Best Cabin Camping near Penrose, NC

Rustic cabin rentals in the Penrose region include Davidson River Campground and Lake Powhatan in the National Forests of North Carolina. Cabins typically provide basic amenities such as beds, electricity, and picnic tables outside. Most feature fire rings for outdoor cooking and evening warmth. A visitor commented, "The sites themselves vary in privacy and space but overall acceptable. Fire pits, picnic bench, some sites with bear boxes, warm showers, clean toilets." Bathroom facilities are shared at most locations, with Davidson River offering shower buildings in each loop, though cleanliness can vary seasonally.

Options range from tiny log cabins to spacious family-sized layouts. KOA-style cabins are available at multiple locations including Asheville East KOA and Asheville West KOA, which operate year-round. These typically offer more amenities than forest service cabins, including better insulation and climate control. Reservations are strongly recommended, especially during summer months when occupancy reaches capacity. As one camper noted, "This place is packed most all of the summer now so you don't want to show up without a spot." Most cabin facilities allow pets for an additional fee, though policies vary by location.

Most cabins include beds but require visitors to bring their own linens, towels, and toiletries. Furnished cabins may provide basic kitchen equipment like refrigerators and microwaves, while more rustic options have outdoor cooking facilities only. Blue Ridge Motorcycle Campground and Rutledge Lake RV Resort offer cabins with more extensive furnishings, including indoor seating areas and private porches. Firewood is typically available for purchase on-site, and basic supplies can be found at camp stores within KOA properties. For groceries and other necessities, Brevard is approximately 5 miles from Penrose with multiple shopping options.

Best Cabin Sites Near Penrose, North Carolina (145)

    1. Davidson River Campground

    83 Reviews
    Pisgah Forest, NC
    5 miles
    Website
    +1 (828) 785-5337

    $37 - $84 / night

    "There is a short walking trail within the camgpground, and the Art Loeb trail starts right at the beginning of the campground as well."

    "Why would you place the fire pit next to the lantern pole. That seems dangerous having a lantern so close to the fire."

    2. Lake Powhatan — National Forests In North Carolina

    62 Reviews
    Enka, NC
    14 miles
    +1 (828) 552-8040

    $37 - $135 / night

    "PROS 

    Discounted camp fee with senior pass 

    Reserved 169 days prior to arriving 

    Friendly and helpful gate attendant 

    Nearly 100% shade at each site 

    Excellent dark sky viewing 

    Private sites with"

    "PROS:

    •Quiet, peaceful and clean•Beautiful mountain setting

    •Plenty to do in and around the campground

    •Spacious sites and spaced apart

    Trails by the miles

    •Modern facilities-Hot Showers•"

    3. Table Rock State Park Campground

    55 Reviews
    Sunset, SC
    18 miles
    Website
    +1 (864) 878-9813

    "Table Rock State Park is a large park with at least three“campgrounds.” One is a primitive campground, and one is a traditional campground."

    "The alternatives #5 and #6 were close to the entrance and therefore exposed to the road, and #49 was next to the restrooms, but similar to #60, so stayed with #60."

    4. Rutledge Lake RV Resort

    19 Reviews
    Fletcher, NC
    13 miles
    Website
    +1 (828) 654-7873

    "The entrance is key card only , the park staff are welcoming & helpful. They have a heated pool & lake activities. All of the facilities are nice. The park is up-kept very well."

    "It had plenty of space for the 5 of us and 2 dogs. Nice gravel level sites. Greg was very helpful at leading us back and gave us great information about the area."

    5. Asheville West KOA

    24 Reviews
    Candler, NC
    20 miles
    Website
    +1 (828) 665-7015

    "I didn’t use showers or restrooms. Loved pet run area. Nature walk is good for stretching legs. My site B19 was close to neighbors but felt private between campers. Quiet hours respected."

    "It was an ideal location since it was between downtown Asheville and Waynesville which is where we split our time. The staff was friendly."

