Best Cabin Camping near White Springs, FL

One of 5 river camps along the Suwanee River and the 2nd camp from White Springs. This system of river camps currently is first come first served with no fee - but that could change soon and screened sleeping platforms may require reservations. Reservations can be made for groups and are suggested. Our outfitter American Canoe Adventures makes our reservations for us. The Suwannee River river camps are spaced a days paddle apart and are wonderfully convenient (especially in summer when afternoon rains come daily and bugs are everywhere).

Most of the time you will have a camp host on the property and MAY have firewood for sale. Their site is hte last site past the bathrooms(and they are past all the sleeping pavilions.

This river camp has lots of tent camping space, a small bath house with water and electric, grills, fire pits, and screened sleeping platforms with electric, lighting and ceiling fans. Many units also have hooks to hang you hammocks. Sleeping pavilions typically will hold 6-8 persons and have small corner tables with small bench. Each has picnic table and fire ring. You will find a broom in each shelter - please sweep out and leave clean for next group.

There is a nice beach at lower water levels to pull up your vessel or you can tie boat up under ramp. At high water this ramp can be tricky to unload from in a strong current (we have seen it with no beach visible) Always take paddles, PFD's, fishing equipment, food items and valuables to your camping area - do not leave in boats. There are raccoons and other nocturnal creatures and an occasional bear passing through.

Swimming and fishing are nice here. Lots of places to explore. Make sure you have some bug spray for evenings in summer months

One of 5 river camps along the Suwanee River and one of the nicest. This system of river camps currently is first come first served with no fee - but that could change soon and screened sleeping platforms may require reservations. Reservations can be made for groups and are suggested. Suwannee River camps are spaced a days paddle apart and are wonderfully convenient (especially in summer when afternoon rains come daily and bugs are everywhere).

Most of the time you will have a camp host on the property.

River camp has bath house with water and electric, grills, fire pits, tent camping area and screened sleeping platforms with electric, lighting and ceiling fans. Many units also have hooks to hang you hammocks. There are 5 sleeping pavilions typically will hold 6-8 persons and have small corner tables with small bench. Each has picnic table and fire ring. You will find a broom in each shelter - please sweep out and leave clean for next group. Camp host oftentimes has firewood available for sale.

There are trails to explore around springs and sinks. You can learn a lot about Florida's Aquifer and more staying at this and other camps. Spring fed pools around take out area are a refreshing 72 degrees year round!

Tent camping area has fire pit and picnic table to share with others

At high water access to stairs to take out and to camp can be difficult.

Note: Always take paddles, PFD's, fishing equipment, food items and valuables to your camping area - do not leave in boats. There are raccoons and other nocturnal creatures and an occasional bear passing through.

We stayed here a couple of years ago while visiting family and friends in Lake City, about 20 miles away.  I was very impressed with the facilities, very clean and well kept.  Site 19 is a long pull through with plenty of room for a big rig and tow vehicle.  Picnic table and fire ring available.  Beautiful trees with Spanish moss give the park that old Florida feel.  This is Florida, so expect humidity and some bugs.  Not a lot of breeze at our site but very shady.  Staff was very courteous and helpful, work campers rode by occasionally and would carry off trash if needed.  There is a nice museum and camp store/gift shop onsite also.  Cell service was good, didn't try the tv.  There is no big stores nearby, just a Dollar General in White Springs near the entrance.  Definitely a thumbs up.

What a nice local campground! Many amenities! Lots for the kids to do, pond with ducks, playground, nice store, Camping for everyone - tents, cabins, RV's. You can even hang a hammock (with tree safe straps) in a few places! Staff was wonderful. Bathrooms have code to access an are very clean. Nice Laundry facility that costs $1.50 per wash and same to dry. We stayed in May. Ground was very soft in tent camping area - do not drive vehicle past parking pad (we saw where folks before us got stuck). Please is VERY well lit at night, if you need it dark to sleep you will want to be prepared.

Very close to many local attractions like White Springs, Suwannee River State Park, Stephen Foster State Park, and more. Many wonderful local restaurants, and antique shops to! We use ACA Canoe Outfitters in White Springs for our paddling trips and LOVE Fat Bellies BBQ - both 15 min away in White Springs. If you go don't miss visiting the "spring house"!

Overall: Excellent campground with close access to the Suwannee River, not far off I-75 near White Springs. The sites are, for the most part, nicely private with a good bit in intentional foliage between them. Most of the sites are well shaded. The river access and trail are beautiful. The water level was quite high when I was there compared to prior visits so it was not possible to walk along the waterline. 

Getting there: Get off I-75 at the White Springs exit, go East on NW thunder Street, left on State Rd 100 and follow the signs. 

