Best RV Parks & Resorts near Athens, GA

This was our first RV camping experience -- testing out a new pop-up camper during a two (2) night stay. Reservations were made through Campspot -- about $120 with fees. Communication with the main number for the campground went through the Margaritaville Campground nearby. Separate direct lines to the camp office and security were provided after arrival. Overall communication was good with both, and the staff were always polite.

We skipped our first night reservation due to high winds. We had concerns about damaging the pop-up roof during first-time setup. We decided, instead, to visit the campsite we'd reserved and pick up our paperwork. Site 56 was our first choice, and we were NOT happy with it. I selected the wrong size on the Campspot website -- a 20' campsite. It was not big enough to park both the camper AND the tow vehicle, AND the camper would've been facing away from the lake anyway with water and electrical hookups.

The next morning, we called to arrange for a different site. The camp office was very accommodating and blocked off four (4) available sites to choose from. We moved to site 55, which was a large circular pull through. Probably too big for our pop-up camper, but also probably too close to trees for a larger trailer or even a 5th wheel. The campsite was large, with the picnic table, fire ring and sand pit away from the camper. There was lots of room to set up and enjoy the beautiful lake views.

Electric and water hookups worked just fine. The camp office lent a 50 amp to 30 amp adapter free of charge. We had no issues with either service. The showers and bathrooms were about 2-3 sites down and up the road from 55, and they were reasonably clean for what they were.

I WAS disappointed that the main gate was broken, and the key code locks on the showers and bathrooms were duct taped shut. However, I did not feel that the campground was all that insecure, and there did not appear to be a lot of traffic coming through. Security DID come through overnight on Sunday morning -- probably due to some noise at 1-2 of the campsites across the cove from ours. Things quieted down after. The camp host was cleaning bathrooms on Sunday morning, and he was very polite when we talked. I saw him regularly coming through to check on campsites and clean up.

Overall, we liked this campground and will be going back. I will likely request to scout out some different sites in person before selecting one, as I don't want to be in a position to have to give up my spot when it's very busy.

We were back at HLC this past weekend and, as always, top-notch park! We have tent camped for several years but recently upgraded to a new (to us) pop up and we had a blast!

We camped at site 26 (one of the newer sites) and it had full hookup (our PUP does not have a bathroom but does have a galley). The site has electric (50 amp and 30 amp service) as well as free cable TV!!

The sites at HLC are well spaced and the bath houses are spotless!!

The park staff is amazing and the camp hosts are always cleaning up and are available if you need anything!

HLC is our go-to spot for a weekend getaway because of the above-mentioned reasons and it is close to home!!

This is a typical Corp of Engineers campground, well kept with a variety of pull through and back-in sites.  Sites are 50/30/20 electric with water, picnic table and fire ring.  Many sites have a tent pad, are very level packed gravel/sand and well situated with very few having very close neighbors.  Shade is at a premium on some sites due to cutting of pine trees a couple of years ago but almost all are waterfront with an excellent view.  Some sites have direct access to the water allowing boats right at the site and swimming.  The swimming beach is very nice and well maintained as are the playgrounds.  Three bath houses are convenient to all loops, well maintained and clean.  Cell service is very good as is over the air TV with numerous channels available.  The dump station is easy in/out.  Sites 10 through 40 have awesome views of Lake Hartwell.

The 5 star reviews are perplexing. We're not new to RVing and have stayed in plenty of lovely mom& pop parks. This is a family owned campground, but it is basically a parking lot with hookups for people who live there long term. Our site was on the side of a road about 50 yards away from the Dump Station. It was referred to as a premium, pull through rather than what it is... a pull to the side of the road. There was no grass or picnic table. I'll post pictures that show the condition of our site and how close the spots are to one another. The pictures online and YouTube videos of this park are very deceiving. The grassy areas beside and between the lakes can only be accessed by walking though other camper's sites.

** Use caution navigating the park because the roads at the back have no way to turn around if you get back there.

The campground itself is gorgeous, heavily wooded and lots of hills. It has great access to Lake Hartwell, and lots of sites. The sites are very close together throughout most of the park. The park also has lots of hills which can be a challenge for some RVs. There are also some very tight turns on these hills. Some campsites are level, some are very unlevel, there are lots of seasonal sites with built in porches making it very tight to get into the travelers spots that are mixed throughout the park.

