Best Cabin Camping near Rand, CO

This park is located just outside of Estes Park, right along the river. The park is very clean and the staff is exceptionally helpful. The sites are level, but rather small and close together. There are no trees in most of the sites. The facilities were acceptable, although the pool and hot tub were closed during our visit. The trash pickup was a nice touch, just leave your trash at the front of your site and they collect it. No canopies are allowed, which is a downside without trees and also no campfires, which will keep our group from returning.

Let me preface this review by stating that is it weren’t for some regrettable encounters with one deplorable staff member(manager) this would have been a 4 star review. More on that later.... 

This campground is ideally located in my opinion, situated between Estes Park and Rocky Mtn NP, right next to a river, short walk to a grocery store (with shuttle to downtown) and alongside a road you can use to bypass the nasty summer traffic, I can’t think of a better place to be. My family and I stayed here for a week in a 34 ft travel trailer. The campground has a pool, hot tub, office with some supplies, full hookups, spacious sites, playground, fishing pond, laundromat, and a modest mini golf course. I was really impressed with the site width(in a busy destination such as Estes Park you would expect to be crammed in). Each site is bordered by log fencing to add to the feel of a large space. Sites are level and graveled. The pool is decently sized and the hot tub is fairly new. Mini golf is fun(clubs and balls and borrowed from the office) but is a little run down. 

So with all this good stuff, what are the cons? Well, the laundry machines are old and expensive. The activities center was never open, even on the 4th of July. No campfires at the sites and the community campfire is uninviting. The wifi is almost non-existent except at the pool/office. The game room is locked and empty. And the manager drives around the campground flying pirate flags and curses out his staff for insufficient reasons, in front of children. When my husband confronted him about this, he huffed off and never apologized, even though he walked by our site frequently. I am told that this is being brought to the attention of the owners, but since no action has been taken as of the time of this post, it is being included in this review. The other staff have been friendly. 

Overall, I would stay here again but would make sure the situation with the manager has been rectified.

This is one of my all-time favorite places to hike and camp in Colorado. I have not yet stayed in any of the campgrounds but have backpacked to the top of the American Lakes Trail. Not only is this hike fantasticly beautiful and full of wildlife (tons of moose especially) but there is great dispersed camping along the trails. You simply cannot find more scenic and free camping in Colorado. I would highly recommended camping anywhere in State Forest State Park!

Also, there are quite a few huts, cabins and yurts that can be rented year round in SFSP!

We stayed here for 2 nights in one of the Cabins in December. There is no electricity, bedding, or running water, but there is a propane heater that looks like a wood burning stove that casts a great ambiance. Our cabin also had plenty of coat racks, a snow shovel, and a table. We stayed in Cabin 6, and walked though 2 feet of snow 300 ft down a hill (larger hill than expected) with all our stuff to get settled in. As we approached, the propane stove was already going and the cabin was warm and inviting. We used string lights (solar powered) to provide light (there is a dim solar powered light in the cabin as well). We brought 0 degree sleeping bags in case the heater was not enough, but it was toasty warm inside and we ended up hot. The cabins are right on the edge of the reservoir (which is drained as of Dec 2021 but still beautiful in the snow). Cabins 1-3 (cabins 1&2 hold 15ish ppl for large groups, cabin 3 is ADA) are closer to the road and look like they would not have such a long walk in the snow. During my search, it looks like they also allow primitive camping in the winter for $18, but I didn't see which area this would be in, the cabins are on the north side of the lake. Daily vehicle fee of $9. The experience was incredible, we were completely alone and enjoyed great stars and beautiful sunrises. Highly recommend for a unique winter camping experience (sure it would be great in the summer as well but likely way more crowded). Be sure to be prepared for cold temps!

Fee box at entrance with all current information.

"Reservation Only" 800-244-5613 or cpwshop.com or come to the Moose Visitor Center Campground is very open. Gravel sites with picnic table 

Electric $36.00 plus reservation fees Basic and tent $28.00 plus reservation fees Dispersed $18.00 plus reservation fees Small cabins $90.00 Large cabin $120.00 Yurts & Huts $80.00-$275.00 Backcountry no charge 

The park encompasses almost 71,000 acres. You will find a visitor center 187 campsites for RV and tent and over 60 dispersed sites, 15 cabins and yurts, boat ramps and 94 miles of hiking trails. There are all types or recreation throughout the year.  The park forest is being decimated by the Mountain pine beetle so the dead trees are being removed. This leaves a very stark deserted look. It is very difficult to observe the devastation that the state of Colorado is dealing with.

LNT 

Better than when you found it 

Stay safe and happy travels

We stayed in cabin #3 and it was an awesome experience! We had room enough for 4 people and 3 dogs and didn't feel like we were on top of each other. The gas stove kept us nice and toasty all night long! 

There are 4 cabins. Ours seemed to be the smallest sleeping 5. The largest cabin can easily hold 30 people. 

The bathroom was a pit toilet, which was up the hill and farthest from our cabin so it was a chilly bathroom run in the middle of the night. 

We spent a lot of time sledding and snowshoeing and we were basically the only ones out there. There was another large group in the bigger cabin but we barely saw them until they left on Sunday. 

