Best RV Parks & Resorts near Fort Howard, MD

We stay at Ramblin Pines because it is close to family and a good proximity to visiting Baltimore and Frederick. The campground is quite large with lots of seasonal sites but there are some transient spaces that can accommodate big-rigs. In addition to RV sites, there are tent sites and cabins. 

We stayed in one of the transient sites (#FR14) across from the RV storage lot. It was a long gravel back-in with 50-amp FHU. The water hook-up is in a pit so it doesn’t freeze so look under the cover. It can be a bit difficult to reach and you have to get on the ground to hook-up. Based on the location of the spigot, we were not able to attach our water filter (we drank the tap water anyway and it was good). The electric worked fine and were able to reach the sewer with our 20’ hose. The view out of our front window was of the storage lot which was not the most scenic. However, parking in the FR row is the easiest place for big-rigs to park since some roads in the park are tight and hard to navigate with the trees and with the two-way traffic. 

There are lots of amenities and it seems some people come here for the activities and things to do. It is a destination for many campers. They have lots of themed events, the most popular being the entire month of October celebrating like Halloween. They set up a haunted walk through the woods, have pumpkin carving, trick or treating, a costume contest, haunted hayride, and site decoration contest every weekend. If you want to camp on the weekends– book early because we found it very difficult to get a reservation during October and you have to pay in full and there are no refunds for cancellations. Other weekends have live music, bingo, hayrides, cornhole tournaments, crafts, and more. Basically, there is something every weekend. 

Huge fishing pond, shuffleboard, horseshoes, large dog park with agility, game room, playgrounds, jump pillow, heated swimming pool, and exercise room (which was decent but didn’t have a television to occupy your time), 18-hole mini golf. A short but nice hiking trail winds through the woods and is nice for walking dogs. There is a large covered pavilion with picnic tables for big gatherings. There is free Wi-Fi but it doesn’t reach sites in the back of the campground. Wi-Fi is great if you are near the office/store. The camp store is fairly large with some food/beverage items, t-shirts, large amount of RV supplies, and misc. other items. There is a coffee maker with free coffee.

Greenbelt, MD: (Scale 1- bad, 5-Very good (70 yr olds in 17’ trailer) Overall Rating: 4.5 Price: About $12 w our senior pass. Usage during visit: 50 % during week Site Privacy: Most inner loop sites are not very good. However, our inner loop site was very private. Most inner loop sites lack privacy. Pull Through” sites are more like pull over sites. The picnic table privacy is often not very good for the pull over sites. This is because the adjacent back in site is deeper with picnic table not blocked by the trailer.
Site Spacing: Some are close. Check the map. Site surface: black top Reservations: Yes. We were able to change our site upon arrival on Rec.gov. Campground Noise: Very quiet.
Road Noise: None Through Traffic: Not a problem if the site is in a loop. Electricity: No Water: Available at a few spigots and at the washbasins at the bathrooms Sewer: No Dump: Yes Generators: 6AM till 10PM Bathroom: Old but clean. Showers: Old but clean. Cirtains Pull Throughs: Some “pull over spots”. I have a pic or two of good ones in the D loop.
Cell Service (Verizon): Great. Setting: 10 mins from subway for DC access. Great way to get to DC. Located in a deciduous forest serving as a pleasant getaway for locals.
Weather: It was cool during our stay.
Bugs: No problems yet. Solar: Most sites are not adequate.
Host: They are friendly and very courteous. Notes: Amazing that there is such a pretty place so close to DC. This must be a great getaway for locals . …. We did not walk the park trails , but there are some.

