Best Tent Camping near Bismarck, MO

A great spot for a quick get away from St Louis. Beautiful park with lots to do not far from the campground. If you are tent camping you don't have to worry about generators from the RVs as there are two separate camping areas that share a really nice shower house, but have their own bathrooms as well. Be careful to not get a tent site in the middle, in the low area, as rain runoff will run down to the middle area. No tent pads, but plenty of grassy areas to pitch your tent. Activities in the park include swimming in the pool or the Big River, canoeing (rent at the Thunderbird Lodge), hiking, and petroglyphs.

We typically prefer more dispersed-style camping, but this has actually become one of our favorite established sites in the Ozarks. It's VERY family-oriented (probably not for you if you want to party), with tons of games like volleyball and horseshoes, plus onsite programs and activities including scavenger hunts, movie nights, pancake breakfasts, etc. 

A little of everything when it comes to sites - there are pull-thru sites, full hookups, basic tent sites, you name it. We tent camped in sites 61-64 (now one huge site, but at one time they were three individual), which directly overlooks the river and sits on a very private corner. The sites on this end are a bit of a walk to the bathrooms/showers and camp store, but also extremely spacious and private. 

Great camp store and a large sandy beach with natural swimming holes, plus a seasonal pool. There's even so-so wifi at the store.

Float trips are a big deal here, and Indian Springs offers both boat rentals and shuttle services. We used their shuttling one day, then the second day, I drove my husband up to the put-in (less than 10 mins) and he floated back and took out here. The owners are really friendly and accommodating. Our top choice for float/camp trips, especially when we have our kiddos.

I've seen some reviews say its outdated and I'm not sure where that comes from. On season they offer a variety of float and eat packages that are tasty and nicely priced. Cute little campground with "primitive", electric and full hook ups. All tent camping is still pretty close to the general store that also has coin showers! You have good options for a shady and grassy spot if you're tent camping too. Great folks working there, always very friendly and helpful.

Robertsville is a nice little park on the Meramec River with about 25 campsites split fairly evenly between tent and electric hook up in a long loop. The hook up sites are on the inside of the loop and the tent sites are on the outside of the loop. You need to look carefully for a level tent site as some are fairly slopped. However, most of the tent sites have nice trees for hammocking and all sites looked clean. The shower house is newer and well taken care of. Seems that lots of people come here for the boat access to the river, but there are some really nice hiking trails you shouldn’t miss. On the weekends in the high season be prepared to reserve two nights in a row, which can make it more difficult to get a spot. But if you go during the week you can have the place pretty much to yourself. And the racoons. Just saying

Stayed here for one night we toured the cave which was great. The park is very well kept and nice clean facilities. We tent camped and every spot had a good place to set up a tent.

Not a huge campground but, Its a really simple beautiful place to enjoy Missouri's rolling hills. It is located 1 hour from St. Louis and 30 ish min from Elephant Rock State park. If your in the area check out the other amazing Missouri state parks while staying here. The Missouri Mines state park is maybe a 5 min drive and a neat place to see. Tent sites, Bathroom and some hammock spots.

Plenty of tent camping sites. There are primitive also. Great Lake to fish and plenty of trails to hike. Looks like the rv site can get booked up on weekends.

Sam A Baker has a large selection of sites. Perfect for tent camping or Campers of any size. Great trail selection, many moderate trails, but there are many options for those with young children as well.

Full hookups(electric/water/sewer) for rvs, as well as primitive tent sites. Facilities are bit on the older side, but 2 shower houses are available. River access within walking distance. Canoe and raft rental available.

We spent a Saturday and Sunday there camping in the electric site. They do have tent sites but we wanted to be closer to the river which was a 2min walk.

Great place, awesome people and kid friendly. Definitely will be back!

I like this camp site because you are within the trees the whole time. It is tent camping only. Where we camped, the ground was covered in moss. That made for very soft sleeping, except for the few large rocks spread over the area. We had room for two portable canopies and about 35 cub scouts and family members.

this ground is very well kept and is oerfect for tent camping. the only downfall is the amount trees. although the sites are very large, flat, and easy, you can see everyones business because there is maybe 1 tree in between each site. but there is a creek, trails, walk in sites, and lots of history to check out.

Johnson Shut-Ins State Park is an amazing park that combines the comforts of an RV park with the rustic side of walk-in tent sites. It is the best maintained park in the Northeastern part of the Ozark's. It has a store in the middle of the campground. The sites all have concrete pull-ins and the bathrooms and shower houses are all brand new, modern, and clean.

The sites are spread a part giving plenty of room to campers. There are several tent sites that you can walk into to get away from the concrete. There is a gear cart to help you get everything back from your car to your site.

This is a place where you could spend several days and have a lot of fun. This is the premiere campground in that area of the Ozark's.

The staff is also very helpful and friendly.

The campsites are very nice. I don't mind the concrete pads they have for camping and parking. We have a camper but used cots when we tent camped so concrete was not a problem for us.

The kids loved the shut ins. We didn't even make it all the way to the back as it was a very long walk. We also visited some of the historical sites in the area.

This is a great little state park that has plenty of options whether you enjoy tent camping or enjoying your Rv. Some of the144-151 sites can be pretty tight to get into because there are so many trees so double check the pictures on the reservation website to make sure you can get yours in. Ours is 40’ and it was pretty hard to get in but we managed. Nice shower facilities and laundry as well as river access within walking distance

Wonderful state park with paved roads and level concrete pads. We were nestled up against a beautiful creek. Could barely keep the dogs out of it. Nice,clean bathrooms. Nice play area for kids. We hiked one of the many hiking trail available. Tours are offered throughout the day in the two onsite caves. They were amazing. Natalie was our Gide and really knew her stuff! Park also offer kayaking, swimming, rafting and just a whole bunch of fun. There was a large camp of boys scouts and several other tent camping. Would recommend this park everyone. 10 out of 10!

Lots to do for all ages, including swimming and hikes of any difficulty/length. Famous for petroglyphs and other history too. Green rolling hills that would be ideal to visit in the fall. The electrics sites are closer to the river, the tent sites are more private in trees in a separate area.

Yay: Rent a canoe/kayak/tube to enjoy the river (on site!).

Nay: Make sure to get away from the developed part of the campground to enjoy this nature. Surprise: Petroglyphs are the icing on the cake here!

Very simple campground lets you feel close to the lovely nature here. The trail options are either a short loop or a loooong out and back along the famous Ozark Trail. Not much else to do (no water activites) so if you’re not planning to hike a lot or just hang out/grill, you might want to plan some time off site.

Yay: Trails through all kinds of forests, waterways and waterfalls. Educational displays.

Nay: TENT CAMPING ONLY!!! My friend had been turned away on a previous trip! (There are some other parks nearby if you are in an RV.) Fills up fast.

Surprise: Hike the tallest mountain in MO, not a long hike. Endless green rolling vistas! Also had deer at our tent.