Best Camping near Marathon, NY

Recent Reviews in Marathon

515 Reviews of 131 Marathon Campgrounds

• B

  Butch K.

  Ranger

  

  Oct. 17, 2024

  Unadilla KOA

  Lackluster and full service

  The weather was terrible while I was there, so perhaps this review may be biased. The Campground was very quiet in mid October. Many of the sites seem to be seasonal as there was no traffic to or from them. But there was quite a bit of daily traffic, usually arriving late and leaving early. Perhaps because the weather was turning very chilly and although the leaf peeping was at its peak for this season, I think people were heading south fast like me.

• 

  Meghan B.

  Ranger

  

  Oct. 15, 2024

  Sugar Hill Fire Tower Campsite

  Sugar Hill Fire Tower Campsite

  Nice, quiet stay. Third time staying here over the last decade when passing through the area and it's been great every time.

• B

  Beth

  Guide

  

  Oct. 14, 2024

  Taughannock Falls State Park Campground

  Great little campground

  Pulled back and punted bc of Storm Debbie. Lucked out with a find in the Finger Lakes. Nice campground. Has everything you need. Small sites but fine for our hybrid. Ours was shady. Check out which side the hookups are on. Some not situated on the right side so you’ll need extra long cords. Just beautiful area. Hiked here. Drove to Watkins Glen-hiked-absolutely breathtaking. That campground is much larger. Went to Buttermilk Falls too.

• J

  Jessica C.

  Traveler

  

  Oct. 11, 2024

  Watkins Glen State Park Campground

  Favorite State Park Spot

  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.

• A

  Andrew S.

  Guide

  

  Oct. 1, 2024

  Sugar Hill Recreation Area Camping

  Amazing campground

  Very well maintained. Some sites are close and some a spread out. About half of them are in the sun and half get shade all day. I switched sites after a day to get some solar charging. Clean bathrooms with flush toilets. Sign in near bathrooms on arrival. Dogs must be on a leash but I found a spot down the hill to the south where there are no campsites to let them play fetch for a bit.

• 

  Carol L.

  Traveler

  

  Sep. 26, 2024

  Nature Lover's Paradise

  cool

  The tent site and the 70 acres of hiking trails sound like the perfect getaway for anyone looking to reconnect with nature. I love the idea of having access to such a large network of trails, especially with the Finger Lakes area offering so much natural beauty. By the way, if you’re ever in need of some inspiration or ideas for nature-related essays, check out Nature Essay Examples and Topic Ideas on https://www.topessaywriting.org/samples/nature —there’s a lot of helpful content there! Overall, this seems like the ideal spot for anyone wanting to escape the hustle and bustle of everyday life.

• m

  meg

  Scout

  

  Sep. 24, 2024

  Cayuga Lake State Park Campground

  Tent camping in a backyard

  Tent camping here felt like we were camping in a neighborhood backyard. We could hear so many different families talking and really doing everything you do while camping but the area felt so open and unobstructed voices carried and in the evening when everyone was building campfires the smoke could be overwhelming at times.

• 

  William F.

  Traveler

  

  Sep. 20, 2024

  Watkins Glen State Park Campground

  Solid 4 stars

  Nice campground, sites are borderline close, and some are laid out funky. Bath houses get the job done, but nothing exciting.

• 

  Martin W.

  Scout

  

  Sep. 19, 2024

  Stoney Pond State Forest Camping Area

  Camping in the woods

  Nice and calm place in that little State Forest. Internet and fire pits are available. All sites seem fairly similar, except two are tent-only (no car acces to the site).

• 

  Rui T.

  Guide

  

  Sep. 18, 2024

  Sned Acres Campground

  Great getaway time

  5/5 Stars!

  I recently stayed at Sned Acres Campground, and it was an incredible experience! The campground is beautifully maintained with stunning views of Cayuga Lake. The staff was friendly, welcoming, and went out of their way to make sure we had everything we needed. The facilities were spotless, and the campsites were spacious and well-kept. Whether you’re RVing or tent camping, there’s plenty of space and privacy.

