Best RV Parks & Resorts near Swoope, VA

The campground is small and well-kept. It has an incredibly chill and laid-back vibe.

You are a quick walk to the brewery and café, where you can grab breakfast, lunch or dinner. It is nice and dark at the campground, so great for star watching. 

There are several small walking paths throughout the property. 

It is very pet friendly. 

It is very quick drive to lots of hiking, including the Appalachian Trail. 

You are also a stone’s throw away from a ton of other really great breweries and wineries. I highly recommend visiting Blue Mountain Brewery and Bold Rock cidery during tour stay for some great food and beverage.

Cell service and wi-fi are spotty at best, but what do you expect? You are in the middle of the mountains. 

Each full hook up site has a picnic table and fire ring. Fire wood available for purchase.

*Warning, if you stay at a full hook up site and are parked in an odd number spot, you will need an extra long sewer hose to reach the connection. For example, we have a small travel trailer and we needed a 30 foot hose. The sewer connection for the odd number sites is on the opposite side of the RV than the electricity and water. The good news is that in a pinch, and your sewer hose does not fit, they do have a dump station on site.

This KOA was a very nice surprise given that it was right off the highway. We only were there for 1 night and we didn't hear any highway noise. They had a very nice nature trail as well as chickens running around and baby goats in a pen. Check in was easy as they had a tent set up so we didn't have to go on the office. An employee led us to our site. The main campground is rather hilly, although our site was a rather level gravel pad. They have a new area, not flat ground, that has cement pads and pretty wood benches around fire pits. It looked like these campsites were for the large class A or fifth wheels. We had electric and water. Cable TV is included. The Verizon wifi was spotty with 2-3 bars. We will definatly go back if we pass through this area again.

July 10-19, 2020

As my wife and I were discussing my review, I asked her what could we point to to take away from a 5-star rating. Neither of us could think of a single thing.

This campground (RV Resort) is simply beautiful. Wooded, stone borders, stone walls, and stone fire pits at every site, plus full hookup at each site. They cater nicely to big rigs, offering numerous pull-through sites as well as back-in sites, as your need exists. Small rigs down to tent trailers camp here as well. There are only two restroom locations (same with the dumpsters; guests do not leave trash near their sites, guests are expected to take care of their own trash), but they are clean, well cared for, and odor free. Showers are the same.

Most sites are spaced enough to give some feeling of privacy, some are fairly close together. A few sites are nicely secluded for those of us that crave privacy. Staff was extremely pleasant and helpful, and include a “Camp host” for after hours problems. Because of Virginia restrictions due to the current COVID situation, as of this writing the pool and spacious game room are not open. Check with them if that is a gamechanger for you. Their cavern tour (discounted for guests at the RV park) was lovely. Marked well, lighted, relaxed. Our tour guide, Haley, was a sweetheart, taking time for the two little kids, and still giving the information older people like. Plenty of things to do nearby, including museums, Civil War Battlefields, shopping, and Skyline Drive (fantastic).

This is a quiet campground, with no street lights, and quiet hours from 11PM to 8AM. Definitely not a party campground, which totally endeared this place to us. Roads are gravel and can be a bit steep, 4-wheel drive is helpful.

We thoroughly loved our stay here, and assuming we are back this way, we don’t even plan on looking at other locations to stay. Can not praise this campground (RV Resort) enough.

Misty Mountain Camp Resort is becoming one of my favorite campgrounds. I recently camped in my Winnebago motor home, in site 67. Site 67 is on the upper level of the campground, is a pull through site, and has full hookups. I was pleasantly surprised when we got there and I found out it has its own deck!!! Site also includes a fire ring and a picnic table. There are no other sites to the right of the site, so the view is awesome. No issues with electricity, water hook up fine. We did not connect to sewer, because we were only staying over night. Dog friendly space directly across from this site, so it was very convenient. Views beautiful. Bathhouse clean. Site was much longer than our 30ft motor home, we were not towing. Highly recommend this campground, staff is helpful and friendly. The sites are well maintained. I will certainly return...this was my third visit to this campground.

