Best Cabin Camping near Harbor Springs, MI

If you have not been to Petoskey, Michigan you really should make a point to visit this area. We were here two days and fell in love with the town, the surrounding area, and never got tired of beautiful views of Lake Michigan. The park is situated between Petoskey and Harbor Springs – both of which have good restaurants, shopping, marinas (with boat launches as there are none in the state park), and lots of outdoor summer activities. 

This state park is in a great location for biking, hanging out at the beach, hiking, kayaking, swimming, and enjoying all that the upper west side of Michigan has to offer. When you camp here, you are never far from the beach or pretty scenery. Plenty of boardwalks transfer you from the campground over the pristine dunes to the sandy beaches and beautiful blue Lake Michigan waters. Or, you can drive to the beach where volleyball games and water activities are the ideal. 

This campground is super busy in the summer months. Campsites are set in a wooded setting with a mix of 50/30 amp or 30/20 amp in the Tannery Creek section (which has paved sites) and 20 amp in the Dunes section (with sandy/dirt sites). Both sections have pathways that lead to the beach. There are no sewer or water hook-ups at individual sites but there is a dump station and potable water spigots spread throughout the campground.  Each site has a fire pit and picnic table.  This park is great for small RVs or tents. Due to the small length of campsites, narrow roads in the park, and low hanging trees this park is not well-suited for large RVs.  

Just outside of the park is the Little Traverse Wheelway. The Wheelway is a 26-mile paved biking/hiking path that spans from Harbor Springs south to Charleviox. If you don’t have bicycles with you there are plenty of places in town that rent them and will deliver them to your site.  On that note, you can rent watercraft of all types in the area too. For those that like white water kayaking the Bear River is set up for that. 

The park has just a few short trails but if you are looking for more hiking check out the Offield Nature Preserve about five miles north of the park. There are multiple paths that connect so you can make your hike as long or as short as you want. Another fun place to visit is the nearby Michigan Fisheries Visitor Center. They offer free guided tours daily or you are welcome to walk around the grounds on your own. Put some quarters in your pocket and stop at the pond overlook where you can feed the brown and rainbow trout. 

Almost directly across from the park entrance is Freshwater Grill which has delicious fish tacos on Tuesday. In the same shopping area is Toski Sands, a grocery/specialty/liquor store that has much of what you need and Crooked Tree Bakery that has the most wonderful breads. A quarter mile south is the Petoskey Brewing Company that has great burgers and beer.

This area has so much to do and see and this campground is in a perfect location.

Excellent camoground. We went as kids and revisited a couple weeks after labor day. Quiet campsites, nice neighbors, mostly retirees, friendly staff. Lake Michigan beach, bith stones and sand, hiking trails from easy to medium hard. On bike trail that extends north to Harbor Springs and south to Charleviox - scenic and paved. Some hills but mostly flat.

Petoskey State Park is our go-to favorite. Shady, sunny and in-between, sites so there is something for everyone's taste. This is an older campground so sites for the huge rigs is limited. The second section of sites is tuned for tents, pop-ups and small campers. Handicap sites were recently upgraded and look very nice and very functional. We love the bike ride trails to Petosky, to the south, and Harbor Springs to the north. Plenty to see and do when you are not searching for Petoskey stones and watching sunsets on Little Traverse Bay, next to Tannery Creek sites.

Wilderness State Park is one of my favorite campgrounds in northern Michigan. They have true rustic sites, where you have to hike into, usually a little over a mile. If you want to get away into your own space, Wilderness has it. There are plenty of trails to explore and of course some Great Lakes State waters! They also have regular campsites and cabins. I haven't stayed in those areas, but have checked them out and they look great. My focus is always on the rustic!! Also, Wilderness opened a dark sky park this past year as well. If you want to explore some gorgeous dark night skies in Northern Michigan, I suggest checking it out!

Get ready, Gaylord! Alpen Bluffs is shaping up to be an incredible new resort destination in Otsego County, set to open its doors in May 2025. With a whopping 271 sites, including a fantastic mix of 30 cabins and 14 yurts, there's something for everyone. RV enthusiasts will appreciate the full hookups, convenient concrete pads, and versatile 30/50/20 electric outlets. But Alpen Bluffs isn't just for RVers– the whole family will be thrilled with the impressive list of amenities already planned, including pickleball, a dedicated bark park for furry friends, the exciting Inukshuk Shores aquatic playground, gem mining, and mini golf, with promises of even more to come! While we eagerly anticipate the late 2025 opening of The Bluff Club with its resort pool and unique container bar with a smoker, the initial offerings alone make Alpen Bluffs a must-watch and likely a must-visit for a fantastic family getaway in Northern Michigan.

This is a nice KOA with nice facilities and amenities. We camped there in the July and our first impression when we drove in was “wow, this place is busy!” It is a very family-friendly park and you feel like every other site is having a family reunion with so many people at each site.

