Best Cabin Camping near Fair Play, SC

We had a relaxing time on this camping trip. So much so I even took a nap! The staff was super friendly and the campground was nice and clean. There is an outdoor pool with hot tub, and an indoor heated pool for adults. There is a fireplace with wood and lighter so you can start your own fire by rocking chairs. There are no fire rings at the campsites. If you need a fire to cook with and didn't bring your own there are a number of grills there that you can use. The wifi was free, but perhaps not secure. There is a workout room, a playground, a comfy clubhouse and activities for all ages. The roads are paved and easy to walk. There are waterfalls and an old covered bridge in nearby Sky Valley. I found it a good place to relax, but knew there were things to do if I got bored. It's very accommodating.

My wife& I stayed at Oconee State Park Oct. 28th-31st in a Cabin. For 90% of the stay, we had a wonderful time in the Cabin and walking/viewing the Lake, etc. However, there were several events that occurred in the Cabin that were disgusting and resulted in a BAD Situation and which I would assume is also occurring throughout the entire Oconee Park Cabin locations. On the 1st Night: We killed a"huge" Brown Recluse in our bathroom, on the floor near the sink wall. Luckily, I captured it and threw it in the fire. Next Morning: I noticed a big Fat Worm about 2-3" long of some unknown type on the bathroom floor near the sink area again. Obviously disposed of it. That afternoon, we went to the Station and told the Ranger attendant guy about our 2 experiences already. He searched and gave us a white Orkin Glue Strip to use and explained that Pest Control occasionally visits the Cabins?? Really?? Apparently not ours! 2nd Night: After placing the Glue Strip in the bathroom near the sink wall, I could not believe that, after hearing my wife scream, I discovered a Mouse partially trapped by the glue trap and only able to barely crawl toward the log wall with its front legs. I cautiously picked-up the glue trap from behind and threw the critter outside, still attached. 3rd Morning: Once again, another type of unknown Big Fat Worm in the bathroom near the sink and about 2" long. Again, disposed of. I cannot believe that, as nice as the rest of our Cabin#5 was, that there were that many insects& Varmints freely entering the Cabin walls. That was truthfully, DISGUSTING& VERY DISAPPOINTING. It is apparent that this Oconee State Park Cabin(s??) is managed by Gross Oversight& Negligence by someone. These four(4) unpleasant events greatly disturbed our stay and left a Very Unpleasant Taste in our Minds due to these occurrences. Imagine how uncomfortable you might be trying to slip into your bed linens at night with this invasion happening!!! If this State Facility is using any kind of Pest Control Measures, then obviously it is NOT WORKING and someone should be Disciplined or Fired! We have already filed a Complaint with the Oconee Park Manager several weeks ago and with the SC State Parks but as usual& expected, NO RESPONSE FROM ANYONE! NO ONE! Obviously, SC Parks and their Park Manager could care less about their customer’s bad experience, or the terrible condition of their specific cabins. All they want is YOUR MONEY$$$ and then you can leave!

We had a great time staying here. Some of the sights were rather inclined, but they listed this on the website when booking(it's on a mountain after all). The areas between most of the sites was spacious, we were able to hang 2 hammocks to chill in. The Bathhouses had been remodeled and were kept clean while we were there. (There wasn't hand soap at the sinks that was a little weird for me).  The Large trash bins were located back down across from the Park Center, as was the play ground. It would have been more convenient for campers to have these things closer but were convenient for day use visitors. The park center is a gorgeous stone/log cabin type building with a long porch facing the Swimming area. There are Adirondack chairs on the porch, then between the porch and the lake are wooden lounge chairs and benches to relax on while taking a break from swimming or hanging out. There are miles of trails and streams to explore. We had a lovely time and plan to visit again soon.

Camping and hiking in the fall when everyone else is either working or choosing to hunker down inside...is premeire!

