Best Cabin Camping near Hilliard, OH

After being cooped up, we (3 young adults) decided to get out and decided on this campground that was new to all of us. The campground was very low key and made for an easy going weekend! We weren’t too keen on most of the parks amenities, but enjoyed just sitting around the fire the whole time. Pros: -staff was cleaning common areas (bathroom and showers) either once or twice a day -campsite 12 was incredible space and had an added bonus of a deck structure over the creek

Other notes: -WiFi available, but only right by the main office/general store -no service for AT&T or Verizon -Fire tower not accessible -Lake tested high for a bacteria and swimming is not recommended

Corona Virus Notes: -only Ice and Firewood available for purchase at General Store -putt putt, boat and bike rentals, and game box rentals not available -nearby Hocking Hills trails were closed

I stayed at this campground because they hosted a wedding I attended. I chose to stay in a cabin, which was pretty pricy for what it was. for $175, it was a basic cabin with a queen bed and 2 twin bunk-beds, a very small bathroom with a toilet and shower, and a small kitchenette with a microwave, sink, and mini-fridge. The cabin was somewhat dirty - dust on the floor and spider webs in the corner. It had no bed linens, or towels, and the bathroom didn't even have a mirror.

There is a "lake" (more of a large pond) on the property, with fishing, and large inflatables to play on in the summer. There is also a disc golf course. The nearby town Lithopolis is cute, with some local coffee and dining, as well as antique shops.

This state park spans over 2,000 acres and is just north of the cute Ohio town of Delaware. We stayed here for two nights while visiting friends in the area but wished we would have stayed to enjoy all that the park had to offer. The campground was really nice and quiet when we stayed there which was during the week and in the spring and not very crowded. We can imagine that this park is pretty full in the summer with all their amenities and close proximity to major Ohio cities. 

The 'pod' layout of the campground made for large campsites (some sites are over 90 feet in length and well suited for large RV’s) with good separation between sites. There are 212 sites that have 50 amp electric. The campground also has yurts for rent (May through October) that are furnished with beds, table and chairs, a cooler, ceiling fan, outdoor charcoal grill and a picnic table with canopy. This is a great option for those wanting to stay in something more than a tent but don’t have an RV.

There is no sewer or water at individual sites but there is a dump station and water fill station near the park entrance. Roads and campsites are paved with grassy patios that feature picnic tables and fire pits. The park does not provide wifi but our Verizon hotspot and 4G phone worked well. There are centrally located bath/shower houses with coin-operated laundry facilities.  

The park is open year-round and great for outdoor activities; especially, those that are water-related. There are numerous boat launches, fully equipped marina, and swimming area. We launched our kayaks and had a great time paddling around the lake.  Be aware that there is no horsepower limits for boats on the lake and weekends are very popular for anglers in high-powered bass boats. The northern portion of the lake is a “no wake zone” which makes for a more pleasant paddling environment.  If you don’t have a boat, boat rentals are available at the marina. 

For those wanting to hike there are plenty of hiking/biking trails for you to get out and explore the park.  Many of the trails link together so you can decide how long you want to hike. The Lakeview Trail was perfect for us as our dog loved jumping in the water during our hike. Other amenities in the park include a nature center, 18-hole disk golf, hunting, archery, volleyball, horse shoe pits, picnic areas, and an 800-foot designated swimming area.  At the camp store/office you can rent bikes as well as other sporting equipment.

If you decide to venture out of the park you are only about 40 miles from downtown Columbus and less than 20 miles to the world-renowned Columbus Zoo (which is definitely worth a visit). The nearby town of Delaware is really nice with downtown shopping, restaurants, a historic theater and brewery (Stass Brewing Company has great Belgian-style beer with a fun atmosphere).  

Would definitely camp here again if we were in the area.

The KOA was what one expects of the KOA lots of features and not very secluded. The Kabins were lovely.  

The design is nice as the bunk beds are in their own separate room. This means the back room will sleep four individuals. They also included little tables and benches so you can organize yourself in the room.  The front room has a large bed that sleeps two.  Then outside is the picnic table.  Due to health code rules you have to cook and do food outside of the cabin.  

Our first cabin some of the light bulbs were dead and as a result they moved us to another cabin. Problem solved. 