Surprisingly, recreation.gov had excellent campsite descriptions and photos for this campground(very unusual in our experience), which made it possible for us to choose the perfect site for our 30' travel trailer. We would not have been satisfied with the slope of more than a few of the sites here, so be sure to do your due diligence before choosing your site. 

This is a large campground with lots of sites, many of which(like C129) are quite large. The entire campground was clean and well-kept, including the bathrooms and showers. Keep in mind that showers are$5 for 10 minutes but we noticed that shower#4 worked on just$4. Shh! Don't tell anyone!;-) 

This is boondocking(no water, sewer, or electric hookups), but there are plenty of potable water spigots and there is a dump station nearby that is convenient, in good working order, and also has potable water. One complaint about the dump would be that there is no threaded hose to flush out a black tank. 

Generator hours are 08:00- 10:00 and 16:00- 19:00 but are extended to 21:00 from opening until April 14 and again from October 15 through closing. Quiet hours are 22:00- 06:00. 

The campground has a good laundry facility and a small store. A short walk takes you to Big Meadows Lodge with a full-service restaurant, pub, coffee bar, and gift shop. Take in the sunset from the great room, the deck, or a short hike along the Black Rock trail. A little longer walk takes you to the Wayside where you will find a well-stocked store with food, beverages (adult and otherwise), camping supplies, a quick service restaurant, and a nice gift shop. Definitely try the blackberry cobbler at either Big Meadows Lodge or the Wayside! 

Ticks are a big issue here(at least they were when we visited in mid-October). Be sure to check your pups constantly for ticks, and make sure you take preventive measures such as sprays and chews to make sure your pups stay safe. Check yourselves, your kiddos, and your bedding too! 

We had mixed feelings about the staff here, many of whom were quite nice and helpful. We did feel that the person who checked us in seemed a bit haggard and, perhaps as a result, was relatively short with us when we asked reasonable questions. We also felt the campground hosts were more than a bit inconsistent in rules enforcement. For instance, they are adamant about not having even a millimeter of tire off the pavement(even when trying to keep the tow vehicle off the roadway) but didn't care at all about campers who ran their generators all day long outside of generator hours. 

Verizon was nonexistent. 

T-Mobile was good. 

Starlink was great for us, but keep in mind that many sites have a canopy of trees that will obstruct Starlink. 

Solar was so-so, partially because of the tree cover and partially because of clouds and fog.

For the past four or five years I have come to this campground each year in the offseason, April or October, to visit while the temps in Virginia are cooler and less humid. This KOA offers free wifi and cable TV with no connection problems. If ever you have a problem, stay is ready to help. My last visit I had to replace a kitchen faucet, which was leaking due to poor winterization by CW. A staff person spent an hour or more replacing the faucet, android not want to be paid, but only asked that we donate to the kids and camping charity he supported. The showers and bathroom facilities have been remodeled and were both clean and quite efficient. The campground itself is just 10 minutes from the city of Charlottesville and a few minutes from Monticello as well as many fine Virginia wineries. It's the perfect area to be in to visit The Blue Ridge Mountains, historic Fredricksburg, or Appomattox (all 50 to 90 minutes away). Campsites are not on top of each other, and both pull-through and back-in spots are available. The pool area looks like a nice place to be, with shaded areas and many places to sit (though I have never had the opportunity to use it, because of the season I visit).

