Glencoe, IL is a great camping destination for adventurers of all types. Glencoe is a great camping destination for everyone. There are tons of nearby hikes, adventurous activities, and sights to see. Ready to plan your adventure? Check out our campgrounds near Glencoe and user-submitted reviews.
Camp just steps from the water in the heart of the vast, hilly Palos Preserves. Camp Bullfrog Lake offers year-round camping, group activities and water-based recreation such as canoe rentals and fishing. Just around the corner from Maple Lake’s boathouse and the Little Red Schoolhouse Nature Center, it’s also a perfect launching pad for hiking, mountain biking and birdwatching adventures on Palos’ 50-plus miles of trails.
$20 - $138 / night
Camping options: Dunbar Group Site and General Camping
Dunbar Group: The Dunbar Group Site holds up to 30 people and is located less than 500 feet from the beach. The site overlooks the Great Marsh and Lake Michigan. Parking and restrooms are located in the Dunbar Beach parking lot, 400 feet from the site.
Indiana Dunes consists of 2,182 acres of primitive, beautiful, historic, and unique Hoosier landscape. It lies at the north end of State Road 49 in Porter County and includes more than three miles of beautiful beach along Lake Michigan’s southern shore. In the early 1900s scientists, recreationists, and nature enthusiasts, recognizing the value and potential of the Indiana dunes area, fought to have the region preserved. As a result, in 1925, the state park was established.
Large sand dunes, located beyond the entire shoreline, have taken thousands of years to form, and tower nearly 200 feet above Lake Michigan. A wide range of habitats and plant species are found in the park, with vegetation stabilizing some of the sand. These habitats provide homes for many types of plants and animals. The lake also provides a habitat for many aquatic species, as well as a constantly changing fishery.
$12 - $44 / night
Fish Lake Beach is one of the largest, privately owned campgrounds in Illinois, with 580 seasonal sites occupying the majority of the 113-acre property along with 60 overnight campsites. Fish Lake Beach has been family owned and operated for over eight amazing decades. Our brief story in pictures and how we got started is just below. Fish Lake Beach has become a camping tradition or a home-away-from-home for generations of families. We take pleasure in providing a friendly and fun experience.
$43 - $73 / night
$35 - $250 / night
Enjoy a peaceful camping experience in a friendly and quiet country setting, with long, pull-through RV sites, shaded tent sites, rustic and deluxe camping cabins, and even fully equipped travel trailers for rent. Complimentary Wi-Fi is available throughout the park.
There is a lot to do for families! Check out the 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.
Have fun at Onesti's Wild West Town next door, visit the Illinois Railway museum, Santa's Village Azoosment Park, Six Flags Great America and cool off at Magic Waters near Rockford or in our own crystal clear pool.
Take the "Metra" train from nearby Crystal Lake or Woodstock to visit Chicago for sightseeing, festivals, and tours. We are also a convenient distance to the Woodfield Mall, Prime Outlet Discount Mall, and the Grand Victoria Riverboat Casino. Various local restaurants are within minutes.
{Additional Info}:
2 Deluxe Studio Cabins with patios are set up next to each other in the RV park to facilitate families, that like to camp close to each other.
All of our rustic cabins are equipped with an A/C unit.
You will find us approximately 55 miles from downtown Chicago, 4.5 miles to I-90, in a rural setting of northwestern Illinois.
Open from mid-April through mid-October.
Gated campground 24hrs a day (after hour arrivals need a reservation)
Dogs are allowed, but breed restrictions apply.
Thomas Woods Campground is in the Marengo Ridge Conservation Area and part of the McHenry County Conservation District. Spend a night in nature! We offer camping opportunities for groups and individuals. The District has five group campgrounds located throughout the county, one over night cyclist camping location, and one campground for individuals and families which accommodates both tents and RVs.
$15 - $35 / night
Lakeshore Camp Resort Portage, IN is a 940 site Membership park. We have 115 full hookup campsites and 12 cabins available for rent to the general public. We offer you and your family a fun filled camping experience with access to our many amenities that include: 22 Acre lake, 4 pools, beaches, fishing, boat rental, mini golf, daily recreational activities, weekend entertainment, and much more!
We are conveniently located 10 miles from the Indiana Dunes National Park, and approximately 45 miles from downtown Chicago, IL. Area attractions include; Deep River water park, Chicago train system, casinos, bike trails, zoos, and museums.
Whether you are enjoying activities in or out of the park there is much to do.
