The Dyrt is here to help plan your best camping near Van Buren. There are tons of hikes and other fun activities to partake in, as well as sights to see and explore. You're sure to find the perfect spot for your Missouri camping adventure.
"Right off the Current River, walking distant to downtown Van Buren."
"****Van Buren, MO is in the midst of to the Ozark National Scenic Riverway."
"Had a great area to roast s’mores and sit around the campfire at night"
"Easy access to the sand bar from the campground. Our site had electricity but no water. Fill up on the way in. Did not use the bathhouse due to COVID19. Be sure and check out the stars at night!"
"Having experienced many rustic & gravel campsites, paved campsites are a welcome change of pace."
"Echo Bluff State Park in Ozark National Scenic Riverways near Eminence, MO is a brand new “old camp”.
Opened in 2016 the history is rather interesting."
$70 - $80 / night
"Bathrooms were very clean and well lit."
$14 - $50 / night
"Ggreat area to walk"
$14 - $20 / night
"Has limited outhouses and bathroom but if you love quieter spaces- Don’t pass this one by."
$10 - $45 / night
"There’s caves on site too but they closed them for some reason. We were there in spring and the buds were great. The facility is pretty nice and clean, showers a plus."
"We took a last-minute trip on a beautiful weekend in June 2020 to get outside (responsibly) during the pandemic. Two Rivers campground did not disappoint!"
$18 - $85 / night
"Pool, clean bath house, ice, fire wood, etc. Bordered by a spring branch and just a mile from Clearwater lake access. Has several cabins and one RV for rent."
$20 - $140 / night
"There's a sign to keep car tires on pavement, but I wasn't able to and parked the Jeep on the grass next to the trailer."
"It has zero cell service but you can drive about 2 miles up the road to the state park and connect their WiFi. It’s pretty clean with running water, indoor plumbing, and hot showers."
"Has a nicely stocked store when you come in for anything you might have forgotten. Bathrooms were a little cramped but clean. Clean showers. We stayed in a campsite on the river."
"People were wonderful and you are right next to the water. Pickup for float trips is nice too
If the facilities are great it would be five stars."
ScoutThis 1200 acre property used to be the beautiful Cherokee Ridge Girl Scout camp until it was sold in 2019. We have went through extensive renovations and development to bring this property to the public so that it can be enjoyed by our guests. River access and our private gravel/sand bars are available exclusively to our guests and have provided some of the most peaceful weekends imaginable.
We have everything from glamping tents right on the river bluff (photos attached) to 12 fully equipped cabins with hot tubs overlooking the 22 acre lake with a beach and activities (photos attached)
We have 4 Conestoga Wagons that are heated and air conditioned (see photos attached). They are the definition of glamping.
50 RV sites with picnic tables fire/grill pits with a variety of 30 and 50 amp pull-through and back-in sites. We offer float trips, rental boats for the lake, and rental golf carts to adventure around the park.
The park is going through endless development to continue to provide everyone with the most enjoyable and peaceful vacation possible.
Please check out our website www.otahkilake.com
TravelerRight off the Current River, walking distant to downtown Van Buren. This campground coordinates pickups for if you want to tube the river with one of the local companies or you can have a local shuttle take you to the bar and Karaoke across the river. The area for campers and RVs are leveled with gravel but has ample shade trees but sites are pretty close. The tent area is grassy with shade trees as well and the sites are closer towards the river. The park has one communal bathroom which can get pretty busy on Fridays and Saturdays.
TravelerWent to stay in a cabin for one night, then extended our stay. The place was to nice to leave. The lake and St. Francis river are crystal clear. Watched the baby deer, and listen to thw owls at night. The cabin had all the amenities included, towels, coffee, soaps, dinnerware and cookware. check-in was easy. Front deck included a B-B-Q grill, and hot tub that over looked the lake and camp fire. Our family will be back. Thank you!
ScoutWe had a good time camping on the back loop. Sites 105 to 111. Full hook up, shade and near river. Plenty of room on the gravel bar to have fun.
