Cranfield lies at the most southerly point of County Down at the mouth of Carlingford Lough. Cranfield Caravan Park, a five-star park in west Cranfield with distant views of the Mourne Mountains overlooks (and has direct access to) a blue-flag beach.

My wife and I decided to visit the park in May 2008. The weather was good and I attempted to book a week before we intended to arrive. When I rang the contact number on the caravan park site I was impressed by the friendly and helpful telephone manner of the person I spoke with.

I was told that a touring site could not be reserved in advance. When I asked what would happen if we arrived and there was no site available, I was told that there SHOULD be a site available. Naturally, I was still a little bit apprehensive that caravans would flood in from all over Northern Ireland, as the weather was very pleasant for May.

We wanted to check in for the weekend (in on the Friday and out on the Sunday). A minimum number of nights stay was not mentioned.

As it was not possible to reserve a site, a deposit was not required at booking time. This had the distinct advantage that should it be lashing from the heavens or something important come up at home, one could simply cancel the caravan plans without being out of pocket.

We arrived at approximately 7:00pm on the Friday night. The road leading into the site was a small B-road.

The Park provided for touring caravans, motorhomes, trailer tents and static caravans.

The owner Jim was very friendly and welcoming and luckily quite a few touring sites where still available. For a touring caravan and two adults we paid £16 per night, plus a £20 refundable deposit for a key, which allowed access to the toilet/shower block and other facilities. We bought some shower tokens at £0.50 each.

The touring caravan area consisted of 4 rows of sites. The front row was prime position as it overlooked the sea with a fantastic view. Unfortunately, by the time we arrived the front row was completely taken so we had to settle for a spot in the middle of the second row. Even in the second row it was still possible to have a good view out to sea. The third and fourth rows were further back and rose slightly up the hill. A smaller area for touring caravans allowed for a further 7 caravans and was situated convenient to the toilet block but further from the sea. Mountains could be seen on the horizon behind the touring area. There was little shelter as only a small hedge ran along the edge of the site.

The touring area was grassy with tarmac roads and a hardstand on each pitch. Beside each hardstand was a post with a drinking water tap and an electrical socket (16 amps). 19 sites (1st and 2nd rows only) had a flap through which a waste water pipe could be fed.

The toilet block was small yet clean and modern. The provided key allowed access to both the male and female side. Inside the male side of the toilet block there were 2 toilets, 2 urinals and 2 wash basins which didn’t seem a lot however I did not see another person inside the block on the Saturday. The male side also contained a family shower room and a disabled room. Each of these spacious rooms had a toilet, hand basin, shower and seat. When I visited the shower room on the morning at approximately 8:30 it had just been cleaned. The female side was exactly the same layout as the male side without the urinals.

The showers did not have a temperature control but pumped out a good temperature of hot water. One token provided approx. 4 minutes showering. One of my wife’s tokens failed to start the shower. Luckily she had a spare with her and the girl on reception refunded her token afterwards without question. The second morning I showered, the shower lasted for 8 minutes. I can only presume that inserting my token dislodged another token stuck in the box.

More toilets and showers were available in the static area of the park, a few minutes walk away. In addition there was a spacious laundry room providing washing, drying and ironing facilities.

A Phone Box was also close by.

There wasn’t a dedicated children’s play area in the park, however there was one nearby.

Dogs were welcome but there were signs in the park that they should be kept on a lead.