Best Campgrounds near Norton Center, MA

This is a large campground and overall it's pretty nice. But the gem is the canoe sites at the north of the campground. These are tent only. You park and walk about 100 yards to the site. There are only four sites in this secluded section of the campground. Sites CN02, CN03 and CN04 have direct waterfront on the pond. You can launch kayaks, paddle boards, etc right from the site! There is an outhouse in the parking lot or you can walk 5 minutes to a nicer bathroom elsewhere in the park with showers.

General: There are three sections to this campground: five canoe sites; 16 sites including one cabin behind the ranger station and what I would assume is the main section with 61 sites. Some sites have water and electric hookups, but the majority of the sites have no utilities. Note: Pets are not allowed at this campground!

Site Quality: We arrived in the rain after the Ranger station had closed and circled the main section several times trying to find the site with the least amount of water. We did not know until the next morning when we went to pay that we ended up in an ADA-accessible site. It was not marked in any way and I’m guessing that the only reason it was designated as such was its proximity to the restrooms. All sites appeared level and even though they were supposed to have gravel pads, they were mostly a mix of dirt (or mud) and grass with a little gravel. 

Bath/Shower House: In the main section, there is a very large and clean indoor bathhouse with free showers. Did not use the shower so cannot comment. Appreciated that there was immediate hot water at the sinks. The other two sections have vault toilets. 

Activities/Amenities: In season there is swimming, but the beach is very small. Fishing, canoeing, and kayaking are also popular. There are also some trails for walking/hiking, a basketball hoop, a dump station, and recycling. 

This was an overnight stay for us but the rate for out-of-state campers, while higher than for residents, was reasonable at $30. We would return to this campground.

I use up my two weeks allotted here at Harold Parker every year. A great place to enjoy family in the outdoors .clean sites. clean bathrooms and friendly staff. I live in a neighboring town to Andover. It’s so easy to get to.

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.

I booked Deluxe Cabin 1 at the Boston KOA based on my past experiences in VA and NC. BOSTON was the WORST KOA I've stayed at. The cabin SMELLED of mildew and cigarettes(pic of ashes in the tub), and there was NO HOT WATER, which is against MA law. It was FILTHY, the pots needed to be replaced, and you have to request blankets. I informed the after hours staff about the water, blankets, and smell. The next morning, I went to the office at 9 am and talked to LORI. She was COMBATIVE and confrontational which is weird because she just started her day. As a person of color, I had to walk away because I was frightened. When I returned, BOB Brammer(He wanted to write his name down, so I got it right(his words)) lacked empathy and had a facial expression of annoyance. He was also CONFRONTATIONAL as I explained there was no hot water and the cabin smelled. I informed the national KOA feedback team(Kaitlyn& Tiana) and they said it's handled internally, whatever that means. If you read the reviews about bad customer service, believe it. You can see CUSTOMER SERVICE IS BADDDD! The KOA will probably respond to this review, but NOTHING WILL HAPPEN. I'll be reaching out to TOBY O'ROURKE and OSCAR TANG so they are aware the BOSTON KOA is tarnishing the KOA brand.

General: HUGE state park with over 700 sites. It does not fully open for the season until May 1 and when we were there in mid-April, only two sections, Fish Camp and Mills Camp were open. The Ranger station is staffed 24 hours a day, with a ranger on site until 11 pm. You need to show your pass to get inside the gate leading to the campsites. There are no hookups in any site (as far as I could tell). Sites are designated for tents, small trailers, large trailers, and RVs. As with other RI state parks, non-residents pay double the price of residents which kind of ticks me off (I don't mind a nominal upcharge but double is excessive IMO).

Site Quality: The site numbers throughout the park are painted on rocks but the sites themselves are not very clearly defined. There is no designated camping pad. Our site (114) had a water view but was not level. It was large enough for us to park horizontally and make it work for one night. Some sites had excessive roots and also were not level. Some picnic tables have been replaced with new ones, but others badly need it.

