Chester Gap, VA is a great camping destination for adventurers of all types. Aside from great camping spots, you'll find hiking and many more outdoor experiences. Thinking of traveling with kids? You're in luck—Chester Gap is surrounded by family-friendly activities. Discover great camping spots near Chester Gap, reviewed by campers like you.
$30 - $40 / night
"Virginia has the best state park campgrounds. Water and electric. Large sites. The bathrooms are clean with separate shower rooms. Nice hiking in the park. Near SNP. Responsive and friendly rangers."
"In my opinion it has the best location of the 3 Turks they have. It’s it the woods close to a boat landing you can see a bit of the river. In the fall or spring I’m sure the view is amazing."
$30 - $75 / night
"This is a nice and very large campground tucked away in the northern part of Shenandoah. The facilities and grounds were well kept and it’s a short car’s travel (but there’s also a trail!)"
"There are a few trails encompassing and leading out from the campground, and it's nice to have a central location from which you can out on small hikes."
"We are tent campers and we’re looking for a place close to Shenandoah to ride our motorcycles. This was 3 miles from the north entrance to the park, perfect."
"Hike up a trail or up through the creek itself to a swimming hole only accessible to campers. Saw some decent sized fish swimming around in there."
$30 - $75 / night
"While the campground is very nice, with clean conveniently located bathrooms, the site itself is probably not suited for a large group of people."
"Our site had the AT running right behind it. The was plenty of access to trails, and pretty central to the park. The campground is near showers, laundry, campstore, and visitor center."
"It is suitable for novice campers to experienced off-trail campers. You'll never tire of the wonders this beautiful piece of America has to offer."
"There was definitely a lot less privacy/space between sites here at SNP than I’ve noted at other parks across Virginia."
"Close to Shenandoah National Park and Skyline Drive."
"They had plenty of appearances of Yogi or Cindy bear at activities and just driving around the park on a golf cart."
$20 / night
"In the valley outside of Shenandoah, it was a nice spot to return to at night. There are also some hiking trails across the street."
"Campground Review:
What a great find, so close to a town….though feels like you are deep in the forest!"
$30 - $125 / night
"Positive: Friendly staff, near the river, close to Shenandoah NP, quiet camping, every site has a fire pit. Negative: sanitary fascilities are old."
"Sites 31 and 32 (despite being near the campground’s public river access) look large and private. Both riverside."
"Parking is in a locked lot steps away from trail head which leads to campsites about a mile away. Campsites are in a wooded area of park well away from other park attractions so it's very quiet."
"When we were there they were having a historical reenactment near the visitors center that was so cool! We came in August and it was super hot, but that is just Virginia."
"Great spot right outside Shenandoah NP with quick access to the park or nearby trails. great fishing and hikes for kids, too!"
"There are a couple of sites that have a path to the creek that flows behind the campground.There is also plenty of hiking trails to be completed around the campgrounds of various levels from beginner to"
ScoutWe are repeat customers and come here with our troops. Nice mix of RV and tent campers. Quiet. Trails, creek, pool, fishing ponds (back end), batheooms, etc, great rates. No firewood- need to bring your own.
ScoutTerrible experience. Very, very noisy. So loud couldn't sleep. Just wanted to rest for a night. Was awakened by extremely rude staff when I just wanted to rest. All those bad reviews are true. Never had such a bad experience. As I was filling the fresh water for travel it overflowed and revealed the huge amount of septic black water which really smelled. Looked pretty but that revealed their true nature, turd with a ribbon on it. The staff was so rude and really had a mean demeanor, just as other reviews have stated. I will never stay there and though I usually only give good reviews, I felt compelled to warn others. This place has park nazis in golf carts that harass people. I saw it happen to others who cut their stay short. No wonder the park was almost empty.
LegendAfter several nights of not sleeping at a busy campground at another national park, I was prepared for no sleep here. But that was not the case.
Though this campground is HUGE, the sites are not piled on top of each other. Our site, B112, was surrounded by shrubs under the canopy of trees which provided tons of privacy. Plus the accessible site across from us was empty during our whole stay, which added to the privacy.
The bathroom was a nice short walk away, but the proximity did have some drawbacks. The vent sounds like a diesel truck idling nonstop. At night people using flashlights and headlamps walking away from the bathroom shine them into your tent. The smell sometimes wafted over as well.
The bugs when we got here were kinda crazy. They don’t bite but they swarm your head and try to enter every orifice for some reason. A head net was helpful to get the tent and screen room set up.
Though there is privacy and it was fairly quiet in the afternoon, at night it can get loud with kids running around and being noisy.
Like all huge, busy campgrounds, it gets very Smoky in the evenings.
No cell service. We went to the visitor center and connected to the WiFi if we needed to do something online. The camp store has a lot of stuff! The showers are $5 for 10 minutes. Kind of a steep price. Make sure you test that it works BEFORE you get set up and get naked. My first quarter got jammed and I had to redress and pack up to move to a different one.
You will definitely see deer in the campground as they walk through and browse the understory. They are unafraid of humans unless directly approached (I did not do this, but I watched someone’s child do it).
And finally, the fireflies are spectacular. At dusk, the ground shimmers, and then after they disperse, you will still see them flit by the tent throughout the night.
