Best Glamping near Penrose, NC

Super place, super staff. Kevin the manager and Diane the host are awesome people with plenty of knowledge of the area. The road into the facility (FR 472) turns into a gravel road for the last mile or so with a few small potholes but nothing terrible, we had no problems getting there in a 30' class a RV . Just make sure when you get to the fork in the road STAY TO THE RIGHT! The road on the left is Neil Creek road (which btw has some really nice dispersed camp sites) but if you have a bigger rig and go up that road you will hate life... It twists then gets steep and only a couple places to make a 180. No cell service whatsoever even with a booster... If you walk a 1/4 mile out the gravel road by the 1st A frame house you can get a signal there. The showers have plenty of hot water and are clean. The place is a bear super highway so they take policing your food and garbage very seriously. There are an abundance of hiking trails accessible from the site and are well kept... S

Toe River has some beautiful spots to take a dip if you can handle the cold water.

We spent 2 nights in one of the cabins in this beautiful state park during a road trip through South Carolina. And let me say, 2 nights was not enough! The cabin itself was very well kept. There was air conditioning, 2 bedrooms, 1 full kitchen, 1 full bathroom, and a fire place. We stopped at a Walmart in one of the towns before the park to stock up on food.

There are multiple cabins scattered around the lake but they are a good distance apart from each other so you won't be disturbed by your neighbors. There was a fire ring and picnic in front of the cabin where we made smores after dinner and a cute screened porch with rocking chairs where we had coffee and breakfast on every morning. The cabin was right next to the small lake, which had a short trail going around it. We saw people fishing and I believe you can rent canoes as well in the park.

You definitely need more than 2 days to explore this cute little park. There are multiple hiking trails near by and definitely a lot of wild life. But it was definitely a peaceful and quiet park perfect for a relaxing weekend away.

What a weekend! My family desperately needed a COVID safe getaway so we decided to retreat to the woods. Cherryfield Luxury Group Camping exceeded our expectations. The shelters and grounds were prestine and the covered platforms were definately the way to go car camping. Our tents stayed neat and the covered shelter kept us dry and cozy as we watched the rain on our second night without a fly on our tent. This campsite has thought of everything. There are grills an firepits beside each platform (each platform is large enough for 3 four person tents) and there are two common shelters with electricity and GORGEOUS bathrooms. It is funny to say, but the bathrooms were nicer than many hotels we've stayed at... large tiled shower with digital temperature controls, excellent water pressure from the large rain shower head, and, as a bonus, surround shower heads for that extra special something. I have never been excited by a shower or bathroom at a campground, but I made sure to shower before leaving because the experience was so zen. There is ample lawn space to play games, set up additional tents, and spread out for privacy, even during larger group gatherings. There are grills and grill tops by each fire pit making campfire or grill cooking easy, but delicious local restaurants just 10 minutes away also offer catering style menus that makie car camping and group gatherings even easier (the local BBQ and Italian were terrific). The grounds are meticulously kept and there are sturdy bear boxes to protect food and trash to help keep unwanted visitors from troubling guests. While we enjoyed some activities away from Cherryfied, we could have easily spent the entire weekend at the campsite. Not only are the grounds spectacular, but there is an easy walking trail to a lovely moss covered waterfall just steps away from the campgroud. The sound of the waterfall can be heard from the campground. It added ambient atmosphere and lulled us to sleep each night. The hosts were terrific and offered many suggestions for take out meals and activities. My only criticism is that the weekend went by too quickly. I did not realize how much my family needed an escape of this sort until we got the Cherryfield. I recomment Cherryfield without reservation. Take good care of this special place. We cannot wait to return.

This campground was recommended to me by a friend. After car camping for a few days, my son and I came here to a surprisingly comfortable cozy and AIR CONDITIONED (!) cabin for 3 nights. This place is so cute! There is an acre of catch and release pond, a playground and jump pad for kids, a pool, some trails, several things to do. There is a coin operated laundry and a bathhouse that I have to say is beautifully kept and clean. The staff are very friendly and helpful. I will definitely stay here again on my way back and forth from Maine to Alabama.

   We camped at Emberglow campground for a long weekend the third week of April 2022. The campground is amazing. We all had a wonderful time. There was a combination of Camping trailers, and one family rented a Tiny House. The house was beautiful. The bath house and bathroom facilities at the campground were pristine. They were completely tiled and very clean. There were multiple activities for children including a bounce pad, playground and ball pit. The swimming pool was lovely and scheduled to open the next weekend. There are also tent sites available. Some of the RV sites had outdoor kitchens with sinks and propane tanks. Each site had a picnic table and fire ring. Our site had a gravel base. The close proximity to Chimney Rock and Lake Lure is an added bonus. The owners and staff were very friendly and helpful, but unobtrusive. I highly recommend Emberglow Campground.

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