A perfect place for family small rv and tent camping. The area is located in the George Washington National forest, has a small swimming, kayaking and fishing lake and log pavillion that was created as a CCC project. The tent only loop dates to this time. Two additional loops have been added with electric sites. All the sites are well spaced, essentially level and have large pads with better than average fire pits and tables that can seat a family reunion. The shower houses are at the center of each loop and have been rebuilt to ACA standard with in the last five years. There are family friendly hiking paths around the lake and upper fishing pond. There are also some kickass trails that climb to the Blue Ridge Parkway and intersect with the AT. While it is close to Waynesboro, Charlottesville and Roanoke, it is sufficiently remote to require a car ride to find cell and internet access. Half the sites are first come-first serve and half can be reserved. The only drawback is that many people love this park and it is difficult to get reservations. The window opens six months out and are usually booked for the high season summer months.

We recently stayed for a long weekend at the Outlanders campground after we received a referral from a friend and could not have been more happy with our stay.  The RV sites at this campground are very spaced out, you have a lot of room to each side of your RV.  The park and facilities were very clean.  They have a playground for the kids, fishing ponds, cabins, pet friendly with a dog park and they are located right along the Shenandoah river.  You can go tubing on the river but need to provide your own tubes.  The ride down the river from one end of the park to the other is around 30 minutes.  Also for all of the people attached to the internet like us we were able to have plenty of cell signal to hotspot and get internet.

Sherando Lake is a well-maintained, popular campground located in the George Washington National Forest near Lyndhurst, VA. Convenient to both Richmond and Charlottesville, it brings people in for camping and day-use alike.

There are three camping loops here; a standard non-electric loop (loop A/White Oak Loop), and two RV loops (B and C). Both of the RV loops are very flat and open, with little shade or privacy between sites. They have electric hookups and drinking water available, but do not have water hookups. The tent loop is the oldest loop in this campground, and is heavily wooded, with sites along both meadow and backing up to the mountain. These sites do not have any hookups, but most have driveways large enough for campers and RVs 28' in length or under. All tent sites have fire rings, utility poles, and large picnic tables, and tent pads that are raked clear by campground hosts between guests.

The biggest benefits of this campground are its location, and the recreation area. It's about an hour and a half west of Richmond and only thirty minutes from Charlottesville, making it a great weekend trip without having to take time away from work. And as for recreation, it's wonderful. There are two lakes--the lower lake is the largest at 25 acres, and and while the beach can get crowded during peak season, it's an easy walk from the campground, with a large swimming area roped off. Canoeing is available at the lake, and there are several hiking trails, ranging from the easy lakeside trail, to more difficult trails that connect to the Blue Ridge Parkway, and other trails in George Washington National Forest. Fishing is available at both lakes with the proper licensing. There are several large picnic areas right on the lower lake, and a few smaller creekside spaces with picnic table and grills.

All that said; for RV campers this is an excellent campsite. While the loops with hookups are lacking in shade and privacy, having an RV or camper will afford you what the site itself lacks, and the location and activities make this a great basecamp.

For tent camping, it's good if you live in one of the nearby cities and want the shorter drive time, or if you like tent camping but still want all the benefits of front-country camping. As a place to set up camp and enjoy spending time near your tent, Sherando is exceptionally maintained. There is not a lot of opportunities for foraging for firewood, which means purchasing heat-treated wood nearby, and while the sites are very shady, there is little underbrush between sites to offer a privacy barrier. Many of the sites are staggered, with one or more levels of steps leading from the driveways. Because of all there is to do this is a great site for older kids, but we learned that, especially with toddlers, the steps around the campsites can turn a relaxing trip into one of constant vigilance.

Enjoyment of this campground will largely depend on what type of camper you are. If you are mainly looking for a place to get outside of the city, where you can set up for the night and have easy access to hiking, fishing, swimming, or boating, this is a great campground. This is where we typically chose to take friends if they were new to camping, as the bathrooms are well-lit, the road is paved, and the sites are so well-maintained. Plus at $20 a night, while it's more expensive than its neighbors in Shenandoah National Park or Cave Mountain Lake, it's a shorter drive from the neighboring cities, and doesn't have the additional NPS fee. However, if you want something that feels more rugged, or with campsites that offer a greater feeling of privacy, it would be better to skip this one.