Best Glamping near Jacksonville Beach, FL

What I love about Ocean Grove is that it puts you smack dab due south of St. Augustine (a.k.a. Ancient City), but far enough away where you can get away from the noise, traffic and otherwise touristy area of the country’s oldest city. While the downside is that this roadside RV stand is, well, located roadside and in fact, right on the AIA, it does place you within a few minutes’ drive to some of the best beaches, like Crescent Beach, which is only 4 blocks away. Given that this is a fairly well-known attractive area known for its beaches and southern way of seaside life, there’s also no shortage of tiki bars, fish shacks and taco stands to choose from, all within walking distance. 

As for the RV Resort itself, Ocean Grove lives up to the word ‘resort’ given all the amenities that you’ll find here, especially the very well-maintained, amazingly massive heated in-ground pool, gargantuan paved patio deck (with separate area for dining) complete with patio chairs, umbrellas and lounge chaises, along with the overgrown group-sized bubbling hot tub, in addition to offering a very well-stocked market store, restaurant and bar (can anyone say “Mai Tais poolside, por favor?!”) as well as perhaps its most impressive asset, offering direct water access to the Intracoastal (along with kayak rentals, in case you forgot yours). 

Additional amenities include: basketball and bocce ball courts, coin-operated laundr-O-mat (complete with community book exchange / library), billiards and foosball tables, propane refilling station, pull-through and back-in RV slots complete with full hook-ups (30 / 50 amp electric, sewer and water), perfectly level paved RV pads to park on, picnic tables, horseshoe ring, fishing pier on the San Julian river, lagoon with turtle watching, children’s playground, doggie park with designated dog run, boat ramp, RV / boat / jet ski storage area, complimentary WiFi, large picnic pavilion, cable TV (additional charge), golf cart parking, designated dumpsters, community fire pit (the only place on the premises where fires area allowed), recreation hall with A/C and oversized wall-mounted TVs, heated and air-conditioned bath houses with showers. Extra points here for Ocean Grove providing a gated entry point with actual staff that adds additional layers of security, important given the proximity to the AIA. 

Insider’s tips? Here’s a few: (1) IMHO the best spots here at Ocean Grove are those that are waterfront: F138–F141 next to the fishing pier or J100–J126; (2) One of the very few detractors at this place is that of the 208 RV slots available, you will notice that Ocean Grove attempts to make every square inch count, so no matter where you are parked, there won’t be a ton of privacy and your hook-ups will feel very crowded (sewage line right next to the picnic table, hmm, not very enticing to say the least!); (3) When you get tired of trying to figure out what that next meal is going to be when staring down at your mini-fridge or cooler, then check out some local haunts, like Salt Water Cowboy (where anything from the Land, Sea and Swamp section like fried Alligator is pretty amazing), World Famous Oasis Restaurant or Connolly’s Shore Grill for fresh caught seafood; and (4) If you are looking for a decent place to do some great hiking, then look no further than due southwest of Ocean Grove where you can check out Matanzas State Park, that has miles and miles of unspoiled hiking trails with virtually the entire place to yourself (save the deer and gators that you might come across). 

Happy Camping!

This review is for CRSP Cottage 10, a 2 bedroom, 4 bed, 1 bath, pet friendly house down a quiet road within the park. The park staff at the gift shop were very kind and engaged. They collected our balance and $50.00 pet fee there. Not all cottages are pet friendly. Cottage 10 is...so plan ahead! Despite that, there was 0 smell when we entered the cottage. It was very clean! Exceptional view of Crooked River! Our family of four loved s’mores under the stars and twisted coastal trees. There is a jumbo picnic table and fire pit. Carrying meals out was no issue and so much less exhausting than cooking on the Coleman stove and dealing with gear and tents. That’s also a fun experience, but coming back to AC and a private bathroom after a full day of hiking Cumberland Island is worth the nightly price tag. One day it poured. We comfortably watched the storm from the cozy screened-in porch. The kitchen is well stocked, minus a cutting board. No biggie. Made do. I always travel with a reliable and sharpened kitchen knife, kitchen scissors, and my trusty cast iron pan. But I was surprised to find supplies at the cottage like paper towels, toilet paper, and dish washer pods. The beds are comfortable and the linens and towels are clean and plentiful. It was a great experience and we would love to return.

The green tunnel oak canopy and Spanish moss over the roadway is your welcome to this state park, an anachronistic island surrounded by quiet suburbs on Amelia Island. High profile vehicles need to watch overhead clearance, due to the canopy.

The eponymous 19th century third system fortification and museum has a wealth of information and interactive living history volunteers describing its operational span of Civil War, Spanish American War, and World War Two. Hiking, biking, wildlife, fishing, and birding are the other major activities here. There is a beach for swimming and surfing, Note St. Mary’s inlet is an active shipping channel with strong currents. Camp store and souvenir shop, special event and wedding planning. This is a major stop on the Great Florida Birding and Wildlife Trail, with some 100 avian species represented.

