K
Kailey B.
Scout
ScoutRaccoon Creek State Park Campground
Raccoon creek
A little too close together for my comfort. But very nice and relaxing area. And definitely more spread a part than commercial campgrounds.
Camping near Malvern, OH
146 campgrounds · Check availability for any dates.
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SUMMARY PRESENTED BY
Camping near Malvern, Ohio centers around several lake-based recreation areas in eastern Ohio's rolling countryside. The region features a mix of established campgrounds, RV parks, and cabin rentals, with Atwood Lake Park Campground serving as one of the area's premier destinations. Located about 15 miles south of Malvern, Atwood Lake offers extensive water recreation opportunities alongside camping facilities managed by the Muskingum Watershed Conservancy District. Pride Valley Campground in Malvern provides closer accommodations with basic amenities for both tent and RV campers, while Woods Tall Timber Resort in New Philadelphia offers a highly-rated experience with full hookups and recreational facilities.
Most campgrounds in the Malvern area operate seasonally from May through October, with a few facilities like Canton/East Sparta KOA Holiday remaining open year-round. Summer temperatures typically range from 60-85°F, with occasional thunderstorms. Spring and fall bring cooler temperatures and less crowding. Reservations are strongly recommended during summer weekends and holidays, particularly for lakeside sites. Cell service is generally reliable throughout the region, though coverage may vary in more remote areas. Fire restrictions are uncommon but can be implemented during particularly dry periods in late summer.
The camping experience varies significantly between facilities in the area. According to reviews, Atwood Lake Park Campground underwent extensive renovations beginning in 2017, with one visitor noting, "The campsites are nicely spaced though if you're in the inner loop, you'll be looking right into your neighbor's site." The campground features full hookup sites on level concrete pads, modern bathhouses, and direct lake access. West Branch State Park Campground, located about 40 miles north, offers a more natural setting with "many trees that provide separation between sites" and "several short hiking trails." Tent campers should research carefully, as some reviewers indicate certain facilities primarily cater to RVs with limited accommodations for tent camping.
Best Campgrounds near Malvern (146)
1. Atwood Lake Park Campground
"The Atwood Lake Campground is a true gem in a beautiful area of eastern Ohio!"
"The lake and forest trails surround this area. The restroom and showers are brand new and are spacious and clean! The fellow campers were friendly."
2. Pride Valley Campground
"There’s a large clean swim lake, also a fishing lake. Lots of deer and wildlife. Monthly rates are $550 for full 50amp hookup."
"Nice small campground.. relaxing, great wooded views .. lake for swimming. Has full hook ups (W/E/S). Sights are pretty level, are newer so gravel still settling. We would come back here!"
3. West Branch State Park Campground
"Ranger Review: Morsel Spork at West Branch State Park **Campground Review: **
This state park was very welcome after our first two unlucky Ohio state park experiences."
"Here's what's great about this campground situated at an easy drive from major cities like Columbus and Cleveland...its scenic, a fully loaded campground with bathhouses, parks, hiking paths, swimming"
from $30 - $52 / night
Check Availability4. Mill Creek Camping — Berlin Lake Wildlife Area
"Lots of playgrounds and you can access the lake for swimming and fishing from just about anywhere. The sites are well spaced and feel private, until you get closer to the lake."
"The people next to us parked their boat right behind their site. We even seen a doe and 2 fawn right here at our site!"
from $26 - $55 / night
Check Availability5. Guilford Lake State Park Campground
"This beautiful small state park is only a half hour away from my house. It's close enough that we ho for a week several times a year and I can still drive to work daily. We love the sites lakeside."
"You are close together and no privacy like they have at other ohio state parks. I was able to snag a site on the water same day. Bathhouse is dated but clean and stocked."
from $37 / night
Check Availability6. Canton / East Sparta KOA Holiday - Bear Creek Ranch
7. Canton-East Sparta KOA
8. Atwood Lake County Campground
9. Woods Tall Timber Resort
"Ohio has a lot of great campgrounds/resorts and this one is one of the best!"
"WTTR is our families favorite place to be during camping season in Ohio. It has everything you can imagine, it’s safe and CLEAN! We couldn’t recommend a resort more than this one."
10. Salem-Lisbon Ohio KOA
"It's been raining and our step out is into mud. To be expected in the area during the winter. If it isn't snow covered, it's muddy. They have a little pizza shop and are right by Gilford Lake."
