For those who want to experience Bolton, but still want the creature comforts of home, consider glamping for your trip. Glamping near Bolton is especially popular among campers who enjoy beds and electricity. You're sure to find glamping for your Massachusetts camping excursion.
Nestled deep in the woods between Boston & Cape Cod, Normandy Farms Campground is a luxury camping destination that has been a family tradition since 1971 and widely recognized as one of the premier resorts in the world. Relax and enjoy the unique seasons of New England in your RV, tent, or in one of our deluxe cabin or YURT rentals. We also have pop-up trailers and safari tents for those seeking an elevated camping experience.
Normandy Farms Campground Special Amenities include: a bike park, creative arts center, disc golf, a dog park, a fitness center, laundry facilities, playgrounds, a store, volleyball, basketball, soccer, bocce, tennis, 4 swimming pools, spa, wellness center, and more!
$50 - $200 / night
$14 - $35 / night
NATURAL FEATURES Otter River State Forest was the first area acquired by the State Forest Commission in 1915 and also the first campground in the Massachusetts State Park system. Some of the forest area was cleared in the nineteenth century for small farms. After the state acquired the land, it was reforested with groves of pines which were planted by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930's. The forest of oak and hickory, northern hardwood and pines is home to numerous wild flowers and shrubs, deer, chipmunks and many species of birds. RECREATION Otter River State Forest is a popular camping and day-use facility in a beautiful area of north central Massachusetts. Its developed facilities are centered on Beaman Pond and include ball field, basketball court, volleyball court and picnic areas. Many recreation opportunities are available and include a fishing, hiking, hunting, mountain biking, and picnicking. Use the park's hiking trails or try mountain biking on the 9000 acres of the adjacent Birch Hill Wildlife Management Area. FACILITIES Otter River offers 73 campsites, three group sites, and four yurts. Comfort stations are located throughout the campground and offer hot showers and flush toilets. One comfort station is accessible, shown on the map. Each campsite is equipped with a picnic table and a fire ring. Yurts are canvas sided, cabin-like structures that can accommodate 4 to 6 people. Yurts offer bunk beds, tables with benches, and access to water and electricity. All of the yurts are accessible. (Linens and eating utensils are not provided.) NOTE: Electrical service is not sufficiently reliable for use with medical equipment. Pets are prohibited from yurts and yurt sites.
$17 - $54 / night
Pawtuckaway State Park Campground lines the shore of beautiful Pawtuckaway Lake. The 192 sites are wooded and many provide views of the lake. Each campsite has an open fire ring, picnic table, flat areas for a tent, and a parking space. The bathhouses are equipped with running water, flush toilets, and 24 hour showers. There are no hook-ups at any of the campsites. The park also has a camp store where canoe and kayak rentals are available, as well as a public canoe and kayak launch. Five cabins are available; each sleeps six people, has electricity, and includes a fire ring and picnic table. Pets are not allowed in the campground or beach area of the park.
$25 - $30 / night
$14 - $23 / night
$35 - $50 / night
Quiet, peaceful, family camping on Aldrich Mill Pond.
$40 - $65 / night
Scout
I stayed one night here to experience Salem during Halloween at a tent site. Positives are access to Salem, Uber and Lyft are available though scarcer as the night gets later (10:30 pm), it is also on the trolley line if you need transportation during their business hours, great view for sunrise. Negatives are there is no privacy at the sites, everything is very open, fires must be off the ground, and the bathrooms are old and may not be stocked.
Scout
Site 47 pull thru. Nice clean campground ! No neighbors left and right. Staff very nice. Very noisy tho in sites by the river due to Rte 10. We enjoyed the campground. Small and cozy. Nice size sites
Traveler
Con: Signage is awful! Hard to find park, office and cabins! Once there, Looong drive to both campground and Cabins.
Pro: cabins are on a remote lake. Perfect for star gazing! Rustic but comfy (beds) cabins. Bring all your own stuff. No electricity, so no lights. Our cabin had a steep path. Others did not.
Scout
We booked last minute (2 hours before we arrived) and were met with the friendliest staff ready to help us at 7:30PM and get us checked in. Perfect spot if you don’t mind a 40 minute ride over to The Big E fair which is what brought us out to this part of MA. The restaurant was so nice, and to my surprise more than accommodating as I have celiac, they really went above and beyond. We will definitely be back next summer for a longer stay.
