Best Glamping near Big Stone Gap, VA

Jake from the Dyrt here!  Glamping on the Clinch River offers a relaxing getaway surrounded by rivers and waterfalls in northern Tennessee.  Check them out and make sure to leave a review on the Dyrt!

Open May-September, this property is located on Cherokee Lake. There are four glamping tents (two with king beds and two with queen beds) and the newest addition is a Micro A-Frame with a king bed. This used to be a dedicated campsite and can still be used as one as the A-Frame is on wheels and can be moved. We stayed in the A-Frame which has a private fire pit and picnic table.

The A-Frame is cozy with the bed taking up 95% of the space. There is also a small beanbag-type chair, dorm fridge, coffee maker, and two charging pads. There is electricity and light, but it is not bright enough to read in the evening. One of the nicest features is the window side that faces the lake can be opened, making it an open-air accommodation. However, despite it being on the lake, you will also hear almost constant road noise. The glamping tents are located further away from the lake in the woods so I imagine the road noise would be less or non-existent here. 

Ben and Kim, the owners, are still working on this property and they recently completed a very nice bathhouse with two toilets, two sinks, and two outdoor showers. Towels are provided. They are currently working on a boat dock. 

We chose the SUP n Stay package (middle price option); included in our reservation was the rental of either a SUP or kayak. The Stay package includes accommodations plus a floating lake mat. The Stay n Play reservation includes the SUP or kayak rental plus a two-hour lake excursion. Unfortunately, it started to rain after we had been out on the lake for about a half hour. The rain resulted in a very muddy area around the A-Frame and Tennessee mud is no joke. We accumulated about an inch of the thick gooey mud on our shoes. 

Ben and Kim were very welcoming and gracious hosts. Communication was great and they made sure we had no questions. The Micro A-Frame was a unique way to spend the night. The only reason for four stars and not five was the mud and road noise.

Open May-September, this property is located on Cherokee Lake. There are four glamping tents (two with king beds and two with queen beds) and the newest addition is a Micro A-Frame with a king bed. This used to be a dedicated campsite and can still be used as one as the A-Frame is on wheels and can be moved. We stayed in the A-Frame which has a private fire pit and picnic table. 

The A-Frame is cozy with the bed taking up 95% of the space. There is also a small beanbag-type chair, dorm fridge, coffee maker, and two charging pads. There is electricity and light, but it is not bright enough to read in the evening. One of the nicest features is the window side that faces the lake can be opened, making it an open-air accommodation. However, despite it being on the lake, you will also hear almost constant road noise. 

The glamping tents are located further away from the lake in the woods so I imagine the road noise would be less or non-existent here. 

Ben and Kim, the owners, are still working on this property and they recently completed a very nice bathhouse with two toilets, two sinks, and two outdoor showers. Towels are provided. They are currently working on a boat dock. 

We chose the SUP n Stay package (middle price option); included in our reservation was the rental of either a SUP or kayak. The Stay package includes accommodations plus a floating lake mat. The Stay n Play reservation includes the SUP or kayak rental plus a two-hour lake excursion. Unfortunately, it started to rain after we had been out on the lake for about a half hour. The rain resulted in a very muddy area around the A-Frame and Tennessee mud is no joke. We accumulated about an inch of the thick gooey mud on our shoes. 

Ben and Kim were very welcoming and gracious hosts. Communication was great and they made sure we had no questions. Our stay in the micro A-Frame was a very unique stay. The only reason for four stars and not five was the mud and road noise.

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.

This place is absolutely breathtaking. A must go. Cabins, yurts, RV camping, primitive camping. Excellently maintained. The are so many activities for everyone of all ages. Pool, picnicking, canoeing, hiking, fishing. There's a trail to the tunnel or you can take a chairlift. There's a museum, several gift shops, camp store, visitor centers. The staff is helpful and friendly. Many educational activities. The cabins are very clean and relatively new. But, I haven't run into 1 bad Virginia state park.

As far as yurts go, I think the price was reasonable and is a little bit more separated from the rest of the sites which is a plus! Yurt itself was clean, comfortable and super spacious for just 3 people. Bear box available outside.

Bathhouse is very clean and an easy walk to. People can be a little loud. Easy to walk to trails and a nice little gift shop available + helpful rangers!

This park has so many things to do and is fun for all ages. They have campgrounds,cabins and Yurts. There are nice hiking trails,chairlift to view the tunnel,picnic areas,swimming pool and so much more. People are friendly and helpful too. They have concerts and lots of outdoor activities during different times of the year. Great place for family fun!

