Meta description: Learn how Class BA camping Wales rules work in 2026, map the 100m buffer zone, choose compliant land and secure prior approval for a temporary campsite.
Hello, farmer, pub owner, hotel operator or rural landowner.
Your Welsh land may support a temporary campsite.
Check the rules first.
Class BA creates a permitted development route for temporary recreational camping in Wales. It can support farm diversification, pub income and hotel packages.
It is not automatic permission.
You must choose the right land, submit the right plans and wait for the correct response.
This guide explains the route.
This article gives general information. It is not legal advice. Confirm your proposal with your local planning authority and relevant regulators.
What does Class BA camping Wales allow?
Class BA sits within the Welsh General Permitted Development Order.
It allows the use of land as a temporary recreational campsite.
The annual limit depends on the site location:
| Site location | Maximum use |
|---|---|
| General land in Wales | 60 days per calendar year |
| National Park | 28 days per calendar year |
| National Landscape or AONB | 28 days per calendar year |
| World Heritage Site | 28 days per calendar year |
The limit applies to the site as a whole.
It does not reset for each pitch.
Count every operating day from 1 January to 31 December.
Keep a site calendar.
Submit a new notification for each calendar year in which you want to operate.
Read the Welsh legislation for Class BA.
What happened to the 28-day rule?
The old temporary-use route is no longer the main camping route in Wales.
Class BA now covers temporary recreational campsites.
On general land, the limit can reach 60 days.
In listed protected areas, the limit remains 28 days.
This is why the phrase “temporary campsite 60 days rule” needs care. You only get 60 days if the land meets the Class BA conditions.
The 100m buffer zone campsite Wales rule
Class BA does not permit campsite development on land within 100 metres of a protected dwelling.
The exception is for a private way used for access to or from the land.
A protected dwelling means a dwellinghouse or flat occupied by someone other than the campsite owner or operator.
Do not treat the buffer as a rough visual estimate.
Map it.
How to measure the buffer
Start with every nearby home.
Include homes outside your ownership.
Mark the dwelling and its residential curtilage.
Where the curtilage boundary is unclear, ask the local planning authority how it expects the measurement to be taken.
Draw a 100-metre buffer.
Keep every pitch outside the buffer.
Keep campsite amenities outside it too.
Check toilets, wastewater facilities, waste areas and moveable structures.
Do not place part of the campsite inside the restricted area and assume the rest is safe.
That creates a compliance risk.
Use the buffer as a site-selection advantage
The 100m buffer can improve your layout.
Choose land behind a hedge, beyond a field boundary or away from the main house cluster.
Place the campsite near a safe access track.
Keep guest areas away from farm operations.
Keep vehicles away from residential gardens.
This can reduce conflict.
It can also reduce noise and visual impact.
A field that sits beyond the buffer may be more useful than a field closer to the farmhouse.
Do not choose the nearest field.
Choose the field that passes the full site test.
Check whether the land qualifies
The 100m buffer is only one check.
Class BA does not apply to land:
- On a scheduled monument.
- In a Special Area of Conservation.
- In a safety hazard area.
- In a military explosives storage area.
- On a Site of Special Scientific Interest.
- On a Ramsar site.
- On a listed building site.
- In a Special Protection Area.
- Within Flood Zones 2 or 3.
- Used for siting touring caravans, static caravans or mobile homes.
Motorhomes and campervans designed or adapted for human habitation are treated differently from touring caravans.
Check the exact vehicle type before you advertise pitches.
Class BA also does not replace other legal requirements.
Check campsite licensing, environmental permits, private water rules, food registration, fire safety and insurance.
Read the official Welsh Government determination form.
Prior approval campsite process in Wales
You must apply before beginning the campsite use for that calendar year.
The process starts with an application for a determination on whether prior approval is required.
Step 1: Confirm the planning route
Confirm that:
- The land is in Wales.
- The proposal is a temporary recreational campsite.
- The site is outside restricted designations.
- Your dates stay within 60 or 28 days.
- Your camping area sits beyond the 100m buffer.
Record your checks.
Keep map copies.
Step 2: Choose your dates
Create the operating calendar first.
Use dates within one calendar year.
Do not exceed 60 days on general land.
Do not exceed 28 days in a National Park, National Landscape, AONB or World Heritage Site.
Make your booking system match your application.
Step 3: Prepare the site plan
Submit a clear plan at an identified scale.
Show:
- The site boundary.
- Each pitch.
- Toilets.
- Wastewater facilities.
- Waste storage.
