OK. Let’s get the tittering out of the way first up shall we?

Yes – Sandy Balls. I'm even smirking as I type it.

And on the Saturday there was a downpour and it was Wet Sandy Balls – how irritating that was.

But now we can get down to sensible things. The Sandy Balls campsite in the New Forest, less than a couple of hours away, is the type of place that will put a smile on your face even without the amusing name – or at least wipe away the stresses of a working week.

Without getting too New Age, this campsite of cabins, static caravans and tents set amid a mature forest is a place of great tranquillity despite its size.

The Collie family of four spent three-and-a-half days in a cabin, and over that weekend Sandy Balls was 100 per cent full.

That equates to 1,000 people, yet it is a mystery where they all went.

At most it felt like there was 100, even around the central ‘piazza’ that is the cornerstone of the site with its swimming pool, pub, Italian restaurant, activity centre, arcade and store.

They just disappeared.

It could be explained that many of them were off engaging in outdoor- type pursuits off-site, but even at night it was just a quiet chilled-out place.

Your neighbour may only be a few feet away but there is a real sense of space and peace across much of the site.

Sandy Balls is a little like a Butlins for those who can entertain themselves and dislike any chintz.

While you have the beauty of the New Forest on your doorstep, there is enough on the site to keep you entertained, be it a walk through the woods, cheap and cheerful children's activities such as T-shirt printing, insect hunting or archery, cycling and horse-riding.

There is just nothing forced about the place. At so many places the facilities in a place like the central piazza is cheap, fake and over-priced tat.

But both eateries, the Woodside Inn and the Pizza In The Piazza, produce decent, good value meals. The Italian, particularly, was impressive.

The cabins too were a step higher than what you might expect. Prices for a standard six berth one range from £200 to £550 for a weekend.

But the best thing was the way the concept of time evaporated.

By the time we left on the Monday we had lost track of time, so that it felt like almost a week had passed rather than a weekend.