Best Glamping near Scarborough, ME

More of a compound than a campground. It’s a tourist event park but great if you have kids… my particular site was for a tent and it was up against the fence where the maintenance garage was hidden. Right next to the road. So yes lots of family glamping fun. But not for those looking for a more visceral Maine camping experience.

This is a glamping campground and so much going on for kidd and adults. The pond is amazing. The store is huge! The sites are huge! We always get the same HHK. But they offer everything from a basic site to cottages. Nightly events for adults kids and family. Kayak/canoe rentals an anzing beach. Guided hikes. If you bring yoyr own kayaks there is a ruver with a take out close to the campground. U could walk back or drive in with a truck for pick up! This place is amazing! Will continue to go every year!

We stayed in the MainelyGlamping Camper Glamper which is a mobile glamping unit for hire. It was Memorial Day Weekend and we had a three night night stay. We loved the campground and it is great for our eight year old daughter who can safely ride her bike around with the other kids at the campground, enjoy the beach and enjoy the playground, but it still provides my husband and I with some relaxing/peaceful time together in the woods or sitting on the beach. We had two paddleboards which are add-ons with the MainelyGlamping package and we spent some time on one of the calm clear mornings paddling around the lake which was amazing.

My wife and I enjoy riding our bikes on rail trails. This quiet campground is about a mile from the Eastern Trail through the Scarborough Marsh. This campground is small but well maintained. We had a "seasonal" site for two nights in September. It was very large and level with a picnic table and fire ring. The owners spend a lot of time on site making sure everything is in order.

We've been there twice and have reservations for next year. Some sites are in the woods, some are in the field. The pool and restrooms are spotless. There are yurts, power and water available, plus tent-only sites. Highly recommended.

Ashley here with The Dyrt. We're so happy to have this sweet Yurt on our platform. This property is remote and serene while still offering access to downtown. Spend your days adventuring and come back here to relax and unwind. Give them a try and leave a review!

This park has so many amenities and things to do that it is a destination in itself and you and your kids will be busy the entire time. The camp store is fully stocked, there are fishing ponds, golf cart rentals, numerous pools and hot tubs, daily activities, weekly poolside entertainment, playgrounds, mini golf, café, game room, arcade, and more. The staff is super friendly and helpful and the park is very clean and well-maintained. 

We like to stay in the “south section” which tends to have less kids because it is farther away from the “action.” Plus, it is close to the Little River Complex which is an adult-only section with pool, hot tubs, café, bathhouse, and laundry(which has oversized machines). The complex is fairly new and very clean and modern.  This section is also the closest to the dog park (which is just ok - it has lots of trees so there is not much runny room and could be bigger but at least they can be off-leash.  If you come in early spring, you can take your dog to the Pine Point Beach and can be off-leash).  Our campsite was level with a grassy patio, picnic table, fire pit, 50A FHU and cable.  Roads in the park are gravel and can get dusty but the staff did use dust-abatement issues that worked pretty well.  Some sites have gravel patios so be careful what you choose if you want grass.  The kayak/paddle board, canoe launch is great because the river is impounded so you never have to worry about the tide going out while you are paddling.  While the park is big enough to go for a long walk, just down the road is a public biking/hiking trail and goes through the Scarborough Marsh.  

You will definitely want to take the short drive (or the free shuttle service offered at the campground) to the nearby beach and visit the beachy boardwalk town of Old Orchard Beach and pick up some famous Pier Fries and visit the amusement park and arcade. The tiny town of Pine Point is a great place to watch the sunset and pick up dinner and a drink at Bayley’s Bait Shed Restaurant. Check out Bayley’s Lobster Pound for fresh seafood, wine, and other prepared food items. 

This campground may not be for everyone because it is huge with lots of people, cars, and kids running around. The other downside is there is not very much privacy between sites. Nightly rates in peak season are outrageous but you can find much cheaper rates if you stay in the shoulder season or go with 30 amp electric and no sewer. You definitely are paying for all the amenities and activities.

**Campground Review: **

Dixon’s Campground is located on US Route 1 in Cape Neddick, Maine, just minutes from the coast and about an hour south of Portland. Dixson’s Campground is a medium sized private campground that has tent only and water& electric tent/RV sites, as well as three yurts. The campground also has full hook up sites for seasonal guest that sit out on a separate area away from the transit campers. I have included a campground map in my pictures for your orientation. Most sites are wooded with lots of shade. There are a few grass sites with more sun near the office. The sites vary from small and close together to large with some privacy. All style sites include a picnic table and fire ring. 

Check-in was easy and the staff was very helpful in providing info and answering questions about the area. A host guides you to your site and assist you in positioning if needed. The campground is gated and you have to“rent” a swipe card to access the gate for$10 (cash) and you get your$10 back when you return the card at checkout. The roads in the campground are a little skinny so if you have a large trailer you may want to consider your site location appropriately or you may get stuck in a curve or have a challenging time backing into your site. We stayed on site 84 on this visit. The site was level and well shaded, but small yet worked with our teardrop trailer. 

