Best Glamping near Mansfield, OH

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 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.

Upon arrival friendly staff greeted us. Bath houses are clean and well maintained.  Our site was not clean and ready.  Picnic table looked like it was not cleaned since last season and the fire pit was full of rubbish.  Had campers behind us who played music so loud we couldn't hear each other talk.  I asked the gentleman to please turn it down and they did slightly. Another camper also asked them to turn it down and again it was very slight.  Well after midnight music continued.  No park ranger made rounds until Saturday morning and throughout the day.  

The lake is gorgeous this weekend and we enjoyed riding bikes and walking the park.  

May be back to try again.

There is so much structure and order to this campground! The grounds are laid out so nicely! One big circle with cross roads all along the way. You can camp however you'd like too! They have RV sites, tent sites and cabins. All mixed in together so you can travel with all your favorite campers. They do breakfast every morning in the front pavilion for $4.50 (all you can eat pancakes, 1 sausage and coffee) I haven't tried it yet, but its certainly popular. Laundry is open 24 hours a day and in an open area. Not the biggest fan of that due to needing to do laundry in the rain. Bathrooms are clean and standard. Row of toilet stalls and showers in a separate room. They have a stellar playground area, I don't have kids but even I was drawn to wanting to play on it. Very pet friendly around here. Close to downtown, near Cedar Point and all the other attractions over here. They have 2 pools, one being heated. We haven't had a bad rain storm while we're here but you can tell by the ground of our spot its going to be bad and super muddy. All in all this campground is pretty awesome.

This is a huge campground! I tent camped by myself--felt very safe.  Happened to be next to the park host. No choice of where to locate my large tent.  Showers/bathrooms were OK--older facilities.  Wish this park had a laundry facility--another Ohio park I recently stayed at had a fairly new shower facility that included a laundry facility!  Did not appreciate the waste management company emptying the dumpsters at 4:00 AM!!!  There is a huge, lakeside beach that was just packed with people (no social distancing) and there was trash everywhere--not enough dumpsters.  Near to shopping (Polaris), if you are interested.  Will try to get a lakeside site next time.

This trip was memorable for so many reasons but the Chestnuts really make this park stand out.  The park has several Chestnut trees which is usually a rare find these days.  Later on, I found a sign explaining why the park had so many Chestnut trees. They are working to bring them back.  We used our grubstick to roast them over the open fire.  Many of us fondly think of the Christmas song but how often have you roasted your own Chestnuts while camping?

The tent sites (short walk from parking lot) and one car per tent site.  Our site was not the traditional walk up/park camp site. It was a nice change of pace.  More space and great neighbors. 

The camp store at this park had a lot of great things such as corn hole outside, a mining activity for the family, trikes you could rent, and most importantly ice cream.  

The camp store is right across from the pool.  The pool is currently closed but not many state parks in Ohio have a pool right in the camp ground area.  This is a rare treat. The pool had the traditional pool, kiddo pool, and small splash pad. You could also see where they had installed a curb cut for those in wheel chairs or needing ramps. No pool lift that I could see to help someone lower in and out of the pool. This may be put away for the season so call to find out. They also had a ramp installed that led up to the pool. One side the old steps and the other side a new  ADA ramp. 

 The fire wood was in a white bag and that made it easy to move and kept the car clean which I appreciated. They also had bait so if you wanted to walk behind the pool and continue to the river it wouldn't be far to go fishing. 

The shower house by us did not have an ADA bathroom and I didn't get a chance to look for the ADA shower.  

Behind the campsites (our section) you could grab a short trail to the river. This was a lovely surprise as I followed a foot path.   We opted not to do the overlook hike to the gorge as we had fellow campers with us that couldn't do a long hike for safety reasons.  It as a nice surprise to learn that one could also drive to the overlook if they need to and all parties could enjoy the view together. Two different ways to get to the same place which means if you need to split up your campers based on physical skills then you could do so and then eat at the shelter together. 

The camp ground has been FULL several times this season so make sure you make your reservations. This park also has a way for you to put on and take out of the river.  You will see folks walking around with their inner tubes as they will float down the small section.

We also drove 10 miles away to the Mohican Lodge to treat ourselves to some food and an OSU Football game at the bar downstairs. The bar has a great back patio and view of the lake.  It too has a variety of games in the back patio. They were awesome and turned on the closed caption feature for us.  Those of us that wanted to watched the game and others were able to play various games at the lodge (Ping pong, pool, read a book by the fire, go see the owls on site, and more).

The pool at the lodge is being redone at the moment. I may try to upload that information later.  So look for it to be new and improved. The pool also has a sauna for those that need some help to warm up/relax tight muscles. Usually, you can get a day pass for the lodge pool even when you are staying at the camp sites. This is a small fee but well worth it.

While we were at the lodge an outside non-profit group was there with 2 owls.  We hope to drive up to Mansfield sometime to explore their property (90 acres) with birds they have rescued or are helping. https://www.ohiobirdsanctuary.com/  they come to the lodge usually on Sat evening at 7 PM. 

For those who are a fan of Shawshank Redemption the movie you are an easy day trip away from the Mansfield Reformatory. https://www.mrps.org/explore/tours

Alum Creek is just beautiful, nice sites, most of them are at least partially shaded, lots of woods, hiking trails, the lake, it is what I think of when I think of State Park campground camping in Ohio. There are a couple problems. 1. Only ONE little dump station. This is a big campground, so if you're leaving Sunday, you better get up at the crack of dawn to get to the station, otherwise be prepared to wait in a long long line of RV's. We by-passed the long line and stopped at a different State Park campground on the way home and paid 10.00 to use their dump station. 2. They never answer their phone at the campground office. I mean NEVER. If you have a question you will just have to deal with the reserveamerica people who really know nothing other than what they read on the campground website. So basically you know as much as they do. It's maddening. We will go back, but it's a 2 hour drive so it won't be anytime soon.