You wake up to gulls arguing over the cliff edge, the smell of someone’s bacon three pitches over, and a line of grey-blue sea that wasn’t there when you fell asleep because the mist has only just lifted. That’s the kind of Camping in Scarborough most people fall for, and it is easier to find than you would think. This stretch of the North Yorkshire coast packs cliff-top pitches, quiet farm fields, forest clearings, and full-blown family holiday parks into a radius you can drive across in under an hour.
Camping in Scarborough has been in the holiday business for about 360 years, so it is the original seaside resort in England. What that means for you is choice. Whether you want a tent pitch that’s nothing but a hedge between you and a Wolds sunset, or a park with a heated pool and a bar with a Saturday-night act, the coast has a place for it. Below are 15 campsites worth the drive, sorted so you can find the one that matches your trip rather than someone else’s.
A quick note on prices: the “from” figures here are peak-season starting points and move around a lot by month, pitch type, and how far ahead you book. Treat them as a rough guide and check the site’s own booking page before you commit.
How We Picked These Scarborough Campsites
Not every campsite near the coast gets a scenic label, so a few things mattered more than star ratings. Views were first, whether that meant the sea, the Yorkshire Wolds, or the forest. Location was second, because a good pitch an hour inland is a different holiday from one you can walk to the beach from. Clean facilities, a good pitch, and whether the place actually fulfills the promise in its brochure once you arrive were the practical stuff after that.
The result is a mix. Some are peaceful adult-only boltholes. Some are loud, brilliant family parks. A couple is working farms, where the loudest thing is a tractor at seven. All of them make a strong base for Camping in Scarborough, sitting within easy reach of the town itself.
Coastal & Cliff-Top Campsites
If the whole point of your trip is the sea, start here. For anyone whose idea of Camping in Scarborough means falling asleep to the sound of surf, these sit close enough that you can smell the salt.
1. Crows Nest Caravan Park, Gristhorpe
Crows Nest is on the cliff top between Camping in Scarborough and Filey, and a lot of long-standing regulars would quietly guard it. There are around 100 non-electric grass pitches and electric options, and the beauty is the open coast, big skies, and a footpath down to the water. It is open, so bring a windbreak and the strongest pegs of your choice, but on a clear evening, the sunset over the Wolds behind you is the kind you stop talking mid-sentence for. Facilities are well maintained, and the seaside runs of both towns are minutes away.
From around £20/night (check current rates).
2. Flower of May Holiday Park, Lebberston
Sitting on the cliff top about 4.5 miles from Camping in Scarborough and 2.5 from Filey, Flower of May is the answer when half your group wants the coast, and the other half wants a heated indoor pool and a bowling alley. It has an AA 5-pennant rating, and the touring pitches run in wide, shrub-lined avenues, with views across the Yorkshire Wolds to the sea. It has a bar, a takeaway, an on-site shop, and a bus stop at the top of the long drive (if you don’t want to leave your car parked), and families do book it and rebook it.
From around £25/night (check current rates).
3. Cayton Village Caravan Park, Cayton
This one is run by the Caravan and Motorhome Club and earns its place on walkability alone. Cayton Bay, a proper sandy beach with dog-friendly stretches, is a short walk away, and the cliff-top path towards Filey Brigg is some of the best coastal walking on this part of the map. The site has a dog wash and a dog walk straight out of the gate, so it suits anyone travelling with a four-legged member of the party. Pitches are fair and generous; Scarborough is a ten-minute drive north.
From around £22/night (check current rates).
4. Cayton Bay Holiday Park, Cayton
Parkdean’s Cayton Bay is the full holiday-park experience: pool, entertainment, kids’ clubs, and the lot. If you have children who measure a good holiday in activities per hour, this is where Scarborough Camping stops being about the tent and starts being about the timetable. Touring and Camping in Scarborough pitches are next to caravan hire and lodges, and the beach is within walking distance. It is busy, and it is not trying to be peaceful, so book it for the buzz, not the birdsong.
