Best Cabin Camping near San Mateo, FL

Recent Cabin Reviews in San Mateo

526 Reviews of 60 San Mateo Campgrounds

• J

  Jill P.

  Scout

  

  Oct. 22, 2024

  Ocala RV Camp Resort

  No tent camping allowed

  I called and was told they don’t allow any tent camping. Just an FYI. Was advised only the state parks in the area allow tent camping.

• 

  James P.

  Legend

  

  Oct. 21, 2024

  Starke-Gainesville NE KOA

  Better than average KOA

  Large sites. Very nice pool. First rate laundry facilities. Great playground and dog park.

• 

  Cody N.

  Scout

  

  Sep. 7, 2024

  Coral Sands RV Resort

  Great spot for the family, ocean view

  Spot 25, direct view to the ocean. At the beach in seconds. Nice pool on the other side of hotel. Will be back!

• 

  Ashley W.

  Ranger

  

  Jul. 28, 2024

  Sun Retreats Ocala Orange Lake and Golf Resort

  Sun Retreat Ocala Orange Lake RV Resort

  This is a beautiful large RV and golf resort. The grounds were clean and well maintained. There is a full 18 course golf course and putting green. There are also onsite golf cart rentals and a golf pro shop. The staff were very helpful and friendly. Bath houses were clean. Nice laundry facilities available. Campground is directly in Orange Lake with a dock available. Fishing permitted off dock and from shore. All roads were paved. There are both RVs and vacation rentals. Many things to do and lots of options for other recreation nearby. We came for spring break and would definitely visit again.

• 

  Stuart K.

  Legend

  

  Jul. 1, 2024

  Rivers Edge RV Park

  Hidden Camping Gem Truly On The River’s Edge

  One thing’s for certain, this camping outpost located just outside the itty bitty village of Georgetown couldn’t be any closer to the mighty St. Johns River, which if you don’t know, is one of the largest and most prolific fishing rivers in all of Florida. Should you find yourself in north-central Florida and / or near Lake George and looking for a spot to call ‘home for the night’ (or many as it might be) then you’ll definitely want to plan a stay here at Rivers Edge RV Park, which is a little know campground jewel in the rough, but be sure to reach out well in advance, as with only 50 or so slots, this place books up quick.

  Apart from the very close proximity to St. Johns River – so close that Rivers Edge RV Park actually offers up boat launch and slips exclusively for its guests, so if you have a boat, whether with motor or not (like those of us towing canoes and kayaks), be sure to call ahead and enquire about available boat slips – this is one very pristine, well-kept and easily organized campground. There’s a decent amount of top-grade amenities including spartan-clean restrooms, shower & laundry facilities with brand new washers & dryers, propane refueling station, a pup playground, trash stations and waterfront nature walk path.

  What I appreciated most was that Rivers Edge RV Park offers up a distinct tent area, which places mi tent-pitchin’ bredren in our own canvassed-erected environ that is actually the closest camping option to the St. Johns River here. As for the RV or 5th Wheel crowd, the standard hook-ups are offered here including 30 / 50 amp electric, water and sewage back-in and pull-through sites with concrete patios. Complimentary WiFi is offered everywhere and actually isn’t too bad (although our ability to stream was slow). Most sites offer up picnic tables and fire-rings and there are community offerings like a riverside pavilion (also with another set of restrooms and showers), lawn games, horseshoes, pickleball court and enough space for a good game of jarts or frisbee.

  As for the campground itself, you’ll access Rivers Edge RV Park simply by following Road 309 and just as this small country road bends making way for Drayton Island, you’ll want to turn in heading westerly, wherein you’ll be greeted by the main office where you’ll check in at the office immediately on the right. The layout for the campground is a simple loop, about the size of a junior football field with sites #1-28 on the right and the other sites through #54 on the interior of the loop. Should you not have a tent or an RV, no worries, the very good folks at Rivers Edge even have a handful of cabins that they’ll rent you. Overall, I found the pricing to be VERY affordable here – no matter what type of camping you might be interested in.

