Pros: Tons of great sites Across the street from a beautiful beach Close to wineries, breweries and a fun downtown Clean showers and rest rooms
Cons: Summer is packed and some sites are very close Road noise from the highway
Near an airport and can be loud at times but the flights stop, overnight. The lot spaces are small, always packed, super sandy and be careful to note if unleveled when you visit with an RV. Any smaller truck with stock tires would not have been able to get out. The campground is a short walk to the beach, and just off the Tart Trail. come to camp but bring a bike. it’s the most popular mode of transport. tiny showers, plenty of water stations, but narrow roads into the grounds.
Short and Sweet this campground is popular because of its location. Camp here for the location, friends, and amenities. Do not camp here for a wilderness get away.
Traverse City State Park is located in one of the most popular vacation spots in the state and for good reason, it is beautiful here with plenty of festivals, wineries, breweries, boutiques, food trucks, and Lake Michigan! The campground has clean showers, firewood on site, and is well taken care of.
The down side is it feels like there are as many people cramped into this campground as possible. The sites are close together. It’s busy, and you need to book atleast 4 months in advance it feels like.
If you like to RV camp and socialize then this is a great site. Want to hike and have peace and quiet, not so much.
Electric only sites. There is a fill and dump station on site. Pets are allowed in the campground. The sites are a little tight, but if you are looking to hang out in Traverse City, this is a convenient location. Bathhouse was always well maintained.
It’s a well kept campground with plenty of sites. They are RV ready as well as tent camp ready. It may not be right on the water but across the street is close enough; there is a nice bridge to walk over the road so you don’t have to stop for traffic. The restrooms are clean and very capable for busy season. Behind the campground is a wonderful bike trail that goes all the way up the Lelenau Peninsula.
The only issue we had was when I had to get a jump for my car and the DNR staff there was not very helpful. Other than that, it is a wonderful location!
Great campground close to the lake, close to dining, bike trail connects to the park! Clean facilities!
Lake is across the street, very large and busy
Nice clean park. Located very close to down town and accessible on bike path. Also nice cross over bridge to access the Beach on other side of main road sites in front Do have road noise but it was not too bad due to trees and brush.
Lots of walking
Large wooded campground with over 300 spots. The staff is super helpful, the park has nice facilities for trash, recycling, firewood, water, and ice. The bathrooms are in good shape but need more cleaning during heavy weekend use. At times they were bad enough I would have preferred to squat outside. The individual sites are well laid out and kept in good shape with picnic tables and fire rings. Access to a trail from the campground.
convenient, pleasant
This campground was very busy and it was full the weekend we were there. Camp sites were nice and big with fire pit and picnic table. Just a short walk to the beach with a nice crosswalk over the highway.
Campground Review: This very popular campground is a few miles from downtown Traverse City, on the edge of Grand Traverse East Bay, Lake Michigan and fills up very quickly during the summer months. It is open year-round though and the fall is gorgeous in Michigan. As a city-based campground, it has many amenities and makes for a great alternative to paying much higher prices for the hotels, motels, and B&B’s in the area. This is a nicely wooded campground, and though the sites are spacious, they are rather close to each other, so not much privacy. But, given that this campground provides direct access to the TART Bike Trail (which can use to get to Traverse City, the Leelanau Wine Trail, or many other points north) and there is a safe, over-the-road walking bridge that takes you to the beach on the bay, we didn’t spend much time IN the campground itself. The various sites accommodate everything from small tents to large RV’s and all come with electricity. There are even two small camping cabins available for rent. The immaculately clean bathrooms and showers are free to campers. Firewood and ice are available onsite by the office. The only major drawbacks are that you can hear the road (which is pretty busy most days) and there are railroad tracks next to the campground (though we never heard a train and were told that it was infrequent).
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=loWrZLOItQc
Product Review: As a Ranger for the Dyrt, I get gear to review from time to time. On this excursion, we took the Saris Freedom SuperClamp 2-Bike Rack for a test spin while camping and wine tasting via the Leelanau Bike Path, which is accessible from Traverse City State Park in Traverse City, MI. We were in the market for another bike rack and had researched various racks just before this one arrived. We think this is a pretty good option for the price point.
What I like about this rack:
1. It secures to the vehicle trailer hitch via a threaded bolt rather than a pin; this holds the rack securely and minimizes swaying of the bikes as we go down the road. A locking attachment to this bolt discourages theft of the entire rack.
