Best Tent Camping near Barbourville, KY

This was my first time to the Niagara of the South. My husband and I left our dog back in Louisville for this trip which was originally an attempt to see the moon bow at Cumberland Falls. 

We looked at the tent site map on the state resort park map and nothing looked GREAT except for Clifty Campground spots 050, 048, and 049 they all look isolated from any of the other sites with 050 being a site that you have to traverse a grassy/rocky area from your car to set up. 

We opted for spot 047 because, on the map, it looked set back from the campground road… and it was… sorta. Nothing at this campsite is going to be private. The majority of the sites do not have so much as a weed between them although the sites themselves are very roomy for car camping. Your vehicle will be a presence at the site, which have electric hookups so if, like me, you have an electric car… it's nice to be able to simply plug the car in. This site did not get a lot of shade except for where we had the tent set up, and still… that would've received sun had it not been raining. 

Our site had a good picnic bench, a sturdy wooden post for hanging trash etc and the fire pit seemed pretty new. The grill wasn't bent at all, which was a 1st in my years of camping. The view from this site was pretty cool… we set out tent up at the furthest out spot on the small cliff as we could before it turned to mostly rock and faced the door out over the trails. We hung our rain tarp because, instead of a moon bow, we endured a nearly 24 hour torrential downpour. The tarp, which is small, and having the tent faced appropriately gave us a semblance of privacy although we had a camper van family next to us. Site has a lot of gravel so it was reasonably muddy but not dried out quick. 

There are a lot of raccoons that visit the dumpster area so expect it to be a little messy if your fellow campers aren't shutting the dumpster lids. Shower facilities reminded me of middle school camp… kind of mildewed… and well… rustic. Everything functioned and it wasn't "gross" just old. Water was hot. Toilet stalls (ladies) were small. I weight 130 and at 5 foot 2 it was a tight squeeze for me. 

We hiked the WIldflower Loop Trail (1.5 miles) in a drizzle and although wet it was safe. When the rain stopped we hiked Eagle Falls Trail and it was very muddy but the views were worth it. 

Would love to go back but if camping in a tent it's a must to get one of the two more private spots, or at the very least

We stayed at site RV33. We have a 25ft travel trailer and it was perfect. There were two tent sites very close to us, but we had more than enough room. If we were to go again, we would pull straight into the site (this would have put our slide towards the road). The tent sites looked to be the best tent sites I’ve seen. The bath house was very clean. The staff was very helpful. There were trails from the campground to Cumberland Falls. We hiked to see Cumberland Falls (from the lodge) and Eagle Falls. After a short drive, we hiked Natural Arch and Yahoo Falls.

Went on a stag tent camping trip. Decent facility for state park. Sites are small wouldn’t recommend large rigs.

Good tent camping sites. Lots of trees; level sites; fire pit; picnic table. Very clean & well supplied restrooms. Great individual private room showers with plenty of good hot water.

A nice quiet campground on Lake Cumberland in the Burnside area.  Nice RV sites and tent sites

A couple of the tent sites are waterfront and ideal for a tenter like me. The rest seem a little packed together, though some offer a little bit of seclusion. Decent facilities and easy access to Devil’s Backbone section of Cumberland trail.

We stayed at the main area but not much space or privacy so we put up a tent out side our door, but then moved to the tent camping site area the second night which was more secluded and private, but still close to the showers/bath house. So much hiking and a cool view of the dam is all within walking distance. Nice bath rooms and showers too.

I have tent camped here a couple of times in the past few years. The campground is clean and neat, and some sites offer great views of the lake and surrounding cliffs. It's a beautiful place to hang out at during sunset or sunrise. The shower and restrooms are clean, and the general store is nice and convenient. The laundry facilities are a nice place to get things cleaned up while you're on the road. The biggest problem I see with this area is the noise. A lot of the Wahweap workers live in an area of mobile homes above the campground, and they definitely like to party at night. A group of motorcyclists also thought it was a good idea to rev their Harleys up at 6 am one day. I am sure camping in and RV would isolate you from the noise, or maybe camping during a weekday would be better. Either way, I would stay here again. As for tent camping, some of the sites have zero shade, so be prepared with your own shelters. Just make sure you anchor them down; afternoons can bring some strong winds to the area.

