Best Dog-Friendly Camping near Kansas City, KS

A campsite not to far from Kansas City but had a feeling far removed. The campground was super clean and well maintained. Out site was great near the entrance but on top a hill and the perfect tree coverage for shade. One of the best shaded spots in the campground.

I was looking for a decent place to camp near Kansas City during the weekend and found this spot on Smithville Lake. When I camp, I typically do it while on vacation and checking out a national park. This obviously isn't an experience like that. This was the first time I've camped over a weekend in years.

The campsites are very spacious and there are even places with covered picnic tables. The bathrooms are also clean. If you're not the most adventurous type, you'll like this campground.

The thing I enjoyed most about this campground was the trail around the lake. The trails are fairly low traffic and there wasn't too much noise coming from boats on the water. It was a peaceful location to camp and enjoy views of the lake.

Overall, I recommend this as a quick place to go during a weekend if you're in the area and feel like camping. I probably wouldn't stay here for an extended period of time.

We’re from Kansas City and there are very few options when it comes to Campgrounds. This is by far our favorite and their rates are very reasonable. We enjoyed our stay, staff was very friendly and the park was clean and easy to get in and out of. You’re also very close to Hillsdale State Park, but this location has a tornado shelter 🤣

The park: great store, laid out well, gravel sites. Some are back in but most are pull through. Full hook ups- power/water/sewer.

72 Sites: 30' wide, 60' long and level 24 Sites are pull thru All have 30 & 50 amp service

You are within 40 minutes of southern Overland Park, and within approximately an hour (depending on traffic) to Kansas City.

Amenities: Laundry Storm Shelter Showers Meeting room available for RV Rallies (Must Schedule) Fishing Lake

Cellular: service was good, able to stream video, work, Facebook, etc.

Rates as of April 2020 (from their site):

-DAY RATE: $45.00 -CLUB RATE: $40.00 (Good Sam's, FMCA, AAA, Military) -WEEKLY: $215 -MONTHLY: $575 Back In $700 Pull Through (if not paid by due date, Day Rate will apply.)​

Stayed one night at the KOA in Oak Grove, just east of Kansas City. The sites were all sunny and since it was 100 degrees, it was hot. But the pool was nice and they had a nice dog park which was ok in the evening after it cooled off. Close to KC so we could drive in for BBQ.

When we began our fulltime journey we stayed at this park for a couple of months and learned a lot about it. The management team was very friendly and would often disclose a lot about what was happening at the park. The park was in need of some improvements but it was clean and nice. The spaces are very tight in the travelers section and more spread out in the long term section. Many sites in the park were occupied by storage and the owners never showed up. To walk your dogs at the little park at night, you had to walk through there area. We called this the storage lot. The out of state contractors often had many loud and drunk guests which was obnoxious. They often harassed females walking their dogs to the park through the narrow street, and they were in the back section.

They had reasonable rates when we first stayed there ($40/night for in the city and $500/month). Now it is much more expensive, one night for our rig is $76 according to their website.

We never felt like it was genuinely part of the RV Community, it was more of a stop through or people were staying in the area for a job or to finish a house. It didn’t house many fulltime RVers that would continue traveling. They love to host NASCAR fans and know they are one of the closest parks to the Speedway.

Ammenities: Laundry Small Store Showers/Restroom Facilities Little dog park on the north end. Occasional BBq They were putting in Google Fiber internet when we stayed there in 2017 so I’m not sure if they completed it. Dump Propane Trash Mail

This location was the closest to our family’s homes so we have stayed there three times all together. There is a lot to do nearby and the main draw of this RV Park is definitely the location. You’re not far from downtown Kansas City, and still in the suburbs of Kansas City.

Just 30 minutes to downtown Kansas City and maybe 15 minutes to arrowhead stadium, this campground is ideal for being close to everything that Kansas City offers. Full hook ups, concrete pads, showers and laundry.

Great place, near Kansas City.

Great park just south of Kansas City. Very quiet, great owners and staff.

Close to Kansas City but also really close to I-70. Lots highway noise. Staff very helpful & campground is being remodeled

We missed a KOA in Kansas City because of construction. Went to Lawrence KOA instead. Glad for the misfortune. The park has all you need for short or long term camping and RV trips.

Quiet, beautiful campground located just outside of Kansas City, Mo. We had a full hookup site located right by the playground and it was perfect for our family. Only complaint were the bathroom/shower houses could use to be updated but they were quite clean!

Nice little campground tucked away just outside Kansas City. Close to everything but far enough that it’s still really camping. Cell service on AT&T and Verizon are great. Only negative is that some sites are right on the road, so kids can dart out at any time...just be careful!

We stopped here for the night and had a great stay. Only 10 minutes away from Joe’s original Kansas City BBQ (super delicious).

We did pay for the premium pull through site, so we had more room. Everything worked great, the spot was on a slight hill- but wasn’t terrible to level out. Would stay here again.

Quaint campground an hour outside of Kansas City. Beautiful fall foliage. The last weekend in October they have a lot of great activities for kids. Pumpkin Carving games. There’s a campsite decorating contest. Kids can go trick or treating at the campsites that choose to participate. Showers are immaculate. Vault toilets are extremely well maintained. Well marked trails and friendly people all around.

This campground has immaculate ground. All sites are pretty much gravel, but 'new' gravel & level. Pool very clean. Laundry 24/7 CLEAN!! SHOWERS EVEN CLEANER!! They have a Dutch Mkt here as well in front at ck-in that's awesome!! Everything you could imagine. 100 different cheeses even! I'd stay here again for sure. Dog Park; Trash P/U too!

Stayed one night while traveling back to the east coast. It is a decent campground. The bath house was clean and showers were hot. Sites are close together. Mine had shade. There is a small dog park at the top of the hill. 

I came late and left early, so didn't get to browse the cheese shop, but it looked nice. I would stay here again.

We needed a place to stop over and stumbled upon Basswood Resorts on our way back from the Ozarks. What a find! It's located 20 miles north of Kansas City and had full hookups, and even wifi and cable. It was beautiful and well kept. We were lucky enough to get a site across from one of its 5 small lakes. You could fish in the lakes and didn't even need a license. We watched kids get excited as they caught fish after fish.

There was a store which had a pizza place inside, playgrounds, swimming pool, outdoor games, a game room, volleyball, trails, and even golf carts for rent. Very family friendly place. It also had a fenced dog run which was great for the pups. Wish I would have known about this place when my children were young; they would have loved it.

It was scenic and relaxing and we will definitely stop again.