    6. Blue Ridge Motorcycle Campground - TEMPORARILY CLOSED

    9 Reviews
    Canton, NC
    13 miles
    Website
    +1 (828) 235-8350

    $15 - $50 / night

    "As other reviews have said, this campground is in a lovely location, right on a small creek/river. The grounds are well maintained and grass covered for the most part."

    "I think the rustic cabins were all taken, but there were plenty of sites left for tent camping.  It was a great, friendly mix of every kind of biker looking for a getaway. "

    7. Asheville East KOA

    52 Reviews
    Swannanoa, NC
    27 miles
    Website
    +1 (828) 686-3121

    $50 / night

    "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."

    "It’s accessibility to Asheville is great, but the site itself is clean, with tidy grounds and a spotless bathroom (didn’t use showers). Plenty of places to walk and pet friendly."

    8. Ash Grove

    5 Reviews
    Brevard, NC
    10 miles

    $45 / night

    "Tent camping comfort with mulched level sites…WiFi available…Owners live onsite,and always available…clean restrooms,hot shower…"

    "The Bluet site is our favorite, it's close to the bathroom but also feels very private. There is a small waterfall on the property which is worth the hike."

    9. Devils Fork State Park Campground

    52 Reviews
    Tamassee, SC
    28 miles
    Website
    +1 (864) 944-2639

    "They are a short walk from the tent-camper parking area, a short walk from the two water spigots in the parking area, and a short walk from the restrooms."

    "The walk-in tent sites were excellent. All sites had table, fire ring, lantern hook, and a gravel tent pad in addition to paved site. Most of the sites were shaded."

    10. Orchard Lake Campground

    12 Reviews
    Saluda, NC
    17 miles
    Website
    +1 (828) 749-3901

    $38 - $48 / night

    "Pet friendly. We will be returning. Tent sites had electric and water on them."

    "A swimming lake with slide. Boats, zip line, fishing, a game room, move room. Only bad thing is the bad house are probably the worst I have ever used."

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Cabin Reviews near Penrose, NC

1156 Reviews of 145 Penrose Campgrounds


  • A
    Nov. 2, 2018

    Camp Driftwood Asheville

    Camp Driftwood

    I found this campground through airbnb. They have tent camping as well as two cottages. The cottages are titled "Paddlers Paradise- Camp Driftwood Cottage" and have cable TV, a laptop friendly work space, heating, air conditioning, and a private entrance. The tent camping sites are titled "Camp Site- Camp Driftwood" and have fire rings, picnic tables, and access to a shared bathhouse and common area. Both of these have free parking and are located right on the French Broad River. The water is easily accessible and tubing is frequently seen along the bank. The entrance to the area is directly off the road, but has a VERY steep decline immediately following. Be cautious in driving too far up the bank as the path becomes soft, especially after a good rain. Overall, a small and personable camping option that is worth a visit!

  • M
    Jul. 20, 2018

    Adventure Trail Campground - **CLOSED**

    Rustic Cabin Camping Experience

    My family is usually tent campers, but we decided this year we didn't want to deal with the hassle of setting up & breaking down camp. We chose this campground because of the rustic camping cabins they offer. The price is right, and the experience felt just like our usual camping trips without the set-up (& no worries about leaking tents during rain!).

    Cabins are VERY rustic (perfect for us), one-room, with a handful of bunk beds & electricity. Ours had 3 bunk beds, so slept all 6 of us easily. You bring your own bed linens, and use the same shower-house/restrooms as tent campers would. Your site has a picnic table & fire ring. I believe they asked us to keep food out of the cabin. Not a big deal, since the cabins are basically just enough room to sleep anyway. We did breakfast most mornings of our week-long stay at our own campsite, as well as a few easy dinners (hotdogs), but for our bigger dinners we used their picnic shelter (which has a decent grill & a lot more space). If the park had been very busy, it might have been a little difficult to do so, since they only have the one picnic shelter, but we honestly didn't see more than a handful of other guests during our stay.

