Best RV Parks & Resorts near Machesney Park, IL

BULLET HOLES IN MY AIRSYTREAM. Yes, you read that correctly. I had 4 bullet holes in my Airstream and to date, O'Connell's has NEVER RETURNED ANY CALLS OR EMAILS regarding this incident. A police report was made, photos were taken, and still nothing. Thousand Trails should be aware of this, but I'm guessing they are not. What if your kids were playing outside? My neighbor had a bullet hole in her shed and he also posted about it. O'CONNELL'S IS DANGEROUS, stay away from the new "Premium" lot section. I paid extra for this?

Full hook ups and electric sites plus some restricted Equestrian and walk in sites
Not for #vanlife. I tried to pay for a tent site and was told “you’re not supposed to sleep in your car” “this campground is for RV’s only”

Took our new to us Pop Up Camper to this resort during Labor Day weekend on her maiden voyage. Was surrounded by awesome people in their big rigs but not once made us feel inferior or less than for not having an RV at an RV resort. Pros:

• Activities provided by the campsite
• lots of room and not overcrowded since they dont book the whole campground (manager said so)
• close to Chicago
• friendly campers and seasonals

Cons: -Hard to find (GPS takes you to a school parking lot, the campsite is behind it) -Bathhouses need major upgrade and cleaning (seems neglected by the river sites)

• Very Very Pricey even for a holiday weekend.
• Pool was not heated (confirmed by a seasonal that it is indeed a heated pool but wasnt turned on)
• Staff could be a bit more customer friendly

It has been quite some time since the last time we visited Blackhawk. They appear to have entered the thousand trail system of membership since our last visit. The campground has plenty of amenities to keep you busy with a beautiful lake you can walk to. They have a boat launch but we did not take our kayaks with us on this trip. We reserved a water/electric site and utilized the dump station on our way out. Lines were not too bad for the dump station which was good. Sites were of decent size and fairly quiet. We did have an evening where we heard what I believe was a race track in the distance but was not able to confirm. This was a quick weekend trip with some additional family members so we did not fully partake in the planned activities as we spent most of our time at camp. We will definitely visit this campground again as we have used the lake in the past and had a great time over all.

Private/gated campground, sites are very very close, better like your neighbors being in your business. Sites are expensive but full hook up.

Nice place with 3 private fishing ponds. Had a pull through site with full hook up. Very quiet when we were there.

Stayed 4 nights- first come first served- no reservations- bring plenty of hose for water connections- first site we tried was just too far to connect- toilets but no showers available- electric/ water no full hook ups. Clean, with large sites, about a 5 mile walk around the nearby lake- saw several deer and rabbits - T-Mobile worked just fine- no Wi-Fi

We had to leave a horrible CG to the south. Booked this site on app the day before. Which was a huge plus. This KOA has very limited full hook up sites. As far as KOA standards, it is not great. It is about an hour and half from Chicago and Milwaukee We paid for the deluxe patio site, which had no sewer. Site was not level but it had a lot of shade which was nice. Had horrible WiFi, no cable and limited reception. One bathroom and shower was nice, the other had disgusting showers. Pool was ok, but tons of kids. CG was very kid friendly, with tons for them to do. The people running the place were still COVID crazy with restrictions for check in and everything else. But what do you expect in crazy Illinois. Makes you insane, when you come from the free parts of the US.

We stayed 1 night on our way home from a long road trip. That is what it is meant for, and they do it right. The staff was terrific and the campground is clean. The pool is dated and really needs an upgrade, but the water was wet and relaxing. The pull through space was level and allowed staying hooked up to truck. Full hook ups was nice for the last stop before parking til next trip.

We had the campsite right across from the pool and the tiki bar. The site was easy to get into with help from the friendly staff. We were surprised to have a bar right outside our campsite, but with an RV running the fan all night the noise didn't bother us at all. This campground is great if you want to watch football Saturday morning with a bloody Mary in hand, and like kids activities like bingo. There was also a very good CCR cover band playing, so my kid felt like she was at a real rock concert. Pool was kept open late in September because it was warm. Overall we really enjoyed our time there. It's a great place for socializing. If you're looking for peace and quiet and natural beauty, this is not the place. We would go back for Sure- level campsite, friendly staff that let us stay late when we had a flat tire and waiting for tow, and overall experience. Easy full hook ups made it a very fun experience with lots of full timers there.