  The location is perfect for exploring the Finger Lakes region, with wineries, hiking, and local attractions just a short drive away. The peaceful atmosphere and serene surroundings made for a relaxing getaway. I can’t recommend Sned Acres enough – we’ll definitely be back!

• J

  Jay K.

  Scout

  

  Sep. 15, 2024

  Lakeside Campground

  10/10

  Really cute and affordable campground, will definitely be back to camp again!

• 

  Jacob D.

  Guide

  

  Sep. 13, 2024

  Foster Pond Camping Area

  Relaxed Free Dispersed Camping

  Right at the intersection of Potomac Road and Chicken Coop road in the Finger Lakes National Forest. If heading North on Potomac Road, turn left at the intersection and you’ll find a parking lot. Into the woods around the Lake you’ll find free dispersed camping.

  My mom and I stayed just in the parking lot and had no issues and weren’t bothered. NO AMENITIES

• 

  Kevin C.

  Ranger

  

  Aug. 30, 2024

  Long Pond Campground

  Quiet and secluded

  Camped here for a one night stay. Campground was easy to locate and the road was in good shape.

  We stayed in the space across from the port-a-pottie. The other camping spaces we close enough to see their campfire at night but far enough away that it's still quiet.

  Campsites are level and long enough for a very small trailer. The trees are so thick we could not feed our solar panel.

  Site has no water, no garbage service and no phone signal.

• 

  Kevin C.

  Ranger

  

  Aug. 25, 2024

  Long Pond Campground

  Nice Rustic Campground

  We came into the camping area on a Sunday and found site 7 available. While this is next to the road, it is also within 40 yards of the only potta potty in the park.

  About 100 yards away was the public fishing dock and another camp site. There were two young men fishing there at about 7 PM.

  There is no water or garbage services at this site. Most camping spots are ideal for tents or very small campers or trailers.

  The camp sites I saw all seemed to be large and level spots all located beneath the tree canopy. Sites seemed disbursed enough to provide a modest level of privacy.

  Would rate 5 stars if it had water and a garbage dumpster.

• A

  Adam P.

  Scout

  

  Aug. 24, 2024

  Sugar Hill Fire Tower Campsite

  Excellent Free Site

  No show but decent bathrooms. I spent a night at Watkins Glen the only advantage was the shower. But you can wash up well here. You can stay horses here, each site has a fire pit and it feels safe.

• F

  FrancesKuntz

  Scout

  

  Aug. 22, 2024

  Cazalia

  beautifull

  1. This lake is actually much more beautiful than I thought. https://poppyplaytimechapter3.io very cool, peaceful and fresh. I will go again if I have the chance
• K

  Katelyn H.

  Guide

  

  Aug. 16, 2024

  Long Pond Campground

  Great for Dispersed Camping!

  I was initially worried about the other people camping here because I was almost immediately visited by them but the poor kids just needed to charge their phone so I obliged. Aside from that this was a short drive in and I was able to score a spot right on the pond next to a dock. People have driven in to fish and kayak so I don’t feel isolated and afraid, and I am just a few steps away from sitting on the dock and admiring the scenery.

  There is a port-a-potty near the entrance but otherwise a “leave no trace” situation which is fine considering the ample forest coverage in case there is someone who drives in.

  Each spot seems to have plenty of shade and access to downed firewood, and it looks like there are fire pits at each site. Lots of good tinder left over from previous guests which has been helpful.

  Beautiful views, quiet, no insect issues so far, and if I had a rod and reel I wouldn’t need to worry for food at all. T-Mobile service has been exceptional as well. I am planning on staying here for a week or more and I see no reason to find another location as there is no fee or permit needed and you can stay up to 14 days I believe.

• 

  Craig F.