Room for improvement:
Product Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vpgajt1V1Yc
Product Link: https://www.saris.com/product/superclamp-2
The location of this campground is great and it's best feature in my opinion! This park is just two miles to downtown Traverse City (one of Michigan’s most popular resort towns), a quarter mile from a pretty beach and the beautiful blue waters of Lake Michigan, and it sits along the TART Trail which is a 10.5-mile bicycle trail running through the city.
While the park is small at just 47 acres, it holds pretty many campsites – approximately 350 (and two cabins). Campsites are set among tall pine trees so there is a bit of shade but that also means that they are sandy with little grass. Roads are paved and narrow if you are trying to maneuver with a large (40+ RV) and you may have difficulty backing into your site with the numerous trees lining the road. All sites are back-in with electric. Sites and patios are sandy with varying degrees of levelness. There is a dump station and water spigots are scattered throughout the campground. Picnic tables and fire pits are at each site. Sites are $31/night ($49/night for the cabins) and reserveable online.
This park is right on US-31/M-72 which means there is easy access in and out but it can be noisy if your campsite is close to the road. Expect the campground to be very busy on weekends and in the summer and tightly packed.
Amenities include: picnic area, beach, fishing, hiking/bicycling trail, three bathhouses, playground area, camp store, pet walk (no off-leash dog park).
Outside of the park there is a lot to do in Traverse City. Early July is the ever-popular Cherry Festival which lasts for a week. But you better book your campsite early if you want to enjoy all the festivities (which happen to be close to the park). The summer farmers market is great and held every Wednesday and Saturday. Early in the season, asparagus is plentiful and locally-grown asparagus is the best you will ever have being super sweet, tender, and inexpensive. For beer drinkers, consider paddling the beer trail that takes you from Boardman Lake to Lake Michigan and past numerous breweries where you pull over for a pint. If it's ice cream you want, you have come to the right place. There are multiple creameries with Moomer's being our favorite and for some reason eating it right at the farm stand was the best.
I could not imagine a much better location than straight across (with a bridge over the road!) from the beautiful white sandy beach of Lake Michigan. This is a perfect spot for cycle enthusiasts and families. We rented bikes nearby and biked to town, which was absolutely beautiful and lots to see (and eat!) downtown. Also nearby is a wonderful family spot, Pirate's Cove and there is a great little market near there too. The lots are a little small which would be the only draw-back, but trees are abundant, making up for that! Bathrooms are clean and plentiful even as the park was very busy. All around loved it!
Tiny little park along the bay. Site is extremely wooded but the sites are close and small. Nice sandy beach. There are a few resorts and a road between the park and the beach/water, which kind of sucks. Clean and kept well. If you know what to expect it’s ok, but I’ve never been to a state park that had this many camp sites jammed into such a small area. The nature near by is exceptional though!
A huge campground (500+ campsites) right across the street from Grand Traverse Bay and a nice sand beach. The campground is busy with all of those sites (which were full when I was there), thus noisy. The noise was increased by the very busy highway 31 in front and the airport and railroad behind. There is a nice pedestrian bridge over the highway to give campers acces to the beach, and there is a bike trail in back that goes into town 4 miles away. Shower houses are clean and newer (at least on the back loop where I was). Expect the campground to be full on weekends, especially during the cherry and film festivals. Campsites were clean and level with fire rings and picnic tables, but I did not see dedicated tent pads.
This campground is huge! 300+ sites, pet friendly, sites for all shapes and sizes. Open year round, with heated cabins. It's a great location, just across from Traverse Bay with just across the road. With that being said, one downside is that road, a VERY busy main drag through Traverse City. Very loud. There is s bridge walk over said busy road to beach access. The campground was very busy and bustling with families. Only 30 minutes from Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore.
Location location location! If you're looking for a campground that's just across the street from the beach located on Traverse a City Bay, this is it! While campsites are somewhat cramped, showers and stalls are fairly clean and well kept, as are the sites in general. Very convenient to stores, restaurants and night life downtown. I've never been to a campground that felt like you were in the woods near the beach, was quiet, yet nearly in the middle of a bustling town! Sites for tent camping, partial and full hook up. Walking distance to restaurants and stores.
