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Established Camping

Holliday Lake State Park Campground

Holliday Lake State Park Campground, near Appomattox, Virginia, is a fantastic spot for those looking to escape the hustle and bustle of daily life. With a beautiful lake at its center, this campground offers a mix of relaxation and outdoor activities, making it a great choice for families and nature lovers alike.

The campground features well-maintained sites, many with electric hookups, picnic tables, and fire rings for those cozy campfire evenings. Visitors rave about the cleanliness of the bathhouses and the friendly staff who are always around to lend a hand. As one camper put it, “The staff are friendly and check on you frequently; bathhouses are well maintained and clean.”

For adventure seekers, there are plenty of hiking trails that wind through the surrounding forest, offering a good workout with some stunning views. Fishing is popular here, though some have found shore fishing a bit tricky. The swimming area is a hit with families, but keep in mind that swimming is at your own risk when lifeguards aren’t on duty.

If you’re looking for a peaceful getaway where you can unwind and enjoy nature, Holliday Lake State Park Campground is definitely worth a visit. With its combination of outdoor fun and serene surroundings, it’s a place where you can truly disconnect and recharge.

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Location

Holliday Lake State Park Campground is located in Virginia

Detail location of campground

Directions

Access is via State Route 24 between Appomattox and U.S. 60 and from Routes 626, 640 and 692. The park is approximately 12 miles from the Appomattox National Historical Park.

Coordinates

37.39600027 N
78.63900074 W

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Access

  • Drive-In
    Park next to your site
  • Hike-In
    Backcountry sites.

Stay Connected

  • WiFi
    Available
  • Verizon
    Good
  • AT&T
    Unknown
  • T-Mobile
    Unknown

Site Types

  • Tent Sites
  • RV Sites
  • Standard (Tent/RV)
  • Group
  • Cabins
  • Tent Cabin

Features

For Campers

  • Market
  • ADA Access
  • Trash
  • Picnic Table
  • Firewood Available
  • Reservable
  • Showers
  • Drinking Water
  • Electric Hookups
  • Toilets
  • Alcohol
  • Pets
  • Fires

For Vehicles

  • Sanitary Dump
  • Sewer Hookups
  • Water Hookups
  • Pull-Through Sites
  • 50 Amp Hookups
  • Big Rig Friendly

Reviews

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4.0

out of 5

10 Reviews

Reviewed Aug. 16, 2024

Nice but Gun Range During Summer

Probably a great place to camp during the fall. During the summer they lease space to the 4-H club that teaches people to shoot black powder muskets for the civil war reenactments. From 8:30am until 3-5pm it sounds like a gun range. It’s not a shot here and there, its volleys of black powder guns (think cannons) being shot all at once. It echos off the water and is the opposite of peaceful. The ranger said it would only be for an hour a day, unless it was a competition day, well for the 5 days we were there it must have been competition. We ended up leaving the park during the day.

The sites are good. Most need lots of leveling help (bring spare wood!). The newer part has a nice bathhouse. The older part had a really old bathhouse. (So old it’s hard to tell if it’s dirty or just old.)

It’s not a bad place to visit. But combat veterans should avoid during the summer months.

The sites are nice. The ones in the newer area (laurel ridge) are close to the nice bathhouse. Both bathhouses have WiFi. No cell service to speak of. (We have Verizon but most of these places have none.)

Site4 (private) then 6 (Able to get WiFi)
Month of VisitJuly
  • Review photo of Holliday Lake State Park Campground by Jen T., August 16, 2024
  • Review photo of Holliday Lake State Park Campground by Jen T., August 16, 2024
  • Review photo of Holliday Lake State Park Campground by Jen T., August 16, 2024
  • (8) View All
Reviewed May. 15, 2023

Nice Campround no cell sevice

A very well kept campground. Bathhouses are very clean and sites are well maintained. Sites are paved and not too close. Sites in the older section (red bud) will require leveling. As indicated on park web site there is no cell service in the park. WiFi is available outside the contact station

SiteR18
Month of VisitMay
Reviewed Jun. 8, 2021

Nice area, difficult to put in trailer.

This park was well maintained, as most state parks have been.  However, the sites were a good size but were very difficult to get even a small trailer into the site due to the narrow roads.  We were tent camping, in the beginning of May, and the weather was cold and wet.  The swimming area was nice for the kids, but no lifeguard was on duty at that time.  No luck with shore fishing from everyone I talked to.  The sites were a good combination of sun and shade, great view of stars on clear nights.  Common areas can fill up with groups during the day on weekends.  Courthouse was only about 15min away and offered a very interesting visit of a historical site.   Overall, not our favorite campground, but this was mainly to the pain getting into a site.

