Best Tent Camping near Lake City, TN

Cherokee Dam campground is literally one of the most beautiful campgrounds in the area! The grounds are so well-kept, and the lake is just breathtaking. The campground is near town, so you can grab some bbq or hit the local hardware store for anything you need. The campground also had a camp store for essentials. They even delivered firewood to our site.

The people running the campground were just amazing. So nice and helpful. Most of the sites have lake views. We were in site #36, and we were in our camper. Lots of space, no shade at all in this one. Most of the sites had some shade though. Picnic tables and fire rings at all.

I’ve noticed the TVA campgrounds don’t have many showers, so I was glad to have that in our camper, just be aware, you might have to wait for one if you are tent camping. The tent sites were awesome, right on the water, and a short walk from the parking lot. If you have a rooftop tent, you won’t be able to park at your site, so you’ll be sleeping in the parking lot, but you could make it work.

There’s a swimming area, boat launch, and walking trails. This is a great spot to have a great time on the lake!

This was my first time to the Niagara of the South. My husband and I left our dog back in Louisville for this trip which was originally an attempt to see the moon bow at Cumberland Falls. 

We looked at the tent site map on the state resort park map and nothing looked GREAT except for Clifty Campground spots 050, 048, and 049 they all look isolated from any of the other sites with 050 being a site that you have to traverse a grassy/rocky area from your car to set up. 

We opted for spot 047 because, on the map, it looked set back from the campground road… and it was… sorta. Nothing at this campsite is going to be private. The majority of the sites do not have so much as a weed between them although the sites themselves are very roomy for car camping. Your vehicle will be a presence at the site, which have electric hookups so if, like me, you have an electric car… it's nice to be able to simply plug the car in. This site did not get a lot of shade except for where we had the tent set up, and still… that would've received sun had it not been raining. 

Our site had a good picnic bench, a sturdy wooden post for hanging trash etc and the fire pit seemed pretty new. The grill wasn't bent at all, which was a 1st in my years of camping. The view from this site was pretty cool… we set out tent up at the furthest out spot on the small cliff as we could before it turned to mostly rock and faced the door out over the trails. We hung our rain tarp because, instead of a moon bow, we endured a nearly 24 hour torrential downpour. The tarp, which is small, and having the tent faced appropriately gave us a semblance of privacy although we had a camper van family next to us. Site has a lot of gravel so it was reasonably muddy but not dried out quick. 

There are a lot of raccoons that visit the dumpster area so expect it to be a little messy if your fellow campers aren't shutting the dumpster lids. Shower facilities reminded me of middle school camp… kind of mildewed… and well… rustic. Everything functioned and it wasn't "gross" just old. Water was hot. Toilet stalls (ladies) were small. I weight 130 and at 5 foot 2 it was a tight squeeze for me. 

We hiked the WIldflower Loop Trail (1.5 miles) in a drizzle and although wet it was safe. When the rain stopped we hiked Eagle Falls Trail and it was very muddy but the views were worth it. 

Would love to go back but if camping in a tent it's a must to get one of the two more private spots, or at the very least

We stayed at site RV33. We have a 25ft travel trailer and it was perfect. There were two tent sites very close to us, but we had more than enough room. If we were to go again, we would pull straight into the site (this would have put our slide towards the road). The tent sites looked to be the best tent sites I’ve seen. The bath house was very clean. The staff was very helpful. There were trails from the campground to Cumberland Falls. We hiked to see Cumberland Falls (from the lodge) and Eagle Falls. After a short drive, we hiked Natural Arch and Yahoo Falls.

Went on a stag tent camping trip. Decent facility for state park. Sites are small wouldn’t recommend large rigs.

Good tent camping sites. Lots of trees; level sites; fire pit; picnic table. Very clean & well supplied restrooms. Great individual private room showers with plenty of good hot water.

Nice Camp ground, they moved tent camping up close to road, they used to be next to Pigeon River but now those are premium RV spots. It's closest camping to Dollywood. Storm blew through and flattened our tent, KOA refunded the cost of the last night as we were unable to stay.

The tent sites can be decent or real bad. T9 and T14 were horrible sites at the bottom of a hill where all rainwater runs through. T7 and T8 are ok sites. They are fairly flat.

Amazingly clean campgrounds 10 minutes from the entrance of the National Park and 20 minutes from the Visitor's Center.

You have a choice of "rustic" tent sites, tent sites with water/electric/cable hook-ups, RV, or Cabins. All sites are pet-friendly including cabins. All camp sites include fire pit and picnic table.

Lots of amenities are included in your stay. 2 bathroom areas, 1 shower area, pool, wi-fi, etc.

There's a general store in front of the campgrounds with gas station and small cafe attached. The general store will even deliver your purchased firewood to your site.

This Koa is near a lot recreational places and some restaurants. Also near towns like Gatlinburg, Pidgeon Forge and Knoxville.

A nice vacation spot.

Typical KOA, everything was well maintained lots were nice sized, and they had lots of fun activities for the kiddos.

Lots of different stays available here, pull through lots, tent sites, and cabins

A couple of the tent sites are waterfront and ideal for a tenter like me. The rest seem a little packed together, though some offer a little bit of seclusion. Decent facilities and easy access to Devil’s Backbone section of Cumberland trail.

We stayed at the main area but not much space or privacy so we put up a tent out side our door, but then moved to the tent camping site area the second night which was more secluded and private, but still close to the showers/bath house. So much hiking and a cool view of the dam is all within walking distance. Nice bath rooms and showers too.

Very kid friendly KOA. Was always very busy with comers and goers due to the area being touristy. Tent camping not the best idea if you want quiet. The scenery in the back of the park where the tent area is is on a creek (nice huh), not when you listen to trucks unloading all night every night at the grocery store across the creek.

Kind of close but nice and clean with cabins on the river and primitive tent sites as well. Extended stay with some permanent sites. Also have plenty of room for RV storage. Verizon service shotty with poor WIFI. Suppose to be installing Wi-Fi extenders shortly.

Just a short distance from Windrock. RV sites have power and water, but are very close together, in my opinion. There are also a few tent sites and cabins. Parking for off-road vehicle trailers. Firewood and ice available at the office. Nearest grocery is about 15-20 minutes away.

Red haired lady in the office, started complaining about my fiancé and myself. Saying are campsite is dirty. Never was, trash is in garbage bags which are taken to dumpster at night. Don’t stay here. Rude an will over charge you for a tent site with no electricity and no water.

This is a great campground that offers a lot of amenities, including a bath house, fire rings, picnic tables and offers both RV and tent camping. The people in the campground were respectful and there were trailheads leading directly from the campground to the wilderness. Pickett is a great place to visit because it’s an international dark sky, there are beautiful natural bridges and lots of recreation opportunities.

Campsites are nice but electric hookups only at certain sites. Its a national campground so its beautiful with nice bathouses but not much activities other than hiking. There are a limited amount of sites that would accommodate a large RV, mostly tent sites. It is first come first serve with no reservations. There is no rv parks close if the campground is full.

This place is not for you if you are looking for solitude or silence. It might be your scene if you’re into parties. Tent sites were not all accessible by drive up - some you had to park at the top of the hill and walk down. Bathrooms were clean though, and the staff was friendly. Can’t beat the proximity to the falls either.