Run by a gregarious environmentalist and professional photographer, Stubcroft Farm is a sustainable lambing farm set in 50 acres close to the beautiful coastline ofWest Wittering.The campsite sits next to a handsome red-brick farmhouse, which, with its old pumps and nearby beehives, gives the place a real whiff of 'olde' England.

With a functional name like Basingstoke Canal Visitor Centre campsite, you might guess that this is an efficiently run, no-nonsense sort of operation that tells it how it is.You might also deduce that there's a canal nearby - the Basingstoke Canal runs along one edge of the site, mostly hidden behind trees but appearing at one corner along with a cute black-and-white swing bridge and narrowboats moored up for photo opportunities.This is the gateway to 32 miles of towpath on a beautiful British waterway offering cycling, walking, fishing, and boating.

New Forest Ponies can be traced back as far as 1016. Renowned for their friendliness, they don't restrict themselves to their own company. So when you're settling down to drink your hot cocoa under the myriad stars at Ashurst, you'll probably hear something munching close by; it's not a warthog or slavering beast watching you from the treeline, it's one of those gregarious gee-gees come to say hello.

Get ready for a change of pace in the New Forest, where horses and all manner of other woodland wildlife rule, but if you're very good, they might just agree to put you up for a few nights. Why not practice living harmoniously alongside these creatures at Roundhill, one of Forest Holidays' most outstanding campsites? Once an airfield, this expanse of heathland is at the forest's centre, and the sheltered pockets of land created by its numerous trees and shrubs provide the perfect pitching space.

The ultra-green, festival-hosting Isle of Wight has reinvented itself into a hip little island offering something for everyone today, with exceptional waves for surfers, as well as kite-surfing, paragliding, and summer events that attract new crowds every year.

Small, shy, retiring kinds of campsites are as rare as hen's teeth on the Isle ofWight, so while Stoats Farm may not entice the bat of a cockerel's eyelid anywhere else in Britain, here on Holiday Park Isle this is a campsite to treasure. Stoats Farm has a great location, nestling in a shallow valley at the far-western tip of the island. Rural is the effect -very rural - but it's all a cunning deception, for this is really a coastal site of some distinction.

The campsite is on the edge of the beautiful market town of Charlbury, with stunning views across the EvenlodeValley. It offers a couple of grass fields flanked by pine trees, with walks across open countryside accessible through a gate at the back. There's a compact and bijou summerhouse for those seeking indoor space in inclement weather; the washing facilities are all housed in the yard next to the field; and there's even a small modern kitchen. So all in all it's a very civilised affair.

Being able to pitch a tent in the Cotswolds is an extremely rare occurrence, so somewhat apt that it is possible here - at a rare breeds farm. This place is a huge hit with families, as you're next to the popular Cotswold Farm Park, also known as Adam's Farm on the BBC's Countryfile programme. You're surrounded by the sights, snorts, and smells of all creatures great and small; from Highland cattle and Gloucester Old Spot pigs to chickens and donkeys.

Some may wonder why we'd feature such a big, 'corporately run' site, but as soon as you drive under the barrier at Bracelands you'll get it. Location, location, location: huge, immaculately manicured grass pitches with the most stunning forest backdrop, amid the freshest, pine-scented air that Gloucestershire has to offer.

Thistledown is, quite simply, enchanting. More than just a beautiful campsite nestled among 70 acres of organic meadow and woodland, it is inspirational, too. It was a dream realised by Richard Kelly, who has years of experience in environmental design and construction, as well as (arming. He has nurtured Thistledown since 1993, when he began creating habitats for the wide range of local plants and wildlife. Richard now runs it as an environmental learning centre with his son Ryan, and neither could be more helpful or enthusiastic about this camping environment.