Looking for an adventure where you can explore Benton and then fall asleep in your tent? Find the best tent camping sites near Benton. Would you prefer a quiet dispersed site or an established camgpround with amenities? Either way, The Dyrt makes it easy to find the perfect place to pitch your tent.
Turkey Ridge is for campers who want a serene outdoor experience. It is a Class C walk-in campground that includes camp pads, picnic tables, cooking grills and showers. Drinking water and toilets are located near the parking lots.
$18 / night
Jackson Falls offers many opportunities for technical climbing and is a beautiful scenic area of the Shawnee National Forest. It is in the general forest area located east of the small town of Ozark, IL. This non-developed area has a small trailhead with a vault toilet. A short trail leads from the trailhead to the top of Jackson Falls. There are high dangerous bluffs in the area, visitors should be cautious and aware of their surroundings. Camping is allowed here at no cost, since this is part of the general forest area and not a developed campground. Access: A narrow gravel road leads to the Jackson Falls Trailhead, but then the road becomes dirt and deadends past the trailhead.
Congratulations! Youve just discovered the perfect place to enjoy a wide variety of activities, events and nature at its best. Even a short visit to Rend Lake will impress you with the versatility of this magnificent area. Whether youre looking for high adventure, a peaceful retreat, or something in between, youll find it here.
North Marcum Day Use Area sits along the banks of Rend Lake in the heart of Southern Illinois. Plenty of shade and a large sandy boat in are, make this day use area desirable for a day on scenic Rend Lake. Rend Lake is made up of 18,900 acres of water and 20,000 acres of land.
Wildlife in the area includes white tailed deer, wild turkey, fox, raccoon, opossum, waterfowl, and others as seasons change throughout the year.
Take a leisurely morning stroll, ski or sail lake waters, spend the afternoon viewing inspiring art exhibits and end your day by the warm glow of a campfire under starry night skies. The fields, forests and waters of Rend Lake provide a natural haven for wildlife and an outdoor wonderland for you. Boat, hike, fish, hunt, swim, and explore at your leisure. If you prefer a little less nature, visit one of the resorts around the lake and delight in superb lodging and dining. Just minutes away youll find golf, trap and skeet, arts, antiques, museums, wineries, and more.
North Marcum Day Use Area features two large picnic shelters with tables, grills, and drinking water. The shelters can accommodate up to 75 guests each, and the area has a boat ramp, playground, and dock all within walking distance.
$15 - $20 / night
Backpackers enjoying their commune with nature will appreciate the solitude of the individual campsites in the Class C Backpack campground. Located a half-mile from the Turkey Ridge primitive campground parking lot, these woodland sites have cooking grills, toilets and showers. Water and trash receptacles are available at the Turkey Ridge parking lot. You're reminded to be careful with your fires and to pack out what you pack in.
$8 / night
Congratulations! Youve just discovered the perfect place to enjoy a wide variety of activities, events and nature at its best. Even a short visit to Rend Lake will impress you with the versatility of this magnificent area. Whether youre looking for high adventure, a peaceful retreat, or something in between, youll find it here.
Spillway Group Area sits along the banks of Rend Lake in the heart of Southern Illinois. Situated to the North East side of the spillway, the spillway group area has one of the best views at Rend Lake. Rend Lake is made up of 18,900 acres of water and 20,000 acres of land.
Wildlife in the area includes white tailed deer, wild turkey, fox, raccoon, opossum, waterfowl, and others as seasons change throughout the year.
Take a leisurely morning stroll, ski or sail lake waters, spend the afternoon viewing inspiring art exhibits and end your day by the warm glow of a campfire under starry night skies. The fields, forests and waters of Rend Lake provide a natural haven for wildlife and an outdoor wonderland for you. Boat, hike, fish, hunt, swim, and explore at your leisure. If you prefer a little less nature, visit one of the resorts around the lake and delight in superb lodging and dining. Just minutes away youll find golf, trap and skeet, arts, antiques, museums, wineries, and more.
