Looking for the best options for tent camping near Grapevine Lake? You can find tent campsites by type, including drive-in, walk-in, and even hike-in for a backpacking adventure. Each tent campsite offers quick access to one or more of Grapevine Lake's most popular destinations.
Consider it a staycation–when you visit Meadowmere Park, you’ll have a whopping 288 acres to explore of sparkling water, sandy beaches, and green grassy expanses. You can rent kayaks, and standup paddleboards from DFW Surf for floating out onto the sparkling water of the lake.
Meadowmere Park is home to the largest floating aqua park obstacle course in Texas, WhoaZone. Located on Grapevine Lake, the enormous floating playground is the best way to cool off this Summer. Bring your family and friends to slip, slide, and have tons of fun. Get tickets here.
If you’ve come to eat your lunch, you’ll find the fire pits and grills perfect for whatever you’re cooking up. A designated beach just for swimming is just right for relaxing in the cool of the lake. When you’re bringing the whole family, a playground, and shaded picnic tables. Campers can choose to stay overnight on a beautiful lakeside primitive campsite complete with picnic tables and fire rings, and you’re free to bring your pets along too.
$35 / night
$20 / night
Located on the north shore of the 35-acre Black Creek Lake, Black Creek Recreation Area has a picnic area and boat launch facility. The area also has walk-in camping sites available.
$50 - $60 / night
The U.S. Forest Service conducts controlled burns in the National Forests and Grasslands in Texas from early spring to summer. Maps for planned burns and completed burns may be viewed on the Fire Information page. Knowing where the burned areas are before visiting the forest may be helpful in planning an enjoyable outing.
https://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/texas/home/?cid=STELPRDB5355005
This recreation area is part of Lavon Lake
Traveler
Since the primitive tent sites are down due to flooding, we set up our tent on a nice RV spot near the lake (site 9). If you drive around, you’ll find some good spots like this for tent camping. A little expensive at $30 per night, but it was still worth it. Pretty water. Gorgeous sunset. Good fire pit. Running water and electricity was nice.
Only complaint: our neighbors a couple sites down were blasting music until 1am. Not a peaceful experience for sleeping. I wish the park attendants would have stopped them sooner, as the official quiet time is 10pm. Otherwise, excellent spot!
ScoutAbsolutely no tent camping. Read this.... NO TENT camping.
TravelerExcellent tent camping right next to Lake Lewisville.
Guide
Overnighted here returning home from a longer trip. It was okay for what I was doing, but I would never choose to camp here as a destination as a tent camper.
Activities: looking at the lake, bringing a boat to put in the lake, fishing. Seemingly nothing else to do.
Accommodations: clearly geared towards RVers. Each of those sites have water, electricity, and a sewer connection, with a covered cement pad with a grill, a table, and other relevant features. The few tent camp sites were shoved seemingly randomly between and around the RV sites. At my particular site, the concrete pad and picnic table were cracked and seriously damaged, and few grill was rusty enough to be almost unusable. The fire pit and ground of the rest of the site were littered in bits of trash ranging from things like food wrappers, pieces of plastic hangers, and my personal favorite - a construction nail.
The only bright light of this camp experience for me? The bathrooms. Each bathroom ( 2 per building) was a single occupant bathroom with a locking door. In the bathroom was a sink, a toilet, a hand dryer, and a shower with two nozzles at different heights (tall and short). The appliances were stainless steel, and the bathrooms were clearly excellently maintained. The bathrooms also had automatic lighting, an exhaust fan, and what appeared to be a tiny space heater for colder months. The showers had hot water, and the drains in the floor were sufficient at getting all the excess water out of there quickly.
In summary, if you have an RV and/or a boat and love to do things on the water, this is probably a fine campground. If you are taking a tent, I'd avoid this campground.
Scout
We've stayed at Twin Coves several times, this is an excellent site for both RV/Tent camping and Cabins.
Traveler
Lots of good tent sites both on the water or a short hike to it.
