Whether you're an RVer or tent camper, Monroe Lake, IN is a great place to post up for the weekend—or longer. Aside from great camping spots, you'll find hiking and many more outdoor experiences. Thinking of traveling with kids? You're in luck—Monroe Lake is surrounded by family-friendly activities. Find the best campgrounds near Monroe Lake, IN. Read helpful reviews and tips to find the perfect camping option for you and your crew.
$21 - $55 / night
"This campground is nestled on a ridge above Indiana's Lake Monroe."
"It is part of Hoosier National so there are unlimited trails, Monroe Lake, a beach and all kinds of playgrounds."
"I had to nearly lower my tongue to the ground to get it level.
The splash park was fun, even for the teen kids, but the pool was tiny and shallow and disappointing."
"Great Park! Great splash pad and pools lots to do for the kiddos! Great trails to hike, friendly staff!"
$225 / night
"Drive up, select your site, and then go to the park office to pay using a self-pay envelope. Bring exact change(cash). Current prices are listed on the Indiana DNR website."
"Sites can hold 6 people total and come with a fire pit with a grill attachment which is awesome! There is one small picnic table per site as well. It's nice a quiet here."
$20 - $40 / night
"This park is great for families! The pioneer village, the trails. There's boating & fishing. The Guss Grissom Museum is on site. Hopefully, the pool will be open next year.
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"Beautiful campsite within a state park. There are trails, caves, and a “village” to be explored. The campsite has water and electric hookups (30a) and primitive sites as well."
"Located on Monroe lake, they have canoeing, row boats, sailboats, motor boats, and skiing.
Lots of fun activities to do, and great hiking trails. Their mess hall is top notch.""Our Boy Scout troop enjoyed visiting this location. It was well maintained and the staff was helpful."
"Super close to the lake and really nice facilities all around!"
"Close to Lake Monroe. Nice pool. Great people."
"Couples and families usually welcome call befour your first visit
rentals available
pool could be better nice conversation pool
seasonsl sites available if accepted"
"There are 75 acres of trails to hike on or drive your golf cart on ."
"Park managers are very nice. Shower house is amazingly clean. Camp sites are easily accessible."
"We came here very last minute, we got an amazing shady and level spot, there was a fire pit, picnic table, and water. Very peaceful and quiet! Will definitely be coming back."
"All the outer loop sites are shaded and nicely spaced. Nice putt-putt course and they are finishing up a facelift on the inground pool. "
ScoutStarve Hollow offers camping from full hookup, electric only (by the lake), tent camping, and cabins. The lake has a swimming area (no lifeguards), playgrounds, and bathhouse. The lake allows boats with electric trolling motor only.
We stayed in the full hookup section (camping facilities: electric, sewer, and water hookup as well as fire ring, picnic table, and parking spur at each site. Modern restrooms/showers(wheelchair accessible) are available nearby. 53 sites available, sites 222, 232, and 234 are wheelchair accessible). The bathhouse was clean (even though it rained most of the weekend). these sites are a good size and able to get any size Trailer or RV into these sites. There is mostly grass on most of the sites in this area.
The campground also offers electric only sites (camping facilities: electric hookup, fire ring, picnic table and parking spur at each site. Drinking water is available in area. Modern restrooms/showers(wheelchair accessible) are available nearby. Dumping station is available. There are 87 sites available. Sites 28, 44, 65, 75 and 90 are wheelchair accessible). They have about 20 sites that back up right to the lake allowing fishing from your campsite. Keep in mind that a lot of the electric only sites are very tight with a lot of trees in the area. I can probably only get my 36 ft 5th wheel into a third of the sites, but there are many of sites that had shorter units on them.
Cabins: Starve Hollow has 13 rent-a-camp cabins available March-Nov.(closed Dec.-Feb.)(NOTE: Local sales only during off season/winter months, contact property for details). Each cabin has a front porch with a swing, outside electric outlet and front porch light. Inside there are two small rooms each providing a ceiling fan with light, a heating/cooling unit and electrical outlets. The front room offers a small table with bench seats, corner shelf, chair, rocking chair, and a loft. The back room offers a bunk bed(single) and a double bed(NO LINENS or MATTRESS PROVIDED). Air mattress recommended.
Fishing/Boating Starve-Hollow Lake has three boat ramps to choose from, one at the dam and two in the electric campground. Kayak, rowboat and canoe rental is available. A valid Indiana fishing license is required. Rowboat and canoe rental is available from mid April through October. Starve-Hollow Lake is a trolling motor only lake. For campers a fish cleaning station is available.
Swimming A large beach is available for swimming from the Saturday of Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day. Restrooms, dressing facilities, showers, and food concessions are available to visitors. Wheelchair ramps allow access to beach and concession area.