    The grounds themselves are nicely kept. They come around every morning & pick up your trash from your campsite. They do have a pool, playground, park store, bathhouse. All the essentials. Did notice that the pool & bathhouse were often closed for cleaning mid-day. The bathhouse had a sign stating cleaning took place between 1-2pm, but it seemed like that block of time always ran over quite a bit. Not too big a deal, since most days we were out doing things off-site for the bulk of mid-day, but if you were tent camping & stay on the campground all day I could see that being a lot more annoying. The bathhouse is pretty typical of most state and national parks - maybe even a bit nicer. Kept well cleaned.

    For the price, & the number of additional amenities, this place was perfect! Lots of waterfalls, hikes, & opportunities for outdoor activities in the area. Cherokee's not far away, and definitely worth a visit.

  • Denise G.
    Sep. 10, 2019

    Paris Mountain State Park Campground

    Nice Place to Relax, Just out side the bustle of Suburbia.

    We had a great time staying here. Some of the sights were rather inclined, but they listed this on the website when booking(it's on a mountain after all). The areas between most of the sites was spacious, we were able to hang 2 hammocks to chill in. The Bathhouses had been remodeled and were kept clean while we were there. (There wasn't hand soap at the sinks that was a little weird for me).  The Large trash bins were located back down across from the Park Center, as was the play ground. It would have been more convenient for campers to have these things closer but were convenient for day use visitors. The park center is a gorgeous stone/log cabin type building with a long porch facing the Swimming area. There are Adirondack chairs on the porch, then between the porch and the lake are wooden lounge chairs and benches to relax on while taking a break from swimming or hanging out. There are miles of trails and streams to explore. We had a lovely time and plan to visit again soon.

  • R
    Apr. 13, 2024

    Black Bear Campground

    Great primitive campground opened 2023

    This is a brand new tent and cabin campground built by Duke Energy and run by McDowell county on Lake James. There is a boat ramp very close by, a fishing dock, picnic area, trails in and around the campground, and a seasonal Black Bear Marina Restaurant across the inlet or not far by road. All sites have tent pads and 2 parking spots. Many of the sites are a short walk from the car which affords privacy. There is a rental picnic shelter and a group csmping site. The rental camping cabins have 2 cots with a plywood base,( bring a mattress!).

  • J
    Apr. 6, 2021

    Moonshine Creek Campground

    Best laid out and maintained park

    The park is very well maintained. You can tell the owner takes pride in the park. The place is laid out so that almost every site is creekside. Bathrooms are placed all throughout the park. plenty of parking. extremely nice bath house with 4 showers and dressing area separate as well as 4 toilet rooms also had 3 washers and 4 dryers, looked very new. plenty of hot water. we stayed in a camping cabin which had a full bed and sleeping loft. the loft is very large, 3 10-12 yrs old as well as 3 3-4 yr olds fit up there nice and comfy. they have camping cabins, fully equipped cabins, rv sites as well as tent sites. every site has a grill/fire pit and picnic table. they gave a camp store with firewood and just about anything else you need or forgot to bring. the town of sylva nc is only 15 minutes away and it has fast food, restaurants and, grocery and a walmart.

  • Napunani
    Jun. 23, 2022

    Lake Powhatan — National Forests In North Carolina

    Shade, Shade and more Shade!

    PROS 

    Discounted camp fee with senior pass 

    Reserved 169 days prior to arriving 

    Friendly and helpful gate attendant 

    Nearly 100% shade at each site 

    Excellent dark sky viewing 

    Private sites with large space along with vegetation between sites 

    Very quiet 

    Asphalt parking pad surrounded with bean size gravel 

    Concrete picnic table 

    Metal fire pit with cooking grate 

    2 hook lantern pole 

    Electric at water connection for heated water hose connection 

    Recycle bins in campground loop 

    Trash dumpsters immediately out of campground loop 

    Firewood for sale but gate attendant told us to buy at Ingles (grocery store) where it is $3 bundle cheaper and we did! 

    Next to North Carolina Arboretum 

    Close to Asheville Outlet Mall and Camping World 

    CONS 

    3 bear sitings a day prior to our arrival in campground, according to gate attendant 

    No overnight gate closure even tho RULES proved at check-in stated gates closed at 10pm, but no open hours in RULES

     Lakeview site 38 not level 

    Up hill sewer connection at Lakeview site 38 

    Fire ring not cleared of ash upon our arrival 

    Non-moveable concrete picnic table and beyond camper awning 

    2 toilets and 2 showers for entire Lakeview Loop (21 campsites). There were lines! 