Campsites are nice but electric hookups only at certain sites. Its a national campground so its beautiful with nice bathouses but not much activities other than hiking. There are a limited amount of sites that would accommodate a large RV, mostly tent sites. It is first come first serve with no reservations. There is no rv parks close if the campground is full.

This place is not for you if you are looking for solitude or silence. It might be your scene if you’re into parties. Tent sites were not all accessible by drive up - some you had to park at the top of the hill and walk down. Bathrooms were clean though, and the staff was friendly. Can’t beat the proximity to the falls either.

We usually camp here at least 3 times every year. They have dedicated tent sites with electric and also a primitive tent area. It's open year around but in the summer season you can take a trail off of loop I that leads to the community pool to cool off. The campground organizes fun activities for the summer holidays like tie dying, camper's only pool party, bingo, best decorated campsite, etc. It always seems to pack out everytime we are there.

Kingdom Come State Park is a little jewel in southeastern Kentucky! There are 6 tent sites (7 if they allow you to reserve the one next to the duck pond), each with a gravel drive, mulch tent pad big enough for two smallish tents, fire ring, and picnic table. The nearby shelter house provides restrooms and trash cans. The local ranger was most helpful in providing firewood (free!) and offering to bring us water to wash up with or for drinking (there is a water fountain across from the CG, but it wasn't turned on and there is running water in the restrooms). The area is known for bear activity, but we saw none. The surrounding mountains provide many short hikes that can be easily strung together to make for a longer trek if desired. We look forward to camping there again!

Great campground with very friendly and helpful rangers. Was pretty empty the night we were there. Very cool tent camping spots right on the small lake and RV spots all pretty much have a lake view. Full hookups and dump when you exit the campground. They do not have water at the sites in the winter. Bathrooms were clean enough and the showers were hot. Would definitely come back. Many trailheads near the campsite but the weather was bad when we were there. Drone photos courtesy of SweetDroneChicago on Instagram

I was a little underwhelmed compared to what I was expecting from camping at a national park. The positives are the cheap rates and there are bathroom and shower facilities. If you want old fashion tent camping the park does have some backcountry campsites.

The cons are the lack of actual campsites. They are more like parking spaces. Probably to appeal to the people who use campers. The noise of the highway was constant and annoying.

Overall I enjoyed my time staying here. Wish I could have done more backcountry camping but the weather didn't permit it.

We went after labor day in September n it was closed from road we put in at boat ramp landed here n late afternoon had sandy beaches like n Florida but hidden n small. U can grill out camp fire n party down.we had no one bother us.We fished for all caught brown n rainbow trout,blue cats,gar,bluegill,striper but caught most from banks. Seen a wild mink n other wildlife. Great for kids or Adults or guys night out we tent camped n used electric outlets to charge phone & plug in boom box.

Visited here in the middle of January with all the snow and I was hot tent camping. You can only set up your tent on the designated tent pad, luckily we had heavy duty stakes that could get through the ground. The entire river was frozen over and ponds were frozen too. There were a few cars that drove through the middle of the night but no issues. We left our site unattended for hours to check out the streams and rivers and nothing was missing. Lots of beer bottles left over and shattered so I have to pick up the trash before letting my dog out. There are more sites down the gravel road but we went with the first one we came to.

We stayed in tent site 19. I think it is definitely the best site in the campground. Sites 19 and 20 are a couple of the only sites with any privacy. Site 19 is a walk in (down) but the site itself is huge and the tent platform is built out on a rock outcrop. Overall the campground is nice but the other sites are very close together. The rangers/camp hosts came by while we were gone to warn us about bear activity in the campground, you do need to be careful with food. We went to see the moonbow so it was fairly busy while we were there. We also took a hike to Eagles Falls where it seems to be clothing optional swimming...lol It didn’t bother us but just an FYI. We had a very relaxing 3 days at Cumberland Falls, would definitely recommend it.

