Best Cabin Camping near Banner Elk, NC

Really cute campground just a short jaunt to the beautiful multi-level Catawba Falls hike in the Pisgah National Forest. We stayed in a tent site VERY close to a rushing creek of cool water. The sound definitely helped put me to sleep!

The tent sites all have a tent pad, camp ring, trash can, and picnic table provided. This site had a bit more privacy than others we saw and was on the other side of the property from the RV area, which also included a playground, bathrooms, showers, and small store. There are also small tiny cabins to rent out which is great if you had a large group and not everyone was down for roughin' it. Some tent sites were also close to shared pavilions which were very nice to use during the rainy weekend we experienced! We appreciated the hot showers since we were outside hiking all day but wanted to hit up some sights in Asheville that evening without looking too worn out.

The people who run the camp were extremely nice and helpful -- we arrived later than expected in a downpour thunderstorm and they were able to accommodate us and transfer us and our bags from the car to the site via golf cart.

We stayed for one night only on our way to Dreher Island SP. We didn't get in until after 4 pm, but there was still enough daylight to see how pretty the campground was. We had site 60 for the night. We tow a 19' a-frame camper with a Toyota Tacoma and had lots of room on the pad. The pad was pretty level so set up was easy. The site also had a huge area for the picnic table and the fire ring is far away from your camper. There was a huge grassy area behind our site with a creek, lots of space for our dog. We were in campground B (electric) and the sites were decent. There wasn't a lot shade for us, but up in the tent area they were surrounded by trees and it looked like they all had tent pads, some better than others. The shower house was nice, clean, flush toilets, and good showers. By the shower house they also had an outside sink to wash your dishes. We didn't get to hike, but everyone said we should if we ever go back. It's on our list to visit again.

We had a mountaintop site- not with the deck, but still up top. The campground is really beautiful and well maintained. The bathhouse up top seemed to be brand new. It had two full bathrooms with toilet, sink, and zero entry large shower. There was also a laundry room adjacent. There’s a mountaintop community deck with rocking chairs, and a wonderful swing sort of on the edge of the mountain- which was a lovely place to watch sunsets!

We camp in an a-frame pop up, and this campground definitely seems more for the bigger rig crowd. You can’t have any shelters outside since you can’t stake anything down. We usually cook entirely outdoors, and without being able to bring our cooking equipment, we couldn’t cook most things. No big deal, Asheville has some amazing restaurants. I also figure they don’t want people leaving cooking equip out since there’s a bear in the area.

We visited in the summer, and it was insanely hot on top of the mountain. Without being able to put up our canopy or screen room, there was no reprieve from the sun- not really the campground’s fault obviously, but something to consider!

When we were checking in, there was a sign at the front desk saying we couldn’t leave our dog in our camper, which was a surprise. They need to post this rule on their website and in the terms and conditions they make you accept prior to arrival. It complicated things for us, since now we couldn’t cook really at camp, and had to find dog friendly restaurants (which there are plenty in Asheville) and sit outside in the intense August heat. We usually leave our dog in the camper for maybe an hour when we go to meals with temperature monitored.

It didn’t affect us as we don’t use one, but we were also informed upon arrival that you cannot put up a dog pen/fence. Again, this was not on their website, and I think it should be as many people do use them.

The site we were on, 42, was right on top of the adjacent site. A lot of the sites seemed really packed in tight. The only ones that didn’t were the top tier premium sites with a deck.

Overall, if you don’t need to set up anything outside or expect to be able to leave your pet in your camper, this is a beautiful campground. We probably won’t be back as it’s just not our jam.

Another lovely campground along the BRP, close to Linville Falls and gorge, picnic area and visitor center.

Erwin’s View Trail: Moderate Linville Gorge Trail: Strenuous {amazing view of falls}

Get a map at the visitor’s center.. redundant: the gorge is rather crowded on the weekends.

Check online for road closures when visiting the parkway.

$20 per night

There are 70 sites, some reservable sites and walk ins -and an RV loop {dump station} All sites non electric, generators permitted before quiet hours.

Lovely rangers and camp host that I found to be pleasant and helpful.

Open field sites, with decent sized pads, fire pits & picnic tables. Some of the sites are more secluded, the ones nearest to the parkway road.

Dog friendly for leashed puppers 🐾 Kid Friendly

There are bear lockers, keep food and supplies in the locker and in car at night.

Alcohol is prohibited

No showers but access to clean water and flush toilets.

You may collect dead wood or bring in HEAT TREATED firewood that is certified with a federal seal.

Local stores that sell wood and/or other supplies: Linville Falls Visitor Center/Park store Linville Falls General Store {8896 NC-183, Linville Falls, NC 28647- trinkets, camp supplies, cold drinks, non perishable food, Hunt Brothers Pizza etc} Walmart Supercenter, Spruce Pine, Ingles Food Store, Newland

Nearby Attractions

Linville Falls Linville Gorge “Grand Canyon of the Southern Appalachians”

Falls Trail - 1.6 mi RT/easy The Gorge Trail - 1.4 mi RT/ strenuous. The Plunge Basin Trail- 1mi RT/ moderate. Leashed dogs permitted 🐾

BRP Linville Canverns Crabtree Falls, Burnsville Grassy Creek Falls NC Gem Museum

The campground is laid out well, spacious, clean and located near awesome trails, falls, look outs and shops and restaurants.

This is such a great campsite. We have tent camped, cabin camped and RV camped here on several occasions. The cabins are awesome and each site is nice and private with great tree and brush cover separating sites. The hiking trails at the campground are very impressive. They range from easy to challenging and it is nice that you dont have to leave the grounds to enjoy a nice hike.

