Best Tent Camping near Willis, VA

Recent Tent Reviews near Willis, Virginia

552 Reviews of 29 Willis Campgrounds

• 

  Michele F.

  Scout

  

  Jul. 5, 2018

  Boone KOA

  Nice KOA. Clean and has everything you need.

  We really like camping there. We tent camp and it is clean and has a handful of things for the kids. The only down side is that the tent sites are road side…so when the campers pull in and out you hear them hitting the gas. Every now and again people will peel out on the road. 😕 Otherwise 👍🏻 and enjoy the friendly staff, CLEAN bathrooms and campground.

• 

  Heather K.

  Ranger

  

  Aug. 31, 2018

  Riverside Campground

  Wonderful amenities - family place!

  We have been to this campground numerous times. The people and the place bring us back. There are mostly RV's here but we tent camp and there are plenty of spots available. There are about 8-10 sites that are right behind the pool and more sites down a short hill all along the river. This campground accommodates tents, pop ups and RV's comfortably. There is a small pool, but very clean and nice. The showers / restrooms are close by and nice. There is a store to purchase extras and firewood. Great family place to camp. The 5 mph speed limit is strictly enforced! The river is perfect! It's not too deep so the kids can play in it. Fairly easily accessed from many areas at the campground. Tent sites behind the pool have water and electric. If you go on any holiday, there are usually holiday related activities for the whole family. October was great for costumes, trick or treating, fall activities and parties! Many sites were decorated. Summer at this campground had plenty of water activities fun for all ages.

• V

  Valerie P.

  Traveler

  

  Jun. 10, 2018

  Roan Mountain State Park Campground

  Roan Mountain in June

  Sites #1-40 are for tent camping and the rest are for RVs. We camped with tents in the RV section because it was all that was available. It was definitely tough to find places to put our tents in our site (86), but the designated tent sites were large and flat. It was pretty crowded while we were there and campsites are close together.

  The campground has lots of amenities—a pool, amphitheater, camp store with firewood and ice for sale, flush toilets, laundry machines, etc. They put on lots of fun activities like group hikes and educational talks. We went to the see the live music at the amphitheater Saturday night and it was charming. There are lots of hiking trails you can walk to, but we didn‘t have time to check them out.

  The highlight of the trip was hiking the grassy balds starting at Carver’s Gap. Get there early! Parking was tricky when we got there at 9:30am and impossible when we left around 2pm. The scenery was absolutely beautiful. Overall a nice weekend in Roan Mountain State Park!

• 

  David M.

  Traveler

  

  Jul. 22, 2024

  Cavitts Creek Park

  Not suitable for motorcycle tent camping, wouldn't stay again

  Most campground reviews are from the RV crowd.  This is from the tent camper perspective, particularly motorcycle tent camping.  The roads/lanes in the park are paved, but otherwise where you would ride are lousy for motorcycles.  The "gravel" parking lot from the road to the office and in the RV/electric loop is more like rocks, and you stand a good chance of dropping your bike.  Park your bike on the asphalt drive and walk up to the office.  In addition, the tent parking spots are sloped upwards with some very slick crushed rock and are challenging for a motorcycle.  The office closes at 5 (4 on Sunday and probably Saturday) and there is no campground map posted to see where the tent camping area is. They have copies of the campground map in the office and I suggested they put one on the outside of the office door so people arriving after they close have a map to view.   The tent camping (primitive) is off a paved lane a lot further down the hill past the office.  The sign for the lane says primitive.  Straight up at the top of the hill for that lane is site 6 which is somewhat acceptable for motorcycle parking although you are not going to get good enough of a cell signal there to use any internet apps. You might get one bar to make calls or text.   At the top of that hill, take a left and go up a steep hill to the shower house and where sites 1 &2 are at.  At sites 1&2 and outside the shower house you can get a good enough signal (2 bars) to use internet apps.  The campground does have an open wifi, but it doesn't reach to the tent camping sites.  They should add some directional antennas to extend to that area.  Sites 1&2 are best for motorcycles if you can reserve one of them.  2 has a wide enough turn around that you could easily park a group of motorcycles there.  When you check in you are assigned a 4 digit code to unlock the shower house doors.  If you arrive after hours you'll have to ask another camper if they'll share their code with you like we had to.  Don't bother trying to call the campground number after hours to check in or ask for a code because you'll just their voicemail.  Bring a hammer or find a rock to hammer your tent stakes in because the ground where you would want to pitch a tent is mostly rock.  Being primitive there is no electric at the tent sites.  There is an outlet by the sink in the shower house if you need to charge your phone.  There aren't any external outlets at the shower house.  There is a spigot outside the shower house, but I did not open it to make sure it worked.  We got our water using the shower house sink.  The rate as of July 2024 is $10.50 PER TENT per night.  There is no discount for only using one site with several tents.  We (four bikes with 4 tents) stayed there four nights.  We would have left after the first night, but had paid for all four nights and also didn't want to have to pack everything up to look for a different campground.

