Best Cabin Camping near Carolina, RI

I've never camped in Rhode Island, so I was curious to see what a state park campground had to offer. Rates are reasonable for state residents, but quite high if you are out-of-state, given the amenities. There are no hookups, but dump stations are available. Bathrooms have flush toilets and coin-operated showers. There's a small beach at the pond, a boat ramp, and proximity to wildlife refuges and the ocean. It's a HUGE campground, with 700 sites and 20 cabins. Canoes are available to rent.

There's a nice playground, a camp store, and a naturalists cabin. Trails are available for hiking and biking. The beach is sandy and there's a small parking lot there, but I suspect most people walk to it. No alcohol allowed. 

I didn't see more than a handful of level sites, with varying degrees of slope, but many are quite large. If you have an RV, plan to level; if you have a tent, be sure to bring good mattresses to protect you from the roots and rocks and orient your head to the uphill side. Most of the sites have some degree of visual separation from their neighbors, but there are places where it's hard to tell where one site ends and the next one starts. Site have fire rings and picnic tables, but if you plan to cook over the fire, bring your own grate or plan to use sticks and/or aluminum foil. 

If you don't have a tent, consider reserving one of their rustic cabins. These offer two sets of bunks (no mattresses) and a small porch with a picnic table and fire ring outside. Some are located along the pond.

3-4 bar cell phone coverage. No road traffic. East Beach is nearby, but parking fills early.

Didn’t quite feel like camping, but it was still a lovely weekend away at the Mystic KOA. We decided to head down to check out the aquarium and stayed at a deluxe cabin. It was cute and clean and furnished with linens, cookware, utensils, kitchen essentials, keurig coffee maker/pods, and full-sized fridge. Only complaint was an odd, musty smell we couldn’t quite figure out.

The grounds are large with vast amounts of space. Be forewarned that it’s right off of 95, and the sound definitely carries. Trees are sparse in areas, but the sunsets were a nice trade off. Amenities seemed nice from what we could tell - cool outdoor movie screen, pools and playground, though we certainly didn’t get to enjoy these things in February.

We stayed at Mystic KOA in North Stonington, Connecticut, to be tourists in Mystic. Spoiler alert… we had a great stay! 

This campground is just 15-minutes from Mystic and about an hour’s drive to Newport, Rhode Island. It’s just a few minutes from I-95 and so close to Mystic Aquarium, downtown Mystic, Mystic Seaport, and all the local spots. 

It’s a well-maintained campground with 2 pools(though the larger one was closed for maintenance during our stay), lots of play areas and daily activities for little ones, and a cool“pub truck” for adult drinks. Our site(#408) was about 85’ long with plenty of room for our 45’ motorhome and toad(and then some!). It was level and gravel with a nice fire ring and picnic table. The hookups worked fine with 50-amp electric and decent water pressure. Cable TV had nearly 50-channels, but the wi-fi didn’t quite reach our part of the park. 

Due to a family issue, we needed to leave about a day-and-a-half early. We called the office as a courtesy to let them know as we were pulling out and received a partial credit for a night’s stay on our credit card. Didn’t even ask, they just did it. Thanks Mystic KOA! 

We’ll definitely be back. This is a great place to stay when visiting the coastal Connecticut/Rhode Island area.

Getaway is fabulous! My first glamping experience was a winner! Machimoodus is one of the newest outposts just outside Boston and NYC. My bf and I went during one of the snowiest weekends all winter, but it was completely worth it!

First of all, the huge picture window in the cabin is AMAZING. It is just so rejuvenating waking up to freshly fallen snow on the trees - corny I know, but 100% accurate. The cabin was beautiful and rustic, and outfitted with cookware, dishes, a Bluetooth capable radio, essentials like coffee for purchase, books and a shovel for the snow.

Since the outpost was new, the fire pit was brand new, and despite the snow, we were able to cook on it. Very easy to use.

Only critiques would be the lackluster water pressure in the shower and how icy the walkway leading up from the driveway got in the cold weather. The water pressure was a small price to pay, however, and the icy walkway is resolved easily enough wearing micro-spikes.

I can’t recommend enough. It can be a pricy excursion, but the outposts are established in very beautiful settings. I cannot wait to check out more!

I’ve lived in CT all my life but never used the Rocky Neck State Park Campground until now.

The campgrounds are named after water fowl: Crane, Egret, Osprey, Heron etc...We stayed in Egret. We camped at site #4 (sunny) then moved to #38 (shady).

Both spots were quiet, music low and people minded their business. Equal mix of RVs big and small as well as many tents.

Bathhouses and toilets were not as cleaned as I would have liked but passable. Coronavirus social distancing required.

Sites include one paved parking spot (ours was very muddy) a fire pit and a picnic table. No water or electric hookup. Wi-fi not available at this campground. Fire wood is sold at camp office. There is no store in park - no ice either.

A lot of you children. Short walk to Rock Neck beach. Nature Center has movies on weekends for kids.

Anyone with kayaks can’t easily get to boat launch. It’s 4-5 miles by car at 4 mile river boat launch. See photos.

Hammonasset Beach State Park Campground is huge, family-friendly, and has direct beach access from the campground. There is no lifeguard on duty at the campground beach but lifeguards patrol the beach a mile or so north within the park. Smaller (car-top) boats can be launched from this area as well.

The campsites do NOT include a fire pit (or grill). You must bring your own or there are fire tub rentals available at the campground store.

The park includes a Nature Center complete with exhibits and activities, and hiking trails. Bald eagles can be seen on the nature reserve.

Expect long lines at the state park entrance fee station on the weekend if the weather is nice.