Its a steep climb into the campground (CG) area but doable. At the main park entrance keep going straight and veer to the right up the hill to cabins/CGs to get to Lover's Leap and Cove View CG areas. The office was closed so we grabbed a park map and headed to back-in site 10 with 50 AMP and water. Our tags were already on our site post so we did not have to check in. The water pressure was 60+ so I used my pressure reducer. I also had to use Teflon tape to get a good seal on my pressure reducer. I noticed that other campers had similar problems evident by the water spray coming off the spigot. Site 10 is a great site with plenty of distance between adjacent sites and a huge yard area, probably the best site in the two loops (Lover's Leap& Cove View). Site 9 would also be one of the better sites. The adjacent Cove View CG is older and the sites are closer together. The yurts are also there. Cove View does have a few sites that will take larger rigs. I would definitely suggest staying in the Lover's Leap loop regardless of what size of rig you have because the sites are more spacious. We got a few OTA channels, but only one major channel. AT&T and Verizon were 2 bars. The bath house was newer, clean, and there’s a laundry with 2 washers & dryers at a $1.00 a piece. Most of the Lover's Leap sites have a clear shot to the southern sky for satellite. The trails out of and around the campground are worth the hikes. The most aggressive was to Lover's Leap Overlook and then down to the Natural Tunnel via Lover's Leap Trail. I wouldn't recommend Lover's Leap Trail if you are very afraid of heights. It goes along the rim and while it does have a fence to protect you from falling, it can still be quite scary. You can drive down to the Natural Tunnel where there’s a parking lot and chair lift down/up (seasonal) to the Tunnel. The Purchase Ridge Trail also goes out of the CG and is a moderate hike through the valley forest but without the stunning views of the Lover's Leap Trail and Natural Tunnel areas. There are other hiking trails and historical sites in the area. Duffield is about 15 minutes away and has gas stations with diesel, a medium sized grocery store, Dollar General, and a few restaurants. This was a quiet campground and we enjoyed our stay.

Great little park located in the Appalachian mountains of Virginia beside of Leeman Field park in Pennington Gap. Easy sites to get into with full hookups. Clean restroom/bathhouse on site, group picnic area/outdoor fireplace, and horseshoes at the campground. Neighboring Leeman Field park has multiple playgrounds, picnic shelters, swimming pool (Admission to the pool is included in campground fees.), tennis courts, and disc golf course. There is a gorgeous walking and biking trail beginning at Leeman Field that winds along the river leading to a local grocery store and restaurants. Maps are available for ATV trails that can be accessed from campground also.

This park has some nice campsites, which can make your camping experience an awesome time, but that’s not why you should go there. Like a lot of state parks, it’s got the usual wooded picnic table, fire ring, the electrical hook-up thing if you need it (or BYOS - bring your own solar), even nice bathrooms with showers and everything. What it offers in terms of a get away from it all makes it the go to destination for everyone who’s just about had enough of everything average.  

First of all, where the heck is it?  About 200 miles from anywhere you’ve ever heard of, unless you’re lucky enough to have been born and raised in the Blue Ridge Mountains, or you’ve just nursed along a love of two-lane winding roads, it rewards the traveler who says“let’s take a road trip.” The closest town is Haysi, Virginia, which offers a selection of small regional grocery stores, gas stations and a few restaurants...but not much more. 

The park sits atop an ancient canyon cut through time by the Russell Fork River some 1000 feet below. The trails wonder through sandstone formations laid down some 250 million years ago when the area was covered by a shallow inland sea. The views as well as the geological significance instills awe in the best sense. 

The park offers a short scenic drive loop with a dozen or so stops all offering some look into the amazing scope of natural science. But in case that doesn’t inspire your 10-year-old, the mountain bike trails near to the campground will sure take some energy out of them. And in case they want to just go to the outdoor pool, or sit in the well-appointed cabin or guestroom, these are also available at this park offering a widely diverse accommodations for nearly anyone willing to make the drive to get there.  The Russell Fork is also a world class river offering everything from class 2-3 fun to serious Appalachian creekin’ paddling. But don’t tell anyone about this place, because I don’t want anyone else to find out about it.

I camped here back in June 2018. It was one of three sites I camped at that week on my trek to ten VA state parks in the south eastern of the state. This was my favorite of them all. It offered primitive, trailer and tent camping. Since I was by myself I choice the tent. Very clean, helpful and friendly folks. the site was easy to pull through with my truck. I been to some that were not so easy.

Natural Tunnel is awesome. Not a lot of sites which is great. I’d recommend Lovers Leap as the sites are super spacious and far apart from each other. Some have more shade than others. The bathrooms are super clean and there is even laundry. The ranger programs are fantastic. We recommend the Stockton Creek hike (though it is through water and a bit challenging balance wise). The cable cars are so fun. Ranger Bill was a great storyteller and very informative. Hiking was moderate. Nothing too crazy. It was was a very nice stay.