Traveler
RV and tent sites are spacious. Lots of lake access from sites. They also have cabins for rent. The staff is friendly.
Guide
I tent camped here one night with my friend. Our site was perfect for us. It was close to the restrooms and privacy from others was great. Views of the lake were beautiful! I recommend if you just need to get out of your house for a bit!
Ranger
Easy reservation process on recreation.gov. Stayed in the tent section for $10 a night. Each tent site has a picnic table and fire pit. Water was off when we were here. Trash cans are conveniently located (throw your trash away!) Relatively large park for being in the city. Good hiking trails and a boat launch. Shopping and restaurants so close, DoorDash delivers here!
TravelerThis place is calm and pleasant during the day. At sundown, the party starts and goes till 2:00am. If you are looking for a quiet evening, this ain’t the place. If you are good with day time activities and loud music at night, join the party. My kids and I will go back simply because it is a clean park with nice tent camping spots.
Scout
Large RV park with many amenities and activities. I tent camped and cooked out the back of the Jeep at a back-in RV site that sure seemed to be the best spot of them all. The site itself was really large with huge old trees for hammocks. We had our own private access to the lake that was secluded by trees at our site. Picnic table and fire ring. The tent only sites was basically a big field with a parking lot nearby. I prefer to park next to my tent since my kitchen is part of the Jeep so the tent only site didn’t work for me.
Legend
Look, I found this campground by total accident following signs. There is so much construction around Lewisville Lake it is difficult to get where you want to go. There are better parks around Lewisville Lake like Pilot Knoll Park.
This is mostly for RV's and camper trailers. There are a few tent sites near the beach but you are surrounded by baseball fields and city parks. It has a shower house and a laundry facility, but the campsites are stacked on top of each other.
The campground staff was very helpful.
ScoutClean and spacious RV sites in two areas, about 100 total and several with water view. Open and tree covered sites in both. Cabins also available, again several with water views. Two designated tent camping areas separate from RVs. Dry storage and dump station on property as well. The park offers open activity areas and covered picnic tables by the water. A 3-lane boat ramp to Lewisville Lake, rental paddle boarding, full marina, and swimming area. Seasonal restaurant with indoor & outdoor eating areas. Privately owned so there is an entry fee, but 2 or 3 levels of yearly membership passes available saves a lot! Currently upgrading to full hookup for all RV sites and wifi.
RangerI tent camped here in December at the Hawthorn campground site 8. One thing I wasn’t expecting was that this was a walk in site. It was about 100 yards from the parking lot to site 8. Kind of a pain when setting up camp but it makes for a very quiet camping experience once you’re done. Water spigots are close by. The bathrooms were really clean and there are hiking and biking trails nearby. Unfortunately I didn’t get to explore the park much but it seems there is lots to do. There is a marina where you can rent boats and a swim beach nearby. I’ll definitely be going back for a longer stay.
Scout
We found this place when our other reservation got messed up, but boy am I glad we did! The tent sites have water and electric at each site. Sites feel secluded and spread out and our was covered by trees so the shade was great!
There was a little litter around the campsite but my son and I tired to clean up as mush as we could before we left.
There was a covered picnic table, fire pit, and grill, and lots of nails on the picnic covering table (although they are up really high, so if you’re short it’s hard to get to them).
We plan on going back and taking advantage of the hiking trails and swimming spot!
Traveler
I grew up going to Erwin Park to camp. It was a well kept secret with spacious tent sites, picnic areas and hiking trails.
Located just outside of McKinney, it has become a popular spot with mountain bikers. That can create issues on the weekend when the trails are teeming with cyclists. It just gets crowded and parking can be a challenge. Hiking also isn’t as safe.
The park is maintained by parks & rec and can cleanliness can vary. Unfortunately we have noticed more litter and left over junk in the fire pits as its popularity has increased.
If you are a mountain biker, this park offers great creekbed, wooded trails. As I mentioned before, it’s a popular spot so bring your patience with other riders.
