For those who want to experience Awendaw, but still want the creature comforts of home, consider glamping for your trip. Glamping near Awendaw is especially popular among campers who enjoy beds and electricity. The Dyrt's camping photos, reviews, and tips are an easy way to find the right South Carolina glamping spot for you.
Enjoy the natural beauty of James Island County Park, with year-round fun for the entire family. Just a short drive from downtown Charleston, the 643-acre park offers an abundance of exceptional recreation offerings and natural beauty.
With the Campground and Cottages at James Island County Park, it has never been more convenient to explore historic Charleston and the Lowcountry. Come discover our history, charm, fine dining, antiques, plantations, parks, and sandy beaches. Just minutes from all of these attractions is your private retreat within the 643-acre James Island County Park.
$35 - $70 / night
Buck Hall Recreation Area offers a premier location to enjoy the outdoors. It is situated along the Intracoastal Waterway and provides great access to Cape Romain National Wildlife Refuge, 65,000 acres of marsh, tidal creeks and beaches; and Bulls Bay, the coast's best shrimp baiting area.
The area is primarily used for shrimp baiting and fishing. Anglers can expect a huge variety of fish, including bass, flounder, sea trout, snapper, mackerel, swordfish, crab, shrimp, clams, oysters and more. The campground provides access to boating and ocean sailing. Fishing boats and often very large pleasure boats can be seen as they travel the popular Intracoastal Waterway. A long portion of the Palmetto Trail, which leads from the marshes of the ocean to the mountains of South Carolina, is accessible from the recreation area. Most of the trail is unpaved and can be used for hiking, biking or horseback riding, although a few sections are restricted to foot traffic only.
The popular campground sits at sea level, alongside the Intracoastal Waterway. It is part of the Francis Marion National Forest in South Carolina. The campground itself is grassy and open, with very few trees and limited shade.
Charleston, South Carolina is about 30 miles southwest of the campground.
Reservation Fees In addition to camping fees a non-refundable reservation fee of $8.00 for telephone bookings and $6.00 for website bookings applies. Cancellation Fees Cancellations up to 2 days before a reservation start date incur a $10.00 cancellation fee in addition to the non-refundable reservation fee. Late Cancellations A cancellation the day before or on the day of arrival incurs a $10.00 cancellation fee and will also forfeit the first night's use fee (not to exceed the total paid for the original reservation). Cancellations for single night's reservation will forfeit the entire use fee but no cancellation will apply. Non-refundable reservation fees still apply.
$20 - $45 / night
For overnight accommodations, furnished cabins sit nestled in the woods for rent, as well as campsites which can be found along the Edisto Island oceanfront or in the shaded maritime forest. Wifi is also available in select areas, as well as bathrooms, showers, and electrical hookups in most campsites. In fact, 120 sites can accommodate RVs or tents, with 115 sites offering 50 amp electrical service.
$20 - $45 / night
Ranger
Nice RV Site if you are visiting Charleston, South Carolina. The site is very hot due to no trees. Currently the restrooms and showers are down, so you need to have a self contained unit. However, very quiet. No pull thru sites. Must back in.
Traveler
There are two sections to Edisto Beach State Park. The Ocean side campground is the best with the ocean breezes, but the marsh side campground is an easy bicycle ride from the beach.
It's South Carolina in the summer, so there are mosquitoes. And the raccoons are pretty fierce so you want to make sure your food is stored securely, so you don't wake up to critters eating your potato chips.
The restrooms and showers are clean.
Edisto Island is one of the least developed islands in South Carolina. There is a Piggly Wiggly grocery store to pick up all the things you may have forgotten. There is an ice cream shop and several restaurants, but it is pretty quiet. My favorite thing about staying at Edisto Beach State Park is bicycling to the beach, bicycling along the paths in the state park that lead to a shell mound, built by Native Americans around 2,000 B.C., and bicycling for beers at one of the little bars overlooking the ocean. Another plus is the park's proximity to Botany Bay.
Legend
Reservations during the main season are key if you have any hope of getting a campsite in this awesome Francis Marion National Forest campground which sits just along the gorgeous intercoastal waterway, about 40 minutes northeast of Charleston, SC! We pulled in without reservations and nearly every site was booked out. The campground host was super helpful, though, finding us an empty spot (due to a cancellation) for a couple nights, then moved us to a non-reservable site for the remainder of our time.
The majority of the sites are designed for very large RVs, with a few very nice waterfront sites designated for tents. Each site is spacious, complete with a picnic table, firepit, 2 lantern poles, and electrical hookups, with a dump station at the back of the campground. The bathrooms are equipped with flush toilets, sinks, and a shower and kept relatively clean.
