Best RV Parks & Resorts near West Gardiner, ME

I will say that my preferred camp site is one that is heavily wooded, where I can hardly see my neighbors and where I have some view of something impressively beautiful. I have a small camper and two young kids so on long camp trips I appreciate a place with RV hook-ups. This place may not offer a heavily wooded area where I can't see my neighbors but it makes up for it for everything else it offers. It's right on the ocean, it has gardens and secret nooks where you can sit and make a fire. It has a beautiful art studio. It has a play room and play ground that kept my children entertained for hours so I could read. The other campers were so pleasant that I had no issues with being close to them. I had the lobster dinner they offered and it was excellent. I will come back again.

This is a large campground right on the lake. Half of area is set up with RV hookups, so it nicely separates the tents from the RVs.

My wife and I just spend an overnight here.  The brewery is really cool, and the wood fired pizza is some of my favorite.  The folks who run this place are really friendly and accommodating. Both my wife an I really enjoyed ourselves.

This is definitely an RV park.  The sites are close together, with full hookups.  50, 30, and 20 Amp, water and sewer.  We had a pull through site which worked really well for newbies like my wife and I. They also appear to have a few cabins which look super cute. 

If there is a down side to the park it would be the road noise.  You are right off of Rt. 27, which is the main road into Boothbay Harbor.  The upside is you can easily ride the bike lane into town for some exploring without having to deal with tourist parking.  Especially in the summer time, parking is at a premium.

If you are looking for fun weekend with great beer and food, this is definitely worth the trip.

This is a nice place to visit. We had full hook ups. The sites are close together . We were camping with friends so this was bonus us. They provide a garbage can at each site. The laundry room was clean and and appears well maintained. They are close to the Railroad Museum so you can hear the train whistles during the day. We were close to the road so road noises were noticeable. The staff is very friendly. We visited on Indigenous Peoples weekend. The leaves were at their peak and the nights were crisp. We enjoyed our time very much.

Boothbay Harbor is a cute coastal Maine town and Shore Hills Campground is a great location for visiting the downtown and other Maine towns like Wiscasset and Easy Boothbay. Shore Hills has a wide variety of sites that can accommodate everything from the biggest size RV to tents. The great thing about this campground is that there is a such a large selection of sites that you pretty much can get what you want. 

Some of their 30-amp waterfront sites come with great views. They also have some sites tucked in the woods that are super wide with huge patios and lots of privacy between you and your neighbor and great for families or large gatherings. The 50-amp full hook-up sites towards the front of the park are closer together with not as much privacy and near the road so you get some of that noise. The last we time we stayed there we were in a long pull-thru in the front which was$59/night. Our site had a wooden deck with a picnic table on it. The deck was nice but I had to be careful where I parked so my steps cleared the porch. Each site has its own garbage can which I super convenient. Hook-ups at our site worked fine and were well-placed and easy to connect to. The wifi was a joke and we got frustrated and gave up. Not sure if it is any better in other areas of the park but it seems to be a common complaint that they tend not to fix. On the other hand, the cable had lots of channels and a great HD picture. The roads to our site were easy to navigate with our 45’ RV and tow car but the check-in area near the office is very small and tight and at times, it was very backed up and RV’s were out on the main road. During certain times of the year, the park offers a shuttle service to and from downtown which is nice because parking can be expensive(from$7-$20). There are free parking spots downtown but they are few and far between and limited to 2-4 hours. 

The park has a short trail across to an island which our dog loved to run around on and jump in the water. The tides are crazy in Maine so be careful if you use the boat launch that you don’t get stuck on a mud flat when the 9-11’ tide disappears. Nearby is the Ovens Mouth Preserve which has great hiking and nice water views and is just one of many nature preserves in the area which all are very nice, well-marked, well-maintained, and dog-friendly. 

You have to stop at Bet’s Fish Fry for the best fried fish and chips you have ever had. Bring a beer or two and enjoy eating your food on the picnic tables in the nearby park. Another good place to visit is the Boothbay Craft Brewery Company which has good beer and pizza. They also have a small RV park but the sites are pretty close together. Pinkhams Gourmet Market has a nice selection of prepared items, meats, seafood, and gourmet items but for fresh lobster we head down to the waterfront to Atlantic Edge Lobster.

