Best Cabin Camping near Atoka, TN

This is a really nice campground just outside of Memphis, TN. They have a swimming pool, playground, covered party pavilion, laundry and lots of kids activities. They also have cabins for rent. This appears to be more of a long term rental campground, but it is a great place to stay if you are traveling there for the weekend for local events, baseball tournaments at Snowden Grove or a Memphis vacation. The campsites are very close together and most are in the sun with no shade.

The cabins are nice, and there are great hiking trails

Campground is very rustic, shaded and sites are kinda small. Cell service is spotty. Some sites are really close together and some are decent size. The day area around Poplar Tree Lake is nice with kayak, flat bottom fishing boats and paddle boats for rent. Cabins seem very nice from the outside. Lots of nice playgrounds and a disc golf course.

My family and I live about 25 min from the campground at Meeman-Shelby State Park. We have been several times and have camped with tents, pop-ups, and now with our Geo-Pro. We love this campground.

Pros: -49 available sites -all sites with water, 30A, fire ring, grill and picnic table -a variety of hiking/biking trails -update playground -lake with rental kayaks, canoes, boats (in season) -fully functioning bathhouse that is dated but clean

Cons: -no sewer at any sites -some sites on the back sides of the camp ground are subject to erosion and can be unlevel and not ideal for kids -large park so many of the activities outside the campground require driving -1 bathhouse which can be an issue on certain weekends -MOSQUITOS. If you go after the weather warms up, be forewarned that the mosquitos will eat you alive. We mostly camp at Meeman-Shelby in the fall/winter. We do not camp Spring/Summer.

There is a disc golf course that is very popular. There is a nature center that is under renovation that has snakes, spiders and owls to see. There are cabins to rent but we have never stayed in one. They look nice from the outside.

I’ve included several pictures of camp sites and the grounds. All in all, Meeman-Shelby is a great park and is perfect for families. Make sure to schedule a friday night dinner at the General Store. Steak and live music that sets the tone for a great camping weekend!

This was one of the first state parks in Tennessee I visited on my trip through the state. Despite being an older feeling camp it offered many unique features and options for keeping myself entertained. (Check Out Their Website)

When it came to camping not only were there tent sites but also cabins which had a very rustic feel. I opted for a tent site which ran $25 and had full electrical hookups (site 40), a big perk for charging my devices at the end of a busy day. My site had a bbq grill and fire ring in addition to a picnic table and was well shaded. I felt like the sites along this side of the road were a little more spacious than the other side of the road which were a little more close together.

I was about half way down the loop and a short distance from the restroom and showers which were in decent shape but nothing super special. The water pressure here was good for showering.

My favorite thing about this camp was the outdoor activities which seemed to be everywhere. I hiked both the Woodland and Pioneer Springs trails (MAP), each about 4 miles and along the way enjoyed just taking in the outdoors. I will say that if you do any trails in late summer here you will need mosquito spray because they come in droves.

You can travel to the boat ramp and marina and rent boats there or bring your own to take advantage of the lake which winds through various types of vegetation and allows you to see the lake in a way you cannot from the shore line. I most enjoyed taking out a kayak and exploring the swampy feeling area, though I will say being so close to the Mississippi River I was afraid of what I might find lurking in the water.

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TIPS:

• Bring citronella candles for your table when camping and try to put a dryer sheet in your pocket to ward off mosquitoes. In addition to spray these will make your trip here a bit more comfortable.
• Bring your own firewood if you want to have a campground. There were signs around camp saying not to move wood.

This is a huge campground and the price for a spot was at least double what we would pay elsewhere (nearly $100). We weren’t able to get a campground at Tom Sawyer and the reviews were all over the place for the rest of the Memphis campgrounds that we decided to go ahead and splurge on this one.

This was our first Jellystone and I was shocked at how many campers the campground accommodated - there are RVs everywhere. Most of the amenities and services are located at the front of the campground and includes a store and propane, playground, dog run, pool, showers and laundry, gold mining station, and sports courts (basketball, Gaga ball, and basketball). Further back in the campground, was another playground and dog run and a really cute little lake.

We were staying off-season so there was no activities and they actually deflated the jumping pad, but my kids still had fun and I could see this campground either being a blast in the summer or being a nightmare because of too many people. While we were there, I saw almost no children and several of the camper sites looked like the guests were staying long-term. For a campground that is marketed towards families, the demographics were a bit strange.

That said, it was super clean, well-organized, the landscaping and sites were maintained, everyone was friendly. We got two loads of wash done and my husband said the showers looked good. There were some restaurants and a Walgreen that looked like they delivered to the campground. WiFi worked and they had cable tv.

We reserved a basic site, but for more money you could get a site with Adirondack patio furniture and there were plenty of cabins as well. We reserved same day online and they have a system for late check-ins.

I’m definitely giving Jellystone another go - but next time during the summer. I’m not sure whether this campground is a good base for exploring Memphis - I think if you had a car it would probably be fine as it’s only 20 minutes or so.

We love this state park. We frequent it regularly. The sites are all mostly level (front to back and side to side), the facilities are well maintained and the rangers patrol regularly. 

This is a very wooded campground, offering lots of privacy. There's a nice playground that my youngest is a big fan of. The campground is also a short drive from Poplar Tree Lake which offers boating and fishing (kayak rentals are available, or you can bring your own); no swimming area though.

Some of our favorite sites are 7, 8, 11, 12, 13, 25, and 26. These are in all in the two smaller loops, though the main loop sites are quite nice as well, they just don't feel quite as secluded. 