Spillway Group Area offers 10 acres for company picnics, weddings, church gatherings, family reunions and many other outdoor events. The area includes a large shelter (250 capacity), an amphitheater (250 capacity), and a small shelter (30 capacity), a playground, and direct access to the Rend Lake Bike Trail. Electric hookups are provided, and the area offers a playground, picnic tables, flush toilets, and drinking water in order to provide a comfortable experience for guests.
Scout
This campground provides large spots, drinking water, vault toliets, dumpsters, picnic table, lantern hook, fire ring, and contactless check in. I also appreciate the value of these sites. It really is a reasonable rate for forest camping.
Traveler
Love this spot! It's easily accessible by all rig types. Backs up to the open forest and you pull right back onto the highway.
Scout
Right next to a huge reserve for fishing and boating. Campsites are very spaced out. We had 30 amp electric but no water on the campsite. Wasn't a problem for us we just filled our water tank. Bathrooms and showers were very clean. Look forward to coming back
Guide
Our site was on the shore and had good spacing from others. The bathrooms, showers, and laundry all close by. Good hot water in the showers. The host was friendly and helpful. I’d go back again!
Legend
McNair ACE: Tate 4 for cleanliness and stopover location for travels on nearby highway. (Scale 1- bad, 5-Very good
(72 yr olds in 27’ trailer.)
Overall Rating: 4 Price 2024: $ 9w interagency pass Security: no Usage during visit: 1/3 Visual Privacy Between Adjacent Sites: no Site Spacing: closer Pad surface: blacktop Reservations: Required Campground Noise: No Outside Road Noise: no Through Traffic in campground: no Electric Hookup: yes Sewer Hookup: no Dump Station: yes Potable Water Available: At site Bathroom: Nice flush Showers: small private Cell Service (AT&T): 2-3 bars Setting: near lake Recent Weather: 80s Insects: no Host: yes Rig Size: large Sites: Outside sites are by far the best. 16,17,18 are favorites .
Scout
Great little spot right off the interstate. Lots of nice scenery and decent fishing.
ScoutVery quiet and secluded. Campsites are roomy and some firewood is supplied.
Scout
Campground was quiet and well kept. Foliage was well trimmed. There was a spot from previous campers that needed cleaned up, but that's more of a reflection of the previous campers and less the camp ground, in my opinion, as it was not an overall theme.
Ranger
This is a little gem of a refuge within the Shawnee NF - about 30min from Marion, down a beautiful country road before nestling among the trees around the lake. The drive is paved/gravel the whole way, so very easily drivable for anyone in anything. Plenty of camp sites, both with electric and non-electric, double and single. Bring bug spray - horseflies and ticks. Beautiful lake, beautiful biking trails, etc. Firepits w/ grates are spacious and nice, fees are online. 1 bar verizon at camp, can get up to 3 bars within the area.
Ranger
Stopped here for the night driving through the area. Nice campground, clean, safe, and right off the interstate.
Ranger
Easy to find. Affordable overnight stay with electric. Beautiful lake. Friendly campers and hosts. Pit toilets. Spotty Verizon.
GuideMy sister and I stopped here on our way to wisconsin, We were surprised how lovely it was! Birds everywhere and the lake was so huge. The camp sites were big and many of them, the bathrooms were always clean and had AC!
GuideFirst off, a bang for you buck compared to some surrounding camp sites. They have PLENTY of sites, most with some view of the water. They have a boat launch, bathrooms, and showers. We stayed here 3 nights. The shores are quite rocky so it can be difficult to access the water just to swim. Overall, it was great. My only complaint is there is only one trash located in the beginning on the park & it was full, full, full!!!
Scout
We stayed 4 days and had a great time. The camp was clean and well maintained. The staff are very friendly and helpful and was more than happy to offer places to visit in the area, places to eat and provide assistance as needed. The trails are paved so we had a nice area to walk (twice around the lake from our site was 3 miles). :) We plan to visit again!
Guide
We were on electric only. Wish we had known we could have gotten a senior discount. Very nice campground.
GuideWe stayed for 1 night, had a spot in the back with a perfect view of the lake. Lots of room for dogs.
