Best Glamping near Shellsburg, IA

Pleasant Creek State Recreation Area Campground offers cabin accommodations within a picturesque lakeside setting. Luxury camping options in Palisades-Kepler State Park and Pinicon Ridge Park provide elevated outdoor experiences with modern amenities. These upscale accommodations include electric hookups, showers, picnic tables, and fire rings for an enhanced camping experience. All three parks welcome pets, making them ideal for travelers who don't want to leave their four-legged companions behind. Visitors can enjoy a variety of comfort-focused amenities while maintaining a connection to nature. One guest shared, "Cabins were nice - not luxury or glamping but clean and in good condition. The gentleman that takes care of the campground takes great pride in his work and it shows."

Premium outdoor accommodations in the Shellsburg area provide easy access to water recreation on Pleasant Creek Lake and the Cedar River. Hiking trails surround these glamping locations, with Pleasant Creek offering an 8-mile loop trail around the lake. Pinicon Ridge Park features exceptional amenities for families, including two playgrounds with rubber composite flooring for safety. Water activities dominate the recreational options, with fishing, swimming, kayaking, and canoeing available at most locations. The parks operate seasonally, with most open from April through October or December. According to a camper, "The water is great for fishing, swimming and boating. Central City also has everything you need within minutes of your site. There is boat rentals and the new showers are amazing."

Best Glamping Sites Near Shellsburg, Iowa (16)

    1. Pleasant Creek State Recreation Area Campground

    6 Reviews
    Shellsburg, IA
    3 miles
    Website
    +1 (319) 436-7716

    $17 - $60 / night

    "Cabins were nice - not luxury or glamping but clean and in good condition.  The gentleman that takes care of the campground takes great pride in his work and it shows - kudos to him! "

    "It's a great recreational area, and a beautiful campground, tent camping is a breeze with very secluded sites, and well water very close to each site and a trail that leads to a large dumpster."

    2. Morgan Creek County Park

    3 Reviews
    Palo, IA
    8 miles
    Website
    +1 (319) 396-2363

    $23 - $40 / night

    "The bathroom was pretty nice and clean. The grounds were beautiful, even though you can tell some trees took a hit from the recent derecho. The camp host was friendly and helpful."

    3. Pinicon Ridge Park

    9 Reviews
    Central City, IA
    19 miles
    Website
    +1 (319) 438-6616

    "Water and electric hookups, dump station near by. Clean shower house with storm shelter. Mixed sun and shade with generous grassy sites, fire pit and picnic table."

    "Storm shelter right on site. Playground is awesome for kids of all ages. Hiking trails are well marked and all over the park and state land nearby. Lookout Tower is a must see."

    4. Palisades-Kepler State Park Campground

    9 Reviews
    Ely, IA
    23 miles
    Website
    +1 (319) 895-6039

    $15 - $80 / night

    "Super chill and plenty of space, especially for tents on site 39. Bathrooms are very nice and modern and clean, maintenance was very nice to let me shower before he could clean it."

    "Situated along the Cedar river, fishing and paddling can be done. Lots of trails, CG and cabins closed for winter season for improvements and online reservations."

    5. Matsell Bridge Natural Area

    3 Reviews
    Anamosa, IA
    25 miles
    Website
    +1 (319) 892-6450

    "Nice quiet little primitive campground next to the Wapsipinicon River. Unfortunately, when I was there the last weekend of May, the gnats were bad, and the mosquitoes were just starting to gear up."

    6. George Wyth State Park Campground

    14 Reviews
    Cedar Falls, IA
    41 miles
    Website
    +1 (319) 232-5505

    $15 - $23 / night

    "**

    • Iowa state parks are a bargain! This one is $11 for a non-electric site, $16 for an electric site. (Rates go down to $6 and $11 from 10/1-4/30.)"

    "Nice campground with some non-electric sites on bank of Cedar River, clean shower house and flush toilets."