Then, down the road you find yourself at the Apple Orchard off of the Blue Ridge, which is an absolutely charming place. It feels like a scene from a most perfect movie. 

Highly HIGHLY recommend this awesome campground/resort.

**Campground Review: **

This is the second year in a row of us ending our summer road trip at Honey Bear Campground in Boone, NC. Honey Bear is a medium sized campground with around 60 sites that are a mix of full hook up, RV water& electric, Tent water& electric, primitive camp sites, and a group tent camp area. There is also two small cabins to rent. All sites with hook ups also included cable hook ups. I have included a campground map in my pictures for your orientation. All the sites are gravel and most sites are wooded with lots of shade. The sites are a little sloped, so have leveling equipment ready. The sites vary from small and close together, to medium size with established plumeria shrubs separating sites for some privacy. All style sites include a picnic table and fire ring. If the campground is full, they do have an overflow area that they allow you to boondock at until a site opens up. 

Check-in was easy at the office at the entrance of the campground. We stayed on site B12 again this year as we find it private, well shaded, and close to a small creek that provided background water noise when it’s flowing good. This site does have a good slope to it and we had to use a stack of 3 Cacmo leveling blocks to get level, but if anything, this is my only minor complaint about this site. 

The bathhouse is centrally located and older, but functional and cleaned daily. There are also laundry machines available between the men’s and women’s area. 

Firewood and ice was available at the office. You can even walk down, pay for wood and/or ice and they will deliver it to your site! The office also has limited other supplies. There is a full grocery store less than 10 minutes away. Connected to the office is a coffee bar that also had some seating and a TV(Seemed to be a teen hang out in the evenings). 

We found good cell phone service with Verizon throughout the property. The campground did have wi-fi, however we only got a good connection if we were near the office/coffee bar. 

The campground also has a dog run, which our dogs loved. After being on the road for two weeks they enjoy every opportunity to get off leash and run. The dog area was surprisingly clean, so either the dog owners are doing the right thing and cleaning up after their dogs, or the staff monitors and cleans this area regularly. 

Being right on the outskirts of Boone is very beneficial. The area offers all types of outdoor activities, from hiking, rock climbing, fishing, mountain biking, and an assortment of snow sports in the winter. Additionally, you’ll find lots of shopping, restaurants, breweries & wineries, and appealing little towns around the area to explore. Also, Boone sits at 3,333 feet (surrounding mountains go up to 6K), so even in the middle of the summer you’ll find very comfortable day and night temperatures. 

Pro Tip: Check with the office for the Saturday night movie! Weather dependent, they show a movie outdoors on the front lawn. Bring your chair or blanket and a cooler/snacks, and come hang out for a movie with fellow campers. They had multiple fire pits going the Saturday we were there, so bring your favorite snacks to toast over the fire. 

With this being our second year to stop here, we have fallen in love with the area. We recommend this campground and will keep returning to this area. I wish it was a little closer to where we live and we’d come here a lot more often!

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**Product Review: **

As a Ranger for The Dyrt, I get to test products. At this campground, I tested the Gregory Intertia 20 H2O Hydration Pack. This backpack from Gregory turned out to be my new favorite day hiking pack. The 20L easily fits all my day hiking equipment with room to spare. The 3L reservoir is plenty of water for a day hike even on the warmest of days. What I also really like is the side pockets. They are very deep, so if you are on a shorter hike where you are not using the 3L reservoir, you don’t have to worry about water bottles popping out of the side pockets (I’ve had other packs with short side pockets where water bottles fall out easily). The front mesh pocket is also large enough to hold all that“need now” type gear and there is a small quick stow pocket that is lined and perfect for storing glasses or sunglasses. Even loaded down with more than I’d usually take for a day hike, I found that with the multiple adjustment straps, this pack proved to be very comfortable and rode perfect on my back. I highly recommend this pack for day hikes and look forward to trying some of their larger packs in the future.

We stayed at this campground in a 34' travel trailer for a week in June. As typical of a KOA, they shove you in there so you are very close to your neighbors. The stars of the park are the riverfront sites. They have a bit more room between sites and their "backyard" slopes down to the river where the fire pits are situated. However, when it rains a lot like it did when were here, the river rises. The sites are safe, but if you left chairs down by the fire ring you can kiss them good-bye. It is a resort so it comes with lots of amenities: playground, pool, bike/tube/cart rental, gaga ball pit, ladderball, cornhole, fishing dock on a stocked lake, and paddleboat rental. On the weekends they have a few events, such as ice cream socials and bingo. There is a game room that's ok and a store stocked with ice cream, candy, some essentials, and souvenirs. Although the staff isn't the friendliest in the world, the service they provide is outstanding. They escort you to your site, help you back in, come by to pick up your trash every morning, and are johnny on the spot with propane.  The location is spot on, being a 15-minute drive from downtown Asheville and a 10-minute drive from the Blue Ridge Parkway. You are far enough away from the road to not hear a lot of road noise, however the train comes by every now and then and blows the horn. A couple of quirks: There a lot a ducks here! Expect them to come begging in your site. Drainage isn't that great so when it rains expect it to be muddy. The fire pits are metal and above ground (we didn't use ours because we didn't want to set fire to our neighbor's trailer - and it rained a lot). Oh, and the wifi is actually pretty good. I was pleasantly surprised, even with everyone shut inside with the rain. Overall, I was happy with the experience and would stay again.