"This was another way for us to social distance as COVID-19 was still an issue. I also took photos of the camping bathrooms as each KOA does it a little differently."
Drive Time
- 24 min from Canton, OH
- 41 min from Akron, OH
- 59 min from Weirton, WV
- 1 hr 4 min from Youngstown, OH
Recent Camping Photos near Malvern, OH
193 Photos of 146 Malvern Campgrounds
Cassandra C.
Atwood Lake Park Campground
Joe R.
Towpath Trail Peace Park
Cassandra C.
Guilford Lake State Park Campground
Sienna L.
Salem-Lisbon Ohio KOA
Rebecca K.
Rivers Edge Camping Area (Bridgeport Quarry Trailhead)
Brian T.
Baylor Beach Park
Melissa L.
Yogi Bear's Jellystone Park™- Akron/Canton
Wandering Woofs _.
Mill Creek Camping — Berlin Lake Wildlife Area
Chuck E.
Clay's Resort Jellystone Park
Shannon G.
Nimisila Reservoir Metro Park Campground
Karen R.
Winklepleck Grove Campground
Amy S.
Tappan Lake Park Campground
Recent Reviews near Malvern, OH
656 Reviews of 146 Malvern Campgrounds
- AAdam O.
TravelerSilver Springs Campground
Nice local park
Nice place to stay for the weekend. Inexpensive. No water hookups at the individual sites but potable water is available in the park. The downsides are the sights can get muddy if there is rain. Only portapotties nearby.
We had big storms roll through when we were there. Unfortunately a large branch broke off of a nearby tree and hit the engine hood of our RV and dented it in several places. It could have been much worse though and not the park’s fault. Could happen anywhere there are trees.
Peyton L.ScoutClay's Resort Jellystone Park
NO communication and severely lacking customer service skills
I won’t rate the other categories yet but I’ve been upset the whole process trying to plan my trip and the people have made it impossible. I’m constantly unable to get ahold of the park. I keep getting put on the“call back list” when trying to modify a reservation only for NO ONE to ever call back. I finally get ahold of someone after a MONTH… only to have zero customer service skills… they just said“oh we don’t even have a call list” so I ask for another form of communication I can have with me since my trip is in a month and I’ve had these issues for a month… they offer ZERO solutions and are not empathetic either. Another issue was last year I was hospitalized for several months due to an early twin birth so I had to push my trip to the following year… when I FINALLY got ahold of the park last year the women I spoke with trying to manage the rescheduling…was ZERO help surprise surprise… on top of that it took 13 calls and weeks before a manager got back to me…making the window to reschedule or get refunds closer to closing adding stress that you might not get to make your next move how you’d like… anyway…I simply asked for dates that matched the costs that we already paid for the trip so I didn’t have to pay more… I simply asked for it to be within the summer days since my previous reservation was during the summer time with all the extra water park and amenities that close at the end of August. I booked when my kid could use all amenities and there were no hour restrictions either due to still being in season. However the lady couldn’t accommodate or recommend any alternate dates to suite my trip that weren’t several hundred dollars more… now we started out with a trip all paid for last year with all amenities no hour restrictions to a weekend we had to pay more and are restricted hours wise on the summer amenities. As the person doing reservations you should be able to recommend dates and help me plan the trip accordingly to the money spent and not sit on the other end of the phone demanding I just give you dates…. After our trip we will never plan or schedule anything at this park again. Regardless of the amenities… for families traveling far distances you couldn’t make it anymore inconvenient, difficult, and time consuming for simply planning questions or just getting ahold of you in general. No sorrys…. Just a whole lot of…”hmm that’s weird well oh well, next” kind of attitude. Zero solutions just excuses. So that being first impressions not too excited to find out what we are in for when we arrive. Especially reading other reviews about deflated balls so you can’t use the hoops, broken a/c units that the property won’t even handle that their own employees have to give up their own personal comfort cause management won’t?… concession stands trash everywhere… broken hot tubs, WiFi not working in cabins for night time with children is tough…sad that my family’s first camping trip ever hasnt even happened yet and it’s been nothing but a headache to plan because of the staff. Yall make money to make the experience smooth for your consumers but somebody missed the memo.
Shannon S.ScoutPride Valley Campground
Perfect for us
The campground is well kept. Sites are well spaced. There’s a large clean swim lake, also a fishing lake. Lots of deer and wildlife. Monthly rates are $550 for full 50amp hookup.
