Best Cabin Camping near Rainbow City, AL

Cheaha was such a pleasant surprise. More like a resort, this park had tent camping, RV camping, a pool, a lake, cabins, a playground, and a restaurant with a view. We had a little trouble with the upper tent sites not being level because we have a roof top tent, but we were able to switch our site to one that was more level without much hassle. The views were just amazing, and it was lovely to have access to a pool.

This park is located on the highest point in Alabama. It has a great camp store with most basic groceries, hotel, cabins/chalets, group lodge, restaurant with gorgeous views, pool, 6 acre lake ALONG with great hiking trails. There is also a dog park and in general this is a very pet friendly 🐶state park. (Bring the groceries you need- closest grocery store is a 20-30 min drive)and know that the restaurant is decent but it may have varying hours during off seasons.) . 🚍⛺️campground- there are two campgrounds with full hookups. The Upper campground at the top is the mountain near all the major trailheads, restaurant, camp store and pool. The Lower Campground at the bottom of the mountain is near the small lake with swimming area and walking trail around the lake. We stayed at the Upper and in February we had the whole campground to ourselves most of our 2 week stay. All the sites are updated and have water, 30/50 amp electric, sewer, picnic table and fire ring or grill. Bathrooms at upper level can be an uphill or downhill walk. *💲this state park has a $4.75 reservation fee and a 3.75% daily “resort fee” on your base campsite rate. Both of those are not deal breakers but good to know. (Especially since the pool is only open for a limited time)

🏡 there are chalets and cabins. I felt the cabins had the better views than the chalet and more private but these are smaller and more rustic. When you are making reservations for a cabin or chalet be sure to check the occupancy rate for the cabin you choose- some are limited to 2 people and look👀 at the amenities of each cabin/chalet- some are quite rustic but descriptions are given. Good news is that they do have pet friendly cabins.

🏕there are semi/primitive and backcountry style sites. ✏️Note that the semi primitive camp sites (the ones on Tower Road) don’t have a shower house for you to use- there is a bathroom available. If you plan to hike a lot and don’t want to drive your car- try to get sites on the upper part of park. (My personal pet peeve is driving daily to a trailhead when I am camping)

📌There is also a hotel with motel like rooms (near the pool and restaurant) and you can even rent an entire lodge for groups that was very attractive from the outside (this was located at top of mountain near the overlook trail-not really walking distance to pool and restaurant)

🥾hiking - 10.5 miles of hiking in the boundaries of the park with connectors to the Pinhoti. The hiking trails had spectacular views on both sides of the mountain. Hiking poles were helpful! While the .3 mile wooden boardwalk to Bald Rock is stroller and mobility challenged friendly, most of the other hikes were moderate to strenuous for the average person. For example- There is a one mile trail straight down the mountain to the lake and lower campground. That said, we loved the hiking here. Next time we plan to bring our larger back packs and do an overnight on a section of the Pinhoti. Did I mention how awesome the views were hiking?

🚵 mountain biking- there are 5 trails that are multi use... and hikers must yield to bikers on these. While we were here there was a mountain biking race. 🚴‍♀️road biking- the roads in the park had some incline...but I was glad to have my bike to roam the upper part park where we camped. (We don’t bring a tow vehicle) My husband biked outside of the park and you can decide for yourself if you would have fun road biking here after you drive UP the mountain roads to the Visitor Center. *It is 3 miles from the visitor center/park entrance to the lower campground/lake area via non park roads. 🛶- we didn’t paddle here, it was not near our campground and it is only a 6 acre lake/pond. There is a swimming/wading.

Happy Camping! Pamela and Keith

We had a two day primitive camping trip at site P109. Nicely shaded site. Water spigot between out site and P107. It had stone fire rings. No picnic grill. Only problem for me was very rocky terrain. The primitive campgrounds only have toilets, if you want a shower you will have to purchase a shower pass for improved campground bath house. Looking at surrounding sites I believe P108 and P120would have been great sites. P108 for a great sunset and P120 for a great sunrise. We stayed in Cabin 3 next two nights. Cabins 1-4 &16 are in one area and provide the best views. For a great sunset view from your patio while cooking out or just chilling, choose cabin 1. There are lots of hiking trails and 3 waterfalls in the park. There is a rich history with the Civilian Conservation Corps here and if you want to learn more there is a quest that begins at the store and takes you around the park. The CCC built the observation bunk house, the custodian cabin and garage, the water reservoir, several cabins, Cheaha lake and the bath house at the lake. All built by hand in the 1930s. An amazing place with amazing views and an amazing history.

This is a great campsite for anyone who wants to check out this amazing peak but doesn’t have an interest in backpacking. They have many options including cabins and villas as well as RV sites and tent only. There are also several trails that leave right from the campground and some easy walks to beautiful views. This is definitely one of the most beautiful places in Alabama and one of my favorite to visit.

Visited Lake Guntersville State Park, for the day. After taking our granddaughter to Screaming Eagle Zip-line Adventures, located at the gorgeous Lodge, we visited the Campground…and it’s amazing! At the office, we were helped by Rocky, who was friendly and knowledgeable! We received CG info and a map, as well as rates. We are already planning our next trip to visit! The general store was stocked with necessities, as well as souvenirs. Of course we had to get some ice cream! There are several types of sites, monthly, cabins and tent camping. There are boat slips (local rentals) and a Pavilion on the water, basketball and tennis courts, playground, shady dog park, splash pad, and clean bathhouses. Firewood and ice can be purchased at the store. There are also many trails to hike and bike . It is easy to see that this SP is well maintained! The SP Lodge is worth visiting, which has a nice restaurant. LGSP has a golf course, and the quaint town is close by and has shopping and several restaurants.

