Are you planning a tent camping trip to Croatan National Forest? We've got you covered. Find the best tent camping sites near Croatan National Forest. You're sure to find the perfect campsite for your North Carolina tent camping excursion.
Tucked in the mountains under a canopy of cool shade beside Cosby Creek. This group campground creates a peaceful and secluded environment for visitors, offering the best that the Great Smoky Mountains National Park has to offer.
Great Smoky Mountains National Park is a hiker's paradise, with over 800 miles of maintained trails ranging from short, leg-stretchers to strenuous treks, with a number of those trails easily accessible from Cosby Campground, including the Appalachian Trail, just three miles away via the Lower Gap Trail.Hiking is not the only reason for visiting the Smokies: Fishing, picnicking, wildlife viewing and auto touring are also popular activities. White water rafting on the nearby Pigeon River. Top tourist towns of gatlinburg, Sevierville and Pigeon Forge are just 20 miles away. Campers can enjoy high-quality backcountry fishing in the cool waters of the countless streams and rivers that snake through the mountains, with trout available in abundance. Wildlife viewing is a popular pastime, and with around 1,500 bears living in the park, it's not uncommon for visitors to spot one. The park is a sanctuary for a magnificent array of animal and plant life, all of which is protected for future generations to enjoy.
Great Smoky Mountains National Park is a hiker's paradise, with over 800 miles of maintained trails ranging from short, leg-stretchers to strenuous treks, with a number of those trails easily accessible from Cosby Campground, including the Appalachian Trail, just three miles away via the Lower Gap Trail.Hiking is not the only reason for visiting the Smokies: Fishing, picnicking, wildlife viewing and auto touring are also popular activities. White water rafting on the nearby Pigeon River. Top tourist towns of gatlinburg, Sevierville and Pigeon Forge are just 20 miles away. Campers can enjoy high-quality backcountry fishing in the cool waters of the countless streams and rivers that snake through the mountains, with trout available in abundance. Wildlife viewing is a popular pastime, and with around 1,500 bears living in the park, it's not uncommon for visitors to spot one. The park is a sanctuary for a magnificent array of animal and plant life, all of which is protected for future generations to enjoy.
World-renowned for its diversity of plant and animal life, the beauty of its ancient mountains and the quality of its remnants of Southern Appalachian culture, Great Smoky Mountains is America's most visited national park. Whether blanketed in bright wildflowers in the spring or vivid colors in the fall, the scenery at Cosby never disappoints. At 2,460 feet, Cosby Campground provides a moderate climate, typified by mild winters and hot, humid summers. Great Smoky Mountains National Park preserves a rich cultural history of Southern Appalachia. From the prehistoric Paleo Indians to the early 19th century European settlements, the park strives to protect the historic structures, landscapes and artifacts, which tell the stories of the people who once called these mountains home.
Cosby, Tennessee, located about five miles from the campground, offers convenience stores and fuel. Gatlinburg, a one of the Smokies' famous tourist towns, is located about 20 miles from the site, offering visitors tours, organized rafting trips, museums, restaurants, galleries, an aquarium, skiing and more.
Customers who cancel a group overnight facility reservation less than 14 days before the arrival date will pay a $10.00 service fee AND forfeit the first night's use fee.
$50 / night
Stay in Comfort @ The Simple Life. A quiet / clean Mountain Retreat within minutes of; Tail of the Dragon at Deals Gap, Cherohala Skyway, Moonshiner28, Joyce Kilmer National Forest, Lake Santeelah, and the town of Robbinsville. We have 13 Comfortable / Air-conditioned Tree House Cabins, 2 RV and 6 Tent Sites. Also available is a 6 person bunk-house fully loaded.
$18 - $32 / night
Secluded backcountry camping on the banks of Little Snowbird Creek. With mountaintop views that will bring a tear to a glass eye. Best trout fishing in Western North Carolina free with campsite rental.
