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Folding BBQ for camping: the check before you pack

Updated: 23 October 2026

You are packing the car for a UK pitch and the folding grill is the item that either earns its place in the boot or starts an argument at reception. A folding BBQ for camping is allowed only where that site, and the land around it, allows charcoal today. The grill’s fold does not create permission. Models and prices are on the [folding grill comparison](/hub/grills-and-barbecues/folding-grill). How to lay the coals, once the place is lawful, is [how to use a folding barbecue](/hub/grills-and-barbecues/folding-grill/sub/folding-grill-how-to-use). Peter F. edits DIY and tools at Products Compared. Updated 23 October 2026. We did not visit these pitches.

You are packing the car for a UK pitch and the folding grill is the item that either earns its place in the boot or starts an argument at reception.

Our top picks

Amazon Basics Amazon Basics campfire grate

Best overall

Amazon Basics Amazon Basics campfire grate
9.2/10about £23.74
View offer
Charmline Charmline compact

Alternative

Charmline Charmline compact
9.2/10about £25.34
View offer
Rammento Rammento mini

Alternative

Rammento Rammento mini
8.4/10about £9.25
View offer
On this page
  1. 1.Check the site before you pack charcoal
  2. 2.The limits that do not depend on the site
  3. 3.Raised off the grass
  4. 4.Vans, and grates that need a fire

Check the site before you pack charcoal

Campsites do not share one barbecue rule. Some allow a raised charcoal grill, some allow only gas, and some ban cooking fires when the grass is dry. Read the arrival notes, not the amazon.co.uk bullet. If the site is silent, ask before you buy briquettes. Llandyfan, as one example, wants raised barbecues at least 50 cm off the ground and 5 metres from tents. Hillend allows traditional barbecues at least 12 inches off the ground and bans disposable trays. Treen Farm allows charcoal barbecues raised on blocks or long legs, and forbids open wood fires. Those are three sites, not UK law. Do not average 12 inches and 50 cm into one national figure. Forestry England’s New Forest position bars barbecues in the open forest, with purpose-built raised barbecues on official campsites as the exception, and disposables excluded. The Peak District’s wildfire guidance says no barbecues in the open countryside. In a heatwave, GOV.UK’s outdoor fire guidance is not to use barbecues.

The limits that do not depend on the site

GOV.UK fire safety outdoors says never cook with charcoal inside a tent, awning or caravan. The camping section asks for tents at least six metres apart. Six metres is a spacing line for tents, not the width of your grill. Rain is not an exception. Moving the tray under the awning is the mistake these rules exist to stop. Humberside Fire and Rescue warns that charcoal keeps producing carbon monoxide after the fire looks quiet, and that an open flap is not enough. If anyone feels dizzy, sick or headachy, get everyone out and call for help. The Countryside Code allows barbecues only where signs say you can, and it wants ash cold before you leave it. A lay-by or a verge is not a default yes. London Fire Brigade’s balcony advice still applies if the stop is a friend’s flat.
Amazon Basics Amazon Basics campfire grate

Testsieger

Amazon Basics Amazon Basics campfire grate
9.2/10about £23.74
View offer

Raised off the grass

Raised on a campsite notice means the fire is off the turf. The Rammento bullet and one review describe a set-up about 45 cm tall. That is one listing’s claim, close to Llandyfan’s 50 cm example and above Hillend’s 12-inch example, and it is not a promise either site will accept the grill. Most other listings here do not print a leg height. If you cannot show a height, use blocks or a stand the site has already approved. Blocks must be stable. A thin tray on loose bricks is a poor stand. Dry grass under a low body is still fuel. One Amazon Basics review could not use the grate because the grass was too long for a ground fire. If the email says gas only, a 45 cm charcoal stand is still charcoal. If it says 50 cm and the legs are unstated, measure them at home.

Vans, and grates that need a fire

A campervan follows the same charcoal ban as a tent. Do not light the grill in the doorway or under a wind-out awning. The grill goes back in a locker only when you can handle the grate without rushing. A campfire grate is a poor buy where ground fires are banned. Amazon Basics and Elsjoy are mesh on legs. They do not contain charcoal. A tray matches a raised-charcoal-only rule only if the height is enough. Where a site bans disposables and still allows a reusable barbecue, see folding BBQ vs disposable barbecue. If you are still choosing, the folding barbecue buying guide separates trays from grates in this £9 to £27 capture. Call 999 for a fire you cannot put out, and get people out first if charcoal is alight in a tent, awning or van.

Common questions

Can I barbecue in the awning if it rains?
No. GOV.UK includes awnings with tents and caravans. Humberside Fire and Rescue says carbon monoxide continues after the flames drop, and an open flap does not clear it. Rain is a reason to cook earlier or to eat cold.
Are folding barbecues allowed on UK campsites?
Some pitches allow them and some do not. There is no national rule that every campsite accepts a folding charcoal grill. Read that site’s notes.
How high off the ground does it need to be?
Whatever that site wrote down. Llandyfan’s example is at least 50 cm. Hillend’s example is at least 12 inches. Those are not one UK standard. The Rammento bullet is about 45 cm set up, which may not match your booking email.
Can I use a campfire grate if the site bans ground fires?
Usually no. A grate such as the Amazon Basics mesh does not hold fuel. If the site wants charcoal contained in a raised barbecue, you need a tray.
What about the New Forest or the Peak District?
Forestry England’s New Forest position is no barbecues in the open forest, with purpose-built raised barbecues on official campsites as the exception, and no disposables. The Peak District line is no barbecues in the open countryside.
Can the grill go back in the van warm?
No. Wait until the coals and the steel are cold. GOV.UK says cool a barbecue before you move it. If you have to leave, the grill stays outside until it is dead.

Related pages

Charcoal barbecue comparison

Folding grill

Best folding barbecue UK: match the job, not stars

Folding barbecue buying guide: which size to trust

How to use a folding barbecue: coals, food, then cold

Folding BBQ vs disposable barbecue: keep or bin it

Sources

Public UK sources used for this comparison, last checked on 22 October 2026. Listing prices, stars and review counts are the amazon.co.uk figures saved for these ASINs.

  1. GOV.UK: Fire safety outdoors (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  2. GOV.UK: The Countryside Code (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  3. BSI: BS EN 1860-1:2024 (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  4. GOV.UK: General Product Safety Regulations 2005 (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  5. Food Standards Agency: Cooking your food (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  6. Humberside Fire and Rescue: Barbecue safety (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  7. London Fire Brigade: April 2026 barbecue note (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  8. GOV.UK: Statutory guidelines on disposable BBQs (retrieved 22 October 2026)