We had an incredible stay at this lovely little family owned brewery and RV park. Plenty of privacy in between pull-in spots and the grounds are well maintained. Close to Boothbay Harbor and the Botanical Gardens are a must see! Bathrooms are at tap house for now, but next season there will be a brand new bathroom and laundry facility. The beers are tasty and they have a great menu! Stop by our YouTube channel and check out our in-depth review. We spent some time with Riley Mitchell the RV park manager and got a great interview and tour! @skywaystohighways on Instagram (link in our bio) and YouTube https://youtu.be/gwkw5LPfIH8

We chose to stay at this campground because it was close to downtown Bethel, had river access, and had a full hook-up site for our 45’ RV. Campsites vary from full hook-up pull through to grassy shaded private sites perfect for tent camping. The sites are pretty close together and ours was a buddy site which meant our patio faced our neighbor’s patio. Since the sites were so close, we were practically sitting next to them. Luckily, they were nice people and we enjoyed talking to them. 

Not all sites are level and we found it difficult to get into because of the tight roads and dangling tree limbs. Some of the best sites are unfortunately reserved for work campers. These are pull-ins with a view of a grassy field. The wifi at our site (#21) was horrible and we never used it. There is no cable and we were not able to pick up any over-the-air television channels. The campground is pretty wooded which was nice for the shade but meant we were not able to get satellite reception with our dome mounted receiver. We ended up using our portable receiver and after two days of moving the unit we were finally able to lock into the satellites. 

We selected a 50-amp full hookup pull through site which was $46/night. Our sewer was uphill at our site which is a big pet peeve of ours and super annoying when it comes to empty the tanks. The 50-amp worked well and it was well-placed in the site as was the water. The roads and campsites are gravel and the patios are a mix of gravel and grass. Each site has a picnic table and fire pit. The campground is adjacent to a paved walking/biking path that leads to downtown Bethel. We used the path to walk over to the farmers market and found it very convenient to walk our dog. There is also a mowed path through a field that we also liked for walking our dog. 

The best aspect of this campground is the access to the Androscoggin River. The park rents kayaks, canoes, and tubes and has a shuttle service that will take you up river for so you can float back to the campground. We used the campgrounds shuttle livery service to take our kayak and paddleboard up river for a leisurely float down the river so we could enjoy the scenery, have a picnic, and fish. (Since we used our own boats, the coast was cheaper.) The campground offers this service to non-campers which meant there were a lot of people walking through the campground. The bathroom in the campground was old and tired and heavily used by people floating the river which and was pretty dirty. They also have a sluice on the property, where (for a fee) you can get a bucket of mined material and get to sort through it looking for minerals and gems. Whatever you find, you keep. 

The campground is located off Route 2 which is fairly convenient but the road noise was pretty loud as this is a heavily trafficed road. Downtown Bethel is just a few minutes away and has a brewery, grocery, restaurants, shops, and the Maine Mineral and Gem Museum. About five miles away is Sunday River which is a ski area. We took the chair lift up the mountain so we could hike around and take in the beautiful views.  On the way, we stopped at Sunday River Brewery and had a delicious meal and great beer.

Pro Shade Safe Staff lovely Easy off highway Easy entrance to RV park Park is old but hosts doing their best to keep mowed etc. well we only had sand and pine needles.

Con: pay for wifi Space so so close Spaces sand and not level Utilities on odd side so we had to buy extensions to reach. We had no private outdoor space . The full timers have great spots. Maneuvering is tricky due to lots trees and lots close rv’s.

Overall, this is a great little private RV park with awesome views (from some sites) and great access to the ocean. The park is conveniently located just a few miles from downtown Belfast (a sweet little Maine town) which offers plenty to do and see. Plus, you are just five miles from the cute town of Searsport which houses the wonderful Penobscot Marine Museum and two miles from Moose Point State Park with hiking trails, picnic areas, and more gorgeous views.

The park offers a variety of sites (44 total) depending on if you want oceanfront, ocean view, or a pull-thru. All sites have electric (50 or 30 amp), water, cable and wifi. The five pull-thru sites also include sewer. A mobile sewer pump-out service is available for guests staying one week or longer and there is a dump station. Roads and sites are gravel with grass patios and level. All sites have a fire ring and picnic table. Our Verizon 4G phone and Hotspot worked great but we mostly used the free wifi which worked very well.

Park amenities include private ocean access, horseshoes, playground, laundry, showers/bathrooms, free coffee in the morning, free weekend papers delivered to your site, free donuts on Sunday mornings, and a restaurant on-site. The park organizes a lot of group activities including pot lucks, lobster shore dinners, and free wine and beer during Friday Happy Hours. The laundry has two wash machines/dryers and was clean and tidy.

