Best Glamping near Chicago, IL

Great site, not far from Chicago, but feels well away from city life.

Tent sites around rim of a lake. RV sites and cabins as well.

Beautiful forest surrounds the lake, lots of hiking in the surrounding enormous forest preserve. Lake has fishing and boats as well.

This park isn't too far away from Chicago, which makes it a great place for a quick get away! There are a variety of sites from electric to non-electric. A boat rental area for canoes and kayaks makes this great for getting on the water and there are some decent bike trails in the park as well.

You gotta love Indiana dunes national lakeshore! A quick drive from chicago this campsite is a real good place to get away from the city and enjoy the outdoors. It’s one of my favorite places to go within an hour’s drive. The campsite has everything you need. Modern bathrooms and showers, running water. Good for tent camping. It’s clean and a quick drive to a quiet beach at Beverly Shores. I highly recommend!

We followed the signs for Indiana Dunes National Park and found ourselves here. There is also a campground directly in the park but this one is just down the road. I think it’s still part of the same place but with a self-check-in there wasn’t anybody to ask. 

The camp host left a list of available campsites on the check-in kiosk. We found just two sites still open and took one of them. Our site was a large pull-through with a separate area for the picnic table and a tent. Right across the road was the large restroom complete with showers and flushing toilets. After setting up camp, I heard people in the woods right on the other side of the hill. I walked up the path and found that the neighboring campsite winds back there. We could sort of see them, and definitely hear them, but we still felt separate. The camper and car in the pull through spot provided a nice barrier so our dog didn’t get distracted by people walking by. 

The National Park entrance is a few miles down the road. The beach was packed but the trails were emptier. We enjoyed hiking to the summit of 2 dunes. We stopped at the picnic area to have lunch in the shade. There’s also a trail that leads out from camp. However dogs are not allowed on the entire trail so we skipped it. 

This is a nice National Park that’s only an hour from Chicago.

We use this as our base when we went to Chicago. The only problem is that it is anywhere from an hour to an hour and a half from downtown Chicago. The facilities were nice and maintained. We had a nice Prairie view spot.

We had such a great time at our site for the Questival event in Chicago! Although it was a short stay, we enjoyed the campfire and atmosphere with fellow Questivvalians

This camp ground was a federal site that was wonderful.  It just had so much to do in the campground and near by as well. We went to look at the light house, sand dunes, lake, beach, and even rode the train into Chicago for the day.

My family loves coming here! The scenery is beautiful, you can fish, hike, or just relax. You're in the Chicago suburbs so it's easy to get to a store or restaurant if you need. It's close to home for us, so it's perfect for a quick camping trip. Only drawback is that it's a little pricey, but the facilities are updated and clean, and you get a free firewood bundle when you arrive.

Very clean and very nice. It was quite busy, but only saw a few people on the trails. Which if you're hiking, make sure you're prepared. It's s different element hiking in the sand, every two steps forward is one step back. But the views are so so worth it. Lake Michigan is amazing, and you can see Chicago's city line in the distance.

Another great KOA, this one just 55 miles from downtown Chicago. We live staying here with the kids as they have Gem Mining, Jump Pad, Gagaball, Minigolf, Frisbee Golf, Polipong and huge playground! Join us for hay-wagon rides, face painting, flashlight candy hunt and more on weekends.

Always clean and well organized, they escort you to your campsite when you arrive for ease.

This is a state park which has an entrance fee and camping you can reserve. The area is beautiful. Big dunes, lovely water. On clear evenings you can see the skyline of Chicago across the lake. The state park has many well maintained hiking trails and cross country skiing trails in the winter. Be careful in the lake, because rip current often take young visitors out too far and into dangerous waters.

Location is fantastic for exploring the area. From campground you can walk (very close!)  to the small Village of Beverly Shores which has a cool restaurant (Goblin and the Grocer) with outdoor dining and take out, higher end liquor store, gas station, ice cream, firewood, beach supplies and food trucks. Plus, even the commuter train to Chicago stops here. Close to several beaches, tons of hiking, dunes to climb and cute towns to explore.

This campground was easy peasy and had an incredible view of the lake. We were right there on the lake. We went in September so I'm not sure how it would be in the summer since there is little to no cover. 

There was nice hiking and we were able to get out into the woods for a while. My friend and I were surprised that such a nice place is so close to Chicago. There is a dock and the campground had good access to water, sink, and a nice bathroom. Lots of families were there when we went. Overall would recommend.

This is a great area for those who (like us) have made I-80 a semi-annual migration pattern ;-) All kidding aside, this is a perfect spot either to or from the Chicago area. From Indiana Dunes State Park all the way up the coast to New Buffalo, the area is dotted with great little restaurants, wineries, and breweries. Tourist-y without being tacky.

There are plenty or rentals for those looking for a house-type stay.

Quick Tip: Prepare for cold water! Lake Michigan is usually pretty cold until later in the summer.

If you’re willing to pay a little more to camp, this is a great campsite for you! Well kept grounds, clean bathrooms and showers, open year round, SUPER close to the National park. I personally prefer driving a bit out of my way to find cheaper and more secluded campgrounds/places to stay, so a total of $73 for a three night stay was not my favorite thing about this site. However, the proximity to the National park and the Chicago made it worth it for me. As a solo female traveler, I never felt unsafe.

This is our go-to state park when I need to get out of Chicago for the afternoon. We camped here once as a starter trip with our two kids, since it was easy enough to go home if it all went south.

Non-electric sites in the loop on the small fishing pond were relatively quiet, well shaded, with decent screening between sites. Easy walk to bath house adjacent the electric sites, which were jammed with RVs.

Nice easy hiking/biking trails. Boat rentals. Stocked concesion building.

Our kids, 4&8, really like it here. Nothing too hard or scary for my little city kiddos.

Nice spot, basic but clean. The Pin Oak trees were abundant for hammocks but a little worrisome with the wind advisory. Train tracks are quite close so light sleepers may be woken by the sound, Beverly Shores train depot very convenient if coming or going to Chicago. A quick bike ride to the the beach and century of progress houses. Lovely sunset on the beach and close enough to make it back to the campground without it too dark via bike. Very convenient stores within walking distance across the road with just about anything you could need if you forget something. Bathrooms were decent, showers and flushable toilets were close by site 57. ADA accessible spots available. Reservations are required this year not FCFS as previous years.