Best Cabin Camping near Fork, MD

Site Details: We stayed in the Dragonfly camping cottage (quick weekend trip without the husband, and I’m not quite up for towing and setting up the popup by myself with 3 kids!). It was a standard rustic-type state park cabin, with one double bed, one single twin bunk, and one regular set of bunk beds, so it sleeps 5-6 comfortably. There was also a sturdy dining room table with chairs and an oscillating fan inside. Electricity/lights and heat, but no AC. Very clean inside. The cabin also had a really nice front porch, picnic table, and fire ring, and was situated with a beautiful lake view. The area we were in contained both rustic cabins and yurts (which looked really neat).

Facilities/Overall Park: Multiple bath houses were scattered among various loops, and each one we visited was very old, dim and drab, but they were also spacious and reasonably clean. Showers all had old rust and water stains. However, it was nice that there were so many of them, because this is a very large state park with multiple camping loops. Most tent and basic RV sites were shaded and private, while the newer FHU sites were more open (but still nicely spaced). Hosts and rangers were nice, but not very helpful or proactive when they needed to correct a reservation mistake they made (but it worked out in the end). There is a beautiful lake with a really nice day area in the center of the park, with a great playground and concession stand. The lake is popular for fishing and swimming, although there is oddly no sand beach; swimmers just entered the water straight from the grass.

Surrounding Area/Attractions: Not much going on in the immediate vicinity, but Harrisburg, Amish country, and Hershey are all doable day trips from the park. We were here just for the Hershey RV show, and it was an easy 40-minute drive.

Overall, this was a very pretty park with site options for every type of camper, but certain elements are in need of updating. I don’t think I’d go out of my way to make this park a destination, but it’s a nice option as a base camp for visiting the RV show or other attractions (with a much cheaper price tag than the private CGs closer to the action).

What a wonderful place! The resort is spacious, scattered throughout the woods. The RV sites are comfortable with all the amenities. And the customer service is impeccable.

We stayed during a few weekdays in October and we almost had the whole place to ourselves. We stayed in one of the cabins, which had 2 beds and a bunk bed, sink and toilet, refrigerator, microwave, dining table and sofa. There was also a front porch with picnic table and fire pit.

Honestly, the beds were not very comfortable and way too small for a couple to sleep in one. It was a VERY dark walk to get to the bathhouse for showers. And the fire pit had no grill, so we ended up having to use the stoves of some RV camping friends for meals. Otherwise the stay was great.

I would strongly recommend camping there in the summer months or during weekends in the shoulder season if you have social kids like mine. There were tons of things to do there for adults and kids alike. The activities — such as putt-putt, jump zone and the playground ended up being kinda boring for them without others to share it with. Obviously that would change with crowds. And advance reservations are a must — this place books up fast!

I would highly recommend staying at Merry Meadows, especially if you have an RV and a group of friends to join you!

Large campground with electric RV/camper sites as well as non-electric tent sites. Several bathroom and shower facilities. Lake-side sites are available and each site comes equipped with a picnic table, fire ring, and parking spot. Friendly staff, decently maintained. There were several planks missing from our picnic table and the parking spot was a mud hole. Some pet friendly sites are available as well. A snapping turtle stopped by for a visit at our campsite and ended up laying eggs! Quite a sight to see, there is plenty of wildlife around to enjoy during your stay.

Mostly an RV campground, but does have a few campsites and cabins. Campsites can be on top of each other and can be very rocky or muddy. We actually broke quite a few tent stakes just trying to get our footprint down.

The campsites available are primitive or have water and electric and bathhouses / restrooms are located in a few spots around the park.

Fire rings are at each site, but appear to get moved a lot.

The camp store sells firewood for $5 per cord and has other necessities, including coffee.

Some cabins, like those in my photos, are brand new and have everything you would need to set up house minus linens, towels, toilet paper , paper goods and toiletries.

Would definitely revisit.

The Hilton area campground is unique because, unlike the Hollofield area of the park, it doesn't allow RVs and its tent sites are non-electric. However, a tiny cabin experience with electricity is available... within the same loop as non-electric tent camping. My non-electric tent campsite was surrounded by brightly lit cabins, even unoccupied all of their porch lights stay on all night. It doesn't make the upper half of the campground ideal for stargazing. The other reviewers are correct that the lower half of the loop is situated lower in the valley which will make any rain you get more difficult, so avoid booking a site at the very bottom. Overall the campground and state park deserve 4 stars because from what I could see tent pads were level, firepits had grill gates, showers were hot, and staff were cleaning and maintaining the grounds everyday. But be safe; prepare detailed offline navigation if you use the trails surrounding the camp. I definitely got lost relying on blazes for what I thought was supposed to be the Charcoal Trail.

West Chester KOA This is a really nice KOA not too far from downtown Philly. The campground is located in a beautiful part of the Pennsylvania countryside with rolling hills which meant the roads getting there are narrow and windy. A bridge nearby the campground was washed out earlier by a hurricane so we had to take an alternative route going about thirty minutes out of our way. (Make sure you check their website for directions!) There is a lot to do in the surrounding area like visiting the historical sites in downtown Philadelphia, Valley Forge, or exploring Amish country. 