The Moorings is in a great location. It is just a few miles from downtown Belfast where you will find restaurants, a brewery, boutiques, a movie theater, art galleries, historic museums/sites, and plenty of water-related activities. Grocery stores and fuel stations are within a few miles of the RV Park. Just a mere 20 miles away is the popular coastal town of Camden.   

What we liked about this park is the town of Belfast and how close the RV park is to downtown. Also, the parks small size and friendly people make this an enjoyable place to stay. We like the fact that they had social activities (like free happy hour and donuts) that bring people together. The ocean access in this park is great! A short set of stairs takes you down to the water which is great for exploring, launching kayaks, and letting the dog run/swim when the tide is out. 

The biggest downside for us was the price and lack of sewer and 50 amp at some sites. Our site was $66/night for a FHU (50 amp) pull-thru on the hill in the front of the park without much in the way of a water view. Premier oceanfront sites (with no sewer and 30 amps) are $72/night during high season. That being said, there are not too many options for campgrounds in the Belfast area and we really did like staying here. 

From a dog owners perspective this park gets mixed reviews. The rules ask that dogs be on a 4’ or less lease, you may only have two pets (unless you get prior approval), they must do their business in one small area and are not allowed on most grassy areas throughout the park. We make a consorted effort not too let our dog pee or poop in others yards but we don’t always have control over where that happens. We did like the fact that you could take them down to the ocean to play in the water and on the beach when the tide was out. Within two miles of the RV park is Moose Point State Park with a few miles of hiking trails, picnic area and water access (a daily use fee is charged). Downtown Belfast does have a fenced off-leash 1.4 – acre dog park with water for dogs and benches for owners.

Nice state campground with tons of hiking trails right from the campground. We stayed in a non-hookup site for $38/night- very expensive but we wanted to stay in the area and enjoy the hiking trails. Most sites don’t have enough sun for solar, and those that do, are FHU sites. Go figure. We were in site #65, recommended to us by the ranger as having the most sun for our panels. 65 was nice because it was set apart from other sites, and kind of enclosed so it was nice for the dogs. But it’s in direct view of the dump station so if that bothers you don’t pick this site! 

The drive up Mt Battie Rd was worth it for the views at the top. RVs are ok to drive on this road, and there’s RV parking at the top. 

Showers are free, hot, and good pressure, but they are the creepiest campground showers, rusty and dark. Dump station and potable water are available. 

There’s a little free library book exchange at the ranger station at the entrance. Verizon service was usable but very weak, ATT was better, and fine with the weboost. The campground offers wifi at $3 per day per connection, but we didn’t use it.

Basically this is a small independent RV park split between season RV campers and regular RV campers. The only reason for a tent camper to go is to take advantage of the laundry room and the nicely scrubbed showers. It’s 5 minutes from Skowhegan and a short 2 minutes from Kennebec Banks rest area on route 2.

There are about 5 tent sites– two of which are on a small point stretching into the confluence of the great Kennebec River and the small Wesserunsett River. 

The only two tent sites I would recommend are #50 & #51 on the point with # 51 being most desirable. I absolutely would not recommend any of the other tent sites for various reasons. I used site #51 and pitched my tent about 20ft from the Kennebec. At 6:45am  I saw two bald eagles patrolling the Kennebec. 

The RV sites that are interesting are the ones directly along the Kennebec. They are sites 39-45; 47A; 47B; 47C; 48; and, they park parallel to the river. Otherwise, it’s a very tight center filled with RV’s and very large motor homes. Sites # 52– 58 may look like they are water sites… but the water feature on the map is only a brushy swamp. 

The 2 showers are very good, clean and include a bench. There are 2 flush toilets also sparkling clean; but, they are some distance from The Point. The 24hour self-operated laundry is housed in a small, dedicated bungalow. There are 2-3 docks and canoes to use. 

At night, one can clearly hear the noise from route 2 just at the edge of the campground. The river amplifies the sound of cars passing by.

Winslow Park and Campground is a busy 100 campsite and park run by the town of Freeport, ME.

We stayed in site #1 and were pleasantly surprised to not have any neighbors that night, which meant our site seemed larger than it ordinarily would have. The sites are small- similar to what you would find in an RV park. They are large enough to fit long class A and large tow vehicles into, but not much room is left between you and your neighbors, and there are few if any trees separating the sites.

There are warm showers, but we did not find them to be very clean. Regardless, we did enjoy our stay at Winslow. There was a concert going on when we arrived, but the park was less busy when everyone left for the night. The sunrise over the bay view we had was absolutely incredible- we loved our waterfront view and it was definitely the best park about this site.

