Grand Marais Campground & Marina

I stayed here in late October. The campground was officially closed at this point in time, but they were still allowing you to stay here at the remarkably low rate of $10 per night. The bathrooms were closed and locked, but there was a single porta potty by the marina. The water was supposed to have been turned off but it wasn't. They're still closing up for the winter. But, the place was essentially empty. I saw one or two other campers in this huge area. So I had lots of space and privacy. It's within walking distance to downtown, which was wonderful. And, on the other side, away from town, there are some hiking trails for your morning stretch. I was able to take my dog off leash in the sledding area for a bit. I'm not sure if that's within the rules, but it didn't bother anybody because there was nobody to bother. The trails take you up to an overlook that allows you to look out over the town and watch the sun come up. You're within a very short driving distance of several ski/hiking areas in the national Forest. Also. I can't speak to how the place would be in the summer when it's busy, but it certainly was a good value for me in October.

Just had our annual stay and it did not disappoint. In fact , it was better the 2nd time around. I won’t bore you with specifics , as I pretty much covered it all in my last review. The place is still rad. But! I mostly wanted to cover how COVID is being handled this time around . I’m sure some of you are a little curious .., All I can say is I was blown away! We were ,quite frankly , very worried this year to make our trip. Not only for us, but we also experienced a little city-folk guilt invading & possibly contaminating a zero COVID case county. Well, rest assured. They are doing an amazing job at social distancing, having protocols in place, yet still not taking away from the integrity & charm of this magical place . It didn’t feel overly sterile , stuffy & mechanical. It still felt relaxed & most everyone appeared to be doing what they’re supposed to do. I’ve always appreciated that Grand Marais just seems to have a different, more diverse crowd & I love that. It feels like everyone knows to respect this lovely place & that is why we continue to return. I’ve not experienced too many hillbilly yahoos up here.. thank god.

So, The COVID 411: if you want to go into a business - put on a damn mask, slather on some antibacterial at their nifty little stations , conveniently set up when you first walk in ( it’s mando FYI) & stay the hell off each other. I’d shop like this everyday if it meant not having someone all up on me all the time! Seriously, just back the eff up people!

The restaurants all appeared to be open & had taken over sidewalk space for outdoor dining. Our beloved Hippie Tacos had adapted to new safety protocols & seemed to be having fun with it! They have some pretty cool carry out specials too if you check out their Facebook page. I was relieved to see that the same business were still there & nothing appeared to be closed down due to COVID & lost business. Be warned though, there are reduced hours in place at most businesses . Also be aware that many restaurants require reservations to control crowd flow . Plan accordingly. And if you’re wondering, Worlds Best Doughnuts was chugging right along! We had our usuals every morning with zero issues. 2 people in at a time, or a family. Call ahead orders at the side window. Workers had on masks AND face shields, as did everyone at every business we went into. Long story short- they are NOT messing around! And I’m relieved to know they aren’t! It didn’t hinder our daily activities in the slightest & shouldn’t anyone else’s. Guys.. Grand Marais takes pride in their village . They work hard & It shows ! They have have come together as a community to ensure their wellbeing & OURS. Don’t be a selfish jerk & just be a good abiding guest!! You will still have all the fun you’ve ever had there & feel safe too!

Do you love camping and Grand Marais a whole lot? If so, then this is the campground for you. You are within easy strolling distance of downtown Grand Marais, and all of the glorious offerings. This is probably the only campground close to Hwy 61 that you do not get highway noise from, thanks to the reduced speed limit through Grand Marais.

There is a wide variety of sites available, and not all of them offer the same amenities. Their campground map does a good job reflecting which sites have electric/water, electric/water/sewer, or nothing beyond the site itself. The campground is overwhelmingly dominated by rvs and trailers(some of which look pretty permanently settled there).

There are a lot of amenities on the propert. You have a picnic shelter, ball field, play ground, clothes lines, a bathhouse AND a community garden. Oh, and you also have Lake Superior RIGHT THERE. This campground is a little more cramped than I would like, but you can’t argue against the premium location for both lake-viewing and access to town.