This campground is about 25 sites. Only 5 sites have electric (2, 5, 18, 24, 25)but all 25 sites have water hookup. Weekends are some what noisy because of the games across the street in the park. This is not a gated campground so anyone can come through and have a tour. Park Police patrol the campground 2 times a day. Also the bathrooms are clean, their are 2 stalls and 1 shower, cleaned daily by park rangers. Raccoons run wild at night flipping trash can lids on your campsite hunting for food. Use repel spray to keep the raccoons off your site. Site 24 and 25 are very close together but the other sites are at a distance however, 6 of the 25 sites are unleveled so tent camping is probably the only option. This is not big rig friendly but there are pull through sites but the roads are very narrow and there is only 1 way in and 1 way out (same entrance) there is a dump station at the beginning of the campground with access to water as well. Free of charge. This is a quiet campground and it's cheap for maryland residents and about $20 for non-resident. There is no registration on site it's online only. www.pgparksdirect.com

Our first visit (March 2018) was just prior to peak season (lower rates) and we had a site literally 10 ft. from the water! Full hook ups and sites were a little close, but nice. There seemed to be a lot of long term/permanent residents, but most sites along the waterfront remained open. The campground seemed to stress pet restrictions both in the rules section of their registration packet and signage around the grounds. There was a pet exercise/walking area, but could use some sprucing up. However, no one really made an issue of walking your dog around the campground and as the weekend came around, more and more dogs were around.

You have to drive through a residential neighborhood to reach Bar Harbor, so big rigs take care/caution. Would like to try Bar Harbor again sometime.

We had another great stay at Cherry Hill Park in College Park, MD. 

We stayed in a level pull-thru site(#1715) with picnic table on a paver patio, iron table and chairs, clean gravel surface, grill, and fire pit. The site was just big enough for our motor home and Jeep. Full hook-ups with 50-amp service all worked fine. 

If you’re visiting Washington, this is the place to stay. They offer a daily charter bus plus the Metro bus stops at the campground entrance. And if you have a car, it’s about 35-minutes drive time(maybe a bit longer with traffic). 

To be honest, it’s a great place to stay even if you’re not visiting D.C. They have two swimming pools, a cafe, playgrounds, well-stocked camp store, delivery of firewood, ice, and cafe orders, and a concierge to help with travel and tourist sites. 

The entire park is clean and well-maintained. 

THINGS I ESPECIALLY LIKED: 

1. Proximity to Washington, D.C. 

2. Excellent condition and clean 

3. Great staff to help with making the most of your stay

Stayed for two nights with another family. They brought their travel trailer and our pop-up. The outer loop campsites are easily more level than the center loop. If leveling perfectly is a concern you may want to call ahead and ask before commiting to the inner loop. Electric hookup only. Bathhouse was very clean and the staff friendly. Water fill & Dump Station on the beach side of the bathhouse. This is a State Park so it's filled with activities. Great place to mountain bike as we noticed several groups camping and biking during our stay. We enjoyed the water park immensely. Ten of us in total with kids ranging from 18 months old to 13 years old. Everyone enjoyed the water park and the time we spent there. additional fee for access to the water park.

This campground goes above and beyond to make you feel like home. at 35/night during peak season for a primitive site it’s a little above our usual budget. However we found it to be well worth it. The primitive sites are back in the woods which kept us nice and cool on hot July nights. The location also kept us fairly bug free. Note: The campground WiFi does not reach the primitive sites and I had 0 cell/GPS service on the entire premises (my carrier is AT&T) This campground features an amazing playground, a pond, a beautiful pool, a rec room, a wonderful hiking trail, and a basket ball court. It’s about a 15/20 minute drive to any sort of grocery or liquor store so we wished the camp store had more to offer. The people who work and stay there absolutely want to make you feel at home. At one point a lantern needed a specific battery and I watched several patrons go check their RVs. The sense of community and welcoming really sold this place to us and we plan on coming back soon!

What I like about Martinak St. Park is that the Electric loop (B) has all of the sites on the outside of the drive loop so you are not looking across the road at other campers. The refurbished bath house (in the spring of 2018) is located in the center of the loop along with a small playground. Sites are 30 amp only (no sewer, no water at each site). Water stations are located around the drive loop. Most sites are shady. Limited sites to fit rigs in excess of 40 ft., so check the reservation system first.

The park is located on the Choptank River with boat ramp access, a nature center and pavilion overlooking Watts Creek which is great for canoeing and kayaking.

Close to town and grocery/shopping and other amenities..