Scout
Very peaceful! Little hidden gem! We loved our weekend away
Scout
Autumn Hills Campground is AWESOME! It’s remotely located and the amenities and activities are amazing, something for everyone! The staff is so friendly and helpful and I can’t say enough how clean the bathrooms, laundry room and store are! The super nice owners, Adam& Jennifer are constantly making upgrades and changes and have really created a beautiful, family oriented campground! I recommend you take the virtual tour online so you can pick a sight that works for you and book it soon.
Traveler
We had our very first camping experience with our new camper at this campground and it was everything we could have imagined and more. It’s a beautiful campground, the gentleman and his family who own it are sooooo nice and they helped us a lot when it came to learning how to properly use our camper. All the fellow campers that we met were extremely nice. It’s a quiet campground, located right on a river. My children spent hours in it playing and fishing. Looking forward to returning.
LegendThis was my first time staying at Bear Brook, it's an easy campground to get to, once you get to the west gate it's about a 4-mile drive to the campground, if you're coming from the east it's about 1.5 miles.
The first impression was impressed by the size and how organized everything was. Check-in was easy, then driving to my site (#7) took a minute.
That's when I realized the sites were 4' apart in the section I was staying in. Other sites on each end are further apart.
The campground has a beach, a playground, a Ball field, and a store. The roads are all easy to drive on but narrow.
Scout
This was our families first time staying at Brialee Campground. The cabin was absolutely beautiful and clean. The staff were friendly and helpful. The activities were great and kept my grand children busy. Swimming and the lake were fun. I cannot say enough wonderful things. We had such a great time I booked my reservations for Next July 2025 before I left.
A special thank you to Sherri for the personal tour and showing us the ropes! She is the best.
The D'Avanzo Family
Traveler
We enjoyed our tent site with a wooden lean-to. Overall very private and peaceful, however the only drawback is that people took frequent casual walks pass the area all day long. There's really no way around that.
We did not get a chance to enjoy the amenities, but they all looked nice and well thought out.
We will return.
Traveler
This was our first time visiting and my entire family enjoyed themselves so much, that we've already reserved a site for a few weeks from now. Arts and crafts, tractor rides, and of course the tubing down the river. Lots of built in entertainment for the kids! The grounds were clean, the playground was nice, and the people were all friendly. We did a late checkout for $5 extra, but the noon checkout and two dump stations would make leaving on time a non-issue as well.
Of note: We camped with friends, who were given a spot next to a large group of people (weekend prior to 4th of July is to be expected). The group were very polite and abided by quiet hours, but they were having fun and a bit loud for my buddy's 2 month of baby. They requested to move sites, and the management was super accommodating and apologetic. Helped him move his site and threw in some firewood for the troubles.
Guide
We had an excellent experience at this camp ground. The Staff and Rangers were polite and welcoming. We were able to see some boat races and played a round of disc golf on property. Once the boat races finished each day the camp was very quiet and peaceful. Had a great weekend
TravelerCame for the boat races, very relaxing weekend
Legend
The HanscomField Fam Camp is a wooded recreational camp for military families and retirees, as well as for RV camping for active duty military on temporary orders. The campground offers RV sites, some with hookups, as well as more walk-in secluded tent sites as well as one yurt tent. The campground is peaceful and quiet, although adjacent to a very busy AFB. Proximity to the base provides access to the base exchange and other facilities, but the quiet location is a recreational retreat centered around several indoor and outdoor gathering spaces such as basketball and outdoor sports, and an indoor game and recreation room complete with crafts supplies for the kiddos and tourism info for the lical area. In the immediate vicinity are the villages of Lexington and Concord as well as the Minute Man National Park and Walden Pond, so the campground makes a great basecamp for exploration of the area’s rich culture and history. You are also not too far from Cambridge, and can easily access Boston from there if you like.
There are several clean modern bath houses, with hot showers and flush toilets. The office staff is very helpful and friendly!
Dogs are welcome too.
GuideWe took our new to us hybrid camper out for its inaugural trip.
We chose to stay in the wooded loop of the campground and we were very happy with our site, #66. That section has about 12 sites, some big and some on the smaller side. Our site was easy to back into, even more so since no one was in the site across from us. Our site was very spacious, level and included a picnic table, fire ring, and nicely placed hookups for water and electric. We had easy access to trails that went along the river behind some of the sites with a few paths down to the river.
