Best Glamping near Sandpoint, ID

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The Gilmore Loop Campground is one of a handful of campgrounds in Farragut State Park. It is a large campground boasting 91 rv/tent sites. There are several ADA sites as well as the most amenities I have ever seen in a campground. Even tho you could spend days exploring and playing in Farragut State Park, there are quite a few things to do outside of the park also.

Some amenities for this campground include:

RV/Tent Camping - (Some are ADA)

Onsite Tables/Fire Pits/Water/Electricity on all and Sewer on some

Nice and Clean Flush Restrooms and Showers

Firewood for sale onsite by the hosts and a well stocked General Store/Visitor Center in park

Payphones and extra Parking

Dump stations for RVs

Extensive Day Use Facilities - (Including 3 professional disc golf courses and a large Lake for a $5 fee)

Boat launch/Swimming/Fishing

Museum and Historical Sites

Loads of Hiking/Biking/Horse Trails

Some amenities close to this campground include:

Bayview - (A small lake town about 5 min to the East)

Silverwood Theme Park - (About a 10 min drive to the West)

Coeur'd Alene and Sandpoint - (Both 33 min drives to the South and North respectively)

The negatives for Gilmore are all subjective. I personally prefer a much more secluded campground, I can see this place being packed during the on-season. The sites are closer than I like, tho I have seen much closer sites elsewhere. The tent pads are gravel filled squares, I Like the feel of the ground under me while camping and these will necessitate a mat/airbed. Overall I love this place as a day use, and see myself camping here soon.

I would have given it 4 stars about 5 years ago when we first stayed as it seemed a lot friendlier staff willing to please their customers but I'm not sure if it was sold since then but I had to give it only 2 stars this time because the negatives outweighed the positives. Pros: Friendly staff that helps you park if you need it. Location is fairly close to the town of Bonners Ferry and Sandpoint so you are never too far from civilization. Although I've never used it, they do have wine in the evenings for their guests...not sure if they charge or not. They also sell wood and when we were there 5 years ago, they delivered it to our site. Also, the site we stayed in that time was not full hook ups and the staff still helped us dump without having to move our rig. Cons: Everything everyone says about the pot holes, dirt road, train noise and turn off from the 95 is spot on. The one thing I didn't hear anyone mention is the noise from the 95 of cars that can be as loud as the constant train passing in the middle of the night. So, quiet and serene is not a good description. The"lake" although which can be fun for small kids fishing and maybe paddle boating, is more of a large pond that is dark and gloomy like and so when you first see it, you might be disappointed at it being called a lake. Although friendly, I didn't find it as hospitable as it used to be when we were first there five years ago and you get the distinct feeling that they are barely surviving as they will not do anything extra to refund or make things whole if you experience is not up to par. Here is why: We were charged half of the amount to reserve the spot we wanted and in order to keep a particular spot you pick, you have to pay a little extra to reserve it or you can still risk having them move you to a different spot if they want to. That's a first. It's true they can't control the weather and I don't really blame them for that, but good vacation industries will go out of their way to keep their customers happy when things are not up to par. We paid for six days and with the stifling heat, along with the fires that were in the area, we were smoked out and weren't told that campfires were restricted per an ordinance they were given before we made the trip there. The entire camping experience was ruined because the only choice we had to not to feel choked out was to stay indoors in the RV. We only stayed one night since this was miserable and decided to leave the next day. When we got home we received an email requesting our input of our stay and we told them a partial refund would have been nice since accommodations were not up to standards. Instead, we were told that in order for them to stay in business and because they have few drop ins, they have to take 50% deposits up front. This seems fair but we paid for the entire week, so it seems to me that in good faith and good customer service, 50% or even some refund at all would have kept us coming back despite the cons. They also claimed that charging 50% is better than some places that want all the money upfront when you book. We have been RVing for years in this area and there are much better places to go that do not do this I'm not really sure why they asked us for our input in the first place. Anyway, as a result we won't be back.

Farragut is a fantastic 5 star campground. Currently staying here at $40 a night. Went to book two more nights and found out they now charge out of state people double. My September stay will now be in Montana and I will skip Idaho completely. No gas, no food, no nothing.

Gilmore Campground Farragut State Park, Idaho Lake Pend Oreille

Who Knew?!!

I crossed the Montana / Idaho state line this morning and was pleasantly surprised at the AMAZING scenery . I’m from way over in Kentucky so maybe this is a best kept secret or it’s just not well advertised but NORTHERN IDAHO IS BEAUTIFUL!! I mean, someone says Idaho, I think potatoes/ farmland. So well played Idahoans! I stopped for an overnight at Farragut State Park. The staff was AMAZING! Friendly , informative and took the time to see if there were any cancellations or early departures in the crowded campgrounds. The campgrounds are well laid out in that there are many sites but they are situated in a way that still gives each site space for “stuff”. My site didn’t have a lot of shade but the breeze was enough that it was comfortable all day, temps in the 80’s. We may have hit the end of the mowing cycle or maybe they leave the grass rough cut due to it being dry. Our site was otherwise very well maintained. When I drove in the camp hosts were actually across the lane SWEEPING one of the cement pads clear of gravel. Full hook up, Pit toilets and a few shower houses. The shower house is on the other side of Gilmore CG. The sites over there have older trees and more shade. The general park map is lacking on the hiking trail venue. If you want to hike and in my opinion you do, see about getting a trail map or take a picture at one of the information stands. Even that map was not great, but useable. We took a stroll down through the woods and when we got to Lake Pend Oreille guess what?!! .... IT WAS AMAZING!! If you want a hike along the lake with easy to moderate difficulty 70 along Idlewilde Bay is excellent, it loops around by the parking lots and the shore. Plenty of spots for the dogs to get in and to swim. Once again there are trails coming and going and the trail markings are sometimes confusing but if you have a good sense of direction you’ll be fine.

