Looking for the best campgrounds near Glen Arbor, MI? There are tons of hikes and other fun activities to partake in. Experience some of the most stunning views that Michigan camping has to offer. Find the best campgrounds near Glen Arbor, MI. Read helpful reviews and tips to find the perfect camping option for you and your crew.
$33 - $85 / night
"Location is close to so many great towns and attractions: Glen Arbor/Sleeping Bear Dunes, many Lake Michigan beaches, kayaking/canoeing/tubing river trips, great fishing if that's your thing."
"All sites have electric. They have lots of little cute cabins through the park as well. They have a small simple playground that my kids loved! Super close to Lake Michigan and the river."
"All sites have picnic tables but not all have fire pits (if you have your own you are allowed to use it). "
"This was a great campground, quiet and peaceful in the cherry orchard area of west Michigan, near Glen Arbor and Traverse City."
"Family friendly, there is fishing and canoeing, fire pits and swimming in the lake. They have a camp for horses too."
"Turtle Lake is a perfect mix of campers! Very family friendly, but spaced out well enough for privacy. They have a nice beach area and areas to fish. All sites provide a good amount of shade."
$20 / night
"I love driving down M22 to this state park. It’s rustic with beautiful views of Lake Michigan."
"Close to town Fire pits No hook up at the tent sites"
$60 - $260 / night
"There is a camp store, turbo bikes, a variety of family activities, a pool, playground, bike park, equipment and rentals, laundry facility, cabins, cottages, and yurts for rent."
"Staff was all Great. Had a well stocked camp store."
"Campground has lake access on silver lake, very nice. Rented a pontoon boat from an outside company and spent the day on the beautiful lake. Staff is friendly and helpful."
"Was able to check in early...because campers had checked out early and they had time to check the site...very clean...close to all the great sites around Traverse City...the only thing was where our site"
$27 - $90 / night
"Typical rustic camper, so camping close to others is not my typical cup of tea, but I messed up my rustic campsite reservation by week and managed to get the last open spot for the weekend in the main"
"Just spent 5 nights at site 185 that borders along the north trail. Had an issue with noise one night but a ranger took care of it. Buildings were clean and staff was very nice."
$10 / night
"This campground has been around a long time and is well known by motorcyclists in Michigan. It's located behind their motorcycle repair shop. "
$45 - $60 / night
"Great sites with electric and water. Dump on site, very clean bathrooms and helpful staff. The campground has great Elk Lake access and some sites have views of the lake."
"The park itself is positioned on a hillside next to a lake. We had a site at the top of the hill which I recommend."
RangerWe were directed here after learning the state park was closed. I was hesitant about this campground at first, but it was an excellent stay! The staff were absolutely wonderful. We came on bicycles and they let us stay only one night even though the typical minimum stay is 2 nights. The manager even gave us a few dollar discount for our site.
It was a particularly difficult day of biking and I was in a bad mood when we arrived, but after securing a site and talking to the manager, I was smiling and laughing the rest of the night. The employees are kind folks who care about the quality of your stay.
They have a big camp shop, excellent ice cream, flush toilets, free showers, and coin laundry! Wifi throughout the campground allowed us to watch tv from inside our tent. There was an electric hook up at our site with a drinking water spout too!
The tent sites are right off the river with docks to fish from and launch your boat from. One of the wonderful things about this campground was that because it is privately owned, it was very reasonably priced. It was significantly cheaper than the state parks. Of course, you are trading off beach access for price, but with a Lake Michigan beach under three miles away, it is worth it. Overall, it was a lovely stay and by far my favorite campground in Michigan for the price.
TravelerThis campground feels like campgrounds should! It is a small, family-run place. The sites are a little small and close together, and with fewer trees than I prefer. But everything else about it makes it on my list to return annually! Location is close to so many great towns and attractions: Glen Arbor/Sleeping Bear Dunes, many Lake Michigan beaches, kayaking/canoeing/tubing river trips, great fishing if that's your thing. The camp store and little outdoor cafe are great and serve a delicious breakfast. Bathrooms were clean and had great ventilation (important when camping during a pandemic like this summer). They have several cute cabins and vintage campers sprinkled among the campsites that are available for rent, and a nice bike path runs right in front of the campground. The campground is very family-friendly.
GuideI love driving down M22 to this state park. It’s rustic with beautiful views of Lake Michigan. There are a few sites which are right on the sand which I recommend if you don’t mind a little sand in your tent. definitely check out all of the quaint little towns in the area, especially Glen Arbor and Sutton’s Bay!
TravelerThis campground is perfect for campers of most experience and age levels. If you are looking for rugged, wilderness / secluded camping its probably not your place but for everyone else it's a hidden gem.
Nice spots both on the river show and across the road. Easy water access for very little children and non-motorized boats / Kayaks, etc. Nicely equipped playground and evening activities at the Camp Store/Office on special weekends.
