Best RV Parks & Resorts near Ashland, VA

First time staying in a travel trailer at a state park. We booked the day of, because we were being indecisive, and there were a few spots available.

We came in after hours, and the guide at the entrance told us where to get our packet (from the kiosk in front of the camp store).

It’s very easy to find everything here, and the camp ground had both pull-throughs and back in spots. Plenty of separation between you and your neighbor for some privacy. No issues with the water/electric/dump station. Almost no cell service to speak of, but that’s the beauty of going to a place like this. Very kid and pet friendly. The community showers and bathrooms are very clean.

Lots of bugs and mosquitos. Plan accordingly.

Both the visitor center and camp store have plenty of souvenirs, but not much besides that. Just know, if you don’t plan well enough to bring something, you’ll be traveling 20-30 min out of your way to reach anything besides a gas station (nearest grocery store/Walmart is 25 min away).

Overall, it was a great first experience in our RV at this state park!

What a beautiful park! Over 1500 acres with 40 sites, this trip was the start of the camping season for me- the opening weekend for camping in State Parks in VA(COVID-19). The park and grounds are extremely well-maintained. I was very happy to see such a clean bathhouse, especially during the current pandemic. Each staff member I encountered was extremely helpful and polite. The park has lots of trails, miles of open meadows, and James River access. Great park for bicycling. The sites in the River Bend Campground(main campground) are private and wooded, especially this time of year when the trees are so full. The map makes it look like they’re really close together so I was pleasantly surprised when I arrived to my site, which was the las time available for booking(#16). There are 29 tent/RV sites and three yurts. The sites are gravel and include a picnic table, lantern/trash pole, and a fire pit with grill gate. Theres also a group site for 24 or so, bit that’s not open at the moment due to state restrictions. There’s overflow parking for the campground, dumpsters, and a dump station. Some are pull-through for RVSs and many have water/electric. Wood is for sale at the park but no ice or refreshments. Pet-friendly. There are also laundry facilities at the main bathhouse, nice hot/cold showers. Many picnic areas and a playground. There’s also a canoe-in site with 8 primitive sites: no water, electricity, or facilities(there’s a pit toilet). Depending on the time of the year they might be in the flood zone if the river is high, which it was during this trip. Some of those sites can also be booked for hiking into- it’s only a 0.2 walk from the parking lot. Tabb Monument State Park is nearby if you’re working your way through the parks as I am (no overnight facilities there). You’re also about 10-15 minutes from the town of Powhatan so if you need groceries or gas, you’re not far from Sheetz, Food Lion, etc. Loved this park so much and will definitely be returning!!!

We picked Americamps because we were traveling through the Richmond area and it was very convenient to I-95. We usually pass up on RV parks because most are wide open fields with large trailers and/or motor homes parked close together and prefer more private camp spots in out teardrop. But upon our arrival we were happily surprised. Amricamps has mostly full hook up sites (about 2/3 pull through sites and a 1/3 back in) and a small tent area with a handful of sites. While the sites were close together in typical RV park style, they were not scrapping together like we’ve seen at some places and there were many well established trees to provide lots of share instead of being in an open field. All the sites were level, most were gravel, but some were concrete pads. All style sites include a picnic table and fire ring. Hook ups also included cable with about 70 channels. 

Check-in was easy and the staff was very helpful. Check-in is at noon, but our road trip got us there about 11:20 and the staff had no problem letting us in early. Thanks! A host guides you to your site and assist you in positioning if needed. The campground is gated and you are provided a gate code. We stayed on site D-08 on this visit. The site was level, gravel, and had good shade. 

We used the bathhouse in the main building as it was closest to our site. It was very clean and air-conditioned, which was nice on this warm summer stay. There is a second bathhouse on the property but we did not visit it. 

Firewood and a good-sized camp store was available at the office. The resort has many amenities to include a heated pool, fitness center, playground, dog park, laundry, a rally room with a large deck and gas grill, dump station, and propane filling station. 

We found good cell phone service with Verizon throughout the property. The campground did have wi-fi and it worked good at our site. 

