Best Tent Camping near Fort Pierce, FL

General: Small family-run KOA campground (33 sites) located 1.5 miles north of Fort Pierce on Highway One. All sites are FHU with a combination of regular, premium, and extra-large sites. There is also a tent site area. 

Site Quality: All sites are level and gravel with a fire pit and a brick patio area with a picnic table. Typical RV park layout with minimal to no privacy separating sites.

Bathhouse: Two unisex all-in-ones that were clean and air-conditioned. The shower had immediate hot water and good water pressure. 

Activities/Amenities: There is a small playground and pet area plus a clean spacious laundry area. It is close to town. There is a manatee center and Navy Seal Museum (but we didn’t explore either one) close by in addition to shops and restaurants in Fort Pierce. I was able to enjoy a 3-mile run to town and back on sidewalks. 

This campground was more expensive than we usually like to spend but it was a convenient location for us to have dinner with a family friend. We arrived after the office was closed so did not have any interaction with staff but our check-in paperwork was readily available. We appreciate that we were tucked in at the rear of the property which lessened the road noise (and we didn’t have neighbors on either side of us). I would rate this three stars for our purposes but as it was well-kept and for others may suit their needs, it merits four stars in general.

Spent 2 nights here to a full campground. Facilities all in working area. Large graveled lots with picnic table, fire ring and bbq grill. Sewer, water, 50/30 amp power. Paved roads with some paved walking trails. Plenty of gravel trails. Ample restrooms and showers. Like 1 bathroom/showerhouse for every 20 campsites with vending, washer,dryers and book game share spot. The buildings are kept clean. Also a nice dump area. Dog cleanup stations are along trails.. Bonus they have a clothes line at each site to toss your towels etc over to dry. T-mobile 3 bars LTE or -104db inside rv. Staff very friendly and helpful at check in. A place to come back to. They also have planned activities throughout the week. During work week you hear road noise from USHwy1. If not for the morning and evening traffic on 1 this would be a 5.

My movie of camping area on youtube.

https://youtu.be/xZbjPdWI4QA

The staff at check-in was the best. I talk with several over my 5 day stay sharing ideas and stories. Very helpful. The spots are laid out perfect. Easy to backend. Concert pads, gravel fire pit and covered picnic tables. No bad views i was in 3 different sites during my stay. Grounds are kept clean, cut, trim and edged. Reception good on t.v. Antenna and dish satellite. No wifi on sites but free wifi at reception area. Great river views. 3 bars on T-mobile. Your right at the locks so watch the boats pass from the gulf to the Ocean. Horseshoe pits. Clean showerhouse. Tent camping is primitive m. All RV sites have water 30 and 50 amp service. Sites on river will hold 45’ class A. Close to shopping. All sites have 30/50 amp service and water. Sewer is not available. Dump station near exit on way out,  Because of the cleanest of the campground and the friendly staff I rate this a five. they make up for the only downfall of being allowed to dump once per week or there is a fee of $20.00.  there is no charge for a honey wagon dump.  I would assume the extra fee is to encourage water management since there has been issues with algae growth in the waterways. 

https://gopro.com/v/XlMX9lDE8bbq6

We first stumbled upon Kissimmee Prairie because we wanted to camp someplace where we could see really stunning stars at night and boy were we surprised. Having been here multiple times since, we are never disappointed with the starry views. We stayed in the equestrian campgrounds twice. The equestrian sites have hook ups similar to the regular campground sites and there is also primitive camping as well as sites for astronomy. There are miles of trails going through the beautiful prairie landscapes and we saw a lot of wildlife as well. We've seen wild turkeys, deer, and even heard wild boars at night going through the campground. The equestrian sites are shaded by large lovely trees. There are no showers here but you can drive over to the regular campsites and use their shower. There is only a composting toilet. Each site has hookups and a fire ring and picnic table.

Please note that this campground is very far from the closest stores. You can buy firewood from the camp office but it is definitely worth the drive.

The place is gorgeous and if you want shade or sun it offers both. Quiet, relaxing, good trails that lead over to Hickory Hammock campground. Audrey is a excellent camp host.

They keep it very clean and is very helpful in showing you the campsites. It is right off the main road so no dirt road to get there though you have some road noise but you can get back away from most of it.  Lots of wildlife in the woods, nothing bothered the campsite.

