If, like me, you find yourself passing through the state capital of the Keystone State and in need of an overnight landing pad to call home for the night for your RV, 5th Wheel or Big Rig and all the other nearby RV Parks are filled to the brim, then this rather tucked away Home Depot parking pasture might just be the perfect lay-up. Located north of the Susquehanna River here in the state capital of Harrisburg, you’ll access this spot by heading north or south (depending upon which direction you might be coming from) on 83, where you’ll have to navigate a number of awkward turns and roundabouts before finally making it to E Park Drive.
While I would not describe this locale as offering EZ on- and off- highway access, because it is somewhat tucked away from the main thoroughfare, the greatest upside is going to be the relative peace & quiet you experience here. And while the Home Depot parking lot here was generally pretty busy when we passed through, it’s relatively massive, so as long as you park far enough out and away from the store in any direction, you should be fine along with enjoying a very good sense of safety and security.
As far as the parking lot itself, it’s relatively flat and has only a small number of donation boxes and very little rental machinery on the periphery that would otherwise block your ability to park on the orange fixer-upper store’s parking perimeter. I would recommend finding a spot away from the front of the store and towards the western and northern edges of the lot. What I liked about this particular spot is that the Home Depot here is, relatively, the only show in town in the area, so you won’t be bothered by too much commercial traffic as the area sits in a rather residential space here in the Lawnton neighborhood of Harrisburg.
Insider’s tips? Here’s a few: (1) There is a PetSmart just due south of Home Depot in case you need to load up on any pet supplies or satisfy that last minute impulse to buy an iguana; (2) While only about 30 minutes away, don’t forget you are so close to Hershey Park & Gardens that you’ll be surprised you hadn’t smelled the waves of chocolate in the air, so if you haven’t thought of this, you may want to plan a half day trip there; (3) Because this Home Depot is a little out of the way, there’s only a small handful of restaurants nearby, including: The Promenade Family Restaurant, Fiesta Mexico, Chick-fil-A, Tomato Pie Café, Leeds Restaurant & Bar, Chili’s and Gilligan’s Bar& Grill; (4) Should you need to reload on groceries, there’s a Dollar Tree and 7-Eleven nearby; (5) History buffs will get a kick out of the nearby National Civil War Museum that is affiliated with the Smithsonian and makes for a good hour or two of exploring; and (6) Should you want to ‘whet your whistle’ while making an overnight stop here, give Lancaster Brewing Company your attention, which is just a short jaunt south of here.
While scoring criteria may vary from one person to the next, here are the 5 most important criteria that informed my rating of this overnight location: convenience (EZ on- and off-access), safety& security, quality (of facilities), peace & quiet and amenities (either on-site or nearby). Here’s how I ranked this particular overnight spot:
Convenience: 3
Safety & Security: 4
Quality: 3
Peace & Quiet: 4
Amenities: 3
Overall, I scored this location a 3.
Happy Overnighting!
Overnight Parking