• 

  A B.

  Scout

  

  Jul. 24, 2024

  Riverside Campground

  Infested

  The place is crawling with Venemous Copperheads.  Do not recommend tent camping here.

• E

  Eric W.

  Traveler

  

  Aug. 17, 2020

  Mountain City Campground

  Hidden Gem

  This campground is run by the city visitors center and like most other things in Mountain City has very little social media presence. Most residents of the city don’t even know of its existence.

  Great little affordable campground with nice accessible trout stream. Has 30 amp and 50 amp service along with tent camping. (Tent camping is currently closed due to recent bear sightings as are the toilet facilities due to COVID-19(Aug 2020))

  Aug 2020 prices for 30 amp full hookups $25 /day $85 /week $300 /month

• 

  Mike V.

  Guide

  

  Oct. 22, 2021

  Cove View Campground — Natural Tunnel State Park

  Nice but $$ tent camping

  Very unique state park. Expensive tent camping $40/night no hookups Visit tunnel at night if open

• S

  Steven H.

  Scout

  

  Sep. 5, 2019

  Riverside Campground

  Quiet on the river

  Great spot with tent camping on the water. We stopped in on short notice for one night. Would definitely stay again.

• 

  Pam L.

  Scout

  

  Jun. 1, 2019

  Roan Mountain State Park Campground

  Excellent SP

  I'd have given RM a 5 star review except for the RV sites are small and so close together. We have a small camper, 15" including the tongue and I felt the site too small. The tent sites are lovely., large and more private. Next time we''ll see if we can get a tent site since our camper is so small. No hook ups on the tent sites, but hey we're camping. The staff was friendly and extremely accommodating. We had some severe weather during our visit. 45mph, horizontal rain and a power outage. The staff was right out after the storm to clean up and help out. Our traveling companions were in a tent and their site was in standing water. The staff hauled in gravel and made an elevated pad as well as helping to move the tent. Great service! The area is spectacular and has something for everyone.

• 

  Lucy P.

  Ranger

  

  Mar. 22, 2024

  Chestnut Knob Shelter, Appalachian Trail

  Very nice shelter

  Very nice and comfy! Don’t make the same mistake I did and tent camp outside in a huge storm - just stay inside!

• C

  Chad Z.

  Scout

  

  Jul. 14, 2021

  Blue Bear Mountain Camp

  Beautiful views and clean bathrooms

  We have tent camped and RV camped here. Great site with lots of space and kept up well. Views are great and area is beautiful.

• 

  Betsy W.

  Guide

  

  Sep. 2, 2024

  Little Tumbling Creek

  Beautiful and peaceful

  Laurel bed lake at top is beautiful. Waterfalls on way up and good fishing along the way in tumbling creek. Flat field area for camping on way. Several spots by creek for van or tent camping.

• 

  Rob J.

  Traveler

  

  Jul. 3, 2018

  Breaks Interstate Park Campground

  Amazing park, decent campground

  Tent camped here a few weeks ago. Been on several day trips to the park. I love the trails, the waterpark and the views. Camp site is nice, but could use some work and an update.

• 

  Matt F.

  Scout

  

  Jun. 8, 2019

  Woodsmoke Campground

  Wooded RV campground

  Quiet, wooded sites with full RV hook up. Nice large sites and private. This is a privately ran campground. Also has tent sites available.

