http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/ Welcome to Been there. Your tips on the places you know - that you love, live in or have just visited - are what make this guide. http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/18820 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/18820 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/18761 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/18761 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/18760 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/18760 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/18726 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/18726 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/18588 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/18588 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/18561 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/18561 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/18359 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/18359 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/18038
There is no formal camp ground. You pitch your tent on the grass next to the beach and put some money in a box in the local village. There are public toilets to use but other than that, this is pretty wild camping.

The area is really safe so the kids can go off and explore the beach and rock pools whilst you relax and get the camp fire going. Long summer days, lovely walking, swimming, fresh air and starry skies. This is a wonderful, memorable place to take the family.]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/18038 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/18027 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/18027 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/18008
The very basic campsite is within walking distance of both the town and the beach - so no worries about evening drinking. The huge beach is great for swimming, bodyboarding, rockpooling and sandcastle building. In Comillas, you can get up late, have late lunches and late dinners, just really chill out - and there's not too many British travellers! The climate is perfect for camping - you won't be boiled out of your tent in the morning!

Get the ferry to Bilbao or Santander and drive there - the ferry journey is great fun - kids love it and it's so relaxing! There is plenty to see and do in the area apart from just lazing on the beach. You can visit the fantastic nature park of Cabárceno, palaeolithic rock art caves, the Guggenheim in Bilbao, the oceanographic museum and aquariums of Santander, Gaudi's only building outside of Barcelona or the perfectly preserved medieval village of Santillana del mar - there really is something to please everyone in this area of Spain.

Just don't everyone rush there and spoil it!]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/18008 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/17998 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/17998 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/17992
Moran State Park on Orcas Island has lovely scenic campsites with excellent access to hiking, biking, swimming, and boating. The view from the lookout on Mt. Constitution is well worth the hike (or drive).

Orca whale-watching is best off of nearby San Juan Island, where you can also visit the charming village of Friday Harbor.]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/17992 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/17846
Why? Because it is one of the most fun, memorable, exhilarating things the whole family can do together, and it's free. (Our four-year-old still talks about running down the Pyla dunes last summer.)

When? Any time between May and September should give you good weather. August is predictably busy, but the sheer expanse of the sands means it's never going to be packed.]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/17846 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/17725 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/17725 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/17642
Beaches are shallow and muddy, with a huge tidal range; I can't recommend them for anything. We camped a few miles along the coast at Blue Anchor Bay, which also has little to recommend it (except for the picture-postcard steam trains of the West Somerset Railway, which pointlessly and uselessly goes almost all of the way into Taunton) - and more muddy beaches.

The nearby Quantocks are great for walking and more fantastic sea views where the line of steep hills hit the coast.]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/17642 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/17607
I'd recommend it for those on a budget as the snorkelling rivals any organised trip on the Great Barrier Reef and can be done to your own schedule.

Stay at the nearby campsite for a few days and you can venture out on to the reef as many times as you like and see reef sharks, turtles, trumpet fish, octopuses, you name it. It's also handy if you fancy doing a diving course without being out at sea for days, or if you want to take in a leisurely glass-bottom boat tour. It's best to visit outside of the school holidays.]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/17607 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/17599 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/17599 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/17328
You can even rent it out for weddings and there's a little company that will do tent hire. They have these fantastic coloured Mongolian yurts. We went there for a wedding and they put on a full blown fire show for all the people on the field. Just brilliant.]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/17328 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/17031
There are a number of rental places on the main drag on the edge of town on the mainland where you can rent a four-wheel drive car complete with full camping kit. You will usually be shown a short video about off-road driving - pay attention, as the island is crossed by narrow tracks composed of very soft sand which take some getting used to.

A short ferry ride later and you are there. Cross the island to the east side, where you'll find 70-mile Beach. As the name suggests, this is a long beach; at low tide, it becomes a 100-metre wide road along which you can drive the length of the island, stopping off at various points to explore the rain forest or lakes.

In the evening, you can pull off the beach through a break in the dunes to camp under the stars, miles from anyone else and as close to nature as you can get (but still with the security blanket of a four-wheel drive, tent, cooker and whatever provisions you picked up from the supermarket in Hervey Bay).

We spent several weeks in Australia a couple of years ago and, although we are relatively seasoned travellers, Fraser Island is one of our favourite memories and places in the world.]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/17031 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/17003
Etsha, on the west road, is a string of small, friendly villages set up by former Angolan refugees, and the community trust runs trips of as many days as you want to stunningly beautiful locations away from any car, plane or motorboat. Our Etsha guides knew everything there was to know about the place and how best to experience it. We went from Guma Lagoon camp, 11km off the metal road, but there are other places to be picked up or to get help arranging things.]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/17003