Best Cabin Camping near Cumberland Island National Seashore

Most striking feature was the wonderful natural separation between the sites on the "west" loop. Sites are large and very level. Nice hiking trails and a bird watching site and nature center. They have an abundance of volunteers who keep things clean as well as do occasional drive byes in case you have an issue or need help.

The campground is less than 15 minutes from charming St. Mary's, GA. It has several wonderful restaurants and parks and is a short boat ride from Cumberland Island National Seashore. Unfortunately no dogs are allowed on the park operated boats.

Make sure you have bug spray.

We stayed here the Memorial Day week.  Great campground with spacious sites and very quiet.   Some of the sites have more privacy with the palmettos in between, but the site we were were at did not.   Sites are level, park is clean, bathhouses are clean.   Three bars of cell service at the campground.  The park has some  trails for hiking, a nature center, picnic areas, and of course access to the water for fishing and kayaking.  We rode our bikes around the park every day.  We especially liked the short river trail in the mornings and evenings - great views.   This campground is within an hour's drive of Jekyll Island and St. Simon's Island, as well as Florida beaches, which we visited.  We also took the ferry to Cumberland Island National Seashore and spent a day hiking around the island - it was amazing.  See photos below.

Crooked River State Park is located near the town of St. Mary’s, Georgia, and very close to interstate 95. The park is very well maintained and the staff was pleasant and informative. The campground is divided into two areas designated as # 1 and # 2, all accessed via one way roads throughout the campgrounds. Area # 1 is treed with tall Georgia pines but no ground vegetation for privacy, beautiful but very open. Camping area # 2 is very private with lots space and vegetation between sites. We stayed at site 58 in area # 2 which is equipped with full hook ups and a long back in site. Since we stayed there the park has included sewer to about half of the sites, all on Camping area #2. The bath houses were very clean and well maintained daily, the laundry facilities were the same. There are some good walking trails throughout the park and an active boat ramp with a small floating pier/dock on the River.

There are numerous shopping areas and restaurants within a few miles of the park. The Cumberland Island National Seashore is also nearby and accessible on by boat but worth the effort to go. The Cumberland Queen docks downtown St. Mary’s and has a schedule for departure and return for day trips, you will need to take everything you need as there are NO items for sale on the island.

This area of SE Georgia is known for its population of sand gnats. They are very active in the mornings and evenings when the humidity and temperatures are high. The locals swear by Soft Sense lotion as a deterrent but you will have to decide for yourself. This is a very nice park from our experience, a hidden gem that is often overlooked.

Given the size of the RVs, this looks like a great family vacation destination. For us, the attraction was Cumberland Island which is a 45 minute ferry ride from St. Mary's GA (20 minutes from the campground).

Some Info About the Sites

• There are many pull through sites which have huge gravel pads.

• Back in sites have long parking pads.

• The grassy areas accompanying each site are spacious.

• We ended up in the middle (see map) on #3 because it's what was available. I recommend you stick to the outside of the loops. There are more opportunities for shade.

• You'll be closest to the water at sites 39, 41 or 42. There are woods behind you if you stick with the area that includes sites 11-27.

Amenities

• Water and electricity at all sites

• There is a restroom behind our site (#3) that is set up as men's/women's restrooms with 2 showers in each. One of the showers is handicapped accessible, but there is a nicer (newer) restroom across from site 48 and next to ADA site 46. There are 4 private restrooms (2 handicapped accessible) with toilet, sink and shower along with a laundry room with 2 washers and 2 dryers. The other restroom has a washer, dryer and utility sink between the men's and women's rooms.

• Dump station and trash dumpsters along with recycling bins

• Playground

• Golf cart paths

Fun Things To Do

• Visit Cumberland Island (see info below)

• Mini golf

• Bird watching - there's a bird blind for bird experts, novice watchers and photographers

• Boating and fishing on the Crooked River

• A few trails and an observation tower

• Nature center

Cumberland Island National Seashore: The only way to reach the island is via boat. A day trip via ferry from St. Marys is definitely worth the trip. You need to bring food for the day because there's no place to buy ANYTHING....really! You can get water in a few places, but we brought water to start the day.  Our 8 mile hike took us south on the island to the Dungeness Ruins and further south before we turned around and headed across the island to the beach on the ocean side. There were probably only a couple hundred people on the island, and we only saw a few people on the beach. We saw lots of wildlife (feral horses, snakes, deer, armadillo) on the trails and in open areas. We hiked through the Sea Camp campground which had beautiful sites. If you want to stay overnight on Cumberland Island, you'll have to bring your tent and all your food.

