Located in a meadow adjacent to Northmoor Lock Paddocks, we now offer luxury breaks in one of our 4, fully furnished, 5 metre bell tents.
Bell tents have been around since the 19th Century when they were used extensively by prospectors in the Old West and troops in the British military. Fire retardant and fully weather proof for all seasons, our Bell tents are a modern take on a classic design, changing the camping landscape and encouraging even the most discerning to go camping.
Each bell tent is pitched and fully equipped – ready and waiting for you to begin your break the moment you arrive.
Not long back from a Fri-Sun glamping weekend in one of Barefoot Camping’s bell tents. We are seasoned campers, and have visited the Northmoor Lock site before with our own kit, but we wanted something a bit more luxurious to celebrate a ‘special’ birthday! The bell tent was fantastic – lovely warm and dry with loads of room. The internal furnishings were brilliant and really well thought out. I’d highlight the comfy bed and the gorgeous tea-light chandelier, but also little touches like providing a candle lighter helped make it such a great experience and outside the bench and fire-tripod completed the luxury … We’d absolutely recommend the bell-tent experience and hope to go back soon. a BIG thanks to Cathie and team for making us feel so welcome.”
Cool Camping review ‘bell tent was outstanding’ Derek June 2015
What’s inside a Bell Tent?
- Double bed, memory foam mattress, fitted bottom sheet
- * Duvet, pillows and bed-linen available for hire (13.5tog double feather duvet, duvet cover, pillows, pillow protectors and pillow cases)
- Nightlight candle chandelier
- Crockery, cutlery, mugs, tumblers and wine glasses
- Cooking utensils: chopping board, knives, colander, cheese grater, measuring jug, salad bowl, BBQ tools, ladle and large spoons, cork screw & bottle opener, lighter, cork pan stands
- Gas stove & kettle for early morning cups of tea or coffee
- 10L Water carrier
- 70 Litre coolbox (2kg bags of ice available for purchase from the campsite office)
- Fire blanket and carbon monoxide alarm
- Windy Smithy wood burner
- Children’s melamine crockery with melamine or stainless steel cutlery for little hands as required
What’s outside a Bell Tent?
- Sturdy 6-seat wooden picnic table
- Bon-Fire fireplate, tripod and grill, camp kettle, 6 litre stew pot, 4.5 litre billy can, paella pan
- Washing up bowl, draining rack, washing up liquid, dishcloth, washing up brush, T-towels
- Recycling, food waste and rubbish caddys
- 2 Padded Sunloungers (please bring a towel to lie on to protect the cover from suncream), can also be used as camp-beds
Bell Tents in Little Clays Meadow
2023 Bell Tent Fees
- 3-night Bank Holiday Weekend: Friday to Monday : £400 (Check-in after 2pm on Friday, check-out by 1pm on Monday)
- 4-night May Bank Holiday Weekend: Friday to Tuesday : £500 (Check-in after 2pm on Friday, check-out by 1pm on Tuesday)
- 4-night August Bank Holiday Weekend: Thursday to Monday : £500 (Check-in after 2pm on Thursday, check-out by 1pm on Monday)
- Other Weekends: 2 nights, Friday to Sunday : £300 (Check-in after 2pm on Friday, check-out by 1pm on Sunday)
Prices are based on 2 occupants. Additional glampers (up to a maximum of 4 adults or 2 adults and 3 children per Bell Tent) are charged as follows:
- Adults (age 18+) : £20 per night
- Teenagers (Secondary school age 11-17) : £10 per night
- Children (Primary school age 5-10) : £5 per night
- Pre-school (age 4 & under) : FOC
Optional Extras
Free parking for 1 vehicle per bell tent
- Additional Vehicle : £12
- Duvet, pillows and bed-linen hire for double bed (as detailed above) beds made up ready for your arrival : £25
£100 Cleaning and damages deposit (refundable)
We have taken care when furnishing and equipping the bell tents to cover all your needs. Please let us know if we have forgotten something or if you have any ‘wish-list’ suggestions.