$40 - $50 / night
Heartstone tent site at Mountain Creek Rest is a stunningly beautiful, romantic, and very, very private campsite. You won't want to leave, but if you do there are many recreational opportunities in the area such as hiking, biking, rafting, fishing, and more! Enjoy the fresh, much, much cooler mountain air, and the beautiful, private setting! It is perfect for 2, but 2 additional guests are an available option! Heartstone is located on a gently pitched, terraced slope where a divided mountain stream, the tumbling Squally Creek rejoins itself! The sun light filters down through the forest canopy providing a warm, inviting glow!! There is a 9'-6" x 10' tent platform, a picnic table, charcoal grille, and comfort facility all within 30' of your private parking! There is also a nice fire pit area with benches overlooking the fire pit and creek ! Explore upstream on the 500' island trail, or go down stream 75' to a nice pool for dipping!
Bring friends!! There is also a large tent pad available on site for extra guests!
!!!Heartstone is a "Leave No Trace" site! Please be sure to leave it as clean or cleaner than you found it! The next guest will love you! Thanks!
$35 / night
Traveler
good experience owners help are very friendly facilities were clean pleasant atmosphere they have cabins that you can rent out and then there's tent sites and RV sites to camp from. There are even sites for tent camping along the creek. Tent site right next to the creek was my favorite because you hear the water come down the tiny fall that's there in the same to the birds chirp. I would definitely stay here again. ❤️
Scout
Owners are very friendly. Our tent campsite was very secluded, included a fire pit, picnic table, over looking deck, running water and electric. Loved hearing the running creek from our tent site. Very clean bathrooms. Highly recommended!
Legend
The primitive tent sites are amazing, I didn’t give it 5 stars only because you can hear a little bit of road noise, as the campground is near the interstate. If you visit in spring, the lake water may not have risen yet, so summer would be better if you want to enjoy lake front camping! We took our rooftop tent and had a perfect corner spot next to the creek. Plenty of room on each site for tent camping. The bath house is pretty far away too. Overall, we love this campground, and the tent sites are the best, can’t wait to camp here this summer!
Guide
Polite campers in rvs watched over my tent camp site while I enjoyed a couple of the trails. All in all a wonderful place to stay. Plus you're right by the river.
Scout
I REALLY WANTED TO LOVE THIS PLACE! It was really pretty. HOWEVER The host wouldn’t allow us to use a tent site because she insisted we needed electric for our tear drop. We told her it was charged and had no need for electric for our one night stay. She then said we weren’t allowed to use a tent site due to the fact that the tear drop simply wouldn’t fit event though it totally would (gaslighting much?). There was one other family in the entirety of the tent camping area and one RV there. Upon check out what was originally supposed to be a $30 trip turned into $90 for a single night of camping along with some very off putting comments regarding my friend and I’s sexuality. Was a totally bizarre experience. Would give it zero stars if I could.
Ranger
We spent our three-day Memorial Day weekend at Vogel State Park. We camped in a tent. The staff is very friendly/helpful and the facilities are pristine. Our campsite (#70) was located directly across from the bathhouse and was huge for a "tent" site...we have a 17'x9' tent and the site accommodated our tent, two vehicles and a 5'x8' utility trailer with room to spare! The park has beautiful views and is only a short distance from Brasstown Bald and Helton Creek Falls. The park store had most of the supplies that you would need for camping but, if not, there is a Dollar General located just a few miles away. This is our favorite of the GA State Parks so far!! There are kayak, pedal boat, paddle board and bicycle rentals available!
RangerThe property is well maintained and beautiful with waterfalls, streams, and a lodge. They have cabins, rv sites, and separate adulting tent camping. We stayed at the adult tent site 74 which is really close to one of the waterfalls. Site 72 is the closest on the side we stayed on but our site had great access to the water and was a little more secluded. The is a spot in front of the waterfall that is public space and we didn’t want people walking up to view the waterfall basically next to our site as the sites are very close together. There is another beautiful sit on the other side that I would say is best for y’all he waterfall. I checked out the other sites as we were the only tent campers as it was during the week. Site 82 is the most private still on the the water and like a little forest dream site. The facilities were nice and well kept however, there was no potable water or restrooms close to the tent camping. The lady that checked us in (not sure if manager or owner) but she was somewhat spastic and forgetful which was not pleasant but was overall friendly. Locations is super close to High Shoals Falls which was a great hike and beautiful as well as close to Helen, Georgia, and Unicoi State Park.