Due to COVID, the RR and Showers were not open which was not a problem for the multitude of permanently placed RVers.

We called for a reservation but they did not return our calls.  the camp host said not to worry, find a place and settle up in the morning.  We found a spot within walking distance to the porta-potty at the marina and set up the popup only to discover that there was no 30 amp plug, only 50 amp.

We understood all this, we needed a place for the night.  But in the morning the office insisted we pay $45, "the LEAST we could charge"  Again, we had what amounted to primitive camping and for a little more we could have gotten a motel.

The town is nice, touristy without being too much so.  Close to Canada and the falls at the Pigeon River (the boundary between US and Canada).  Great Hiking on the Historic Grand Portage Trail.

Very nice town, great location on the harbor, RVs packed in like sardines, dirty, old and overpriced, even if the showers were working.

If you’re looking for a good campsite last minute or are you really really really like the North Shore I want to be right on Lake superior this is a good campground for you. This campground is located in Grand Marais Minnesota right inside the city on the harbor. The RV sites with electric are pretty dang close together which is not my style camping but for most people at RVs they don’t mind that. The tent sites were sent away from the RV sites and we’re pretty secluded from each other which I really really really like.

A lot of people choose this park to park their RV for the summer and pay the summer fee for it. You can also get a daily rate which is not that bad. Check out the picture for info on the rates.

There’s a boat launch into Lake superior in the Grand Marais harbor right inside the city park which is amazing if you’re on a boat and want to go fish or just swim.

All in all this is a great park for families. They also have group camps if you’re interested in that but they were pretty centralized in the the park and were not secluded to anybody.

Inside the city limits you can grab yourself a worlds best donut And for an amazing cup of coffee check out Java Moose For dinner you could do a sit down at The Angry Trout right on the harbor and follow it up with a Voyager Brewing Company beer with amazing views of the sunset.

Me & hubbs had a weeklong stay here at the marina campground for our anniversary. Upon arrival, we noticed how crammed together the sites were. Yikes! One of our pet peeves . We have 3 dogs, no kids & enjoy a little space & at least the slightest privacy. No such luck. We had a back in site - hook ups on the wrong side!! First annoyance. Kids galore. Everywhere. And Uber noisy & running amok! Second annoyance. Don’t get me wrong- I love kids enjoying the outdoors & just being kids! But holy cow- could’ve done without the non stop wailing & firecrackers day & night. If we had to have stayed at our site any longer I’d never relax. But I digress. We weren’t there to stay at our site. We were the for the surroundings & they did not disappoint!! It is absolutely gorgeous! Adventures abound! Tons of beaches ( water was un-swimmable though , super freezing still!) Clear beautiful water, the scenery was breathtaking! An abundance of dog friendly restaurants & businesses. You could walk nearly everywhere you needed to see & be in town . Incredibly friendly people ! We never felt like silly tourists. Made new friends from Canada, took many hikes to waterfalls, found lots of secret beaches along 61 where the dogs ran leash free & took in allllll the sights ! The weather at the end of August was incredible! 65 degrees , no humidity, no wind or rain & very minimal bugs.

We spent every early morning drinking fresh local coffee , eating World’s Best Donuts & watching the sun rise on a nearly deserted shoreline in town. It was heaven.

There is tons to do if you just go exploring. Even with people everywhere, it never felt crowded & anxiety inducing. Somehow it all went perfectly! Reminded me of Tahoe or Bodega. Can’t wait to get back!

FYI- rv sites are hard to get ! Get a jump on a rez in January. Clarify if it has sewer- ours didn’t . We had site 77 . Not right on the water but a literal 2 min walk. I preferred this site to many others. More privacy for the pups.