  Insider’s tips? Here’s a few: (1) Rivers Edge RV Park offers up firewood for sale for a decent price, which I always like to flag, because if you don’t need to find additional space to haul firewood with you, it frees up space for other things, right?; (2) If you’ve got kids and need a much bigger space to let them run around, nearby this campground is a very nice kid’s playground as well as a soccer field; (3) For anyone wanting a bit of an off-the-grid adventure, just south of Rivers Edge is the Drayton Island Ferry (just take your second right after the US post office), where you can cross the channel over to Drayton Island for some decent off-the-trail biking & biking as well as zip-lining, which you can access on the far western side of the island at Grands Island Resort, which is a very cool camping outpost in its own right; and (4) Should you grow weary of trying to conjure up that next meal from the depths of your roto-molded Cordova cooler or mini-onboard fridge, you’ll only find meager options near you that include Mel’s River Pub Italian Grille & Liquor Store that offers up a very diverse menu featuring pasta, sandwiches and pizzas, The Oaks Golf Club Café serving up glorified bar fare such as burgers, po-boys, wings, fried baskets, tacos & quesadillas and southern comfort food or Renegades on the River, which is actually another campground, but offers up a super-cool restaurant featuring pizzas, wings, peel & eat shrimp and fried foodstuffs like pickles and gator bites as well as a Tiki Hut pouring some mighty strong Daquiris and Mai Tais.

  Happy Camping!

• 

  Stuart K.

  Legend

  

  Jul. 1, 2024

  Bryn Mawr Ocean Resort

  Oceanfront, White Sand Beaches & Palm Laced RV Oasis

  Ever fantasized about parking your RV so near the ocean that you could feel the salt spray coming off those Atlantic ‘white caps’? Well, look no further than Bryn Mawr Ocean Resort, which depending upon the specific RV slot you are fortunate enough to book here, you too could be kicking back and living life in the 'slow lane’ right in front of idyllic white sand beaches against a backdrop of an endless aquatic blue horizon. Located just 8 miles / 20 minutes south of St. Augustine (a.k.a. Ancient City), Bryn Mawr Ocean Resort resides on the famous A1A, but down in this neck of the woods, you will find that you have escaped the whir of traffic, busyness of everyday life and won’t have to put up with the touristy side of this northernmost Floridian outpost.

  As for this location itself, Bryn Mawr boasts the largest family pool in the county (which I cannot independently verify here), although there are actually 2 swimming pools, along with a spa and private walkways with beach access to some of the finest ocean views along the eastern seaboard. Boasting some 236 RV slots, Bryn Mawr Ocean Resort is a massive RV oceanfront wonderland, hidden in the shades of the palms, wherein you’ll enter the compound through a very well appointed security gate after first being greeted by the good folks at the main office building. Once inside, you’ll swerve a bit around the bend to the right before heading straight, wherein on both sides of this RV ‘main street’ you’ll intersect four different perpendicular lanes (Sea Bird, followed by Sea Coast, then Sea Dog and finally Sea Eagle) before reaching a T intersection (at Sea Eagle) where you’ll have to either turn left or right in order to access the 9 (yes, count ‘em, 9) vertical RV slotted lanes (and unfortunately, yes, all of them also begin with the word ‘Sea’, making it very difficult to remember which ‘Sea’ lane you are in) that from north to south are called: Sea Fan, Sea Gull, Sea Horse, Sea Jetty, Sea Anchor, Sea King, Sea Ladder, Sea Millie and Sea Nettle. 

  Nomenclature aside, it all doesn’t really matter if you are looking for simply the best, which are the oceanfront RV slots (that run parallel to the beach along Sea Otter lane), whose numbered sites are #219– 238. Trust me, whatever the premium is to pay and park in one of these 20 RV slots is ABSOLUTELY worth it, given the proximity to the beach, as well as the additional distance from traffic that you’ll have back here in the furthest reaches of Bryn Mawr Ocean Resort.  Oh, and then there's the priceless oceanfront views you'll have - but to be clear, that really only works out if your particular RV has a rear-facing panoramic view, otherwise, you'll have to get outside your vehicle and post a few picnic chairs to enjoy the view.

