Camping de Zwinhoeve

We loved how easy it was to get to the beach. A short climb up the steps and you're there, which worked so well with our kids and dog. The Zwinhoeve is also near the Zwin nature reserve, Cadzand, Knokke, Sluis and Bruges, so there are plenty of places for a day out. The kids' team put on something fun most evenings, and our two little ones loved the music and dancing. The restaurant served really good food, and the snackbar's fries were great too. The pitches are roomy enough for different kinds of tents and caravans. It felt like a family campsite, and nights stayed fairly quiet, which we appreciated with young children. The people working there were lovely, always friendly and smiling. Cleanliness was the weak spot for me. There are two shower and toilet blocks: one is new, pleasant and properly kept up; the other is very old and didn't seem to get cleaned well. After our three-week stay, the inside of the urinals still looked as if no brush had touched them, and by the end the smell was like a football stadium toilet. I started walking farther to use the newer block. The Wi-Fi could also be better for 2024. Sometimes it worked fine, then two minutes later we were disconnected. Even so, The Zwinhoeve was a good campsite and worth a visit.

With kids, there are plenty of games and activities, and the showers and bathrooms are just normal. We had electricity and water at our pitch, but the ground was marked out with tractor tires, had no grass and was far from level, so we ended up sleeping on dirt. The location is right behind the beach, which I suppose explains the price: €42 for a tent and two people, twice what we'd paid at other campsites.

The holiday homes had good equipment, though the bedrooms were tiny. It's an ideal place for a beach break, and the campsite staff were helpful and available. The restaurant staff could have been friendlier. We arrived in the rain after a long journey and couldn't get even a small bite because the kitchen was “about to close.”

The beach was just beyond the dike outside the site, and it's a great area for cycling. Reception was excellent, and we were given a handy smart canvas bag with information brochures. The price included an access card for the barrier and showers. We had some very heavy rain while we were there, and our pitch got waterlogged at times, but it didn't spoil the stay.