Best Dog-Friendly Camping near Freeville, NY

This park offers over 300 campsites with restrooms, hot showers, dumping stations and firewood for sale. The park is open all year round. Check for dates on openings for pool, campgrounds, and trails. Pets are allowed on the grounds but not on the trails

The trails follow a gorge with multiple waterfalls that weave in and out of small caves and falls. For all you wondering, swimming is not allowed in the gorge. Overall nice hiking. My only drawback is the dog rule and the campsites being so close to one another.

Pinecreek is a beautiful park in a great area 10 minutes from downtown Ithica New York and Lake Cayuga. The area has everything you could possibly want or need. Fabulous State Parks with spectacular waterfalls, a farmers market right on the lake front, Cornell University and so much more. That being said it may be the reason the campground doesn't offer any planned activities. They do have a swimming pool and what appears to be a large clubhouse/meeting area that is not or was not used while we were there, nor were any activities publicized. They do have a small arcade but it did not stay open past 8 pm and did not appear to be air-conditioned.

Our campsite was a full hookup with a large grassy area for setting up our outside chairs and picnic table. Although we enjoyed our stay we felt it was a bit overpriced for not having much to offer. They also have a very long list of rules & while they do allow pets there is a list of breed restrictions you need to be aware of before booking a reservation. They also charge for electricity on any stays one week or longer which we had not encountered previously at campgrounds where we have stayed.

Overall we enjoyed our stay but not sure we would stay again.

Great family campground, decent sized sites, many lake side sites, very clean bathrooms/ showers. Several playgrounds, heated pool, pet friendly with shots paperwork. Good fishing in pond (cant use live bait or keep fish )

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

Site is sloped, shaded and right next to the bathrooms and water spigot. ATT coverage is decent. Other side of the bathrooms is access to the gorge trails. Pets are not allowed on the gorge trail itself but the rim and other trails are fine.

This facility is perfect for couple of people , private all you need is there , fireplace , fire wood, bathroom , cat and dog))) some of the grounds have hammock upon request. Take your vehicle with you ,no more long distance from a parking lot 👍 The host are very accommodative , and it’s 4 min away from Watkins glen state park. enjoy the Pooh’s story….

This is a very nice campground. There are many sites with electric available at every site. There are some sites with full hook-up available and also specific areas that allow pets. Swimming is available at the large beach. You can rent a kayak and enjoy the beautiful lake. There are miles of trails to explore. There is a camp store, laundry room, recreation room, playgrounds and much more.

I love that despite there being so many sites, you don’t feel on top of each other in Seneca Village. It’s a state campground so don’t expect it to be anything close to dispersed camping. Trees separated me from my neighbors on either side, woods behind my tent, lots of quiet, no one blasted music or anything like that. I woke up to seeing trees above me and hearing birds. The bathroom was clean, with multiple ways to enter it without going near someone else’s site. The campground felt safe, and you are able to buy firewood (I didn’t due to quite a bit of rain). To get to the gorge trail, you have to walk over to the next site (Oswego I think) but it’s not too far. I would most likely stay at that loop next time though because it seemed to have even more space on each site. I didn’t see any bears and asked a few workers but only one had seen a bear the entire time they’ve been there. Definitely recommend this location. Lots of beautiful trails, red cat wine slushies were delicious, grounds were fun to explore and people were either friendly or kept to themselves which was great. Super dog friendly and I met many of them! Just a note, dogs are NOT allowed on the gorge trail.

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.

Jake from the Dyrt here!  Nature Lover's Paradise is new to the Dyrt and they have an awesome spot to share with access to a vast network of trails in upstate New York.  Check them out and make sure to share some pics of your adventure!

Definitely one of the top places to camp and visit in New York, Watkins Glen State Park never disappoints. Each time I come back, I find something new to discover and have a great time doing that. Pair awesome trails and camping space with world class wineries up the lake, you cannot go wrong.

Watkins Glen boasts one of New York’s most beautiful state parks! I last camped here in 2012 and absolutely loved hiking along the gorges. Also- the camping was next to perfect. Sites are decently sized and well secluded from one another.

in addition, the park is so well situated within the Finger Lakes and all the various wine trails! Made for a perfect girls weekend! Definitely recommend!

The only Finger Lakes National Forest designated campground, Blueberry Patch offers a secluded experience in the heart of this sometimes overlooked beautiful geographic region in the State of New York. This campground offers a simple experience, with fire rings and picnic tables at each site and seems to accommodate just tent and small campers. Vault toilets available. On a week day in early summer, 3 of the 9 campsites we’re occupied. Can see it filling up on weekends. Enjoy!

Located in Tompkins County, Ithaca New York has beautiful gorges and hiking trails. Robert Treman is a treat and a gorgeous place to camp in the Ithaca, NY area. There are endless waterfalls, hiking trails, fishing holes and bird watching opportunities. The campground has bathrooms, showers, picnic tables, a playground and a dump station. There are cabins, tents and rv sites, some of which are handicapped accessible. Ithaca is also packed with wineries and the finger lakes. A great place to visit!