We were assigned a pull-thru in a spot where most of the campers were transients. (There is another section that appears to be most of the seasonal campers.) Getting to the site in our RV was a little tricky because of all the trees and cars parked everywhere. The site was level, paved and had a paved patio and was full hook-up with cable and WiFi (which worked well at our site).

The park is a typical KOA with tons of amenities and things going on. We chose not to use the pool because it was overrun with kids and seemed way too small for the number of people in the park. There is an off-leash dog park but it was pretty small for our lab to get a good run in. The laundry was nice and clean but a bit expensive $2.25 per load. When we checked in the staff raved about the onsite KOA café’s pizza but we didn't try it. 

The park is very convenient to downtown Petoskey but the traffic on Hwy. 31 can be horrible at peak times. It is also close to Petoskey State Park and the Oden State Fish Hatchery (which has trails and a great place to visit). There are lots of breweries in the area, a great farmers market, and really good restaurants. We personally loved Beards Brewery, Palette Bistro, and the Crooked Tree Bakery. There is a great paved biking trail located nearby that runs from Charlevoix to Harbor Springs.

We had a great time here. We rented a cabin for the whole family. The cabin was clean a very cozy.

My wife and I spent the first day and night of Memorial Day weekend at one of the cabins here and absolutely loved it. Private and peaceful with unmatched views of the night sky over the lake. The cabins are simple but perfect for the basics of what you need for a great time outdoors.

They gave us a bogus charge of 50$ several days after we left, for smoking in a cabin.  Myself, my wife and our 4 year old son do not smoke.  Never have never will.  The bogus charge is being disputed but that’s not the point.  Warning to others to find somewhere else to camp, at least if you’re renting a cabin.  What a scam operation.

Great park have camped there multiple times in the cabins and in a tent. Right on the water with great trails for hiking and walking a dog.

Beautiful view Dump near by it can get smelly and hospital local can be noisy, neither bothered us. Right on the water, very close to town, good park in town but not super kid friendly.

One cabin

They view is worth it!

Love being shaded by full mature trees everywhere yet the campgrounds are very well cared for inside and out. We’ve chosen to rent a cabin. Simple yet clean. I’m a bit fussy about having a firm mattress; no problem, I brought a firm air mattress to put over their marine covered like mattress. My brother put his 38’ trailer on a pad with full hookups. We wanted to follow figure out the best scenic bike route to get into Petoskey and beyond toward Charlevoix to go along the shorelines as much as possible. Customer service is amazing and they printed of a map for us as well. Lake Michigan beach is about a 5 minutes drive.

The KOA campground is close to Petoskey, but outside town enough to be a bit quiet.  A short drive to breweries, wineries, and dinner. 

There are amenities that would be good for a family and also big enough for a peaceful weekend for couples.  There is a stream that runs through the  middle of the cabins for a peaceful setting.

My hands down all time favorite campground! Although rustic (I personally LOVE) this campground is literally ON Lake Michigan. Sites on the shore or you can choose a site in the trees. You can fall asleep and wake up to the sound of Lake Michigan. Campground is small but that’s what keeps its charm. Beautiful summertime and fall is especially beautiful. Grand Traverse lighthouse right next door. Be sure to explore walking trails that dump you out on a beach so beautiful- you do have to drive or bicycle to these trails that are a bit south of the campground. Leelanau peninsula so quaint with small villages of Northport, Leland, Sutton’s Bay. No flush toilets. No dump station. I’ve tent, trailer, van camped and also rented cabins several times. I have camped here in summer, fall and winter. I love this campground so much I can’t decide which season I love best.

Park is larger than you think, make sure to check out all of it. Stayed in the rustic cabins in the summer, which were way out on the western peninsula. “Rustic” indeed (no water, no power, bring absolutely everything you need) but we enjoyed it. Kids did some geocaching right in the park. Can’t beat the sun rises/sets. Tons of bugs but also loads of birds and wildlife.

We crashed here overnight on our way further up north. We decided to go wayyyy up into the Keweenaw and wanted to break up the trip. We stayed here for one night in one of their cabins. It was clean and comfy and allowed our dog too! We did not have time to explore the amenities of the campground but if I were to make the trip again, I'd stay here.

Great park out on a peninsula with sunset views. Hiking on the sand and boardwalks, lighthouse tours, perfect weekend spot---though not particularly close to much. Pretty “rustic” cabins and tent sites near lighthouses and the water---great listening to the shore in our sleeping bags. Most of the sites are pretty private, wooded/shrubby, and large. There’s a gift shop but it doesn’t feel overly touristy. Recommended.

We went to this campground in December and it had been just after a hard snow. We stayed in one of the rustic cabins, although it was a hike to get back (they close the main road with snow)... it was worth it. Seclusion, beauty and relaxation! No electricity, but a nice wood stove to keep you toasty with an endless amount of cut wood to keep you warm. Hoping to make it an annual adventure!