Bayview, ID is nearby with a laundromat , grocery , etc. On site there is a small museum with the history of the area , a model plane field , a Tree to Tree Adventure Park and of course water activities galore.

Ended our tour of Northern Idaho at spot #140. Tons of flat area to put down a tent, mosquito shade (they are pretty bad), and enjoy the amazing view!

Bathrooms with vault toilets, water pump, and grey water dump all just a short walk away

It was my first time camping! Went camping with my fiance.

Pros

• The check in process is easy. Just make sure you have cash
• lots of trees to hang a hammock
• fire rings with grill top
• bear boxes for your food
• the sound of the river makes you fall asleep!

Cons

• No sink in the bathrooms.
• No internet service. Dead zone.

Recommendations

• Definitely recommend bringing cash to pay for your site and firewood.
• bring hand sanitizer since there aren't sinks or soap
• There's a DG about 20 minutes away in Idaho to grab snack goodies c:

We used to camp here in the 80s and it was always peaceful and beautiful. And we liked it because its got free showers and the bathrooms are very clean for camping. However,! There used to only about 34ish spots and now there are 51 spots. Its very crowded and people feel like they are right on top of each other. Your fire pit area is right next to your neighbors picnic table and/or their fire pit. They also clear cut all the bushes between spots and threw wood chips down so there is no privacy at all. I know they are worried about fires but good grief. Hence the reason it feels like you are right on top of your neighbors. The day use area is still pretty much the same as it's always been and the lake is just as beautiful but not the camping part. Thanks a lot Idaho fish and game! :( UGH!!!

The "grand finale" of our 4000-mile road trip was two nights and two days at Silverwood Theme Park in the Northwestern corner of Idaho. The water park and rides were amazing, like a smaller, easier Disneyland. Everyone had lots of fun and we'd definitely go back.

The Silverwood RV Park is attached to the theme park via a pedestrian tunnel and is a whole other story. Hot campground, tiny trees that provide no shade, loud neighbors talking through the night, and worst of all, all tents, chairs, and other items must be placed on the rock pads, not on the grass, since there's sprinklers that go off every night in the grass. I guess this wouldn't have been so bad (maybe a 2 or 3 star location), but we had an especially bad experience when a broken sprinkler blasted our tent and all our gear in the middle of the night (which was in the gravel so should have been safe). We had to move everything to the other side of the pad in the dark and try to dry everything out. A shocking and unpleasant experience all-around.

Pros: Great location if you're going to Silverwood. If you're in a self-contained RV this would work well.

Cons: Horrible for tents unless you're fully outfitted with cots since the gravel makes for an uncomfortable stay and there's no room to spread out. Loud, crowded, and hot.

Just. Book. You won't regret it.  The campground is just far enough away to feel secluded but not too far that it's hard to get to.  The views of Mirror Lake are just phenomenal.  Clean campground with all the amenities.  The dock is fantastic and the fishing is top notch.  Electric hookups if you are a "glamper".  Campsite A is the best but all sites are great.

Tent camped on RV spot. All spots have a leveled sand square for tents. Trees offered shade. No privacy due to layout. Tent spots appear to offer more privacy. However, be warned that the access road for tent sites is steep and bumpy. Pit toilets with no other amenities. Camp host is friendly enough. Camp is so close to the day use area. Perfect to go swim or paddle board.

Swung by here yesterday (late Dec) after calling to confirm hookups were still functional. There was only one hookup spot plowed, and it’s connectivity was not stable. We decided not to stay as our Tesla kept reporting electrical risk every 10 minutes. Not worth the risk to car camp when it’s 18 degrees.

Beautiful & clean campground with friendly staff. Quiet area and not over crowded. Pet friendly. Lots of trail hiking and a pretty lake for kayaking, swimming, etc. My only complaint was not enough grassy areas and all campgrounds were just dirt. So keeping RV clean was difficult with myself and dogs going in and out despite having mats to wipe off feet/shoes.

We love round lake!!! We coMe here all the time. But, we stayed in a different part of the park than we normally do. And it felt like a completely different stay. That is why we are doing another review. This place is the best!

We had a great time. This park is not far from our home,so we have come here a handful of times. The park is clean, and well taken care of. We have a favorite spot. We hiked the Round Lake trail. It also was very well maintained.

Easy to find & plenty of short noticed camping sites available.

There were a lot of people there. Even on some of the rougher hiking trails there were always people around, so if your looking for seclusion, round lake might not be for you. The fishing was amazing though, and the view is beautiful. There are lots of hiking trails nearby, and there are some cool features, like beavers dams and little ponds filled with fish. The bugs weren’t bad either, there were almost no mosquitoes or spiders.