We floated. They picked us up and dropped us off at our camp sites since we had a large group. Expensive to float but we had a good time. Floated on Sunday to avoid the crazies on Saturday.
Shower houses were not clean.... luckily we didn't have to use them.
We've also stayed with a large group at Hiller House. Sleeps 20 with it's own private, clean shower house connected with normal bathroom. The house sleeps a large group and has plenty of room outside to do group activities. Kitchen is small but has a 20 foot picnic table in dining area. We were able to watch 4th of July fireworks from the porch. Need to drive from the house to the water but they pick up for floats.
TravelerHaving experienced many rustic & gravel campsites, paved campsites are a welcome change of pace. It’s a new park (opened in 2016) with amenities like (excellent) WiFi in the campground, clean bathrooms/showers, and a fully stocked camp store at the lodge. The staff was very pleasant and helpful. While there is not much seating in the restaurant dining room, the patio area has plenty of space for the warmer months.
There is a large, modern playground for kids to enjoy and pavilions to grab some shade. The creek is a short walk from the most areas of the park.
As time goes by, programs would be a welcome addition to the park - maybe even some geocaching or scavenger hunts. A small band of wild horses roam the park, but all we saw was evidence that they had been there.
All in all, a great experience.
TravelerLarge primitive sites with plenty of space and access to community water pump in each area. Full RV hookup sites with room for tent camping friends. Trash pickup. Bathrooms within walking distance, that are CLEAN, critter free, and well kept. Access to shower house near the main entrance. Laundry on site as well!
The site we stayed at was a premium tent/basic RV slot, so essentially we had access to an electrical outlet and our own water. The site was huge, plenty of space for our two tents, a pop up, and our "camp kitchen". Each site has a pretty well kept up picnic table and fire ring with cowboy stove (grate that flips over the fire..does the rest of the country use that phrase, too?)
We came in on a Thursday evening and had no issues checking in and getting settled. We floated the Black River Friday through the campground, and had a blast. Our 6 man raft was in great condition and we had no problems with pick up at the put out. Our bus driver was a magician, getting us back in record time. We camped for three nights. Quiet time beginning at 11pm didn't need enforcing, everyone was pleasant and friendly. The staff was phenomenal.
We are already planning our next trip out and cant wait to bring the kids!
LegendEcho Bluff State Park in Ozark National Scenic Riverways near Eminence, MO is a brand new “old camp”.
Opened in 2016 the history is rather interesting. From 1929 until the 1980s, Camp Zoe was a children’s summer camp, founded by Russell S. and Margaret McMahan Louis County teachers. There is one of the structures still on site with plaques and information. More recently, it was home to music festivals — and an open-air drug market. I didn’t find any plaques in relation to that. However when the government gained control of the land in a court proceeding it was decided to bring more business into Shannon County by opening a very nice campground for people not wanting to rough it.
And “BAM” you have very pricey accommodations from lodge rooms, to cabins and two story condos. The campground is pretty nice too but lacking in shade and privacy. There are walk-in (uphill) sites and nice wagons provided to transport your gear. Not my favorite style of camping. Completely full and busy, which is why it got a 4 instead of 5 star. This may be your type of camping and you would say a 5 star. Reserve ahead, I mean way ahead.
There is a huge pavilion that can be reserved that overlooks the area. It has a large fire pit and mega size grill, one of the trails meanders below the pavilion. This would be a nice venue for an extended family get together.
This is a very nice, new, recreation creation. The playground was given two thumbs up by my granddaughter. Then the river, which you can see from the lodge and playground was given 12 paws and 2 thumbs by dogs and grandkids alike. Crystal clear ice cold water that you can walk across to the sheer wall of rock. Bring your water shoes, the rocks aren’t fun to walk on.
A very cool feature , if you are lucky , you will see the wild horses that roam the area. They are not for petting, so use caution.
Aside from the abundance of people we enjoyed Echo Bluff SP.