    Low hanging tree branches over roadways and roadside tree branches over roadways so it was a maneuvering obstacle challenge to not scrape camper roof and sides Campground roads narrow with tight curves along with roadway asphalt dropped off to steep shoulders; could be challenging to novice rig drivers (as we witnessed that more than once) 

    Two-and- a-half-mile drive on a twisty hilly road through residential neighborhood to get to the campground 

    No WiFi 

    1 bar Verizon

  • Ashley M.
    Sep. 17, 2019

    Moonshine Creek Campground

    Beautiful Campground

    My husband and I stayed here for my birthday in one of the camping cabins. We will definitely be back now that we have our A-frame camper. The campground is beautiful with a mountain stream flowing through the entire campground. Immaculate bathhouses and wonderful owners. Great store onsite and lots to do in the surrounding area.

  • S
    Oct. 16, 2016

    Moonshine Creek Campground

    Moonshine Creek Campground

    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!

  • Zach H.
    Jul. 2, 2020

    Emberglow Outdoor Resort

    What all campgrounds should aspire to!

    This is an absolute top-notch campground.  It just opened in the spring of 2020 and I can already tell this is going to be a very popular place.

    First, the staff is incredible.  Everyone is friendly, helpful, and goes out of their way to make you feel at home.  The owner was onsite every day and checked in on us several times.

    The camping options are very unique and diverse.  They have your typical RV sites (all full hookups) and tent sites, all of which have green space around them.  Our site backed up to a beautiful stream with some trees for hammocks and shade.  The tent sites are clustered together next to a stream in the woods, providing tons of shade on hot days.  Nearby are a few treehouses that you can rent, similar to old school sleep-away camping cabins.  Around the corner from the tents are several vintage RVs, many from the 50s, that have been completely renovated with beautiful interiors and modern updates.  They each have their own deck, fire pit, and grill.  My mom stayed in one of these while we were visiting and loved it!  There are also camping pods - basically an igloo shaped cabin that is good for a couple people.  Yurts are just up the hill from those, alongside two beautiful tiny homes that are some of the most unique campground rentals I've ever seen.  Book these early - we were here in late June and they were already full until October!

    The amenities are very nice as well.  There is a resort style pool with built in seating almost all the way around.  It's next to a pavilion area with picnic tables, corn hole, a community fire pit, outdoor movie screen, and performance stage.  Nearby is an inflatable jumping pad and volleyball net.  I spoke with the owner and he has plans to add many other game such as bocce ball as well as complete construction on a playground and wooded play area for kids.  You can also rent many campground games at the camp store such as spike ball and ladder ball.  More hiking trails are being added, and a large dog park made exercising our pup easy.

    Oh and the wifi is off the charts for a campground.  Total coverage everywhere you go.  I was getting 30/30 speeds at my site.  I work remote so it was very important to have good internet, and Emberglow did not disappoint here!  They obviously invested heavily in a quality network infrastructure and it shows.

    The location is nice - off the main roads so you get plenty of peace and quiet, but only 20 minutes to Lake Lure and Chimney Rock.  It's easily accessible from Charlotte, Asheville, and Spartanburg, SC.

    Every campground owner needs to come take a look at this place.  This is what campgrounds should be aiming for - clean, modern, lots of nature, friendly staff, good prices, and fun activities.  I was not paid or asked or endorsed in any way to do this review, I simply think this is an awesome place that you should come check out!


Guide to Penrose

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Frequently Asked Questions

Which is the most popular cabin campsite near Penrose, NC?

According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular cabin campground near Penrose, NC is Davidson River Campground with a 4.6-star rating from 83 reviews.

What is the best site to find cabin camping near Penrose, NC?

TheDyrt.com has all 145 cabin camping locations near Penrose, NC, with real photos and reviews from campers.