Check in and staff: I was there on a Saturday night, having easily made reservations online using the Florida State Park website: https://www.floridastateparks.org/camping. My ticket with site number and map was there in the little booth for pick up. I did not see any staff the entire time that I was there. 

Amenities: Most of the attractions like the carillon tower, craft center etc were closed when I was there. The canoe launch and the river access were easy to get to and beautiful in the early morning light. It seemed that a wedding was recently done or going to be done down by the river in the little pavilion there. Fresh water and electricity at sites with them worked well. 

Bathrooms: clean, well kept. Laundry machines available. I did not try taking a shower so I cannot comment on that but they looked clean. 

Site: I had site 33. Very nice, private and relatively close to the bathroom.   Flat and well drained.  Bugs not too bad this time of year.  Fire ring, BBQ and wooden picnic table were clean.  The only negative that I experienced while there is that one neighbor or the other seemed to have the entire population of the campground at the site, having a very raucous noisy party. I finally had to yell for quiet about 10 pm to try to get some sleep. Fortunately the folks responded by quieting down, even though “quiet time” starts at 11pm per park rules.

Super close to Okefenokee Swamp (actually, any closer, you’d be in it!). Strategically located right down the street to the park entrance, this is likely the very closest to camping near Okefenokee you’ll come. Of course, you could try to camp INSIDE Okefenokee, but that’s quite challenging as you’ll need to book well in advance and kayak / canoe/ boat to get to the primitive sites that are there (more on this in another review from inside Okefenokee). Here, you don’t have to think about anything. Just rock up, pitch your tent, park your RV or open the door to the wooden cabins they rent. The place is incredibly compact and tight, but if you don’t mind rubbing elbows with your neighbors in exchange for waking up early the next morning to be one of the first to get zapped by the mosquitos in the south’s most infamous swampland, then you’ve come to the right place. Great news is that you are far enough removed from civilization, you won’t miss it (or hear/ see it!), but if you do need anything, Okefenokee Pastimes has you covered with a campground store where you can find those commonly forgotten things, get snacks, drinks, candy, ice cream, ice and even trinkets from local craftsman as well as some beginner and advanced astronomy equipment from time to time as well as a view into one of the darkest, natural skies on the East cost (this place is also rated as one of the top 10 in the Country!).  And if you can't find what you need here at Pastimes, no worries, the nearby town of Folkston has you covered with its many restaurants (mostly fast food joints), gas stations, grocery stores and typical small town shopping.

Pastimes has excellent paved / milling parking pads & roads, built-in fire pits at all sites, relatively new / well-maintained wooden picnic tables as well as natural grass boundaries that both separates and surrounds all sites. There are many wildflower areas to attract pollinators and hummingbirds (with the campground's own distinct, bespoke hummingbird area), a small patio / dock area where you can feed the fish, watch the hummingbirds and / or just sit back, soak it all in and relax. A covered, lit pergola, complete with picnic tables, built-in benches and a top-end charcoal grill to cook at while overlooking the pond area.  There's also a small, fenced-in dog park that's perfect for keeping your furry friends active and engaged (they even provide pet toys!).  Nearby, there's a small playground, swing set and small yard game areas (think horseshoes, badminton, volleyball, jenga and jarts!).  Beyond playtime activities, there's a proper laundry room with 2 sets of washers and dryers (with only 1 key given to a single guest at a time, so you have a real sense of privacy. This place scores extra points for having a book exchange and even offers up DVD's and VCR tape rentals (take that Blockbuster!).  The best part about Pastimes?  Unlike many other campgrounds that are well lit, Pastimes actually has a policy where they turn off all their lights at night so as not to contribute to light pollution and to preserve the most amazing star-gazing experiences you will ever have (OK, at least hear near Okefenokee - sorry, star-gazing in the Nordics is still the best IMHO!).

Insider’s tip? You’ve made it this close to Okefenokee, it’s important that you get out early – that’s when you’ll see the gators at their most active and we’re you’ll land some great photos – albeit from the bow of a canoe or kayak, which you can easily rent at the refuge itself.  Also, while at Pastimes, do ensure you get out to spy on the many dragonflies, shouldered hawks, butterflies, squirrels, barn owls, armadillos and woodpeckers (obviously, be sure to pack your binoculars).

Happy Camping!

Electric and water hook ups. Camping sites are large enough for 2 tents. Shaded well. There’s a decent boat ramp with over flow parking for the truck and trailer. Great for kayaking and Small boating. Trails are great for hiking and a few for mountain biking. Neat cemetery back in the grass lands near ranger station, lots of tortoises to see. Pet friendly for domestic pets. Ranger station was very helpful and knowledgeable about trails for longer distance biking. Wood for sale. Hot water bath house as well. Site has picnic tables. Very clean area.