When you enter the park make sure you stay to the left of the sign. We made the mistake of going straight our first time at this park and almost lost our 5th wheel at the turn around by the lake. If you miss the turn you are safer backing up to the entrance.

Cell Service: AT&T was minimal, T-Mobile was minimal.

Not all sites have sewer and there is a pump out service for a fee. They do have a dump station but it is not easy or ideal to move throughout the park once parked.

Each site had a picnic table, some had a fire ring. Some sites are full hook up, many do not have sewer at the site.

As of 2019 this park needed a lot of upgrades to the majority of the sites, such as fire rings, new picnic tables. The sides of the road were washing out from water run off. These were things also needed in 2018.

Amenities: Laundry Swimming Pool Dump Station Club House Pool Tables Lake Access (Lake Hartwell) Basketball Court Volleyball Playground Storage Lot Beach area Fishing

"SITE# 47, Pull-Thru, Not FHU, 50A, Water, Dump LENGTH OF STAY: Stayed 9 Nights, RATE:$30.56/ Night with No Discount/ 0% Discount BATH HOUSE: Clean but Outdated LAUNDRY: Not Recorded STAFF: Friendly PARK IMPRESSIONS: Nice, We would stay here again RV PAD: Concrete, ESTIMATED RV PAD LENGTH: 40 Feet, Tow Vehicle Could NOT Stay Connected and Parking was away from site SITE SLOPE: Door side Tire Blocks needed ROADS: Adequate, MANEUVERABILITY: Narrow PEDESTAL PLACEMENT: Center of site length, SHADE: 30% GRASS AREA: At-Site, DESIGNATED PET AREA: Not Recorded PICNIC TABLE: Yes, FIRE RING: Yes, VERIZON Signal(bars): 5G-3, SPEED: 394 Mbs Download, 47 Mbs Upload T-MOBILE Signal(bars): 5G-5, SPEED: 714 Mbs Download, 124 Mbs Upload No WiFi, OTA TV CHANNELS: 75, CABLE TV: No, PLAYGROUND: Yes POOL: No, WATER FEATURE: Lake, FIREWOOD: Yes, STORE: No CLUBHOUSE: No, PROPANE AVAILABILITY: No Original site was# 46(back-in) but was VERY small. Moved to site 47(Pull-Thru) but due to road slope pull-thru is un-usable. Lower numbered sites(less than 30) appear somewhat better. Empty camp ground host side byhind 47 cannot be used unless site 47 is emprty due to sloping road. One single use dump station. One campground host presently in the park- their site was not marked. Appears that most sites are back-in and set sideways to a hillside and lakefront leaving very little level space for chairs. Fire rings are frequently located 12-20 feet away from picnic table and 3 to 9 feet below site level on a slope. Reservation Software used by office was down upon Saturday arrival with no IT help until Monday- two days away leaving office staff frustrated and using their own phone to access the reservation system customers use instead of management side of software. Staff stated it goes down frequently with no IT support on weekends. Six bathhouses in park. Bathhouse nearest beach closed awaiting replacement of fixtures after renovation. Shower has outdated fixtures- several shower heads had significant mineral deposits restricting flow. Men's side closed at another bathhouse. Many shower stalls had no hook or fixture to hang a towel or clothing. Several showers had broken shower valves making them unusable. Stayed 9 nights and did not see anyone working on bathhouses. Beach area parking is limited to 6 or 7 spaces and one handicap space however, there is a larger parking lot a little further away. Bathhouse showers have a pull string valve next to the shower head that had to be held down to get water with many strings broken, missing and too short to allow shorter people, children, or handicaped wheel-chair use. Some sites have precarious/dangerous sloping driveways for RVs to get into. Newly installed sites are near completion but they make sites very close together. Many sites do not have a fire pit and many do not have a grill. Many sites arer too small to park a second vhicle even if the camper is small. Parking on dirt or grass is prohibited by rules but appears to be selectively enforced. The campground has a boat ramp and reasonably large parking area. Extra careful site selection is warranted. Four docks in River Forks Park. Firewood is available at the office. CHECK-IN: 01:00 PM CHECK-OUT: 12:00 PM RIG: 42ft- 17,000 lb 5th Wheel"