Best Tent Camping near Ponce Inlet, FL

This is a beautiful campground with proximity to the Florida Scenic Trail. Ideal for tent camping, as the forest service roads were a little rough for our RV. Campground is along a beautiful and unique wet prairie. No cell service, no electric or water hookups. Worth a stay in a tent! Recommend using entrance off route 19 via forest service road 86.

One of our favorite places to visit. The springs are amazing. Camping facilities are nice. Would be 5 stars if they had some sites with electric hookups. Outside of that a great place for tent camping.

Blike trails, from rv. to tent camping, year round enjoyment. Was there with 4 children 2 adults during a freezing cold snap. Didn't lower our enjoyment, the challenging cold 20°F, made it all the more fun!

I enjoy going to Blue Springs. Many activities for the family. Biking, hiking, canoeing, kayaking, swimming, boating, and watching nature. There is cabins or areas that allow RV or tent camping. There is even areas that you can go fishing.

Nice spots for tent camping. Got surprisingly cold when I visited. Would’ve been 5 stars if it weren’t for obnoxiously loud and rude neighbors that were yelling/screaming until midnight. If you camp here, expect to hear lots of partying.

Stopped for a night here on the drive down the coast. Lots of turtle nest sites blocked off and an empty beach. RVs are wall to wall with tent sites so bring your earplugs if you're a tent camper or you'll be hearing generators all night.

Another nice stop on our East Coast bike tour! Spacious sites with picnic tables and water. Charge phone in the bathroom. No hot water for shower the night we were there though, and the tent camping area backs up to the main road into the neighborhood, so we heard car noise throughout the night.

Lovely place to camp, bike, and swim! Easy access from tent sites down to the springs. Many manatees can be seen while exploring the springs. Check out the Head spring and cave entrance at the northern end of the swimming area—nothing short of magical.

Who doesn’t love spending time on an island! I came here with a group who had reserved the picnic pavilion for a birthday party. The trip to the island on the ferry was quick and easy. There was a great playground for the kids and we enjoyed a nice long hike as well. We did not stay over night but I did notice some nice looking cabins and primitive camping sites. The cabins and tent camping sites are all nestled together so it’s not very secluded except the few trees between sites. There are nice tent pads though and the cabins look like a great option with nice screened porches as well as a fire pit and picnic table. A place to go back someday :)

This was the first RV campground we stayed at when we became Full time. We stayed an entire month and LOVED it. *This review is prior to COVID so there may be changes since.

Pros

Super family-friendly! This used to be a KOA but now is privately owned and operated. You're only a 10-15 min drive to the closest beaches (further for the lighthouse and Ponce Inlet). It had a great pool, a playground, and a dog run. Great rates for monthly and seasonal. The location is close to grocers, shops, beaches, and more. People are kind in the camp store, and our kids were very welcomed. Also, there was cable, which is a fun plus for rainy days. Trash pickup service and Community events!

Cons:

We luckily didn't have anyone besides us for the month, but the sites are rather tight and not all have shade. Prices do fluctuate because of high volume season (snowbirds).

This is an excellent place to pitch a tent and spend time in nature without traveling far. Great hiking trails and the Pelicer Creek is available for fishing. Bring a kayak.

The camp sites are huge. The tent sites are elevated which should help keep the soil dryer in case of rain.

Keep in mind that there is no water available at the camping sites or the entire park for that matter. Potable or non potable so you have to bring in all drinking water and water for washing dishes if you plan on doing some cleanup. Also, there are bathrooms but they’re pretty far. The campsites do have nearby porta potties.

What’s in a city, you ask? I would think organization, solid utilities, an infrastructure, stated rules and a semblance of community. If that’s the definition, then I guess Orange City RV Resort lives up to that moniker. As soon as you turn into this RV enclave, located just a stone’s throw from the major I4 highway, just due north of Orlando, this place will immediately impress you with it’s very organized and structured way that it lays out its design, from grid-like, well-paved streets and well-lit infrastructure to the outsized number of amenities you will discover here. If ease of access and turn-key entrance is on your check-list than OC RV has you covered. 

Back to those amenities – here you’ll discover some fairly premier RV resort living plus-ups from a heated outdoor pool and jacuzzi, state-of-the-art work-out facility, multi-purpose community center (complete with fully operational kitchen), onsite laundry, shower and restroom facilities, doggie park, recreation hall (bingo, billiards tables, game room, card tables, etc.), dedicated mail center, private small pond (catch& release only), a handful of picnic pavilions, BBQ grills, traditional RV hook-ups (electric, water and sewage) plenty of games such as bocce ball, horse shoes, petanque and, of course (in Florida, the prerequisite) shuffleboard. This place is pet-friendly and while I thought it was more of a retiree community, there were plenty of kids playing around the nice little park that they have. 