From around £18/night for touring (check current rates).
Countryside & Farm Campsites
Moving a few miles inland, the coast trades places with hedgerows, working farms, and the kind of quiet that makes you sleep too long. These sit on the southern edge of the North York Moors and across the Vale of Pickering.
5. Jasmine Park, Snainton
If one place keeps appearing when people talk about Jasmine Park Camping, there is a reason. Set on the edge of the village of Snainton, midway between Scarborough and Pickering, this award-winning, five-star park is the sweet spot between coast and country. You get spacious, level pitches, immaculate toilet and shower blocks, an on-site shop, and a play area that keeps younger campers busy while the adults do nothing on purpose. It’s truly calm, backed by countryside on the southern edge of the North York Moors, and Scarborough is a 20-minute drive when you want the sea.
What pushes Jasmine Park Camping above the usual is that it is a bit of a balance. It is peaceful without being remote, family-friendly without being chaotic, and close enough to the Moors that a morning walk before breakfast is a real option. The village itself has golf, horse riding, and coarse fishing at nearby Wykeham Lakes and a woodturning center if the weather turns out to be a hazard. The only honest complaint of past campers is that tent pitches may be a fair walk from the facilities, so take your spot with that in mind.
Address: Cross Lane, Snainton, YO13 9BE.
From around £29/night (check current rates).
6. Lebberston Touring Park, Lebberston
Lebberston is the quiet, tidy, five-star-rated cousin of the busier coastal parks. It sits on the line between Scarborough and Filey, with views over the Yorkshire coast, but it’s deliberately calm: no clubhouse, no arcade, just well-drained pitches and a friendly team. Couples and older families who want a base for exploring rather than a resort to stay in will enjoy it. For low-key Scarborough Camping with the beaches a short drive away, the peace at night is the selling point.
From around £24/night (check current rates).
7. Arosa Caravan and Camping Park, Sawdon
Tucked near the village of Sawdon on the edge of the Moors, Arosa is a spacious, well-run site that works as a base for both the coast and the national park. Pitches can be grass or hardstanding; there is an on-site bar and shop, and the surrounding countryside is quiet walking territory. It is far enough from the seafront to feel like the country and close enough that Scarborough is an easy trip when you want chips on the front.
From around £22/night (check current rates).
8. Merry Lees Caravan Park, Staintondale
Merry Lees is a smaller woodland-set site with ponds scattered throughout it and is situated on the border of the North York Moors and the rolling Wolds. It’s the sort of place people often find by chance and return to on purpose. It’s peaceful and green and away from the crowds for campers; they want the countryside version of camping in Scarborough, with the coast still within reach for day trips.
From around £20/night (check current rates).
Forest & Adults-Only Escapes
Some trips call for trees, and some call for no children at all. These two sides of Camping in Scarborough cover both.
9. Spiers House, Cropton Forest
Spiers House is a proper forest campsite operated by Forest Holidays on Forestry England land: pitches are ringed by woodland, with miles of trails leading straight off the site. It is a longer drive from Scarborough than to the coastal parks, but the payoff is a different kind of quiet, plus off-leash walking for dogs on many of the forest tracks. The village of Cropton is a mile away and has the New Inn with its own microbrewery, and Dalby Forest with its mountain-bike trails and Go Ape is a brief hop. This is the one for campers who want woods over waves.
From around £22/night (check current rates).
10. Brooklands Caravan Site and Fishery, Thornton-le-Dale area
Brooklands, an adults-only and built around a fishing lake place, is a good place to hang out between Scarborough, Pickering, Whitby, and Malton. It’s a quiet, serene spot for couples wanting to fish, read, and hear nothing but the water. If your idea of a good trip isn’t a bouncy pillow and kids’ disco, this is your kind of place.
From around £22/night (check current rates).