Picnicking There are picnic areas and picnic shelters that can be reserved. Both shelters can be accessed by wheelchair. The East shelter has an electrical outlet. Picnic tables and grills are located at the picnic sites. A wheelchair accessible playground, basketball goals, softball fields, horseshoe pits and a sand volleyball court are located on or near the swimming beach.
Hiking Trails Starve Hollow has several hiking trails to explore that total approximately 11 miles.
GuideThere are full hook-up sites and electric. Regular electric sites on the water are beautiful but not sure we could park our 41 ft fifth wheel on a water site. Trails are rugged at times and you can access them through campground. We are here in the fall but the beach looks like a good size. Boat rentals. Cabins look cute. We peeked in one. Double bed with bunks in room. Theres a loft for kids. A/C and heat but not bathroom. Bring a mattress or sleeping bags or you will sleep on wood. I recommend the water cabins. Playgrounds are sprinkled throughout. DNR dont patrol a lot. Quiet campground.
TravelerThis campground is nestled on a ridge above Indiana's Lake Monroe. The wooded sites include a fire-ring, a pole for your lantern and generous flat graveled areas to pitch your tent, as well as a couple of picnic tables per site. There are pleanty of RV sites with electric hookup available as well. Each area of the campground has a knowlegeable courteous full time host, and ice is available at the main gate. Foraging for wood is allowed which is a definite bonus in this era of emerald ash-borer awareness and wood import restrictions. The plentiful raccoons seem almost tame, yet keep a safe distance from campers if you allow them to. There is a small beach to beat the summer heat, and nearby showerhouses (even in the non-electric sites) are kept clean with adequately warm water. There is a small interpretive hike with approximately 300 feet of elevation change situated near the ampitheater that can be completed in a couple of hours.
RangerI stayed on late October and I was the only one there, except for a family on the cabins. The spots are just near and walking distance from the caves and other attractions. They have two potable water spots (so no water on each spot), picnic tables, fire rings, grills and every spot faces the little river. restrooms and showers too. You can bring small pets inside the cave if you carry them all time. I have a small zuchon and carry her in a doggy backpack 🎒 she loved it!
GuideCamp sites are pretty small, but are aligned along a small stream. Heavy truck and train traffic can be heard at all hours. Sites equipped with electricity, a gazebo & picnic table, and fire pit. Camp store, cave tours, gift shop, and other pay activities are within steps of camping, but only open until 5:00. No security or staff at all after hours. Bath house was heated, extremely clean with flush toilets, and continual hot water. City water access in the middle of the campsite. Play area and 2 large covered areas for get together's. Newer cabins looked very nice from outside. Caves are obviously a must see while there. More caves are within driving distance.
GuideWell kept campground. Cleanest campground bathrooms I have ever seen. Friendly staff. Our site was directly beside a tiny cabin and could have been a little bigger but that’s what you get often times with RV sites. Unfortunately, witnessed one of the staff members abusing their dog.
GuideOverall this truly was a cute little spot to camp out on our way to Kentucky! One of the benefits of this site is that the cave and gift shop are right there, so you have a cool Opportunity to take a tour and then stay in the same area. The campgrounds are all equipped with a nice fire pit, picnic table, lean to, and the availability of electric hookup. The campgrounds also has a couple newer cabins that look really cute. The camper and tent spots are right along a cute little creek so it was very pleasant. They have a small shed attached to the gift shop that has firewood for sale. They have a small cafe that sells the usual hot dogs, chips, soda and the sort. They also have a larger open air pavilion that they provide yard games like, cornhole, horseshoes, and other games, so pretty nice. I would definitely recommend this as it is small and intimate, but if you are looking for private seclusion this is not for you.
TravelerLocated on a Navy Base, so only open to active duty, retired military, DoD civilians and their families. Must have ID card to get on base.
The base is very large in area and wooded. Watch out for wildlife, especially deer and pay attention to speed limits. Don’t mind the occasional explosions and distant machine gun fire ; they test ordnance there. But no worries, it isn’t loud at the campground.
The campground is located by Lake Greenwood, so the MWR operates a marina where you can rent boats, kayaks, paddle boards and so on. They sell bait and ice. There’s a nice boat dock if you need to launch your own boat and plenty of dock space to tie your boat up. You can fish or waterski on the lake; it’s that big.
The campground is not real large. It’s all gravel, but full RV hookups. The electric, water and sewer services are reliable, but no Wi-Fi and unless you have Verizon, no cell service (but they are supposed to have a new AT&T tower up soon). They have nice cabins and a separate tent site area, where there’s a small beach for swimming. Pets are welcome. They have a little shack with firewood; $5 a wheelbarrow load. Every site has a fire ring and a picnic table. The shower house is a bit dated, but clean. There’s dumpsters close by. Very pretty location.