The beds were plastic coated so it was easy to throw a sheet over them and sleep. The Couch was a bit gross, not sure if the cover gets washed much. There were shelves to hold food and an outdoor picnic table in the room to cook on.

Rudest management and worst customer service I've ever experienced. Would give 0 stars but that's not an option. In January we booked a cabin for our family for 5 nights at the end of July. We were then contacted this week(2 months later) saying they've decided to do a construction project and can no longer offer the cabin we booked. They asked if they could move me to a tent site since they had no other cabins available. I advised we don't have a tent, that's why we booked a cabin. They then told me that they had a cabin but it was only available for 2 of the 5 nights we had booked and asked if I wanted that. The other"great" option was they could just cancel all together(with full refund, as if that was them doing me a favor) and we could find somewhere else. Well, at this point I've lost 2 months and the majority of places are fully booked due to a large baseball tournament happening this same week. So, I agreed to take the 2 night so that I could at least have something while I looked for another place. I was then informed that the cabin they were moving us to was$100 more per night and they could not adjust the price(even though this was completely their doing). When I asked to speak with a manager I then had the great pleasure of speaking with General Manager Bob Junker. Bob began to get very rude when I asked if there was anything they could do due to the incredible inconvenience they caused us. He acted as if this was a bigger inconvenience to him than us and initially threatened to cancel even the 2 nights in the more expensive cabin they moved us to. He proceeded to tell me that they can get full price for the"premium cabin" they were moving me to and had no reason to give it to me for our original cabin's price. At this point in the conversation I asked to speak with his boss to which he said"No" and stated he can make whatever decisions he wants and ended the conversation. You'd think that would be the end but the story gets better! After attempting to contact the owners of the campground to lodge a complaint I received a call the next day from good ole Bob saying they were just going to cancel my reservation all together and hung up. I guess my call to the owning companies office made its way back to him‍ Thanks Bob for the incredibly horrendous customer service! Really well done! I hope you're proud of yourself for ruining our trip and making that extra couple hundred bucks! Here's to hoping you're not actually the owner and they eventually decide to get rid of you for causing their sales to decline by losing customers.

Winding River Resort is a hidden gem. There are plenty of campsites and a few cabins. All spaces are well laid out with plenty of space between each spot. The facilities are clean and provide everything you need for a great stay.

Be sure to book a horseback ride and get to the cowboy pancake breakfast on the weekends. (Pro tip: Bring a couple eggs for the cooks to throw on the griddle while cooking your pancakes!). If you enjoy trout fishing, be sure to explore the North Fork of the Colorado River that flows through the southend of the property. If you have a disc golfer in the group, bring the discs to play a round or three on the 9-hole course throughout the campground.

Moose have a tendency to wander through the campground toward the evening and the local elk herds like to eat with the horses. There are bear in the area, so take the proper precautions with your food and cooler storage.

Winding River is close enough to Grand Lake to get out and explore for the day and you have easy access to nearly all amenities between Grand Lake and Fraser, in case you forgot something. The cabins look great, but we have not stayed in them during our visits.

Right outside of Steamboat Springs is Steamboat KOA. This campground has so many perks. Not only is there a beautiful Mountain View but it also has the Yampa river running through it. It has Rv sites, cute cabins, and tent sites. The Rv sites are separated in areas by what you need(electric, water, sewage). The RV sites each have picnic tables and a fire ring. There are regular cabins and deluxe ones which both include tables and fire rings. The tent area is located across the river and is so peaceful. There is a general store, putt putt, propane fill, a small dog run, bikes for rent, swimming in season and the city bus comes to take you to town for free. Although it is located right off the road, it was still peaceful and I felt safe. My favorite part about this campground is the fact you can stand on the bridge or sit by the Yampa River and enjoy the beauty and sounds, and watching people fly fish.

This is a wonderful campground on Michigan Reservoir. It’s busy for sure, but never in a way that deters me from visiting. There are cabins to rent, which are fun too. Fishing, hiking, off-roading, kayaking or canoeing, or simply sightseeing - there are big mountain vistas to enjoy. There’s a ton of beetle kill in the area, so that hurts the views a bit, but that’s pretty typical in this area.

We stayed at North Michigan Campground. The campground is beautiful. We had site 221 which is right above the water with it's own little trail going down to the reservoir. From what I've seen, I think this is one of the best sites available. Bring bug spray! Also, there is no water directly in this loop of the campground so make sure you fill up near the cabins before driving up.

A lovely wooded campground literally on the edge of Rocky Mountain National Park - we even saw moose from the back window of our RV!  Options for everyone from cabins, to FHU RV sites (limited and not the ideal locations, but still nice), water/electric sites and tenting areas.  Even Conestoga wagons!  There is horseback riding on site and we loved watching the horses run in and out each morning/evening and you just have to cross the road for a pretty hike along the Colorado River in RMNP (no dogs on the trails).  We camped with our Great Dane - very dog friendly with bag stations around the park.  Friendly and helpful staff, a small shop with supplies and souvenirs, a cute little petting zoo with goats, sheep, and pigs.