Best Glamping near Creston, IA

Recent Glamping Reviews near Creston, Iowa

121 Reviews of 12 Creston Campgrounds

• 

  Sara D.

  Scout

  

  Aug. 11, 2021

  Des Moines West KOA Holiday

  Fun for young kids!

  It was a fun place for kids. They had plenty to do between the pool and all of the fun activities. We went during Father’s Day weekend so they had face painting, movies, and hungry hungry daddy (a version of hungry hungry hippos). Over all I think it would be a fun maybe 1 time a year place while kids are young. I like the outdoors so I wished the camper spaces were MUCH bigger! You are on top of your neighbors. They didn’t have grates for our grill and when we called they tried to get a make shift one which was at least something for us to use to cook off of (we could have just ordered pizza from their kitchen lol). So it’s definitely a camper only friendly place, tent spaces are almost nonexistent. Overall extremely clean, staff was great, they pick up your trash.. it’s glamping at it finest.

• 

  Matt S.

  Legend

  

  Oct. 1, 2016

  Pammel County Park

  Try out the Middle River Trail at Pammel Park

  Pammel Park is awesome. It is actually a State Park that is managed by the local County Conservation Board. Pammel Park has amazing trails with varied terrain and nice forests.

  The campgrounds are clean with options for tenters and RVs. There are even Yurt Cabins that can be rented. Pammel Park has a great water trail for Kayakers with several launch points.

  The only caution I would have is pay attention while you are hiking, there are rattlesnakes in the park. Overall I highly recommend Pammel Park. It is about a 30 minute drive from Des Moines and about 5 minutes from Winterset.

  I would consider Pammel Park a secret gem even for native Iowans. Checkout Pammel Park and spend some time in the historical town of Winterset.

• K

  Kelly

  Guide

  

  Mar. 25, 2021

  Pammel County Park

  Nice spot.

  Road improvement 2021 is nice, cutting down the shade trees, not nice.

  This is a regular stop on my campground rotation.  Camp host's are the best ever.  Clean facilities.  Has both shaded and open spots, yurts, trails.  There are lots of activities, kids can swim below the ford, canoe starting on one side of the park and loop I'd guess about 3 miles on the middle river to the other side of the park.  In and out are about 500 yards from each other thru the tunnel.  If your rig is over 12ft, have to come in the back way.  Winterset has lots to offer, great town square, farmers market on Saturdays, great car club fills the square every month, Madison county fair, Clark Tower, John Wayne Birthplace and museum, Covered Bridges.   My only complaint would be all sites can be reserved, so if you don't reserve a site at beginning of the year, you are out of luck.  Be nice if there were some first come/first serve.

• 

  Brian G.

  Guide

  

  Sep. 22, 2019

  Pammel County Park

  Beautiful

  Nice small park settle nicely in the iowa country side!

• A

  Adam

  Guide

  

  Nov. 7, 2020

  Winterset City Park

  Loved this cute park!

  We will definitely return, we loved this park. The bridges of Madisin County, Clarke Tower, cute local ice cream shop, John Wayne Museum! So much fun in a cute Iowa community!

• R

  RideTheWaveofBlessing J.

  Scout

  

  Oct. 11, 2021

  Timberline Campground

  Blow-My-Mind Camping

  If you’re traveling through Des Moines, Iowa area; this is the place you will want to camp at! Outstanding facilities, beautiful and tranquil location, friendly and helpful staff, and a place you will always remember as a sweet spot.

• 

  Matt S.

  Legend

  

  Aug. 31, 2018

  Casey City Park

  Small City Park

  This campground is right off the interstate in the small town of Casey Iowa. This is a small town. There is a little diner and a few businesses, but if you camp here make sure you have not forgotten anything important at home.

  The campground is clean and perfect for someone with a camper or an RV.

• 

  Matt S.

  Legend

  

  Oct. 1, 2018

  Hickory Hills Park

  Indian Mounds and hiking trails at Hickory Hills

  This is a great little park just east of New Virginia, Iowa. I went to the park with my son and Boy Scout Troop for a night hike, that is why there are no pictures. This is a great little park. The hiking trails are pretty easy going through the forest and then opening up next to old Native American burial mounds. This is really a great place to pitch a tent. It is clean and well maintained.

• 

  Caralee D.

  Scout

  

  Aug. 10, 2018

  Lake of Three Fires State Park Campground

  Great campground for an active family

  This is one of our favorite campgrounds in Iowa. It has a good sized lake for fishing and kayaking, but not to big for large speed boats. It has miles of trails for hiking, biking, and horseback riding. It has a great frisbee golf course that my boys loved playing. The beach sandy and clean for a refreshing dip on a hot afternoon.