Also, make sure to check out the Shelby Forest General Store. They sell little bit of everything, including great food if you don't feel like cooking at the campsite!

Campsites are mostly spacious and hosts are friendly and helpful. We really enjoyed the trails and roads for walking/biking.

Not crowded and pretty quiet. August in Tennessee is hot and muggy!

I found merman Shelby Forrest on the Dyrt app stayed there a week really enjoyed it there the bathrooms and showers were clean the park workers were helpful and friendly I would highly recommend camping here

Ok - so this campground is a few things.  Will detail the good/bad below as we saw it:

Good

1. This campground is super remote.  Like 20 minutes from downtown Memphis, but 0 bars of cell service.  Really nice for an escape, but hard if trying to work out of here.

2. This campground is part of a HUUUUUUGE state park.  Like 10000 acres.  

3. Tons of outdoors activities in this state park.

Bad

1. No cell service.  Or Internet.  Or anything.  There is very small service for WIFI available at the visitor center, which is a 5min drive from the park.

2. Bugs from April - October are pretty bad.  This is in a forest, so they are constantly around.

3. Bath areas are old.  And full of mosquitos.  Would make sure you understand this before camping.

4. No Full Hookups (state park).

Lots of woods

Some of the park is beautiful and well-kept. The campground, however, is not. While we appreciated the ample shade during our hot July stay, the sites are quite short and were not mowed when we arrived or any time during our four night stay. The last day we were there, part of the campground was finally being mowed, but they stopped before reaching the two loops off of the main one. One site next to ours had a water leak and large puddle. If you have Verizon, there is zero service for miles, making it difficult to research directions or activities. It might be a nice respite for locals, but it does not make for a good base to use when traveling. The dump station has a fixed nozzle and no threaded connection to utilize for flushing or rinsing your tank. It can only be used to rinse the sewer hose.

We live close and love being able to break away and isolate ourselves from the world. There is no cell reception really at campsites and that just makes it better. Quiet and clean spot for a weekend away.

The road into the campground is a little narrow when meeting someone so keep that in mind. Zero and I mean zero cell signal lol. Not a deal breaker for us but may be for some. Roads inside the campground are adequate. We stayed in site #2 which in the description says it's 46 ft but our 38 ft 5th wheel filled it up completely. Had to pull my truck to the side. No biggie. Unfortunately we couldn't tell from the picture of the website there was a large oak tree to the left of the site so close we couldn't even use our awning. Plugged into the 50 amp and thankfully had a surge protector because it faulted. Finally got that squared away. Once we started setting everything up we noticed them...mosquitoes swarming everywhere. Literally hundreds. Almost to where it wasn't enjoyable to be outside. All in all we enjoyed our stay even with the issues but our next time will be cooler weather and a different site. Park ranger did tell us before we left the park has received a grant to make major renovations to the campground starting 2022 and finishing in 2023.

The primitive sites (there are three) are on a separate and I maintained road off of the campsite loop. Spacious sites, but if the weather is wet, it can be a bit iffy getting to them in a low clearance vehicle. That said, facilities and staff were nice.

Took our brand new RV here for its shakedown trip the very day I picked up as it is so close to home. Was pleasantly surprised by the overall atmosphere of the campground. The entire place is completely shaded, as it seems they too the effort to not cut down many trees when putting the sites in. There is a playground for the kids. Bath houses are passable but need to be remodeled badly.

Sites are all over the place on size, so pay attention to site length on the website as you are booking if you are an RV camper. Tent campers will be happy with almost any site in the place. Another thing to prepare for is picnic are location on your site. While a lot of COE and private campgrounds tend to have the picnic are directly beside the parking spot for RV’s, only a few seem set up this way at Meeman-Shelby. Many sites have their picnic area and fire ring directly behind or even on the off-side of any RV that would use the site. I wish they would post pictures of the site for those wishing to book.

Outside of the campground is a great state park for those looking for a good hike. Tons of good trails. There is also a bike trail with another really nice playground at its trail head. Even if all you want is a scenic drive, there are some pretty good ones inside the park, and just along the parks northern edge is a road that will take you all the way down to the banks of the Mississippi River.

One more thing to prepare for is mosquitoes. This campground is immediately adjacent to low wetlands along the River. This means that mosquitoes are terrible in the summer around dusk. Some bug spray, citronella, and a campfire seemed to ward them off.

We stayed here Easter weekend. It was full but the sites are far enough apart that you have plenty of privacy and quiet. There’s great hiking near the campground. The playground is centrally located. If you have smaller kids, you may want to supervise as the equipment is more for the older elementary aged kids. Bring plenty of bug spray.

My friend and I camped for the weekend and it was great. Nice grounds. Showers, bathrooms were clean.

Stayed for one night on the way through. Sites are pretty level. Water and electric fine. Bathroom clean but dated.

Place was beautiful but the mold in the bathroom was worse then expected for a state park.

Decent spot. Lots of sites with water and power hookups. Water at site 9 where we were was very cloudy. Atleast 3 drive into primitive sites. Decent bathrooms with showers. A bit pricey $28 per night. Very friendly staff. The ranger mentioned that they will be closing for renovations soon, including trying to get a "portajohn" out by the primitive sites and developing sites on the water. Very helpful on the phone. Call if you have any questions.

This is my neighborhood campground, so i might be a little biased. A great spot to spend the weekend with lots of good trails, a big lake for paddling and fishing, and quaint camp sites. The bathrooms are clean but have strong serial killer vibes. There used to be a pool here. I’d love to see that open again!