Hannah T.
Traveler
TravelerWhite Pines Forest State Park Campground
Lots of things to do!
Well kept camping sites. Easy drive up style. Picnic tables and fire pits on site. Bathrooms and dumpster close by. River that is walk and drive through!
Glamping near Apple River, IL
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Palace Campground and Lena KOA house luxury glamping accommodations within a short drive of Apple River, Illinois. Palace Campground's premium yurt structures create a blend of indoor-outdoor living with canvas walls and comfortable furnishings, while Lena KOA features deluxe glamping units with real beds, climate control, and private outdoor spaces. Both locations maintain full hookup utilities, clean shower facilities, and well-appointed common areas for guests seeking comfort without sacrificing nature connection. Timber Lake Resort also offers upscale canvas accommodations with furnished interiors and electricity, providing a true glamping experience. On-site amenities include drinking water, picnic tables, showers, toilets, and trash service. One guest shared, "This campground is absolutely wonderful. Spots are spaced apart nicely. Many activities for kids and adults."
Galena-area glamping resorts provide direct access to hiking trails, water recreation, and scenic outdoor spaces while maintaining comfortable amenities not found in traditional camping. The glamping sites at Palace Campground remain open from April through November, offering a perfect base for exploring nearby attractions. At Timber Lake Resort, guests enjoy waterfront glamping with boat access and swimming opportunities during the warmer months. Many accommodations include private outdoor spaces for morning coffee or evening relaxation. The proximity to Galena's historic downtown, with its boutiques and restaurants, makes these glamping sites especially popular during fall color season. A recent visitor mentioned, "Very spacious, grassy and clean. They host events like mini golf. Swings and playground for kids. Would stay there again."
Best Glamping Campgrounds near Apple River (18)
1. Lake Le-Aqua-Na State Recreation Area
"They clean out fire pits after every weekend. Some sites were not the most level. All Roads are newly paved. New/Updated Dump station."
"This was an unexpected good find in Illinois. The campground was nice with the standard set up - picnic tables, restrooms, water available."
from $10 - $30 / night
Check Availability2. Palace Campground
"This campground is tucked into a little area next to a Walmart, Culvers, and Mini golf course. It sits between east Dubuque and Galena. When we stayed they had a dirt bike rally."
"Campground was right next to Walmart, which was convenient, and a short walk down to the high school to get the shuttle into Galena itself."
3. Blackhawk Memorial Park
"Pit toilets/shelter/playground near the entrance. Two boat launches.
Variable availability for firewood; the Cenex on the west end of Argyle reliably sells it if there isn't any at the park."
4. Lena KOA
"It is about 40 minutes away, but is nice to be away from the traffic. The KOA store is well stocked and has some pretty cool souvenirs!"
"This is the second KOA I’ve stayed at and is by far the better one of the two, the staff was super friendly and there was a lot of activities for the kids to do."
5. Blanding Landing
"Hosts are friendly and I saw rangers driving through multiple times. Each site includes picnic table and fire pit. Most have electric. "
"When I arrived, the site was clean, and we had a site with an open site on one side making it feel twice as big."
from $14 - $25 / night
Check Availability6. Cox Hollow Campground — Governor Dodge State Park
"The sites on the "inside" of the loop are rather close to one another. 21 has a nice view of the lake, and you can walk back to the fence to look over the bluff 24 is quite private and very large 26,"
"I randomly picked this campground, after trying to book Devil's Lake with no luck. WE LOVED IT! Sites are very private, some in the woods, and some have sun/shade."
from $25 - $40 / night
Check Availability7. Blue Mound State Park Campground
"Excellent for RVs but some sites are non-electric. There are no other hookups, but there is a dump station. Every site has a fire pit and a picnic table. Many sites have a slight slope."
"The biggest issue we faced was the amount of noise. All of the sites surrounding us knew each other and partied together. People that partied until 1am, yelling and being loud as hell."
from $18 - $50 / night
Check Availability8. Grant River Recreation Area
"Nice view at the Mississippi River $20 per night with electrical hook up. "
"We stayed right by the bathrooms. Showers have a push button so water pressure and temperature was not very great. The river was a great view and campground was big to walk around."
from $14 - $26 / night
Check Availability9. Crazy Horse Campground
"Friendly staff and a nicely stocked store. Has a pool, petting zoo, kayaks, rocky beach, dog park, and a land pillow!"
"We made this trip mid-May during the Covid social distancing. The camp ground was on point with their preparedness. Check in was simply pull into your site or a brief stop at registration."
