Best Glamping near Canastota, NY

New York State pretty much has abandoned this park. Trees fallen down across the sites. Might be ok for a tent but that’s all.

Delta Lake State Park sits at the foothills of the Adirondack Park, just outside Rome, New York. Pretty and well-kempt, Delta Lake is a nice option for those looking to stay close to home and within proximity to civilization. You can enjoy the great outdoors, while only being a few miles away from a restaurant or grocery store.

The campground isn‘t the best I’ve experienced, a bit on the crowded side-similar to a woodsy suburb- but this could have been distinctive to Loop A where I stayed. I stayed in site 35 and was intermixed with all the campers and RV’s, so it got a bit noisy. Not that restful, secluded experience I typically go for, but I should have planned further in advance.

However, what the park lacked in terms of its campground, it totally made up for in its beach, swimming and picnic areas! This place was awesome for hosting a birthday party for my niece and relaxing at the beach/ day facilities. They have plenty of picnic tables, charcoal grills, a huge beach and locker rooms. This is really a great place to spend a day with your family!

This is a great example of what a state park should be. It not only preserves a place of unique biological diversity and geologic interest, it is also well set up and well maintained to maximize low impact outdoor recreation and environmental education. A new state of the art regional environmental education center is being built now that will open in spring, as well as new handicapped access kayaking docks that complement Accessible trails and campsites throughout the park. This is a great destination for families, handicapped campers, and natural history enthusiasts. There are several campgrounds, one is large and open and meant for large RVs, others are drive-in forested tent sites or trailer sites with hookups, and several walkin sites. There is also a colony of rustic camper cabins. The campgrounds have brand new restroom facilities and playgrounds, and the main lake has a new beach house. The lake is a fascinating meromictic lake with clear calcium-rich waters that are not only pristine and beautiful to look at, but also great for swimming and snorkeling as the waters are crystal clear and very deep. There are hiking trails, paved bike trails, a nature preserve for bird watching at Round Lake, a golf course, and great kayaking or canoeing. It is also located right next door to the Erie Canal State Park for those who want to hike or bike the historic Erie Canal. Though you might expect a park like this to be in a remote location, it is actually just a short distance east of the suburbs of the Syracuse metro area, so it is an easy park to get to, plus staying there also provides easy access to stores for supplies, or access to local cultural activities or restaurants for those who want that. One of my favorite state parks in New York!

@penalty shooters 2 said loved where we were this time. page 121. On these hot days, with a slope and a nice breeze.

Yes, it’s true! You’ve hit the campground bathroom lottery here!

Let’s start off with the pros: bathrooms are great! Super modern and clean and hot, free showers! Very handicap accessible as well.

The whole campground is very well kept. Completely litter free and all the buildings and signs are modern and cool looking. Five stars all the way for the people running this place. They are doing an awesome job keeping it very fresh.

Maintenance/facilities: 5 stars

Camping sites:

I’ll start with the positive. It was a simple and easy, level site. And we had electric. So it was good.

The cons: There is zero privacy here. Virtually no trees or shrubs between sites and sites are close to each other. In the rolling meadow sites opt for the electric as the tent only sites are basically a sardine can of campers. I mean in one spot the tents were so close to each other I thought it was a group campsite but it was not. Like a group hostel room but with tents instead of bunks.

We were only here for 1 night passing through and it was great for that but I would not feel comfortable hanging outside at my site in quarters so close. Maybe I’m just weird because many people did. I can’t imagine spending any longer than 1-2 nights here. I would stay again but would check out other camp spots first. In our area 118 and 120 seemed to the best that backed up onto trees as opposed to just other sites.

Camping sites: 2 stars

Amenities: there’s a lot to do here. However I feel I must say you cannot reach the lakes from the rolling meadow campground without a car, bike or very long walk. You can see a bit of round lake through the trees but it really isn’t accessible. Expectations are the doom of any trip so just keep that in mind. You’re not going to bed with any sort of lake views or sounds near you. Also you can only swim at the beach which is pretty small and guarded by some pretty enthusiastic lifeguards taking the job pretty seriously. I guess you will appreciate it if you have little kids to me it was a turn off as I don’t prefer to feel like a fish in a bowl when I swim. But again this is just personal preference! Also there were a lot of rules at this tiny beach - more than I have seen at pretty much any other beach anywhere in the world. Mostly I assume the rules are there to protect the water which I can appreciate but don’t expect a relaxing lake vibe here. Lots of picnic tables and a perfect place to have a picnic and chill for a bit. Very clean beach bath area and I really appreciated the charging station with 4 covered outlets available and a charging counter. I didn’t use it but was impressed someone thought to add that in to the building plans.

With all the rules in place there is just one missing: No political propaganda of any type should be allowed at the campsites. We were almost blinded by idiocy each time we walked to the bathroom as we had to go past a full size Trump flag someone was flying in front of their site. Can’t even imagine the rage I would’ve felt if I had to camp next to that. Fortunately I found a cut through in the woods which I used to get around it on the way to the bathroom. Camping is where you go to get away from all of it! This is state owned land and they should not be allowing that sort of inflammatory full sized political flag in any area as it only raises the blood pressure instead of dropping it. You can’t bring your own SUP or kayak, face mask or list of any other things to the lake (rules) but you can have your heart attack inducing propaganda all over your site and in everyone else’s face - makes no sense.

Would I stay here again: Yes. But only for 1 night passing through. I felt too crowded to be there for any length of time. It was hard for me to relax outside.