TravelerBeautiful spot with easy access and not far off the highway
Scout
1 side is directly on the freeway VERY loud, the other is in between the sewer treatment plant and municipal airport. If you're a light sleeper might want to stay away Full video review on YouTube https://youtu.be/QpuNpA7UVZI
TravelerArrived just after a terrible storm so parts of the park were closed for clean up. The parts that were open were all cleaned up, spacious sites, easy access, with fantastic hosts. An absolutely beautiful evening in gorgeous surroundings…we’ll be back and so glad we stumbled upon this place. Didn’t use the showers so can’t report on the facilities….
Traveler
We stayed here for the eclipse in April. No real issues. Kids had plenty of room to run around, hike and safely ride bikes around the campground. Showers and bathrooms were typical for a state park.
There were heavy storms the night before the eclipse and everyone in tents were completely soaked. The area around our site had really poor drainage. We had noisy neighbors that were up until at least 2 or 3 with zero regards for anyone else trying to sleep.
ScoutGreat little stop, everything is clean and a fresh shower was refreshing.
Traveler
Only $26 a night for full-hookups is amazing. Cell service for AT&T is marginal at 2 bars LTE. Only issue that I have is that site 49 is very hard to get level in, make sure that you bring extra leveling blocks if possible
GuideWe camped here during the 2017 Total Solar Eclipse and it was also the overflow site which at that time was the side of the camp entrance road. Fast forward to April 7,8 & 9 2024 We are again on overflow campground where this time was their group camping site which was much better than the side of the road. The overflow site has 4 unisex bathrooms but no showers (showers are at the main campground) there is dining (open) pavilion with a fireplace and a filtered well water system. We had a blast watching the Total Solar Eclipse.
Traveler
Sites are nice, although all sites face each other meaning you will be 5-10 feet from your neighbors if you are sitting out front. Full-hookups with only a 50amp connection so if you are using 30 make sure you have a 50/30 adapter. Overall very nice campground, well maintained.
Scout
Location is everything and this is well in the middle of a great area in Shawnee National Forest. Garden of the gods, Bell Smith springs, Ferne State park, and on and on. You can spend a week here and not see everything.
There are primitive and electric (with water) sites. There are no sites with sewer hookup. There is a dump station at the entrance.
Sites are generally level and well kept. Very large rigs (35+) will be challenging, but I've seen them - more towards the front. There are some lake front spots that can be had. Sites are first come and there are no reservations taken. During the week, no problem. Weekends would be iffy.
Large lake with swimming, fishing, kayaking. Also has a bike trail around it - maybe 2 miles.
Shower houses are kept clean, but as of this posting, they need some maintenance work.
All in all, this is a must stop if you want to enjoy what the area has to offer.
Ranger
Love this state park! Clean, quiet, water views and lots of bike paths to ride.
Legend
Getting there: Easy access off Illinois 13 East of Carbondale
Check in and staff: Campground is now under the egis of recreation.gov& reservations through them are a must. This is new& when planning the trip the website said“first come first serve” so we arrived on a Friday evening(4pm) with no reservation. The sign said RV sites all taken. The host was wonderful! He has been here 9 years and steered us to a nice site for the one night we will be here. The online experience with recreation.gov was not pleasant, impossible in fact. So I had to call. This took quite awhile. Once I got a real live person it was great, and we got our site with no problems.
Amenities: Bathrooms: clean, paper towels& air dryers.
Site: A-35. In the middle of the A loop and therefore not on the water. Still, very nice. After all, beggars can’t be choosers! Sites are somewhat spacious, but not terribly private.
Camping near Benton, IL, offers a variety of beautiful spots for outdoor enthusiasts. Whether you're looking for a peaceful retreat or a family-friendly adventure, there are plenty of campgrounds to explore.
Camping near Benton, IL, has something for everyone, from families to solo adventurers. Just remember to plan ahead and enjoy the great outdoors!
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is the most popular tent campsite near Benton, IL?
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular tent campground near Benton, IL is Turkey Ridge Campground — Ferne Clyffe State Park with a 4.3-star rating from 16 reviews.
What is the best site to find tent camping near Benton, IL?
TheDyrt.com has all 15 tent camping locations near Benton, IL, with real photos and reviews from campers.