  We love this campground for the large trees and shade they provide in the summer. Our only complaint is the lack of weather warning system in the area. The park rangers came around to warn campers of possible severe storms coming through the area, but if a tornado warning happened, we would have no notification.

• 

  Matt S.

  Legend

  

  Oct. 1, 2016

  Winterset City Park

  If you love John Wayne you will love Winterset City Park

  Don't let the name fool you, for a city park and campground, Winterset City Park rocks. You probably didn't know that Winterset, Iowa is the birthplace of John Wayne. You may have seen the Clint Eastwood movie the "Bridges of Madison County," but you probably didn't know that the bridges are real and the movie was filmed in Winterset.

  The campground is clean and there is a large space for campers/RV's and a separate spot for tents towards the back of the campground toward the park. The park itself is gorgeous and your just a few blocks away from the John Wayne Museum. If you are in Winterset the second week of October, stay for the Bridge Festival, it's a blast!

  The campground is a solid 3.5, clean and well maintained. When you include all of the sites it pushes it up to a 4 star campground.

• K

  Kimberly W.

  Guide

  

  Oct. 25, 2018

  Lake of Three Fires State Park Campground

  So much to do! So much to see! Lake of 3 Fires has something for everyone!

  There is a legend about how the Lake of 3 Fires got its name. The legend says that the “Fire Nation”, which was a local Pottawatomi tribe, lived in the area around Southwest Iowa. Later 2 other tribes decided to join the “Fire Nation” and the 3 became known as “Three Fires”. The Tribes burned 3 fires atop hills to signify that as long as the 3 fires were burning the tribes were together. Now on the spot where the fires burned, is said to be the Iowa State Park “Lake of 3 Fires”

  Located in Southwest Iowa just north of the county seat of Bedford Iowa, is a little hidden treasure for outdoor enthusiasts and campers. When looking for a campground everyone has an opinion on what amenities and activities they want- fishing, hiking, boating, and horseback riding are some of the more popular choices and the Lake of Three Fires has all these and more. The actual lake is only 85 acres but has excellent fishing and is surrounded by 691 acres of beautiful trees with hiking and equestrian trails, fishing jetties and a sandy beach.

  For those who are planning more than a day trip to the Lake of 3 Fires there are several options available. Located only a very short walk from the Lake are two modern campgrounds nestled in trees. There are over 100 site options for campers. For the RV or trailer enthusiasts there are 24 standard electric sites and 63 non-electric sites, plus 3 buddy sites. In addition, there are 23 equestrian sites (some electrical) and 1 equestrian buddy site along with plenty of holding stalls and tie outs for horses. They are located just east of the main camping grounds but still close enough to walk down to the lake. There are nice clean restroom and shower facilities, children’s play areas and a trailer dump station. Some of the campsites have also been made handicap accessible.

  For those families who don’t have a camper or RV but want to experience camping at the Lake of 3 fires there are 6 family cabins which can accommodate 4- 6 people. They are heated and cooled with the basic essentials- stove, microwave and refrigerator. There are also open shelters and a youth group area that offer a place to rent for large group gatherings. There are picnic areas available that are first come first serve. There are plenty of tables and grills if you are just making a day trip but camping is the way to go at the Lake of 3 Fires so you have time to experience everything.

  Many of the camp sites, cabins and shelters are available to reserve online at the Department of Natural Resources website- however there are some that are first come first serve. It is very convenient and easy to reserve your spot online. Highly recommended if you plan on traveling any distance- a guaranteed spot of your choice is worth the few minutes it takes to go online and reserve. You can even look at a map of the campsites and pick where you want your site to be. You can see not only where your site will be but it tells you the electrical voltage, the length and other important information about the site you are choosing.

  The camp sites are kept clean, well maintained and are big enough you don’t feel like you are right on top of your neighbor. The bathhouses are centrally located in the campground and offer clean bathroom and shower facilities for campers.

  Once you have your camper set and are ready to enjoy your weekend it will be hard to decide where to start. The Lake itself offers many activities. There are 2 boat ramps if you want to go out on the ‘no wake” lake. There are plenty of fish to be caught including bluegill, largemouth bass and channel catfish. If you don’t have a license to fish you can run into town and pick one up at the courthouse or the Bedford Country Store located right on Hwy 2, very easy to find! There is a dock where you can fish and it also has a cleaning station also available. There are several fishing jetties where you can take a chair and set up to find the perfect spot. From your spot on the lake you might catch a glimpse of some people enjoying a beautiful day on the lake on their canoes or kayaks.

  For the hunters, there is a 220 acre public hunting ground to the north and 160 acres to the south. You would of course want to check with the DNR for hunting and gaming regulations.

