Catlins - Newhaven Holiday Park, Surat Bay — Hotel in South Island

The campsite is located on the coast and is a small one. The campsite parkings could be planned or organised in a better way to make it easier for parking large vehicles. The ground was mushy and soggy from rain creating a thick layer of sponge of grass even in light rain. The vehicle couldn't be stabilised due to lack of firm ground and we feared having our tyres trapped the next morning. There was only 1 toilet and 1 toilet/shower, making people to queue. The showers were timed for 6 minutes and charged 2 NZD. The wash basins had 2 taps - one for extremely freezing water and the other for very hot water, making daily ablutions a tricky task. There wère hand sanitizers available but no hand wash liquids or paper towels or hand dryers. The facility was very bare minimum. The campsite has access to a narrow strip of beach where we were informed that seals could be spotted. But we didn't see any after walking for about a kilometer or more. The site would have seemed prettier and less messier without the rain. The hosts were very sweet and welcoming. We were offered free vouchers for 200 mb of Internet as the site has no network operator coverage. However the wifi connection was patchy and some of us couldn't access any websites or whatsapp after connecting to wifi and logging in with the voucher. For a nights stay it was manageable and not a big hassle. For longer stay, the campsite definitely needs to upgrade the facilities and provide value for money paid by the visitors by atleast increasing shower cabin counts and keeping hand wash and hand dryers...

Just took the new tent for a test run overnight with an 8-year old. Was windy, so nice to have the tent site right up against a thick hedge. Having a trampoline, bikes, scooters, lawn chess plus games (and a TV that everyone only used for the news) in the lounge kept the kid busy for hours moving between things to do. Access to the beach is easy and offers a great walk, although high tide + a juvenile sea lion made life interesting when there is only a few metres beach between the water and the gorse and the young sea lion decides to make himself at home. The lady in the Orange Roughy coffee cart next door (go right at the beach access before the bridge to the DOC car park) said he chases everyone (read the signs at the DOC carpark about how to keep your distance if you are not familiar with sea lions), but it was a bit of an experience that comes with being that close to the wildlife. Only a short drive to the Four Square shop in Owaka too if you forget anything, but the kitchen was kitted out with everything you might need to cook and clean, and the free BBQ saw a lot of people cooking bacon on them in the morning. Would not hesitate to come back with the whole family. Can't beat the price for a campsite these...

First of all I don’t believe or understand the bad reviews on here. This is a small beautiful campsite right on the water! What more could you want? I had only lovely interactions with the owner who very kindly gave us the best spot in the campsite. If you are a small campervan I would see if you can kindly request site 1 because waking up to this view in the morning was lush. As soon as we stepped out of our camper we saw a sea lion. We did the forest walk and stumbled across a couple as well and then saw some playing in the sea. So magical! Yes there is only one male and one female shower but for the small size of the campsite this is justified plus if everyone is only showering for 7 mins its fine anyway. The campsite was full our first night and neither of us had to wait for a shower. Kitchen and dining/living area had everything you needed too. If you want luxury you shouldn’t really be camping 😂 This place is great value for money and we would 100% come back and...