This is a huge community campground within the village of Grand Marais, right on the harbor. Most folks are here with RVs, but there are three separate sections for tent camping only: one right on the lakeshore, one right on the bike path, and one tucked into the woods up the hill to the south. We always do tent camping, and had intended to go to Magney State Park nearby but they were filled for the weekend, so we reluctantly decided to try the town campground and were pleasantly surprised. Although the RV sites are jam-packed close together in the open throughout most of the campground, the forest tent sites are private, quiet, spacious, well wooded, and I would say comparable to the sites at Magney. We were at one of the smaller tent sites, but most are pretty big, the one called Honeymoon Hill is really great, ask for that if you can! The tent area does have drinking water but the toilets are just porta potties, though they are very clean and well kept. There is a full bath house down the hill about 1/4 mile walk, good facilities but heavily used and it got a bit muddy very quickly after the rain Sunday morning. The main advantage of this campground is great location on Lake Superior and Grand Marais Harbor, easy biking and walking distance into the village with all its amenities, and easy driving distance to numerous trailheads and other outdoor opportunities, so overall a pleasant surprise and an excellent alternate if area state parks are filled.

This campground is our go-to place to stay on our summer visits to Grand Marais. We usually stay in the wooded tent sites on the hill which provides nice shade, protection from the frequent winds off of Lake Superior, and a little bit of privacy. When we stayed in site W213R in June 2018, I could still see glimmers of the lake through the trees. They have portapotties and potable water on the hill, and it’s only a short walk down the hill to the bathhouse.

When you first come up the hill to the tent sites, the first path to the right of the split leads to a little creek where the kids love to go and explore.

The tent sItes in the lower campground are open, have few trees, and you are likely to be next to an RV, but it could be worth it to wake up to the sound of the waves and a vIew of the bay. The sites closest to open water (not the bay) have bushes that block the view of the lake, but are necessary for the frequent wind.

The staff in the office have always been friendly and helpful to me. They also sell wood, have some camping supplies for sale, firewood, and they used to have a take-a-book/leave-a-book inside, but I haven’t looked for that for a couple years. There is online booking and pictures of many of the sites on their website.

It’s a nice walk around the bay into town. Some of our favorite places are Voyager Brewing Company, World’s Best Donuts, Gunflint Tavern on the Lake, Angry Trout Restaurant, North House Folk School (feel free to walk through, check out their available classes onlIne, and book a ride to sail on their 50 foot steel schooner, the Hjordis), Drury Lane Bookstore, My Sister’s Place Restaurant, walking out to Artist’s Point and the lighthouse, and visiting the multiple state parks within a short drive. Many have waterfalls.

The aspect of this campground we liked the best was that we could walk to town. The campground itself is o.k. It was full when we were and definitely felt crowded. There are some tent sites up in a wooded secluded area but most of the park is geared to RVs. Or you can pitch pitching your tent amongst RVs. Tucked up in the woods is a small tent area that is nice and quiet but a little far from the bathrooms so be prepared to walk.

There are 300 campsites of with full hookups, some with electric and water hookups and others no hookups. Some site have great views of Lake Superior, some are sunny and open and others have some large trees. Our site (#104) was very close to our neighbors and the RV right behind us and we had a big tree right in our “patio” which was not conducive to sitting outside. We had a 50 amp full hook-up site which all worked well and well-placed in the site. The campground is county-run and a mix of seasonal people (lots of whom appeared to be there for the fishing) and transients like ourselves. One aspect of seasonal campers that I don’t like is how they junk up their site and this certainly had that. 

There are four bathhouses on the property some of which are pretty old and tired whereas others are larger and more updated. The bathroom near us was large but was heavily used (which is an understatement) as four tour-size busloads of college students exiting the boundary waters spent the night in tents near it. It was pretty trashed with that volume of people. Since the park is pretty large they have amenities like baseball fields, playground, group camping sections, a beach with picnic area, fish cleaning station, and nearby boat launch. 

A short walk to downtown and you have restaurants, shopping, grocery, fuel, pretty harbor, art galleries, bait shops, and more. One of the most highly touted places in Grand Marais is World’s Best Donuts. Even before we got to Grand Marais, people in other parts of Minnesota told us about it. The donuts were really good but beware their closing hour is when they sell out which is why we went really early. We also ate at The Crooked Spoon Cafe and had an amazing meal. Nearby Grand Marais are a scattering of state parks known for their waterfalls which are worth seeing. Many people come here because it is close to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness but since we just came from the town of Ely we did not go back to the boundary waters. We liked this area and kept busy for the three days we were there but couldn’t see staying long-term.