There are bathrooms but no showers. They are a ways away from the campground. Its still shocking you can camp in Florida like this for free. Hope we can keep it this way for a long time.

Desperate for a place to pitch our tent rather than spending $$$ for a hotel, we lucked up when we found VBK on The Dyrt. This quiet campground lined with moss covered oaks, palm trees and long leaf pines was a dream. They are set up mostly for RVs but have a few campsites. Our primitive campsite was at the far back. Large, Quiet, shady and near a water source. We ended up sharing the site with another very pleasant family. Heated pool, nice restroom and laundry facilities. I didn’t have a chance to check out the activities room with bocce ball, shuttle board and horseshoes. It was great being able to camp on our way to Bahia Honda State Park. No hotel for us!

Located just minutes off of Indiantown Road at I-95, getting in and out of here is no problem.

Tucked into a beautiful green spot next to the St. Lucie Canal, this hidden gem is a must if you’re just looking to get away from the grind for a weekend. Boaters traversing the canal and tent campers have their own sites along the river, too! Great birding and fishing opportunities.

Only nine RV sites, but all of them are level and paved, with a sheltered picnic table, fire ring, and elevated grill in a gravel space adjoining your concrete pad. We stayed in site RV5 for two nights. The small Army Corps of Engineers park is very well-maintained. Bathhouse is small, but you can get the job done.

2 to 3 bars of Verizon, Sprint, and AT&T (we use all three) ensure a pretty decent cell connection for keeping in touch. Reliable 50/30/20 and good water at the post. Dump station nearby.

If you are looking for an outdoors ‘nature’ experience that is well-manicured, perfectly organized and brand-spanking new – and you find yourself in Central Florida – then look no further than Fort Pierce West KOA Holiday, which is so close to I95 (exit 129 FL70 Okeechobee Road) that you will feel (and hear) the constant SWOOSH! of passing traffic 24 hours a day. This could either make this destination just outside of Fort Piece (a.k.a The Sunrise City) a gem or nightmare, depending upon what you are looking for. 

While I’m sure the very great folks at this ‘Treasure Coast’ KOA would make room for tent campers, this destination is really geared towards those that are towing their campground living room behind them. There’s perfectly flat and evenly situated diagonal RV parking lanes with which to park your wheeled campground wherein you will enjoy traversing the entire campground on freshly poured black asphalt. Each pull-through or back-in evenly laid pebble-strewn site comes complete with a little swath of green grass, on-ground BBQ grill rings, picnic table and all the traditional hook-ups (50 / 20 / 30 electric, water and sewage). 

But wait! There’s more (and because this is a KOA, that actually means, a LOT more!): complimentary WiFi, horshoe pit, Kamp K9 dog park, cable TV, endless neon-colored outdoor tables and chairs, community firepits, corn hole, ladder ball (don’t ask me), laundr-O-mat, library, shuffleboard, group picnic areas, pickleboard as well as being satellite friendly. There’s an absolutely gorgeous (too gorgeous IMHO for any campground, but hey, it’s KOA) in-ground heated pool as well as a small ‘catch& release’ pond that you can either fish from the perimeter of or drop in a little boat/ kayak. And, just in the event that you’ve forgotten anything, this KOA has an on-site camp store that would put Disney World to shame – there’s hats, shirts, tchotchkies and all of the food and drink items you would expect. 

Insider’s tips? Here's a few: (1) There’s a lot to explore in and around Fort Pierce and a I highly recommend heading on over to Indian River Lagoon and Manatee Observation & Education Center for some excellent fishing and kayaking; (2) If you’re looking for a few restaurant recco’s – I’d steer you towards Manatee Island Bar & Grill, Sailfish Brewery and Jack & Diane’s (big nod to my hero John Cougar Mellancamp); (3) Of course, being this close to the ocean, you need to get yourself over to the beach where I would recommend a day-trip to Hutchinson Island, and if you’re toting your fishing poles with you head on over to Herman Bay for some excellent fishing and sundowners  where The Jetty Lounge is very well regarded; and (4) If you'd like to discover a really nice slice of paradise in close proximity to this KOA, then head no further than a few miles south to George Le Strange Preserve where there are a handful of really great hiking trails (all basic BTW), a very decent lake to do some decent fishing in as well as a small canoe launch.

Happy Camping!