Great memories have been had here.

They recently renovated the upper loop.

It has a store, cabins, lodge, pool ,etc

Down in the valley there is a lake with a playground and day activities areas

This area has so many hiking trails. Trails and waterfalls. This park is the highest point in Alabama. We went MLK weekend it was busy but by Monday we had the campground to ourselves for 4 days. Great trails and waterfalls. Trails are easy to difficult. Bathrooms and showers are separate which was kind of nice to have a whole single room for each shower. Camp store was well stocked. Nearest store was 30-45 min away. Park has a lodge, restaurant, cabins, and a motel. We stayed in upper campground but there is a lower campground closer to the small lake. Alabama is finally putting money back into the parks and remodeling and improving areas. Camp sites are open and some are rocky. The views at the park are amazing!!! This is one of my favorite places!!

We

WWe stayed on one of the cabins and for about a week. This place has amazing views from the park and drive in. It has long, short, easy and difficult trails. A big variety for all. The restaurant has good floor for an affordable price and it also has an amazing view. I would recommend this park to any family.

Home of Alabama's highest point, this state park offers great camping and hiking. Sitting at 2,407 feet, Cheaha Mountain is a great spot to get some nice views of Dixie Land. As a kid growing up in the state, we used to camp here each fall with our extended family.

The park offers a variety of camping options from campgrounds (primitive and improved), to cabins and chalets and even a hotel. So this park really has something for everyone. Some sites in the improved campground have hookups, but not all of them do so be sure to reserve the appropriate spot for your needs. There are nice bathroom facilities in both improved campgrounds that are well maintained.

The hiking here really is top notch and this location is great for exploring the area. In just under an hour you can Explore DeSoto Caverns as well as Little River Canyon National Preserve. For more info check out: https://www.nps.gov/liri/index.htm

I went here one summer for camp as a kid and have spent several weekends throughout my life on retreats on the Cosby campus. Although they are not available for everyday campers looking to pitch a tent for the night it is an amazing place to host a retreat. They have many options from cabins to more rustic lodging. They also have wonderful facilities with lots of activities for all different ages. One of the big advantages Camp Cosby has is that they are located right on the river providing easy access for boating and swimming activities.

We stayed in the Lower Improved Campground - the campground itself has been renovated in the last few years, so the amenities are relatively new and updated. Power, water, and sewer (for those in RV's). The campground was clean and well patrolled by park staff. Note to tent campers like us: some of the sites are more intended for RV's, and the pads are extremely compacted, making it very difficult to drive stakes. 

The real charm here is the remoteness and the feel of the park - it feels like step back in time to when a summer campout was a step away from civilization. While the park expects to add wifi in the future, you won't find it here (or anywhere close) at the moment. Cell phone coverage is fairly spotty. The park is surrounded on all sides by the Talladega National Forest and the Cheaha Wilderness, with easy access to a multitude of hiking and biking trails. Several waterfalls can also be accessed, making for a fun day on the trail coupled with a nice swim! (Note - NFS sites are closed at the time of this review, so some of the trails have limited access or significantly longer hikes than usual to see the waterfalls).

The lake area by the lower campground is perfect for the summer. fishing, swimming, and paddle boating in a mountain setting - just like the summer camps of old!! Makes for a fantastic time. 

the main park on top of the mountain includes additional campgrounds as well as a restaurant, deck, pool, and hotel that overlook the mountain. Also are several cabins, chalets and other park structures originally built in the 1930's by the CCC. Most are in remarkable shape and lend a rustic and timeless feel to the place. 

Several trails lead to scenic overlooks, with varying degrees of difficulty. Heads up - the topography is STEEP, especially the Lake Trail. Particularly to note here - there is an ADA compliant boardwalk leading to the Bald Rock overlook, so the views are accessible to all. A great addition from my younger years!

All in all - a good place to get away in the mountains for a few days!

Desoto State Park is a beautiful park with great hiking and waterfalls. The primitive camping area has a keyed gate. Make sure you arrive during business hours so they can get you registered and give you a key. They will also give you a big card with your last name on it that you will put on the campsite ledger board once you have driven through the primitive area and picked from available sites. This ledger board is halfway along the gravel road once you have let yourself through the gate and is also where the common area is. In the common area there are pit toilets, a large covered pavilion, rentable cabins, picnic tables and stone fire rings. Campsites are well marked, each has a trash can (not bear proof since no bears), and a stone fire ring. At registration you will also receive the gate code for the improved RV park so that you can use the showers and do laundry. When you leave you can put your gate key in a Dropbox outside the office.

We stayed in the Primitive camping area over the Thanksgiving weekend 2017. We made reservations and upon arrival on Friday we found quite a few sites still unclaimed. The pit toilet is convenient and somewhat clean. The view of the valley from the pavilion is nice especially during sunsets. Some of the sites are set back deep which provides a little more privacy and deep woods feel. As usual some campers tend to leave their trash laying around the sites but as always I left our site much cleaner than we found it!

The only complaint is that the park store was out of firewood the entire weekend and we had to go just outside the park to a house that sells wood for $5 a bundle. Not a huge deal but was told when I made the reservation that they had wood for sale. Someone should have re-supplied!

The staff at all the facilities were very nice and although some of the park’s waterfalls were not flowing much, the outer area falls were very nice.

Overall a very nice park and I would highly recommend it. I will likely revisit soon to rent one of the many cabins that look very nice with nice views.

There isn’t anywhere that doesn’t have a view connected to a great golf course and fishing that can’t be beat. Can get crowded but has places to get away on trails and the water