Best Dog-Friendly Camping near Mackinaw City, MI

Pros: Location! 25 minutes from Mackinaw City, 10 Minutes from Pellston for supplies. Right on Burt Lake. Clean pit toilets. Generally not too crowded.

Cons: Small sites, especially for a Statr Forrest Campground. Can be pretty loud.

The Straits State Park in Michigan's Upper Penninsula sits on the North end of the Mackinaw Bridge in St. Ignace. This bridge conects Upper and Lower Michigan at the crossing of Lake Michigan and Lake Huron. This campground is clean, and well layed out with just about a campsite for the taste for everyone. From campsites on the shores of Lake Huron to open sites and wooded sites. Take the drive to the look outlook area in the park for awesome views of the Mackinaw Bridge and Mackinaw City which sits on the other side of the bridge. St. Ignace is a tourist town with lodging, restaurants, shopping and bed and breakfast inns and even a casino. There is a grocery store for your needs just before the entrance of the park. If you decide to take the 5 mile trip across the bridge to Mackinaw City, be prepared for a cost of $4 every time you cross and possibly heavy blowing winds across the bridge. There is a service at the entrance of the bridge that will drive your vehicle across for you if your feeling timid. Mackinaw City on the opposite side is definitely busy during the Summer months and more touristy feeling than St.Ignace. With plenty to do on either side quiet isn't hard to find. From visiting lighthouse's in downtown Mackinaw and another lighthouse just a short drive East of Mackinaw City at Headlands International Dark Sky Park sits McGulpin Lighthouse. You can travel North 45 mins and hit historic Sault Ste. Marie at the border of Canada and United States or visit the beautiful Tahquamenon Falls area for sights never to be forgotten.

Typical KOA! It was really nice, clean, and the people were helpful! The pool was great for swimming, and mackinaw city is a great place to walk around and explore! Also recommend visiting the Headlands Dark Sky Park about 10 mins away, awesome views of the stars over Lake Michigan 🙂

This is a great campground if you like to bring your boat along too. We were able to tie our boat up and use it all weekend. The campground is beautiful with an awesome dog park as well.

Nice family owned campground on Lake Huron. Very nice view of the Mackinac Bridge, very clean bathrooms and showers, perfect for families. Conveniently located to Mackinaw City and the shuttle boats to Mackinac Island.

Large, level electric sites. Very large campground in general. Since we were there in September and mid week, it was quiet. Bath house clean, but a bit outdated. Nice beach and swimming area. Dog park and beach area for dogs. Large, grassy recreation area and nice playground. Park hosts on site with daily activities for campers. Town is nearby with restaurants, shopping, etc. Burt Lake is stunning. Bring your kayaks, boats, and fishing gear.

Very nice campground, great service, facilities and location! You must go to Darrows Restaurant Mackinaw City!! You will thank me for sure, ya it’s that good! Have a piece of their pie. They sell over 110 pies per day….everything from peach to coconut cream!

We spent a 4th of July weekend up in Petosky with our family. It was a perfect mixture of rustic modern camping. The facilities are nice and clean and the campground is well kept. Even on a busy holiday weekend it was so enjoyable. The beach was convenient to walk to and we enjoyed the 3 amazing fire work shows you can see on the 4th of July from the beach. The only downside is that no dogs are allowed on the beach which is kind of a bummer. There is a great dog park however in Petosky nearby.

This very popular state park is a real winner due to its gorgeous remote location, sandy beaches, and crystal clear waters along the shores of Lake Michigan-- located just southwest of the iconic Mackinac Bridge. The sunrises and sunsets alone are worth the price of admission!  And, we lucked out to be camping during a meteor shower, one of the best we’ve ever seen. We laid out on the beach and watch the night sky for hours. 

All of the sites have electric hookups and are rather packed together, so there is literally no privacy between them if it’s a busy time of the season. The sites along the lakeshore are the best, and have direct beach access, but you need to be the early bird and make a reservation the morning that they open up. The campground hosts do a great job of keeping this park very clean. 

Because of all the cool things to do and see at this park, we honestly didn’t sit around much during the day. We hiked, biked, swam, snorkeled, and paddled our hearts out. We made it out to the most remote islands that are part of the park and even found Petoskey stones along the shores. Some of the finest Lake Michigan paddling we've done! 