10. Swiss Valley County Park
"Campground is well maintained, restrooms, showers, recycling station, fire wood available, campground host onsite, resident park ranger, standard RV sites, some electric tent sites otherwise primitive"
"This was a great stay other campers around us were very nice and super friendly as well. I think the only thing I would have a complaint about would be the bath house."
Drive Time
- 45 min from Dubuque, IA
- 1 hr 4 min from Rockford, IL
- 1 hr 19 min from Janesville, WI
- 1 hr 21 min from Madison, WI
Recent Glamping Photos near Apple River, IL
7 Photos of 18 Apple River Campgrounds
Glamping Reviews near Apple River, IL
196 Reviews of 18 Apple River Campgrounds
Stacie H.
GuideWhite Pines Forest State Park Campground
Lovely natural scenery; campground leaves something to be desired
Let's start with the good stuff:
- The park is beautiful. Lovely trees, lots of shade, the hiking trails are nice, well marked, and they even have an accessible trail for those with disabilities!
- There is a restaurant and gift shop on site. Gift shop sells wood if you run low or forget.
- The bathrooms and shower house are relatively clean and well kept.
Now for the not so great stuff:
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Many of the campsites are sloped and some are sloped A LOT. This isn't obvious from the booking page.
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The campground is absolutely jammed with camp sites- it's ridiculous. I've never been to a campground where the sites were so on top of one another.
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We stayed in the Sunny Crest loop and the drinking water well was broken so we had to travel to other parts of the campground for water. When carrying a 10 gallon jug full of water back, that really sucked.
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The sites that are marked as "hike in" aren't secluded and away from other sites at all, as one might expect. They are jammed in with all the others but there just isn't any parking nearby.
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It had rained the day before was went and so the road to the campgrounds was blocked off (presumably because the creek was running too high), but there was NO SIGNAGE telling us how to get there another way. There was no one in the park office or in the camping registration station to ask. We finally figured out that we had to take an emergency road/auxiliary road to get to the campground, but that was after about 30 minutes of confusion.
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The breakfast buffet at the restaurant is mid but very pricey- $50 for 2 of us.
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The quiet hours and no alcohol policy are not enforced at all. While we were there, there was a very loud group playing beer pong into the wee hours of the morning.
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About half of the fire rings don't have grill grates so bring your own or bring a camp stove (See pic). Also, when you book your site, there is no way to know if your fire ring will have a grill grate or note.
- Stacie H.Guide
Morrison-Rockwood State Park
A lovely campground with the CLEANEST bathrooms and showerhouse!
This campground is a lovely gem! Most of the camp sites are fairly secluded from one another by distance and from surrounding foliage (see pic). The exceptions would be sites 55-64 that loop around the playground. We, unfortunately, didn't know this and so had site 61. It was nice little spot with plenty of shade but I was a bit jealous of those with more secluded spots, especially since we are tent campers and all of the others on the loop were big RVs.
The pros:
- The campground hosts were lovely. Friendly but not overbearing, as some can be.
- The on site restaurant/bait shop/ boat rental was very convenient! Husband forgot to pack something and the little bait shop had what we needed. Plus, we were able to buy firewood there, too.
- Lovely scenery! The hiking trails were well maintained and there were lots of beautiful flowers, bird, and butterflies. We even saw a raccoon!
- The (and I cannot emphasize this enough) CLEANEST campground bathrooms I've ever seen! I'm not squeamish and have been camping for years so my expectations for campground bathroom cleanliness is well calibrated but these bathrooms (even the vault toilets!) were amazingly clean! There weren't even spiderwebs on the ceiling of the shower house. Just *chef's kiss*
- The water from the pump was very clean.
The cons:
- Lack of privacy/seclusion for the 55-64 sites along the loop.
- For that same loop, since it circles the playground, if kids playing noises bother you, might want to choose a different site.
- The food at the restaurant was meh. It was fine- it was sustenance. Nothing to write home about.
- LOTS of big RVs. It wasn't an issue for us on this trip, but on other camping trips sometimes being surrounded by big RVs just isn't a great vibe.
Mountainman McBeachfront
ScoutWhite Pines Forest State Park Campground
Nice park, with some downsides.
This is the type of campground you go and check your spot out before you reserve it. Many of the tent campsites are literally on a hill. Some are very close. They really crammed them wherever they could. The amenities are excellent and the only reason I gave 3 stars, the shower/restroom was very nice and air conditioned. Potable water available. If I knew the campground was gonna be sideways I wouldn’t have reserved it, not gonna lie I was pissed when I saw it as I reserved it for 3-4 days. There’s lots of them that are on flat ground/tucked away and look excellent but it’s a gamble unless you go there beforehand to look. There’s a ford you have to cross to get to the campground but its not that bad people this isn’t Oregon Trail you won’t float away and lose an Ox and wagon wheel.
