Best Tent Camping in Nebraska

Quaint little city park with RV and tent camping. To occupy a tent site you MUST pitch a tent ( so no Van camping at those). Place is quiet and clean and nice peeps

4 of us tent camped here over Labor Day weekend and there was only one other camper in the tent site. Bathroom was very clean and the space was well maintained. There’s a 1.1 mile loop trail that skirts the North side of the lake with the trail head right off the tent site. Water was extremely murky so depending on what you’re fishing for it may not be the best.

Overall we loved the campground and will be back!

We stopped here for one night on our tent camping trip across the U.S. The tent sites were well spaced, and the bathroom was much closer than it appeared on the map on their website. Very friendly staff. The bathrooms and showers were clean, and the water pressure for the shower was outstanding. There’s a lot of road noise since it’s right by I-80, but for one night it was no big deal.

Ok so first off this was a pretty site BUT... we had a tent. There was some kind of thorny thing all over the ground it mad it very hard for my kids to play or even have a blowup mattress. It literally stuck into everything. If you had a camper it was a great spot. If your camping in a tent would not recommend this site at all. Also you have to pay with your showers with tokens 1 token is 2 mins worth. It was not worth the money to me to stay here.

I stayed at a tent site and it was small and very close to other campers (it’s like a parking lot in size and closeness), but I liked feeling a part of a community. If you want some space though, it may not be for you (with tent camping that’s all they have). Big plus for me since it was so cold and windy, was that the restrooms and office were right next to me. They also offered to leave firewood that I wanted in my site, and in case of rain ended up setting it inside at the registration lobby since I came after office hours. One staff member checked to make sure I found everything okay and I appreciated that. They have a K-9 enclosure for a bit of pupper exercise, a playground, and a pool when it is in season. Not much of a view anywhere but they have cool old pioneer wagons all around so that was neat. No complaints and if it weren’t so windy I would have really enjoyed having a cozy site near possible new friends.

Open May 1– October 1. Got the second to last site on a Wednesday in July(you can reserve sites after the campground opens on May 1). We chose this campground for its proximity to Scottsbluff. Although there is a tent site area, the campground was filled mostly with large RVs. The hosts were very friendly and welcoming and even though it was not a large campground, the host escorted us to our site. He offered several times to deliver firewood to us if we wanted. Reasonable cost for sites($10 tent camping,$20 water and electric,$25 for full hook-up). Best sites are the ones at the end of the rows as they have a nice patch of lawn. Alcoholic beverages are permitted but must be consumed inside your rig/tent. WiFi is available but not a strong signal; using our own data worked much better. Restrooms were reasonably clean(accessed via a code) and there are showers. This campground is located within a city park and there are other facilities(fitness trail, dog park, and supposedly a zoo). I did a little exploring but rain was imminent so I didn’t wander far, however, the facilities outside the campground looked like they could have used a little TLC. Of course, there is a nearby train!

Pawnee Lake State Recreation Area was within 30 minutes of Lincoln, NE . Try to make sure all essentials are packed to enjoy your stay without frequent trips to town. This is one of those spots where you can easily park the car and use other means of transportation for your whole visit.(ie, feet, bike, boat, horse, etc.)

There are options to where you camp. RV sites and tent in three different areas. This is not my favorite sort of tent camping, you have to park and walk everything to your site. Some tent sites are located right on the lake which is nice, you can easily park your watercraft nearby. However if it’s busy your neighbors are going to be very nearby. Not much privacy in that case. We however were completely alone when we visited, the crappy weather played a part I’m sure. Shade, which we didn’t need and picnic tables. If you have a hammock you may have an issue with getting it hung, bring alternate means of suspension.

The trails are multi-use so pay attention. We were hiking in the rain so did not see anyone but the trail apples were fresh. Were we hiked it was grassy and mostly level, there was an area where hikers had trails to themselves and a few benches to sit on.

The lake looked nice but I didn’t see anyone on it. I didn’t see any algae signs but the weather may have been a factor too. We overnighted so I didn’t get to completely explore the entire area. It was pretty quiet, some motor noises but they were more of a background noise. Worth an extended stay as long as the lake is open.

Great tent camping. An oasis in Nebraska. A lot of amenities including swimming pool. Very clean & well appointed bath house.

This campground features cabins and tent camping. Designed for families, there is a playground and lots of open space for the kids to run around. Pets are welcome. There is a small pond stocked for fishing right in the middle of the tent camping area. Take a short hike to see where the Niobrara river dumps into the Missouri and take in some of the best views in Nebraska. In the winter months, hunters often use the cabins as home base and hunt in the surrounding woods.

There is not an option for tent camping, van camping, or anything but RVs. The owner was kind, but explained that he has not allowed tent camping for two years.

We have tent camped at Sharps for the last 10 years. The campsite is always clean and the staff is warm and friendly. They make sure we have the best possible experience. We will only tent camp here.

We stayed here in June. The tent sites are very close in proximity- your conversation quickly becomes your neighbors conversation. Tent sites are pull-up which is convenient. There are RVs behind and away from the tent sites (mostly RVs here with about 10 tent sites). We met some great tent neighbors & had nice conversation. One tent neighbor was extremely disruptive (left their dog tied up crying at the site- did not give the dog water the whole time they were there which was 12 hours- It was sad- they were also all around loud and inconsiderate). Other than those neighbors all was good. Laundry on site so bring quarters. Showers are clean enough. Bathrooms are a close walk to tent sites. Not much at the camp store (they were out of a lot of stuff their site says they have & we're not making food either), but they did get an ice delivery when we were there which was helpful. We planned to cook at our site anyway- but it was inconvenient for some families relying on their pizza for dinner. Great sunset views over the cornfield from the tent sites !!!