Scout
When you’re camping in a tent, that’s is a big plus
Traveler
The tent camp site was good, bathrooms and water were a close walking distance.
We picked this state park for all the activities. We took archery lessons and did the zip line course. A must is to do all 3 zip line courses. Many go over water and the last of which is 1/2 a mile long. So much fun! It was great to have Helen close by but great to get away from the crowds. The 2 mile Lake Hike was beautiful!
LegendUnicoi State Park is just two miles from Helen GA. It is a convenient location for visiting there, particularly in fall during the town’s Octoberfest. Unicoi is in North Georgia Mountains & includes a campground, cabins, “barrel cabins” and Lodge with a nice lake for fishing and canoeing. There are 51 RV sites with water and electricity that can accommodate 30-foot and 40-foot RVs, 82 tent sites, family tent campsites, walk-in sites and primitive “Squirrel’s Nest” sites. The park has numerous hiking trails in the Chattahoochee National Forest, plus a trail into Helen. Nearby is Anna Ruby Falls, administered by the US Forest Service. Smith Creek, a tributary of the Chattahoochee River flows from the falls to Unicoi Lake. It is a good trout fishing stream. Other activists include archery and target shooting, fly fishing, paddle boarding, boat rentals, zip lining, mountain biking and a beach.
GuideMoonshine creek is a nice campground with something for everyone. Minutes from the parkway for hiking, 2 miles away from a creek on the WNC fly fishing trail, and plenty of space to get out and walk around the grounds. Nice, well stocked camp market, many bathrooms around the grounds, and laundry/shower facilities that were very clean. The creek runs right through the middle of the campground and can be heard from any site you are on.
Multiple options for tent camping, but we chose the ones away from the creek due to them having shelters over the tent pads to set up under. We stayed at site 62 which had plenty of room for the tent shelter and two vehicles. We brought an 8 person tent that was a little big for the shelter, so we had to turn it sideways leaving the tent exposed to the elements. Unfortunately the fire pit was directly behind the shelter, and we chose not to have a fire on our site because of the fire hazard it posed. Even if we had we chose to start a fire there would’ve been little chance that 6 of us could’ve gathered around it. The pit was small and was backed by a steep embankment, and the side had a large tree in the way. There were other tent sites near the the creek that had shelters, but we had a truck with roof top tent that we wanted on the same site, and that just wasn’t possible with the parking situation for standard tent sites. For those, there is an unloading area with wagons to load in with. The tent sites are on opposite sides of the creek than the parking and unloading areas. All of the tent sites seemed to have water and electric which was nice, but not necessary.
The ‘waterfall’ on property is kinda silly. It’s a culvert pipe coming underneath the train tracks. I’m sure it sounds nice at night, but it isn’t pretty to look at. Also, there is a playground that had the kids excited, but it only consisted of a couple of baby swings.
The badminton/volleyball area was nice. It’s right near the group camping area which was wide open. Gave the kids plenty of room to play. The camp office had racquets and volleyballs to use. The creek was nice for the kids to play in. The pond is not for fishing or swimming.
All in all it was a nice place. Very clean and family friendly. Would like to return again, but hope the fire pit situation could be remedied.
Legend
If you are looking to dabble in the Smoky Mountains without losing all cell service, camping at this location is perfect for you! I found that while traveling when you want to be removed from civilization but still able to touch base you can't beat a good KOA. This one is a great example of just that, offering amenities for you to enjoy but proximity to easily drive to an adventure just ahead.
This place was pretty nice to say the least, it had that rustic mountain feel but with modern amenities. You could stay here in a cabin or RV or take it down to the tent camp, like I usually enjoy doing. The cabins here though were a little touch of magic and I would recommend these for a holiday away or a Christmas cabin, they were just so cute.
Unlike a lot of KOA camps this one has year round access to pool and hot tub as well as sauna room. But the list of perks doesn't stop there, this is more of a resort feel than campground. They offer bike rentals, shuttle tours to the mountains, fishing, giant checkers and game boards, a clubhouse area, children's activities and both wifi and cable.
