Best Glamping near Abingdon, VA

This is the first time I have stayed in a yurt, and it was definitely a learning experience. First of all, it is a cross between a tent and a cabin, and it has no electricity, bathroom, or running water. This was not so bad since the campground bath house was only a couple of hundred feet away. However, the temperatures were in the lower 90s outside, and once we walked inside the yurt, it was like walking into an oven. The temperature had to be somewhere around 110 degrees inside. Immediately after opening the door, opening the window and opening the canvas window coverings, we could feel the heat pouring out of the yurt. Fortunately, I had two 100-foot extension cords and a fan in our car. I plugged into the closest campsite and ran the cord to the yurt. There is no way we could have stayed in the yurt without the fan, so if you decide to stay in a yurt at this park during the summer, make sure to take extension cords and at least one fan. One thing that my wife and I found strange was that there were handrails along the three steps to the deck around the yurt, but there were no handrails beside the rougher steps leading to the yurt. Once we got the yurt cooled off to a decent temperature(high 70s), it wasn’t too bad. It had a queen bed and a trundle bed, which our grandson stayed on. A couch, side tables, and a dining table was also inside. The overall appearance inside the yurt was pleasant, and there was a picnic table and rocking chairs on the outside on the deck. There was also a fire pit, another picnic table, and a lantern hanger included with this yurt on the ground outside of the deck area. You will have to take your own linens for the beds—a queen and a single. There are two campgrounds in this state park, and each one is quite different. The Lover’s Leap campground has space for larger RVs and appears to be the newer of the two campgrounds. Although there are playgrounds, a swimming complex, an amphitheater, and much more, some of these venues are closed for the season due to the pandemic. The one thing I was really looking forward to(the chairlift) is only open on weekends. However, we were able to hike a couple of trails and see the natural tunnel. There are also cabins in the campground and they have a variety of sleeping arrangements of up to sixteen people in one cabin. The historical background of the state park is varied and extensive, so there are a lot of things to see within the park and surrounding the park. My wife and I decided we really want to come back and camp here again when we have more time. Overall, the campground has a lot of opportunities for different types of camping, and a lot to do, but if you stay in a yurt, be prepared.

Stayed here with a group . I van camped, a Bell Tent, Avion camper, Geodome , and mini house was rented. All pretty well maintained. There were a few electrical issues due to the crowd that arrived for a music event over the weekend. They sorta stick people all over the place when their busy. Beautiful view along the River. Bar and food truck with vegan options on site. We whitewater rafted, the guides were excellent and it was an awesome trip. The AT meanders along the River and is easily accessible from the campground. Be flexible if you stay here, their reservation system leaves a lot to be desired, but it is a very layed back and enjoyable stay.

While there's a few dozen great places to stay in and around the Blue Ridge Mountain Parkway, there are few campgrounds as prized as Julian Price, which has plenty to explore just steps from your tent's front door (er, flap!). 

After a 3+ hour drive from nearby Raleigh, my very great friend Gary (or'Gariatica' for short) and I landed at the D Loop, which is one of four campgrounds you'll find here. What's important to know about the'Big Letter D Barrio' as the locals refer to it as, is that the campground perches up almost immediately after entering it, so you'll be first met with a few of the lower campsites (which must receive a decent amount of noise from the passing traffic that is only 30-40 feet away from them) before coming to the ground's bathhouses (while just mediocre and not the cleanest, there are bonus points here for providing 'no coin required' individual, private stalls (8 in all), so no group showers, which will be disappointing for some, I suspect). 

After passing the communal bathing facilities, you will circumnavigate the D Loop in counter-clockwise fashion (although many tried to swim upstream and go in the opposite direction, which I don't recommend, as apart from being hit from oncoming traffic, even if there was none, you would need to conduct a 17-point turn-around to park your car in the provided parking spot) to tour the 40 or so campsites. 

While there were only a few free slots to chose from at the time of our booking (about 3-4 weeks in advance, so book early if you can!), we did get relatively lucky with our campsite, good 'ol D20, which had plenty of space for our behemoth 24 person tent cabin (OK, so you can't really sleep 24 in this sucker, but it sure would be fun trying!). 