- NNate R.Traveler
Blue Mound State Park Campground
Good RV sites, great site isolation
The sites are very well isolated and shaded, and have a well maintained gravel and packed earth surface. Not great for staking a tent, but doable. Excellent for RVs but some sites are non-electric. There are no other hookups, but there is a dump station. Every site has a fire pit and a picnic table. Many sites have a slight slope. Trail access to both the state park trails and to the Military Ridge Trail which runs nearby.
I stayed two nights in a tent and really struggled to find an ok spot on my site to pitch it, between the slope and the occasional roots and rocks. I managed to get stakes in but only at great effort. It looked like some other sites may have been better suited.
There is a raccoon problem here. They were definitely snooping through my things on the first night. Heard coyotes during the night in the distance.
Overall I'm pretty happy with my stay due to the location in the park, and most of the issues I had would be moot with an RV.
- JJoe K.Guide
Wisconsin Riverside Resort
Camping with all the amenities
We came here to enjoy some river tubing! Free shuttle takes you up river for a 3 hour float trip. We reserved one campsite for 2 couples. There was a picnic table, fire pit and electric hookup onsite. Port o potties and spigot nearby and a dumpster for trash. They have non electric camp sites along with RV sites and cabins with everything you could need including kitchen and tv. Seems like a lot of people stay there for the long haul as there are some trailer homes with heavy decoration.
The general store has everything you would need available for purchase and there's a large bar/restaurant attached. We were there the same day of a wedding reception. Free mini golf and swimming pool for campers. Bugs were a bit of an issue but thats expected. The river is clean with a shallow sandy bottom which attracts many parties and fun times. Not exactly the place for a quiet getaway.
Rx Q.ScoutCox Hollow Campground — Governor Dodge State Park
Noisy
This was my first and probably last time camping at Cox Hollow. Let’s start with positive: easy access to the campsite I was able to park my car right by the tent. Bathrooms and showers seemed clean enough, but I would recommend wearing some sort of footwear while you shower. Now the negatives: loud and obnoxious families with screaming bratty kids, people leave food scraps so raccoons are not scared and come right up to you sniffing for food, people have zero courtesy and slam bathroom door non stop, not to mention slamming down dumpster lids literally all day and late into the evening. Oh and did I mention screaming kids? Apparently “quiet hours” are from 11pm-8am, well the noise continued almost into midnight hours and as early as 6:30am. Thumping stereos with loud music, also can’t blame dogs for barking, but we had a howler and it kept going all the time. Forget about sleeping in or enjoying the sounds of nature. I’d like try different campsite at this park, but won’t be returning to Cox Hollow.
ReneScoutNelson Dewey State Park Campground
All around decent site
I camped in 18 in early August. The site itself was sloped away from the road making it feel tucked into the trees. The downside was that the only flat space for the tent was very close to the fire pit. As a hammock camper, this was not a good site. The trees were far from the cleared area making a hammock hard to set up. Facilities were great and the mosquitoes we're almost non-existent. Great location for a larger group or multiple tents.
The only thing you need to be aware of: there is a train track very close. The train runs very regularly and can be loud. For me, it was the city noise I needed to fall asleep.
Scott W.TravelerBlue Mound State Park Campground
Depends on your site.
My wife and I tent camped here. We had never been here before.
We stayed at site 77 as the majority of the sites were booked.
77 is sloped, as well as gravel with hard packed earth. Some patches of grass, but for the most part it’s gravel. My wife and I sleep on mattresses, so it was not an issue for us.
If you’re tent camping, I highly recommend looking for a site with a leveled tent pad. We did not inspect any of them, but from a distance the pads look like packed sand or something of that nature.
The pit toilets are very well taken care of. The shower facilities were not open during our visit.
Here is where our problems lied (and this has little to do with the park itself)
there was no end-of-night patrol of any kind. The biggest issue we faced was the amount of noise. All of the sites surrounding us knew each other and partied together. People that partied until 1am, yelling and being loud as hell. Screaming at cars that drove by. quiet hours are listed online starting at 10pm.
We left our campsite to ask the Onsite host for help or to do something about it, but they chose not to come out of their camper. We called every line we could to get someone to come and shut them up, but alas, no park employees or hotlines were available. The wife and I certainly did not want to call the cops since we were surrounded by a group of drunk loud people and that can get out of hand fast.
Park staff came to our site the very next morning and talked to us. They warned all groups around us of the noise level. While this did calm down the partying our next night, it did not stop them from yelling things towards our campsite to try and scare us. Making animal noises and non-sense scare tactics to try and intimidate us.
Trashy and disrespectful, we walk away from our experience with an extremely negative stain.