So what is the catch to this near perfect sounding place? The only one I could find is that tent sites are limited. Yep, only thing I could find!
There are 4 different cabin options, tons of rv spaces but less than a dozen tent sites in this HUGE mega park. They even offer a grill at this location... you can't beat all that!!
So back to the tent sites.... there are two types available in very limited quantities and they vary vastly despite being placed in the same section of the park only feet from one another. Deluxe sites are $52.99 a night a little to much for me, and while they looked nice with a sandy tent pad and bear boxes along with electricity and water, I was content with my grassy pad and no water or electric at a $30 savings. Sorry KOA you can't have $30 just so I can sleep on sand instead of grass that is what a sleeping pad is for.
So as you can see by my rating even though there was that sharp gouge in price from one site to the next I still gave them a 5 stars. Why you might ask? Well because this campground literally was a resort on a paupers budget staying in my grassy tent site. I had access to every amenity there was to offer, staff was friendly, nothing was left a mess by other campers (or if it had been staff cleaned it up before I knew it) and facilities were very nice.
This KOA set the bar high for others of the same brand and made me realize sometimes why I just enjoy doing the commercial camping thing... sometimes you want rugged... then sometimes you want to have a nice comfortable night that reminds you of home or a hotel...lol
Legend
General: Many options including 4 backcountry primitive sites, 12 walk-in tent sites, 48 electric/water sites, and 10 cabins. Access to this park is up a steep and winding road. I honestly don’t know how some of the larger 5th wheels and RVs we saw navigated it! We were warned that this park is an active bear area and while we did not see any, a woman I spoke with said she had seen a baby bear scoot through the campground (without Mama). An interesting thing about Georgia state parks is that when you arrive and check-in, you become eligible for a senior or military/veteran “rebate” which is not available when reserving.
Site Quality: The sites are (too) close together with little or no separation between them. In my opinion, the sites in Section 2 are a bit nicer. Driveways are gravel and vary in length. Some are very long while others are much shorter. Unless you have a small car and are tent camping, I would avoid Site 26! Even though there was plenty of room for our 18-foot van, it took us at least a half dozen attempts to back into the site due to the very steep and narrow road where the pavement drops off. Site 37 is no more than a parallel parking space alongside Site 38.
Bathhouse: It was heated and clean. The flush lever was different for each toilet and instructions were posted by each. The showers looked to be very clean, but I did not use so cannot comment on their quality.
Activities/Amenities: Fishing, boating, and hiking. The Nantahala Lookout provides gorgeous views. There is a conference center. Laundry facilities are by the bathhouse, but we were told the appliances were due to be upgraded and were not in the best shape.
This is a beautiful park but due to the sites being close together and our challenges accessing Site 26, my rating is three stars.
Scout
Nice pull in paved spots for every tent site. Playgrounds and bath houses were kept nice and clean. The loops where the tent sites are can’t be quite busy so keep an eye on the kiddos
Legend
Adventures Unlimited is located in Ocoee, TN, just outside of Chattanooga, and is one of the coolest river towns I’ve been to. The Ocoee River was the site for the 1996 Olympics whitewater events. There are numerous outfitters for everything you can do on the river, and this place is the best we’ve visited. We did the Classic Middle Ocoee Rafting Adventure, with Leon as our guide. He was awesome! He wore a Viking helmet (which looks really cool in our pics!) and had vast knowledge of the river and area, and said he’s been guiding for 20 years, so yeah, the best! I would highly recommend Leon if you take a trip!
The campground is HUGE for tent camping. There are hundreds of great tent sites, and the whole place has a great vibe. I wouldn’t really recommend it for children, it feels more like a grown up place, as the area is filled with kayakers, guides, college kids, etc., and these people have FUN! And there’s the Bus Bar, which I’ll cover in a bit. We stayed in site 13 on the rv sites, and it was nice. All the sites are spacious, most have plenty of shade, except for 6,7,8, they are in the middle and not much shade there. The rv sites have water and electric, and they have a dump station. The bath house is at the front entrance, it was very clean, with 4 restrooms and showers. They also have bungalows, and they looked awesome.
