Best Glamping near Bedford, PA

We stayed in one of the yurts, and I was perfect for the group of 6 I went with. It dumped rain the first night we were there and the yurt kept us perfectly comfortable and dry. There is fishing, boating, hiking, and all sorts of activities to do around the park. We rented a pontoon boat for one afternoon and explored the lake, which was awesome. I will say the "beach area" we visited was less than clean and quite small. However, the trip was a blast overall and if you're looking for a quick weekend trip, this is a place to go.

Tucked into the mountains of PA, in a the town of Bedford, is this hopping campground.

Lots of fun for kids, live music on the weekend, this campground was full of activity. The campground was packed with everyone from seasonal full timers to overnighters.

A threat of a storm and the heat of summer kept us indoors, but the potential was there for a good time.

Friendship Village Campground in Bedford, Pa.

Overall, I give the campground 4.5 out of five stars. The campground is nestled on the outskirts of Bedford Pennsylvania and is a very easy location to travel to regardless of your rig size. Check in was extremely easy particularly if you pay for your stay upfront. In that case all you need to do is walk into the office and they will have your packet ready for you and you’re headed to your site within a minute.

The office staff was extremely friendly and you can tell that this is a family owned and religious-based campground. The campground is quite spread out through the property with sites ranging from primitive campsites to full hook up big rig sites.

There are multiple ponds on the property however only one of them can be fished in. No license is required for fishing here. There are also two pools at each end of the campground and they are very well-maintained and have lifeguard supervision. The pool hours or a little later than most campgrounds as they open at 11 through the week and 12 on Sunday. The campground does maintain a policy of having to wear a shirt or a cover-up when not in the pool vicinity but that was not really a big issue. The lower pool is right beside the main office which also includes an arcade and a very nice miniature golf course. The upper pool is larger and also well maintained.

Neither pool has provided seating so you will need to bring your own camp chairs or towels to sit on. They also do not provide umbrellas but allow you to bring your own as long as they are 5 feet wide or less.

There are many playgrounds spread out across the property as well as a jumping pillow and a very well-built gaga ball pit. We stayed at site number 41 for the weekend and have no complaints at all. It’s a little more of a tight packed area versus the rest of the campground but it was in good vicinity to everything.

For tent campers I recommend staying in the area of sites 5-25 as there is a very nice bathhouse very close by. For big rig campers, you need to stay at the upper portion of the campground at sites 200-500. In my opinion, the best sites to stay at if you have kids are sites 145–171 as those are right beside the jumping pillow, playground and gaga ball pit.

The property had a movie showing in their barn on Saturday night (Despicable Me) and they also seem to schedule a lot of live entertainment, mostly Bluegrass. The staff on the property is virtually nonexistent minus trash pickup, lifeguards, and office staff...which I think is not a bad thing. I imagine if we would have needed anything, it would have been easy to find a staff member. If you have any issues with your camping rig, there is a full-service RV dealership basically at the entrance to the campground where you can buy virtually anything that you may require.

I only give this campground 4.5 out of five stars primarily due to its location. There is really nothing to do in Bedford Pennsylvania. You are limited to the activities within the campground unless you travel to another township to find something to do. There are no hiking trails in the campground however it was quite nice to walk through the campground at 5 o’clock every morning. I would absolutely return here again, the rates were very reasonable for the value to get out of it. Even though our campsite was close to the fishing pond, it was a little tighter than the other larger sites and I think I would attempt to stay in those next time.

All in all, this is a great family (non-commercialized) campground and I would recommend staying here.

This is a nice and large campground by Maryland State Park Standards. Sites are nice and not stacked right on top of one another. Some sites have electric, but the bathhouses are clean and decently well kept. The real draw here is the very large lake stocked with fish, and the casino. Botha are just a short walk from the campground. It is incredibly convenient from I68 but you do t get any highway noise. There are even yurts to rent.

My family camps here most weekends in the summer. It's close to our house and easily accessible. The campground itself is really nice. They've done a lot of improvements over the years which have paid off. Nice camp stores, two swimming pools, mini golf, and a catch-and-release fishing lake. The sites are close together, but for a weekend getaway it isn't unbearable. They have fun holiday events, like the Halloween trick or treat, and they provide a shuttle for Bedford's annual Fall Foliage festival, which is a bonus. All-in-all, it's a really nice family campground.

Nestled in the mountains of Pennsylvania, this gem of a campground.
There is a beautiful lake across the road from camping area, which consists of; a very nice hiking trail the whole way around, boating, fishing,swimming & in season concession stand. Also, many hiking trails.

I had made plans to stay at SSP-PA as my first stopover spot, post leaving my beach friends on the East Coast. The morning drive started early, had several stops and starts, and I was once again glad that my big dog was along for the ride. Shawnee is a lovely state park and I was really pleased with my brief stay. 'Though we were only sleeping the one night, I found the staff to be pleasant and the site spacious. It might have helped that the doggo and I were about the only ones in our campground loop, aside from the campground hosts but the area felt well-maintained and well-proportioned. We had a good night's rest, after enjoying a post-dinner campfire and getting to breathe in the fresh, woodsy air. While sitting fireside, I got to enjoy the local wildlife, from birds to young deer, around the edges of my campsite. The campground restroom was clean and a fair size. I would definitely recommend it and I will certainly look into another reservation, the next time I roadtrip through Pennsylvania.

