The Dyrt is here to help plan your best camping near Columbus. Columbus is an adventure-filled destination for those who love the outdoorsy camper lifestyle. But it's also great for those who prefer to spend time near the city, exploring and sightseeing. Search nearby campsites and find top-rated spots from other campers.
$8 - $35 / night
The largest of the three parks on land donated by one of the early Stromsburg settlers, Buckley Park is located on a natural setting along the Big Blue River and Prairie Creek. It includes three pavilions and other picnicking facilities, a heated swimming pool, disc golf, tennis courts, basketball courts, sand volleyball courts, horseshoe pits, baseball fields, playground equipment, free camping and RV parking spaces with electric hookups.
All RV Sites have 50-30-20 Amp Electrical Service, Picnic Table and Fire Ring. Sites 1 thru 5 have Water Hookup. Sites 6 thru 18 have Water and Sewer Hookup. RV guests may require additional RV electrical extension cord and water hose extension to reach electrical and water service utilities. These utilities are located on the back side of the RV camping sites. We now have a dump station for your black and gray waste water. We charge $10 per dump, which can be purchased when you are making your reservation or in person.
Cabins available too -check out our website!
$40 - $50 / night
We are a family owned and operated campground in Nebraska. Easy access off Interstate 80 at exit 360. Lots for the family: pool, mini-golf, playground, arcade.... All sites are pull-thru full hookups.
$45 - $75 / night
$10 - $20 / night
$8 - $35 / night
The largest of the three parks on land donated by one of the early Stromsburg settlers, Buckley Park is located on a natural setting along the Big Blue River and Prairie Creek. It includes three pavilions and other picnicking facilities, a heated swimming pool, disc golf, tennis courts, basketball courts, sand volleyball courts, horseshoe pits, baseball fields, playground equipment, free camping and RV parking spaces with electric hookups.
All RV Sites have 50-30-20 Amp Electrical Service, Picnic Table and Fire Ring. Sites 1 thru 5 have Water Hookup. Sites 6 thru 18 have Water and Sewer Hookup. RV guests may require additional RV electrical extension cord and water hose extension to reach electrical and water service utilities. These utilities are located on the back side of the RV camping sites. We now have a dump station for your black and gray waste water. We charge $10 per dump, which can be purchased when you are making your reservation or in person.
Cabins available too -check out our website!
$40 - $50 / night
We are a family owned and operated campground in Nebraska. Easy access off Interstate 80 at exit 360. Lots for the family: pool, mini-golf, playground, arcade.... All sites are pull-thru full hookups.
$45 - $75 / night
Traveler
This Campground is beautiful and cozy! Picnic table and fire pit at site with 30 and 20 amp. Note that it is a 4 day Max and you have to leave for 10 days before you can come back. New spots at Lucy Holm were not open as it was middle of November when we stayed. They have an 18 hole disc golf, tennis, volleyball, basketball, pool, and 3 playgrounds. They have really put a lot of work in this park. Would love to stay during the summer!
TravelerThe only good from this Campground is its full hookup year round. It was dirty and very outdated. Most of the sewer hookups were broken and backed up and the electric boxes were broken and outdated. If you have a newer rv I would suggest not staying here or try to find a good electrical box. No fire rings, most sites just had a fire on the ground. This place is just run down and dirty, ok place for a night.
Ranger
This campground is one of our favorites. It’s got clean restrooms and showers, plenty of water available plus the dump station. Nice lake for fishing or kayaking. Great trails for hiking or mountain biking. Super quiet place and some pretty great sunsets!
Ranger
This city park has eight or nine spots available some have full hook ups and some have just water and some have just sewer and some have just electric. We stayed on spot nine, which had all three. Only downside to this little place was since it is the city park and there is a playground here, quite a bit of local traffic bringing the kids in. Nice walking trail around part of the golf course. When we were there, there was no place to pay, but I called the city clerk and she said just to put the money in a dropbox at City Hall, which is $20 now.pretty close to the road that goes through town so a little bit of traffic noise.
Scout
Perfect little spot right off the interstate. Clean, quiet, hookups. Nice park. Fun town.
Ranger
We stayed here for a mountain bike race weekend. Nighttime is great for stargazing and they have pretty stellar sunrises. We enjoyed the archery range and took plenty of walks. The shower facilities need a lot of updating and the RV spots are pretty dated with narrow roads. We were glad it wasn’t a weekend with a full campground and we think it would be pretty hectic during their peak season.
Ranger
It’s been a few years since we stayed at Lake Wanahoo, but we decided to stay there over our anniversary weekend. The place is still great, and this time of year it was very quiet and peaceful.
I was able to fish at the lake, we used the trails for walking and biking. Being close to town allowed us to have a great anniversary dinner at a steakhouse!
We are definitely going to be using it more!
Guide
We stayed there in late August on a weeknight. The sites look new, possibly recently refurbished. There is a small lake near which is an easy walk. Everything was clean and recently mowed grass. In the middle of corn fields, but a nice quiet place to spend one night.
Traveler
Very easy to find, free and simple. Pull up, park, sleep, enjoy lake in the morning!
Scout
This lake and campground are inundated with geese. We kayaked and I noticed “things” floating everywhere in the water. Goose poop. It was gross. Someone had also smeared (likely) human poo all over the walls and floor of the outhouse. I’m not going back.