This campground has the cleanest restroom/shower facilities of any campground I have been too. Also the staff is very friendly and helpful.
One tip, fire pits do not have grill tops attached and the pit opening is pretty wide.
LegendWe visited Wild Cherry RV Resort on the recommendation of some friends and found the park to be nicely maintained, sites were well-spaced, and we LOVED the area. Our site was a pull-in that faced a large pond on a corner that overlooked a four-acre lake. We never had a neighbor on the site next to us during our stay and since we were on a large corner there was nobody on that side either so we never felt crowded. The park was very quiet and since our site was in the back of the park there was not much traffic.
The park is called a “resort” which is a little misleading because there are very few amenities. There is no swimming pool, no tennis courts, no shuffleboard, no fitness center, no playground, in fact there were not even bathrooms/showers (except for porta john and tent shower in the rustic camping section). There was a small club house and a driving range but that was pretty much it. You do get a free newspaper delivered to your site daily. It turned out that we didn’t care about the lack of amenities since we were so busy exploring and we don’t often use all the amenities that private parks offer anyway. The park is a mix of seasonal and transient people. Most of the seasonal people went to work during the day which made the park even quieter. And while they do have a lot of seasonal campers none of the sites were junked up. Sites are gravel with paved patios with the average lot being 45x70 (according to their brochure). There are nice grassy areas between sites that is very well-maintained. All sites have picnic tables but not all have fire pits (if you have your own you are allowed to use it).
The roads are very wide and there are not too many trees so maneuvering big-rigs is not a problem. The water, sewer, and electric were all placed appropriately in the site so no extended hoses were needed. There was no cable but sites are very open allowing for good satellite reception and we were able to get over a dozen antenna channels. Sites are either pull-in (which we had) or back-in. There are no pull-thrus. Set back in a wooded area are a scattering of rustic tent sites, rental cabins and yurts with potable water, grills, fire pits, and picnic tables. These sites are so tucked in a wooded area that I never noticed them until the last day I was in the park.
There is a lot of activities within a short drive of this park and we wished we would have stayed longer. The park is in a perfect location to explore the towns of Leland (and Fishtown), Lake Leelanau, Northport, and Sutton’s Bay. Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore and the town of Glen Arbor are a 20 minute drive and Traverse City is about 45 minutes. All these towns are quaint coastal towns with shopping, galleries, good restaurants. The park is on the Leelanau Peninsula which is one of Michigan’s most well-known and revered wine region and there are three wineries within a couple of miles (one is just across the street from the entrance). That being said, there are nearly some 20 wineries within 15 – 20 minutes of the park. There are a few state parks and county preserves nearby that have hiking, scenic views of Lake Michigan and picturesque lighthouses.
All-in-all we really liked this park and would definitely come back. We took advantage of their “Big-Rig Special” which gave a 25% discount if you booked 4 nights. Otherwise, the price per night was $69 which we found to be expensive for what you get. The biggest dings we give this park are for the high nightly price and the lack of amenities that should come in a “resort” with that high a price. This area is one of our favorites in Michigan and we easily could have spent a couple of weeks here enjoying the area.
GuideThis was a great campground, quiet and peaceful in the cherry orchard area of west Michigan, near Glen Arbor and Traverse City.
Our site, #20, had an improved gravel parking area for camper with a finished concrete pad with a picnic table.
Site, and whole campground was clean and well maintained. Our site was a full hookup but had one small issue where the drain dump was slightly uphill from the camper, so we had to work with the drain hose to empty tanks.
Only other negative is that there are no trees for the majority of sites for shade cover.
This was a good spot for a two night stay as it’s close to the Sleeping Bear National Dunes and also many local wineries.
Have fun!
TravelerI've been there several times. This campground has been around a long time and is well known by motorcyclists in Michigan. It's located behind their motorcycle repair shop. It's not a fancy campground, but it is a bargain at $10. The northern loop has electric outlets. The southern loop is rustic camping (groups usually camp there). Restrooms, showers and a pavilion. Pay the $10 at their shop. If the shop is closed either someone will come around or you can settle up in the morning. Firewood available on site. Village is 1.5 miles away to get supplies.
RangerThis is not my normal kind of camping but I will pleasantly surprised at how much I liked this place. Sites are close together. All sites have electric. They have lots of little cute cabins through the park as well. They have a small simple playground that my kids loved! Super close to Lake Michigan and the river. We had fun exploring the area. Bathrooms were clean and had hot water. I loved that we could buy a good breakfast right on site at the little cafe they have. The campground had an old fashioned feel if that makes sense. Very quiet and does not seem to attract the party crowd. I thought rates were very reasonable. We took a day trip to Empire and the Point Bestie Lighthouse.
TravelerLove the park per my first review on lot 145.
Lot 188 area very tight with campfires and neighbors septic connection near your vehicles. The hookups and fire pit layouts don’t make sense….we didn’t have a fire thought it was too close to neighbors trailer.
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