Easy to find, well marked. It’s has many (12) trails and many falls. Would definitely recommend shopping before camping, it’s several miles, and mountains, to get to stores. There are several lodging options…cottages, The Lodge, (which is beautiful) tent and RV camping. There are 2 small campgrounds ~ 1) Ridgeline which accommodates RVs up to 26”, water and 10/30/50 amp hook ups. Sites have a fire ring and picnic table. WiFi is available, and there is a dump station. A small playground, office/campstore, and a bathhouse and laundry next to it. 3 sites are walk-in. Big rigs would have to stay elsewhere. 2) Clifty Campground is tent camping only 7 sites offer electric and water. WiFi is also offered. There is a bathhouse and a playground, and these CG’s are pet friendly. (Falls Creek is a few miles up the road…they have pull through and back ins. For bigger Rvs. They also have tents, wagons, cabin rentals, and primitive sites) We had no T-Mobile service, or satellite service in our vehicle. The trails and Cumberland falls were awesome. The horse rides looked amazing, and the Pool was big, with a diving board, and a small fee for campers to use it.

Campground Review:

If camping with a side of luxury is your thing, then this is the place to be. While this is a huge campground with over 200 campsites, they do a great job of separating tent sites from campers and RV's. There is at least one loop that is tent only, and another that is tents and small campers. The RV's were kept on the far side of the campground away from any possible tents. They also had great (for those who want it quiet) hours/restrictions for generators. Tent sites were level with picnic tables, fire rings, and each had some trees, though small in size, that were irrigated underground so you know they will survive the heat and blazing sun. Each loop had its own very clean and new looking bathroom, and showers were available at the campground general store/check in. I have to tell you, I still cannot believe how much time you get for showers- 15 minutes for $2!!!!!! This is a great location for playing on the lake, taking the dam tour (insert dam jokes here), going to Antelope Canyon (spectacular!!!), Horseshoe Bend, Grand Escalante Staircase, and even going to the Grand Canyon.

Gear Review:

As a Ranger for the Dyrt, from time to time I get to test products. On this camping trip I tested the Klymit Insulated Static V sleeping pad. I was looking for a new pad that was lighter and packed smaller than my old Thermarest. At 25 oz, I thought the Klymit was going to be a bit heavy, but it actually seems much lighter (and in fact is lighter and warmer than the thermarest). And can I just tell you about it's packability? The pad packs down to about the size of a nalgene bottle! I loved that I could roll onto my side and not have my bony hips jam into the ground. The pad was interesting to blow up as it looks huge when un-inflated, but it "shrinks" to the proper size as you add air. It took about 12-14 breaths to blow it up, which I think is reasonable. My friend struggled with the valve a bit, but I had no issues. She also had one night where the pad seemed to deflate some, but I truly think it was her operator error due to her dislike of the valve. Again, I had no problems, found it very easy to blow up to use and deflate for packing, and I'm looking forward to using this pad again on my next camping trip. My former pad has been put to rest, I have a new sleeping pad I love! https://www.klymit.com/insulated-static-v.html

Arrived late and took a minute to find the actual campsites. They aren't right next to the fireplace shelter, rather just around the corner. Had the place completely to myself on a thursday night/friday morning. Biting bugs weren't bad,(late May) but there were still a ton of other varieties. Several toilets on site, but no water. Picnic tables, tent pads, and fire rings at each site. There are only 10 tent sites, and the ones by the shelter are for picnics only. I wouldn't recommend a long RV up there, although there seems to be another 10 or so sites big enough for RVs and trailers. I was really impressed by the overall quality of the campground, but the distance from everything is a big negative.  The northern road in isn't all that bad, but the south road is what I NEEDED to use to get to my various destinations, and it was a rough one. I made it in and out twice in an HHR, but I was bottoming out on gravel and such. Overall, the HHR handled it fine, it just wasn't worth it, so I ended up only staying the one night. If not for distance from everything and the road conditions, it would've scored a 5.