• 

  Todd T.

  Scout

  

  Jan. 3, 2022

  New River Alleghany Access Primitive Paddle-in — New River State Park

  Wonderful find

  My family went to tent camp and enjoyed our stay. We discovered others with campers that had wonderful campsites. The bathroom facilities are new and very clean. We enjoyed hiking. The location also had four bars of Verizon LTE. Amazing!

• 

  Douglas P.

  Scout

  

  May. 9, 2022

  Blue Bear Mountain Camp

  Family friendly

  Everything a small family with very young kids could need. We tent camped for two nights on the lower back end of the campsite, then rounded out our stay with one night in the cabin. The owners were extremely accommodating, since technically the cabin required multiple night's stay.

• 

  Denise

  Guide

  

  Oct. 3, 2020

  Royal Oak Campground — Hungry Mother State Park

  Nice park

  We tent camped here in the Royal Oak section. Campsites in this section are tent only and very nice and have platforms. Rv sites are crowded. Clean bath houses, and plenty to do. The lake is beautiful and has boat rentals and a swimming beach! Great place to kayak! This place stays booked up, so reservations are suggested during the summer/fall months.

• 

  Rachael H.

  Ranger

  

  Jun. 11, 2020

  Natural Tunnel State Park Campground

  Wonderful

  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.

• 

  Erin R.

  Scout

  

  Jul. 25, 2018

  Bristol-Kingsport KOA

  group camping in tent sites

  I tent camped with a group here and the sites are very rugged and pretty far from water/bathrooms but there is a pool and the staff is very friendly and helpful. It had been raining alot while we were here and it can be pretty slick if you don't stay on the thin gravel road with your vehicle.

• 

  Kirsten J.

  Legend

  

  Jun. 9, 2019

  Twin Rivers Family Campground

  Remote, riverfront, primitive, FIREFLIES!

  Twin rivers campground is located in Crumpler NC on the river.  It is a primitive campground with both RV and tent sites.  The tent sites are found by following a dirt road around the base of the mountain, at river level, which left us a little wary that the road could wash out.  We followed the path a bit to a private site down a ways, just past a porta potty.  There is a bathhouse up in the RV section of this campground, but we were camping in primitive tent land. 

  The site we were on was fantastic!  It was steps from the river, we had a flat, grassy spot with shrubs creating some privacy between us and our neighbor.  Our next neighbor was as far down as we could see!  

  The campfire was perfect, our site was superb and we had a great night sleep!  

  (PLEASE NOTE!  THE CAMPGROUND HAS SINCE CHANGED OWNERSHIP AND SITES ARE NOW MUCH MUCH CLOSER TOGETHER)

• 

  Charles H.

  Traveler

  

  Jun. 29, 2022

  Washington County Park

  Beautiful lakeside campground

  Most camp sites are right on the lake, and there were even some spots that had docks. All hook ups included, and some tent camping as well! There were several shelters that can rented as well to have parties and cook out. Only complaint, the sites are all back in and are on small roads so they're right fits, even with travel trailers.

• 

  Stephanie J.

  Legend

  

  Oct. 31, 2018

  Hickory Ridge Campground — Grayson Highlands State Park

  A beautiful basecamp for hikers and horseback riders

  With camping just a moderate day hike away from Mount Rogers, the highest point in Virginia, this campground is a hiker's paradise.

  There is little to no cell signal here, so coming to Grayson Highlands is one of the few state parks in Virginia where you can truly go "off the grid" during the length of your stay--and you won't miss technology, because there is so much to do at this park. From the aforementioned Mount Rogers--an 8.5 mile out-and-back, to the 1.5 mile but difficult Cabin Trail that takes you to a waterfall, to the wild ponies who will approach hikers along the Rhododendron Trail, any fitness level will find hiking they can enjoy. When we stayed the outer bands of Hurricane Michael brought so much fog and rain that we were not able to see any of the ponies, but we did hear one a couple of times, very near Massie's Gap!

