Best Glamping near Bowmansville, NY

Not technically in the Finger Lakes but still one of the most beautiful parts of Western New York State. Splurge and eat at the Glen Iris Inn! Great for cycling and hiking but no swimming. I love taking visitors here in all seasons but in autumn it is exceptional. I’ve stayed in a few tent sites and all are wooded and pretty private with your standard basic amenities. This is a popular park so make reservations.

Letchworth State Park is known as the Grand Canyon of the East and is located in Mt. Morris New York. My husband and I visited regularly when we lived near Rochester, NY. The park is stunning and is fit for camping whether you’re in a tent, RV or choosing to rent a gorgeous cabin. There are many walking and hiking trails for adventurers of all types. Make sure you bring your camera as the views are all photo worthy. The camping price is right due to the fact that the park is run by the state. A great place to stay especially in the Summer!!

I went to college right near Letchworth State Park so I spent many wonderful weekends there! There is a reason why they call it the Grand Canyon of the East. Not only can you check out the beautiful waterfalls, but there are also many awesome trails, rivers, and caves to check out. When I would camp, we would rent a camp site with our tent but, you could camp with your RV or even rent a cabin. Ive gone every month of the year, but these pictures were from my birthday in January. Letchworth is one of the best parks in New York state and a definite must see!

The best part of Golden Hill is being right on the shore of Lake Ontario. The Lakeside sites are the best bet as you get an unobstructed view of the incredible sunrise and sunset over the lake. The shade and privacy is nothing to speak of, but the views make up for that. The lighthouse is also worth checking out. There are also Yurts here that can be rented.

In most states, those without falls like Niagara, this state park would be the pride of the land. With three serious drops in as many miles, the Genesse River winds it’s way through what locals call the “Grand Canyon of the East.” Many states try to make such claims, but this might be the closest any come to actually living up to such. It is stunning! 

Along the river this park gives the motorist the distinct feel that she is on a parkway, not unlike Shenendoah, or Blue Ridge. Every few miles the winding pavement breaks out onto a few of the ridges and valley below, before ducking back into the forest of Western New York.

The campground, which is about 15 miles from the major falls area, offers what many come to expect from state parks. There are a wide variety of campsites, all reservable online, which can accommodate lots of different types of camping, large RV’s, small tents, and everything in between. Most, if not all, campsites offer electrical and water is available close by.

The bathrooms are practically luxurious by most camping standards, with single-use restroom/ showers available at all hours. The camp store offered a few grocery items, along with cold drinks, firewood and ice in addition to laundry facilities. Within a short walk were many hiking trails, an old-school fitness path, and a stellar playground where anyone under 9 years of age should get a great workout. 

But let’s be honest, we’re not coming here for the campground, it’s the rest of the park that makes the drive worth it. So, check it out and get to know this stunning place first hand and be sure to bring a picnic basket.

**Ranger Review: Men’s Rebel Stretch Shell Jacket at Letchworth State Park **

CampgroundReview: 

I’ve visited Letchworth State Park, known as the Grand Canyon of the East, in the winter and the summer, but this is the first time in autumn and the first time camping. Although this very large state park is starkly beautiful, the campground is not as nice as other New York state parks we have recently been to. We were in the 600 loop, the farthest from the camp office and closest to the Genesee River (although we could not see it from our site). The sites on the outside of the 600 loop were larger and more private; most of them were pie-shaped and had many trees that provided ample separation. The sites on the inside of the loop were much smaller and less private. The bathrooms were reasonable but dated. The showers did not look very inviting and although I did not use them, I overheard someone comment they were the worst showers they had ever experienced! 

I highly recommend the free tour of the Mt. Morris Dam on the other side of the river from the campground. The tour is interesting and lasts approximately one hour. Offered at 2 pm in the offseason and twice per day during the summer.

It rained almost the entire time we were there, so we didn’t take any long hikes. We did a short hike to the Lower Falls. The footbridge was closed for repairs when we were there. The Middle Falls and Upper Falls can be seen with very short walks. There is also a restaurant in the park which was ok but not fantastic

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Product Review: 

As a Ranger for The Dyrt, I get to test products. At this campground, we tested the Men’s Rebel Stretch Shell Jacket by Red Ledge. The price of this jacket is much less than many other available brands, so we were interested in checking it out and ordered one for my husband. 

Positives: 

• Affordable price 

• Workmanship appears to be solid and of good quality. 

• Seams are all sealed. Feels comfortable, although the material has a slightly rubbery feel 

• Water beads up very well 

• The waist is adjustable. 

Negatives: 

• The hood adjustment is a bit awkward 
• There are no zippered air vents at the armpits 
• The front Rapid entry zip pockets are designed to protect your cell phone from rain, but it makes it slightly awkward for slipping your hands in. 
• Ordered size large because the sleeve length on the XL would have been too long, but this did not leave a lot of room for layering. 

Bottom line: 

Although it is well made and a good value for the price, it is not as functional as my husband would have liked.

Place is filled with campers which don’t move all summer. There are decks, low fences, and stuff around their campers. Clearly they visit annually for the season. We had a lake front spot but our electricity didn’t work. When I called they said someone would come check it “later”. We didn’t have power for our short visit. Too rainy to enjoy the grounds but the pool area looked nice. The lake didn’t look particularly inviting, maybe it was the rain.

I didn’t see a review mentioning that the park has a fireworks and laser light show from 10-11:30PM every Friday and Saturday. The show is right next to the campground. We had just gotten our two kids down to sleep when it started and of course everyone was back up again until Midnight. Other than that the campground was great, well maintained, and there are security trucks enforcing quiet hours, no one around us made a peep after 10, and we saw the guards snuff out a couple partys quickly and quietly. There was a HUGE line for the dump station on Sunday morning, definitely worth the couple extra bucks for full hookup so you can bypass that.

kids and parents will love this place as has lots of entertainment for all ages

Good swimming I only used Tent Camping wonderful hiking trails last time I went hiking Great place to take a family. amusement park around the corner to

We visited in the fall as the leaves were changing color. Very pretty.

HIGHLIGHTS: 

Lake Swimming area 

Large field to fly kites

NEARBY ATTRACTIONS: Darien Lakes Theme Park

9/25-9/29/22- The park was nearly empty, perhaps 6 or 8 other campers widely spread out. It was immaculate and the sites well spaced apart. All site have a picnic table and fire pit. Ours had both 30A and 50A power, was pretty level left/right but about 6” high in front before we leveled our 34’ fifth wheel. The park has drinking water faucets at a variety of places throughout, but site#15 has a faucet directly next to it, so we had water available too. Both AT&T 4G and Verizon 5G had 3 bars reception. The dump station was clean and convenient. It looked like a great place for kids that included at least one (probably more) playground.

Definitely a family friendly place to camp

This is a beautiful place! Monday thru Friday the campground is quite and mostly empty. Friday brings the weekend families and their dogs, still very enjoyable and definitely entertaining!