  Amenities: dog park / pet walking area, basketball court, lighted tennis / pickle-ball courts, shuffleboard, complimentary WiFi and cable, main office with marketplace store, spartan showers & restroom facilities (there are multiple units spread throughout the RV campus), laundr-O-mat, activity center, horseshoe pitch, propane refill station and children’s playground. Of course, all RV sites come with full hook-ups (30 / 50 amp electric along with water and sewage) and concrete pads. There’s also scattered picnic tables, BBQ grills and fire rings.

  Insider’s tips? Here’s a few: (1) While I’ve already HIGHLY recommended the oceanfront slots of #219– 238, I would also recommend the following locations (if being near the ocean is important to you): 82, 96, 110, 123, 135, 249, 143, 154, 167, 168, 250, 181, 195, 209 and 218; (2) This place is one of the most pet-friendly RV outposts I’ve come across, so don’t be shy about bringing all your pets – I couldn’t find a single RV’er who didn’t have at least 1 dog, if not an entire entourage of cats, iguanas, fish and even an alpaca en towe!; (3) While next to the ocean is great, you will feel a substantial lack of privacy with the spaces being quite close to one another, so if that bothers you (and let’s be honest, it should), then when booking, ask for what available spots there are to determine which of those offer up the most amount of either space or privacy; (4) 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 Cordova roto-molded 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; (5) If you are looking for a decent place to do some great hiking, then look no further than due southwest of Bryn Mawr 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); and (6) Carrying watercraft and looking for a nice spot to hit the water? Then I HIGHLY recommend Princess Place Preserve AND Faver-Dyke SP that offers access to the Matanzas and Tolomato Rivers as well as Pellicer Creek.

  Happy Camping!

• 

  Stuart K.

  Legend

  

  Jul. 1, 2024

  Blue Spring State Park Campground

  Keeping Cool @ Blue Springs

  Here at Sand Pine Campground inside of Blue Springs State Park, you’ll find that while this is a fairly large campground, the substantial amount of vegetation, along with the flow of how the campground is organized, the individual campsites give off a vibe of privacy, intimacy and solitude. Upon entry to this SP, you’ll meet likely some of the friendliest park rangers of any FL state park (although, honestly, the very GREAT rangers @ Rodman Campground ultimately win the battle!), who will provide you with all of the great information you need to have a great experience here.

  As for the pet-friendly campground specifically, each of the 51 sites has its own picnic table, water and electric as well as fire ring, while the ground itself is laden with powdery grey sand (so leave your boots or flip flops at the door of your tent or RV). The individual slots are somewhat tight and narrow to navigate, but most RVs should be OK to back into these sites. What you will appreciate the most about Sand Pine is that just about every site offers a substantial amount of privacy with solid, thick Floridian jungle putting decent distance between you and your neighbors. The only downside is that it is a solid hike from this campground to the spring itself, which will require you to drive there or take a decent bike ride.

  The amenities are pretty amazing with the two bathroom and laundry room facilities appearing to be nearly brand new and there are designated dump stations scattered throughout making disposal of trash and recyclables EZ. The restroom facilities had vending machines as well. As for the sand pine scrub nature you are surrounded by, but the real gem here of course is the fresh crystal spring that is teaming with manatees, which are best to view and swim alongside between the winter months of November and February. For my float-seeking friends, there’s a solid kayak / canoe launch and if you don’t want to get some oaring in, you can partake in a guided river boat cruise.

  If you’re looking to get away from it all and enjoy some privacy, then this is a great little campground for you to consider. And if you miss anything from the non-natural world, have no fears, a short drive into town to grab a pizza or load up on groceries is easy enough to manage. What I love most about camping here at Blue Springs SP is that during heavier tourist season, a reservation will guarantee you access to the spring, which sometimes gets full and therefore requires the rangers to stop traffic flow into the park, so if you've got a place guaranteed for the night, then, well, you need not worry about the morning rush when most will just worry about getting in the park.