GuideNice little campground on the river. RV sites are spaced out and have wooden fences on the sides. 30 amp service at the site. You can fill your water tanks as you enter the campground.
Inter tubes and kayaks are available to rent. There are also several river rafting companies close by.
The camp store seemed basic. Not a lot of supplies if you forget something. Front Royal is 20 minutes away and has several outdoor stores.
We didn’t have need of the bath house but did check it out. A little dated but functional.
GuideThis is a lovely RV park built up a mountain side overlooking the picturesque Shenandoah Valley, located in a deep old hardwood forest. Care has been given to support the original trees and native plants. The ‘resort’ features include a pool, laundry, pickleball courts, volleyball courts, disk golf, horseshoes, picnic tables and fire rings, a kid’s activity area, a rec center that includes an arcade, swings, and tables. There are some local trails and the 15-minute hike up to the Endless Caverns sign offers a lovely view of the valley and an acre+ field of wildflowers they have sewn.. Picnic tables are provided up there. The bathhouse was fully tiled and very clean. The office offers ice, firewood, and a gift store with a few RV components. In addition to RV sites they have added a nice set of cabins. The Endless Caverns actually adjoin the office welcome center and tours are offered multiple times daily. It would be tough for arthritic knees… but we really enjoyed the raw nature of the caverns. There is plenty to keep kids occupied!
Many FHU sites in our area (C) are large enough for a trailer, TV and a clam. Pull-through sites are available. Sites in C usually back up into a wooded or naturally landscaped area that allow a nice sense of woodsy privacy. Sites are mostly level. Sites in section E appear tighter with less shelter. The higher sites might require your TV have 4WD. Be very particular with your site selection!
While Wi-Fi routers are set up at the bathhouses, we had some connection at the trailer. We picked up a dozen channels on our antenna and the 2-3 bar Verizon LTE enabled us to stream some channels on Fire TV.
Locally you can enjoy wineries, orchards and cideries. Luray Caverns (an absolute MUST) is a pleasant 35-minute drive. Virginia’s Skyline Drive and the Shenandoah National Park crosses near Luray. New Market offers significant Civil War appeal. We greatly enjoyed the Virginia Museum of the Civil War and the New Market Battlefield Museum.
Be aware that, as a resort, they will tack on a$10 daily resort fee to the booking price. Given how nice the RV park is, the fee feels appropriate. There are 3-night and 5-night stay discount codes on the Promos tab. When you make a reservation there is an extra cost to lock in a site(something we see often these days). We reserved our spot for another week in the Fall at a discount before leaving.
ScoutQuiet campground with tables and fire rings at all sites. Small, well stocked camp store. Propane and 2 easy dump stations. Nice pool and bath house. Close to everything.
TravelerGreat established free campground! We got the last spot around 7pm. Site had a fire pit, table, parking spot, and tent platform. We used one of the sign in slips but many of the other campers did not. Bathrooms and beer proof trash was provided. Nice trails/creek behind site.
LegendWe spent 2 nights at Creekside Campground in Edinburg, VA on our way to West Virginia—- and found a real gem.
We paid$50/night for Back-in Creekview FHU Site#20. Once I was able to negotiate a few big trees, the site was plenty roomy and right on the water. Lots of ducks wandering around kept us entertained.
This picturesque spot, minutes off I-81, has about 30 gravel sites. No amenities like swimming pools or game rooms, but it makes a nice layover or base camp to explore the Shenandoah Valley and local Civil War sites.
THINGS I LIKED:
Great site on the water
Clean and level gravel site with well-maintained utility hook-ups
Minutes from I-81
Super friendly staff
The whole park is quiet and well-maintained
THINGS I DISLIKED:
WOULD WE COME BACK?
Absolutely, this is a nice campground staffed by super nice people with close proximity to I-81.
GuideIt’s a typical KOA. Well managed, clean, friendly staff. The sites are large enough and level enough. The power pole is well positioned.
Laundry room, bathrooms, and shower are well maintained and clean. The camp store isn’t well stocked for food but local shopping is minutes away.
While convenient to II 81, the campground is far enough away that there is no outside noise at all.
Cell signal and camp wifi are bad. I was just able to get a decent signal with Starlink by carefully pointing at a small gap between trees.
Camping near Chester Gap, Virginia, offers a fantastic mix of natural beauty and outdoor activities. Whether you're looking for a peaceful retreat or an adventure-filled getaway, this area has something for everyone.
Camping near Chester Gap, Virginia, is a great way to enjoy the outdoors while making lasting memories with family and friends.
Frequently Asked Questions
According to TheDyrt.com, Chester Gap, VA offers a wide range of camping options, with 145 campgrounds and RV parks near Chester Gap, VA and 15 free dispersed camping spots.
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular campground near Chester Gap, VA is Andy Guest/Shenandoah River State Park Campground with a 4.7-star rating from 56 reviews.
According to TheDyrt.com, there are 15 free dispersed camping spots near Chester Gap, VA.
According to TheDyrt.com, there are 19 parks near Chester Gap, VA that allow camping, notably Bankhead National Forest and Chugach National Forest.
Keep Exploring