This has nothing to do with the park itself, just the unfortunate circumstance that we were surrounded by terrible people that do not respect the rules of camping.
Guide to Apple River
Lake Le-Aqua-Na State Recreation Area serves as a central hub for camping near Apple River, Illinois, with sites situated among the rolling hills of northwestern Illinois. The terrain features wooded areas with elevation changes that can challenge bicycle riders, with steep but manageable inclines throughout the campground. Temperatures in this region typically range from 60-85°F during the peak camping season of May through October, with higher humidity in summer months.
What to do
Fishing opportunities: Lake Le-Aqua-Na offers fishing in both the main lake and a dedicated kids' fishing pond, though success varies. "There is a kid's fishing pond, but we didn't see anyone catch a thing, so not sure if it's actually stocked or not," notes one visitor at Lake Le-Aqua-Na State Recreation Area.
Water recreation: The Sugar River at Crazy Horse Campground provides excellent kayaking options. "We liked being able to go tubing it was so much fun! They provide at no charge kayaks and a shuttle to a drop-off point which you can kayak back down to the campground which takes about an hour and a half," reports a camper who visited in summer.
Trail exploration: Multiple hiking trails of varying difficulty wind through most campgrounds in the region. At Governor Dodge State Park, "The Stevens Falls and Canyon Trails were the highlight of the trip- even in the rain! First you can explore the old spring house and read the informational signs about the family that used to farm there and other early settlers in the area."
What campers like
Well-maintained facilities: Many campgrounds near Apple River maintain clean facilities despite challenging conditions. At Lake Le-Aqua-Na, "All sites are clean. They clean out fire pits after every weekend. Some sites were not the most level. All Roads are newly paved. New/Updated Dump station."
Wildlife viewing: The natural setting provides opportunities to observe local wildlife. At Governor Dodge State Park, one camper mentioned, "Trails were way nice and the scenery was beautiful-lots of deer!" The park also features "awesome moss everywhere" along the bluff trail.
Group camping options: Sites accommodate different group sizes, with some specifically designed for larger gatherings. "We had 2 different group sites and both were awesome! A lot of space and not close to other group sites so it was nice to not have to worry about surrounding people," explains a visitor at Governor Dodge State Park.
What you should know
Water quality varies: Lake conditions can change significantly based on weather and maintenance schedules. One camper at Lake Le-Aqua-Na State Recreation Area noted, "We had a lot of fun there playing in the water on the beach however my son who was five at the time got a really bad bacterial rash from the water."
Train noise: Several campgrounds near the Mississippi River experience regular train disruptions. At Grant River Recreation Area, "A railroad mainline ran along the campground. Our site was about 100 ft from rail and campground was where train would blow their whistle. Until midnight, trains went by about every 1/2 hour."
Shower facilities: While many campgrounds offer showers, quality varies significantly. Swiss Valley Campground has "sulfites in the water so it stinks a little," while others maintain more consistent standards.
Tips for camping with families
Child-friendly amenities: Look for campgrounds with dedicated facilities for children. Crazy Horse Campground features "a pool, petting zoo, kayaks, rocky beach, dog park, and a land pillow!" making it particularly suitable for families with varied interests.
Swimming safety: Verify current water conditions before planning swimming activities. A visitor to Lake Le-Aqua-Na warned, "The lake has had algae issues for quite some time, so there was no swimming or boating."
Activity planning: Some campgrounds require additional fees for activities. At Crazy Horse Campground, "They have a Daily Activity bracelet that allows you to partake in all activities but you need to purchase per person for each day regardless if you will utilize."
Tips from RVers
Site leveling: Many campgrounds in the region have uneven terrain. At Swiss Valley Campground, RVers appreciate that the park is "meticulously maintain[ed] with good size, level sites. We had a 50amp water site and the dump station was nearby."
Dump station access: Consider timing when using sanitary facilities. One RVer at Lake Le-Aqua-Na observed, "The line to clean out the tanks was long and blocks the way in and out. The roads need repair, many potholes."
Site spacing: Campgrounds vary significantly in how close neighboring sites are positioned. Palace Campground receives mixed reviews on this front: "Very nice campground. Plenty of trees. The sites are VERY close together but we were next to very nice people, if you like space you won't like this."
Frequently Asked Questions
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campsite near Apple River, IL?
Which is the most popular glamping campsite near Apple River, IL?
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular glamping campground near Apple River, IL is Lake Le-Aqua-Na State Recreation Area with a 3.6-star rating from 10 reviews.
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What is the best site to find glamping camping near Apple River, IL?
TheDyrt.com has all 18 glamping camping locations near Apple River, IL, with real photos and reviews from campers.
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