We can’t comment on the bathrooms and there were simply too many people at this campground for us to feel comfortable using them during a pandemic, so we set up our own portable shower and toilet tent and it worked just fine. We would highly recommend this option to others who don’t have a bathroom in their camper or are tent camping. 

The closest “real” grocery store is in Mackinaw City, about 30 minutes away. But, Mackinaw City is a total tourist trap, so I’d avoid going there unless that is your thing. There is a small general store for snacks, ice cream, ice, and adult beverages about 4 miles outside of the park.

We stayed here for 4 nights during the July 4th weekend. The campground is terrific from the moment you check in. We had an electric only site along the back and the sites were huge and level with tons of trees. The lot butted up to state land. The grounds and bath house were clean and always had hot water for showers. The pool was incredible. It was huge and shaped as the state of Michigan! Activities were plentiful and included volleyball, shuffle board, carpet ball, mini golf and much more! The best part was how quiet the park was at night even when fully booked. We will definitely stay here again as it is only a 25 minute drive to Mackinaw City and to Petoskey, MI. P.S. Buy the fire starters they sell in the office. They are the best I have ever used!!

This campground is located just out of town in Mackinaw City, MI. The location of the campground is within 5 minutes of downtown Mackinaw, within 1-2 miles of a beach and about 10-15 minute drive of St. Ignace. The campground pretty small and quiet. We camped in a small back in site with water and electric hook-ups. There is one bathroom and shower facility but it looks like they are building another. The bathroom was clean and constantly maintained. The staff was friendly, and helpful. They offer trash pick up each morning and ice delivery. There is a small campground store with some basic essentials. There is some construction going on, but we haven’t heard any equipment and the area is fenced off with a privacy fence so we haven’t seen the construction either. Overall this campground is very nice.

We booked site 118 for the third week in October and really enjoyed our stay! A few things to note: 

- The showers and camp office were both closed when we arrived (10/23/24). I asked a park ranger and he said they typically close around the first week in October. If this is the case when you arrive too, you check in at the camp office using the phone in the yellow box which will direct you to a park employee. You will need your reservation number and license plate number ready. 

- Don't forget to purchase your Michigan parks vehicle pass, which is separate from your camp reservation. 

- Surprisingly, the potable water spigot near our campsite (just a short walk away) was still on! I know there was another review on here that said it was off already by mid-October, but it was on for us! 

- You are a stones throw away from your parking spot, although some spots do align directly with their site most are not actually on their site, but still very close.

- Pets are not allowed on the beach during piping plover nesting season (April I believe.) 

The beach front sites like ours are really really neat. You have a pretty good view of the water and your own private path right down to the beach. Keep in mind, you are likely to experience high winds. There were a couple days where our tent was getting buffeted around and starting a fire was challenging. 

I know a lot of the reviews say it's a pretty loud, busy campground, which I'm sure is the case in the warmer months. When we were here it was a virtual ghost town. All the RV spots next to us were completely closed for the season and we had no neighbors at all until Friday night. When neighbors did arrive they were quiet--but that's always luck of the draw! 

Site 118 is within view of the vault toilet, which supports around 6 sites so if it had been busier there would have been quite a few people coming and going in front of our site. I think if we went again while the showers and camp office were open we would maybe go for a different site slightly farther from the bathroom and with a bit more tree cover (122 looked quite nice if I remember correctly.) 

We had no issues at all with wildlife. 

There is a little store called Cecil's Trading Post 5 min drive away from the campground where they have an honor system for firewood--cash only, of course. The store itself was closed while we were there, but we bought firewood from them. It looked like you could maybe also get ice on the honor system. 

Mackinaw city is quick to get to and there were plenty of restaurants and attractions still open when we were there even though it was right on the cusp of the off season. If you want to drive over the bridge into the UP, it's a 4 buck toll each way for cars FYI. 

We stopped at a local brewery very close to the campground called Biere de Mac, which I highly recommend--great beer, good food, big open grassy outdoor area that allows dogs, and super friendly. 

Happy camping!