Guide
Very well kept area. Two restrooms. Each little camp site has its own picnic table and grill. On a Monday night there was only one person using the lake for fishing and one person camping in the shaded part. There is a little slide. Not very private at most of the tent sites. Although, I did see a fire ring out alone in the grass on the other side of the parking lot but it was in direct sun with no trees or shade nearby. There were two men working on the site. Its also pretty close (12 minute drive) the trails over at the lbj grasslands spot which is where we were staying for the night. We just popped over to black creek lake to check out the day usage and restrooms.
Traveler
I stayed at two different sites while I was here, in total about 14 days. P07 had a lot more privacy and P11 was quite exposed. The walk-in to P07 was quite lengthy, but P11 had parking spots right next to camp. They are strict about parking; I got woken up around 1:30am by local police because I parked in an area I wasn’t allowed to and also forgot to print a permit to put on my dash.
Super, super windy. Got hit by two really bad lightning and thunderstorms and had to sit in my car for a while during the worst of it (certain parts had tornados and hail).
I will say, there seems to be a few long-timers here despite a max 14 day stay. The park is technically closed at 10pm but there’s no gate and technically anyone can drive in any time.
I saw the police drive through often, but it still didn’t feel as secure as other campsites I’ve been to.
The park seems to be well-known amongst locals, so on the weekends it’s especially crowded. Lots of big groups coming, drinking beers, being slightly rowdy. Maybe it’s just because I’m an introvert and wanted peace and quiet, but I felt a little too close to everyone trying to have a good time.
My stay ended prematurely because there was a guy who kept trying to talk to me and made some weird comments. The park did seem to attract a certain clientele, so if safety is your primary concern (I’m a woman traveling solo), then this might not be your best bet.
Other than that, the staff were super nice and welcoming. I got to know the compliance officer by name while my stay there, and it’s clear he takes great pride in the park.
The bathrooms are clean, signal is great for Verizon and T-mobile. There are showers but I wasn’t brave enough to try them; there are a few Planet Fitness locations close-ish by that have great showers, so that’s what I did instead!
Fairly close by to Carrollton where there’s amazing Asian food and boba. Lake is gorgeous too but no swimming was allowed from what I could see. Cute coffee shops nearby too. Sip Stir, The Perc Coffeehouse, and George Coffee and Provisions are all great digital nomad spots and are some of the coolest coffee shops I’ve seen! Super unique, local gems with fast WiFi.
Overall: Great park. I personally wouldn’t stay here for more than a few days, especially if you’re camping in a tent full-time. RV’ers made up the majority here and I didn’t feel as safe in my tent. Still well-kept though and overall a positive experience!
Scout
Site #33 is for tent camping so there was no electric or water. The website said no toilets but there was a port-a-potty about 40 yards from our site along with a water spigot. The site was fairly level and comes with a covered picnic table and enough trees to provide shade and hang a couple of hammocks. The folks that work there are wonderful. The only caveat to the site is that it is right next to a Marina, so there are boats coming and going and partying going on which didn't bother us but just be aware. At 10:00 p.m. all that stopped and it got quiet. Unfortunately it was hotter than hell Labor Day Weekend when we set up on Friday and slept overnight so we picked up and went home on Saturday. Nothing to do with the site. There are similar sites to the left and right of this site, They are staggered so you are not right next to someone which was nice.
Legend
RV sites have water and 50/30 amp electric and there are 12 tent sites. We had a nice view of Lake Lavon. Grills and tables vary by site, some are very old, but many have been replaced. There are trees- some large enough to provide some shade if desired, but most small enough to allow satellite reception. The sites are well spaced and are"mostly" paved with aging asphalt. The roads are in need of repair, with numerous potholes, some very large, but the attendant did say that the park was on the CoEs list for repairs. There is a dump station just outside the entrance. The entry gate is locked from 10PM to 6AM, so plan accordingly if leaving the park, lest you park outside and walk back to your site. Overall, this is a good value, and one of the few non-RV park options in the greater Dallas area.