  As for camping there are two frontcountry campgrounds. All sites have picnic tables and fire rings, and bathrooms with electricity and flush toilets*

  Chestnut Hollow Campground:

  -There are 23 sites here with water and electric hook-ups May-October, and this loop is available as primitive camping March, April, and November. *During this time bathrooms are pit toilets only

  -Horse-friendly; there are stables located adjacent to this loop

  -These sites are very small; if you are in a tent I recommend no larger than a 4 person.

  -Not a lot of privacy between sites, especially near the back of the loop. Most sites are right agains the road and have little space to move around; I would not recommend this loop if you have small children who are going to want space to run and play

  Hickory Ridge Campground

  -This is the larger of the loops at GHSP; there are 64 campsites ranging from standard tent sites without water or electric, to full service sites with water and electric hookups.

  -Tent sites 1-18 are the furthest from hookup sites and will therefore be the quietest; they are mostly small sites and very close to the road. Sites 10, 12, 13, and 14 are set back furthest from the road. There is a path behind sites 2-14 leading to the bathhouse behind site 14. Site 13 is easily the most private--and arguably the only truly private--tent site in this campground, with the driveway going behind a cluster of trees that shields the site from the road. We stayed in site 12 which easily fit our 6 person tent.

  -Sites 31 and 32 are on a meadow the campsite loops around; they have no privacy and little shade, but ample room for kids to run around, and there is a set of swings near these sites. They are however right on the road so it may be easier to just walk to the swings and keep littles in a site without as much traffic. There is water right across from both of these sites.

  -Even-numbered hookup sites 60-70 are also right on the meadow with very little shade

  -All other sites are heavily shaded, although you'll be close to your neighbors

  The camp store near the Hickory Ridge Loop sells ice, firewood, and just about anything you may possibly have forgotten to pack--firestarters, first aid supplies, marshmallows, and has as a gift shop with blankets, outerwear, and kitschy souvenirs.

  Normally I would take off a star for lack of privacy of tent sites, however there is so much hiking here that your campsite can really be more of a basecamp than a place you want to sit and hang out all day long!

• 

  Vivian M.

  Scout

  

  Oct. 10, 2018

  Natural Tunnel State Park Campground

  Offers a variety of site layouts

  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.

• 

  Eric S.

  Scout

  

  Sep. 18, 2022

  Riverside Campground

  Urban camping

  This campsite is more suited for r.v’s and trailer’s. Really nice staff and very clean. Very well taken care of park Unfortunately if you are a tent camper. There’s no privacy between site’s. I understand it’s a small site. But would be nice if the tent sites were further away from the trailers and rv camper’s. Kinda felt like I set my tent up in the backyard. But still a really nicely kept and clean facility.

• 

  Jolie L.

  Ranger

  

  Mar. 26, 2021

  Boone KOA

  Close to Town

  About a 5 minute drive to Boone which makes it a great campground for doing sight seeing in town. You're never too far from stores or restaurants to enjoy. KOA is always nice to stay at but there aren't many places to hike in the campground that I've seen. Good tent camping for families who want to go sight seeing around town and enjoy the amenities of Boone, NC.

• m

  marilyn M.

  Traveler

  

  Jun. 6, 2018

  Breaks Interstate Park Campground

  Beautiful park

  Absolutely beautiful park. Nice sized campsites. Perfect for tent camping. Good white water rafting w/dam openings daily

  Trails: Needs better signage on trail, especially as trails merge. Very steep switchbacks and difficult trails. Trail markers difficult to read or non existent in some spots. Wash outs and downed trees blocking trail common. Seems to be common in VA state parks, most staff had zero knowledge of their trails.

  20 minute drive to grocery, restaurants, etc

• 

  Katie M.

  Legend

  

  Oct. 2, 2020

  Hickory Ridge Campground — Grayson Highlands State Park

  One of the best!

  This is one of the best Virginia State Parks I have camped at!

  The area is just so incredibly beautiful and the park is huge, there is so much to do and explore. The ponies, hikes of all kinds, waterfalls, mountains. It is a trip I will remember forever.

  We got a non-site specific tent site reservation so we rolled up and I think we got the best one, site 13. It is the most private and very comfortable. Close to the bathrooms and water. I have no complaints! It was great!

  Check out Molly Chomper Cidery if you venture out of the park!