11. Wykeham Grange, Wykeham
There’s a small caravan and motorhome club-certified location on two-level acres alongside the edge of Wykeham Forest, and that is the intimate, get-away-from-it-all one. It has only a few pitches on mixed lawn and hardstanding and lots of good views across the Vale of Pickering. Facilities are simple by design. You come here for the space and the silence, not for a pool, and the North Yorkshire Water Park at nearby Wykeham Lakes gives you an easy day out when you want one.
From around £18/night (check current rates).
Family Holiday Parks Near Scarborough
If the trip is really about keeping several ages happy at the same time, these lean into facilities without losing the location.
12. St. Helens in the Park, Wykeham
St Helens is the place that quietly out-facilities almost everyone. Set on the edge of the North York Moors about 15 minutes from Scarborough, this eco-conscious park has manicured grounds, an on-site cafe, a shop, a play park, a dog walk, a dog wash and even a bookable jacuzzi relaxation suite. There are family areas and adult-only areas, so you can choose your neighbours, and the facility blocks offer underfloor heating and free hairdryers, something you don’t expect to write about at a campsite. It won a Best Family Campsite award for the North East for good reason.
From around £29/night (check current rates).
13. Pinewood Park, Scarborough
Award-winning and just two miles from Scarborough town centre, Pinewood is the choice for facilities and a truly short run into town. A four-star Visit England site that works for couples after a quiet escape and families who want the beach and arcades to be in reach. The setting is leafier than you would expect this close to the centre, which is part of the appeal.
From around £24/night (check current rates).
14. Camping in Scarborough and Caravanning Club Site
The Club site’s key feature is location: a short cliff-top walk takes you to Scarborough itself, and that’s something almost nothing else on this list can say. That makes it the best choice for anyone doing car camping UK-style trips who wants to leave the car and walk to the seafront, the castle, and the arcades. Facilities are the reliable Club standard, pitches are well managed, and you trade a little wildness for a lot of convenience.
From around £26/night (check current rates).
15. Castle Howard Lakeside Holiday Park
The furthest inland on the list, and it’s worth the drive if you want something different. It’s a good choice for Car Camping UK trips; you’ll want the car for coast runs. Lakeside pitches are situated on the Great Lake from Castle Howard itself, and they have a mixture of grass and hardstanding, an on-site shop, and direct access to the Cleveland Way. Scarborough is about a 30–40-minute drive, so this is less a beach base and more a countryside and home base, and the coast is a shop trip. Open year-round and truly peaceful.
From around £25/night (check current rates).
Camping Tips for a Scarborough Trip
There are a few things that separate a good coastal trip from a soggy one. These Camping in Scarborough Tips for Camping in Scarborough come from what actually goes wrong on this stretch of coast, not from some generic list. Follow the Camping Tips below, and most first-timers avoid the classic mistakes.
Pitch your tent at home first. Do it once in the garden before you leave. You will see the missing pole, the ripped guy line or the fact that you have never actually put this tent up, all of which are better problems to have on a Tuesday at home than at dusk on a cliff.
Respect the wind. The cliff-top sites are exposed, and a coastal gust will flatten a badly pegged tent. Make sure you have proper pegs, a windbreak, and a mallet. And this one piece of advice saves more trips than any other.
Pack for four seasons in one day. Yorkshire coast weather does what it likes. Waterproofs go in the bag even in July, layers beat one bulky coat, and sun cream still matters on a breezy day when you do not feel the burn coming.
Grass or electric? For a first-time trip, a simple non-electric grass pitch is enough. Most sites let you charge phones in the facility blocks, so electric hook-up is a nice-to-have rather than a need. Save your money for chips.
Keep meals easy. Bacon sandwiches, one-pot pasta, and a BBQ cover most of a weekend. When you can’t be bothered, Scarborough and Filey are full of chip shops and cafes, and there’s no shame in that being the plan all along.
Arrive in daylight. Setting up a tent by headtorch is a rite of passage nobody enjoys twice. Aim to reach your pitch with a couple of hours of light to spare.