We expect a certain amount of wear and tear and replace/upgrade items as required, however damages will be duducted from the deposit.
As with holiday homes, we request that each bell tent is left appropriately clean and tidy ready for the next guests, this means ensuring all crockery, cutlery and cooking equipment is washed, dried and packed away, rubbish taken to the bins etc. A deposit of £100 is included in your pitch fees which will be refunded within 7 days of departure, assuming there is no loss or damage to the Bell Tent, equipment or furnishings, and no additional cleaning, rearranging or sorting of furnishings, equipment and storage boxes is required before the Bell Tent can be re-let. Please see: Bell Tent Essentials 2024
Click on this link to check availability & Book a Bell Tent
Want to come with friends?
Yes, we do accept groups but its’ subject to certain conditions and we’ll need accurate information to be able to assess your group request
You can find out more on our Camping as a Group at Barefoot
Little Clays Meadow
Located adjacent to Northmoor Lock Paddocks, the field margins of Little Clays Meadow has been managed for ground-nesting birds for the past 10 years. A small area of this meadow has now been cut to accommodate the Bell Tents. There is a real prairie-feel to this site.
It’s only a short walk through to Upper Lock Paddock for access to the river for swimming or launching a canoe.
Bell Tent FAQs
Information about what we have and what we don’t have in the way of facilities can be found on the ‘Campsite facilities’ page under the Barefoot Facts tab
- Your preferred choice of bedding – sleeping bags, duvet, pillows etc. However, if you’d like to save space in your car and make your camping trip even easier with your bed made up ready for your arrival, we do offer a bedding and bed linen pack for hire @ £22 per visit (13.5 tog double feather duvet, duvet cover, pillows, pillow protectors and pillow cases)
- If there are more than 2 of you coming you will need to bring additional bedding (airbeds, sleeping bags, pillows etc) for the additional campers, although the 2 sun loungers can also be used as camp beds. We will provide sufficient crockery and cutlery for you all.
- Towels (please note, these are not included in the bed linen package)
- A good torch will be handy to get to the loo when it’s dark
- You’ll need to bring food and drinks. The village shop is open from 7am to 7pm Monday to Friday, 7am to 1pm on Saturday (4pm in July & August) and 8am to 12 midday on Sunday and has a good range of food. Millets Farm shop is only 10 minutes drive away and has an excellent rang of BBQ meats, fish, bread & cakes, deli etc
- Each Bell Tent has a picnic table but you may like to bring a picnic rug for the grass
- Other things not to forget are: suncream; wellies and wet weather clothing – just incase.
- Need bedding for the kids? Lookout for the self-inflating CleverBed suitable for age 2-8 yearsor these airbeds available from Amazon, just google ‘airbeds for children’
- PLEASE NOTE: We don’t provide cots for babies and toddlers – you’ll need to bring your own travel cot.
Northmoor Lock Paddocks and Little Clays Meadow are back to basics campsites and there is no electric hook up.
Our Bell Tents measure 5 metres across so they’re quite spacious. The pitch fee includes camping for 2 but an additional 2 adults may stay in the Bell Tent, or 3 children.
Yes, we’re happy for you to bring a small, 2-man pup tent* for the kids which can be pitched adjacent to the Bell Tent (* please enquire)
Acoustic guitars, tin whistles and other ‘quiet’ instruments are welcome, but it’s a big NO-NO for amplified music – CD players, radios etc. Whilst you no doubt enjoy the music you are playing, the sound can carry and be incredibly annoying to other campers who have come here to relax and unwind. No drums either please!
Want to come with friends?
Yes, we do accept groups but its’ subject to certain conditions and we’ll need accurate information to be able to assess your group request
You can find out more on our Camping as a Group at Barefoot page
We are trying to create a particular ‘feel’ and exclusivity to the Bell Tent meadow. Following feedback from previous guests we don’t allow other tents to pitch alongside except other bell tents.
Most well-behaved dogs are welcome on the campsite, subject to certain conditions which you can check out on our Bringing you dog to Barefoot page, however, dogs are NOT allowed in the Log Pods or Bell Tents – sorry!