Group Primitive Campground favors youth groups with up to 11 month advance reservations, 30 days for adult groups if available. Three sites with capacity for 75. One of the best in the state parks system.

42 established tent sites in oak and Spanish Moss. Climate controlled bathrooms.

RV camp 21 back in sites with another six tent sites near the dunes. Renovated bathroom and laundry facilities, dump station.

Love the Amelia river section. We stayed in site 23. The other loop is very windy, no shade or privacy between sites. The river section sites are huge, lots of trees and foliage and nicely spaced. All appeared pretty level. Most were dirt, a couple are concrete pads. Paid $26 per night. Super quiet in February, no kids. We had electric and water no FHU, fire pit, table, clothes line. Great bathhouse, clean, updated. Washer and dryer $2 per load. Great areas to bike and hike. Amazing sunsets viewed at the end of our loop. The fort is awesome! Cost $2.50 pp, well worth price. The fort is decorated with period furnishings. Self guided tour. A man dressed as a soldier answered all our questions. The campground is in a nice location, is gated. It's close to Fernandina beach and Amelia island. Amelia island, lots of nice shops and restaurants.

We arrived to the campground to take our little 3 yr old Grandson camping for his first time and were SHOCKED to find out that our site was under construction and had no electricity.  We had booked online and at no time were we informed that an entire section of the campground had lost all electric.  It was over 100 degrees that week with the heat index and there was no way we could camp in the sun with a small child, without air conditioning.  We were so upset and even more so when they said it had been that way for a YEAR and it was rented 'because we got a new reservation system and I guess it didn't show those sites as off limits'.  

Thankfully, they saw how disappointed we were and called around and found us a site at Fort Clinch State Park, 12 miles up the road.  Do not book here unless you're positive your site has the amenities you need.  The sites we know NOT to book at Little Talbot Island are sites #23 and 24.  There may be others, so beware.

Simply put, the ‘surf’ side of Little Talbot Island State Park is all white capped oceanfront and white sand beach paradise with its opposing side strategically located across the street is the ‘turf’ that hosts some 3 dozen or so campsites in lush, verdant foliage completely encapsulating the campground in a jungle-like canopy of ancient Oaks complete with signature draping Spanish moss. While there’s definitely oceanfront camping options out there, particularly in Florida, what is quite unique about Little Talbot is that while you will be able to access the beach and ocean, you aren’t parked right in front of it. In fact, you’ll have a decent hike or a short ride to get to the seaside from your campsite. 

Serene beaches await you on this remote barrier island where snake-like river inlets provide ample kayaking, canoeing, paddle-boarding and boating options further inland, while choppy waves from the frolicking Atlantic Ocean will beckon you further east. Beachside, you’ll discover that there’s half a dozen or so picnic shelters running parallel to the seaside, along with a perfectly paved bicycling / running pathway along with dedicated restroom and shower facilities. Just over the sand dunes, you will arrive at some of the most pristine, well-kept beaches in Florida’s entire eastern coastline. 

With the actual campground in mind, there’s 3 circular loops or ‘neighborhoods’ that the campsites are organized around – on the far eastern side are sites 1-10, and by far, these are the most secluded, but also IMHO, the best of all the sites. There’s great growth here between each individual campsite, so while you’ll hear (and likely see) your neighbors, there is a decent amount of privacy. The second set of sites 11– 20 sit in the center of the campground and nearest to the bathroom and shower facilities (which are just OK BTW), but offer somewhat better waterviews of Myrtle Creek and further beyond that, Simpson Creek. These sites are much more open and don’t offer much if any privacy. The third set of sites is on the far western side of the campground and feels the most dated and in dire need of some TLC as most of the sites I saw were overgrown with substantial leaf pile-up on the picnic tables, which were pretty dilapidated anyway. 

As far as amenities are concerned, bearing in mind this campground leans more basic, rustic and primitive, you'll find: 20 / 30 amp electricity, fresh water, decent fire ring w/ BBQ lid and picnic tables.  There is a laundry facility along with two bathhouses and there is a proper trash dumpster upon exiting the campground.  There's a decent kayak / canoe launch (and if you don't have your own, Kayak Amelia located just a 1/4 mile up the road has rentals) on the western periphery of the campground where there is a short dock for casting a fishing line along with a bait cleaning station.  The kiddos will discover a nearly brand new playground (although submerged by water when we were there) and a group campfire circle for larger groups offered on a first-come, first-served basis

Insider’s tips? Here's a few: (1) If you’d like to get a good hike on, well, of course you have the 7 miles of unspoiled beach shoreline, but if you’re looking for something further inland there is a small nature loop that is pretty nice and is located at the campground; (2) Up in these parts, you have to mind the timing for low and high tide, so when checking in, ask the park rangers and they’ll get you all squared away; (3) no pets on the beach or boardwalks; and (4) If you need a break from roasting hotdogs and beans fireside, head due south to The Sand Dollar for some pretty great seafood while overlooking St. Johns River with Jacksonville as a backdrop. 

Happy Camping!