The bathroom were new and very unique here (I have never experienced this style before; see my pictures). The bathroom closest to us had two toilet stalls and two shower stalls each with their own direct outside access. Sinks for hygiene were on one end of the bathroom and sinks designated for dish washing only were on the other side of the building. The Bathrooms and showers were very clean. The showers are metered and cost $0.50 per 5 minutes, so don’t forget your quarters! There is also a trash dumpster and recycle bins at each bathroom. 

Firewood and a small camp store was available at the office. There is a full grocery store about 10 minutes away. 

We found good cell phone service with Verizon throughout the property. The campground did have wi-fi and it worked ok at our site. 

The campground also has a heated pool, playground, and outfitter that provides rentals, lessons, and guides. There is no laundry at the campground, but we found one about 10 minutes away. 

Dixon’s sits between two tourist towns so there is plenty to see, lots of great restaurants, and close to beaches. Many restaurants are dog friendly (at least on the patio) and the beaches at this time of year are dog friendly after 6PM. We really enjoyed walking the beaches and checking out the lighthouses in the area. The only down side of being near two tourist towns is that traffic can get thick at some points in the day. 

We really enjoyed our stay at Dixon’s and the surrounding area to the point we have marked this as a definite stop when we make it back to Maine again.

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**Product Review: **

As a Ranger for The Dyrt, I get to test products. At this campground, I tested the Red Ledge Thunderlight Jacket. This rain jacket from Red Ledge is very handy to have in your gear list. It is available in multiple colors (I got black because I somehow get dirty while camping) and is very lightweight. There is no liner so works great in the summertime heat, but is still loose enough to wear a fleece or something underneath. I also like that there are multiple draw strings to tighten up the fit if desired (waist, cuffs, hood, and headband). The pockets are large, deep, and close with zippers. The jacket also comes with a stuff sack so you can roll it up and easily stow it in your day pack or pocket in your car. We did experience light to heavy rain during periods of our stay and the jacket is highly effective and I had no soak throughs even the heaviest rain. I highly recommend this jacket and it’ll be a part of my normal outdoor gear set.

I have a love– hate relationship with KOA campgrounds. They tend to be overpriced and not consistent. You will find one that has nice sites at a decent price. Then, there are the others which are complete opposite. This KOA is on my good side.  There are lots of site choices, cabins, yurts, and tent sites to choose from.  The location is good as it is about 10-15 minutes far from the town of Freeport(home to L.L. Bean and tons of outlet stores), the pretty coastal town of South Freeport, four craft breweries and a cidery, and Bradbury Mountain State Park. The owners and work campers are very friendly and the super welcoming. Normally I am not concerned how nice people are but they go out of their way to make sure you get all the discounts you can and put you in a site that you prefer. 

We have stayed here a few times and are always impressed how well-cared for the grounds are and how and clean the common areas, bathrooms, and pool are. The grass is always cut, weeds trimmed, fire pits cleaned and there is no trash lying on the ground. There are lots of seasonal sites but they are in the back portion of the park with the transients being in the front. The park has nice super long 50 amp FHU pull-thrus in the front of the park which will fit any length RV and tow vehicle. Some of these sites are “buddy” sites with a shared patio, but are so wide that even if you don’t know your neighbors, it would not be a bother because you are far enough apart. The only downside to these pull thrus is there is no shade. We tend to be there in cooler months so shade is not a problem. However, the rest of the campground has a very park-like feel with over 50 acres there is plenty of room to roam and even a short nature trail through a wooded area. Many sites backup against the woods or are in wooded areas so keep that in mind when making your reservation. We give this park two thumbs up for their dog park which is ten times the size of the average KOA dog park. My lab had plenty of room to run and chase a ball and there were never any other dogs there which was nice. Plus, it was clean and free of dog poop! Normally, there are plenty of activities like s’mores by the fire, crafts, pony rides (yes, they have their own ponies on site), ice cream social, hay rides but this year they were cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. We don’t use those amenities anyway so that wasn’t a problem but can see that would be fun activities for kids. We were in a buddy sites with our friends and liked the shared patio. Since we were in the open area, we were able to get both satellite with our roof-mounted dome and some over-the-air channels from Portland which is about 45 minutes away. All of our hook-ups were in an accessible place but we were also in a long pull thru and could position the RV in the site accordingly. 

Some of the cons for this park are the lack of cable, so-so wifi, and the dusty gravel roads and pot holes. There are a few restrooms buildings scattered around the park which may not be close depending on what site you are in.

This is a nice smaller campground, nice clean bathrooms, friendly staff. The location to the coastal beaches of York, Wells, Agunquit and Kennebunkport is the main reason we stayed here. It’s one of our favorite locations in Maine and we will definitely stay here again.

Classic Maine oceanfront camping. Decent sized sites and well maintained outhouses, thank you!