Best Tent Camping near Vanderbilt, MI

Recent Tent Reviews in Vanderbilt

868 Reviews of 37 Vanderbilt Campgrounds

• 

  Tori K.

  Legend

  

  Nov. 4, 2024

  Straits State Park Campground

  Bridge views

  amazing views of the straits of Mackinac and the mighty Mac bridge! Absolutely loved camping here despite the nearly hurricane like wind and rain experienced overnight that ended up soaking all of my bedding. Bathroom and shower facility was nice and clean.

  But seriously, the best thing this campground has to offer are the amazing views of the bridge from many of the campsites. I had a waterfront tent site with the best view and it was so inexpensive.

• 

  Chad Y.

  Scout

  

  Nov. 2, 2024

  Hoeft State Park Campground

  Great park with subpar site.

  Visit Hoeft every year for group camping weekend. Perfect weather, nice spacing of sites, great access to the beach. Site 33 is not a favorite. Quite small, backed up to poison ivy and quite close to a neighbor site.

• k

  k M.

  Traveler

  

  Oct. 31, 2024

  French Farm Lake Rd

  Nice, but ....

  stayed at campsite #2 twice in October. Behind the site is a full-size mattress, clothes, shoes, and a remnant of a tent - it looks like it has been there for a while. On the second visit to the same site, I found two 5-gallon pails off to the left in the brush, more trash, and a bottle with liquid in it. Also, the stump that someone left to be used as an additional table was missing. I usually pick up trash and leave the site better than I found it, but I did not dare touch the buckets or the bottle with the suspicious liquid in it. French Farm Lake Road is a beautiful area with the North Country Trail running through it but it seems some folks don't appreciate it. The other sites might be better "kept" (site #3 is sandy and looks like an RV was dragged out). Might go again because it is a nice secluded area.

• S

  Sydney

  Traveler

  

  Oct. 29, 2024

  Wilderness State Park Camping

  Beautiful views, but goes down to a skeleton crew in the off season!

  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!

• 

  Vi

  Traveler

  

  Oct. 9, 2024

  Ocqueoc Falls State Forest Campground

  Perfect view

  Camped off of the dirt bike/hiking trail. Found access off end of Black Hwy

• 

  Alex M.

  Guide

  

  Oct. 2, 2024

  Straits State Park Campground

  Amazing views of Mackinac bridge

  Most sites are all grass, but well maintained. Brand new, clean bathrooms and showers. Views of the lake and bridge can't get any better.

• 

  Ken G.

  Guide

  

  Sep. 23, 2024

  Straits State Park Campground

  great view of bridge, but small campsites close together

  This campground was OK.  Just on the north side of the bridge.  The site we had was really small and close to others.  It was a short walk down to the lake and a great view of the bridge.  It was pretty expensive, we paid $39 + $11 for a Michigan park pass.  The place was clean and the restrooms and showers were nice.

  I don't think I'd go back.  There are better places to camp in the upper peninsula.

  Lots of bugs.

• 

  Nicole V.

  Guide

  

  Sep. 23, 2024

  Emerick Park Campground

  Quaint and Close to town

  Small campground with boat launch, shower house, and bathrooms. Connect’s to a park with playground and pickleball court. Easy to walk or ride your bicycle into town for ice cream. No swim beach but good fishing opportunities on the thunder river.

• K

  Kris D.

  Guide

  

  Sep. 22, 2024

  Straits State Park Campground

  Close to town but noisy

  We stayed in a tight site with some not so friendly neighbors. Great views and average campground.

• 

  Chad H.

  Traveler

  

  Sep. 20, 2024

  Mackinaw Mill Creek Camping

  Awesome location

  We’ve stayed at Mackinac Millcreek a few times. Awesome campground, definitely need to know the campground a little bit IF you’re planning on bringing a very large RV. But if not, call the office they’ll put you in a good spot. Our first time to the campground was pretty funny, the whole camp ground was sold out. But they squeezed us in by the rally building and apologized about it being by the maintenance area. Turn out to be one of the best spots we’ve camped. There was a lot of partying, so it was perfect for us. But the rest of the campground is pretty chill.

• 

  David C.

  Scout

  

  Sep. 18, 2024

  Haakwood State Forest Campground

  Easy access to north central bike path

  This campground is right on the north central bike path and I came to this here for that easy access. However, it is right next to the road and there is a lot of road noise during the day and early evening. It did quiet down overnight. Being next to the road also gives easy access to nearby attractions like Indian River. If you're looking for a camp site to sit around and relax during the day, this is probably not the place for you.The camp sites are spread out and many offer complete privacy. Most are shaded. The campground is only 2 miles from I 75 and is an excellent spot if you need a campsite just to stop over.

• 

  Amy D.

  Traveler

  

  Sep. 14, 2024

  Barnes County Park Campground

  Beautiful Lake Access

  This Campground was very family-friendly. There is easy access to the beach with wide stairs. Many people enjoying rock collecting and watching the sunrise and sunset. The park was very clean and well kept with multiple bath houses.

• 

  Amy D.

  Traveler

  

  Sep. 14, 2024

  Young State Park Campground

  Unique Trails

  The campground was well maintained. The sites had adequate privacy and space. I really enjoyed the trails through Cedar Forest along Lake Charlevoix. More unique experience than just hiking through the woods.

• r

  roy H.

  Guide

  

  Sep. 8, 2024

  Otsego Lake State Park Campground

  Otsego camp ground

  Nice state park big sites on the lake

• 

  Skip C.