  Guide

  

  Jul. 31, 2024

  Finger Lakes RV Resort

  Quiet and Relaxing

  Amazing RV park!I can't stop talking about the Finger Lakes RV park and the great experience we had there. FLRV opened in the last couple years and is a great addition to the camping options around the Finger Lakes. Located about 1/3 of the way up the eastern side of Seneca Lake, the location provides easy access to the wineries, distilleries, and breweries along the lake.

  This is a family owned campground and the owners were very friendly and took pride in their business. Fresh baked chocolate chip cookies are included at check-in. The campground sites are very large and spread out. Being a newer campground, the trees are small, but that did not take away from the experience. Easy maneuverability, great wifi and water pressure, along with level sites make it a great place to stay. The bath house is immaculate and rivals those at Fort Wilderness Resort. 

  Amenities are minimal(no pool, playground, or golf carts), but they are bookended by two wineries with walking paths from the campground. Due to the minimal amenities, it is very quiet and relaxing especially in the evenings sitting around the campfire. 

  I look forward to returning to the Finger Lakes RV park as this is easily one of our top campgrounds when needing to relax.

• 

  Kevin C.

  Ranger

  

  Jul. 23, 2024

  Sugar Hill Fire Tower Campsite

  Amazing campsite!!

  Stopped in to "ride out a rain storm." After surviving the night, we discovered all the amenities. Free garbage service daily, Water faucets were placed all over the campground. There is a Forest Fire Lookout Tower next to the bathrooms.

  Camp sites are disbursed so you don't feel crowded or squeezed for space.

  Weekends are very busy but weekdays there were no more than 7 or 8 campsites occupied each night.

  The horse stalls were used regularly and seeing horses coming and going on trail rides is a daily occurrence.

• 

  Matt S.

  Legend

  

  Jul. 19, 2024

  Finger Lakes RV Resort

  Great for Waterfalls & Wine!

  We stayed at Finger Lakes RV Resort in Hector, a short drive from Watkins Glen and Ithaca, in search of waterfalls and wine in the Finger Lakes region of NY state. 

  This is a fairly new campground, operated by a friendly husband and wife who show great pride in the condition and cleanliness of every square inch. 

  THINGS I ESPECIALLY LIKED: 

  • Easy drive to Watkins Glen, Lake Seneca, Ithaca, and the greater Finger Lakes region. 

  • Everything is in great condition and clean. 

  • Daily trash and recycling pick-up from each site. 

  • Walking paths from the campground to two different wineries. 

  • Really nice pavilion for group gatherings and watching the sunset. 

  • We experienced a severe thunderstorm one evening which resulted in an area-wide power outage that lasted a couple days. Of course, the campground had no responsibility or control over this situation, but they refunded everybody a night’s stay as a courtesy. Thanks, Rachael and Doug! 

  THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE YOU GO: 

  • This campground does not offer a pool, jump pad, sports facilities, amenities, or activities. They offer a clean and safe place to stay while visiting the area. For me, this is a positive, not a complaint. 

  • There’s no shade from trees or otherwise. If you’re visiting during the summer, be sure your air conditioning and awnings are working. 

  • They sell firewood and propane. 

  WOULD WE COME BACK? 

  • Absolutely, this is a great place to stay for wine and waterfalls.
• 

  Randall K.

  Ranger

  

  Jul. 17, 2024

  Green Lakes State Park Campground

  If you love a good bathroom…

  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).

• 

  Robert J.

  Scout

  

  Jul. 9, 2024

  Cazalia

  Nice

  I especially like the idea of​​animals on the farm, iq test, which will bring an interesting experience to nature-loving tourists.

• 

  Rose S.

  Traveler

  

  Jul. 6, 2024

  Spruce Pond Camping Area - Morgan Hill State Forest

  loud frogs

  This was a nice spot, but the animals at the pond are very active and made a lot of noise in the night. Port-a-potty was available.