- HHope H.
GuideMill Creek Camping — Berlin Lake Wildlife Area
Large Campground in the middle of nowhere
Many sites on the lake. Old facilities. It eas humid and had rained (thunder storm). Quiet. Typical eastern usa camping with thick canopy of trees, mosquitoes. Site 80 was more open, and on a cul de sac. Gravel pad with a 2-3 degree slant. Lots of critters about.
Susan A.GuideMosquito Lake State Park Campground
Discriminate against car camping
I've heard there are campgrounds that discriminate against car camping, first time experiencing it. There are many sites where people have a LARGE camper, a car, and multiple tents spread out over a large area. We have 2 SUV's with tents that attach to the backs. We followed all the rules and are taking up about HALF of our site. We were told that is not allowed. When asked for reasoning and comparing to what we've seen around the park, we get no clear answer that makes sense. We are here with a group that rented about 20 sites. After spending 4 hours setting everything up, she says one may have to leave; she's waiting to hear from her boss. I will definitely never return here!
- Kimberly N.Guide
Clay's Resort Jellystone Park
Overpriced under managed. Great potential.
I have to agree with all the other reviews. It’s a great facility with a ton of potential it just seems poorly managed. The sites are not up to par with other campgrounds in the same price bracket nationwide. The staff does not have great attitudes and are put off being asked to assist. They say no scooters or electric bikes but there’s a thousand golf carts flying around because realistically it’s not a walkable park. They would benefit from a tram or trolley on busy weekends to go from camping areas to activities. Check-in was rough after hours especially trying to navigate to find your site is extremely difficult. We drug a few trees across the top of our unit. We were originate to have friends take us to our spot or we would not have found it until morning. Underwhelmed for the $180/night camp spot.
Bryan S.GuideHarts Content Campground
The showers were… functional.
Stayed one night while visiting friends. The campground was nice but could use some updating. It was definitely geared more towards families with small children. The showers were interesting. In the men’s they had a pull cord and a button in the women’s. Hot water was more of a mild suggestion rather than an actual thing you got. Luke warm was a generous way of describing it. Not a bad campground if you have a reason to be in the area for a night, but I would recommend it for long stayed unless your camper is very self contained.
Charles S.GuideValley Overlook
Absolutely Wonderful
Absolutely a great spot for large private heavily wooded sites! Only primitive non electric site for roof top campers is C5! Others are park and walk or to small to open up and be comfy. Great cabins and yurts! Clean bathrooms and showers. Everything here is done online from reservation to buying wood and so Ice so prepare for that.
Guide to Malvern
Campers visiting Malvern, Ohio find themselves in the foothills of Appalachia where elevations range from 950 to 1,200 feet throughout the region. The area sits at the northern edge of Ohio's Appalachian Plateau with small streams feeding into larger waterways like Atwood Lake. Winter camping is available at select locations with temperatures typically ranging from 20-40°F from December through February.
What to do
Fishing opportunities: Atwood Lake offers good fishing conditions for multiple species. One visitor at Atwood Lake Park Campground mentioned, "Good fishing. Nice to see sailboats on the lake. All new camping spots with full hookup." The lake supports bass, crappie, and catfish populations.
Water recreation: The lakes near Malvern provide various water activities beyond swimming. At Mill Creek Camping, visitors enjoy "numerous fishing and open swimming opportunities (basically anywhere you want along the water)" with "very clean fire rings and running water bathrooms."
Hiking options: Short trails exist throughout the area's parks. West Branch State Park offers "several short hiking trails" with terrain suitable for all skill levels. Many trails connect camping areas to lake access points, with most being under three miles in length.
What campers like
Full hookup sites: Many campgrounds in the region have recently added full hookup capabilities. One camper at Atwood Lake Park Campground noted, "The H campground loops are full hookups, some right on the water. Electric, and primitive sites too. Pets welcome on a leash, a beach and hiking also."
Lakefront camping: Direct water access is highly valued by visitors to Guilford Lake State Park Campground. A reviewer shared that "While our site wasn't lakefront, many of the sites are right on the water... we're really looking forward to returning with more time to stay so that we can take advantage of the kayak and paddle boat rentals."
Family amenities: Several campgrounds feature activities specifically for families. At Canton/East Sparta KOA Holiday, guests appreciate the "Horseback riding on site" and one family mentioned, "This is our favorite KOA! I have 4 kids and return at least 1x per year. Great family owned KOA."