Everyone we encountered was friendly and respectful. There are quiet hours from 10pm-8am that are enforced. We were grateful to not have to hear loud partying going on into the night. There was car noise from nearby Rt 10 on the other side of the river, but nothing you can do about that.
We asked for assistance at the office with our first time using a pumping station at the end of the trip. We were given friendly helpful assistance and some great tips and advice for the future.
This was a nice enjoyable first visit for us. We will definitely be adding it to our list of places to visit again, but likely later in the year when we can enjoy the river and activities a bit more. We did not explore the options for bike, kayak, and canoe rentals but would like to in the future.
Scout
Had an excellent experience. The staff and owner were wicked accommodating. The fishing pond was perfect. I will be returning soon. I highly recommend this place if you have a family or simply need a place to clear your mind.
Guide
Camped out here for two nights after reading about this place in the"Best Tent Camping: New England" book. It's better than the other campgrounds in Rhode Island that I looked at (Burlingame, Fort Getty) but isn't my favorite campground. If you're not a Rhode Island resident the fee for most sites is$36/night. Is it worth it? Eh, probably not unless you're really jonesing to camp for a weekend in the Ocean State.
It does have some great things going for it, namely the hiking trails and views of the lake. There are some tent-only sites which are numbered T1-T5. I stayed in T5 and it was the best of the bunch because it had the most privacy and space, including a grassy area. The other tent-only sites were fairly small and if you go to any mixed use sites you run the risk of having an RV next to you. The A1-A7 sites are remote and hike in, but you're going to have to hike either 0.4 or 0.6 miles through some uneven terrain. The next best group of sites would be 19-24 which are on their own small loop near the lake.
The things I didn't like were the streetlights over the port-a-potties that shine all night. There is a manned gate where you check in and you have to get let into the campground during the day, but at night the gates are wide open and it seems like some people know this because there are a few oddballs around in the early morning. There is swimming at the lake but it looked way too dirty.
Overall the place was managed very well, the sites were cleanish and the grounds were taken care of. The employees drove by at least once an hour, I thought they were collecting trash from dumpsters but the only place with a dumpster is near the entrance. I couldn't figure out why they kept driving by so often. I had a good time, it was relaxing and scratched the camping itch.
Guide
Great location with lake views, trails etc. Some sites are spaced out, some are closer together. Lots of great spots on the water, easy to put a kayak in from.
Can't beat it for only an hour from Boston
ScoutAre Pets Allowed at Pawtuckaway State Park?
Leashed pets are welcome on hiking trails only. Pets are NOT permitted in the campground or beach area during the summer season(May 1- September 30).*Campers are only allowed to bring pets before May 1 and after September 30, which includes the cabins. See the NH State Parks Pets Policy for more information.
https://www.nhstateparks.org/find-parks-trails/pawtuckaway-state-park
Scout
Unfortunately, this place is poorly run. The staff appears friendly at first, but if you need any help with anything, they run the other way. I agree with the previous review of the campground being underfunded. I suspect it is intentional so the greedy owner can put more money in his pocket because they charge and overcharge for everything. There are a lot of full-time, year-round rowdies that live and drink excessively here. If you want your kids exposed to that, then go for it. The outdoor pool is way too small for the number of seasonal and short-term guests. If it happens to rain while you're there, then prepare for roads to be 3 inches of mud. There is no gravel or sand on them. Sites are very close together, so there is no privacy. I do not recommend staying here. NH offers many very nice and well maintained rustic and resort style campgrounds. The only positive is decent showers.
Scout
it is good
LegendWe stayed here during the month of October, for two nights back to back (in different spots). We wanted to come to Salem for the Halloween season, and didn’t think it would be that bad, despite many warnings about how crowded it gets (it gets CROWDED).
I got our spots at Winter Island by repeatedly and obsessively hitting “refresh” for two days straight, and it paid off- couldn’t believe we snagged two nights there. I was worried about driving an RV through Salem, but Google took us around the main part of the city and it was fine. We saw much bigger class As and 5th wheels there (we are in a 26ft class c). So, no issues driving.
Sites are power& water only, and you drive up the road on your way out to dump at the wastewater treatment plant (available for campground guests and Salem residents only). The dump hole is awkwardly placed and gross (we saw the previous dumper’s remnants!) but it was fine.