  Not into hunting and fishing? Prefer something a bit more relaxing? Well head down to the beach area which is just a short walk from the camp grounds. There you find a small but very nice beach area for swimming. Not in the mood to swim? Then grab some friends for a game of sand volleyball or perhaps pitch horseshoes. The beach area is perfect place to relax with a good book or play some games with friends. The best part is to get there from the campgrounds you take a beautiful short scenic walk.

  Perhaps one of the best parts about the Lake of 3 Fires is the 10 miles of trails the intertwine around the entire Lake. There are some specific trails for hiking but some others that offer horseback riders an amazing view of the lake. The great thing about the trails is how they snake around each other- you could discover a new path every time you go. The trials are nicely marked with “you are here “maps so you don’t get lost. There are beautiful views of the Lake from the far side where you can see clear across to the campgrounds. In the winter after a good snow, they say snow mobiles can also use the trails.

  Bedford is only a few miles away so you can run into the local Hy-Vee for Groceries or stop by Dollar General if you forgot something. There are 2 gas stations in town as well that both have pizza, drinks and snacks if you need to stock up.

  Getting to the Lake of 3 Fires isn’t hard at all From Bedford just go east out of town for about 1/2 mile on Hwy 2. Then turn north on Lake Road, keep going for about 3 miles and Lake of Three Fires is located on the west side. The roads are a bit windy but everything is paved including the main roads of the park. For a short weekend getaway of a weeklong camping adventure, the Lake of 3 Fires has plenty to offer everyone in your camping group.

• 

  Melissa K.

  Legend

  

  Jun. 14, 2018

  Casey City Park

  Small little park off the highway

  This is a small little park off the highway, we had been traveling for two days and needed to stop for the night. We followed the signs that said camping and went through a quant, however pretty vacant, little town. We got to the end of the town and found a city park that allowed camping.

  Pros -- it was $10 a night, that's decent! Most places are more along this drive. It also had a magnificent playground. My kids had been cooped up for two days and needed to run off some pent up energy and this was perfect. A few neighborhood kids joined them (it was smack dab in a neighborhood) and they had a blast, all while I rested from my chair at my campsite. Lots of green grass (an improvement from the desert climate we come from) and trees for shade. It had flush toilets and free showers! There was a picnic table, electricity and a grill at every site. It was a pretty restful night.

  Cons -- The bathrooms were not the cleanest. The women's bathroom stalls did not function correctly, either the door wouldn't lock or it wouldn't close. There were lots of bugs, in the restroom, in the site, all over. I didn't sit at the picnic table due to the bugs all over it so I sat in my camp chair where I found relief. I'm not one that thinks there should be no bugs in nature but there just was an abundance of them everywhere. You could hear some highway traffic and a little train traffic. The town was all but closed up. There was a gas station and a bar open. The gas station attendant wasn't super friendly.

  It was a great place to lay our heads for the night, play some games, run the playground but it probably wouldn't be on my list of first places to stop. Beauty of Iowa is almost every exit shows camping!u 7

• 

  Laura W.

  Traveler

  

  Aug. 23, 2024

  Green Valley State Park Campground

  Timing is everything!

  Pretty grounds with woodland coverage on all sides in addition to the lake. We visited in August and realized it was prime family vacation time before school starts up again, so a little crowded and noisy. Spots are pretty close together too. But the grounds are quite lovely and the facilities were super clean. We plan to go back when Autumn arrives, mid week. Bonus easy shore fishing access.

• 

  Chelsea G.

  Guide

  

  Aug. 2, 2020

  Pammel County Park

  Great state park

  First time visiting this park and will be returning! Pretty spacious between sites. Trails were great and our kids loved swimming in the lake.

• R

  Ronn B.

  Scout

  

  Jun. 6, 2020

  Pammel County Park

  Nice quiet park next to Winnebago River - Winnebago's RV's are built here

  Sites are close together, but it wasn't crowded while we were here. Due to Coronavirus the restrooms and showers were closed, so I can not report on them. Would have liked to do the Winnebago factory tour but that was closed down as well.

• c

  carson O.

  Traveler

  

  Jul. 8, 2018

  Pammel County Park

  Cozy Campground

  The entire area of Madison County is very tranquil, historic and beautiful! the campgrounds are easily accessible to get in and out of town. the hookups are not as available. so I suggest getting there early. great place to get out of town and fish and explore.

• A

  Alex G.

  Traveler

  

  May. 4, 2019

  Pammel County Park

  Wonderful place to camp!

  Beautiful wooded campground with a water ford crossing and tunnel! There is a way to avoid the tunnel while pulling a travel trailer or 5th wheel. Wonderful hosts.