What you should know
Site spacing varies: Privacy levels differ significantly between campgrounds. At West Branch State Park Campground, sites offer good separation with "many trees that provide separation between sites," while at Pride Valley Campground, a visitor noted sites are "pretty level, are newer so gravel still settling."
Bathroom facilities: Facility quality varies widely across campgrounds. At Guilford Lake, "Bathhouse is dated but clean and stocked," while West Branch offers "clean individual showers" that receive positive reviews.
Reservation timing: Many campgrounds fill quickly during peak season. One camper at West Branch advised, "Make reservations! (6 months in advance). Waterside sites fill up quickly!" This is especially true for holiday weekends from May through September.
Tips for camping with families
Kid-friendly water features: Several campgrounds offer safe swimming areas for children. At Atwood Lake, there's a "Nice beach area with toys for the kids and adults," while another family mentioned, "My kids and I have been coming to Atwood for the last 10 years. We look forward to it every summer. The people are friendly and there is always something to do!!"
Playgrounds and activities: Look for campgrounds with dedicated children's areas. Salem-Lisbon Ohio KOA "Has activities for all ages. The general store has an ice cream shop and food," according to visitors. Some campgrounds also offer scheduled activities on summer weekends.
Space for bikes and scooters: Several campgrounds have paved roads ideal for kids' wheeled activities. As one Atwood Lake visitor shared, "Kids love the playgrounds and being able to bike or scoot all around. Shower house's are superb."
Tips from RVers
Site leveling needs: Be prepared with leveling equipment. At West Branch, one RVer reported, "Our site was labeled slight slope. That was a joke. We were only off 2 inches side to side but front to back we had to lower the front 15 inches."
Access to lake activities: Many RV sites offer convenient water access. At Woods Tall Timber Resort, an RVer shared, "Such a beauty, even with a large RV we were accommodated. Lots of fun activities, and the trees are tall!" Some locations allow you to launch directly from your site.
Off-season availability: Several campgrounds remain open year-round with reduced amenities. The Salem-Lisbon KOA is available for "Nice All Year Around Camping" with one winter visitor noting, "The tent sites were big and right on the lake. Everyone was so kind!"
Frequently Asked Questions
Where are the best camping spots in Malvern, Ohio?
Where are the best camping spots in Malvern, Ohio?
The Malvern area offers several excellent camping options. Atwood Lake Park Campground stands out with its beautiful landscapes, lakeside sites, and clean facilities. The campground features newly renovated restrooms and showers, with scenic forest trails surrounding the area. Another great option is Pride Valley Campground, which provides drive-in sites with amenities including water and toilets. For those seeking a more rustic experience, the nearby Towpath Trail Peace Park offers primitive camping with charming roadside sites that are perfect for a quick getaway within easy distance of Canton.
Can I rent an RV in Malvern, Ohio for camping?
Can I rent an RV in Malvern, Ohio for camping?
While there aren't RV rental facilities directly in Malvern, nearby options exist. Kool Lakes Family RV Park in the Northeast Ohio area offers affordable sites perfect for RVs, with a gravel road system connecting numerous camping spots. Alternatively, Canton / East Sparta KOA Holiday - Bear Creek Ranch provides RV-friendly accommodations and may have rental information. For RV rentals, check with dealerships in larger nearby cities like Canton or Akron, or explore online RV rental marketplaces that deliver to your chosen campground.
What camping is available near Malvern, OH?
What camping is available near Malvern, OH?
According to TheDyrt.com, Malvern, OH offers a wide range of camping options, with 146 campgrounds and RV parks near Malvern, OH and 1 free dispersed camping spot.
Which is the most popular campground near Malvern, OH?
Which is the most popular campground near Malvern, OH?
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular campground near Malvern, OH is Atwood Lake Park Campground with a 4.6-star rating from 17 reviews.
Where can I find free dispersed camping near Malvern, OH?
Where can I find free dispersed camping near Malvern, OH?
According to TheDyrt.com, there is 1 free dispersed camping spot near Malvern, OH.
What parks are near Malvern, OH?
What parks are near Malvern, OH?
According to TheDyrt.com, there are 16 parks near Malvern, OH that allow camping, notably Michael J Kirwan Lake and Cuyahoga Valley National Park.
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