• 

  Chris B.

  Scout

  

  Jul. 4, 2024

  Oquaga Creek State Park Campground

  Love this place

  Friendly staff, beautifully kept.

• 

  Janet R.

  Legend

  

  Jun. 29, 2024

  Salt Springs State Park Campground

  Unique park with unique natural features

  This park is technically a “state park” because the land for it was donated to the state for public use. However, once the state became the official stewards, there werent funds in the state budget to maintain it as a park. A lical group, the Friends of Salt Springs, stepped up and offered to maintain the park with funds raised by their group. The result is a small but unique property open to the public for day use (picnicking and hiking and fishing) along with 2 small rustic campgrounds. One campground has a large open mowed grassy meadow with level sites for car camping or small campers, no hookups are available but each site has a fire ring and picnic table. On the other side of the parks trout stream are seven secluded primitive hike-in tent sites along with three basic camper cabins. The Friends of Salt Springs makes a good effort to maintain these two rustic campgrounds, however it seems there isnt a ranger on site at night so a camper said the meadow campground can get a little noisy some nights. The hike in sites are relatively quiet and secluded though, and are positioned nicely along the stream, one site actually adjacent to a good swimming hole.

  The camper cabins are basic with bunks, bring all your own gear. They are fairly new and have electricity but no water or heat.

  On the grounds in the day use area are picnic spits, a pavilion, and an activity barn. When I was there, the barn was featuring a local quilt show.

  The special aspect of this park are the hiking trails through old growth hemlock forest, said to be the largest hemlocks in Pennsylvania. The trout stream also cascades through some some waterfalls, and there are gorges with unique geology.

  There is a village nearby with limited supplies, you may want to stock up on groceries before heading out to this somewhat remote park. There is, however, a local brewery, plus an odd coffee shop featuring both donuts and ammo, an unusual combination…..

• L

  Lawrence L.

  Guide

  

  Jun. 29, 2024

  Watkins Glen State Park Campground

  Nice campground and beautiful gorge

  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.

• 

  Janet R.

  Legend

  

  Jun. 24, 2024

  Long Pond Campground

  Long Pond

  Some of the other state forests in the area are really nice, so I had high hopes for Long Pond but was disappointed. Long Pond is located in a state forest west of Smithfield Flats and Greene NY, and many locals come to Long Pond for fishing. The pond is quite large compared to other area pinds, and three are three accesses for fishing: a regular boat launch with parking lot and dock, a carry-in kayak access near campsite 6, and a handicapped accessible fishing puer near campsite 1. All seem to be very popular, and the lake is very scrnic and very productive for fisherman. The camping situation is a little strange though. Campsite 1 is adjacent to the handicapped fishing pier, and is supposedly an accessible campsite. Though an all terrain wheelchair could navigate from car to campsite, a regular one could not due to gravel. In addition, there is no outhouse by the site, only one quite a ways down the lake. Also, the parking area at this campsite seems to be a major party spot as beer cans were thrown all over and even in the water. It was sad to see this. The other campsites nearby are not located in a distinct campground, but are strung out along the shoreline clise to the highways, each with its own driveway right off the highway, which creates a lake of privacy as passersby can quite easily pop right in off the highway. This doesnt seem real secure, and some if the campsites closest to the road had evidence of driveby garbage dumpers who popped in and dumped household garbage right in a couple of the campsites. In addition, the relatively new outhouse installed near the middle of the camping area has been vandalized and damaged already. Its a shame to see this, as otherwise the campsites are large and shaded and well spaced from each other and close to the pond. But I wouldnt want to camp here given the garbage and security and vandalism issues. Also, other than fishing there isnt much too do as there arent designated hiking trails here, though you could drive a few miles away to access some truck trails that are in another part of the state forest. Get a map of the forest from the website ahead of time though, as the info kiosk has been damaged and all info and signs and maps are missing!