Happening upon Lake Hartwell State Park, was a find! We were traveling light, heading to the Hendersonville, NC area for bagging waterfalls and cascades and some ridge hikes. So we opted to rent one of their camper cabins. Spartan to be sure..its dry, solid and has a door. Oh, and it had a window AC unit...but it was plenty cool enough. Nearby were the showers and restroom facilities. For all practical purposes...we had the entire campground to ourselves. The park is clean, well-maintained and well staffed. The rangers were helpful in pointing us in the correct direction for dayhikes and local points of interest.

The Stumphouse Tunnel was of particular interest and made for a great hike centered around pre Civil War era. Station Cove Falls were beautiful and the Oconee Station State Historic Site were delightful and well preserved. A military Outpost and Indian Trading Post from the late 1700's were awesome!

Back to the campground. Our cabin rental was located on a pennisula and because the water levels of Lake Hartwell were down, we had plenty of beach area to comb. Lots of downfall was present for scavenging...so our campfires were splendid. The weather was fairly decent...and we enjoyed unseasonably warm days while we were there.

I'd definitely like to revisit, under the same circumstances...but would bring a tent...and my canoe.

Nestled in a small valley between tree covered small mountainy hills, Adventure Village has always been a safe bet when we come to Brevard, NC and our preferred locations are booked full.

We 'work from wheels" so some type of reliable internet is a must anywhere we go. Whether it be through cellular or wi-fi, our entire business is online. And we chose to stay at Adventure Village due to all the amenities they boast, including property wide internet (more on that later).

Open all year, overall the place is clean, quiet & feels fairly safe. Others on the campground have always been friendly.

Adventure Village has RV/Trailer sites, tent sites & a variety of cabins from small 1 roomers to much larger multi-bedroom ones with hot tubs.

Albeit nicer than most, the RV section is one of those parking lot style RV city feeling. Sites are close together. Every site is a back-in. With them being close together, we could hear neighbors on both sides of us.

We rolled in with a Ram 1500 Pulling a Lance 1995 Travel Trailer that's 23'8 total length. Had no problem backing-in. Site was not fully level, so we had to pull out the wheel levelers and go up about 4" on one side.

You see from the pictures how close everyone is. We had site 6 which backed up to a small flowing creek. It nice to hear the running water the entire time.

Also, the "Adventure" part where they talk about trails and biking….not so much.  We found the trails had not been maintained for some time. They were grown over with thorny vines and bushes.

The only hiking or biking you will do is up one of their two roads. The one up to the larger cabins, which appear to be quite nice. Or, the second back road that leads up to the tent section.

The Cabin road is well maintained and makes for a quick walk or a moderate uphill climb for a mountain bike.

The Tent road, on the other hand…much different. Not well maintained with large ruts from water run off, slick muddy spots and pot holes. A much steeper road than the cabin one, and is a good warm up on a mountain bike. The tent sites are well spaced apart and at higher elevation than the RV section. But, if you're going to camp here, you better have a 4WD/AWD vehicle with some clearance. Especially if you're at one of the upper sites that have the best views. 

Now for the practicality of working here… Adventure Village does have about 5 wifi access points. And we could always get a signal. However, even though I'm at full strength on their 2.4gigahertz wi-fi…it was intermittent at best. We never knew when it would start, or stop and became very difficult to work. So we tried their 5gigahertz network, IF we could maintain a connection, it would work…again…if we could even connect to it (in all fairness, 5g wifi is not as strong of a signal as 2.4g, but is much faster).

So then we went for the backup, cellular. We have an iPhone 11 and  Samsung S20+ on Verizon. Phones would show 1 bar 4G LTE, but we could not get anything data related to come through well. The good news here, is that we could make phone calls with good reception and reliability. At time, our iPad would get 2 bars on Verizon's 4G network.

I'm giving this 3 stars because while it is nice place in the mountains, and it's clean, quiet safe, well located to see all this area has to offer with a staff that is friendly…we prefer camping in spots with more space and trees giving that more natural & secluded feeling.

Also, the "Adventure" part really is not there. Trails are either forgotten, or unaccessible and really not usable (unless you want to puncture your mountain bike tires with all the thorns).

Plus, the lack of reliable internet as boasted by Adventure Village is frustrating. We were also told they get good Verizon service, which they do for voice, but not data.