Wooden Shoe Campground in Ellsworth, Michigan is a small campground set on a hill above Ellsworth Lake. This park is great if you want to sometime explore Michigan’s waterways. When we visited the park, it was about 25% full which made it very quiet and relaxing. There are some great sites that overlook the lake that are inviting for an evening fire and enjoying a pleasant view.

The park has 45 RV sites with water, 30 amp electric, cable TV, and internet. There are seven designated tent sites in a heavily wooded area with some glimpses of the lake. Some sites have a nice amount of shade while those towards the front of the park are more open and have a better water view. Picnic tables and fire pits are at each site. The main road throughout the park is paved, in good condition, and easily navigable with even large RV. There is a dump station at the entrance of the park that is easy to get in and out of. A camp host is on site. The price per night to stay here is $25 and they offer a super inexpensive price of $125/week. Reservations can be made by emailing a reservation request or calling the city. 

The town of Ellsworth is quite small with a couple of shops and restaurant or two. The quaint coastal town of Charlevoix is 10 minutes away where you will find plenty of shopping, restaurants, a pretty harbor, weekly live music (in the summer), a farmers market and really great library with a large room that has a great selection of books for sale for a few bucks. The towns of Boyne City and Boyne Falls are about 20 miles away and also worth visiting if you have the time. For dog owners, Boyne city has an off-leash dog park and Boyne Falls has a large ski resort that is perfect for walking dogs in the summer.  The larger town of Petoskey is about a 45 minute drive but well worth a visit. 

If you want to “get away” and enjoy water activities this is a good place to come. There is a canoe/kayak boat launch just down the hill from the park that puts you in a narrow stretch of water that connects Lakes Ellsworth and Saint Clair. A short (approximately 1 mile) paddle into Lake Saint Claire lands you in a beautiful nature preserve administered by the Little Traverse Conservancy.  Be sure to visit Friske’s Orchard which has a fruit stand, bakery with pizza and sandwiches, general store and petting zoo and is only six miles away on Rt. 31.

The good things about this park are the price, access to pretty water for kayaking/canoeing/fishing and the view from some of the sites. You are not too far from some of northern Michigan’s most popular towns yet only paying $25 night. The small size of this park gives it a quieter feel than some of the nearby state parks that have hundreds of sites. When we were there about half the campers appeared to be seasonal who come to enjoy the boating and fishing. Many of these people were not there during the week which made the park super quiet. 

A couple dings for this park are that many of the sites are not level and even pitching a tent can be difficult. The bathroom/shower facilities are old and run down. The main bathhouse is located in the front of the park with port-a-potty’s scattered about. Some of the sites are close together and give a crowded feeling. 

Overall, I would say this is an average park which is why it gets three stars.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3vBh0Dej5Ro

Staff was helpful, neighbors were friendly, bathrooms were clean, and it's right on the lake! Very pet-friendly, very busy. Reserve in advance.

 If you've camped at a KOA before, then you know what you're getting here. Easy on, easy off I-75. It's close to the interstate, but the noise was never intrusive. Mostly because of the stiff wind blowing out of the North. 

  The sites are tight, particularly the inside pull throughs. The back in sites are more spacious, though that's relative. Site 7 is a very spacious back in site. 1-6 are by Trails End Road, but it isn't really that busy or noisy. I would get a back in site, especially if you can get away with 30 Amp service. 16-20F  are back in sites with 50 Amp. There are some deluxe pull throughs with patio & grill on site. There are some extra long pull through sites.

   There are the usual KOA amenities like a heated pool, playground, a game area & bike rental. There's a nice hiking trail in the back. It takes you to the bike trail, so back track back to the campground unless you want to walk on the bike trail/road. 

 What makes KOAs & this KOA special are the clean bathrooms & showers. It's always a pleasure to know that a shower will be KOA clean!

 Staff was courteous & efficient. They delivered ice & wood to your site. 

This is a good base camp for the area. I would stay again if in Mackinaw City!

Rustic campground along the shores of Lake Michigan. 23 sites. Hand pump for water available. Beautiful spot on Lake Michigan with no signs of life for miles down the beach. Pets are welcome. Fire pits are available. Seven sights are along the lake. Six mile drive down a dirt road to access the campground. The road is usually in good condition. It is well worth it. An extremely peaceful and beautiful place.