Searching for the perfect place to pitch your tent near South Mills? The Dyrt is an easy way to find tent camping spots near South Mills. Each tent campsite offers quick access to one or more of South Mills's most popular destinations.
Primitive camping year-round. No cabins. The park does not offer same-day reservations. For information on the availability of overnight accommodations and particular amenities or to make a reservation, call (800) 933-PARK.
All campers must receive their confirmation letter and information packet before camping at this park. Carefully and thoroughly read the information you receive. False Cape is unusual and can be unpleasant for those who are unprepared. The packet is generally sent via email, but if you need it sent by postal mail, be sure to allow enough time to receive it. No exceptions. All overnight guests must bring two copies of their confirmation letter. One must be placed on the dashboard of their vehicle; the other clipped to the site marker.
Because False Cape is very primitive and has unusually restrictive access, reservations are not available online. For safety's sake, please take the time to carefully read and follow the information below.
Parking is never available at Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge for overnight guests. Campers must instead park at the Little Island City Park, leave a copy of their confirmation letter on the dashboard, and walk from five to nine miles through Back Bay Refuge to the park’s campsites. Pets are not allowed access to the park through the Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge. See below for more information. Beach camping is subject to tides. During significant high tide events, the park may close the campsites. All park guests are subject to Back Bay Refuge and Little Island City Park's rules and regulations. Campers must be out of the refuge before sunset when arriving and departing False Cape State Park. Be prepared for biting insects during summer. They are very common. Little Island City Park in Virginia Beach - the place from which most visitors depart to False Cape - is closed on New Year's Day, Martin Luther King Day, at noon the day prior to Thanksgiving Day, on Thanksgiving Day, at noon on Christmas Eve and on Christmas Day. On days when the lot is closed, False Cape staff will meet incoming and outgoing campers at 1 p.m. sharp to let current campers depart and incoming campers enter with enough time to hike, bike and set up camp before nightfall (about 5 p.m.)
$20 / night
$30 - $100 / night
$11 - $42 / night
Traveler
Plenty of room..showers/bathrooms huge..water NOT at all sites but easy to fill tanks. Some sites close to main road but not a lot of traffic.
Scout
I arrived at the location and, within 10 minutes, police officers showed up to monitor me, despite my behavior being no different from that of others around me. The next morning, I returned and, once again, within 10 minutes, the police were called to watch me. I plan to document these incidents and file a formal complaint, but I want to warn other Black individuals to exercise caution when visiting this place. I'm unsure whether the issue lies with the organization itself or if it's the Bethel campers falsely reporting my actions, but it’s striking that simply walking to decompress has led to repeated police presence. I plan to document each experience, timing my arrival and the police arrival and then look into why I believe I'm being racially profiled. While this isn't blatant racism, it sure aligns with interpersonal racism is much harder to detect if there isn't a pattern and you know how it operates.
Guide
Good campground as usual. bathrooms well maintained and cleaned twice a day when we were there. Campsite is right next to the bathroom and has a good amount of shade. Bathrooms had two sinks to clean dishes. Boardwalk nearby to the beach was very convenient, however quite a few boards look like they need replacement. One highlight was watching the school of dolphins from our kayaks, not far from the beach. Never saw that before.
GuideMost of the sites have shade a few do not have any shade. If you do not like traffic noise, stay far away from the main road that the park is located off.
You can not see the water from any campsite and all sites are a little walk to get to the beach of the bay.
Light waves on the bay. It has beautiful sunsets with dolphins playing there in the evening.
We stayed in site 5 which is literally in the bathroom front yard with NO SHADE.
Traveler
We stayed here for two nights during our trip along the Outer Banks. We had a great time and enjoyed our stop here. Our site had a great view of the water and we could see the Currituck lighthouse at night. Our boys enjoyed kayaking around the sound and riding their bikes to the playground. It seemed like they are working to add more amenities and upgrades so I’d stay again next time we make it that way. Also, Diggers Dungeon is only a few miles away so if you have kids make sure to stop and let them see the monster trucks.
Legend
We have family in Edenton and have stayed at Ricky Hock many times. It is just north of town and has large mostly pull through sites with full hookups.
Traveler
Great pad sites but sparse vegetation and zero privacy. Road noise was constant and lots of traffic on the beach access highway.