- Site amenities.
- Vehicle routes.
- Access from the highway.
- Operating dates.
- Nearby dwellings.
- The 100m buffer.
- Relevant designations and flood information.
Label everything.
Add measurements.
Make the plan easy to check.
Step 4: Explain facilities
Show how many toilets you will provide.
Explain cleaning and servicing.
Show how wastewater will be stored, treated, removed or discharged.
Do not rely on an informal soakaway.
Check whether you need environmental consent.
Show waste storage and collection.
Explain who removes waste, how often and where it goes.
Keep waste away from watercourses and sensitive land.
Step 5: Explain access
Show the access route from the public highway.
Check visibility.
Check the entrance width.
Show turning space.
Plan emergency access.
Consider waste vehicles, deliveries, farm machinery and guest vehicles.
The local planning authority must determine that prior approval is required where it considers the proposal likely to create a material increase or material change in local traffic.
Do not wait for the authority to find access problems.
Address them in the first plan.
Step 6: Submit the determination application
Use the Welsh Government temporary recreational campsite form.
Submit the form, site plan, required information and any applicable fee.
Record the submission date.
Keep the acknowledgement.
Step 7: Wait for the response
The authority has 28 days from receiving the application to:
- Confirm that prior approval is not required.
- Notify you that prior approval is required.
- Tell you that the submission is incomplete or does not comply.
Do not open before the correct point.
If the authority requires prior approval, submit the further application.
Wait for written approval.
Follow the approved plans and conditions.
Step 8: Allow realistic time
The first determination stage has a 28-day statutory response period.
A prior approval application can take longer.
Allow around six to twelve weeks for a complete process.
Allow more time if the authority requests extra information, consults the highway authority or raises flood, access, noise or visual concerns.
Where consultation takes place, consultees must usually have at least 21 days to respond.
Submit well before your first booking.
Do not advertise guaranteed opening dates until the planning route is clear.
What will the authority look at?
The Class BA process focuses on:
- Toilets and wastewater.
- Waste disposal.
- Vehicular access.
Your wider site design still matters.
Prepare for questions about:
- Traffic movements.
- Highway safety.
- Noise.
- Visual impact.
- Flood risk.
- Drainage.
- Lighting.
- Waste.
- Neighbouring homes.
- Emergency access.
- Site management.
Flood risk needs early attention.
Land in Flood Zones 2 or 3 is excluded from Class BA.
Do not spend money designing a campsite on land that cannot use the permitted development right.
Practical strategies for pubs and hotels
A pub or hotel can use outdoor land to build a camping offer around existing services.
Start with a small pitch area.
Use a separate arrival route.
Keep guests away from deliveries and staff parking.
Offer breakfast, meals, supplies and local information.
Create weekend packages with walking, wildlife or outdoor activities.
Set clear quiet hours.
Use online bookings.
Limit arrivals to set times.
Keep a record of operating days.
Make toilet and waste servicing part of the daily checklist.
Do not assume your existing public facilities solve every campsite requirement.
Show them on the plan.
Hotels can use camping as overflow accommodation during busy periods.
Pubs can connect camping with food sales and local events.
Farmers can link camping with produce, wildlife walks or guided activities.
Keep the offer within the approved site and annual limit.
Run the campsite as a compliance project
Keep one file for:
- The approved or submitted site plan.
- The buffer map.
- The annual dates.
- The determination response.
- Prior approval documents.
- Waste records.
- Wastewater records.
- Cleaning checks.
- Incidents and complaints.
- Insurance and licences.
- Staff instructions.
Review the site before each operating period.
Check that pitches have not moved.
Check that facilities remain in the approved location.
Check the access route.
Check the waste arrangements.
Stop using the site when the annual allowance ends.
Get Class BA support from Open Sky Adventure
Class BA camping Wales requires more than spare land.
You need a site that works on a map, on paper and on the ground.
Open Sky Adventure helps farmers, pubs, hotels and rural landowners assess land, plan camping layouts and build safe, managed outdoor experiences.
We bring local outdoor knowledge, safety systems and practical site planning.
We also help landowners connect their space with people who want to camp, walk and spend time outdoors.
Start with our land and site potential guide.
Then contact Open Sky Adventure before you choose pitches or publish bookings.
Join the Open Sky Adventure group and sign up on the website.
Map the buffer.
Check the designation.
Plan the access.
Prepare the facilities.
Submit early.
Wait for the right approval.
We will happily help you, signup live now if you have an interest in joining our license agreement.