• M

  Mia L.

  Guide

  

  Jul. 8, 2019

  Pammel County Park

  Decent trip

  Site 30.

  We couldn't find many spots for the busy holiday but this park had a few. Very helpful host. Fun splashing in the river catching minnows by hand. Pretty park. Easy turns with the trailer. The RV spots were a mixed bag. Some shady (higher numbers), some full sun. Playground was skimpy. If you are over 12 ft, make sure and take the detour around the tunnel.

  There are water hook ups, I just had to use 75 feet of hose to get to it. And the electric I had to use a 30 ft extension cord. Funny, I didn't have either and had to drive 24 miles to Walmart on a holiday to get them. I do think site 30 was probably the worst from what I saw. Wish that when I called to ask about the sites the county office would have mentioned some sites the hook ups are super far away. The sites have a little concrete pad which makes it easier to level.

• M

  Molly L.

  Guide

  

  Jul. 29, 2019

  Pammel County Park

  Beautiful park!

  The campground is split into two parts. One part is mostly shaded and the other isn't. Thankfully, we camped in the part that was mostly shaded.  The trees provided enough shade, and the evenings were cool enough to keep our camper comfortable at night. The campground hosts were welcoming, friendly and knowledgeable of the park and the area.  I would give the park 5 stars, but feel the restroom/shower facilities were small for that many campsites. (I would probably go with a 4.5 if it was available).  The park itself is pretty good sized and offers water activities (Middle River and the Pammel Loop) and hiking. We didn't hike this trip, but trails looked to be pretty nice.  We did kayak the loop one day-it took about an hour for the 1.9-mile loop and water levels were pretty low. It's pretty easy/convenient as far as letting in and taking out. There is quite a bit to do in the area if you allow time and it's a really beautiful part of the state if you like to venture away from the campground. And it's quite the adventure to drive over the ford. :)

• 

  Katie J.

  Guide

  

  Sep. 8, 2020

  Pammel County Park

  Not Great

  Not overly impressed with this park. Sites were crammed together, not well maintained, and a lot of partying until 3am every night from young campers. Definitely seemed like a teenage hangout spot, without any redeeming qualities to make it worth the noise issues. The drive in was almost worth the trip, as the countryside is beautiful!

• 

  Jessica

  Guide

  

  Sep. 21, 2020

  Pammel County Park

  Hideaway!

  I've hiked in Pammel before, and LOVE the area. We drive by the campground on our way down to the family farm on the regular, but staying in the grounds overnight was a whole different experience! We stayed with friends on sites 8 and 9 this past weekend. The concrete pads were awesome for leveling our popups, the sites were VERY clean, the bathrooms were immaculate and the firewood was a gem at $10 for a wagon full! Great hosts, great neighbors. Would absolutely stay again!

• 

  Tammie C.

  Guide

  

  Jun. 4, 2023

  Pammel County Park

  I'll be back

  This is a beautiful park with lots to do and miles of woods to explore. AT&T cell service was excellent throughout. And camping fees are extremely reasonable. I didn't stay the night but will be back.

• K

  Kara P.

  Scout

  

  Jun. 21, 2023

  Winterset City Park

  Beautiful setting and quiet

  Wonderful setting and quiet place to stay. Beautiful views with quick access to Bridges of Madison County. Great hook ups and utilities!

• D

  Dave M.

  Guide

  

  Jul. 16, 2022

  Winterset City Park

  Nice City Campground

  Full hookups. Nice Park next door. Covered Bridges nearby.

• D

  Dave M.

  Guide

  

  Aug. 28, 2021

  Winterset City Park

  Nice Campground

  This is a city campground on the outskirts of town that does not feel that way. It sits right next to a park. White rock roads and pads. It has some full hook up sites as well as water and electric sites. Overall a nice place to say.

• 

  Rick D.

  Traveler

  

  May. 16, 2021

  Winterset City Park

  A good place to relax and recharge

  We enjoyed a long weekend here reconnecting with friends.  The campground is well maintained and has a camp host on site.  The Shower/restrooms were clean and stocked.  Firewood is available for 8$ a bundle.  Sites are gravel base and  fairly level.  The city park has a edge maze that is unique.  The John Wayne museum and downtown are a 20 minute walk away. This is our second visit there and I would go back again.

• c

  carson O.

  Traveler

  

  Jul. 8, 2018

  Winterset City Park

  Neat Picnic Park

  Cute little park just in the town of Winterset. there is a two mile loop that leads you up Clark's Tower where you can see the rolling hills of gorgeous Madison county. great place to take the family for a picnic or host a cookout.