Lake Hope State Park Campground

This is a great campground that runs along the ridge above Lake Hope. Tons of great spots. Not a lot of privacy, but still great. Good hiking all around and the lake is beautiful.

Look, just go find some dispersed places out in the national forest instead of ending up here. The campsites are usually littered with trash and the latrines smell for a good distance - you'd be better off digging a hole.

Enjoyed the campground, but the sites were very sloped and the rv sites were pretty close together. We stayed at one of the more spread out sites. I’d go again, but they should maybe make some tent pads for the tent sites.

Great area. Camped here with my friends and I’ve been here on a backpacking trip through OU. That being said there are backpacking trails and hiking trails as well as mtn biking. It’s huge. Millions of spots. Pretty expensive (50$? A night) for a place with thousands of spots to camp at. The general store is cute and has everything you need. Must be a confusing place at night because a group of people harassed us when we were sleeping telling us that we were in the wrong spot. They ended up sleeping in the spot next to us and slept off their anger.

We love Lake Hope. Many trails to hike. The lake is beautiful and there is a very nice lodge for meals. They offer paddle board, kayak and other rentals which was a blast.

The park is nice and well maintained. The loop we were in was super cramped. We are in a popup camper and I have no idea how the folks in large trailers navigated and got set up. There is not much space between you and the next site. Only space for one car per spot. Very little cell reception which was just fine for us! Pit toilets and a few flushing ones next to the showers. I would also say you can’t walk to the lake from the campground (at least not easily) so that’s another negative. Not sure we’ll be back here

Lake Hope was super crowded and the sites felt like they were literally on top of each other. It also was not super clear on which site was which. Our site was on a hill, but there were 2 sites, one at the bottom and one midway down so we had to ask. Luckily both were not booked and they let us use whichever we wanted, so we picked the bottom of the hill.

There were plenty of hiking trails and at the lake you can rent kayaks for the day!

We have stayed here a couple of times in a tent and a class a motor home.  

The campground is pretty secluded but beautiful rolling hills.    While the site we stayed in with the motorhome was fairly level, sites are mostly small and tight on hilly terrain.  That said, I would still recommend this as a nice weekend getaway 

One of our visits was during hunting season and both the campground and the cabins were mostly being used by hunting parties. 

This is also close enough in proximately to serve as an alternative camping area for visiting Hocking Hills

Campground was well maintained, even the pit toilets. Our campsite was huge #46. But some sites seemed very small. It’s a short drive to the lake house for the beach and boat rental. The food at the Lodge is delicious! The drive to get there was rough. Don’t count on GPS. Look it up and plan it out before you go.

Several campsites are on a slope so this calls for being creative with placement of tent.
Firewood available for purchase on site. Lake Hope lodge provides great warm and dry spot for delicious food.

Several activities available, fishing available anywhere on the lake, kayak rental for $10 and good size lake.

Very clean pit toliets and running water available dispersed throughout the park. Several hiking trails, zaleski is nearby, hocking hills is 30 minutes away. Moonville tunnel and iron furnace in the area.

Stayed over Labor Day Weekend and was pleasantly surprised by the site we got for booking only a week in advance! Would stay again!

- Many sites are quite sloped and slanted, but this cannot be determined by pictures online. With that said, all sites appeared to have a spot for at least 1 tent cleared away and the picnic table and fire ring in a secure location.

- Most sites only had room for one car parked at the site

- Clean pit style restrooms! With running water restrooms dispersed through the campground.

- Lake Hope was a good size for kayaking (and rentals were open and only ~$10 per person per hour for various boating devices).

- Fishing allowed anywhere!

- Cool hiking trails throughout to see caves, The Hope Furnace, and water features!

- Only ~30-40min from all the must see attractions of Hocking Hills and surrounding area!

- Camp Store with wood, ice, etc.

Campground were well spaced. There Be were a lot of possible camp sites. Showers and restrooms were clean. Hope furnace was a great landmark to visit. There is a beautiful hike around the lake. Be ready for bugs though.

We took our 24 ft camper out to Lake Hope campgrounds and enjoyed ourselves. Few things to consider, no water hookup but there are water spigots scattered around. Also not sewer but there's a dump station near the front gate. Almost all the camping lots are slanted and short in depth so be aware of that. It took quite a while to get our camper "leveled" but even then it wasn't entirely level. It is a drive to about everything in the park, minus a couple trails depending on your campsite location. Otherwise it's a great place to enjoy, a short drive to Hocking Hills and the small towns around the area are nice.

Real busy on weekends. We were here in june in a travel trailer. Not many level sites. We had to buy an extension cord 30amp to reach level spot. Bath house was close but closed and 11/2 mile to dirty front one. Dumpsters still overflowing on tues. Staff not real friendly

We love Lake Hope and have both tent and pop up camper there. The park is beautiful but my only frustration is that you can’t really walk or bike to many things because the way the campground is situated in relation to a lake. We basically have to drive no matter what we want to do which makes our kids lack the independence they want. It is really lovely there, the lodge restaurant is fantastic and the beach is well maintained. We had site 2 with out pop up which is pretty level but doesn’t have as much yard space.