General: Large campground in four loops with a variety of sites ranging from tent-only, 30-amp electric, 50-amp electric, and 30/50-amp electric, along with eight camper cabins. 

Site Quality: All sites are gravel; most appeared level, but some did not. All sites are wooded but some have more separation than others. Our site backed up to the creek but surprisingly, there was not a lot of water flowing in the spring, 

Bath/Shower house: Basic and dated, but reasonably clean. Did not use the shower.

Activities/Amenities: Many include fishing, swimming, boating, bicycling, hiking, geocaching, and hunting. The lake is separate from the campground, but it is less than a mile away and a reasonable distance walk. There is also a playground, volleyball, shuffleboard, and a large picnic area at the end of one of the loops. Bike and boat rentals are available in the summer season; the season was set to open the day after we left so aside from hiking, we could not avail ourselves of any of the activities (and my husband had a foot injury so even hiking was out for us). There are also laundry facilities, but I did not check these out. 

We were surprised that just a few days before Memorial Day, only a handful of sites were occupied. We’ve been very impressed by the pristine conditions of many Pennsylvania state parks, but this one had a more rustic feel and had not been modernized. Fleeting cell at best on Verizon.

Campground Review: Cowans Gap State Park was pretty awesome. Off the Pennsylvania Turnpike at Fort Littleton, through Burnt Cabin on Rt522, signage the entire way. A drive through the PA mountain-scape, excellent scenery to be seen.

The dog section is 1-30 and a few cabins are offered for them also. No restrictions for dogs on the trails but they are restricted from the rest of the campground.

Several trails to enjoy with easy to very strenuous climbs. Part of the Allegheny trail passes through the Buchanan State Forest, near the campground. Would be a good place to practice your backpacking craft.

New showerhouse facilities which are energy efficient lighting and heating. The water in the shower never gets very warm but they are very clean and well maintained.

There is plenty of water sports at the lake, watercraft, swimming and fishing.

Product Review: As a Dyrt Ranger I have the opportunity to review some pretty awesome outdoor gear. I received Mishmi Takin hiking boots after winning one of the monthly contests.

I love the color, I’m all about burnt orange. I have large feet and was happy to see that the company offers footwear up to 13.5 in. I ordered an 11, was surprised when they arrived and were a little big on my feet. So you may want to order a 1/2 size down. On the flip side though I put on my thick hiking socks, synched the laces down and they fit fine.

I wore the boots multiple times during our 8 state trip on several different trail types. I was impressed by grip, no slippage on multiple surfaces.

I hate to say it but I have sweaty feet! And wearing thick hiking socks in boots often leaves me with raisinie toes and damp socks/boots at the end of a long hike. I did not experience that problem while wearing the Mishmi Boots though. My feet stayed comfortable and were dry when I pulled the boots off back at camp. I am liking these boots!

This campground is very clean and family friendly. they have mini golf,fishing, and special events on weekends. the office staff are very friendly and helpful.

One of the best campgrounds I have stayed at so far the pond is nice and has a 1/2 mile walking path around it with trees and beaches to stop and sit dog park is big and has a place for small or large dogs there is 3 play grounds all different and all well kept

Sites are very spacious and the gravel pad was level upon parking. Good connections and solid cable. Facilities are well maintained and there are a ton of activities to enjoy. They held a farmers market on Saturday and had a HUGE community yard sale which we thought was very cool! Overall Wi-Fi worked well and everything you need is here.

Nice campground, clean and plenty of activities for the kids. The only thing we didn't like was all of the road noise. This campground is located by 2 major highways and truck traffic and Jake brake are constant all night long. The road noise made it hard to hear when we were sitting around the fire.

Went camping here for the first time this weekend. Although it was the off season there was still tons to do. The kids played mini golf, jumped on the pillow, played on multiple playgrounds, enjoyed ice cream and went fishing. Can’t wait to come back in the summer.

We do a lot of dispersed camping but we spoiled ourselves with this spot. It was $50 for a tent site but I have never used a cleaner camp shower or seen so many amenities on a campground. They were also very accommodating of our late check-in as we travel across the country.

We really enjoy camping here. Lots of activities and events throughout the camping season. Check out their website for all the amenities.

We stopped here for a night on our way to Ohio. The campground is just a few minutes off of the PA Turnpike tucked away behind a couple of small industrial buildings. The campground itself is large and well laid out. The lanes are wide and the curves are easy even with a large rig. We arrived late, and the ladies in the store who checked us in were super helpful and moved us to a site that was easier to get into and out of than the one we chose online. The sites were nice, large, and level, we didn’t even have to unhook our toad from our Class A. We pulled in, pushed the auto level button, plugged in and went about our evening.

Clean and has everything for a nice family get away

This is truly a good campground for the family

Nice fishing lake and can be remote.