Guide68 year-old solo camper getting ready to travel around the country, car/tent camping primarily. Haven't really camped since 1973, so I drove out to Lake Ray Roberts for a one-night trial for some new gear and knock off the rust.
This was a terrific choice – Hawthorn Area #9, wooded area, 4th on the path from the Hawthorn parking lot to the other nine campsites on this loop (150 steps from campsite to car and restrooms, a little over 100 yards). As most (maybe all) of the campsites here, this was walk-in to the campsite from a common parking lot.
I walked around the rest of this loop and the adjoining one (16-40). Each campsite had a tent pad, picnic table, fire pit and lantern post. Mine was one of the more private in that I couldn't see another picnic table. However, with the trees and in some places tall grass, I would rate most of the sites as private.
The next morning there were about half-dozen deer roaming around the area between my camp and the parking lot. There was only one other car in the parking lot overnight and they camped in one of the other areas. One of the lots (I think it was #13) actually had lake front. Others had views of the water.
Depending on exact location you could see the dam and except for a few hours of the deepest night you could faintly hear the drone of road noise. But the near-full moon lit the area so well I walked to my car about 4:30 in the morning without a light and could see very well – it was really nice and bright.
The Isle du Bois unit is at the far southeast corner of the lake, near the eastern end of the dam. The Hawthorn area is one of the first sites from the entrance, maybe a 5-minute drive.
Legend
I have seen this place a million times living in the community nearby and never thought to check to see if they all tent campers. I was shocked to find out they do accommodate them so I passed through and checked out the grounds and wanted to let people know it exists!
There are two entries at the front of the property each easily accessed from the highway. Though they are gravel they are easy to navigate but do hold a little water in the rain. As you drive into the camp there are 4 main rows of camping, mostly in use by RVs however they do also accommodate tent campers. These sites can be picked up nightly or for more long term use so many people at this park have called this their home for a bit. Despite obvious signs of the long term dwellers, the grounds are clean and well maintained and don't look cluttered like some long term campgrounds will begin to look.
The site offers nice restrooms with showers, a bbq for general use, a rec room perfect for having your breakfast or dinner or perhaps a game of cards with friends and has connections for RVs up to 50 amp as well as a dump station.
For the tent camper sites are wide enough to be comfortable to move around and have scattered picnic tables. The tent camping sites are located on a grassy area next to the pond so they are not squished between big rigs and have a bit more privacy.
This site might not look as elaborate as some, but it more than makes up for the few things you do not have by its friendly staff and on site mechanic.
TIPS:
Call in advance if looking for an RV site, they do have several spaces available but during certain times of the year they do fill up as they are centrally located to many things.
Check out the LBJ Grasslands which are nearby when visiting this location, a great get away for some outdoor activities.
GuideThis is the real outdoors..tents.horses.fires..the real camping in texas
Scout
Rvs only it shows as tents but no
GuideWent here for a week and it was okay. If you have a boat or love to fish it’s the perfect place. My tent was right by the water which was great but during the weekend too many kids were getting near my tent and too close to my personal belongings. I still had a good time but I would definitely go again when it’s not so busy
Traveler
Electric hookups for RV generally a small area first come first serve.... 5 dollars per tent....restrooms and park lights.... stores nearby..... no showers
ScoutAll sites have concrete pads, picnic tables, grill, fire ring, electric and water. Also can camp in tents or rent a cabin.
Tent camping near Grapevine Lake in Texas offers a fantastic opportunity to immerse yourself in nature while enjoying various outdoor activities. With several campgrounds to choose from, you can find the perfect spot to set up your tent and unwind.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is the most popular tent campsite near Grapevine Lake?
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular tent campground near Grapevine Lake is Meadowmere Park & Campground with a 5-star rating from 2 reviews.
What is the best site to find tent camping near Grapevine Lake?
TheDyrt.com has all 13 tent camping locations near Grapevine Lake, with real photos and reviews from campers.
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