    7. Lake Iowa County Park

    7 Reviews
    Williamsburg, IA
    35 miles
    Website
    +1 (319) 655-8465

    "Bathrooms and entire area was really in perfect shape. One of the cleanest showers and bathrooms I have seen. $10 for tent, $16 for electric - how can you go wrong?"

    "Looked like a decent amount of folks here but we didn’t drive very far into the park. If you take a look at the PDF maps on their website you can see how vast the places is with 122 spots!"

    8. Otter Creek Lake and Park

    3 Reviews
    Garwin, IA
    33 miles
    Website
    +1 (641) 484-2231

    $10 - $20 / night

    "This is a very nice quiet campground close to a nice small lake. We stayed in space 30 and this area has just had the electrical updated and the are adding some new spots right by the lake."

    "Hidden gem in Iowa"

    9. Central Park

    5 Reviews
    Anamosa, IA
    38 miles
    Website
    +1 (563) 487-3541

    "There is a new beach for swimming, and some hiking and nature trails. Easy kayak access with parking. The fire pits are really nice and have grates for cooking."

    "Trails, nature center, shelters, restrooms/showers, and lake access for beach, paddling, fishing, etc. Prairie plantings mixed in the wooded areas."

    10. Bailey Ford Delaware County Park

    2 Reviews
    Delhi, IA
    34 miles
    Website
    +1 (563) 927-3410

    "from trout steam,river access for boats or kayaks, to the beautiful trails with educational signs along it. this park is perfect"

    "Trout stream, trails, river access, showers and a playground. I recommend!"

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Recent Glamping Photos near Shellsburg, IA

1 Photos of 16 Shellsburg Campgrounds


Glamping Reviews near Shellsburg, IA

86 Reviews of 16 Shellsburg Campgrounds


  • C
    Jun. 6, 2018

    Matsell Bridge Natural Area

    Nice little inexpensive primitive site... spaces almost always available

    Nice quiet little primitive campground next to the Wapsipinicon River. Unfortunately, when I was there the last weekend of May, the gnats were bad, and the mosquitoes were just starting to gear up. HOWEVER, take bug spray and enjoy the rustic peacefulness of this "best kept secret" for primitive and inexpensive camping sites. Beautiful location, ranger close by, wood for sale just across the bridge, fire pits and picnic tables at every site. Good for RV, trailer or tent camping… level ground and lots of shade. Primitive bathrooms, no showers or running water.

  • Mary S.
    Aug. 31, 2018

    George Wyth State Park Campground

    Another bargain at an Iowa State Park

    Why Should You Camp Here?

    • Iowa state parks are a bargain! This one is $11 for a non-electric site, $16 for an electric site. (Rates go down to $6 and $11 from 10/1-4/30.) There is no separate park entry fee (unlike some states).

    • You can rent kayaks, canoes or pedal boats near the campground at Wyth Lake. And there are 3 other nearby lakes.

    • There's a small beach at Wyth Lake.

    • The Cedar River is on the edge of the campground.

    • You're so close to Cedar Falls and Waterloo which means there are craft breweries!

    • We were only there for a night but I saw this on reserveamerica.com: "The Lake-to-State Park Bike Route is a 50 mile route connecting Pine Lake and George Wyth State Park. The route primarily utilizes county highways and established bike routes and paths once inside Cedar Falls/Waterloo." 

    • We didn't do everything we could do there, because we were just passing through. Check this out: https://iowastateparks.reserveamerica.com/camping/george-wyth-state-park/r/campgroundDetails.do?contractCode=IA&parkId=610125

    Amenities

    • The usual fire ring and picnic table

    • Dump station and potable water

    • Flush toilets and running water in bathrooms along with push button showers. Ok, push button showers are not ideal. Just keep pushing that button and hopefully you'll be okay with the temperature that you can't control!

