Best Dog-Friendly Camping near Nantahala National Forest, NC

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.

First off, the people who run this place are wonderful people. They are easy to work with and very helpful if your plans change. The sites are nice size with very “homey” landscaping. I didn’t feel like I was sharing my site with my neighbors. The facilities were the cleanest I’ve seen in the last 3 months. WiFi worked well. It is close to all the places you want to see in the Great Smoky Mountains, Pisgah, and Nantahala national forests. Plus the end of the Blue Ridge Parkway is right there too.

 Greenbriar campground is located in Pittman Center, west of Gatlinburg, adjacent to the Great Smoky Mountains. The campground is certainly one of the nicest camping spots I’ve n the area. The campground is very large, and has multiple camping options. They have tent and rv spots, as well as cabins, but I also saw some teepee style tent cabins. The campground is very wooded, so you feel like you are getting a legitimate Smoky Mountain camping experience. The pigeon river runs through the campground, and is great for fishing, or swimming/tubing in summer. There is a dog park also, and the campground is pet friendly. This campground has so many things to do, and it is very popular, so if you want to camp here, I would suggest booking early, because spots are booked months in advance. The campground is very quiet at night, with just the sounds of nature. There is a camp store, with firewood, and you’ll want to enjoy a campfire, even in the middle of summer. I Highly recommend Greenbriar Campground for camping in the Smokies.

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.

Everything is new. We stayed by the dog park and it was convenient. We missed the lazy river due to them closing it for landscaping. However the circle of the lazy river appeared small. They also opened a deli by the fishing pond.

This campground has a beautiful mountain view behind the lake. There is also a beautiful waterfall to hike to. They offer paddle boards, kayaks, peddleboats, and aqua cycles to rent for the lake. They also offer bike rentals and putt putt course. There is a general store in the visitor center. There are hiking trails for the extreme hikers too that go into the mountains on the Appalachian trail. The campsites are pretty close together, but we had a premier spot that was larger and a pull-through. The bathrooms were clean, but old and dated. This is one of the oldest campgrounds in the state. They offer cottages and cabins for rent. There was a dog parking loud constantly that was so annoying. We have dogs and many people camping there did, but our dogs don’t bark constantly. I would say this isn’t the campgrounds fault, but this irresponsible pet owner was literally between two campground hosts. Had it continued late at night past 10pm we would have had to call someone. It’s hard to relax by the fire with a dog barking constantly. The campground needs to add more signage. People are driving around looking lost. Here’s the problem ... if you have an RV or camper and park in the RV spaces when you pull out on the far end to the right you cannot see the directional signs. We pulled to the right and it was a dead end at the cottages. It was very stressful trying to the turn around hauling a camper. People in the cottages told us we weren’t the only ones to pull down there and have to turn around. Lots of cars were turning around down there, but with a camper it’s a nightmare. I paid extra for a pullthrough only to deal with that nonsense at the start. I suggest adding a sign at the far right exit of parking lot that has directions. Add another sign that says “Cabins only - Dead End”. If our camper had been an inch longer we couldn’t have turned around. Not impressed by the swimming area at the beach.

we stayed during spring break . no fire rings but they will bring a fir pit to your site. pool was still closed due to it still being chilly. sites were really close. they do have a small store. cabins and full hook up sites are available. new owners said a dog park was in the plans in the future. grounds were well kept a dog bath and clean bathrooms and showers. good base for day trips to water falls, Cherokee, or Maggie Valley

Great mountain Thanksgiving vacay! Lots of area attractions and lots of activities at the KOA for our granddaughter! 2 playgrounds, mini golf, pillow pad, paddle boats, game room. Nice little dog park with mutt mitts, and staff friendly and helpful. Picnic table at each site, we were by the lake, but would have chosen near pillow-pad if available as those spots were better spaced. Nice store and clean facilities even though we didn’t use.

This place was amazing! Other than the keys this is my second favorite. They have a lot of amenities such as and arcade, playground, dog park, laundry room, camp store. We came from Florida to see the fall leaves. Our 35 ft RV was right on the stream. The ducks flew in and out all day. It really was beautiful! Everyone was super friendly. The staff was great about guiding guest into their spot. I will definitely be returning to the campground!

This campground is now named Pigeon Forge RV park. Everything looks brand new. Very nice facilities and campground. Onsite laundry, showers, heater saltwater pool with slide, dog park, store, pizza place, daily trash pickup, very stable wifi you can stream with. Spots are a little tight to back into, but the staff will help you get backed in if needed. Very friendly people. Highly recommend if your traveling to the Pigeon Forge area. Only a few minute drive off the main strip of Pigeon Forge

We just completed our 4th of July stay. This was the quietest campground we have stayed at. It is small and very well maintained. Management was very helpful and welcoming. Level gravel sites. Flowers and nice landscaping through out. Perfect for adults who want a quiet, clean place to stay. They are putting in a dog park which will enhance your experience. We would recommend that you plan a stay here. Deb wants me to mention that she enjoyed watching the cows at the neighboring farm cool off in the river.

Camp Riverslanding along the the Little Pigeon River is small, but has great appeal. Located right by Parkway, it has easy access to plenty of things to do. The bathrooms are outstanding, located in the same building as the laundry, there are several private bathroom/shower rooms, decorated nice and very clean. Garbage is picked up at your camp site every day. There is a pool, bounce pad, game room, and dog park. Our campsite located right on the river, had full hookups, a fire pit, a picnic table, and the ability to fish or tube along the river.

Beautiful location on the creek. It's near everything in Pigeon Forge but feels much more secluded. The thing that makes this campground stand out are the ducks. There are ducks everywhere. They will walk right up to your camper door and wait for you. They will eat out of your hand as well. Amenities include dog park, swimming pool, game room, and lazy river. There were alot of of renovations going on here when we went (during Covid-19). The place is going to look amazing when completed. One problem with this place is that it seems to have too much gravel and not enough grass. Alot of campsites don't have any grass at all. There are some dog bag stations throughout. Some pot holes too. I would suggest some repaving next.

I would not recommend this place as a goto camp. The Yellow River floods into the park during high rain periods, park gives no warning till they are getting water into the park, then it is a knock on the door to get out of the park if they have no openings in high ground area. Lots of wild cats in park, but no vermin there. Many ex-cons in the park, all kinds of history in them....woof. They try to keep it in good shape, but a lot of trash offender, litters adults as well as kids, people not picking up behind their pets. 

Over all not the worst, but surely not close to good either. Only stayed a month just had to go.