Best RV Parks & Resorts near Helenwood, TN

Pool, playground, grounds are nice and nicely shaded. The kids love the pool and even the 1 foot kiddie pool. Office is also a store with lots of necessities. Only negative comment is the long term side of the park and then that the RV spaces are narrow in between the trees and other spots. Spots have full hookups, or you can select the water/electric only.

Raccoon Valley RV park is literally just an RV park. The park was very clean and well maintained, and would be a nice place to park for a night as part of a longer trip. The RV park is just right off 1-75, just north of Knoxville, so it would be easy to hop on and off the interstate. The property is just a large gravel parking lot, with a few trees scattered throughout. Not really my kind of camping, but nearly all the spots were full.

The park has a large laundry facility, and a dog park for people traveling/camping with pets. I did see some benches located in the perimeter of the property in shady spots for relaxing.

I assume some of the guests are long term residents, but the sites were all so neat and clean, without built on structures and such that I’ve seen at most places. This RV park will be perfect for some!

This a an RV park, not a resort. It has everything you need: full hook ups, dog park, laundry. Clean, well kept and friendly. Sites are small and close, but work even for the larger rigs.

A safe and reasonably priced place to spend a night while traveling, or a couple while exploring the area.

Volunteer RV park is right off I-75, on the outskirts of Knoxville. There’s not much around this area, but I think this would be a good place to stay a night or two on a longer trip. The campground is right off the road, but it is very large, and surprisingly wooded, so you could avoid road noise with an interior site, and it could be relaxing for a night. There are several long term residents, but there were a good number of open sites.

The park has a playground with a wooden pirate ship for kids, and a really nice pool. It was crystal clear. The office has essentials, ice, and firewood. There is a laundry facility on the property too.

I can’t say this would be an ideal camping spot for me personally, but for someone looking to stop somewhere off I-75 for a night or two, this place would be a great choice.

We stayed 2 nights here. There were several long term tenants. We had water, electric, sewer, and cable. Since we had sewer hook up I did not use their bathrooms. They had 2 bath houses. There was a pool and store on site. It’s easy enough to get to, it’s less a mile off 75. The sites were level, the park was clean, and the owners were nice.

64 full hook-up with 30 and 50 amp electric on the sites. Site 1 only had a 30 amp and was the smallest in the campground. They had wifi and cable TV that was available. Sites were fairly level. I had to use 2 yellow flat blocks on site 1. Restrooms and showers were closed due to Covid-19 restrictions. We were told they were full but several sites remained empty during our stay. Would have liked to have had a lake side site or a larger level site. Owners were friendly as well as the guests. I believe they had some full-time living there too. I would go back.

This is primitive camping in the Catoosa Wildlife Management Area. There is a large open field for group camping and some more private sites in the woods if you go down Otter Creek Road a little bit past the open field. I believe this is manly used for hunters or fishermen, but is a boondocking option for other outdoor enthusiasts. Again, this is primitive, boondocking, so no amenities or hookups. Pretty basic.

The is a small store at the Deer Run RV Resort less than a mile away. Other than that it’s about a 20 minute drive to the nearest Food City.

I was a little taken back when we first arrived at this campground because of how many people lived here long-term. There were clearly people who had been here for a very long time, even having pole barns put up over there rigs. I was slightly turned off by it because it felt like we were pulling in to a trailer park to camp (nothing wrong with trailer parks at all, just didn’t want to camp at one). We were only there for one night, but my views of the place quickly changed. Everyone here was so friendly and nice, and there is really good community here. The ground are decently taken care of aside from the long-term residents. The pool seems to be clean and the playground was fun for the little ones.

This campground is easy access from I-75.

Amazing staff and perfect for a long term stay or just a nightly spot.

We really enjoyed Milton Hill dam, very friendly people , well stocked store, easy access to swimming and fishing and full hook up sites if you want them. Easy access to my family in Knoxville Tennessee

Very nice quiet, rural campground with full hookups and wifi and General Store/Cafe walkable M-SA 11-5pm. It is very quiet and very dark. This is very rural so see recommendations for distances to nearest places We camped at Brooks Corner Campground& RV Park in a Travel Trailer.

