Manistee National Forest camping is some of the best the midwest has to offer. You do not need a permit to camp on the National Forests or in designated campgrounds. If your campfire will be on National Forest System lands you will not need a wood permit to cut firewood. Dispersed and Primitive tent camping within the Forests is allowed almost anywhere, unless otherwise posted closed and/or "No Camping".
Seaton Creek Campground
24 min away
Manistee National Forest Marzinski Horse Trail Campground
33 min away
"Quiet campground with friendly staff. We had an electric only site and it was very private. Facilities were extremely well maintained."
"Spacious, level sites. Great family atmosphere! Very clean and well kept. Close to every kind of recreation you can think of."
$25 - $90 / night
"This is a great campground, we always start our camping season here. Hodenpyle Dam lake is a great, quiet area."
"We opted for a spot with electric only. The amenities we took advantage of were great! There are some trails to walk the dogs, lake access, and plenty of spots to enjoy your he views!!"
$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."
"My husband loved this place because most of the sites are pull-through ones. The trees keep your site blanketed in shade all day long."
$25 - $55 / night
"Plenty of pull-through sites and lots of grass."
"A hidden gem near Cadillac. It’s nice and quiet and clean, bathrooms aren’t too far from campsites. Electrical hookups are provided and fire pits. We even got free firewood. Fun visit!"
"My goal is always to find campgrounds that are in state park or national forest settings, but with all the conveniences of a private campground."
"They offer full hookups as well as 30 & 50 amp service. Nice shower and bathroom facilities, coin laundry, pool, and camp store."
"Great WiFi connection. 32.00 otd. We had a small issue with a typical Seasonal neighbor thinking they owned the park but the Park Manager quickly handled the issue and we had a good stay."
"Very kind operators when we were in a pickle with an RV we rented and was very flexible with our situation. Clean areas and convenient to Manton area."
$25 - $55 / night
"We rented a extra site, so nobody could rent near us, sooo nice! Very close to Manistee River and canoe/raft liveries, very fun family togetherness activity."
$69 - $79 / night
"We were in Site# 4A (premium site). We had Full hook- up with a blacktop pull-through.
We travel towing a 14 foot trailer and were able to fit both in our pull through site along with my jeep."
$36 - $39 / night
"Office, pool, bathroom, showers and laundry facilities are spotless. Grounds are maintained. Family and dog friendly."
"There are a few trees among the tent sites but they are not very private and located near the garbage dumpsters/recycle bins and on a main exit thoroughfare. "
"Well maintained facilities and perfect landscaping. Great pool and other amenities. Conveniently located close to downtown Ludington Michigan."
ScoutWe camped in a 40’ motor coach for a week. Site is gravel and dirt. It is a pull through site that required us to do quite a bit of leveling. The hookups are rather far away so we needed extensions. Our site required us to pull through in such a way that the hookups were on the opposite side of our coach. They only have 15 full hookup sites and none were available for our time frame. They have several long term tenants. Roads are narrow but most sites are ample. They have a pump out service twice a week for $10 each time. Bathrooms, showers and laundry available and are clean and nice. Staff is kind, helpful and knowledgeable. Pool is heated. Wifi is through a third party and very inexpensive at $2 a day. Very family friendly with lots of children. Campground is clean and well maintained.
RangerOur site was $65.63 a night. (This was the average after receiving one night free for staying a week).
We were in Site# 4A (premium site). We had Full hook- up with a blacktop pull-through.
We travel towing a 14 foot trailer and were able to fit both in our pull through site along with my jeep.
The site was easy to level.
Our site was not shaded with limited trees. This was a smaller lot with our neighbors fairly close.
The lot comes with a concrete patio with picnic table. There was not a fire ring since only propane fires are allowed.
There is free WiFi. They do not offer Cable TV but there are many local channels.
There is an adult pub-style game room with poker tables, a large tv, a table shuffle board, air hockey game, foosball table, and board games. There is a community catering kitchen located in their activities center.
They do not provide garbage service at your site so you must walk to garbage dumpster. This can be a long distance for some.
You are allowed to ride personal golf carts. They also allow you to rent golf carts. It is beneficial to have a golf cart to get around since it is a large campground. We have our own e-bikes which helped.
They do have a large heated Swimming pool and an adults only hot tub. There is a fitness center.
They have quite a few ponds throughout the campground.
There is not a Playground. They offer pickleball courts.
There is not a general store nor snack bar/restaurant on site.
The streets are paved and good for riding bikes.
This is solely an RV park. They do not have any cabins to rent or any tent areas.
The showers are located in the activity center. These are typical stalls. There is a great area to hang clothes and store your toiletries in the shower stall. These are kept very clean.