$49 - $57 / night
Camped here on a whim. Amazing area. Super friendly hosts. The only thing I wish was a little more accessible is the website. I didn't know what kind of site I was getting, what it looked like, or if it was a hike in site or not. Turns out mine was, but it was not an issue for me on this trip. Site 30 for anyone interested.
The campsites are kinda small but not on top of each other. Had some raccoons at night even after we locked up everything in the car. The lake was very nice. We were able to kayak but be careful getting the kayaks in. Stairs down to the pier and the bottom of the lake is very mushy. The water was very clear and you could see the fish swim by. This loop is best for tent camping. The other loops are basically all rvs. The boat launch to the fox river was nice too but it does get busy.
We stayed in Honeysuckle Hollow for a night. Not many people were there that night, as it thunder stormed. However site was well kept and concession stand available by the boat dock with everything you might need.
The campground is beautiful wish it was open more than the weekend's. The campground host needs to lighten up and shes out on the gator every 30 minutes, that gets annoying, also since we have also worked as campground hosts you don't run around with the gator giving people rides. It is a shame but we won't camp here again.
They should check up on the campground host and hire one with a pleasant personality
Clean, family friendly and basic ammenities available
This is actually our second visit here. It’s only 20 minutes from our home, so we expect to come back many times. It’s a unique location about .5 miles from the actual beach and there’s a path/boardwalk that takes you right there. This is one of the few state parks that has a year-round heated bathroom with shower, so even with our popup camper we were able to take advantage of the decent weather for our first trip of the year. Sites are decent sized and have asphalt driveways with concrete pads. Sites are electric only, but there’s several water fills, even in winter. Very popular campground so you do have to book well in advance during regular season. Be aware that because it shares an entrance to the state park beach, entering on a summer Saturday or summer Sunday can take upwards of 45 minutes or more.
We love private campsites, far enough away from other campers, yet close enough to amenities. We chose a walk in site #16 which was nice but I wish we chose one a bit further in. Bathrooms where very clean. Trails are great. Pet friendly - we brought our small, quiet dogs. Dog friendly restaurant right next to the camp site.
A group of us go camping at least 1 time a month and we were excited to find a campground with so many amenities very close to home. As soon as I pulled up the lady registering me couldn’t care less that I was there. It was like I was bothering her. She was more concerned what was going on on her phone. Then heading back to the site the park was entirely too crowded. They packed these spots in like sardines. The “security” was a joke. Our kids got yelled at 3 times for riding bikes. But they didn’t do anything with the drunks behind us making noise until 3am. Extremely disappointing and we will not be going back. We will warn everyone we know about this campground.
I couldn’t believe they pass this off for a campground. People live there full time. And it’s red neck.
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.
Always full on weekends. Popular destination for locals and people from Illinois. 4 stars because it's not the camping in nature experience I am looking for. Lots of noise. Lots of kids. Lots of dogs. It's park area is very nice. Nice playground for kids. Volleyball nets. Lots of picnic tables and grills available. Dogs not welcome in most of the park. More of a party place. But the staff is very active. They clean sites quickly, clean the bathrooms regularly.
We stayed on site 50. We were closer to our neighbors than I'd like, including the campsite behind us. The campsite behind us had a path thru it to get to the bathrooms. There was a thin layer of growth between sites but not much. Our site had a nicely placed tree providing just enough coverage but nothing stayed wet in the rain. We camped in a popup, if we had a tent I think we would have been soaked. Lots of pooling water on the backside. The campground just added new gravel to the sites and asked that all trailers and vehicles stay on the gravel but the gravel doesn't go back far enough for both car and camper to stay on.
The inner ring of the campground are smaller(shorter) sites. The outer ring sites are better for RVs. Except for site 70. That should be tent only because there are 2 trees right in the middle behind the gravel. 50, 69, 74 seemed the best for both shade and sun combo. Site 79 is paved but not marked as handicap because it isn't being maintained as handicap and is not close to the new bathrooms. Not enough sites with electric, however we didn't need it for the weekend.
It offers all the amenities you could want for a weekend get away. A lake with water rentals, floating water slide, playgrounds and sport courts, general store with the stardust’s “convenience mark-ups”,and water/ electric at all sites. However, if you’re looking for a true camping experience or to visit the Indiana Dunes, you’ll make little use of the amenities and find the sites small and area as well the sites and bath houses overcrowded. It really offers anything a family would want for a weekend trip so depending on the goal for your trip, this could have everything you would need or leave you feeling less than fully satisfied.