Who needs to go all the way out west to see the grand canyon when you can get the jist of it here

We loved the new cabin we rented in this beautiful park. A hiking trail ran behind the cabins, past the campground (also new) to the tunnel. It is a great hike and even better when you use the ski lift going up :) The tunnel is at the base of a massive rock and a train drives through it very slowly each day.

We drove 2 hours to canoe the Clinch River which was great fun and we got to see a lot of the area.

Our family really enjoyed the this park , there are many interesting structures at the park. The staff was very friendly . The park is very clean there are informative facts .

Very nice campgrounnd! Very clean. Even the fire pit was cleaned out. Host came by within ten minutes to check us in, which was much appreciated. Stayed in Lover's Leep #8. Steep drive in, but easy back in to site. Highly recommend

Have waited six months into our RV life to start reviews for fair comparisons. Spent 2 nights. Sites were very close together and it was very crowded, but friendly and courteous folks. Hiking very good from the site. Great place for dog walks. Tunnel very cool.

Beautiful campground. So much fun stuff for the kids to do. Great trails for hiking or biking.

The views are spectacular, Camping with electric, water and showers was just a bonus to all the beauty around us and pet friendly. Great people all around and we felt so welcomed.

Tent camped for a weekend to hike Devil’s bathtub. Campgrounds were well kept. We had water and electric at our site. Fire ring and table. Level gravel tent pad. Bathhouse very clean. We hiked down to the tunnel. Beautiful. The chair lift was running and the kids loved that. (We rode just for fun) park rangers were friendly. Dogs were welcome leashed.

We stayed in Lovers Leap Loop, site specific reservable. All these sites are roomy, but often back or butt to the next site. New super clean showerhouse with plenty of pressure and hot water. We had great cell and hot spot service (ATT & Verizon). The Tunnel is well worth seeing also. Would definitely stay here again.

Great park! It’s got all you need from camping to trails to swimming to even learning history about the area and the park itself! Great for the family!

Spent the night in a tent at Lovers Leap campground. Campground and park are clean, well maintained and up to date. Canoed Clinch River, caved in the park, and took a short guided hike through Stock Creek to backside of tunnel. Highly recommend!

In addition to the main attraction and hiking trails, this park has a TON of activities…..canoeing, kayaking, caving, ranger led programs, night hikes, etc etc.

We spent the first few days exploring the tunnel and visitor‘s center.The tunnel was formed millions of years ago when groundwater that had carbonic acid in it ate away the rock and formed the tunnel. It is huge…about 200 feet wide and 80 feet high. There is some folklore that says that a Cherokee maiden and a Shawnee brave were forbidden to marry and jumped to their deaths from the highest pinnacle…now named Lover’s Leap. There is a still an active railroad thru the tunnel hauling coal. And, there is a creek that flows thru the tunnel. The campground sits atop the tunnel. Very spacious and open sites!

There are two ways to get down to the tunnel…you can ride the chairlift or you can hike. We did both!

We stopped here at zero dark thirty enroute to Hungry Mother State Park. It was dark, very quiet and sorta creepy. NO ONE was in the primitive camp area which is located off the main campground road , down a gravel road into the trees. This would be an excellent group site because all six tent pads surround this huge fire ring and there’s a nice pavilion with water, power and plenty of picnic tables. I was not interested in getting too comfortable just for a few hours sleep so I aired up my small mattress and crashed in the truck. We were up at the crack of sunlight and exploring. Two, small, nice full service campgrounds with a small store and playground. CCC style hiking trail up around the Natural Tunnel that offers some pretty views. There is a chairlift , gift shop and other attractions , BUT...don’t plan to do anything before 10 am, that’s when everything opens. So we hiked and then got on our way up the road.

This campground in the Kingdom Come State Park has about 6 or 7 sites, and they are primitive with no running water, but good pads, picnic tables, food hangers, shade from trees, and fire rings. There are men's and women's bathrooms, with running water in the sinks, but no water faucets as in other camps, and no showers. I've camped there twice and only saw one other camper. It is very quiet and remote. The views from the outlooks at the top of the road are amazing. There is a lake for swimming, and plenty of trails. Bugs are minimal.

Great spot in an interesting area, we were here to go to the high point, Black Mountain. Portal 31 is closer, but this is a significantly more natural experience.

6 sites that are tent-centric but doable with a small trailer, there are two additional sites that can be accessed if you ask the ranger to open the gate.

We saw a bear across the valley, so take the warnings seriously and follow the instructions.

No dump station, and the road in from Cumberland is STEEP! We made it una mini van pulling a scamp, so you’ll probably be fine.