Great campground. Very secluded but well taken care of!

Lake Hope State Park is a cute area nestled in the foothills of Ohio. With Zaleski right next door, there are a ton of cool things to do around the area. There’s a swimming, boating, camping, hiking, backpacking, and a ton of cool historical sites to see. I would recommend getting an Ohio Lizard Map to find some cool secret sites that most don’t get to find in the area.

We enjoying kayaking and hiking. A half hour drive to hocking hills, and many other parks. We were able to explore many things in our short weekend stay. Beautiful lily pads covered the lake, it was stunning to kayak through. Although, I wished the sites had more trees.

A nice mix of electric and non electric sites in the trees. Great place to relax with family. Great for unwinding. You have to drive down to the lake to boat and swim but worth it. Every Sunday there is a brunch buffet at the Lodge. Worth the 25-40 minute wait! The camp hosts are super friendly!

My husband camped here in 2018 and plan on it again this year! Lake Hope has plenty of recreational opportunities for everyone and the campground is close by! The campground is quiet and well kept. We tent camp so we usually have a non-electric site so the area we stay is away from most of the RVs. Bathrooms and showers are maintained well. Not far from Hocking Hills State Park as well as other park areas. Plenty of opportunities for hiking, boating, and other activities.

The lodge has great food. Lots of trails and history in the area. It was a quick and easy check in to get a site. The bathroom was clean. This campground is more hilly so be thoughtful in where you put your tent. Great views. We used this for a Friday night spot and then the next day started a near by backpacking trail. I had a signal at the campground verizion. My friend did not (different carrier).

The lake is clean and has beautiful scenery. The beach is very kid friendly. There is a playground there. The trails are great. They have options for length and scenic differences. Roads are well maintained. Campsites aren’t great for tent camping, but we still had fun. Campsites are close together. They are under trees though, which is a definite plus for me. Overall I thought there was a great vibe and it was a clean area.

We stayed for a long weekend and had a great time. The staff was very friendly and helpful. The RV sites were a bit narrow, but otherwise nice and shaded. We took a couple of the hikes down by the lake and it was great.

Lots of hills. Some sites are reservable others are walk-in.

We were there during an off holiday weekend so the crowd was low. It is beautifully hilly there. The parking pad was fairly level and a a bit narrow. The campsite had a bit of an incline. The fire pit and picnic table looked newer. We camped near a restroom and there were 2 shower houses. However, one was being renovated at the time. The nature center was very well done with educational information that would be useful for the great hiking trails in the park. We did not get to be on the lake but they had several options for rental of water toys such as canoe, kayaks, water bikes, and pontoon boats. There also was a nice beach with a play-set nearby. The lodge was attractive and they did serve meals there. We did not eat there but we did check out the menu. There was something good for all tastes and delicious sounding desserts too. The dinning room had large windows all around to view the woods. They had lots of hummingbird feeders. We missed the hummingbird program where you can hand feed them. That is only during July and August months. I was sorry to have missed that. We will being returning to enjoy more of all this park has to offer.

I love this state park because of the lake, beach, boat rentals, old growth forest and nearby Hocking Hills. However, most of the campsites are on a slope. Like, a steep slope. I'd recommend visiting the campground before you book to get a level site. Some areas are more level than others. Bathrooms are a bit old, but it's better than not having any showerhouses at all, am I right?

We have camped here in tents, pop up camper, cabins, backpacking the nearby Zaleski State Forest and most recently, in our travel trailer. It is our favorite State Park that we have camped at. The campground has been recently updated, new pavement on the road and in the campsites. The nature center runs a lot of programs, including hand feeding hummingbirds, Christmas trail of lights, movies, hikes and more. The dining lodge is excellent food, the Sunday Brunch is great and they have a wood fired pizza oven. The lake has kayak, canoe, peddle boat and other rentals. The swimming area is large for a state park and has a small playset. Trails to suit all ages and experience levels. Moonville tunnel and rail trail is nearby. The front shower house is closed for remodeling, however, there are very nice flush toilets near the camp office and a shower house at the back section of the campground.

I’m a tent camper and a hiker, but my family and I even spent some time at the lake and rented a paddle board and a water bike which was so much fun! we also did some kayaking as well as driving to different hiking paths around the area. we did a “walking tour” that had TERRIBLE directions but we had a blast anyway 😂 they probably need to update that but I wouldn’t discredit them if they didnt. campsites were more open and pretty standard, bathrooms were a little lack luster but I enjoyed every second!

At lake hope you can enjoy camping in many ways rather if it’s by tent (the way I prefer) or by camper. It’s a very nice place to have some family fun. Very nice beach and swimming area. Hiking and horse back riding trails. Canoe/kayak rental. Very nice dinning area at the lodge. I would recommend this place to anyone and everyone.

Lake Hope gave me a new way to experience an area I grew very close to and appreciate but cannot stand the swarms of people. It was a great quiet and spacious campground with solid amenities and it’s own nearby sites. We were in Wayne National Forest and right next to the infamous Moonville tunnel. It was no problem to drive over to the caves in hocking hills but it was also nice to stay close by a couple days too. This is likely the only way we’ll do the area moving forward