  Insider’s tips? Here’s a few: (1) If you find yourself out-of-luck in finding an available campground site to reserve, try your luck at booking one of the 6 often overlooked cabins, which BTW, come with their own set of parking spaces; (2) When you grow weary of digging through your onboard mini-fridge or roto-molded Cordova cooler, then check out some of the local fare where nearby in town, there’s a sweet little Argentinian joint called Rincon del Sabor, classic pie palace called Blue Springs Pizza and another ethereal dive called Taste of Soul – neither of which you’ll wanna write home about, but will definitely give you a break from ‘frank & beans’ for the night. And if neither of those places do the trick for you, there is also a few other restaurants you might wanna check out like Gram’s Kitchen for low country breakfast cooked up all day, Mi Tierra Authentic Mexican as well as Fire on the Bayou for some nice, spicy Cajun; (3) Should you need to stock up on any supplies, nearby Blue Springs SP has a 'grade A' Publix as well as a Walmart nearby, so you should have no problems being stocked up while staying here; and (4) When the kiddos get restless and the pristine nature that you find yourself surrounded by isn’t enough of a distraction, then head due east to Family Fun Town, which is a family-friendly amusement center with batting cages, mini-golf, arcade games and go cart racing. Yahoo!

  Happy Camping!

• L

  Louise C.

  Scout

  

  Jun. 22, 2024

  North Beach Camp Resort

  Nice park bad bath house

  Camp sites are very nice. It’s right across the street from the beach. The problem I had was for the price you would think the bath houses would be I better condition. I guess they were clean but in such bad condition I couldn’t be sure.

• A

  Amanda W.

  Guide

  

  Jun. 21, 2024

  Silver Springs State Park Campground

  Amazing kayaking & trails

  Campground is basic, very few sewer spots but there is a dump station. Big rig friendly, several pull thru spots, easy paved entry, gravel sites, I think all are 50/30. Plenty of space between sites. Clean bathroom, washer/dryer, soda machine. Very dark at night which I love. No lights except the bath house. Dog poo bag stations. Very friendly staff (Melinda & John, camp hosts were amazing) 1 mile from amazing kayaking. Great, woodsy hiking trails. Maybe 3 miles to Publix/Wawa.

• 

  Ali P.

  Guide

  

  Jun. 17, 2024

  Mike Roess Gold Head Branch State Park Campground & Cabins

  Quick 2 night stay

  Beautiful place, nothing to complain about

• M

  Maggie C.

  Legend

  

  Jun. 10, 2024

  Silver Springs State Park Campground

  Beautiful campground

  Loved this campground. We had sites 22 & 24. Site 22 has lots of sun; site 24 was full shade all day. I thought site 20 was the best. All campsites are very roomy. Bring your paddleboard or kayak. We drove to Silver Springs park and put in. Lazy river ride for 2 miles where we got out at the River trail. If you do this, bring your kayak wheels as it is a 1 mile walk back to the campground (or 1/2 mile to the River Trail trailhead). Then went to pick up truck where we started. Highly recommend this campground. There are also lots of trails to hike, but it was so hot when we were there we did not do any but the river trail.

• 

  Stuart K.

  Legend

  

  Jun. 9, 2024

  Twin Lakes Fish Camp

  Fishing Bliss in Swamp-Like Single Lane Camping Outpost

  Like the opening for 'Waterboy' (starring Adam Sandler), when you first rock up to Twin Lakes Fish Camp, somehow you feel as though you are visiting family in the very deep south with the likes of Bobby Bocher (pronounced BOO-Shay) greeting you upon arrival with a dilapidated golf cart eager to show you around this fairly minuscule one lane, dead-end campground that is more swamp outpost than pine forested campground. While definitely geared more towards the slightly semi-permanent resident than the overnight camping crowd, you’ll find a mixture of heavily seasoned RV trailers that don’t look as though they’ve moved anywhere in the past several years(or decades) along with a small handful of cabin rentals. Sure, there are a few spots here and there that you might park a 5th wheeler, RV or even see a pitched tent, but those spots are far and few between, if available at all.

