Best Glamping near Dowling, MI

Ionia has so many great outdoor activities for almost anyone.  There is a disc golf course, mountain bike trail, equestrian trails, hiking trails, a beautiful no wake lake perfect for swimming, kayaking, or fishing.   The beach is fantastic especially for little kids who might not be the best swimmers ready for Lake Michigan or lakes with lots of boats and waves to deal with.  Nice and sandy and a nice store and ice cream shop at the beach. 

The campground itself is very nice, but you may find the activities are a short drive away from your site to get there.  The sites are all a little bit shallow especially if you have a larger travel trailer you may find it a bit tight.  There is a great variety of shaded and sunny sites.   There is only one bathroom for the campground so it can be a bit busy and it could probably use an update.

Well if you are arriving here late, good luck.... Pretty much the worst signage I’ve seen in Michigan State Recreation Area. Very good signs to pretty much everything other than Beechwood Campground. Once you do figure out that you have to drive to acolyte back end of park to register then turn all the way back around and find hidden non marked campground, you’ll soon realize they are walk/hike in sites. NO WHERE on DNR website for reservations does it say this. As is if this isn’t bad enough, once you park and find trail the sign then reads “East or west” for sites. Not B1- whatever this way B whatever that way do bring your compass too and flashlight if dark. To say the sites are uneven is putting it mildly. For 15 sites, you seriously can’t level them?? Really lazy considering how nice disc course is and signage for course. I wouldn’t waste your time or money camping here, visit park and use trails or disc course yes. Camp, no way ever again!!

This was a nice campground right on the Kal Haven Trail - about 4 miles from South Haven. The RV camping is in a circle in the center of the campground near the bathhouse with cabins and tent camping on the perimeter. There were some very nice woods with paths leading to the Kal Haven and around the campground. 

It was so convenient to be able to bike ride, hike, or run on the trail that I hesitate to offer any critique - but I will. The sites and the roads in the campground are all dirt so while we were there it was exceptionally dusty. I could imagine that when they have a lot of rain, it is exceptionally muddy. 

Check out the blue stairs beach at Lake Michigan (accessible in South Haven), Barden's Market for fresh baked goods and vegetables, the Depot for sandwiches, wine and beer, and 3 Blonds Brewery - good food and beer.  In addition to the Kal Haven, you can access the Van Buren State Park Trail in South Haven. It is a 4-mile paved trail running from South Haven to the Van Buren State Park.

Stayed here for 5 nights and I am actually surprised at how nice it is. Staff is super friendly and accomodating, lots of stuff to do if you have kids and most of it is free. Campground is clean and kept up and all sites have water and electrical. Not all have full hookups though so make sure you are booking full hookup if you need it. The lake nearby is clean and they have a swimming spot for kids and adults. Boats and kayaks are free to use if the lifeguard is on duty. There is also fishing rods to use for free. There are also coin washers and dryers to use. I only dock one star because the bathrooms and showers are HORRID. At least the men's bathrooms are, smells so strongly of urine and they do not clean it regularly. Mildew is also all over the ceiling and the benches in the showers. But that is my only issue with the place.

This campsite is perfect for children! The workers are the nicest people I have encountered at a campsite. They have a lake / beach for swimming, kayaks, paddle boards, and canoes to use at the lake. They also have a massive slip ‘n slide, zip lining, and a rock climbing wall. The bath houses are huge and well taken care of. I highly recommend!

Grest family run campground. Friendly staff, nice sites, tent and RV. Dog friendly, kid friendly, quite relaxing fun tim.. cant wait to go back

With Covid all my camping plans changed but the good part was I ended up finding this place! Close to home but feels “up north”. They offer both rustic and water and electric sites. This is a family campground and my kids loved the playground! They also have a dock you can rent space and keep your boat in the lake. Great fishing. New ownership and owners were great. Park is already in good condition and new owner has some great plans. The bathroom and showers are a pretty far walk so plan on driving or riding bikes. They do have outhouses closer to the sites, which were clean and did not smell.

Playgrounds, Lake, dump station, well stocked store, some shaded sites, clean bathrooms by the store, pit toilets throughout the campground.

We camped There last summer and it was new or owners and you could tell that they need to work on a few things the vaulted toilets were always gross. Drove through there for a spot this year and it’s completely tore up all the trees that were shaded on the spots are cut down making them full sun spots the roads are plowed up and no more playground the beach is salty at best not a good place to bring kids.

Had an amazing time! Friendly owners, great hiking trails, great lake access, and good prices in the convenience store at the front of the park as well. Most places over price their items because it's on site, but not these people. Definitely going back! Thank you "The Dyrt" for helping me find this amazing campground!!

Family campground with shower house and multiple vault toilets. Campsites are right next to each other.

We enjoyed camping here with the family. The sites are nicely wooded to give more privacy. There are convenient trails through the woods to get to the bathrooms but depending on your site it could be about a 10 min walk. The kids wished we had packed their bicycles to make trips to the bathrooms faster. Our site (34) was mostly sandy ground and there were a lot of berries dropping from the trees that my dogs were obsessed with eating. Overall we enjoyed the stay and would return