33 campgrounds · Check availability for any dates.
Cathedral Pines County Park provides year-round pet-friendly camping in Middle Island, with both wooded tent sites and RV areas in a large field. Dogs must be leashed at all times within the park, and owners need to bring waste bags as dedicated pet stations are limited. The campground features electric hookups, picnic tables, and fire pits at most sites, along with access to drinking water, showers, and toilets. Sites are spacious and set within quiet, natural surroundings where visitors occasionally spot deer walking through the camping areas.
Multiple pet-friendly alternatives exist within a short drive, including Wildwood State Park Campground in Wading River and Southaven County Park in Brookhaven. Both parks welcome leashed dogs at their campsites and on designated trails, though pets must remain outside beach areas. Raccoons can be invasive at Cathedral Pines, so proper food storage is essential when camping with pets. The surrounding pine barrens offer scenic walking paths for dogs and owners, with Suffolk County's Green Key membership providing discounts on camping fees and nearby beach parking. Most facilities require pets to be current on vaccinations, and campers should be prepared for ticks in these wooded environments.
"The beach is in a walking distance. You can swim or fish there. This camp site has a relatively new and clean facility. There are many farms near by where you can get fresh veggies and fruits."
"However there are too many loud families and the sites are too close in proximity for me."
from $20 - $225 / night
Check Availability"Recently went camping in our pull behind, met some old friends and had a great time. Rangers have a hardon for people screwing up tho. Think they're all that and then some..."
"Great Location Clean Park."
from $33 / night
Check Availability"Literally steps to the beach."
"A short walk from the ocean to the bay, both accessible by walking from your campsite. No shade so be prepared to wake early if you’re in a sweltering tent. Staff has been great, no complaints."
"Great park with a nice 7 mile loop around the lake with decent fishing. Lots of horses and dogs on the trail. 30 or so sites around a central public restroom."
"Hiking trails are beautiful. Dog friendly. Clean bathrooms"
"Beautiful location steps away from the beach. Listen to the waves crashing as you sleep and stargaze over the clear ocean. Not ready for full on camp-life? No problem!"
"Camping gets you away from the bustle. It is a little less than a half mile walk from the ferry dock and located behind the dunes which offer some protection. Take a quick walk down to the beach."
from $35 - $197 / night
Check Availability"Campsites are located close enough to the beach/marsh. Multiple playgrounds for the kids although they were closed due to Covid."
"There are dog friendly which was very nice. It is a lil tight from each site but you have the beach and a little hiking trails that makes it worth it."
"* cottages far enough away from each other
- fire ring with Adirondack chairs
- dumpster and recycling within walking distance
- lots of bone dry firewood around for campfire
- walkable beach"
"Overall my experience was positive. Camping Sites
Each camping site has a picnic table and barbeque grill."
from $20 - $285 / night
Check Availability"The showers were outside the bathroom- there was a bench & hooks OUTSIDE! We found out all the other loops had modern bathhouses."
"Beautiful Connecticut beach sits just steps away from your campsite. Well kept showers and bathrooms are abundant and the camp store has the majority of what you need."
from $20 - $70 / night
Check Availability
GuideI grew up in Long Beach. If you’re looking for a spot to camp so you can surf, this is perfect! It’s basically a parking lot, but it’s steps away from some of the greatest waves on the east coast. Showers are clean, there’s a dog park nearby, and the island is very bikable to get around.
benefits: allows dogs childrens playground beach programs like movie nights throughout the summer
GuideSmall campground with good electrical, clean water, sewer and a friendly owner. Each site has grass and a picnic table. There is a wonderful little frozen custard shop down the road called roses farm stand. It’s a perfect campground for seeing the local area or even catching the train to New York City.