OC RV Resort offers up a number of different types of sites to choose from between standard, premium and ‘super sites’ – as you can imagine, ranked by size as well as position within the resort. Of course, the more modest size comes with less land, compromised vistas and places you in very close proximity to neighbors. In addition to open back-in and pull-through RV sites and slots, you will discover that there are also a number of 1BR cottages and newly constructed mini-homes available for lease. 

Insider’s tips? Here’s a few: (1) The biggest tip I can give you is that literally only a 10 minute drive due west, you’ll hit arguably one of the best natural springs in all of Florida – Blue Spring State Park. And while there’s a small fee to get in, trust me, it’s worth it!; (2) To my fellow tent campers, if you’re reading this, my apologies, because OC RV Resort doesn’t offer up any spots to pitch your shelter for the night. That said, Blue Spring SP has some pretty awesome campsites that I would absolutely recommend, and if you want tent camping paradise, then just a bit further afield is Trimble Park Campground, arguably, some of the best tent camping in the entire state – for more details, you can read my reviews on both of these campgrounds on The Dyrt; and (3) As you would guess being located this close to Highway 4, you’ll come across all the usual franchise restaurant chains (Chili’s, Tijuana Flats, Perkins, Applebee’s, etc.), but if you’re looking for a nice meal, check out Riverwalk Pizzeria for some pretty great pies and fresh suds.

Happy Camping!

This campground is in Ocala National Forest, which is always beautiful. The campsites are large, we fit 3 4+ person tents. This was one of the busier places I have camped in Florida. The facilities were clean and provided showers.

While located a bit off the beaten path in a part of Florida that few find themselves in, Magnolia Park Campground, featuring 56 acres of pristine Florida wilderness, is located on an elbow curve where if you don’t look close enough or slow down and look to the right(heading NW), you’re gaze will be captured by the awesome view of Lake Apopka (and isn’t the name just fun to pronounce?!). So plug Magnolia Park in your GPS and follow the directions to arrive at this pristine little campground jewel.

You’ll be greeted by a well-appointed sign and newly fresh paved roads where there’s the main ranger station where you’ll check-in immediately to your left – here, you’ll check-in and be given information about the campground, park and local area by quite possibly some of the nicest, well-meaning park rangers I have ever met.
As this is a county managed campground and park, you’ll be impressed by just what an amazing job these guys do in keeping everything well organized, cleaned up and seemingly brand new. From a camping perspective, this sight is perfect for both tent-camping as well as those with RV’s. In fact, I like how they separate these two populations, preserving a real sense of solitude and communion with nature for us tent campers, while providing all the typical hook-ups and amenities for the RV crowd. 

Of course, you’ll discover each site comes with a nice flat area to plant your tent or roll your RV onto, picnic table and BBQ grill. One of the huge assets of this campground is the tons of park amenities that exist here: playground, scattered picnic areas, dog walking trails, lakeside pavilions, dedicated fishing areas, basketball courts, baseball fields, small pond for catch & release fishing, decent number of restrooms, volleyball court, boat ramps … and the list goes on. For those looking for something a bit different from most campgrounds, this place has its very own butterfly garden, which my kids absolutely loved. 

Insider’s tips? Here’s a few: (1) There still exists some heavy road construction in this area, along South Binion Road, so expect slight delays and just remember to take it slow as there was lose gravel when we drove through; (2) The new Eco Education Center that they have been building for over a year now is finished and features a playground, fishing piers, dock, pavilion and some of the cleanest restrooms; (3) For one of the greatest biking trails I’ve ever taken, get your bicycle on the Lake Apopka Trail, where you’ll be impressed by the views as well as the pristine conditions of the trail itself; (4) For the best campsites, if you want close access to restrooms / showers, then I’d recommend sites #14–17, but if you’re looking for a quieter, more remote vibe, I would recommend sites #7–13 and if you’re RV’ing it, you’ll have to duke it out for a spot between #1– 4; and (5) When you get tired of roasting hot dogs fireside, I recommend either Nauti Lobstah for some good old New England seafood fun or Porkie’s BBQ for some decent central Florida smoked meats. 

Happy Camping!

To begin with, Juniper Springs Rec Area, boasts not 1, not 2, but 3 individual campgrounds (Tropical, Sandpine and Fern Hammock Springs) to choose from. Recently having traveled here with a bunch of camping buddies, we were able to experience all 3 campgrounds, but for this review, I’ll focus on what I believe to be the best of the 3 campgrounds to choose from: Fern Hammock Spring Camp Area. This is the only of the 3 campgrounds where only tent camping is permitted, so if you’re looking to RV or trailer camp, then you’ll have to look at Tropical or Sandpine. And no, before you ask, not all of these campgrounds are created equal. 