Legend
We’d passed through this area a few years ago when traveling I-80 and noticed there was a campground(CG) and golf course here in Waco, NE. We added this CG to our list and finally got a chance to stay here. The CG is a little ways off I-80 and easy to get to. Check-in was quick and easy and we were led to pull through site 303 with FHUs. There are separate prices for weekdays and weekends. The utilities were at the center of the long gravel pad. Water pressure was okay at around 40 psi. We got 2 bars on Verizon. The sites here are decently spaced especially for a private CG. The CG was clean and well-maintained. If there were long-term residents, you could not tell. We were here over a weekend, so there were families and a lot of kids using the swimming pool, mini golf, and the large playground area. Each site, along with a picnic table and fire pit has a bench swing. There’s a decent-sized dog park on the south side and larger one on the north side. The CG has its own tornado siren plus an underground tornado shelter. There’s one cabin for rent. They also have a well-kept laundry room with 2 washers and 2 dryers. York has your main amenities such as Walmart. The golf course right next door is a deceptively tough 9-hole course.
ScoutReally nice staff. Bathhouse is nice and clean. There are all sorts of games: Basketball, volleyball, miniature golf, Large Jenga, etc... Nice pool. Only issue: road noise. It's just off the expressway. It's not too bad though.
Guide
They have 18 electric sites $26/night and tent non electric sites for $18/night. 7 day max stays. Reservable.
TravelerMay have missed some thing because we arrived in the dark, but could see any areas with flat, low grass areas for camping
ScoutGreat stopover campground or for staying awhile. Norfolk is nearby and has a lot of restaurants and shopping. The Cowboy Trail starts here and continues to Valentine, NE. Clean bathrooms and showers as well.
Traveler
There are areas dedicated for daily use, primitive camping and electric sites. Great Lake for kayaking or a small jon boat. Has restrooms available, no showers. No dumpsite. Fire pit and picnic table available at sites.
Appears to be a quiet retreat with minimal campers.
Ranger
Stopped here for the night while traveling through the area. Great stop. Clean and safe campground with full hook ups. Would recommend.
ScoutBrand new campground moving up quickly. The cabins are 5 star quality and they're still building more. RV sites are spacious, concrete patios w/ picnic tables, new fire rings. Baby trees were just planted to help with some shade, but there are a few mature trees too. Along the Big Platte River & has a pond for fishing only, with sites around the pond. The shower house is brand new and beautiful & very clean inside. Great place to stay in eastern Nebraska! Columbus has activities for kids too. Water park (the Pawnee plunge) & playgrounds (Centennial Park). There's a Walmart & Menards within 10 min. And plenty of food choices too.
ScoutAbout 3 turns off the highway via dirt road. Very pretty, clean toilets, potable water, has picnic tables and grills. Definitely staying again on my way back east
Guide
Camped here previous year, and it was nice to come back to. Bathroom and lots of spots to set up. Also looks like it might be getting an update with the pavilion
ScoutNice n quiet with a good breeze lots around for kids to do well kept n everything works as should I get back this way I will spend more time here next time .owners are real friendly and informative.
TravelerGreat little spot right off the expressway. Seems to be used mostly for RV's but has space for tents. Tent spaces are not marked but there are fire pits to give you a general idea of where to camp. Also, looks like they are constructing a picnic/gazebo area.
TravelerWe spent Memorial weekend here in 2022. We had to park in a designated parking spot and walk in to set our tent. The site was shady and came with a picnic table, fire ring and We were right on the shores of the lake. It was a beautiful and very relaxing to hear the waves, although the wind coming across the lake was mighty fierce and destroyed the canopy that we had over the picnic table. And the beating of the tent all night long was a little hard to get some decent sleep. But the area was nice and close to the restrooms and spacious campsites
Traveler
Small park with only 3 campsites. It has a hiking trail and a pond to do some fishing. Stayed for two days and would come back. Be wary though that there is limited availability
Scout
Nebraska campgrounds are never that stellar in my opinion often right by the freeway, but this one was the worst. The location is beautiful but the restrooms were the worst I’ve ever seen. It costs nearly as much as a site in a national park with the out-of-state permit, and music was played at all hours by people without any recourse. The cherry on top was our vehicle being pelted with rocks when the person next to us started mowing at 7am.
Guide
This is a nice small campground that is well taken care of. We stayed at site number 8 which may be one of the more unlevel spots. The passenger side of our 5th wheel was about 7" lower than driver side and rear of fifth wheel was about 3" lower than front before we levelled out.
Pros:
-Well maintained walking trails that are perfect for dogs
-Most sites have 30 and 50 amp hookups
-Fire rings and picnic tables at most sites
-$18 a night for electric hookups
-Quiet
Cons:
-Some sites are very unlevel
-No water or dump station
GuideGreat place clean facilities..heard a dog barking but.. kids ..dogs no issues here.. Nothing to stop wind so be prepared if your thinking of hanging out for a while Gravel road from highway to camp so keep dust in mind..
But for me it was all wonderful!!!!
Camping near Columbus, Nebraska, offers a variety of experiences for outdoor lovers. From spacious campgrounds to fun activities, there’s something for everyone in this area.
Camping in Columbus, NE, offers a mix of fun, relaxation, and adventure. Whether you're with family or just looking for a peaceful getaway, there’s a spot for you!
Frequently Asked Questions
What camping is available near Columbus, NE?
According to TheDyrt.com, Columbus, NE offers a wide range of camping options, with 69 campgrounds and RV parks near Columbus, NE and 1 free dispersed camping spot.
Which is the most popular campground near Columbus, NE?
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular campground near Columbus, NE is Branched Oak Lake State Rec Area with a 4.1-star rating from 27 reviews.
Where can I find free dispersed camping near Columbus, NE?
According to TheDyrt.com, there is 1 free dispersed camping spot near Columbus, NE.
What parks are near Columbus, NE?
According to TheDyrt.com, there are 3 parks near Columbus, NE that allow camping, notably Conestoga Lake and Harlan County Lake.