  As you make your way down this single lane refuge, on the right, you’ll notice fairly tightly packed together RVs or 5th wheelers lining the tree-ensconced periphery, where on the left you’ll spot sites that have a bit more space to them and with less crowded confines. Also on the left, you’ll easily notice a decent inlet that is perfect should you be towing any form of small watercraft with you, be that a kayak, canoe or even small engine boat. As you make your way down this single lane, pass the river inlet boat parking structure on your left, you’ll spot the 4-5 cabins that are for rent before making your way to the very end of the lane, which you’ll discover the manager’s office on the right. It’s here where you’ll check in. Just beyond this spot is where the waterline begins, albeit for the first 20 or 30 yards, completely encased by Spanish moss of every variety hanging from ancient Oaks, Palmettos and the odd Pine. For dramatic effect, there’s even a partially sunken house boat (or two) in the rather shallow waters just off this small inlet, where you can easily walk on and cast a line or two from.

  With regards to amenities, apart from the swamp-like, down-home feel to this place, you’ll encounter fully-furnished cabins equipped with Direct TV, a small general store (that was closed when we visited), a tackle shop, WiFi (albeit incredibly weak), a recreation room (that didn’t have much but incredibly well-worn paperback books and a single fold-up table accompanied by the prerequisite ashtray), TV, scattered fire pits, covered picnic pavilion, small laundry room (that was closed while we were there), horseshoe pit, restrooms (that were anything but clean), full hook-ups with 30 / 50 amp electric, water and sewage as well as a designated dump station and a fish cleaning station alongside that fishing boat parking structure.

  If you can get past the overall dilapidated condition of this place that transports you to a swamp-like wonderland, the upside is that Twin Lakes Fish Camp places you smack dab right in the heart of some pretty amazing fishing country. With Twin Lakes situated between Lochloosa and Orange Lakes, it’s the mouth of the famous Cross Creek that will return you right back here to Twin Lakes Fish Camp. Nearby, there’s the very quaint town of Micanopy, where you can load up on sundries and groceries as well as, if need be, travel further afield to either Gainesville to the north or Ocala to the south for many more dining and entertainment options.

  Insider’s tips? Here’s a few: (1) Rather than stay here, what I would HIGHLY recommend, whether you have an RV or are looking to pitch your tent, is to instead, seek another location for your camping adventures. If it were me, I would double-back to Paynes Prairie SP and book a spot there and simply come here to Twin Lakes Fish Camp to disembark on a fishing odyssey. Remember, it’s always important to note and differentiate a place that might be nice to visit versus a site that you want to call home for the night!; (2) Should you want to rent a 'jon boat', kayak, canoe or sumptknocker, you can easily do that here for $35/ day (and something tells me, you could probably talk the owner down a bit); (3) This place is fairly economical at $35 per night / $175 per week / $375 per month, but I would definitely recommend you look at the photos I’ve posted as well as do a bit of research on-line before booking anything here; (4) When you grow weary of cooking up ‘franks& beans’ for your next meal, and want to check out some local fare, just down the road is a very nice, quaint and actually somewhat upscale joint called The Yearling that serves up low-country delights like fried green tomatoes, fried gator bites and conch fritters in addition to main entrees like blackened red fish or shrimp & grits; and (5) While you won’t find any decent hiking in or around Twin Lakes Fish Camp, if you double-back to Paynes Prairie SP, you’ll find a ton of really great paths to both hike & bike.

  Happy Camping!

• S

  Serena S.

  Scout

  

  Jun. 8, 2024

  Encore Bulow RV

  Pool was okay, but the staff wasn’t.

  I asked my parents to book this RV site because it has a pool and WiFi. First things first, you have to pay for WiFi. I spent $15 on WiFi for ONE DAY for 7 people because if you make only one account it allows only 3 devices to sign it with it. Doesn’t mention anything about that on their website or on here. The plants here and the views are really pretty. The pool was okay, and the one day and night we stayed there we met some friendly people who were staying there as well. The next morning, (40 minutes before checkout time) they were already calling my mom and asking us when we were leaving. Are you serious? Put an earlier check-out time on your business if you want people to leave earlier. It sucks because I recommended this site to my parents, and they treated my mom very crummy. We won’t be back here again.

