Thorncombe Farm

Thorncombe Farm is a small working-farm campsite and bell tent glamping site near Higher Bockhampton, about two miles from Dorchester in Dorset. The mostly flat ground has views across the valley and sits right beside Thorncombe Woods and Puddletown Forest, with Thomas Hardy's birthplace at Hardy's Cottage in the neighbouring woods. There is space for 25 grass pitches taking tents, caravans, motorhomes and trailer tents, each priced for two adults and a car and holding up to eight people, with electric hook-ups and a site now running on solar power. For glampers, five-metre bell tents sleep up to four, with beds, furniture, electricity, a separate dining tent and a fire pit, though dogs are not allowed inside them. Dogs are welcome on the grass pitches (maximum two per tent). A low-noise policy runs from 9pm and amplified music is banned, so Thorncombe Farm suits quiet campers and families rather than large party groups. Beyond the usual showers, toilets and washing-up area, the farm sells free-range eggs and its own meat, burgers and sausages, and fire pits can be hired. Weymouth and the Jurassic Coast are a short drive south. Bell tents open from 1 May to 30 September, and pitch prices are quoted through the operator's booking system.