The campground has good wifi that reaches throughout the campground, as well as good cell reception. We walked from there to town, but if that’s too far then there are Lyft and a trolley available. I believe the trolley was $22/adult, for a full day of a hop on/ hop off deal and a tour of the city.
TravelerMilitary only campground. Working on improving the grounds and services available. Limited sites available off season. Summer season early May through end October.
LegendWinter Island Park Campground: (Scale 1- bad, 5-Very good (70 yr olds in 17’ trailer). I rate primarily based on desire for at least a moderate wilderness type experience w at least some camp site privacy. Overall Rating: 2.5(RV field and hanger spots; 4.5 (Bayside sites). Price 2023: $42 Usage during visit: 100% full because of October celebration in Salem. Site Privacy: None Site Spacing: Very close Site surface: Grass, gravel, and blacktop Reservations: Required Campground Noise: Quiet Road Noise: Not near a major road. Through Traffic in campground: Some traffic down to parking lot. Electric Hookup: Yes Sewer Hookup: No. Dump Station: Yes Potable Water Available: At the site. Generators: I think all trailer sites have electrical hookups. Bathroom: Yes - old. Showers: Yes - old style. Dressing area is not private. Pull Throughs: All are back in. Cell Service (AT&T): Very good. Setting: 3 settings : Open field, Back up to warehouse with ocean view, On blacktop along harbor. Weather: Clear and cool Bugs: None. Solar: Yes Host: Yes. Rig size: Large rigs will fit in many sites. Sites: 12 - 16D along the bayside have a beautiful view of the bay. These sites would be fantastic to be in even though the sites are close together. The sites along the hanger have a water view with a huge parking lot in between. The RV Field area is only good as a convenient spot to visit nearby Salem attractions or Boston (1 hr plus drive through heavy traffic).
LegendBear Brook SP, NH: Oct 2023
(Scale 1- bad, 5-Very good
(70 yr olds in 17’ trailer). I rate based on desire for at least a moderate wilderness type experience w at least some camp site privacy.
Overall Rating: 4.5
Price 2023: $30 about
Usage during visit: 10% weekday
Site Privacy: Open
Site Spacing: Very large sites.
Site surface: Rocky soil.
Reservations: Yes
Campground Noise: Very peaceful.
Road Noise: None. This is a long drive back through the woods from the highway.
Through Traffic in campground: None.
Electric Hookup: No
Sewer Hookup: No
Dump Station: Yes
Potable Water Available: Spigots are scattered throughout. See my picture of the map.
Generators: Allowed.
Bathroom: Clean flush toilets.
Showers: Individual shower rooms
Pull Throughs: Some.
Cell Service (AT&T): 1 to 2 bars.
Setting: Maple/conifer forest along a pond. Woods obscure atheist pond’s view.
Weather: Beautiful day, High 80s, but the thick woods offers needed shade.
Bugs: Yes, there are more mosquitoes than we experienced further north.
Solar: Our site, B 31 offered enough solar to equal our minimal output late in the day.
Host: I don’t see a host near my location.
Rig size: Orrery good size rig can fit in some sites.
Sites: See map in my photos. There are some great sites here. Spaciousness is the plus point for this campground.
ScoutAbsolutely beautiful. When we drove in we fell in love with the grounds!! We were in site B9. We have a 25” B+ and basically had to park sideways and use a lot of leveling blocks to get our rig level. As we walked around we spoke to others who had similar problems with the sites not being level. We recommend this campground but just be prepared and bring plenty of leveling blocks! The office did provide us with additional blocks to level so they were very accommodating.
Scout
We went just for one night with a tent because our 5 years old loooves camping, so we reserved this at the last minute, and when we get there, well, the tent sites are way too close to each other, thank god we just had one other guy next to us but was very uncomfortable being too close, no privacy at all, and lots of noise at night from kids staying in RVs, screaming until 11pm. The bathrooms were a little dirty, but not awful, and we didn’t read well that the place doesn’t have a grill for cooking, just the fire ring, so we had go hunting for one at a store very far away. Forget about cellphone signal, it was 0.
Frequently Asked Questions
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According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular glamping campground near Bolton, MA is Normandy Farms Campground with a 4.7-star rating from 38 reviews.
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