I would actually recommend the sites that were located directly across from ours - while ours slanted upwards(revealing our entire site), those on the other side of the road sloped downwards so had a solid amount of privacy. Basic amenities were had at most sites we saw- solid (yet aging) picnic tables, fire rings (with pull down grill) and wooden-encased tent platforms. Warning: no nearby running water (to clean dishes, you'll have to load them up in a bucket and trudge back and forth to the bathhouse (donning a towel is optional). 

Also, I would suggest if you are looking at campsites here or in the other areas of this campground, do look at whether or not a trail cuts through or by your campsite. I don't know how you feel about 100's (this is a popular campground with loads of people hiking trails when we were there, so I'm not overestimating here) of strangers passing by your front door (dang it, I meant'flap' again!), but you might want to avoid the heavy foot fall traffic. 

Also, unlike any other campground I've ever visited (I lost count after the first 100), I've never stayed at a campground where it was so easy for anyone to simply drive up and around the campground (usually, you have to persuade someone at the front gate that you belong there, right?) as this location has an EZ access point that avoids the ranger at the gate(who left promptly at 5pm anyway), which made me a bit uneasy, although we had no problems to speak of. 

Last tip? My buddy who knows the area fairly well took me to Gamekeeper's Inn [https://gamekeeper-nc.com\\\\\\\] for one of the best meals of my life. This oversized log cabin chalet has an outstanding bar, simply fantastic staff, upscale smarts and feature exotic meats and rare game, so while I would have preferred hot dogs and beans fireside, followed by endless amounts of s'mores, I was instead dining on grass-[hand]-fed Bison and dungeon-free Emu, the likes of which I had never savored before. Quite delish, washed down by very fine Sauvignon Blanc from Marlborough in the land of kiwis and finished off by, what else? You guessed it, a fantastic creme brûlée. Very nice and quite expensive, but hey, you only live once, right?!. 

Happy Camping!

We go back here multiple times each season. Very family friendly. Sites are relatively clean, easy to park at, bath house is clean& easily accessible. They even have a"coffee shop". The staff here are amazing! The campground is tucked away outside of Boone, but not so far that if you really need something you cant get it. The staff does a great job making sure the quiet hours are really quiet and no craziness happens. After looking around at other campgrounds, we really love this one. Most of the sites are shaded so in the heat of the summer it is really pleasant to hang out at the campsites(usually with a nice breeze). The location is also not far from the Blue Ridge Parkway and lots of great hiking.

Hungry Mother State Park, Royal Oak Campground, Marion VA...site 3. https://www.dcr.virginia.gov/state-parks/hungry-mother

Campground Overview: Located outside of Marion VA

Hungry Mother State Park is somewhat split up and fragmented on either side of a local highway and the first campground is distanced from the other two. So a little different than most parks but not necessarily a negative.

The Visitor’s Center is on the left after the first campground (Camp Burson) and across the roadway from the reservoir and beach area. The remaining two campground loops are past the beach area...one to the right along a feeder stream (Creekside Campground) and opposite that is the third loop (Royal Oak Campground) on the side of a hill with wooden platforms for tents.

I was hoping to paddle this meandering reservoir but it was being drained for bridge work...so it was six feet or so lower than normal. Even the migrating geese weren’t too happy about it, as they waddled around on the mud.

During the peak of the summer season, it appears that it would be very popular with s nice swimming beach, paddlecraft rentals, cabin rentals, conference center, ample covered picnic pavilions and both paved and dirt trails.

I stayed on site 3 in Royal Oak Campground, pitching the tent on a 20’x20’ leveled wooden platform. Several pros and cons to elevated platforms.

Pros: It’s level and large enough for any tent I’ve ever seen. Water drains pretty decent between wood decking, so no pooling. D-ring lashing points were attached to the decking to assist in securing tent or rainfly.

Cons: When the cold wind blows, it’s hard to retain heat in the tent...360 cold. While there are D-ring lashing points, they don’t accommodate every tent of rainfly. Previous knucklehead campers drill Tapcon screws or nails in the wood decking and rails to secure their tent...then leave them there so everyone else snags or rips their tent on them.

It rained for 12 hours straight with cold, high winds...so it was a bit chilly, but still enjoyable.

What I enjoyed: deer wandering through the grounds, the Molly’s Knob Trail and Vista Summit,

The ugly: the lake (reservoir) was drained. Heaters weren’t on in the shower rooms...37 degree showering gets tricky.