Best Cabin Camping near Big Thicket National Preserve

This park is a great option for those looking for a spot not too far from Houston, but less busy than other parks such as Huntsville State Park, etc. that are a little closer to Houston. It’s also a nice option for those wanting to visit Big Thicket, but seeking a less primative camping experience (the Big Thicket National Preserve has primitive camping only).

Most of the campsites have enough trees to set up a hammock. If you get there while the office is open, they will give you the choice of picking your own campsite (of those still available).

Canoe and kayak rentals are dirt cheap. You might see an alligator while canoeing, but per the park workers they don’t bother people.

Bring bug spray! Especially in the hotter months.

Went to Powell not knowing what to expect.  The lake is beautiful, the camp grounds are spotless and the Staff is awesome.  Great facilities whether tent camping, RV camping or staying in a cabin.  Cabins are small and rustic as you would expect but very clean.  What you’d want since you will be outside enjoying the great outdoors!  Boat rentals, pontoons for larger groups, fishing, water sports, they have it all.  Did I mention how awesome the staff is??? So accommodating and friendly.  We will be back!

Thia camp ground is owned and managed by Texas Parks and Wildlife. It is well maintained and kept. The RV camp sites are plenty big and the tent sites are big enough to pitch the large multi person cabin tents. The fishing is a amazing and the store is cool.

My wife and I have been park hosts here at Martin Dies jr state park for 3 months now. We have been coming here for years. The park has around 200 rv, tent sites, and cabins ( 3 cabins have a/c ). They have trails and rent kayaks and canoes. Plenty of Wildlife like deer, raccoons, gray foxes, birds and of course gators.

This is a huge campground with many sites being on the water and the rest being close to it. If you’re here for boating or fishing, like most people, you can get a campsite near a boat launch. The campgrounds are all very wooded and shady, though some spots don’t feel very private. They have a lot of sites with electricity and there are lots of bathrooms and shower houses. So while it’s crowded and large, it’s well laid out and still feels like you’re really close to nature. They also have a bunch of cabins and screened mini-cabins you can rent to ease the bug situation...which was pretty intense. The mini-cabins were very cute and look relatively new, but we didn’t stay there. You can walk along some trails straight from your campsite. Bring a kayak, canoe, or boat and you’ll have a great weekend here.

We absolutely love this park!  RV and tent sites right on the water, beach area for swimming, boat docks and ramp, etc.  We extended our stay and plan to for awhile!  The staff is so welcoming!  Oh and there are 13 gorgeous cabins for rent!  I highly recommend this park!

This is the same as the “Indian Village Campground” also listed on the map. This is a great place. My family has been camping here in tents, RVs and cabins for more than 15 years. Some fairly recent upgrades to the bathrooms and showers have made it much nicer! We’ve always had a good time here and made lots of happy memories! Staff is very friendly.

We loved our visit to Martin Dies! Coming from Houston it wasn't a long drive, and we enjoyed the greenery. The day we went, we were literally the only people there. I think this place is a bit of a hidden gem. Our cabin was very nice and spacious and air conditioned. There is fishing and a playground and bathrooms close by. The downside? It rained really hard and the whole place flooded up. Huge pools of water everywhere. We ended up leaving early because of it. But besides that, awesome spot!

We have passed this place several times on trips to other places and finally decided to check it out the first of Nov. We rented a small rustic shelter / cabin. Essentially a slab walls roof with a heater and ac. It did also have a picnic table inside. It was actually perfect for my family of 3. This park was very quiet and was abundant with wildlife. We seen dear, armadillo, racoon, and a fox all close to our site. There were many trails to hike and the park a tally spans two sides of the highway be sure to explore both. This was a great camp for us and we will definitely visit again.

We spent a weekend there in August, and had a great time! The park was clean, and the staff was very friendly and active around the property. We were surprised to find a cafe located inside the park, the food was quite good! And the store has a good variety of things to choose from. All the other campers we met were very friendly, and everyone seemed to be having a good time. You can see deer wandering through the park in the morning hours. We stayed in a cabin, which was clean and nicely appointed. We even rented a pontoon boat for an evening ride around Lake Sam Rayburn, it's really beautiful. We will definitely be going back!

We enjoyed it so much when we went Memorial Day, we've already made reservations for Labor Day!  Just a great place to relax, get away and unwind.

Beautiful park but so many bugs. Did some canoeing, hiking and bird watching. A good park to get away from the city. The landscape is swampy but it was beautiful in its own way. A very good campground to see stars at night. It gets pitch black. Restrooms are very clean and the rangers are very helpful and nice.

We camped here for a long weekend getaway.  The park is a little over an hour north of Houston and easy to get to.  We did not have a lakefront site, but we had a really good view of the lake.  The full hookups were great and included cable tv.  The park was a bit crowded for the weekend, with a lot of kids running around and riding bikes.  There is a small swimming beach as well as a nice area for fishing.  The park has a restaurant, which we went to for homemade pie!

This park is near my home so we have camped here many times over the years.  It is well maintained and the landscape is well groomed.  There are usually park ranger run programs for children on a variety of subjects like animals found in the park, flora and fauna in the park etc. There are also canoe rentals for the more adventurous.  There are several hiking trails through the forest and a few geocaches for those who cache. Many families like to ride bikes through out the park.  The speed limit for cars is very low and most people seem to respect the limit, making it pretty safe for riders.There is a fishing area complete with fish cleaning stations.  When you visit, be sure to bring mosquito spray.  The mosquitoes tend to be aggressive especially on the trails and in the many areas near water. You will be miserable if you do not have mosquito spray. There is a small convenience store just across the bridge in case you forgot something.  Jasper, where we live is a 15 minute drive and there is a Wal-Mart there if the convenience store doesn't have what you need.

This is one of my top favorite State Parks in Texas. It a bonus that it's reasonably close to home.

Its a classic east Texas state park. The restrooms arent hotel quality but they are for sure better than a hole in the ground. The park itself is pretty and situated on a lake, providing scenic trails and water craft activities

This may very well be the cheapest lakefront real estate in Texas. You simply cannot beat $15/night right on the water! Very quiet, and never crowded (in November). Decent cell signal, and great reception on my Transistor/Weather radio.

Hurricane Harvey flooded most of the park in 2017 but now it is completely open. The park is very nice. It is very typical of Texas parks.... awesome!!

Ok it's August it Texas so it was hot and the mosquitos were in full force. We knew that was. coming so we were prepared. The fishing was great and this State Park is one of those hidden gems. There was no crowd, it was like we had the whole place to ourselves. the deer walked by every night and the fireflies put on a show.

We stayed in a tent at site 124. It was crazy windy when we were setting up our tent. This part of the park was really windy for two of the three days, but we still had a great time. Typical, nice Texas State Park. Nice sites. Enjoyed the hiking on wide trails. They did not rent canoes or kayaks because of the winds.

We stopped here for one night traveling from Florida to Texas. Small but nice park. Stayed in site # 22. Sites are long and narrow but plenty of shade. Park has some trails and creek area. Bathrooms were excellent!!! Park was not busy at all. Great for stopover as it's not far from I-10.