Buttermilk Falls State Park is a great state park in central New York. The scenery is what makes this park stand out. Unlike neighboring Taughannock Falls State Park, there isn't a large waterfall at the end of any trail. However, it is the mix of constant small waterfalls that really show in this park. There are plenty of overlooks, you can go in the streams, and the camp sites are great. They are spacious and inviting, and the neighbors are close, but not TOO close. Excellent for a weekend getaway or longer because there is so much to see.

Taughannock Falls State Park is one of my favorite parks in New York. The camp grounds are excellent, there are TONS of trails nearby, the swimming area of the lake is close, and the water is very clean. The crown jewel of the place is Taughannock Falls, which is a short flat hike to one of the tallest single drop waterfalls on the east coast. It really is quite the sight. There are cool playgrounds for the kids, grills, restrooms, showers, and plenty of activities to do, such as stand up paddle boarding. Taughannock has it going on, and I will be back!

We camped here for 3 nights, I had an event in Geneva. Location was handy, easy in and out. It’s an old navy/Air Force base that was converted in the 60’s. Sites have a weird thing with one electric post per two sites… but they aren’t pull through. So, apparently, New York doesn’t care if you just park anywhere in the general area of your site, which is a vibe, but bring an extension cord. There’s some kind of “resort” co-located that appears to have more conventional hookups, but I’m unclear on how to book that. Price was fine, spot was ok, lake swim beach and playground were nice.

I absolutely love coming to Watkins Glen Campground, especially when I went to get away from the busy city. This park has gorgeous waterfalls, and great paths to walk and hike on. It's located in Upstate New York, so it's close enough to the city but you feel like you are far away from the city. The campsites are great, clean and well kept. This park does get pretty busy though, because it is open to campers and people who just want to visit for the day to walk the trails. I love that they have trails that lead very close to the waterfalls..lots of rim trails that literally overlook the waterfalls and gorges. In the campground they do offer a pool, which again, does get busy because it's open to everyone regardless if you are camping or not. There also is tours you can take in the summer that will take you along the waterfalls and gorge, they have a playground for kids and an area with picnic tables. I went mid July and it was extremely busy, not sure when a good time to go during the summer when it's not as busy. That was the only downside I would say, is how crowded it was. There is also Seneca Lake nearby that many people go to fish in, however I didn't go on this trip but plan to next time. There are restrooms on site, however I didn't think they were that clean. Toilet paper and seat covers were out in most stalls, so I would advise to bring your own when you go. There is also some gift shops and food stands set up...one food stand has some pretty good hot dogs! The hikes to the gorge and waterfalls is pretty well maintained, however there are quite a bit of stairs. There were some people with kids in strollers that had to turn around because the stairs made it difficult. Not handicap friendly. I would advise to wear a good pair of walking shoes, and not sandals because it is slippery in some spots and again, a lot of stairs! I would highly recommend coming here, even if you don't decide to stay the night!

Went for a quick getaway to this little gem of a state park in the finger lakes region of New York. I’ll be coy, and use their slogan ‘Ithaca is Gorges’ and Gorgeous!!! The falls trails were all well defined and excellent for a beginner, moderate hiker. More advanced trails were also offered as well as biking trails, so plenty for any level of adventurer!! Lots of educational posters along the way to keep you informed of what you were seeing and the history about how it was created. The locals were pleasant, and eager to share fun facts about their area. We stayed at the campground in the park. It was cozy, clean, and just right for a little off the grid fun. No electricity or water hook ups available, but nice big public baths and plenty of water access all around the camp ground. (Say one water spot every 3-4 camp sites). There was also a dump station and trash dumpsters easily accessible at the entrance. Can not wait to go back, planning a week long trip next year and will do all three tours, wine, beer, and cheese!! Till next September!! Stay Gorges!!!

Okay, we all get that there is awesome hiking, scenery, wineries, racing, and more in the Watkins Glen area. So let’s just chat about the campground.

The bathhouses were A+. Clean, well maintained, newer…just overall impressive!

There were water fill up stations EVERYWHERE! We camped in the dry camping loop - it was the only one available to us in our 35’ class A. We didn’t miss anything!

The playground was OUTSTANDING! All adults in our party and we couldn’t help but jump on some of the swings. It’s a newer type playground and is hands down the best I’ve ever seen!

Last, and certainly not least…personnel.

We had the opportunity to speak with the campground ranger, facilities engineer, and gate attendants. Everyone was accommodating, friendly, warm, helpful, and more. :).

One of the BEST campgrounds out there! Thank you New York State, the NYState park system and all the folks at Watkins Glen State Park Campground who make the magic happen!!!

One mention: our site was rated for a 25’ RV, we were 35’ long and fit nicely. Other sites rated for 35’ RV were NOT long enough. (We had to switch sites).