Scout
This is a wonderful spot if you want to avoid the high dollar hotel stays in Virginia Beach. There are a lot of amenities at this place, however you have to pay for some of the activities. This should be included in the price. The RV spots are not even 20 to 25 ft apart from each other. If that. It seems that this park is more in it for the money than the camping experience. That being said, there are a ton of things to do if you have a young family or just want to be rowdy. Lol. I went during memorial weekend, but I was told it's like this all of the time. The site that I had was very uneven. I had to put a 5-in lift on one side of my travel trailer and drop the tongue nearly to the ground due to the uneven pad to park on. Only room enough for one car. Overall it was a good experience, and you can't help but get to know your neighbors. Lol maybe that's what their plan was. Know your neighbors.
Traveler
That was a great experience! Go there only if Greg says it's ok. He knows how demanding it can be to get to his ground if you're not used to driving off-road. You need a 4x4 car. Wonderful five star primitive campground. No water, no toilet. Bring your own. Explore the property, the sound and the sea. We saw deer, wild horses, coyotes, eagles, turtles, dolphins but also mosquitos and ticks. Bring repellent. I will never forget the two days camping. Greg is a great host! Thank you for this incredible experience!
ScoutI am so thankful to Greg and Mary for humbly allowing me to stay on their beautiful property. What a unique and incredible place. The wild horses came to visit me daily, bald eagles, osprey...kayaked on the calm waters of the sound..hiked the beach and biked the trails up through false cape state park. Just an incredible opportunity I am so thankful that I was given, and by the nicest of people you can find. And I'll be back one day for those tires Dave! Haha, thanks to everyone that showed me around, a memory to be cherished.
Ranger
Overall, this campground is utilitarian at best. We stayed for five nights in April in a 25' Airstream. It is on a military installation so you need to have access.
- RV office does not open; if you have any issue, you have to call the reservation line or see the camp host...but there was nothing to mark who the camp host was and they never stopped by.
- Roads are decrepit with major potholes and in need of repair. The roads and some sites flood when raining. There are two one way roads in, but without a map of the campground available, you don't know which one to turn down in advance.
- Bathrooms are dated but clean.
- Dumpster not emptied in timely fashion. It was overflowing the first two days here and people were piling trash around it until it was emptied on a Wed.
- Full hook up (electric/water/sewer) on sites; some have fire pits, some don't. Also the connection boxes are set back pretty far on the sites, so you need longer hoses/cords. We had a long electric cord that reached and had to add a second water hose and second section of sewer hose to connect. Water pressure was good.
- Concrete pads and free laundry were nice. Ground around the concrete pads were rutted where folks either parked off the pad or didn't know how to park on it.
- Free wifi if you sign up for MWR's, but we used our T-Mobile home internet with good connection (4 bars). AT&T on our phones was 1 bar at best.
- Several small hiking trails nearby on base that were good for walking the dog.
- Traffic getting off base starting around 1500-1600 is bad, so plan accordingly.
- Expect to hear aircraft all the time. You get used to it quickly, but can be loud.
- Seemed like some active duty personnel were staying here, as we saw them leaving in the mornings and coming back at the end of the day in uniform.
- We didn't find firewood for sale on base and bought some out in town near another campground.
- Follow the signs on base to the golf course and keep driving past the driving range to find a small beach on base.
Not the best look for a military campground, but if you just need a place to park to access the other amenities of the base and area cheaply, this is it.
ScoutGood: Beautiful campground. Very clean facilities and close by. Easy access to water. Close proximity to beach and hiking. 120 - was able to get two RTT on one site.
Bad: close proximity to other sites. Busy campground in general. Kids running around. Lots of standing water, once bugs start coming out would be a ton of mosquito.
TravelerGreat campground with nicely shaded sites. If you want quiet and peaceful stick to the spots on the beach side.
RangerLove coming to this spot for camping so close to the beach! Campground fills up fast and sites are kinda close together though. 1-2 bars Verizon.
TravelerI had the privilege of getting to stay on this property for a week while camping and exploring the outdoors in the obx. It was not only beautiful, but felt very safe as well! Greg and his wife Mary were extremely kind! They made an effort to help familiarize myself with the area while checking in and giving tips! I was also lucky enough to see the wild horses at camp & at the beach 3 out of 4 days i was there. This was truly one of the best camping experiences i’ve ever had. If you are ever in the area and craving a unique experience, I recommend reaching out to Greg and considering staying here.
TravelerFirst, Greg is an amazing communicator. He gave great instructions for finding the camp site. Plus, checked in to make sure everything was going ok and gave tips.
It was such a peaceful location and I even had the privilege of seeing a horse on the grounds on 2 different nights.
I’m so glad I had a chance to stay here and hope to have the opportunity to visit in warmer weather.
Ranger
We went for Valentine's Day weekend. Only a couple of other people were there, and we hardly saw them. We used site 11. I still think it's the best one, it's the largest, right next to the main trail head, & bath house trail right ahead of the site. The bath house was real nice. They had heaters running and they were so toasty, also very clean. Trails were nice too, we used our ebikes on the bike trail.