TravelerThis is really the gem of Missouri state parks. Rv sites are all full 30/50 amp with water and sewer. All spots have plenty of room but are back in. The pads are perfectly level and are concrete. Camp hosts are helpful and kind. The lodge is in walking distance and offers breakfast, lunch, and dinner. The food is pretty good also! They offer inside dining but the best place to eat and enjoy the outdoors is on their huge deck. Wonderful place all around and Missouri really has done this one the right way!
RangerCampground Review
Huzzah Valley Resort (HVR) is not a typical campground. It’s a place built for and specializing in float trips. If you are picturing serenely paddling down a pristine river in a canoe listening to the sounds of birds and insects, you are in the wrong place, at least on a Saturday during the summer. This is more like a float trip with frat parties floating on by you, complete with loud music, floating cooler, floating beer pong tables, loads of drunk people and of course the antics of these drunk people. Not really the best place to take your kids on those summertime Saturdays. I knew this going into the weekend. Really, with campsite prices from $12.79 (for the family camping area) to $16.00 (for the loud area with no quiet hours, nicknamed the Zoo) per person, per night most people not looking for this experience are weeded out by price alone. All that being said party-barge type float trips are pretty much a rite of passage in Missouri.
My Husband and I went on this trip with a group of friends that are not as experienced campers as we are and opted to stay in a cabin. This was about $90 per person for the weekend. Our cabin sleeps 8 people with 1 queen bed in a room, 2 queen beds in a loft, and a double sofa sleeper. It included a kitchenette, full bathroom, fire ring, BBQ grill, picnic table. Aside from a microwave and a full size fridge, the cabin didn’t really offer any other amenities. We brought our own sheets and campstove. It was nice to be able to set up a crockpot before we got on the river and have dinner ready when we got back though. The cabin was reasonably sized and not a bad experience.
It was nice on Sunday morning to just get to enjoy our coffee as we watched hundreds of hungover people in the campground try to take down tents.
We floated from Scotia to Ozark Outdoors, which is a very pretty 5 mile float in the Huzzah. This meant we had to be bussed from HVR to the put in and from the take out back to HVR. The river was packed!! There were people as far as the eye could see and the raft/canoe/kayak traffic never broke up during our whole time on the river. Since it was not a holiday weekend, we were a little surprised by how crowded it was. This didn't stop is from having a great time though! We floated in a raft and a kayak and both experiences were very good.
The campsite offered tent sites as well as sites with full hookups for RVs. Each campsite has a fire grate and picnic table. There is a camp store on site that sells everything you could possibly forget, from matches to fishing poles to beer.
Product Review
As a Ranger for the Dyrt I get to try out products from time to time. One this trip I tested out Nature’s Coffee Kettle, which is billed as top quality coffee that you can take anywhere. They give you a reusable kettle bag and a filter bag of coffee. You can purchase refill packs to use in the same kettle bag. Kettle bags get up to 4 uses. You place the filter pack at the top of the bag, pour some boiling water over it and let it sit for a few minutes, then you pour the remaining water over the filter and wait a few more minutes for it to brew through the filter bag and drip into the bottom portion of the bag. Once it is done, you can pour yourself a cup of hot joe.
The coffee is very good. Even though the brewing process is a little complex (adding 1 cup of water, waiting a few minutes, adding 3 more cups, waiting more), it isn’t that difficult. The closable pour spout is nice to keep your coffee hot while you drink your first cup. The bag is a little flimsy and I was afraid the kettle would fall over while brewing, but it held up. The kettle and bag are lightweight and can fold down pretty small. These are definitely much easier to use than an old school percolator, and take up less space. I feel like car camping is where these will shine. Although you do still have to pack a pot to boil the water.
They are even practical enough that I might try to take them backpacking at some point. I can’t imagine they will replace Starbucks Vias as my go-to coffee for backpacking though. It is still bigger, creates more trash, and you have to make 4 cups at once even though it is tastier.
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Frequently Asked Questions
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular glamping campground near Van Buren, MO is Ozark Riverfront Campground with a 4.6-star rating from 5 reviews.
TheDyrt.com has all 28 glamping camping locations near Van Buren, MO, with real photos and reviews from campers.
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