Value was a 5 star because I had full electric for $30/night and there was plenty to do. I should note for kids this place is a goldmine! Great playgrounds everywhere and you can rent kayaks. And it’s great for bikes. And it was all very handicap accessible which I thought was very impressive. You can tell a lot of thought went into the facility side of park. If they cut out 1/4 of the camp sites it would be spacious and amazing. And the trumpeter is just a case of bad timing for me, not a permanent thing (although I do think they should ban that decoration of insanity at state run parks).

This park is beautiful and very clean. The water is Crystal clear and very blue, you will think you are in the Caribbean Islands. We visit this park very frequently to rent a boat or to hike the trails.

Have been camping here off & on since I was 12 (1975). Great place for trails, fishing, swimming & plain camping. There are electric & non-electric sites as well as a Cabin Colony. Pet friendly

As a long-time resident of Syracuse, this state park has always been one of my favorites to go to. The lake is the biggest draw, it's crystal blue and impeccably  well maintained. You can take a walk around the lake and then stop at the beach to cool off. Connected to the beach is a food pavilion, grilling up burgers and serving frosty treats.  The campsites are spacious, the bathrooms are clean and well-kept, and the playgrounds are newer models. As a group of four, two adults and two kids under ten, all had a great time.

Our campsite, was directly in front of a small playground so it made it easy to sit in our lawn chair and watch the kids play. The bathroom was only a little farther than the playground and had a sink to wash your dishes in. 

The camp office is located just when you drive in, and everyone was very friendly. A campstore is also a short walk from the campground and has the necessities one may need.

I couldn't complain about anything other than wishing the sun stayed out longer on the trip.

Good-sized sites in hemlock forests, nice bathrooms, and the ability to hike through hilly woods and glens down to the two Green Lakes, which really are a bright teal color! Swimming, picnicking, paddling, and playground on site. A hidden gem.

Full hookup camping loop is nice. Sites could be a little larger but it’s ok. Restrooms and showers could be cleaned a bit more. But I have a shower in my camper so it won’t hold me from camping there again. Lots of hiking and the beach is ok. Playgrounds are decent. Overall a nice place to camp and stores are 5-10 minutes away if you need anything.

I enjoy this park so much! Really love that it is a park in the middle of little towns. Close to grocery, great walks and fun lake to swim in.

I absolutely love this park. Beach for swimming with food stand(not open because of COVID). 2 lakes to walk around. Beautiful scenery! We have been here many times and will continue to return. We have a popup camper and sites are fairly big.

Great trails and lake . It had rained so the beach was empty the next day. Really nice.

Beautiful lakes! The walking/hiking trails are fabulous. They also offer an activity booklet for the kids to fill out during their stay to earn a patch. We camped with our 30 foot trailer on an obvious tent site as it was a bit hard to back in between the trees, but the site was nice and flat and clean. Definitely can’t wait to go back!

Loved our spot this time. Site 121. On a hill and nice breeze on these hot days.

I’ve stayed here in the pine woods loop 3 times with my family. Some sites are a bit small and some are spacious so look them up on the website. They offer electric only in that loop but have full hookups in an open area. The bathrooms are nice, new and clean. You might find a wait because they don’t have a lot of them. The lakes and beach are beautiful and there’s a nice wide trail that would be good for handicapped people as well. Great opportunities for photo ops. I highly recommend.

Site was very shaded, and probably the most secluded of anywhere else in the loop, since we were on the end. However, we were surrounded by nothing but poison ivy on 3 sides. It was crazy. I’m shocked we didn’t all get it; we were just very careful not to venture out of the cleared area. The playground was in clear view of our site, which was great for our 5-yr-old. As far as campgrounds go, this is probably my least favorite of everywhere I’ve stayed. I’m used to the more secluded, wooded sites in MD state parks, but this was essentially a ring of tightly-packed sites with virtually no separation, with a large field in the middle. Ours was one of the only sites with any kind of shade. It was PACKED, and very noisy. Bath house was centrally located, in the middle of the field. Relatively clean, but not nearly enough to accommodate all campers in the loop. Only two shower stalls, and there was always a line. Campground aside, the park itself was very nice. The lakes were gorgeous, and there were really nice, wide, paved walking trails around them. There was also a sandy beach area for swimming. We were there for a family reunion, so spent most of the time at the picnic shelter, with the exception of a brief walk around the lake. Wish we could have explored the park more. Overall, this is a pretty park, but I wouldn’t camp there again.

We really loved this place and would love to come back.

HIGHLIGHTS:

Beautiful clear blue lakes 

Nice, long trails around both lakes 

Swimming area 

Kayak rentals 

Nature educational building 

Decent sized sites

CONS: 

There are signs all over that you can’t swim in the lake. Only in the designated area. 

Hard to get a kayak to rent at times

NEARBY ATTRACTIONS: Golf course Mini golf

Green Lakes has camping about 25 sites have full hook up and can handle big rigs, golf, swimming, hiking, biking,sall camp store at Pine Woods, consession stand at the beach, restaurant at the club house. Across the road is the NYS Canal Trail which goes from Buffal to Albany biking, fishing, hike, and more.

Such a large park with lots of space. Sites with various hookups. The water is breathtaking!! And the beach and property is clean and wonderfully maintained!

Our family had a wonderful time at this clean, well-maintained, and beautiful park!! The park was very accessible for my daughter who is in a wheelchair, and VERY kid-friendly!!