• 

  Ray & Terri F.

  Legend

  

  May. 4, 2024

  The Grand Oaks RV Resort

  Nice, quiet, well maintained, spacious CG

  We have a 36 ft Class A with a Cherokee Trailhawk tow and stayed in site 10 for 3 days in late April. The CG is very clean, well maintained. Most of the sites are fairly well spaced, particularly for a private CG. The CG host is very friendly and helpful. The property is expansive. The CG roads are paved and the pads are concrete.   

  AT&T coverage was ok, with 5 bars of 5G+ service and speeds up to 5 MB/s. Parts of the CG have a few trees, particularly near the entrance where ours was, but most sites deeper in the CG are open. We did have line-of-site to the DISH satellites and did have a clear view north, so Starlink was awesome, with speeds up to 53 MB/s.

• 

  B M.

  Legend

  

  Apr. 25, 2024

  Silver Springs State Park Campground

  Amazing Place

  This campground is nice the sites are nice sized and level. The campground is not located at the head springs where the glass bottom boats are and kayak rentals. This makes it even better. The campground is quiet. It's a 15 minute drive to the head springs. 

  We had our own Kayaks so we put in at the head springs and paddled down to the campground. It's a 2 to 2 1/2 hour trip or more because of all the beautiful landscape and the wildlife. At the campground exit to get out of the river you have to have wheels to transport the kayaks back to the parking lot. It's about a 1 mile hike pulling the kayak.

  You can also do a longer trip an paddle further to Rays Wayside. It's less busy paddling that part of the river. You will need to leave a vehicle parked at Rays Wayside to get back to the headsprings. There is a company for $10 per person that will pick you up there and brings you back. Silver Springs charges $55 per person. 

  I was in site 53 and there are trails you can hike from behind many of the campsites. There is a cracker house village and a great museum with artifacts and giant skeletons of big creatures. Lots of fossils and arrowheads. The Museum is only open on weekends.

  The bath houses are very clean and if cold out nice hot heaters. There is a washer and dryer at the bath houses too.

  They sell firewood and ice at the campground. You use a QR code scanner to purchase it. The wood is nice and burns like wood should.

  I went to Silver springs as a kid and always thought of it as a tourist trap. I never had a desire to camp there yet I will say I have changed my mind and have already booked for next year. 

  Florida residents have a one month booking advantage which started this past January. If your a Florida senior resident you get 1/2 off the price. The campsite hang tag gets you into the headspring for free. 

  The park is nice I will visit again.

• L

  Louis B.

  Traveler

  

  Apr. 15, 2024

  Princess Place Preserve - Moody Campground

  Beautiful place

  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.

• 

  Josh W.

  Guide

  

  Apr. 14, 2024

  North Beach Camp Resort

  Overall great stay

  The camp is located in a great location between the beach and the river. There are many shaded camping spots. The showers/restrooms were a little dated but clean. Easy check-in process including an after hours check-in. Camp is set up well to make it easy to navigate and get set up. We will definitely stay here again and highly recommend to others. There are two restaurants within walking distance as well.

• 

  Pauland R.

  Scout

  

  Mar. 16, 2024

  North Beach Camp Resort

  Great Campground

  Top

• J

  Julie B.

  Guide

  

  Mar. 14, 2024

  North Beach Camp Resort

  Great Campground !

  We had a great time here with friends and one of our grandsons. Site 50 is completely private and plenty big enough for our camper, truck, gazelle and dog pen. Only negative is all the sites are dirt, including the roads so you will have dirt and dust. For the price they charge, I would like to see all the sites with gravel but the dirt won’t keep us away! Going for a full week next month!

• E

  Emily C.

  Guide

  

  Mar. 10, 2024

  Blue Spring State Park Campground

  Manatee and Florida nature

  Visited to see Manatees from the land. Cooler temps best for manatee numbers.

  Campground sites feel secluded with vegetation but can be challenging for backing up into spots.

