and she fell in love with the chickens and baby ducks. I'm thinking of rebooking very soon!
★★★★★
Idyllic break
Had a fantastic break at this campsite last weekend. Campsite facilities were perfect for the size of the site. Cannot wait to take another trip back here.
★★★★★
Peaceful and relaxing
Beautiful setting and the huts were very well furnished.
★★★★★
Fantastic stay!
We stayed in the shepherds hut and Val. The huts were cosy and everything we needed. Beautiful view in the morning over the top fishing lake,great place to relax! The safari tent was perfect and offered us the option of a camp fire in the evening. The sheds at the top gave us shelter when it rained and the kids loved the table football. Owner was friendly and really helpful. Great stay, we were able to see grandparents outdoors. They were also really accommodating moving our bookings twice because of lockdowns!
Response from Purple Badger Camping
Thanks Lisa, so glad that you enjoyed your stay and also got to experience the shepherds huts as well as the tents. As you say, even with a bit of rain you seemed to have had a great time. Hope to see you gain soon. Mark and Helen,
★★★★★
Beautifully tranquil
I have had the nicest 2 day break away staying in one of the Sheppard's Hut. I am a very experienced solo adventurer and I have stayed in various accommodations, but this was a new experience for me; I absolutely loved! The owner Mark was absolutely fantastic with check in and check out! Amazing effective communication throughout and always on hand via text if I needed anything. The location is beautiful and the Sheppard's Hut was beautifully decorated inside and out. The log burner was perfect for the wet weather— total home comforts. As a solo trip I felt safe, secure and my privacy was respected at all times! There's some lovely walks nearby I didn't want to venture too far away as I was basking in the total tranquility looking over the lake and watching the wildlife. I have thoroughly enjoyed myself and shall definitely be visiting again!!
Response from Purple Badger Camping
Thank you for such lovely feedback. It’s always great to hear when our guests have had such a great time that they are returning again. It sounds like the weather did not dampen your stay at all. See you again soon.
★★★★☆
A gorgeous venue with a cute cosy shepherds hut which we enjoyed staying in. Mark was incredibly friendly and accommodating as was his wife Helen providing us with much that we requested,
We thought the campsite and huts are beautifully situated. The hut is very modern and well thought out. We would have benefited from more structure to the storage area under the beds. When we asked for a few more items such a small heater and some more cooking equipment we received them immediately! Fresh eggs and milk were a thoughtful gesture when we arrived. Thank you for a very enjoyable stay!
Response from Purple Badger Camping
Thank you Patsy for the lovely feedback. We do appreciate all feedback. We are pleased that you had such a great 4 days away. Just to share with you from your feedback around storage , we have now added an external storage unit to enable guests to store suit cases and any other items that they do not necessarily need inside the hut. Particularly handy for any walking gear or other items brought for the ‘just in case’ situation. 😀. We hope to see you both again in the future. Thanks Mark.
★★★★★
Beautiful
Amazing little hut with a lively little view. Very modern and facilities are amazing. Regretted only staying one night especially with the cosy indoor log burner, very very cosy. Owners are lovely, friendly and very accommodating. We will definitely stay again.
Response from Purple Badger Camping
Thank you Nicola for the lovely feedback on your stay in the shepherds hut. One night can often feel that it's not long enough but at least you know where you can go for that next longer break. We look forward to seeing you again soon. Mark and Helen
★★★★★
Excellent and romantic, warm cosy fire place and a shower too!
This was a surprise night away from home, after a long day trekking in the Peak District arriving here was amazing! The fire place kept the shepherd's hut warm all night, loved the shower and toilet too (remember to sit down for a pee lads!). Such a lovely setup. I would definitely return for another stay, and for longer next time. Beautiful place to stay.
Response from Purple Badger Camping
Thank you Lee for the great feedback. Glad that you enjoyed your surprise night away and look forward to seeing you fo a longer stay next time. Thanks for the positive shout out on the toilets. The waterless compost toilets are definitely the way forward for the environment and a definite move on from the traditional sawdust style compost toilets. Thank you!
★★★★★
Awesome stay
We stayed in the shepherds hut at Purple Badger Camping and it was brilliant! It was kitted out with everything that we needed and the wood burner kept us nice and cosy. Mark and Helen are very lovely owners and made us feel very welcome. I would highly recommend this to anyone looking for a peaceful few days away. We will definitely be back again!
Response from Purple Badger Camping
Liv, thank you for the ‘brilliant’ feedback on your stay and the shepherds hut. We appreciate the recommendation and look forward to seeing you again soon fir a relaxing stay. Mark and Helen.
★★★★★
Amazing stay!
My boyfriend and I have stayed in quite a few shepherds huts around the uk and this one is definitely the best we’ve come across so far!! Our stay was perfect and we didn’t want for anything. Both Mark and Helen were absolutely lovely and catered to all our needs for no extra price and even had some eggs and milk for us. The shower and toilet inside the hut was a great luxury with the shower being one of the best I’ve had. We stayed inside with the log burner on which made an otherwise cold and rainy October evening a cosy experience that we will always remember. We will definitely be back!!!
Response from Purple Badger Camping
Thank you for the kind feedback on your ‘amazing stay’. We are pleased that you had such a great time and enjoyed everything available. We look forward to seeing you again soon. Mark and Helen
★★★★★
Amazing from start to finish!
Had an amazing stay at purple Badger camping. Helen and Mark couldn’t of been anymore accommodating and friendly. The bell tent was cosy and had everything we needed and more! Will definitely be visiting again. Thank you.
Response from Purple Badger Camping
Thank you for the lovely feedback. We are really pleased that you had such a lovely stay and are already planning to revisit. We look forward to seeing you soon. Mark and Helen.
★★★★★
AMAZING!!
Amazing night away in the Shepard’s hut. Well kitted out, comfy and cosy. Mark and Helen are very accommodating and the tea/coffee service in the morning is a special extra! Will definitely be visiting again!
Response from Purple Badger Camping
Thank you Emma for the lovely feedback. It's always great to hear that our guests have enjoyed their stay so much that they are already planning their return visit. See you again soon. Mark and Helen
★★★★★
Glamping Tent
Brilliant site, very friendly owner who met us and talked us through what was available. Exceptionally clean and all the amenities. Great price and would highly recommend and stay again!
★★★★★
Stylish camping in a beautiful location
We stayed in the Jude hut for a couple of nights and had a really lovely, relaxing break. Such a quiet site with trees lining the paths around the two lakes. The hut itself was really well equipped and the bed was SUPER comfortable. Beautifully appointed hut with everything you could need - even down to some freshly laid eggs and little jar of milk. Shower was surprisingly powerful and plentiful hot water supply. . Was great having a coffee cart to get your coffee and bacon sandwich in the morning! Mark (the owner) and his wife were lovely, and he even delivered our coffees whilst we fished. Fab! Highly recommended!
Show more
