No: there is no right to wild camp on Exmoor. Exmoor National Park Authority puts it in one line: landowner permission is required to camp overnight anywhere on Exmoor. That covers the open moor as much as a farm field. Vans and motorhomes do no better, because the authority’s own car parks rule out overnight parking and camping. For almost every trip, the plan is a campsite. (Checked against the authority’s pages and the legislation on 23 October 2026.)

What the law says

Exmoor is in England, and English access law is where the authority’s rule comes from. The Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 (CRoW) gives you a right to walk on mapped open access land: mountain, moor, heath and down. Schedule 2 of the Act lists what that right does not cover, and camping is on the list, next to lighting fires and driving vehicles.

The government’s guidance on open access land says the same thing from the landowner’s side. Unless the landowner gives permission, people using their access rights cannot camp, cannot drive a vehicle, and cannot light, cause or risk a fire. The Countryside Code, the official guide for visitors, lists camping among the activities that may need the landowner’s permission.

In practice: the moor is yours to walk across, not to pitch on. No height above the road and no distance from it changes that.

Exmoor is not Dartmoor

The two parks are neighbors, so they are easy to mix up. Dartmoor’s tent-only backpack camping exists because of the Dartmoor Commons Act 1985, a law written for the Dartmoor commons. It does not reach Exmoor. Exmoor works like the Peak District and the rest of England: ask the landowner first.

Campervans and motorhomes

This is the part that matters if you are driving.

  • Park authority car parks: no overnight. The authority runs pay and display car parks at Ashcombe (Simonsbath), Haddon Hill, Tarr Steps (main car park only), Valley of Rocks at Lynton (the one next to the public toilets) and Exmoor House in Dulverton at weekends. Its parking page, in the terms for its annual permit, says standard parking terms apply and gives the example: no overnight parking or camping. Charges apply 10am to 6pm.
  • Free car parks: not a loophole. The same page lists free car parks, including Blackmoor Gate, Exford, Robbers Bridge and Woody Bay. It publishes no overnight terms for them, so treat free as daytime parking and read the board at the entrance.
  • Other operators: read the board. The authority names other car park operators across the park, among them Somerset Council (Dulverton, Dunster, Porlock), the National Trust (Bossington, Horner, Hunters Inn, Webbers Post and others) and the Porlock Manor Estate (Porlock Weir, Porlock Hill). Each sets its own terms. If the board does not say overnight stays are allowed, do not plan on one.
  • No driving onto the moor. Access rights do not include vehicles, so leaving the road to find a pitch is out.

In practice: park at the trailhead for the day, then drive to a booked pitch for the night. Some British councils do run car parks where motorhomes may stay overnight on set terms, and the UK motorhome aires guide lists how those work.

Where to sleep instead

The authority’s expeditions page lists the campsites most often used by groups, which makes a decent short list for anyone: Westermill Farm at Exford, Halse Farm at Winsford, Cloud Farm and Doone Valley at Oare, Burrowhayes Farm and Sparkhayes Farm at Porlock, Exe Valley at Bridgetown and Wimbleball Lake at Brompton Regis. It notes that some open only for part of the season, so call ahead outside summer. The authority also runs two small wild sites, at Hawkcombe Woods near Porlock and at its education centre west of Simonsbath, but those are for youth groups and must be booked.

If a landowner says yes

Permission is the only legal route to a wild pitch, so ask at the farm before you set up. Then keep it light: one night, arrive late, leave early, take everything away.

Fire is the real hazard on the moor. The Countryside Code says not to light fires and to use a barbecue only where signs say you can. It also notes that land managers burn heath and moorland on purpose between 1 October and 15 April, so smoke in that season is not always an emergency. An unattended fire is: call 999.

The sign wins

If a sign at a car park, a ranger or the landowner tells you something different from this page, they are right. The board at the entrance is the current version. For other countries and how they compare, see the rules pages.

Sources

  1. Expeditions and Groups, Exmoor National Park Authority (archived copy, 17 October 2026)
  2. Parking, Exmoor National Park Authority (archived copy, 17 October 2026)
  3. Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000, Schedule 2: Restrictions to be observed by persons exercising right of access, legislation.gov.uk
  4. Open access land: management, rights and responsibilities, GOV.UK
  5. The Countryside Code: advice for countryside visitors, GOV.UK
  6. Dartmoor Commons Act 1985, legislation.gov.uk

When a source is not in English, follow the link for the official wording.