  Had electric and water but trash is upon exit along with dump station

  Nice paved road around campground and short trail to main park area. Canoe and kayak rentals available.

• 

  Melissa C.

  Scout

  

  Feb. 10, 2024

  Encore Rose Bay

  Families and people considering an annual site, don't stay here!

   TL/DR:*My review is primarily for families with children*

  - ANYONE WITH MINOR CHILDREN– AVOID AT ALL COSTS

  - THINKING ABOUT BECOMING AN ANNUAL MEMBER- RECONSIDER, HAVE A BACKUP PLAN AND KNOW YOUR RIGHTS.

  - TRAVELERS- STAY AT YOUR OWN RISK– LOCK UP EVERYTHING! 

  My personal experience with Rose Bay RV Park dates from May 2020 to January 2024 with Jeannie Magill as the office manager.

  **As of this posting, I have NOT been refunded for the prepaid days that I was not a resident. 

  Top things to know if considering Rose Bay RV Park:

  -Advertised as an“all ages, family-friendly park” but that is NOT true. This was previously a 55+ park and that mentality remains. Children are NOT welcome and that is made obvious by the additional charges for them, the ever-growing restrictions on them, and the overall treatment by a large portion of the residents and staff.

  -Children are charged an additional $5 per day, per child over the age of 11(as of the date of this posting).

  -Children are not allowed in the clubhouse, to ride bikes, or to do much of anything without expecting a follow-up complaint. Their solution is to“take your children to a local park”, which is certainly not in line with being a family-friendly park. I will say again, THEY DO NOT WANT CHILDREN LIVING IN THIS PARK.

  -NEVER use their address for your mail through USPS. You CAN NOT forward your mail to another address and Jeannie and Jenny personally go through every piece of mail and will use their discretion to decide if you will receive your mail, if they want to return it to sender, or if it just vanishes. They will claim that it is not allowed for mail to be delivered for someone who isn’t on the lease(ex: my children’s father provides health insurance and other needs and those papers come in his name even though I explained they are for the children). Still, several other people receive mail for individuals who are not on their lease. USPS is aware of this issue but cannot correct it since Rose Bay is considered a campground, even though it is primarily for permanent residents.

  -Make sure you document everything that occurs there for your protection.

  -The office staff will rarely correct any issue that you are having, whether it be a nuisance dog, safety concern, or any other issue. They will always reply with“Call the police”. I would use caution when doing so since that can be used against you and lead to your removal from the park.

  -Know that you will be stripped of your freedom of speech in this park. Residents tolerate a lot of things that they shouldn’t simply because they are afraid of an eviction. Park rules are not there to help you but rather they are used as something for her to hide behind if she wants to use them against you.

  -LOCK UP EVERYTHING. Your things will get stolen, especially if you are traveling and have the dates of your stay advertised in your front window.

  -Be aware that rules are subjective and that Jeannie will make demands or tell you to do something that she doesn’t enforce with other residents. Examples: subletting, all residents must be on lease, visitors must check-in, speeding is punishable by removal from the park, and no conducting business. The list goes on and on but if you choose to live here, you will quickly understand what I am talking about.

  -If you do decide to try to move in, background/credit checks seem to be impossible to pass. There is a rather large portion of applicants who pay the fee for a background check but are suspiciously denied.

  -Don’t expect the park to take care of the lot that you are residing on. Concrete pads are broken and are a tripping hazard and most lots turn to mud pits.

  -BE CAREFUL WITH THE ELECTRIC and use a surge protector.

  -The water is randomly shut off.

  -Trash is almost always overflowing

  -Be aware of your legal rights as a resident of a campground in the state of Florida. Most residents are from other areas or new to the RV lifestyle. I strongly encourage you to educate yourself and to be aware that Florida is not a tenant-friendly state, especially for those in campgrounds. 

  My list was much longer but I am limited to how much I can type. Stay elsewhere and you'll be much happier! Trust the other reviews that also say to not stay at Rose Bay.

• R

  Robert R.