A pull through style RV park. Great if you have a toy hauler style camper, but if you're used to boondocking/ dispersed camping. Very very few spots with shade and trees. Felt like a trailer park not camping.

This was our first time staying at the Milton KOA. I have had my eye on this location the last couple of years since it is under 2 hours from our house and appeared to have good amenities. The sites were of decent size, some smaller than others and some very generous sites. I would recommend viewing their map and comparing to google maps. They do allow you to pick your site if your willing to pay $10 extra. Bathrooms are fantastic and recently upgraded. Very nice playground, and pool area with hot tub. The pool area is well maintained with a waterfall feature. We were here during the spring and the grass was very well maintained and cut with large recreational fields to play sports/games. We were here during Covid-19 and many of the amenities were shut down, but during a normal stay they have hay rides, laser tag, pools, Gaga ball, and daily activities which were mostly shut down. This location is now going to be a place we visit annually as the kids enjoyed it and so did we. I’m not 100% sure, but it looks like all the sites are full hook up. We had a back in site which was easy to navigate into and was mostly level. A lot of the roads were paved and some were gravel but very well maintained.

Had Electric and Water hookup. Very roomy and level sites. It's about 9 years old, so no trees. No swimming or fishing. Only hiking trails.

My wife and I have always wanted to buy an RV, but finally took the plunge this year since COVID-19 shut just about everything else down. We decided to keep it here on the recommendation of a friend who also stays here. At first, we were disappointed at the lack of amenities, but ultimately realized that once again, it was due to the pandemic. Things started to slowly open up around the 4th of July. Now, it’s our favorite place to go! The most impressive aspect in our opinion are the people. It is the nicest group of people I’ve ever been around. Everyone waves and speaks to you when they see you. When we first arrived, neighbors came from all over to help me set things up. At one point, I actually sat down because so many people were helping! Of course, we bought bottles of wine for everyone. The pros: friendly neighbors, well-maintained heated pool, full hook-ups at most sites, community center, lake, and arcade (was not open due to COVID), free included cable and WiFi (although the WiFi is spotty at best!), several playgrounds and jumpy balloon. Cons: owned/managed by Zeman, which makes it expensive, most of the year the campground had no manager, then one came, but he left a month later, not often, but sometimes music and loud noise can be heard well after quiet hours at 11pm, as I mentioned earlier, the WiFi is terrible, if you need it for work purposes, you will be disappointed,sites on the lake end of the grounds will flood if there has been a lot of rain. Overall, if you are an RVer and in the Rockford Illinois area, you MUST give Northwoods a try!

Upside? This spot is conveniently located right of HWY 39. Downside? This spot is conveniently located right of HWY 39. Oh, and the 3 turnabouts that you’ll have to maneuver around before making your way here to Getchell’s. But seriously, if you’re looking for a simple, quick and EZ RV parking lot for the night(or a few), then Getchell’s might not be the worst spot. It does sit right in front of the Rock River, so WHATEVER you do, ensure that you bring your canoes, kayaks and floating fun toys. If not, no worries, there’s a ton of places that will be happy to rent you just about anything. Insider’s tip? Please be careful here on Rock River– while the water looks inviting and placid, it has quite strong currents. As far as amenities go, all of the major hook ups are available and there’s even an RV-cum-bar-cart that will be sure to serve you up a cocktail in exchange for some really great conversation. Further afield, I do recommend Petit’s which has a rocking river front party that begins around 10am and ends when the last soldier falls. 

Happy Camping!

It’s a nice campground. They have everything from just electrical hook up to full hookup to drive through spots. The pool and bath house is very nice. You can rent a golf cart too. It is a bit in the expensive side for the area but it is nice and we go with some friends 1 or 2 times a year. The  Halloween weekend are fun.

It’s good for Rv and not much to do. Large space for RVs . No bikes Allowed

My family stayed here a few years back and although it is a small campground it meets the standards of what you should expect of a KOA. Nice bathrooms, decent size level sites. The kids were fans of Wild West Town which is directly next door. There is a charge for daily entry but it was something different for the kids to enjoy.

Great place. Super clean and very nice RV spots. Highly recommend.