  • Randall K.
    Aug. 9, 2024

    Lake Iowa County Park

    Great spot for a great price

    Very well kept campground! Bathrooms and entire area was really in perfect shape. One of the cleanest showers and bathrooms I have seen. $10 for tent, $16 for electric - how can you go wrong?

    Only issue is that the spots are pretty close together. Around 2:30am there was so much smoke in our van from nearby campfires that I woke up sick and my dog threw up all over the bed. At 3am we decided we needed to move to an electric site because it was too much to have the windows open. I felt really bad for anyone in a tent. I coughed all the next day.

    The campground was not that busy so there is no way I would stay here on a busy holiday weekend due to the spots being too close. If a few people make a fire you better shut down all your windows. No sleeping in the cool, night air here.

    But this is an issue at other places too. Just never experienced anything on this level before. Esp considering no one in our section even had a fire going.

    I wish campgrounds would start banning these fires. But that’s a topic for a later date.

    Other than that it was a great spot.

  • Leslie K.The Dyrt PRO User
    Oct. 7, 2024

    Outback Campground & Resort

    Wallaby Cabin Review

    This review is for the Wallaby cabin. This cabin supposedly has a bathroom with a shower, 3 beds and a kitchenette. The bathroom has a shower so small it is difficult not to rinse one's hair while applying shampoo. There is no sink in this room for brushing teeth, washing hands or face, etc. There is no mirror either, or hooks for towels or washcloths or clothes. There is also no heater. The cabin has no closet or any place to hang any clothes. There were several bugs crawling on the ceiling. The wall A/C could not help but spew dust, as it was coated with that on the filter and cover. The trash can had a clean bag, which occupants are required to leave in dumpster at checkout. When removing the bag, the stuck-on mess under it was appalling. The bed in each loft area had obviously been used and not changed, as the covers were in disarray and the bottom sheets not clean. The main bed has a zipped on plastic cover which the loose fitting fitted sheet will not stay on, causing occupants to end up sleeping on plastic. We purchased a blanket to go over it for the next night. We would not have stayed more than one night but, as we had reserved 3, it is not refundable. The tv is to the side of the immovable chairs, so that one must have head turned completely to one side to watch. The cabin has such a slant that a ball will roll by itself to the entrance side. All this for more than$350 for 3 night stay.

  • David S.
    Sep. 1, 2022

    Pinicon Ridge Park

    Nice clean and generally spacious

    Stayed in The Plains area. Water and electric hookups, dump station near by. Clean shower house with storm shelter. Mixed sun and shade with generous grassy sites, fire pit and picnic table.

  • Khenia F.
    Sep. 20, 2022

    Palisades-Kepler State Park Campground

    First time, one night

    Super chill and plenty of space, especially for tents on site 39. Bathrooms are very nice and modern and clean, maintenance was very nice to let me shower before he could clean it. It was our only night there and we heard a lot of movements by the woods that it creeped us out but we were hearing haunted stories before arriving so the Halloween vibes was definitely there. Loads of shade and quiet nice neighbors.

  • Jackie J.
    Jul. 1, 2021

    Cedar River Campground

    Friendly, green scenery, a bit noisy

    We stopped over for the night, and it was a good respite. They have mini-golf, a nice pool and a creative rugged play area for the kids. Unfortunately, the pool was closed for the evening cleaning, so we didn't get to use it. There was a beautiful wetland just down from the campground. It is right off the highway, so it was loud when we were outside, but we couldn't hear it at all when we were in our Tab 400. The manager, son of the owner, was really nice and helpful. His mom has owned the RV park for 27 years and ready to retire. There are some friendly seasonal and long-term residents who are in a separate section, but you see them driving through on their golf carts and are super fun and gregarious.

  • Kim F.
    Aug. 10, 2024

    Windmill Ridge Campground

    Hidden little gem

    Clean, quiet and well set campsite for all camping styles. Set well off the main road, the gravel road is well maintained, graded well for easy driveable whee truck, rvs or trailers. Family and pet friendly, clean, well kept property, amenities on site,completive priced sites for camping and to gather together and enjoy life for a moment or two. Check it out, don't believe you will regret it. Peace fellow travelers.