Here at Fern Hammock Springs, you are still within earshot of highway 40 (where all of the swooshing of passing by traffic comes from) and located the furthest east in the Juniper Springs campground area, but this is easily the most secluded of the 3 campgrounds. There are 18 campsites, with the least attractive sites being #61-63, #71-74 and #78 as they are connected to the main trail (and primary entrance road), which can be a bit busy with all of the hiker traffic and cars coming and going. If you have a good-sized group, I would recommend the end of the cul-de-sac here, which are sites #72-74, but hereto, the main trail passes right by these 3 sites and exits right in front of #74, which is completely oversized and can easily place 3-4 tents (although you are only supposed to have 2 tents per site – there were easily 4 when we hiked by) in this one site alone. To get away and be even more secluded, look at sites #64-70 that is made up of its own singular loop, but this area isn’t terribly private, although you will feel less like you are caught up in the ‘drive by’ hiking and driving traffic. The best area to choose from IMHO are sites #75-79, which are completely shrouded in privacy from the rest of this camp area. Our site, #78, was perfect as there is a tree line that creates privacy between its neighbor(#76), but has full open views with sites #77 and#79. Likely the very best site to book is site #75, which is completely shrouded in its very own blanket of shrubbery. 

Being surrounded completely by either palms or mighty tall pines in the Ocala National Forest was absolutely wonderful and apart from just a few basic amenities: flat sandy floor campsite, fire ring w/ flip grill, standing grill, massive bear-proof safe boxes (honestly, the largest I have ever seen!) and lantern post / garbage hanger. The campground also provides a fairly nice (coin free) bathroom / shower facilities along with a single oversized kitchen sink for cleaning up dishes. There’s a community water spigot (no washing dishes here though) and a dilapidated shelter that is closed (again, due to ill repair) along with outdoor amphitheater seating and a small screen for viewing (all closed while we were there). 

As for Juniper Springs itself, while most of the amazing natural springs scattered throughout central Florida are nothing short of fantastic attractions in their own right, I was quite disappointed to discover just how miniscule the natural springs were here at Juniper Springs Rec Area. The spring itself is really just an oversized pavilion pool with tons of seagrass apart from two very small outcrops beneath the crystal-clear water where you’ll see a bit of Sulphur bubbling to the surface. The nearby visitor center is brand-spanking-new, complete with a substantial outdoor seating and picnic area to utilize, and the spring pavilion itself is nice in that it offers up a few rows of concrete seating that surrounds the spring. Nevertheless, when compared to the many other springs in Florida, Juniper Springs is quite small and while nice with a recently refurbished old mill with a fully functioning water wheel that propels water downstream, I would easily recommend other more substantial springs like Rainbow and Wekiva Springs. 

Further, while I normally bring my tandem kayak everywhere I go camping, we didn’t have the time or capacity to bring it this time – and we were in luck, because the canoe / kayak launch was closed. Additionally, there were numerous hiking pathways and boardwalks that were closed down having fallen apart due to lack of maintenance with no clear indicator that the State Park was working on fixing all of the amenities that are clearly falling in disrepair. On both fronts, I was quite bummed to discover so much of the park lacking proper access to enjoy the number of amenities that I thought my camping fee was paying for. The State Park should do a much better job of communicating what amenities are not available / closed and / or consider offering discounted fees to access their park or to camp. 

Insider’s tips? Here’s a few: (1) There are a ton of other springs in Florida to choose from that I would highly recommend (just check out my reviews for Rainbow and Wekiva Springs) as they offer MUCH more in the way of actual natural and man-made amenities;(2) Please note that you cannot bring inflatables here to Juniper Springs; (3) If you don’t really care about enjoying the springs or having any access to a proper river to kayak or fish in and are simply looking for a nice place to camp, then Juniper Springs wouldn’t necessarily be a bad decision as the campgrounds themselves here are so amazing; (4) If you do decide to come to Juniper Springs and want to camp in Fern Hammock, I highly recommend site #74 and #75 as well as, to a lesser degree, sites #65– 68; and (5) When you get tired of digging through your cooler to figure out what the next meal will be, I highly recommend a riverfront bar & grill called Drifters that is in nearby Astor and just a 20 minute drive due east from Juniper Springs – I recommend the deep fried shrimp, corned beef as well as the ice cold pints of Stella that they’re pouring. 

Happy Camping!