Tip for Other Campers: 

Propane is available for:

-20lbs swap-outs at the local Dollar Trees(Jamestown or near Eglin/Robbins both are~20m away)

-Fillings at Tractor Supply(Oneida40m/Jamestown25) or Schaefer and Schaefer Welding Supplies(Oneida~40m) 

Groceries:

-Walmart(Oneida40m/Jamestown25)

-Dollar Trees(Jamestown or near Eglin/Robbins both are~20m away) 

Fast Food:

-KFC/Sonic/McDonalds- Jamestown

-Lots of Options in Oneida

-RM Brooks General Store has Lunch 11-5 Mon-Sat and Breakfast on Sats starting at 830

When passing through this area going to the Smoky Mountains I made a pit stop in Clinton, TN, just a few short miles away from one of the entrances to Smoky Mountain National Park. Though not in the mountain they have a world of charm and activities in the community.

This stop, a little less crowded than some of the other stops along the way, the KOA here offers both primitive and improved camping options for tent campers along the outer borders of the main site. Improved sites have electricity and are nearby the main restroom and shower house. Primitive sites are the furthest away from restrooms but are in a treed area close to the main entrance.

Amenities include a seasonally open pool, exercise room, outdoor activities such as playgrounds, volleyball and horseshoes.

One of the things which made this KOA a bit different than other was that it offered long term stay in a special area of the camp. This keeps the typical long term look away from those who are passing through, creating more peace for those staying a lengthy amount of time from the in and out daily traffic.

For me as a tent camper, I really debated which would be a better fit considering I typically like to stay a bit closer to the restrooms but I also didn't see the point in having electricity if I didn't need it. Primitive sites were under $20 while electrical sites were nearly $30 so the question would come down to price and comfort, both were established on a grass pad site.

I opted for primitive and it was pretty pleasant, not a lot of campers were in the region and overall it was a great stop off.

While in the Clinton area you can check out many things within a short drive, perhaps one of the most interesting the Museum of Appalachia, a working village which takes you back in time to depict the way of life of the earlier people of the region. Here they have a living history museum, restaurant, tours and hands on exhibits to tell the story of a life where things were a bit more simplistic and hard work was a way of life. Great for all ages. Other popular stops are the Green AcDoo Cultural Center and the Little Ponderosa Zoo.

TIPS:

• If you are stopping by this location know in advance what you are interested in having as amenities. If this includes electricity or water for a tent, make a registration in advance especially on the weekends. This campground ends up with a lot of overflow from the National Park.

• Take the drive to Oak Ridge and check out the Manhattan Project museum. This one is one of those "top secret" cities you only hear about on the history channel, now open to tell its secrets.

There is a code lock for the nice bathrooms, the other bathrooms are super gross. But toilet flushes, the shower is pretty gross. We arrived late in the evening and didn’t get the gate code for the nice bathrooms by the pool. In the daylight, it is a nice place. Super friendly staff ad the pool bathrooms were clean and newer. Most of the guests were long term homes. A few looked like they hadn’t moved in years.

Great spot. Full hook ups at many spots. Sites are in cul de sacs. Lake is beautiful and really close. Staff is super nice and helpful. Nice playgrounds and pools. WiFi is not currently working. AT&T and Verizon service is good. Lots of wildlife around. Nice hiking trails.

Well maintained, easy access from I75, full hook up with good cell service. Dog friendly, quiet and patrolled by state park rangers, and Jellico police.

The picnic tables and fire rings are oddly placed at some campsites. Camp store was only open Sat & Sun. Jellico is a very small town, so if you need supplies it is only a short trip to Williamsburg, KY

This is a brand new, small campground with mini cabins. This is a perfect place to stay for a getaway to ride ATV’s in the Big South Fork and Pickett State Forrest area. The campsites are full hook up. Only 10 campsites, so it is not overcrowded. This would be a really great spot to meet up with several friends/family. The campground is also across the street from the Astronomy Field for dark sky viewing.

Con: Located on the highway, so you do have some road noise.

Great campground with very friendly and helpful rangers. Was pretty empty the night we were there. Very cool tent camping spots right on the small lake and RV spots all pretty much have a lake view. Full hookups and dump when you exit the campground. They do not have water at the sites in the winter. Bathrooms were clean enough and the showers were hot. Would definitely come back. Many trailheads near the campsite but the weather was bad when we were there. Drone photos courtesy of SweetDroneChicago on Instagram