Best Tent Camping near Jonesboro, IL

Recent Tent Reviews near Jonesboro, Illinois

540 Reviews of 15 Jonesboro Campgrounds

• 

  Michael M.

  Ranger

  

  Oct. 23, 2017

  Giant City State Park Campground

  Campground Improving in 2017

  There are currently 25 equestrian camp sites in this park in a different area than the normal RV and Tent campground. The campground is being upgraded this year in which I belive they are adding 50 amp full service to many of the electric only sites. There is currently walk in only unless you are reserving a horse camp. There are fantastic hiking trails and equestrian trails here and you would think you are in the mountains here. The geology is much like the Missouri area near the other bank of the Mississippi river. I have tent camped here and camped in a pop-up camper in the fall both times. Hiking is the best activity here unless you ride horses and that is great here too. This one and Wolf Creek on Lake Shelbyville are the best parks in Illinois for horse trails.

• M

  Mary F.

  Scout

  

  Aug. 19, 2018

  South Sandusky Campground

  Picture perfect

  Full hookups to tent camping and spacious sites. This is a Corps of Engineer Campground so bring your America the Beautiful pass! Well maintained on beautiful Rend Lake in southern Illinois. Reservations accepted on reservation.gov. Walk ins also welcome.

• 

  Carrie J.

  Guide

  

  Jul. 31, 2016

  South Marcum Campground

  Nice and quiet

  These sites are pretty run of the mill average camping sites. They're very close to the Illinois state fair grounds. There are tent sites as well as RV sites that are very close to the lake.

• 

  John

  Scout

  

  Sep. 9, 2020

  Fern Lake Campground and RV Park

  Beautiful place, very convenient!

  This place is right off the highway close to most things. It’s a cute little place with RV sites and tent sites. The tent sites are located on the lake and have power available. The price was very reasonable and the people here were very friendly and accommodating. The only down fall is the highway noise. Definitely would stay here again given the chance!

• 

  Chad K.

  Legend

  

  Sep. 30, 2016

  Redbud Campground at Bell Smith Springs

  Quiet

  Stopped at this campground on the way to St. Louis. It is remote with several trails to explore. The sites were level and good for tent camping.

• 

  Annie C.

  Legend

  

  Oct. 1, 2016

  Pharoah - Garden of the Gods Rec Area Campground

  Garden of the Gods

  Primative camping at its best. This is heavily used in the summer and early fall. Picnic tables and fire rings, vault toilets. Go in the off season and you will have plenty of privacy. Fairly level tent sites , some with nice trees for hammocks. Close to Little Grand Canyon, a really neat natural bridge, and Illinois wineries.

• 

  Bob P.

  Traveler

  

  Feb. 18, 2019

  Pine Hills

  Remotely lovely

  Tent sites with no electricity or water. Clean toilets and a covered pavilion for getting out of the rain when needed.

• 

  michael G.

  Scout

  

  Jan. 16, 2022

  Randolph County State Recreation Area

  Tent camping

  Plenty of tent camping sites. There are primitive also. Great Lake to fish and plenty of trails to hike. Looks like the rv site can get booked up on weekends.

• J

  Jamie E.

  Scout

  

  Jul. 30, 2018

  Lake Murphysboro State Park Campground

  Murphy lake

  Camper area is well cared for but tent camping needed to be mowed desperately. Lots of bug spray required. the area is very hilly and narrow to drive through. Over all very nice place to camp!

• 

  GB N.

  Scout

  

  Oct. 22, 2024

  DD Hwy Campground

  October tent camping

  Tent camping back away from the RVs & we were the only people. Gorgeous river to view just a few steps away & the night sky view was fantastic. LOVED the bathroom & shower facilities!

• 

  Chelsea D.

  Guide

  

  Apr. 23, 2020

  Pine Hills

  Beautiful new Picnic shelter, quiet campground

  This is a very basic campground with some shade. No hookups, really good for tent camping. The new picnic shelter is beautiful and there is seating around a fire pit. This forest does a great job of keeping restrooms very clean.

• 

  Brennan M.

  Guide

  

  Jul. 26, 2020

  Deer Ridge Campground — Ferne Clyffe State Park

  Very RV heavy

  I actually didn't end up camping here because it looked like a rock site. I maybe saw two tents, everyone else in big RV's. If you are doing tent camping I would look elsewhere. I might've missed an area that was more tent friendly but I didn't see it. I would do primitive with a tent probably.

• 

  Chad K.

  Legend

  

  Aug. 31, 2016

  Arrowhead Lake Campground

  Average

  We stayed here on our way to St. Louis and found it to be average. The campground was clean and run of the mill. The tent sites were adequate and semi level.

• B

  Brasley C.

  Traveler

  

  Jun. 18, 2020

  Whippoorwill Lake Campground Resort

  Lake camping

  Small lake. Has tent camping or cabins. All roads are gravel. We have stayed in the cabins. It was a double bed and also had a set of bunks. So plenty of room. Lake has sandy beaches. Small playset I the water for kids.

• 

  Jason W.

  Ranger

  

  Apr. 12, 2021

  Pharoah - Garden of the Gods Rec Area Campground

  Very nice hilltop camp.

  Not big by any means but we'll kept and cozy. Primitive with water and restrooms. Worth the stay for thise wanting a small area and tent camp.

  Plenty of hiking trails with a lot of information about the area. Pretty close to convenience stores for your needs.

• 

  Kirstin A.

  Guide

  

  Apr. 30, 2022

  Little Grassy Lake Campground

  Beautiful lake area!

  Great views and lots of waterfront sites. Stayed with family members who have a camper, some sites are on a hill so it makes it difficult to park an RV of camper. Tent sites around too. Lots of boats and fishing.