If you like things BIG, then you’ll find a very comfortable spot to call home for a few days here at Flamingo Lake RV Resort, perfectly situated in Northern Florida, just a bit above Jacksonville on the beltway. Whether enroute from JAX to a nearby destination or looking for a stopover heading north from Miami or south from anywhere else, Flamingo is a great layover for the RV going crowd. In fact, there are so many incredible amenities, you may actually make this a primary destination – from covering all the basics: water, septic and electric (30/50 amp) hook-ups, grills/ BBQ, picnic tables, perfectly paved level pads (accommodate up to 40 feet length, plus side slide out shades), nice shaded areas, well-maintained bath houses and spartan clean restrooms; to offering up a ton of bonuses: a number of sandy beachhead waterfronts (to a 17-acre lake), perfectly paved pathways and roadways (perfectly laid out for the non-stop parade of golf carts), superb market store stock with all of the basics and sundries, kid’s playgrounds, top-end dining at Flamingo Lake Sunrise Café, large-event pavilions, doggie parks, fishing piers, boat docks, umbrella-strewn patios, aquatic rentals and many other amenities. 

Don’t have or want to live in an RV? No problem – this place offers up modern rental cabins that are either lakefront or have a very great view of the water. Insider’s tip? While this place seemingly has it all – I would strongly recommend you make it further afield to explore what is best along the Florida-Georgia line – like Fernandina Beach, Amelia Island and Ancient City (aka St. Augustine). Really, the only downside at all to this place is its proximity to I95, which may actually be one of its greatest assets, as it provides ultimate convenience – I just hope all the splashy amenities this place has to offer helps hush the non-stopping swoosh of nearby traffic! 

Happy Camping!

Sometimes you need to look (and go) long and far to find the perfect slice of heaven. That would describe Deep Bend Landing – with its complete out-of-the-way location, if you weren’t careful, you’d just drive right by this hidden 100 acre campground gem. It’s a simple place, with an easy layout and the sort of down-to-earth, lovely people that will welcome you and immediately make you feel as though you belong right from the start. 

Have an RV? Well, there’s plenty of spots(and all come with 20 / 30 / 50 electrical amp, water and sewage hook-ups along with picnic table, fire ring and a proper dump station). But if you are of the ilk that needs the perfectly flat, poured concrete slab to call your home for the evening, then this place may not be for you. While immaculately maintained, the grounds are natural, so expect gravel and easy to maneuver pathways. 

Need an RV? Well, they have a few that they’ll rent you for your stay. Don’t like RV’s? They have that covered too. They’ll rent you either a river house or one of their cabins, from a traditional, rustic wooden cabin to a full-fledged 3BR house. They even offer up ‘Grandpa’s Cabin’ which could definitely qualify as ‘pioneer’ if not outright ‘primitive.’ And, if like me, you want to pitch a tent, you’ll be delighted to find tons of spots on nice flat rolling land underneath crowded ancient oaks blocking the sun from beating down on your brow. 

From an amenities standpoint, the RV designated spots have all the hook-ups you would need and every, single, spot has its own tree-lined ceiling with a natural window to see the sparkling stars each night. Oh, and there’s the alluring black waters of the Satilla River that runs through this place, of which there’s about a half dozen spots that rock up to this waterfront (including Grandpa’s Cabin), which I would highly recommend. There’s two very simple and easy small boat launches at both ends of the property that will send you off to explore an exquisite, blissful natural experience undisturbed by anything other than what God himself has planted or fowl / animal he has sent to remind you of what a slice of heaven can be on earth. Net-net, if you want to get away from it all and not hear traffic (or any noise for that matter from the modern world) or worry about getting a good cell signal (let alone WiFi connection) then this is the perfect spot for you. 

Insider’s tip? If you feel confined by the tight needle-like Satilla, I highly recommend an early morning kayak dip in nearby Kings Bay (it’s less than a 10 minute drive from the campground). And if you grow tired of dogs and beans by the fireside, I highly recommend either Scott’s BBQ & Grill, which is a must-stop for ribs, smoked chicken and potato bomb (don’t ask, just order and eat!). 

Happy Camping!