Best Glamping near Ivanhoe, NC

My thoughts and experience of Fayetteville RV Resort. This was our 2nd time staying here, this time we stayed for a long weekend, Thursday - Sunday during the month of April 2021. It is located a short distance from Interstate 95, making it a great place to spend the night if you are traveling on to another destination. Or stay for a nice relaxing vacation like us.

Our site #27 located across from the office, pool, mini golf and bathhouse is a back-in site, gravel pad, nice, level, average length and width, fire pit and picnic table. Full hook up’s, water, sewer and electric. Also cable tv and internet with average campground WiFi speed.

Things we liked about this campground:

• All sites seem to be gravel pads, nice, level, average length and width. Full hook up’s. I would guess half of the sites are pull though. They have sites that can handle long rigs. Also depending on your site nice shade trees.

• The staff and the couple managing the place are very friendly and it shows that they care about the guest. The campground is clean and well maintained. Seen staff making rounds all day.

• So much to do for the kiddos and adults. Two pools, hot tub, mini golf, basketball court, horseshoes and playground all included in your price.

• For the adults they have a nice workout center with lots of equipment.

• During our stay they had scheduled kid activities and movie night with popcorn.

• On Friday evening they had a food truck scheduled for dinner.

• We really liked the “Meet Your Neighbors Happy Hour”, they really wowed us with this event. It ends early enough that you can still have a quiet evening around your camp site. Check their activities list for schedule.

• Saturday morning they had a Waffle breakfast.

• Two large fenced dog parks, one located at each in of the campground.

• Two fishing ponds and dirt walking trail though the woods and around ponds.

• Two newly remodeled bathhouses and laundry rooms. Staff keeps them clean though out the day, we never had an issue with dirty or un-stocked bathrooms.

Verizon cell phone service was great.

Local Eating Places: Nothing special, Waffle House, Subway, Foxes Pizza and a corner grill all within 10 minutes away.

Attractions or things to do in the area: Averasboro Civil War Battlefield and Museum is only 9.6 miles. There is around 10 historical sites along the route that is connected to the history museum. In Fayetteville about 15-20 minutes there is a lot to do and see.

The group campground is isolated from the rest of the camping areas and is quiet at night. There are a lot of park visitors who walk through the area, but the trail through goes around he main campsites. The pit toilets are in need of some attention, but have always been well stocked. It’s about 400 yards to hike in, so we used a wagon to bring in gear. No water on site, but a really nice fire pit with grill top and 2 picnic tables. Shady tent sites available, but really hot and buggy in summer. Group camp site is about .5 mile hike from the river which is great for wading, but swimming is not allowed.

Many species of carnivorous plants grow here and abundant wildlife.

in the summer months there is a place to rent kayaks and paddle boards at the marina.

I have camped in this state park several times, including with the Boy Scouts. Other than the park itself, I really enjoyed the camaraderie when our Scout troop and another Scout troop that was camping were playing“Capture the Flag.” I say all of this because it is a great place for group camping. However, it also has conventional camping and cabins. When I first started camping at Cliffs of the Neuse, it did not have more than a mile of trails. Now it has added some more trails. It also did not have showers or cabins in times past. This park has improved significantly over the years and now has showers that are frequently maintained. One of the things you have to be aware of is that this park is sandy, so when you are camping, you will probably want to put some kind of rug in front of your tent or RV to minimize the amount of sand that you track in. Don’t think choosing another site will move you away from the sand. It won’t. Another thing you have to be aware of is that in eastern North Carolina, fire ants can be a huge problem. Some of the trails are easy, but the Spanish Moss Trail is quite steep in some places. Also, the Galax trail is almost always flooded during the spring or after a series of rains. There is a lake for swimming and a large picnic shelter. On weekends, it is not unusual for there to be lots of people at the picnic shelters, so you will have to reserve them. The sites have picnic tables and fire pits as well. This is a great park for swimming and boating, but the hiking is limited. If I am not mistaken, the total length of trails is fewer three miles. However, the main attraction is the view over the Neuse River and the new visitor’s center. Even with limited trails, it is still a great park for relaxing.

I have camped with a large group of friends at site #2 a couple of times, but this weekend, I wanted to camp with just my two boys, and site #5 (the yurt site) was available.  This site was new since I had camped here last.  It said it slept 6 and the website showed a pic of two beds; I *assumed* there would be four more, since it slept 6.

Long story short, just 2 beds.  But the worst part was weeds growing up through the floorboards, ripped screens, doors that wouldn't zip completely, and two (purposeful) holes at the top that surely let in mosquitoes!  The boy who slept at ground level is completely bitten up, despite me spraying everyone with bug spray and using my tennis racket-style bug zapper to clear out the yurt before bed.

Our trash can was completely full (I mean, at least there's a trash can, but we could hardly use it). Our fire ring was full of ashes and the grate was jammed down.  The previous campers had left us a few jugs of water but also small pieces of trash scattered about.  What I'm trying to say was that this site was not maintained between the last visitors and us.

The campground, though, is awesome if you like roughing it.  You are allowed, thankfully, to drive to your site, but it's a hike to walk to the running water toilets, and I saw lots of people drive to them.  There is a closer pit toilet but I didn't check that out.

The lake is beautiful, shallow, warm, good fishing, fun for everyone!  Bullfrogs, peepers, and owls called all night.  Dragonflies galore flew about.  It's rustic, but relaxing.  And the visitor's center has a nice exhibit on the Carolina Bays.

This resort is very community oriented with activities throughout the week and a free waffle breakfast every Saturday. There two beautiful green lawns, two pools, two shower houses, and two laundry facilities. Made for Trailers and RVs of all sizes with full hook-ups and utilities. Tent camping is not allowed. Management tries to accommodate all your needs; propane, firewood, quarters (for laundry), well equipped gym, and mail delivery are all available at the resort. Food trucks come in once or twice a week.  

The resort is a 15m drive from Fort Bragg, 20m from Fayetteville, and the Fayetteville Airport, and 1h away from Raleigh and the Raleigh Airport.

Our stay in Site #4 on February 25 in our 20' Mode LT was quiet and restful.  The park has an interesting geomorphology, sitting atop cliffs overlooking the river below, and there are miles of hiking trails.  The Campground Host was particularly helpful, checking us in when we arrived early.  Unlike many  state parks they offer their Senior Discount to out-of-state campers.  The campground is very clean and sites are very large with gravel pads, but only 14 sites have hook-ups.  Our stay was marred by heavy fire smoke from campfires penetrating our van.  The distance from I-95 adds an extra hour to your travel if you are just planning a one-nite stopover, so we might not make the trek again.