Your Camping in Scarborough Checklist UK Edition
Print this or screenshot it. A good Camping Checklist UK trip runs on not forgetting the boring things, and a coastal stay adds a few of its own. Keep this Camping Checklist UK handy the night before you pack.
The non-negotiables
- Tent, poles, pegs, and mallet.
- Sleeping bags and airbeds or mats.
- Torch or headlamp, plus spare batteries.
- Camping in Scarborough chairs.
- Waterproofs and warm layers
Cooking and eating
- Portable stove or BBQ, plus fuel.
- Cool box and ice packs.
- Pans, plates, cutlery, and a sharp knife.
- Bin bags and a washing-up kit
Coast-specific extras
- Windbreak and strong pegs (the coast will test them).
- Sun cream and a hat.
- Power bank for phones.
- A change of dry shoes
Nice to have
- Extra blankets for cold nights.
- A pack of cards for the inevitable rainy hour.
- A flask for beach mornings.
Whether you are travelling light on a weekend or loading the boot for a week of Car Camping UK adventures, working from a list beats trusting your memory at 6am on departure day.
Final Thoughts
The best thing about camping in Scarborough is that you are not really choosing one holiday. You are choosing a base, and the coast does the rest. From a cliff-top pitch at Crows Nest to the forest quiet of Spiers House to the family whirl of Cayton Bay, every site on this list puts you within reach of sandy beaches, the castle on the headland, and some of the best coastal walking in England.
Pick the site that matches the trip you actually want, not the one with the longest facilities list. Pack for the wind, arrive in daylight, and give yourself a night to do nothing at all. And book early, because the good pitches on this coast do not sit empty for long. The price and opening details change by season. As soon as possible, confirm all of the current prices, availability, and facilities with each campsite through the campsite booking.
FAQs
1. What time of year is camping best for Scarborough?
Ans: In Scarborough, late May to early September is the prime window for Camping in Scarborough, so you are likely to have the warmest, driest odds and the best facilities, because some sites and pools are seasonal. July and August are the busiest and priciest, so if you can go there in June or early September, you have better weather value and quieter pitches. Some of the parks, Castle Howard Lakeside in particular, are still open year-round for the hardier campers.
2. Was Jasmine Park good for families?
Ans: Yes. Jasmine Park Camping is a good first choice for families with their kids, with its kids’ play area, level pitches, clean facilities, and quiet, safe village setting near Snainton. It’s peaceful when compared to resort life, so it is more suited to families who are used to a quiet evening with no music or entertainment on-site. Book for school holidays early because it fills up fast.
3. And how can one camp out near Scarborough Beach without a car?
Ans: You can. The Camping in Scarborough and Caravanning Club Site is a short cliff-top walk from town, and Flower of May and Cayton Bay have bus stops close to the entrance. That said, most of the quieter countryside sites really do need a car to reach and to make the most of.
4. What dog-friendly campsites are there in Scarborough?
Ans: Plenty. Cayton Village and St. Helens in the Park have dog washes and dedicated dog walks, and Cayton Bay, Flower of May, and Spiers House all welcome dogs. Cayton Bay Beach has dog-friendly stretches, and the cliff-top paths to Filey Bridge are good for walks, but seasonal beach restrictions in high summer can be a concern.
5. How much does camping in Scarborough cost?
Ans: Camping in Scarborough borough Camping is reasonably priced by seaside-holiday standards. Touring and tent pitches generally start between £18 and £29 per night for two people in peak season, depending on the site and whether you hope to have an electric hook-up. The prices go up in July and August and drop sharply in the shoulder season. Always check the site’s own booking page, as rates are fluctuating and midweek stays are frequently cheaper.
6. Do I need to book ahead?
Ans: For summer weekends and school holidays, yes, especially for the most popular family parks and Jasmine Park Camping, which books out early. Outside those windows, you can often find last-minute space, but the best-located pitches, particularly cliff-top ones, go first.
