Lower Falls Campground — Tahquamenon Falls State Park

Our first visit to this park and first stay at campground, and it was absolute bliss!  Absolutely worth the drive to enjoy all the peace, quiet, space, views, amenities, trails and of course the waterfalls.  Words cannot really explain the beauty all around.  The recent upgrades to this park can easily be seen and appreciated in the well kept grounds, available amenities, picnic areas, pavilions , fully functional accessible bathrooms and large personal shower rooms. Not a detail was missed!    And yes, the restaurant is a plus!  We enjoyed delicious bison burgers and beer.  The campground was full of guests but quiet, clean, clean restrooms, self serve firewood machine that accepts cards!  We were surprised to find out that you will need to pay for state park pass even with camping reservations. The $40 annual pass is the best value if visiting for longer than 3 days.  We stayed for 4 nights with 34’ camper on site 188, which is at the very beginning of loop but still very quiet, no road noise. Outer sites are very spacious, inner sites are much smaller.  Convenient trails connect Lower and upper falls, 4 miles.  One mile trail to reach lower falls from campground. the lower falls alone will give you plenty to explore.  We spent two days there, one kayaking around the lower falls and river where you can launch your own kayak from lower falls, next to picnic area and paddle up to the falls and down river. but be mindful, you will paddle upstream heading back. Some areas are low but doable. The park offers canoe rental but only to lower fall and back. We spent another full day just walking around taking everything in, and cooling off in the falls of course.  The upper fall area is just as lovely but you can only view from view points.  We enjoyed an evening walk to upper falls when hardly no one was there.  The park is roughly 30 mins to nearby lighthouses, 90 mins to western points like Munising and pictured rocks.  No need to second guess this place, just go and enjoy responsibly!  And please be respectful of this beautiful park.

This was a really nice spot with clean bathrooms and showers, quiet, and close to some nice hiking and scenery.  The sites are fairly small and close together, but overall the campground was pretty quiet.  If traveling with a group you could get some sites together and it would work out really nice.

We stayed at the Hemlock campground near the Lower Falls.  The campsites are so close to one another, with absolutely no privacy/buffer.  I am used to camping at parks in Wisconsin, where there is generally more brush and understory plants and sites are better spaced out.  We were there on Saturday and Sunday nights, and the campsite was packed with people; an army of kids riding bikes and scooters, and some teenagers driving an RC car all over.  Lots of dogs, but thankfully they all seemed well-behaved.  I was shocked with how quiet it was after sundown.  I was expecting there to be some loud and obnoxious people, but everyone seemed to be respectful volume-wise.  

Aside from the awkwardness of being so close to other campers, the site itself was nice; flat, pine needle/dirt base.

The bathrooms were alright.  Showers were limited to 3 and always busy.  Water fluctuated between warm and mostly cold.  I did read that the bathroom/shower building is going to be replaced next year, which will be wonderful for future campers.

We bought firewood from the park's dispenser near the entry building.  It seemed wet and did not burn very well.  The second night we purchased our firewood from Gene's Tahquamenon General Store, just down the road, and it seemed to be better quality.   The general store looked nice inside, with all kinds of useful items for sale.

While we stayed at Tahquamenon Falls SP, we visited both waterfalls, which were beautiful and easy to get to.  Bathrooms at both falls were large and clean.

We also made a day trip to Whitefish Bay to see the Shipwreck Museum and hang out at the beach.

We wanted to get dinner in Paradise our second night, but the two food trucks that we originally wanted to check out were closed.  (Sub shop in town was also closed when we tried to stop by at lunch time)  We considered eating at one of the two sit-down restaurants in Paradise or driving to the brewery by the Upper Falls, but we didn't want to wait very long or spend that much money.  We ended up going to Eddy's food truck across from the Wheelhouse.  Food was alright, prices were fair for a food truck, owner was super friendly, and there was a nice little seating area off to the side.

Overall our camping experience at this VERY popular park was good.  If I were to camp there in the future, I would be sure to make my reservations much further in advance in order to get a site on the outer edge (or try out the rustic campsites).