There is a laundry facility. There are approximately 4 washers and 4 dryers. They allow you to use cash or an app. It is approximately $2.25 to wash and $2 to dry a load.
They do not have a fenced in dog park. There are areas to walk dogs though.
Bugs/gnats were a small issue and bug spray was needed.
There is supposedly a mowed trail to hike off of the campground (about 3 miles) but I was unable to locate it.
Some fun things to do outside of the campground are the shops (Front Street) & water activities in Traverse City, the local wineries/vineyards, and the DNR Outdoor Shooting range (5 miles away & free to the public). We ate at Yankee Boy where all of the locals hangout. Excellent food (no alcohol served).
LegendWhen you first enter the campground you pass by the Pere Marquette River which is a big draw because it is known for great salmon and trout fishing. The park is located in Scottville which is a tiny town but you are only 15 minutes from the Lake Michigan beach town of Ludington. The campground is fairly small (50 sites) but well laid out and will fit any camping unit from tents to large RVs. There are primitive sites and those with electric, water, cable, picnic tables & fire pits. There is a nice, new bathroom that was kept clean. The campground has a very open feel to it with trees on the outskirts. The openness and warm sunshine was appreciated when we were there in late October and experiencing cooler weather. Campsites are on grass and most were in pretty good shape and not too muddy even though we were there at the end of the camping season.
For a little park, this place has a lot of amenities including swimming pools, convenience store (with ice cream treats for $1), playground, basketball, volleyball, horseshoe pits, fishing, paddling, disc golf, shuffle board, laundry rooms, and clean restrooms. The best part for us was the access to the river for kayaking. There are many nearby rental and livery companies for those that do not have their own watercraft. If you are looking for good hiking trails check out Ludington State Park and the Huron-Manistee National Forest – both of which also have camping. Overall, we really liked this little park. There were just a handful of sites occupied during our stay which made it nice and quiet.
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.
LegendIn the Huron-Manistee National Forest is this rustic campground. The sites are really big and spread out. They are split between 2 loops. The first loop was almost filled so we checked the second one and found a site away from others. It felt like we were alone until we took a walk around the campground. Picnic table, fire pit and lantern stand are standard. Paved spots for rv’s with plenty of room for tents. Vault toilets are spread throughout. There is even a parking area for visitors.
We walked down the short trail to see the lake. The trail goes partially along the lake but it’s not very long. We saw 2 piers- one had a jet ski tied to it. Camp was quiet enough to hear the tree fall just outside our campsite. Would it still make a noise if we weren’t here?
This is a peaceful discovery that is perfect for a getaway.
RangerMy goal is always to find campgrounds that are in state park or national forest settings, but with all the conveniences of a private campground. It’s a bonus if there are lots of things to do in the area. Indigo Bluffs delivers on all fronts. We had a lovely, shaded, level, spacious site which most of them seemed to be.
The campground was large - it’s actually two parts - an RV resort for large fifth wheels and Class As and another campground for everyone else. I really liked the regular campground as it had a lot more shade than the RV resort area.
Indigo Bluffs is close to Empire which has a beach and Joe’s Friendly Tavern. Joe’s has excellent hamburgers and plenty of beer variety. It is also close to a trailhead for the Sleeping Bear Dunes Heritage Bike Trail. The Sleeping Bear Dunes trail is wonderful, a bit hilly, but oh so scenic! It is also close to the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Park and the infamous Dune Climb. We took a short drive to Sutton’s Bay and rode on the Leelanau Bike Trail to Traverse City. If you do this, be sure to stop at Farm Club on the way back. Excellent brewery and farm-to-table restaurant with indoor and outdoor seating and a farm market.
We will definitely return to Indigo Bluffs!
ScoutThis campground has two sides, the campground which accommodates tents, campers and RVs. Also they have small cabins. They offer full hookups as well as 30 & 50 amp service. Nice shower and bathroom facilities, coin laundry, pool, and camp store. The other side is the “luxury RV Resort” with concrete pads, grass, ponds and lots of greenery. Very upscale.
TravelerRustic Federal campground on a 33 acre lake in the Huron Manistee National Forest. Perfect for taking out the kayaks for some fishing!
RangerWe spent most of our time at the pet friendly beach. So many places to hike and so much fun to swim. We thoroughly enjoyed our stay. We hiked or swam, visited and attempted to climb the dunes lol, saw some shows at the amphitheater and saw a historic cabin on site. A firewood vending machine? Pretty basic camping but very nice.
Explore the beauty of RV camping near Huron-Manistee National Forests in Michigan, where lush landscapes and serene lakes create the perfect backdrop for your outdoor adventures.
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