TravelerOverall amazed at the cleanliness of the campground. The staff is very friendly. The park was very quiet going into the night.
TravelerThis is a must see spot. It is located right on the sound and the beach. It is located on private property that requires 4 wheel drive capable vehicle to access. You have to drive down the beach to reach this spot. Greg and his wife were extremely friendly and wanted to share the amazing property that they own. They have a dock with access to the sound which I used to explore the sound on my kayak. I recommend giving Greg a call if you want to experience a very unique and amazing camping experience.
ScoutStayed on Friday and Sat nights at family campground. Bathrooms ok but in need of maintenance. Park clean and well maintained. Biggest issue is the noise. Neighbors played music and were loud until well after midnight. Other neighbor had dog barking all night. Not a great campground for people with young kids like we have. We will be looking for campgrounds with onsite hosts in the future.
ScoutWe loved staying here for the weekend! We were the only ones in the tent area underneath beautiful trees. We kayaked in their creek that goes out directly to the Chowan River. Large fishing pond, firewood available, clean shower house, game room and tidy clean sites. Will return!
Scout
Wooded location with Kayak access to the low country. Water service is inadequate, it’s a water meter box that is in the ground under water itself. Quiet place with clean restrooms.
TravelerWe tent camped here over Labor Day weekend as our first family camping trip, and we all had such a good time! Our boys (8, 6, & 4) had so much fun on the big playground and paddle boating. Ask for Bill! He’s awesome and treats everyone like they’re special :)
The tent sites are clean, closely grouped, and the lights from the bathroom shine on them all night (so bring a sleep mask). But for $10/night with full bathrooms, sink to wash dishes in, and laundry? Worth the lights! Will definitely stay here again.
GuideWent for Labor Day weekend. Great campsite with good shade. Beach was nice and bay water was good temperature. Plus while Virginia Beach had red flag conditions, we could still swim. Had my crocs stolen at the beach though. Bathrooms next to us were completely renovated and are very nice.
Scout
I just called and inquired about pricing. I was told that RV spots were $130/night. Not the $30-100
RangerThe Virginia Beach KOA is a nice place to stay. Plenty of things to do every day. This is a newly renovated KOA, and they added a lot of new sites. Also a new pool with a lazy River. We stayed at a premium site which provided a fire ring, a picnic table, and 3 chairs on the paved site. The landscaping is very well kept. There are some sites that have plenty of shade, but a good amount of them don’t. If you are a family with kids, this is definitely a KOA for you to check out. They provide you with a schedule outlining all of the events they will be having that week. There was a day where a few food trucks visited, including our favorite, a Rita’s food truck. They had live music most nights, which is always a hit or miss, but still fun. They have a dog park for your furry friends. One of the best parts of this KOA is the bus service that runs from the campground to Virginia Beach proper. It even takes you to the VA Beach Aquarium, which is our favorite. The bus allows you to bring all your beach gear and runs well into the evening. Overall, we very much enjoyed our stay at this KOA and would definitely return.
Scout
The park is centrally located with easy highway access. Plentiful parking, lots of trails to choose from. The staff was top notch and super kind and helpful. They were very insistent about the "no alcohol" rule.
Sites are first come, first served. Must reserve in person. Visitor's center is open 9-6.
The sites were located about 1/4 mile from the parking lot down a trail. They were spaced nicely apart and had nice sand tent platforms with a picnic table and a fire ring with a grate. Trash cans were very close by, which was super nice. The bathrooms were flush toilets and running water faucets and located behind the parking lot, so a bit of a hike in the dark if you need to go. Other than that, expect no amenities. Bugs weren't terrible but were present. Definitely bring bug spray.
The biggest negative was that no matter where you were in the park, there was significant noise from the highway. Horns honking, sirens blaring, the general rush of cars going by. There is no sound barrier between 64 and the park so every noise just filters right through the trees. Not anyone's fault, but definitely a downside.
Overall when you consider the dirt cheap price of 10.60 per night, this campground delivers as advertised.
Tent camping near South Mills, North Carolina, offers a unique blend of natural beauty and outdoor adventure, perfect for those looking to escape the hustle and bustle of everyday life.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is the most popular tent campsite near South Mills, NC?
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular tent campground near South Mills, NC is False Cape State Park Campground with a 4.8-star rating from 11 reviews.
What is the best site to find tent camping near South Mills, NC?
TheDyrt.com has all 3 tent camping locations near South Mills, NC, with real photos and reviews from campers.