This is a typical KOA with lots of amenities and activities for kids– swimming pool, jump pad, miniature golf, volleyball, butterfly garden, gem mining, playground, store, dog park, nature trail, etc. There is a large pool area with pavilion but it was closed during our stay since we were there early in the season. The campground is right on the Brandywine River which is a slow meandering pretty river that is great to get your feet wet or go for a paddle. Canoes and kayaks are available for rent if you have time and as there is very little current in the river you can paddle out and back without any trouble. There is a nice, short nature trail which was nice to walk our dog and she enjoyed getting wet in the river. 

The campground is hilly which means that a fair number of sites are not level. Our site (#27) was level for our RV but the patio sloped downhill and we could not use our picnic table or find a level spot for our chairs. Some sites are “premiums” with paved patios, Adirondack chairs, fancy firepits, BBQ grill, and tables and chairs with an umbrella. These sites are really nice, but you pay a lot more for them. Some sites are located adjacent to the river with nice waterfront views, but beware some might be muddy. There are lots of camping cabins and a couple of glamping tents. 

Overall, the campground is very clean with no trash lying around and the grass was mowed and trimmed. The 50-amp electric was good as was the water pressure. The sewer connection uphill from our site so it did not drain properly. There is basic cable but since you are so close to Philly there are plenty of over-the-air channels. The Wi-Fi at our site worked well. Garbage is picked up at your site. The surrounding area has plenty of restaurants, shopping, and interesting things to see and do.

Overview: nice quiet campground with a variety of campsites and a pretty good camp store.

Site: this review is of the campsite and cabin we stayed in. Most of the campsite options are fairly level, but are very rocky, so this is something to keep in mind if you are tent camping. We have heavy duty solid steel pegs and still had trouble pegging everything down. Some of the cabins were recently added and are super clean inside. The one we stayed in had a set of bunk beds, a queen bed, and a fold out couch. It also had a bathroom with shower /tub and everything you would need except linens.

Bathroom: the bathhouse had individual bathrooms and showers. Each was pretty clean and spacious.

Amenities: Campsite with $5 firewood, coffee and ice cream. Mini golf Fishing pond Pool

PROS: Quiet campground Pool open seasonally Nice staff

CONS: No walking trails

Have stayed here before and will stay here again.

Site was heavily wooded and very private; we were surrounded by woods on three sides, and could only see our neighbors across the narrow loop road. Site included a picnic table, fire ring, grill grate and lantern post. Pad was nice and level; didn’t need to use any blocks. Drive way was just long enough to accommodate our truck. Site was a little farther from the bath house than we usually prefer, but didn’t really matter as we were camping sans kids this time. I loved the privacy of this site, so I didn’t mind the little bit of extra walking. Almost all the sites looked relatively private, with a fair amount of trees in between, but our was on of the only sites that was truly surrounded by forest. Since we were here in November, the leaves were especially beautiful. Bath house was large, heated and extremely clean; looks recently renovated. There was also a nice large dishwashing station on the Men's side, which I love. The park itself is very quiet, pretty, and easy to get around. Lots of multi-use trails, which i believe are mostly flat, so maybe not the best for die-hard hiking enthusiasts. We took the Lake Trail down to the day-use area, and it was a very pleasant, scenic hike that took less than 20 minutes. The lake/day-use area is beautiful, with a pavilion, picnic tables, boat launch area, volleyball and large recycled-tire playground for kids. There were quite a few people out and about, more than I would have expected during November. The lake is popular for fishing, kayaking and canoeing (no swimming allowed). During the on-season, canoes and kayaks are available for rent to explore the lake and water trails in the adjacent Tuckahoe Creek. Would love to come back in the summer to check them out. There is also a disc golf course, challenge course, and archery range on-site.

Overall, we really enjoyed this park. It has all the major elements we typically look for: privacy, lots of trees, electric hookups, clean bath house, large playground, and a place to fish. The fact that it’s only about an hour’s drive from us is a bonus. We can’t wait to come back in warmer weather with the kids!

PROS 

Very nice small Montgomery County Park 

No reservation fee to make on-line reservations 

Reserved 137 days prior to arriving 

Entrance gate required entry code Instructed by staff via gate phone to proceed to campsite as check-in at camp store is at dead end with insufficient turning space for pickup towing 28ft bumper pull; complete check-in after camper was unhooked at site

 Great night sky viewing as no lights what so ever in camping loops except for toilet/shower buildings 

Lots of vegetation between sites providing privacy from neighbors 

Site#D69 shady 

Very quiet campground 

Site#D69 level side-to-side but we were forced to greatly elevate front of trailer to level front-to-back 

Site#D69 gravel parking pad 

Wooden/metal picnic table that was moveable 

Metal fire pit with cooking grate 

Toilet/shower facility very clean 

3 washers and 3 dryers, along with folding tables in the basement of the check-in building. Accepted credit card for $1.75/load 

Harper’s Ferry National Historical park 35 miles from Park 

Walmart and Wegman’s 5 miles from Park 

CONS 

Out-of-state campers pay higher camping fee than Maryland residents,$66/night 

No senior or veteran discount 

Trees falling on Park power lines caused power outage for hours 

No toilet/shower facility in FHU loop so had to hike to facilities in Loops B & E

No camp host 

No ranger patrolling thru campsite 

No WIFI 

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