GuideSears Bellows in New York is a lot of fun. It really does offer a lot of outdoor activities for you and your family. I have stayed at this campsite 1 time, and stayed 2 nights. This campground does offer tent sites as well as RV/trailer sites. When I went with my friends in college, we just stayed in the tent sites and really enjoyed it. The campground is very well kept and clean which I really liked. They do have quite a bit of garbage's to dump your trash in. One thing I really liked about this campground is that there was a river/pond close by (Bellows Pond). The first night I stayed here my friends and I rented some rowboats and went on the water. It was a lot of fun, and the price of the rowboat was pretty cheap. The next morning we got up and did some hiking. The trails were beautiful, and the flowers were in bloom. There were people who were also biking on these trails, which looked like so much fun! We also saw some people fishing in the pond- and it seemed like most people were catching. The people who stayed in the campsite next to us were cooking up some type of fish for their dinner that they caught that day. One thing to note is that there are not any electrical hook-ups, so if that is something you need you might now want to come stay here. I would love to come back here someday, but stay maybe a day or two longer to do more things- I would also bring my bike and fishing pole to do more outdoor activities. I would also advise to rent the rowboats because that was a lot of fun!
GuideThe actual beach isn't too nice; not soft sand, broken shells, and cigarettes. However, the campgrounds have nice facilities like a shop, good showers, a playground, and volleyball courts. Be noted PETS ARE NOT ALLOWED in the summer. We were not aware of this.
ScoutBeautiful campsites! Lots of lean to sites with fireplaces in them. You have to go in person to make a reservation and pay. The camp area is beautiful, especially in the fall. Pet friendly and kid friendly with a playground available. Our favorite site is #25. Up a hill, totally private and has a lean-to.
LegendI had a hankering for East Coast seafood, so I picked Hammonesett Beach State Park for Connecticut. Our 2nd state of 5.
Hammonesett Beach has a huge campground. They divide the loops with names. I unfortunately chose Pequot. This loop has THE WORST bathrooms/showers on the South side of the campground. Looks like they were built in 1950s with rotten wood siding. Dirty. The showers were outside the bathroom- there was a bench & hooks OUTSIDE! We found out all the other loops had modern bathhouses.
My first impression of this campground is it's loud, crazy busy & there's traffic noise from the beach road. I actually liked it! This is a fun campground for families. There were kids on bikes, scooters, skateboards,roller blades. Watch your speed! They don't always watch out for your car.
I found out most people stay through Sunday & leave on Monday. There were still lots of campers left. Lots of tent campers.
I chose site 14 on the Pequot Loop because I thought I would have a view of one of the ponds. There was tall vegetation, so that was out.
The sites on the other side of the loop were right by the main beach road. Noisy during the day, but quiet at night.
There are some sites with shade, but most are sunny.
There's no electricity at most of the sites. Our site was full sun(yay for the solar panel!). On Beach Road in the campground there's 2 rows of full hookup sites, but they go FAST! I tried.
NO PETS! Including dogs.
No WiFi, but there's cell service. At least 5 dump stations.
The beach was popular.
There was a stream running from a pond that kids were playing in.
They have a beautiful Nature Center. A couple of easy hikes through one of the preserves.
This was a good base camp for the area. Gillette Castle & other state parks are within driving distance. Connecticut is a beautiful state!!
RangerMy husband and and I camped one night at this newly reopened park over the weekend in Long Island just to check it out and were pretty disappointed by the tent camping area. There are 69 tent/trailer sites(no hook ups). There is no distinguishing separation between each site nor a designated driveway for your car- you merely pull up on the grass. It's basically like camping in your local city park. People park wildly all over the place, which also makes it more difficult to determine which site is which by the number painted on the roadway. Each"site" has a picnic table and an barbecue grate on a post. There is one bath/shower house in the center of all of these sites with no path provided for folks to walk to and fro, so naturally people will walk right through your site randomly rather than around the road. While the bathroom building itself is in decent shape and has a large amount of toilet stalls and about five showers, the condition of women's room was absolutely ghastly inside.
At some point during the evening, a maintenance worker on a golf cart showed up with a mop and some cleaning supplies and cleaned the men's side of the building. I was so relieved when I saw him, but he seemed to neglect the women's side completely, so I resorted to using the men's facilities all night.