  Traveler

  

  Sep. 7, 2024

  Chain-O-Lakes Campground

  Close to Torch Lake

  Full hookup sites, cabins were nice. Many recent upgrades to the campground

• H

  Hatcher

  Scout

  

  Sep. 1, 2024

  Haakwood State Forest Campground

  Rustic campground

  Stayed here Labor Day weekend. It was my first time staying at a State Forest campground; it has the basics like a hand pump for water, pit toilets and a dumpster. Site 12 had a spot for my hammock. Watch out for poison ivy. The only downside is that other campers don't know how to behave at night. They think karaoke and screaming at their domestic partner at 1:42 am is acceptable.

• 

  Teresa R.

  Traveler

  

  Aug. 20, 2024

  Wilderness State Park Camping

  Nice park, very big park but…..

  Don’t try to arrive early and get in. They don’t allow early entry. Check in is 3 pm period. Not real friendly, not rude either. Give the trading post 5 stars super nice well stocked. Lots of fire wood bundles to choose from. Has snack propane bottles

• 

  Erica L.

  Traveler

  

  Aug. 11, 2024

  Chain-O-Lakes Campground

  Will be back!

  Our time at this campground has been exceptional. The grounds are kept very clean and tidy, the camp store had what we needed, and the atmosphere is very quiet and calming. Everything on our full hookup site worked good and our site itself was level.

  Our weather wasn’t very good, 66 and rainy, but we made the best of our time by going downtown Bellaire and visiting Shorts Brewing. The little town has some cute shops and is only 8 minutes from the campground.

  We had a wonderful time and can’t wait to book again next year.

• S

  Stephanie W.

  Guide

  

  Aug. 5, 2024

  Hoeft State Park Campground

  Great overnight on Lake Huron

  I enjoyed this campsite. Maybe it was because of it being a Sunday night, but it didn’t feel very crowded and was fairly quiet. It’s close to the water (just a short walk over the dunes so you can’t actually see the lake from your site.) I had electric and the bathrooms had showers, though they definitely could use an update. The only thing that could have made this place better was if they allowed dogs on the beach! I was traveling alone and would have loved to have walked the beach with my pup.

• 

  Rachel S.

  Traveler

  

  Aug. 2, 2024

  Mackinaw Mill Creek Camping

  Friendly environment

  Very clean and very well ran and organized! Great staff will probably come back to this one

• L

  Laura

  Traveler

  

  Jul. 30, 2024

  Ocqueoc Falls State Forest Campground

  Rustic

  Amazing rustic campground. First come first serve sites, a well with pump for water and clean vault toilets. Walk along the Ocqueoc River to the falls, walk the path through the campground or park at the site and take a short trip to the falls. Large and small sites, friendly staff.

• 

  Gary P.

  Scout

  

  Jul. 27, 2024

  Whiting County Park Campground

  Awesome Campground

  First timers. Very pleased with our stay. Reservation system is awesome, and easy to follow. Bathhouse was clean and fresh smelling. Even with all the rain we had during the stay, the bathhouse never got overly soiled. Water has a very heavy sulphor smell, but that's the way it goes with Michigan well water. Our Tear drop camper had fresh water on-board, so we were good to go. We've stayed at Young State Park across the way. Given what I know now, Whiting Park will be our"go to" park in the future. Again, Very Pleased.

• 

  Martha L.

  Guide

  

  Jul. 27, 2024

  Cheboygan State Park Campground

  Peaceful & plentiful

  Cheboygan State Park is a must do for all campers! This is a hidden gem. Many of the campsites walk out to Lake Huron and there’s a perfect breeze from the water to the campsite to keep all of the bugs away. Very peaceful and the campsites are very private and quiet. Happily surprised and will be back! Very dog friendly, great hiking trails, and the beach is very sandy!

• 

  Martha L.

  Guide

  

  Jul. 27, 2024

  Magnus Park Campground

  Magus Park Great location

  Great location, right on the lake and awesome views. Also very convenient to North country Trail to ride or run up and down the Lakeshore on a paved path! Very close to town to walk in and see the sites. Stayed by the water treatment plant and I wouldn’t recommend the West End as you could smell the treatments. Bathrooms were clean and convenient location. Spaces were extremely close together! Many people stayed for the whole summer. It seemed like.

• 

  Gills an B.

  Scout

  

  Jul. 26, 2024

  Sand Lakes Quiet Area Backcountry Campsites

  Everything that it said it was

  To many people and yelling kids but breath taking for sure

• 

  Dan H.

  Guide

  

  Jul. 24, 2024

  Straits State Park Campground

  Nice, no views from upper campground

  Somewhere I read there might be lake views from the upper campground... Not with leaves on the trees. Follow the signs down a 500 foot trail to the surveyors lookout to see the bridge. Nice and wooded. You can hear the bridge and interstate traffic. Nice restrooms, showers. I will try lower campground next time.

• 

  Rebekah J.

  Guide

  

  Jul. 21, 2024

  Canoe Harbor State Forest Campground & Canoe Camp

  Quite, Spacious sites

  Most campgrounds we have been to had lots of road noise but not this one! We stayed for 2 nights/3days and this campground was quite.

  The vault toilets were well stocked with toilet paper, although one had a hornets nest inside and the other was extremely smelly.

  Access to the river was good and the sites were a decent size with privacy in between.

  We enjoyed walking some of the nearby trails