Best Dog-Friendly Camping near Indiana Dunes National Park

the beach is cool! you can drive right up! but to park in the daytime is $10, on top of the campground fee. i was prepared to pay it, though, because my hip was sore and walking from the campground was out of the question.

campground sites can be on top of one another. shrill yip dogs of the campground host in the first loop. asked to move and they gave me something in the higher loop, a bit closer to the beach. i was pretty happy there.

drinking/party feel with bars and breweries everwhere.

if i were to visit the area again, i’d reserve ahead at indiana dunes national park cg instead. nature is why i camp.

A shout out to Dune Wood campground in Indiana Dunes National Park. Big, clean sites. They are sand/dirt pads and they rake them clean between each guest. We were impressed!

There is a small paved parking area at each site big enough for 2 cars or epic sidewalk chalk for the little ones.🙂. Plus clean restrooms. No hook ups means it’s perfect for tents and small campers.

The nearby state park campground is a sea of packed RVs. I’m so glad we’re here!

There are several beaches within 5-10 minutes.

The only downside- Mosquitoes! Bring the bug spray.

We enjoyed our stay at Indiana Dunes National Park with a few exceptions. First of all, as many of the other reviewers have mentioned, the bathrooms and showers were dirty. The noise from nearby trains was very loud, and it definitely felt like an urban camping experience. The campsite was clean and spacious, with plenty of room for our two tents and a hammock. 

We really enjoyed hiking the Long Lake Trail through dunes and woods and the Cowels Bog Trail to a secluded beach. We watched the sunset from the nearby Kempil Beach. It was so lovely, but we spent much of the evening picking up trash, which was everywhere. I'm glad I paid a visit to our newest national park, but I'm not sure I would go out of my way to return.

This campground hosts many permanent or monthly campers, as evidenced by semi permanent structures, fences etc. There is a small lake that offers swimming and fishing, but we did not use this area. It is a huge area, with 4 shower and bathroom facilities, but they were old and needed maintenance and updating. One of us was brave enough to shower there, the other one preferred to take a sponge bath in the van. Each site that we saw had electric and waste water and potable water, so this was convenient. There is a loud highway nearby. The camp is a ten minute drive from West Beach area of Indiana Dunes National Park. As we ate breakfast on the supplied picnic table, the neighbor next to us had a loud argument with another resident involving a presumed theft, and police visited.