The campground itself is dripping with live oaks and speckled with Palmetto trees, so lots of shade is available, especially in the tent areas. The boat launch is walking distance from the campground and has a nice picnic area adjacent to it. We watched a pods of pelicans and dolphins come through the area, as well as many other sea birds.
We kayaked along the intercoastal waterway and out into marshy sea grass areas and had one of the most amazing wildlife encounters to date (and we’ve been all over the country). We saw a pod of dolphins in the distance, which appeared to be feeding. We stopped about 150 away and just enjoyed watching them dance and dive in the morning light. Then, two of the dolphins peeled away from the pack and headed straight toward us. As they approached our kayaks, the larger one gave an extra tail fin flap and dove under our boats, coming up just a bit on the other side. As naturalists, our hearts were pounding with excitement! We also hiked and mountain-biked along the gorgeous Palmetto Trail (which is a mountains-to-sea trail across South Carolina, and this campground serves as its coastal terminus).
Also, don’t miss the famous Sewee Restaurant for some downeast coastal Carolina fare, as well as the Center for Birds of Prey just across the highway from this restaurant. This wildlife conservation and rehabilitation center is doing some amazing things for birds and in the region and doing a great job of public education. If you head up the coast, be sure to stop in Boats & Hoagies in McClellanville for a bite to eat. Cute place, great food, awesome service!
The $20 per night fee is a great price for the amenities this campground offers, especially with full hook-ups and showers, and a boat launch. Check out our blog on The Dyrt's Online Magazine about our experience on the coast of South Carolina.
Traveler
When making reservations at James Island County Park we had modest expectations, but we were going to tour Charleston most of the time, so we decided anything close to the city would be good enough. The campground turned out to be very nice. We wished we had stayed there longer to enjoy not only Charleston, but the nature beauty of the park itself. The campground is located in a huge park with lots of amenities. The sites are spacious, covered with trees, full hookups with 50 amp service. There are a lot of shaded picturesque walking and bike trails in the park. The dog park was amazingly big, with a little doggy beach for water lovers. There is a big kids playground with a fun looking spray play fountain. It is located just 15 min drive from the campground to downtown Charleston. It is a great campground to stay when visiting Charleston. We have a video on our YouTube Channel- Summertime RV Rovers- about this park- Great Campgrounds in Coastal South Carolina: Charleston and Hilton Head Island. Please check for yourself. We camped at James Island County Park in a Motorhome.
GuideGreat spot! Saving this to my list for if I ever travel back this way.
Nice open spots right next to a river! Water and Electric Hookups on site and a dump station off site.
Pretty hard getting spots here but we many to get one!
GuideStayed for three nights before heading to OBX. A very limited camping area. Good if your only interest is camping, fishing and hiking. Nothing else to do. Little disappointed with level of maintenance especially with bathhouse. Never saw a ranger or camp host. Don't expect to stay again.
TravelerMet with host Don (there till end of Feb.) Very personable. Answered all my questions. Well kept quiet campsites right on the Intracoastal. Can just see the Atlantic in the distance. Clean.
RangerThis place is fine, really just a circle of sites with hookups in an open field. Pretty trees and sunsets!
TravelerCarolina Beach in Wilmington is a great public beach but the campground isn’t great. Or at least a bit deceiving. It is not on or near the beach. You can’t see the beach and the trail there doesn’t go to the beach. But the worst was that they lock you in at 7:00 every night (in February ). The restrooms were clean and neat, and they had a trash bin by the gate.
LegendThis is a gorgeous spot on the water but can get buggy. Mostly RV spots with less than 10 tent spots. Shower and bathroom/water available.
GuideThis campground was perfection. There are docks, a boat ramp, fantastic bathroom\shower houses! The intercoastal waterway goes through the center of this campground giving us amazing views of dolphins playing at sun set. This campground is highly recommended and a short drive to the Angel oak tree is a must see while in the area!
LegendWe had a great week at Buck Hall! The campground isn't very large so I definitely recommend making a reservation. During shrimp baiting season (60 days starting the Friday nearest September 15) the campground is completely booked. Plan accordingly! There is really nice boat landing and fishing/crabbing pier in the campground. We had a blast kayaking around and had some awesome dolphin encounters. The historic town of McClellanville is super cute and I definitely recommend a seafood dinner at TW Graham's! Their key lime pie is amazing as well! The nearby Sewee Visitor Center has red wolves and is free to visit. They also have RV parking! We enjoyed this, but if you have kids I think it would be a must do! You can call ahead and find out when they will be feeding the wolves. The crabbing is great at the campground and we had a delicious crab boil as a result! The only reason I am not giving this campground 5 stars is that the bathrooms were pretty gross. They were working on them while we were there so maybe there is a brighter future for these run down bath houses. Our hotspots worked great here too!