  • Stuart K.The Dyrt PRO User
    Apr. 1, 2024

    Little Bear Campground

    Convenient EZ On- & Off-Highway Family-Style Campground Outpost

    It’s smaller than a football field and tucked behind one of those old-school gas stations that you see in the middle of a desert that looks permanently closed, but then you see old Jethro sitting on the corner around the bend from the fuel pumps smoking a cigarillo not worrying about whether the place blows up or not. That’s how I found Little Bear Campground. When I arrived, the place was closed, but thankfully there was a sign posted on the door to call Mike, so I did. And he couldn’t have been nicer, offering me up any open site in the place. 

    So, I took a spin around the joint, which I would describe as ‘intimate’ with all of the very level grassy spots being fairly close to one another, interspersed with plenty of cover shadow from all of the trees that you’ll find this place populated by. The place was half empty, so I guess whatever crowdedness might actually exist in reality was somewhat lost on me. That said, if you are driving an RV or hauling a 5th Wheeler, I would certainly be less than impressed by seemingly the great proximity you will have to your fellow neighbor. Maybe that matters to you or maybe it doesn’t as many of the RV locations I have seen over the past year all land on more intimate quarters than not. The sites for RV / 5th Wheelers are small rock / gravel, which I gather from my mobile home hauling friends is that it is the preferred surface when concrete is not available. 

    While we showed up the last week of the season to encounter that the community pool was closed, apart from this, there really wasn’t a ton of other amenities to speak of although there was a community hall where I understand that group activities like bingo, euchre and other family-friendly games are played. Of course, there were the basics of in-ground fire ring and standard-issued picnic tables. There was a kid’s playground with swingset and teeter-totters that had definitely seen better days. Apart from the main office, which I presume served also as a mini-market and as I understand has both showers and laundry facilities (although I wouldn’t know as it was locked up) there isn’t much here. 

    The few primitive camping sites that do exist here are located on the western side of the property up against the corn fields, which I actually appreciated, and had very good mature trees growing around the area, but one would definitely feel like a ‘second class citizen’ here. As a tent pitcher myself I was absolutely bummed by the lack of privacy, where seemingly you would be on full display for the rest of the RV parking crowd having full view of your campsite. In all, there’s 45 RV slots here with all of the basic hook-ups including water, sewage and 30 / 50 electric amp. By my count, there was 5 or so individual primitive camping sites. And for $22/night for tent camping and $33/night for RV parking, you really can’t beat the prices. 

    Insider’s Tips? Here’s a few: (1) Should you be looking for some place to try out the local fare, while there’s Taste of India (which by the look of the place I would steer you away from), there’s only just a handful of other joints nearby that might be of interest like Saap Saap, a Loatian joint (yeah, I just said that, a Loatian joint in the middle of nowhere, Iowa) that is actually quite good in the little town of West Liberty, which is, ironically, south of here (not west) and offers up a few other culinary finds like JB’s Grub & Pub, Shanghai Chinese, Puebla Mexican Restaurant and El Patio; (2) If you are looking to marinate in some good US history, then you are in luck as there is a museum near here to little known / revered President Herbert Hoover that has a bunch of exhibits and other dusty things; and (3) Should you be wanting to embrace nature, then head west to Hickory Hill Park that offers up some really nice hiking, biking and walking trails on 185 acres of pristine Midwest prairieland. 

    Happy Camping!


Frequently Asked Questions

Which is the most popular glamping campsite near Shellsburg, IA?

According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular glamping campground near Shellsburg, IA is Pleasant Creek State Recreation Area Campground with a 4.7-star rating from 6 reviews.

What is the best site to find glamping camping near Shellsburg, IA?

TheDyrt.com has all 16 glamping camping locations near Shellsburg, IA, with real photos and reviews from campers.