This place has two restaurants, The Cafe was closed, I’m assuming due to covid, I believe they serve breakfast and lunch there. And The Bus Bar- this place is a must! They have literally converted two yellow school busses into a bar! The restrooms are in one of the busses and the other is where the actual bar is. They have live music on weekends, and there is a very eclectic vibe. Great people watching! You will hear music from your campsite until around midnight. We didn’t try the food, but they have pizza and wings on their menu, so what else do you need?!
The office is where you check in for rafting, they also sell ice, water shoes, t-shirts, etc. and the people in there were super friendly. This is one of my favorite “fun” places we’ve stayed, it truly was an adventure! We will definitely be returning!
TravelerSo I use this app to find tent camping sites. To me, that’s kinda what a campground is. A good variety of both. This turned out to be mostly RVs and then three tents, one including mine. Needless to say, it was loud. For what it was, it was great. For what I thought it would be, it wasn’t. They have a lot of cool amenities and I will totally come back if I ever get a camper. But I wouldn’t just tent camp there again I don’t think.
Scout
great tent sites. clean and big bathrooms.
Ranger
this place was a great place for fishing, exploring and hiking, great place to back pack into and tent camp.
Traveler
Great experience tent camping in the overflow lot, all the amenities were amazing and the area was beautiful! This is a must visit location.
ScoutTent sites have a short walk from the parking to the tent sites across the creek. Some are quite remote. They have a few with some lean-to's to get tables or tent out of the weather. A lot of the trailer sites are taken by seasonal campers. The bath-house is very nice and clean, it includes washers and dryers (quarters required). The owner has done a great job restoring the beauty of the creek and planting additional trees natural to the area.
Traveler
Right off the highway. Tent sites around back. You can swim in the river. Typical campsite.
Guide
Indian Creek offers the most relaxing creekside camping in North Carolina.
Every campsite is lush with greenery, private and well maintained after each occupancy. The bathhouse is the cleanest I have found and the campsite store carries all of your forgotten necessities, and more!
My husband and I love coming back to this campground, because how of well we and our kids sleep! The sound of the creek at night melts all of your worries away and takes you off to peaceful slumber.
This campground is always in rotation for a visit.
LegendLots of hiking trails, 11 miles or so. Great spot for tent camping down below from the RV spots which is nice. Showers bathrooms and water easy access from the tent primitive camping.
Guide
We tent camped here October 2013 on site 36 which backed up to the national forest. Beautiful mountain views and horseback riding on site!! Bathhouse was clean.
Scout
We LOVE coming here. It's peaceful. Right on the river and spaced well. We tent camp, but my dad has a camper he brings there. And the Fishing is awesome
Traveler
Very intense hike up the mountain but the views are worth it! Hammock camping is ideal here, unsure of tent camping possibilities. Come prepared to hike hard and to experience unexpected weather if it occurs
Legend
This is a beautiful secluded site just off of Highway 64/74 not too far from the Tennessee border. The campground is very well kept and has wonderful amenities for both RV and tent campers. I was very impressed with the gorgeous grassy areas along the creek providing a private space for tent camping. They also have large shaded spots for RVs in other areas. Each site has a picnic bench and plenty of room to spread out. If you are like me and prefer tent camping I would recommend staying at one of the sites near the entrance as they have an almost magical feel to them. I also like that this campground provides great access to both hiking in Nantahala National Forest as well as rafting and kayaking on one of the many rivers in the area.
Tent camping near Croatan National Forest in North Carolina offers a blend of natural beauty and outdoor adventure, making it a perfect getaway for nature enthusiasts.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is the most popular tent campsite near Croatan National Forest?
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular tent campground near Croatan National Forest is Cosby Campground — Great Smoky Mountains National Park with a 4.5-star rating from 71 reviews.
What is the best site to find tent camping near Croatan National Forest?
TheDyrt.com has all 106 tent camping locations near Croatan National Forest, with real photos and reviews from campers.
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