They do have daily, weekly, monthly and seasonal rates.
There’s a base exchange and commissary on base, but the closest town is about 20 minutes away, a small town called Odon, but you can find whatever you need there. Bloomington is about 50 miles away. The tiny village of Crane is outside the gate. There’s a bar and a pizza place and that’s about it.
RV’s and trailers must use the Crane gate, located off I69 exit 87, then south on US231 a couple miles. You’ll see the signs. Call ahead for reservations; they do fill up most weekends and you’ll need them to explain the check-in procedure once you get on base.
LegendThere is just one thing that keeps me from rating this a 5 star campground. It's the sites! So....4 stars...but read on for my thoughts on the sites.
What's up with these sites?
If you want to be be able to see what your neighbors are eating and hear their conversations, you'll love the electric sites (1 through 189).
If you like to feel like you're alone in the woods, you won't like most of the electric sites.
There is a partial solution. Sites 190-202 have no electricity, but most are fairly private/secluded. Sites 203-222 are additional primitive sites on a loop but they are not at all private; you can see lots of neighboring sites. There's a lot of shade, but you could probably set up solar panels if you require electricity.
If you want privacy in the electric section (1-189), I don't have a great recommendation other than you should stay on the outside of the loops. Then you'll only have people beside you rather than beside and across from you.
Good luck! Stay one night when there aren't many people and scope out sites for your next stay. If you're from the area, this could be a park worth returning to over and over if you are able to stay on a site you enjoy.
I've included a map of sites 1-189 and photos that show some sites I like and sites I don't like. In my opinion, a site is not one for me if I can see 3 other picnic tables while sitting at the table at my site. If you camp with other families, this would be good because you can make your own 'group' site.
Something you need to know: Indiana state parks have a $7 entry fee but you'll only pay it once (unlike some states that make you pay every day). It's supposed to be $9 for non-residents, but we were only charged $7. The hang tag for your vehicle will get you in the main entrance for the rest of your stay.
If you come without a reservation: The registration attendant assigned a site to us but maybe you can choose one. Since it was the day after Labor Day and the park was sparsely populated, there was no one near us. Privacy was not an issue for our stay, but we wouldn't have enjoyed our site on a busy weekend...although there were many sites we would have liked even less.
The basics: picnic tables, fire rings, dump station, potable water, flush toilets and sinks in the bathrooms, separate shower facility. There are vault toilets closer to sites 190-222. Sites 1-189 have electricity.
Activities: Nearby swimming pool and playground. There are almost 11 miles of hiking trails. The longest one is 2 miles, but you can combine some trails and wander in the woods for quite a while. You can also wade in McCormick's Creek; the water was low in early September. You can stay busy in this park for quite a while. And if you want to go to Bloomington, it's only about 25 minutes away
Cabin camping near Monroe Lake, Indiana offers a perfect blend of nature and comfort, making it an ideal getaway for families and outdoor enthusiasts alike.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where are the best cabin rentals at Monroe Lake in Indiana?
For cabin rentals around Monroe Lake, Hardin Ridge offers excellent cabin accommodations nestled on a ridge above Lake Monroe. These cabins provide a perfect home base for enjoying the lake while being surrounded by wooded areas. Another great option is Yogi Bears at Lake Monroe, which features family-friendly cabin rentals with easy lake access. For those looking to be near but not directly on Monroe Lake, the cabins at Lake Monroe Village also provide comfortable accommodations with convenient drive-in access to the lake.
What amenities are included in Monroe Lake cabins?
Cabins around Monroe Lake typically include basic furnishings, electricity, and beds with mattresses. At Starve Hollow State Rec Area Campground, cabins provide access to nearby amenities including a swimming area, playgrounds, and bathhouse. Many cabins at Marengo Cave Campgrounds feature electricity, picnic tables, and fire pits, with proximity to activities and a camp store. Most cabins in the area offer heating and air conditioning, with some providing kitchenettes with mini-fridges and microwaves. Bathroom facilities may be either shared or private depending on the cabin type and location.
How much do cabin rentals cost at Monroe Lake?
Cabin rental prices around Monroe Lake vary by season, amenities, and proximity to the water. At Brown County-Nashville KOA, tiny cabins start around $60-80 per night for basic accommodations, while deluxe cabins with more amenities can range from $100-150 nightly. Lake Monroe Village offers mid-range cabin options. State park cabins like those at McCormick's Creek State Park Campground typically range from $75-120 per night depending on size and amenities. Holiday weekends and summer months command premium rates, while off-season rentals can be significantly discounted.
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