At $50, this was also one of the more expensive sites we’ve stayed at. The view was definitely worth the price, but I don’t know if I would stay again simply because the RV park feel isn’t really our favorite aesthetic.

Either way, we appreciated the proximity to Freeport and the amenities and view at the time!

Of note: we visited the House of Hounds on Sniffspot the next morning so our dog could run and play- that ended up being one of our favorite things we have done on this trip. Omar has a beautiful open field that he lets people bring their dogs to play in and it was absolutely divine- especially since our guy doesn’t love other dogs so we can’t rely on dog parks for exercise. He enjoyed having the whole field to himself!

Very friendly staff/family. Had a pool/hot tub, showers, coin laundry. Several different types of campsites from tent to large RV with full hookups.

Winslow Park is a hidden gem. Not because it's a wilderness camping experience, but because it's a throwback to a time when people would pack a cabin tent or hitch up a camper trailer and take their families to a friendly, safe setting with a variety of old school recreational amenities. Things like swimming and boating. A playground, basketball and volleyball courts. A nature trail and covered group picnic pavilion. A game room where children can play board games and foosball. Opportunities for kids to just run around, toss a ball, bicycle and explore in a safe, sheltered setting. And on Thursday summer evenings, the chance to spread out blankets on a broad grassy green, unpack a picnic supper and enjoy a music concert amidst commanding views of Maine's scenic Casco Bay.

Winslow Park offers a mix of wooded and grassy campsites that accommodate both tent and RV campers. Note however, there are none with water/electric hookups. Basic amenities include a beach, boat ramp, bathroom and shower facilities and a dish washing station. Firewood is available within the park. RV'ers will appreciate the onsite dump station. For those who prefer "glamping", the fully furnished, four bedroom Harb Cottage is available for rent by the week or the month.

If you stay at Winslow, a few things not to be missed: walk or bike past the camping area and follow the main park road into a dense stand of pine. It opens up at Stockbridge Point which features two rocky promontories you can walk out on. This is a stunning place to be at sunset, sunrise or (with the help of a good headlamp) on a starry night. If you bring bicycles, don't miss the opportunity to pedal the 7 or so miles back along Staples Point and South Freeport Roads to US Route 1. There, practically across the street, you can treat yourself to a well-earned frozen confection at Mainely Custard. Biking there means guilt-free indulgence!

Finally, Winslow Park makes an excellent and economical multi-day base of operations for exploring Maine's mid coast region. In addition to L.L. Bean and outlet shopping in downtown Freeport, there are day hiking opportunities of a more wilderness character at nearby Wolfe's Neck State Park and Mast Landing Audubon Sanctuary. There's also Portland with its historic Old Port, bustling foodie scene and legendary craft brew culture just 20 miles down the highway to the south, and destination towns like Brunswick, Belfast and Boothbay Harbor within easy drive to the north.

Insider tip: if you're planning a visit in late May or early June, call ahead and inquire about the Browntail Moth situation. It's a noxious nuisance that seems to be peaking along Maine's south/central coast these past few years. For some people it can produce very annoying poison-ivy like symptoms. It's a complete non-issue after June, so either plan your visit for mid to late summer, or consider motels or camping inland if you're visiting Maine earlier in the season.

Pictures are deceiving! My two teenagers and I booked site 810 in the west bay for my birthday and we were incredibly disappointed. I’ll skip most of the complaints about the site and staff, and say this site works best of you have a small camper and/or don’t mind not having ANY privacy. 

We had two small tents and two hammocks. We could only hang one hammock because the only trees were too small and over the rocky ledge to the water below. The water view was beautiful, but there is no possible position for privacy from the site to the right or left or behind unless you’re inside your tent. There is a small gravel road directly behind, and an open field with full hook ups behind you. We had large groups of noisy families in the field behind and generators ran much of the time not to mention, if the people in the field want to view the water, they have to sit facing sites like 810, which felt like people were watching us all of the time. We highly recommend NOT staying in the west bay unless you have, or like, lots of young children running around back and forth to the playground. There are also not clear markers between sites, so they were often throwing balls and tumbling in our site. It can also get super windy, so plan ahead in case.

Aside from the site itself, we had some issues with the way the animals were treated in the barn, and with the food at the restaurant. Granted, we went in August during covid, so maybe those things are typically better cared for. We may go back — the surrounding bay is gorgeous — but we’ll def stay in east bay or one of the tent walk in sites if we do. Bring bikes of you can, it’s a nice farm to pedal around and the bike rentals were not available due to covid.