  Scout

  

  Feb. 5, 2024

  Whimcycle Trail Resort At Santos

  Amazing bike trails right off campground

  What a great little campground. Very quite part of town and direct access to the 5 star greenway trail. The campground has spacious sites equipped with full hookups including 50 amp service. The new bathrooms/showers are beautiful, clean and spacious. Overall had a great time.

• 

  Marilyn S.

  Scout

  

  Feb. 3, 2024

  Harris Village RV Park

  Quiet campground with helpful owners

  We spent a week at Harris Village RV Park and the owners were very helpful and the campground was a quiet respite during my visit. I plan to return when I have the opportunity again. Thanks to Phil for going above and beyond the call of duty. 

  Marilyn

• K

  Kirsten W.

  Traveler

  

  Jan. 25, 2024

  Whimcycle Trail Resort At Santos

  Peaceful, quiet, and clean

  We stayed at site 6 for two nights Saturday and Sunday night. The campground was quiet, facilities were super clean, and the sites were large. We were under a big beautiful oak tree. The campground backs right up to the bike trails that we definitely made good use of. And we were minutes from Silver springs, if you have an opportunity it was a great place to visit for a glass boat tour! I think if I had to pick one downside is maybe that there was no WiFi and limited cell service, but then again it was nice to disconnect for a few days. All and all we had a great visit and will definitely be staying again!

• 

  James P.

  Legend

  

  Jan. 16, 2024

  Starke-Gainesville NE KOA

  Nice stopover

  Nice sites. Staff is great. Good stopover when in the area. Second time here. This is not a remote campground, you can walk to a few stores if you desire. Pool looks very clean and maintained. Camp store was well stocked. Nice KOA.

• 

  Morgan G.

  Traveler

  

  Jan. 4, 2024

  Coral Sands RV Resort

  Great Beach Site

  We stayed in site 12 with a beach view. It was an awesome stay! The bath house isn't the cleanest, but it gets the job done.

• 

  Stuart K.

  Legend

  

  Jan. 1, 2024

  Harris Village RV Park

  Bypass this Drive-By RV Road Stand

  OK, granted, we were in Daytona Beach during Bike Week and had very few options to chose from, but … and I’m sure this is how every story begins while contemplating a stay at Harris Village RV Park.  Once you catch a glimpse of all the roadside bars (with names like The Beaver Bar, Broken Spoke and Iron Horse Saloon) featuring free bike parking and 2-for-1 specials, from a camping standpoint, you should have several ‘red flags’ flying high. Obviously, this is literally and figuratively a ‘drive-by’ area, but when you’re in a crunch and there’s a thousand other RV’ers behind you that have the same bright idea you have and there’s scarce place to park your 30 footer, then you MIGHT consider Harris Village, but I will plead with you – make this the last possible choice to choose from. 

  While proximity to some amazing biker bars is a firm reality, what you will need to compromise of yourself is not really acceptable on almost any level. While we never felt at risk from a security standpoint, it took nearly two hours for us to slowly inch our long, meandering RV into this very tight space, that only accommodates about 20 slots anyway in a very short semi-circle of a loop. While there were all the typical hook-ups (30 / 50 amp electric, water and sewage), we were so tightly packed into our slot that we could hear our neighbors all night – not to mention the loud wailing of the local biker bars (and all of the bikes being revved up at every single second of the day). 

  Insider’s tips? Depending upon what brings you to this part of Florida to begin with, I would give you the following: (1) This is definitely not a destination, but rather a layover, so unless your dream is staying up late listening to all sorts of ruckus noise and behavior, I would encourage you to keep driving in search of nearby locations that offer more of a respite from the mayhem you’ll find here; (2) If you are looking for some pretty great local fare, I would recommend River Grill on the Tomoka, which is both an amazing feast for the eyes (as this river is legendary) as it is for the senses, wherein I highly recommend either the jambalaya or the citrus bourbon salmon, both served with grits, because, you know, that’s how we do down this way; and (3) If you come hauling your own watercraft (canoe, kayak, etc.) then I recommend Riverbend Nature Park with a great launch and easy access to the Tomoka River (where I would recommend you head north towards the state park). 

  Happy Camping!