Dog-Friendly Camping near Ava, IL

Dog-Friendly Camping Reviews near Ava, IL

529 Reviews of 78 Ava Campgrounds

• 

  Vincent S.

  Ranger

  Nov. 6, 2026

  Trail of Tears State Forest

  Remove from free dispersed. $8 a night. Not free.

• W

  Wendy

  Traveler

  Nov. 5, 2026

  Gun Creek

  This is a 100 site campground on Rend Lake in Illinois. Lots of trees. Level paved sites unless you book right by the lake. Some are very steep. Bring lots to level with! We are in site 92. Away from the lake but beautiful sunshine.

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  Ronald C.

  Guide

  Nov. 5, 2026

  Gun Creek

  Great place easy on off the hyw sites are old so you may need to block up your RV to level it . Some sites only have electric so be careful when you book it. Heard some road noise from the HYW but the campsite had plenty of room

• 

  MickandKarla W.

  Legend

  Oct. 30, 2026

  Whittington Woods Campground

  Decent Campground

  We had never stayed at Whittington Woods, but several of our camping friends have stayed here over the years while traveling through the area. At a recent RV open house, we talked with the campground (CG) owners and decided to switch our reservation from another private CG to Whittington Woods to check it out. The owners suggested sites 92 or 97, and we were able to reserve back-in site 92 with FHUs for our two-night stay. Site 92 is one of the better sites, with a large yard and good separation from neighboring sites. The CG was easy to find off I-57—follow your GPS or the signs. Check-in was quick, and we were escorted to our site. Unfortunately, one of the CG’s regular guests had set up in our reserved site 92 instead of site 93. After a brief discussion between our owner/escort and the guest, moving him was clearly not going to be a quick process. We were offered a couple of other available sites and decided to take site 93. Site 93 was a significant downgrade, with only a sliver of yard and very little separation from site 94. The sewer and electrical connections are near the center of the gravel pad, while the electrical breaker is on the opposite side of site 94. The water connection is at the very back, requiring more than 30 feet of hose for our rig. The owners were very nice, probably too nice when dealing with their“regulars,” and made the situation more tolerable by giving us a good discount for site 93. We received two bars on both Verizon and T-Mobile. We normally get good performance from our T-Mobile internet with two bars, but download speed was only 41.2 Mbps. The CG Wi-Fi was better at 69.3 Mbps download. There are a lot of mature trees, so satellite/Starlink reception could be iffy depending on the site. The CG is conveniently located near I-57 and right off IL-37, although there was quite a bit of highway noise that was manageable for us. The property provides plenty of room for walking, especially with a dog, and has a decent-sized dog park. There are quite a few full-timers and regulars, with some keeping their sites well maintained and others not so much. We also saw some of the same latitude given to“regulars” when it came to keeping dogs on a leash and picking up after them. They have 5 pull throughs that are mainly used for overnighters that are handy but close together. We understand why several of our friends regularly stay here for a night or two while traveling to and from Florida. Whittington Woods is conveniently located off I-57 and offers FHUs, making the CG a practical overnight stop. Our home base is only about an hour and a half away, however, and we have better options in the area when we need a final stop to flush tanks before heading home.

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• 

  MickandKarla W.

  Legend

  Oct. 29, 2026

  Marion/Shawnee National Forest KOA Holiday

  Different than Most KOA Holidays

  We were heading back to our home base and decided to check out this new KOA Holiday and dump our tanks before heading home. The campground (CG) was approximately 10 miles and 20 minutes off I-57 on southern Illinois backcountry roads. Along the way, we encountered a suspiciously low power line that our 13.5'-high rig cleared. Small KOA signs guided us all the way in. We've stayed at many KOAs and particularly enjoyed KOA Holidays for their service and amenities, but this CG was not what we expected. We arrived at a large gravel parking area and found a check-in room at the end of a warehouse, with envelopes on a bulletin board and a phone number to request an escort. Since the RV sites were down a steep hill, we checked our assigned Creek Side site 26 before moving our rig. Sites 23–26 sat in a bowl at the bottom of the CG, with little room to maneuver our 41' fifth wheel and F450. The escort number went to voicemail, but we reached the manager using the CG brochure number. He agreed our rig wouldn't fit and moved us to back-in site 18 on the hill. All RV sites were back-ins. Creek Side sites appeared better suited for smaller RVs, although larger rigs might fit sites 23 and 24. We later discovered the main KOA office near the marina, which handled cabin check-ins, food, and boat rentals. Sites 1–19 were former pull-through motorcoach sites converted to back-ins, with utilities on the opposite side to accommodate other RVs. Our site 18 was exceptionally wide but close to neighboring sites. We positioned our rig toward the right side of the gravel pad (facing the site) to maintain reasonable access to hookups. The electrical pedestal was at the far back, requiring approximately 35' of power cord to accommodate our toy hauler's rear deck. The wide pad provided plenty of parking for a tow vehicle or boat. However, the CG brochure listed a $75 fee for parking boats or trailers at sites, and a marina sign listed a $50 launch fee. We couldn't determine how these fees applied. Water pressure was excellent, so use a regulator. CG Wi-Fi delivered 20.9 Mbps, Verizon had two bars, and T-Mobile had three. Our T-Mobile Home Internet delivered 358 Mbps, allowing us to stream golf and football. With no trees around the RV sites, satellite reception shouldn't be a problem. Some sites had limited lake views, but don't expect panoramic views or direct lake access. The CG had undergone considerable improvements, including attractive cabins, several right on the lake. KOA cabins were mixed with privately owned cabins, while lake access was concentrated near the small marina and swimming area. We expected more direct lake access and walking trails, but neither was available from the RV sites. A standard fenced KOA dog park was available, but longer walks with our pup were limited to a short path around the fishing pond, gravel areas, and CG roads. Considerable work and investment had gone into this CG, but our experience didn't entice us to return.

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• 

  Ronald C.

  Guide

  Oct. 14, 2026

  South Marcum Campground

  Large site

  Great campsite very large easy to get in and additional parking for your truck right next to your trailer

• 

  Scott M.

  Guide

  Oct. 13, 2026

  COE Rend Lake North Sandusky Recreation Area

  Excellent campground

  What started as a one-night camping trip quickly turned into a three-night stay—I just didn't want to leave! Most of the campsites feature beautiful lake views and are well-shaded by tall trees. Each spot is equipped with an electric hookup, a fire pit, and a picnic table, plus having access to hot showers made the stay super comfortable. To top it off, our cats loved taking walks with us around the campground!

• 

  Randy H.

  Scout

  Sep. 27, 2026

  Gun Creek

  Great Digs

  Rend Lake, in Whittington, Il is just a great place to camp. From primitive to full hook ups they have what you need for a Corps of Engineers campground.

• D

  Drew B.

  Guide

  Sep. 25, 2026

  Giant City State Park Campground

  Good staff & clean facility.

  I stayed at a walk-to tent site for which the price was $8 per night. Pretty solid Verizon cell signal. Clean showers and well kept. The place did sound pretty loud as far as older partiers, though around 9pm, it was near silent. I'd definitely stay here again.