Bath/Shower house: The one in Fish Camp was adequate and clean. There is hot water, but you need to run it for a while before you get any. There was no garbage receptacle, and the toilet paper is so thin, that you can see through it. Showers are $.75 to get it started for the first three minutes. After that, the amount per minute increases to $1, $1.25, $1.50, and so forth. Machines take up to 22 quarters. There is a change machine at the Ranger Station. I did not use the shower so I cannot comment on how well they work. 

Activities/Amenities: There is a camp store that offers wood, ice, coffee, basic groceries, propane, and canoe rentals. It was open with limited hours during our stay. Fishing, boating, swimming - all in season. Even though the park was only about 10% occupied, there was a strong Ranger presence. He circled our small loop three times just before check-out time and wanted to make sure we were leaving not a minute past the designated time. 

This was just an overnight stay for us in a convenient location but there is no way I would stay at the height of the season!

General: Over 450 sites (tent 20 amp w/e; 30 amp w/e; 30 amp w/e/s; 50 amp w/e/s; 50 amp w/e; 30, 50 or premium seasonal) 

Site Quality: Generally good. Sites are gravel. We had originally reserved Site 98 but there was a large rock and tree roots making it challenging to position our van. We were able to move to Site 95 which was much better. Each site has a picnic table and rock firepit. Trees provide some amount of privacy between many sites. 

Bath/Shower house: Spotlessly clean. The cleaning schedule indicates it is cleaned three times daily. 

Activities/Amenities:

*Some are seasonal and were closed when we were there in October. These include three pools, a food truck, coffee, and ice cream.

* Others include a pristine laundry room (but you have to purchase a laundry card, so one load is a minimum of $10), shuffleboard, playground, tennis/pickleball, volleyball, basketball, horseshoe pit, soccer and baseball fields, firewood and propane fill, free cable and WiFi, dog park. I’ve probably forgotten a few but you get the idea… 

We chose this campground because of its proximity to the Woods Hole ferry terminal. It is not our typical preferred campground but for one night in the off-season, it was very pleasant. It is billed as a family-friendly campground, and I imagine it would be very different during high season. We gladly forgo seasonal amenities for a quieter stay. The staff was very present and welcoming. Note that it is located on a busy highway and if you are approaching from the south, the turn into the campground is hair-raising! There is some road noise at some sites but not for most of them.

$18/night if you live here, but $36 if from out of state. Large tent campground with lots of spaces, so everyone is in pretty close together. My main concern is there are showers in the bathrooms you can pay for, but ones outside that are free, but cold water and no curtain, so you literally have no privacy.

Need to make reservations before 2pm!! This campground is nice and calm with a lot of space and bathrooms. There are water hookups at tent sites. Didn’t have any issues, just it is a little expensive for someone from out of state. We paid $54 because we are from Ohio

This is one of the best places we saw. We were here during a quiet period in August. The pitches are spacious and shaded.

The sanitary building is clean with good showers.

There is a lovely pond in which you can swim. It is somewhat small when crowded but nevertheless very lovely.

The water in the pond is not streaming so be prepared for mosquitoes when camping close to the water.

There is a well maintained playground for kids and there are activities planned for kids and adults.

We would definitely return.

This spot does have everything you need. It is very remote and a lot of distance between campsites. Lots of trees. The bathroom amenities work but not the cleanest. There isn’t much to the RV sites but an electric plug. Like I said what you need, but not want you might want.

We were treated very poorly by staff and management. We here humiliated in front of our family members and the public. We were made broken promises and called liars by staff and management and then intimidated to leave the premises. It was a very bad experience that ruined our family vacation.

PROS

- 45 min from Boston

- You have everything you need there: firewood, bathrooms (with shower, soap and toilet paper), a camp pit...

- You get a map in the entrance - very helpful for hiking.

- You can take a trail from the campsite.

- Good sights while hiking, with good spots to have lunch or pause for water.

CONS

- Only one really: You don't have the feeling of being really in the woods. There is NOT a decent amount of land between each campsite. So if you have neighbors all around, you'll feel like in a village!