• 

  Rachel C.

  Guide

  

  Feb. 3, 2021

  Redbud Campground at Bell Smith Springs

  Good tent camping experience

  We found this little gem at a last minute camping adventure on the way home from out of town.  It was one of our first tent camping experiences.  Nothing fancy, but the pit toilet and water supply worked just fine for us and our kids.  We found some beautiful hiking and water holes.

• 

  Gina J.

  Traveler

  

  Jul. 15, 2018

  Turkey Ridge Campground — Ferne Clyffe State Park

  Great Hiking

  There are a lot of hiking trails and we really enjoyed them all! The tent camping accommodations were less than stellar, simply because of the “outhouses “. There was a ton of wildlife though and it was really neat to listen to all the different species throughout the night. Overall the grounds are quite nice.

• 

  John W.

  Scout

  

  May. 13, 2022

  Fern Lake Campground and RV Park

  Took me in late

  I called ahead The owner took me in "after hours" walked me to my site and showed me around. Tent camped there, there was room for me- lots of RVs and lots of space for more RVs. Right off the highway, noise was manageable inside my tent- RVs wouldn't hear any highway noise. The showers were clean and had hot water. Had everything I needed

• 

  Lori W.

  Scout

  

  Sep. 20, 2021

  Arrowhead Lake Campground

  Arrowhead Campground

  Very clean, level sites, large lake with a well maintained walking trail. Lake side sites, wooded sites and regular sites in the middle. Water, 30 and 50 amp, shower house, small laundry facility. Wifi fiber being installed, boat ramp, primitive cabin, tent camping, large childrens playground. Very nice, quiet, clean. We come here often. $25.00/night.

• 

  Tye K.

  Scout

  

  Aug. 8, 2020

  Backpack Campground — Ferne Clyffe State Park

  Just an easy going stay

  Not a lot of tent sites, but enough. Nice wooded primitive sites with easy access to water and toilets. Had my pups with, and no problems at all. Nice trails for different hiking skill sets. Only issue I found at all was firewood is surprisingly difficult to come by.

• 

  Joel R.

  Legend

  

  Apr. 6, 2021

  South Sandusky Campground

  Relaxing spot on the water

  South Sandusky campground is a Corps of Engineers campground on Rend Lake, just off I-57 in Southern Illinois. There are 8 tent sites & 119 sites with electric and full hook-ups. Most of the sites are wooded with space between them, and many have lake views. They are not very level so some adjustments were needed. There is a dump station, flush toilets, showers, a sand beach, boat ramp, 2 picnic shelters, a paved bike trail, and playgrounds. There is no internet. Sites can be reserved on the Internet at www.recreation.gov.

• 

  Michael B.

  Traveler

  

  Apr. 5, 2022

  Oak Point - Lake Glendale

  Great base for exploring Shawnee NF

  CG offers sites with electric and water and then sites with no hook-ups. The electric/water sites were much better than the “tent” sites. Tent sites were closer together and not very level. The “RV” sites, however, we’re pretty level and well spaced out. We’d recommend sites 20-24 for their lake views. There were two bathroom buildings both with flush toilets and showers. We only used the smaller one. They were pretty clean. CG sold firewood for $4 a bundle or 3 for $10 and 22 lbs ice bags for $5. Staff were friendly. $22/night is a great price though I wish they’d take reservations. We went during Spring Break for a long weekend and CG didn’t fill up, still a bit chilly to camp for some I guess! Roads in the Glendale Recreation area are in need of repair. Trail around the lake was a nice 3mi hike and is easily accessed directly from a number of the sites, including ours. This CG provides a great base to explore the surrounding area’s many natural wonders.

• C

  Crystal H.

  Guide

  

  Oct. 6, 2019

  Gun Creek

  So beautiful

  There’s not a bad campsite here. There are sites with electric, water, and sewer. Several sites are right on Rend Lake. Most sites have concrete picnic tables and fire rings. The bath houses are really nice, they are individual shower houses that are clean and well lit. The grounds are very well maintained. The park was full while we stayed there, but was really quiet. You can tent camp or use a camper.

• M

  Matt M.

  Guide

  

  Aug. 23, 2020

  South Marcum Campground

  Pretty Nice Lakeside CG

  This is a very nice Corps of Engineers campground. The RV sites are paved and pretty level. Tent sites look nice too. Bathrooms are nice and clean. Didn’t use the shower facilities. The lake has a lot of boats flying around, but it’s placid after dark. Bugs weren’t bad at all.

  No water or sewer hookups on Site 86.

  Have fun!

• 

  Joy H.

  Guide

  

  Oct. 9, 2017

  Giant City State Park Campground

  Great experience!

  Camped here for a weekend and was not disappointed! There are multiple easy to get to "primitive" campsites for tent camping but all are within an easy walk of the outhouse, water hydrant, and parking lot. There are several easy hikes within a short drive to other areas of the park. The park also has a 6 mile hike-in campsite for backpacking and a lot of electrical hookups for RV camping. The trails are over cliffs and through gorgeous boulders.

• 

  Dusti M.

  Guide

  

  Aug. 20, 2022

  Redbud Campground at Bell Smith Springs

  Just ok

  Only stayed here for 1 night. Pit toilets were dirty even for pit toilets. Decent primitive sites, not very level though. Good for tent camping or small camper. Unfortunately some other “campers” showed up late in the evening, played music, yelled and partied until around 3am. It seems to be an ongoing problem at that campground. The only plus is the amazing rock formations, good trail system and great little swimming hole. Great place to spend the day and maybe the night if you can sleep though all the commotion.