There are no fire pits on any of the sites, although I learned afterwards that they do allow you to bring your own metal fire pit as long as it is elevated off the ground. There are large dumpsters located throughout the camping area and a large trash bag is provided (if needed) at the camp office when you check in.
The highlight of Heckscher State Park is the newly constructed heated cottages located on the shore of Nichol's& Great South Bays.. There are currently 11 cottages--- with more under construction. There are cottages suited for two, four, and six people and range in price from$225-$285 per night during off peak seasons and$250- 320 per night during the peak seasons.
The cottages are fully furnished, with a full kitchen and large bathroom with a walk in shower. The cottages are a short walk from the beach and also include a fire pit with Adirondack chairs and an outdoor shower on the exterior each property. I do not have photos of the inside, but they do have them on the Reserve America website if you are interested.
While the cottages are lovely and their location is fabulous they are quite pricey and no TLC was spent in the$22 tent/rv camping area, other than a new registration office which is not yet completed as of this weekend. I do hope they invest some funding in the primitive area to add fire pits,more water spigots, clearer site markings and for the continued maintenance& upkeep of the bath/shower house.
* I emailed the parks departement about the issues mentioned above about the camping area and received this reply:
I am sorry that you are upset with the conditions in our recently opened campgrounds. We have replaced all of the picnic tables. Although, they may look old because they are weathered since these picnic tables were put together during the Winter, however, they are brand new. All of the barbeques are also new and were installed during the Winter. We have changed and modernized the light fixtures and we will be replacing the rusted doors that you mentioned. There are also plans to install a playground within the campground beginning this Fall and we are looking for other improvements and additions to the campgrounds. As you probably noticed there is a new building under construction, at the entrance to the campgrounds, and it will serve as a check-in area, as well as, additional comfort stations, including family restrooms. Your suggestion of fire pits is a good one and the Park Managers will evaluate the feasibility of installing these. Lastly, I have spoken to the Park Manager who will review the cleaning operation to ensure the restrooms are appropriately maintained. I apologize for our employee not cleaning the women's room. Again, I am sorry for your negative experience but we are continuing to make improvements to the campgrounds.
Sincerely, George Gorman Regional Director New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation
I will check back later this year to see if anything was changed and report back.
Rangerthis place seemed okay to begin with, but then you start noticing that the bathrooms are run down and not well kept, the lots are near an expressway that constantly has loud traffic, and there are tons of feral cats wandering and sometimes even begging for food. i probably would like to find a different place to stay during my next visit
GuideWard Pound Ridge is very well known to the locals as a great place for sled-riding in winter (Pell Hill area) and a place for big group gatherings. The many different trails are frequented by the locals as well. In recent years, the county government also allow bow-hunting of deer to control its population during the months of October to December.
As far as camping as a family, it is not too exciting a place for us. The grounds are far too well trimmed, as you can see in one of the videos. There is wide open space and the paths are well paved so kids can have fun riding the bikes or running around. There is also many trails of various difficulty levels to suit everyone, including horseback riders. The Trailside Nature Museum is also fun for the kids.
There are lean-to sites as well as tent sites. A maximum of eight people in two tents are allowed at each site. But if you really do have a party of eight, one picnic table seems to be inadequate. The sites are much farther away from the comfort stations than most campgrounds we have been to. But there are port-a-potties very close to the sites, which is very important when you have young kids.
All in all, it is not a place I would recommend if you want to get close to nature.
Cathedral Pines County Park and surrounding campgrounds offer a range of camping experiences in Suffolk County's pine barrens. The area sits at an elevation of approximately 80 feet above sea level in a region characterized by sandy, acidic soil that supports the distinctive pine-oak forest ecosystem. Tent campers often note the relatively flat terrain makes for easy site selection, while the sandy soil drains quickly after rain.
Beach access: Smith Point County Park provides ocean activities just a short drive from Middle Island. "1 minute walk over the dune to the Atlantic ocean. Will definitely be back," reports Michael, making it convenient for day trips.
Kayaking opportunities: Campers can launch boats at Indian Island County Park, where "You are a short walk from beach access and kayak launch. There is a playground for kids and clean facilities," according to Michael G.