The campground was full for the weekend but emptied out on Sunday. Conveniently located next to Lake Geneva with a tiny roadside beach area. I recommend camping sites on the west side of the camping loop to cut down on sun. Not enough electric sites for campers.
Very friendly staff and people. Great accommodations. Spots are ok size. Pretty level.
We enjoyed riding ebikes on the trails. Lunch at the beach front (Lake Michigan) was good and great views. Clean br/shower houses. Would recommend
Recommend e-bike as some hills. Camp ground is clean and feels safe. Beach is nice, but no swimming in lake unless lifeguards on duty. They also don't allow floats b/c it blocks view of swimmers. Small store w/most essentials. Recommend Aldi's stop in town (only 1 other grocery store).
Great place to stay clean quiet
very clean safe relaxing
The campsite overall is beautiful and the land is well kept. The reason for the review is due to the bathrooms being horrible. Hot water for showers did not work and floors were nasty, need to be remodeled. There is no water near any of the sites. 2 of the 3 hosts I dealt with were very rude. The one on the late night shift was very nice and knowledgeable. The other guys who helped me on arrival act as if they didn't want to be there. The site overall is amazing. Just wouldn't ever camp here again due to the high price and the bathrooms being Terrible.
This is one of the most popular State Parks in Wisconsin because it's on Lake Geneva. In fact, it's the only state park within town's limits. This area has always been a summer getaway, so reservations are hard to get. We went in October, so it was much easier, but the weather was unpredictable.
The lake is famous for it's mansions, summer homes and the trail which goes around the entire perimeter and is open to the public, no matter how many property lines it crosses.
The park is on the lake, 2 miles south of downtown. So, a 40 min walk, 11 by bike, though there are hills on both routes. The park has a long strip of beach that almost seems like a shoulder to the main road. There's a fishing lagoon with a bait vending machine. The campsites and trails are further back, and out of the wind.
The sites are generally spacious, some are oddly shaped. The further back you go on the main loop though, actually brings you closer to town. You can hear events taking place at the High School even though it looks like you're in the woods.
The main restroom and shower facility is brand new and spotless.
Too many things to see and do in the area to list here but I'd point out the Boat House Bar & Grill is right next to the entrance. It has a big patio and is dog friendly. Easy walking distance from the campground. Good food at a good price.
Outside of town, Lake Geneva County Meats is a butcher shop and more with a terrific selection and variety of brats (among other things) and can supply all your cookout needs. Also, check out Royal Oaks farm & Orchard. In season, they have the greatest variety of apples we've ever seen. Better still, they are well labeled telling which types are best for what use. Of course, donuts and cider too.
Hidden in the woods by the lake and a very short trip from home. No complaints
Only stayed one night. The concrete pad was large and included the fire pit and the picnic table. For someone in a wheelchair, that makes a huge difference. There was enough space between the sites so that you didn’t feel like you were on top of your neighbor. I would definitely come again.
Beautiful, huge, shady sites! Beautiful walkway to beach. Adequate bathrooms.
It’s a really nice site, but the running water bathrooms were not cleaned regularly and the pit toilets were almost overflowing on a Thursday. The site was also filled with garbage when we arrived.
A little hard to find at first. GPS will take you to a service road as the entrance, actual entrance is on the other side of the lake just before The Boat House Bar.
Came in really late without a reservation but they have a self check in. Small cards next to check in booth. I recommend snagging an RV site. The price is the same and it’s way better. Tent camping area was really muddy. I only brought a hammock but could easily fit six tents on my site alone. Roads and facilities are in great shape. Constant hot water.
Shady sites, decent facilities, friendly staff. Deducted a star because we really wanted an electric site and 4-5 of them remained unoccupied for the entire weekend when the T&Cs said they should have been forfeited at 3pm the day after they were meant to arrive.
Disappointing. Campsites are way too close to one another. If they shoved any more people in there they would have to call it a slum.
The walk to the beach was cool, but you can get that in the National park.
They will charge you 2 fees for a reservation and another fee just for your car. $12 for a car for out of state. Doesn’t matter if you just paid it in another part of the state for a different park. I’m surprised they don’t charge a quarter for the water, a dollar for toilet use, and another fee to see the beach. Since when did parks get so greedy?
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is the most popular glamping campsite near Glencoe, IL?
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular glamping campground near Glencoe, IL is Camp Bullfrog Lake with a 4.3-star rating from 24 reviews.
What is the best site to find glamping camping near Glencoe, IL?
TheDyrt.com has all 12 glamping camping locations near Glencoe, IL, with real photos and reviews from campers.