The bathrooms were very clean and the folks at the camp store were very helpful. I will say that my friend that took a shower was frustrated as one shower was scalding hot and the other was cold.  The floors were slippery as they didn't have a way to stop the water from going beyond the shower (no rim or lip).  She didn't get to use the Family Shower as you have to get the key from the store.  Shower time was usually before bed time with two little ones as they would get dirty playing during the day.  Since the camp store closes at 8 PM she would just use the standard shower with her kiddos. We thought this was a great feature and would have liked to get a look at the family shower set up. 

At the camp store, they would drop off the wood via golf carts as you purchased it.  I was able to buy three bundles for $18.00 as it is cheaper that way.  I also purchased two bags of ice.

The cabin was fun and we were able to keep our trip simple by packing less due to the cabin.  Buckeye Lake State Park is close by and if you don't have a boat they really don't have a lot to offer non-boaters unlike other lake state parks.  We didn't see any trails.  We did go to the "beach" but opted not to swim. Our time was spent at the near by Dawes Arboretum and Newark's Earthworks (mounds). 

**Will try to come back and upload more photos and videos later as tonight many of my posts are not fully uploading.

General: 214-site campground, all with electric hookups. Campsites are in four loops.

Site Quality: All sites are paved and appeared to be level. A fire ring, picnic table, and electric hookup complete each site. Generous foliage provides separation between most sites. 

Bath/Shower: Fully contained all-gender units in the third loop. Each one has a bench and a baby changing station. Soap and air dryers. A more traditional bath/shower house was in the fourth loop (don’t know about the first two loops). 

Activities/Amenities: Several hiking trails (but it was raining when we were there so didn’t explore), a small putt-putt course (free use of putters and balls), disc golf, shuffleboard, basketball, tennis, and a small camper store. Each loop has a playground and other recreational options (i.e. volleyball net). The marina offers water toy rentals. 

My five-star rating is based on the possibility of what our stay might have been if the weather had cooperated! Unfortunately, it was cold and rainy during our stay in June. We will definitely be back again to take advantage of the marina rentals.

We stayed in site 174 on the farthest loop from the entrance. This site provided full shade all day long. The pad was pretty even so not a lot of leveling to do for our a-frame camper. The pad was easy to back in to and we had plenty of room to pull our truck forward. The site has 30 amp and 50 amp and our 30 amp was not working. We notified the park staff and they responded quickly to come out and fix it. The site had a great fire ring and lots of space for chairs, an ez-up, pop-up bathroom tent off to the side and it probably could have held 1-2 tents. There were trees close enough to set up 1-2 hammocks as well. The park staff came out it seemed to be every 3 hours to spray the water fountain in the middle of the turn around. There is a showerhouse in the middle of the loop, not a far walk or you could drive as there were a few parking spots nearby. The showerhouse had plenty of flush toilets and sinks. There were three showers that had doors, but it was just one space and no bench inside your stall. There were plenty of hooks, but you could get your items wet if you weren't careful. There is a bench outside of your stall and there is a curtain that separates you from the toilets and sinks. Not the greatest changing area if you are shy. You could tell it was the weekend as the bathrooms were a little messy, but I've seen way worse. There are also two dumpsters outside the showerhouse for trash. Watch out for the masked bandits (raccoons). They were not shy at all and we had to chase them off from our campsite. Do not leave out any food or trash, they will get into it. There are lots of trails (we found a lot of mushrooms!), a beach, playgrounds and a frisbee golf course. The mosquitoes were really bad this weekend, but we had been there last year and didn't have any issues.

This park is know for the lake that is kayak and canoe friendly since it doesn’t allow any kind of boat with a motor. It also features a beach , 2 playgrounds and several hiking trails. Just be careful if you hike with dogs since some trails intersect with a nature preserve which doesn’t allow pets.

The campground itself has 20 electric sites , 56 primitive sites and 4 camper cabins. All the electric sites are pull through and all sites have a fire pit but only the electric sites come with picnic tables.

Due to off season and COVID the camp store is closed and there is no camper host or park office staff around.

We did notice lots of downed trees on the poorly marked hiking trails. Some trails just started but no maps were around and no trails were blazed. It was hard to tell where we were headed or how long a trail was. I tried using the new Detour app and it wasn’t very accurate for this park.

We did have good Verizon cell coverage.