GuideThis campground is located directly adjacent to the Intercoastal Waterway, and there is a boat ramp located nearby but there is no access to go swimming here. There are lots of oyster beds lining the rocks that are serving as a perimeter to the waterway, so scrambling through can be hazardous if you go down there. The tent campsites have a good breeze, but once you get back into the trees the mosquitoes can be very bad.
TravelerBest views for a cheap campground. Campsite hots we had were knowledgable and helpful. Not far from downtown Charleston.
TravelerI’ve been to Buck Hall several times. Excellent place to trailer your boat, cook over a campfire, and have a shower to wash the salt off at the end of the day. Views of the Intracoastal waterway are nice, watching the variety of boats pass by. The majority of the area is cleared grass, cutting down on bugs. Don’t forget to bring the frisbee! Since this isn’t a state park, they are tolerant to crackin a couple of cold ones. Boat landing is deep enough to drop a large boat into the drink, and cruising up Bulls Bay or heading south towards Dewees. Hiking a section of the Palmetto Trail is a good option for a day out of the sun due to the heavy maritime forest canopy. Best time of the year is Fall, Spring, and Winter. Trailering your boat will force you to pay for an RV site.
ScoutThe campsite itself is pretty wonderful. Many of the sites are right along the waterway. There's plenty of room for kids to play and there's a trail head to the Palmetto Trail.
Our tent site was 3rd to the last, closet to the wood. A decent walk to the bathhouse, but not unreasonable at all, although we did have to cut thru some occupied RV sites.
Unfortunately, a bit further down, a couple of RV sites joined forces and partied, loudly, well into the night. We were far enough away they didn't keep us awake, but you could easily hear them if you did awaken There were multiple sites close to the party that must have been awake all night. I'm not sure if the camp host was ever notified or concerned.
All in all though, its decent place.
TravelerWe spent April 17-19 here. Beautiful spot on the intercostal waterway. Well maintained and lots of room between campsites. They have a couple of nature walks. Close to Charleston, SC.
Guide
We stayed in a 2 bedroom cabin for this trip. It was a great campground. It had a pool, camp activities, hiking/nature trail. It was extremely clean and the staff was friendly. It has a lake for fishing and water activities, a dog park. It is very close to things around Charleston. We will absolutely go back.
RangerThis is a fantastic campground. The staff is friendly and helpful. The grounds are very well maintained. There are activities offered including a wagon ride through a plantation. There is a pool. They offer bike rental, along with kayak/paddle boat rentals. There’s a great dog park our pups loved. We paid a little extra for a deluxe site with full hookups and a lake view. The deluxe site also had a concrete pad, brick fire pit, and a swing. It was a shady spot with big oak trees. There is a nice camp store. The location of this campground is perfect near stores, restaurants, and not far from the beach.
ScoutThis campground is near Charleston,SC and the Beach at Isle of Palms.
ScoutVantastic
TravelerWe had a great site and was surprised how much room for a KOA. Loved being able to explore the city with the help and guidance of the staff. Our fave was the wagon ride to the plantation next door.
GuideGreat trip! Only a few miles from historic Charleston. Excellent care to the grounds and friendly staff plus a cool hayride and history lesson. Very happy to have stayed here. Not giving 5 stars ONLY because it was a little pricey.
LegendWe don’t typically stay at KOA’s but this one was convenient and had power so we could run the AC. Summer humidity is a killer! This park was well kept. A great 1.5 mile long nature trail. We didn’t see the resident alligator but glad to know there is one. Great smooth road for skateboarding.
Pool was open but limited to 6 people. No boat rentals, but bikes were still available. They are checking what state you’re from. If you’re from a state that is still on stay at home orders, they won’t be able to give you a reservation.
Would have given it 5 stars, but it’s hard to pay $75/night for camping...
LegendMy boys and get together at least once each summer for a guys camping outing. Our last outing was themed- “ Poopin with Sasquatch”. As always we had a great time and our group is growing with grandchildren.
GuideA lot to do for kids. Close to mount p shopping. There’s an on site dog park that dogs can swing in the lake as well. There’s also frisbee golf on site.
ScoutCamped at site 32 in mid-November and site and grounds were both beautiful and very well kept. Staff was extremely friendly and attentive. There was a nice walking/biking path around the campground and downtown Charleston and Isle of Palms beaches were both close by. We are already planning a return trip.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is the most popular glamping campsite near Awendaw, SC?
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular glamping campground near Awendaw, SC is Campground at James Island County Park with a 4.6-star rating from 57 reviews.
What is the best site to find glamping camping near Awendaw, SC?
TheDyrt.com has all 9 glamping camping locations near Awendaw, SC, with real photos and reviews from campers.
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