I camped in the area around the falls as a kid, and have fond memories of it. Nothing prepared me for camping near the river mouth. You want the old part of the campground, right on the river, with no electricity. The sunsets are magical, and are happening right in front of you. Simply the best experience short of backpacking. It is a short walk to the newer part of the campground where there are flush toilets. That just keeps everything in the old part very quiet.

Love this campground to go fishing and paddle boarding. Quiet and relaxing with a hike that boarders the water. Down the street you will find whitefish bay with more fishing opportunities and it’s also great place to take photos if you are into photography! We stayed at site 126 and it was right next to the water and pretty private! Definitely recommend and hope to go back soon!

We stayed here towards the end of July. Our GPS wanted us to turn about 1/3 mile sooner on a closed gate rather than the actual Lower Tahquamenon Falls campground(CG) entrance. We got in line at the park checkpoint and paid the$36 for the annual MI State Park Pass as that was more economical for us than paying$10 per night. The ranger then told us to park in the area behind the gate and come in to register for our campsite. We were told that if we needed to fill with water there was potable water at the dump station. We then proceeded to Hemlock Loop, back-in site 182 that’s electric-only(50/30/20 AMP). As we entered our loop, we were a little worried as the sites coming in were either small or had some trees that would prevent an easy back-in. In addition, with our 39’ fifth wheel and F450 truck, we could not avoid brushing against trees on the side and top of our rig as we drove through. We went slow and there was no damage. When we got to site 182, we were relieved to see that the site was open and long enough for our rig and truck. We were also able to swing into the 90-degree back-in with no issues. If the campers in the site in front of us had parked on the front side, we probably would have asked them to move their truck while we got into the site. We got a bar, maybe two on Verizon and were able to get a usable signal very early in the morning. We didn’t get any OTA channels and with all the trees, a satellite would have been iffy, so we didn’t try. We took our showers at the shower house that had really good water pressure and hot water. This state park is a premier tourist attraction so the campground was full every day during our 6-day stay. There were hiking trails leading out of the CG at different locations, and we enjoyed walking our dogs both to the lower falls and other areas. If you go to the falls after 10:00 AM, expect crowds.

As a lifelong Michigander it’s always been on my bucket list to travel up to Michigan’s Upper Peninsula and visit Tahquamenon Falls. This campsite was taken care of, had great facilities, electricity, quiet by 10pm and was a 6 mile hike to the Upper Falls from camp.

Only reason why I’m giving it a 4 instead of 5 was because the toilets were backing up semi-frequently.

I was camping with my disabled husband and small dog. Checkin was a pain and the DNR was aggressive and rude. My husband who has ALS and therefore no use of his hands or legs, was walking our dog while I set up camp. He can’t hold a leash but our support dog obeys his verbal commands. Not good enough for the DNR and they harassed him even though we complied with leashing her to his wheelchair as soon as we were told to do so. They could have approached things with less aggression and gotten the same result. It ruined my time. I packed us up early and headed for friendlier grounds.

we stayed at the non-electric loop down the street from the overly crowded, loud campground loop by the falls. the non electric campground is peaceful along the river. the sites were not very secluded but in september after labor day there was only one other camper so privacy was not an issue.

We stayed on site 65, which was situated between to sites where we had to share with one neighbor on the electric, no big deal. All sites with electric were split that way, 2 sites per electric box. If you don't have a really long cord for the electric, buy one! Or cadycorner your trailer to fit like we did. The bathrooms were clean and I found it intriguing that each shower was its own closet not a stall, A+ for privacy!! The campground is off the main road to the lower falls so at night you can walk down to the parking lot and enjoy the dark sky, great for viewing all the stars! It was amazing for star gazing.