Hiking trails: The region offers extensive pine barrens trails. "There are plenty of walking, hiking and biking trails nearby. I definitely took advantage of the hiking trails, and would recommend looking up some hikes that suite your ability," notes Kari M. about Southaven County Park.
Fishing options: Several local parks provide fishing opportunities. At Blydenburgh County Park, Erik R. mentions "Great park with a nice 7 mile loop around the lake with decent fishing. Lots of horses and dogs on the trail."
Waterfront views: Some campsites offer direct water views. At Smith Point, one camper reports, "Our 36ft motorhome backed up to a raised balcony overlooking the bay. Less than 100 feet from the front of our site was the beach and the Atlantic Ocean view."
Wildlife encounters: The pine barrens support diverse wildlife populations. "I watched a momma deer nursing two of her babies," shares Patrick C., describing a memorable experience at Smith Point County Park.
Group camping areas: For those camping with multiple families, Blydenburgh Park offers designated areas. "The group camping on the fox sites is accessible by a dirt drive in. I felt like I was suddenly transported upstate when in fact I had only driven 2 towns over," writes Linda A.
Natural surroundings: The region's pine forests create a secluded camping experience. "Our favorite campground. Been going there for years. Great sites, get there early in the camping season and there is alot of free firewood, a nice bennie!" shares Ken P. about Southaven County Park.
Tick prevention: The wooded environment requires precautions. Ken P. warns about Southaven County Park: "Beware and prepare for ticks. Very wooded."
Fire pit policies: Rules vary between campgrounds. At Heckscher State Park, one camper notes "No fire pits on any of the sites, although I learned afterwards that they do allow you to bring your own metal fire pit as long as it is elevated off the ground."
Green Key benefits: Suffolk County's Green Key card provides advantages beyond Cathedral Pines. "You need a Green Key card membership for reservation which at least got me a 50% ($9) discount on beach parking," explains Dominick L.
Mosquito preparation: Insect protection is essential at some locations. At Watch Hill on Fire Island, Rosie R. cautions, "We were getting attacked by mosquitoes and horseflies the entire weekend. Even with the bug spray, the relief didn't last long. Def bring a shelter or a canopy with a mosquito net!!!"
Playground access: Many dog friendly campgrounds near Middle Island include children's facilities. At Indian Island County Park, Gino D. notes "It's nice for kids they have an open field with a playground for kids."
Beach camping with kids: Oceanside options provide family entertainment. "Perfect place to take the little ones has a beautiful lake and a really nice playground highly recommended," shares correl H. about Southaven County Park.
Nature centers: Educational opportunities enhance camping experiences. At Hammonasset Beach State Park in nearby Connecticut, one family recommends "You can ride your bike from your site to the playground, store, beach, local ice cream shop, coffee shop, or our family favorite, meig's point nature center."
Evening entertainment: Some pet-friendly campgrounds near Middle Island offer special events. Christopher S. mentions "Not a party or for party site as alcohol is not allowed but I believe if your an adult your good to have an adult beverage."
Site selection: For larger rigs, choosing the right campground matters. At Wildwood State Park Campground, Lori R. reports "RV pull through sites were fantastic. It was a great campground for maiden voyage in new rig. Plenty of amenities."
Utility hookups: Services vary between campgrounds. The "Sites had water, electric and sewer hookups at each site, but this was an expensive place to 'camp'," according to Michael G., describing his Wildwood State Park experience.
Space considerations: Some campgrounds offer better spacing than others. "Sites are large and loud, but I hope that was only exceptional nights!" notes Ossama B. about his experience camping with recreational vehicles.
Seasonal availability: Many Suffolk County campgrounds operate year-round, while others have limited seasons. "Spent a week while travel nursing. Quiet and peaceful. Lots of sand!" reports Clifford about camping at Smith Point during the off-season.
Frequently Asked Questions
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According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular dog-friendly campground near Middle Island, NY is Wildwood State Park Campground with a 4.2-star rating from 24 reviews.
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