Pro Tip: There is a FREE breakfast every morning in the rally room. The morning we were there they were making waffles, and had bagels, pastries, fruit, and a variety of drinks to include coffee. They also had an ice cream social in the rally room the first night we were there, so watch the bulletin board for cool events like that. Additionally, right across the street (a short walk depending on where your site is in the park) there is a brewery that also serves food. 

While we were hesitant to stay at a RV park, we found this place to a pleasant surprise. Very quiet and clean for its size. We’ll definitely keep this one on the list when passing through Richmond.

We’re originally from Richmond and needed a centrally located campground to spend 5 weeks in our class A while taking care of some things in town. (We’re full time travelers in our motorhome.) The location is the best in the Richmond area for a full hookup campground for a large RV. It’s right off I-95 and is mostly good size pull through sites. The kids loved the playground and pool area. The staff was friendly and put on some fun events during the time we were there like mimosas on Mother’s Day and a larger race day event with a band and food trucks. It’s a large campground but was surprisingly quiet. Very convenient to restaurants and shopping. Would certainly recommend for a quick overnight stay or if you need to visit Richmond.

Usually when we go out with our trailer, the campground is basically the "destination." In this case, the campground was a place to park our "mobile motel room" so we could explore the area and do a day trip to the beach. 

This was our first time staying where full hookups were standard, and we had a pull-through site on a level concrete pad. A picnic table was provided, and a metal "fire pit" will be delivered to your site if requested. 

There was decent space between the sites, though of course not like what you find at a state park! But speaking of which, American Heritage RV Park is just 4 miles from York River State Park. After getting set up, we went there and we highly recommend it for nature lovers. 

The campground is also close to Colonial Williamsburg, and a little over an hour away (depending on traffic) from Virginia Beach and First Landing State Park. 

The bathrooms were clean, showers had hot water, and the campground was very quiet. A train comes through the area a couple of times a day (and night), but we didn't find that to be a problem. 

It's close to I-64 (easy on/off) and easy to find, though the actual road INTO the campground is pretty narrow. 

We chose to stay here instead of one of the campgrounds in VA Beach just because traffic in and around VA Beach is crazy. Seriously. I felt much better about just driving there with my car instead of towing the trailer through that mess. 

We didn't check out the pool, but it seemed nice and we saw people swimming. Some folks we met said they'd been at the campground a week. 

Be sure to ask about AARP, Good Sam, AAA, or other memberships you have because they'll give a 10% discount when you check in. We had good cell service on AT&T and Sprint networks.

While it was the most expensive place we've stayed so far, compared to an oceanfront motel room at VA Beach during peak season, it was a very good deal. We'll probably stay here again in the future.

More about this trip (and all we did in 2 days!!) is on my blog:

http://www.art-rageous.net/artrageousblog/?p=4664

PROS 

Perfect campground to explore the Historical Triangle 

Campground along Virginia Capital Bike Trail, which was an excellent riding trail 

Site#335 level side-to-side 

Sandy gravel site 

Moveable plastic wood picnic table 

Metal fire pit with cooking grate 

Shady site 

Wood and ice for sale at Guest Services 

Slight river view from Site#335 

Toilet/shower building clean 

Pool 

CONS 

Overused James City County Park…definitely needs some TLC applied 

Check-in clerk very curt and extremely non-customer service oriented 

Never saw a camp host site or the actual camp host 

Weirdly laid out full hook up campground. Some sites are 20 ft long 

Sites are extremely close to each other 

Had to park tow vehicle next to trailer due to short length of site 335

Tight roadway thru full hook up campground 

Dirt roadways = dusty 

Empty campsites were heavily littered

No privacy from neighbor sites 

Extremely low water pressure even when campground is not fully occupied 

No gate or controlled access to campground so lots of gawking drive thrus 

Lots of speed bumps throughout park 

Site#335 fire ring filled with ash upon arrival 

Toilet/shower building lit up like a Christmas tree all night long

Street lights throughout campground 

Road noise from VA5 

No WiFi 

1 bar Verizon