We spent 2 days at this park, mostly to see the falls and surrounding area (Whitefish Point).  One night would have been sufficient.  The bathrooms were clean, the park was gorgeous;  however, our biggest complaint was the sites were on top of each other.  It felt like tailgating.  Additionally, there was only 1 electric hookup box per 4 campsites, and it was on the wrong side for us (passenger side).  Our electric cable isn't infinitely long, so we had to park the camper far to the left (passenger side), and were more or less in our neighbor's campsite.  BE SURE to look where the electric hookup is located in photos when you choose a site, unless you have a really long plug.  For reference, we stayed at the Lower Falls Campground, Portage Loop, site 60.  Also to note, there was a monsoon of a rainstorm, and quite a few tent campers took on a few inches of water.  The pools were gone 24 hours later, but that didn't help the soaked tent people.

The trails and waterfalls were absolutely amazing, and the gift shop was A+.  I doubt we will go back there, but I'm glad we went for our first UP adventure.

Quiet clean campground. Walked to lower falls from campsite. Great waterfalls. Upper falls is only a few miles up the road. Electric at site. Nice showers. Dump station with water.

Beautiful area!

I have gone here with my family over the years and I promise it gets better every time I go! The falls are insanely beautiful and the hike was well worth the view at the end:) 100% recommend

We have a handi-capped son who loves camping as much as we do. They have a few handi capped sites which we love because they are all paved for these folks and he’s able to use his wheel chair to get close to the fire pit and enjoy a hot dog, or marshmallow with us. The area is so beautiful with the falls and its a great hiking area for us. The park is very safe, and firewood is available at anytime thru there self-check station. The folks who work there are the best we’ve met at a state run campground.

Great getaway place for a no-service weekend! Clean showers, bathrooms, and access to plenty of convenience stores and gas stations nearby. We stayed at the Rivermouth campground which was not too far from the Lower Falls area. Good hiking spots close by (Clark Lake and the falls). Clean area that was not too cold at night with a blanket and sleeping bag. Had an incredible time. Beware of woodpeckers and chipmunks!

Fine site with room to hang a hammock in the trees. Bath house was pretty grim.
Quiet walk to the falls ,which were a little less impressive than expected

This is a very popular campground. With the crowd comes noisy kids running and screaming through the campground. Sites are mostly flat, with a few pull throughs. Takes some skill to get larger campers onto the sites.

We're camped at Tahquamenon Falls State Park - Lower Falls - Hemlock. The sites are level and fairly large (site 187). If you have an RV and your neighbor has one too, the sites are fairly private but otherwise there's not much separating you from the next site. We are parked on dirt, not much grass on our site but there's the standard picnic table and fire ring and the site seems well groomed or the last folks did a good pick up before they left. No trash or cigarette butts.

The bugs aren't horrible but you have to make sure you get some deet/ThermaCELL/picaridin or shelter at dusk or risk exsanguination.

Pretty happy with the site.

Really enjoyed the campground and falls. Park was busy but still very enjoyable

Campground was gorgeous with plenty to do. The sites are good size sites and campground is well maintained.

Stayed here two nights in mid-July. The hot showers were such a bonus! Short walk to lower falls and trails, which is exactly what we wanted. Camp hosts were awesome.

Awesome base camp to explore the UP of Michigan. Clean facilities, level sites, well spaced out, and beautiful scenery

Tight camping at the campground. Good restroom and showers. The lower falls are great place to swim. The upper falls and brewery are magic.

Snowmobiled, snowshoed, hiked, cross countries, oh and nice waterfalls.

We were there late in the season and had a lovely, quiet campsite near the River where we fished for our dinner and later built a romantic campfire.

We stayed 2 nights at Hemlock campground over during off season. There are a decent amount of trees however the campsites are pretty close together and do not offer much privacy. Since we were there during a slow time it was fine, but I can imagine it gets pretty full in the summer. Campground is great for a night to see the falls and or hike but not somewhere we would set up camp for a longer time.

This is a family friendly campground. Even though harvest fest was canceled this year, there were still plenty of Halloween decorated campsites and kids dressed up in their best costumes to get some candy around the campsites. The showers are warm and the bathrooms are clean. 30 amp service was great. Water was in walking distance.

A must if you live in Michigan. Portage camp is a walk from the lower falls. Brand new and clean bathrooms. Sewage dump is a mile at hemlock camp. Get water there before you go to your site.

The lower falls are beautiful!