Site5
Month of VisitMay
  • Review photo of Holliday Lake State Park Campground by Jacob S., June 8, 2021
  • Review photo of Holliday Lake State Park Campground by Jacob S., June 8, 2021
  • Review photo of Holliday Lake State Park Campground by Jacob S., June 8, 2021
  • (6) View All
Reviewed Mar. 21, 2021

One of our Favorites

We love camping at Holliday Lake. It is completely off grid, and we like that! With busy jobs during the week it’s nice to unwind and enjoy nature. We hike, fish, swim, kayak, rent a motor boat, and just relax at our campsite. We watched a Bald Eagle and an Osprey for over an hour while kayaking on the lake. If you want down time this is a great place! The only con I will say is for RV’ers bring your leveling blocks - you will need them! The staff are friendly and check on you frequently; bathhouses are well maintained and clean.

  • Review photo of Holliday Lake State Park Campground by Jennifer  K., March 21, 2021
  • Review photo of Holliday Lake State Park Campground by Jennifer  K., March 21, 2021
  • Review photo of Holliday Lake State Park Campground by Jennifer  K., March 21, 2021
  • (4) View All
Reviewed Aug. 30, 2020

Great Summer Camping

Nice small state park. The kids loved swimming in the lake while the parents loved kayaking and fishing. It was too hot to hike while we were there, but there seemed to be plenty of trails.

Reviewed Jul. 11, 2020

Quiet Campground

Quiet, beautiful and Dog Friendly! There are beautiful trails for hiking and a ton of fishing spots! It had been over 25 years since my last trip and it hasn’t lost it’s charm one bit. It’s the perfect relaxing getaway! Phone service is in and out but we didn’t mind, it was nice to escape the world for a while.

  • Review photo of Holliday Lake State Park Campground by Amanda W., July 11, 2020
  • Review photo of Holliday Lake State Park Campground by Amanda W., July 11, 2020
Reviewed Jun. 18, 2019

Fun times

Nice campground. Short walk to the beach. Awesome staff. Awesome kids and learning program for the weekend. Really loved the lights in the water at night and nighttime walk.

  • Review photo of Holliday Lake State Park Campground by Ross B., June 18, 2019
  • Review photo of Holliday Lake State Park Campground by Ross B., June 18, 2019
Reviewed Jun. 14, 2018

Ranger Review: Mountain House Turkey Dinner at Holliday Lake State Park

Campground Review

Holliday Lake State Park is located in the middle of the Buckingham State Forest, so it is completely surrounded by protected forest. It definitely feels like being in the middle of nowhere. There are several ways to get there, including some back roads. We took the back roads in and took the main road out. There is very limited reception in the park for radio and cell. We were able to check with the ranger to get updates on weather. A severe storm came through on the second night and the camp hosts drove through the campground to let everyone know it was on the way.

The rangers here are awesome! Very helpful and knowledgeable. They even came around passing out flyers Friday night for the activities that weekend. Some of the activities included spear throwing, how to start different types of fires, nocturnal animals sounds, and watching fish at night. On Saturday nights they turn on a few lights underneath the water so you can see the fish swimming around,

The ranger contact station houses a very small camp store with just the essentials. Don't count on them having exactly what you need because it is a very small selection. They do have ice and firewood for sale on-site. If you really need something there is a Wal-Mart about 15 minutes away in Appomattox.

The park is known for its lake and great fishing. I fished for crappie, but it was too hot on the shore and dogs aren't allowed in rental boats. While I was shore fishing several people rented the park's fishing boats with outboard motors. There's even a panfish boat trail on one end of the lake.

There weren't any lifeguards on duty during our stay, but the beach was still open. Plenty of families were in the water. The sign says swim at your own risk. There are "creatures" in the water for kids to climb on and jump off. The local fire-rescue crew was making use of the lake and floating dock for their water rescue training.

My favorite thing to do at a new park is go hiking. There are only about 10 miles of trails within the park, but there are miles and miles of trails within the surrounding forest. You can pick up the Carter Taylor Connector Trail near the campgrounds, which leads to the Carter Taylor Multi-use trail in Buckingham State Forest. The park map shows a good mixture of easy, moderate, and difficult trails. However, I never found one that I would consider easy. It is VERY hilly, so even the easiest trails have some climbs. There is even a 6.2 mile trail that circles the lake. It's great hiking, but get ready for a workout. Even my 2 yo beagle was worn out by the end.

Our campsite was fully shaded and included water/electricity hookups. Site R4 had a newer water connection with two spouts, one for the camper hookup, and one standard spout. We used the regular spout to fill up water bowls for our dogs all weekend. Nearly every site had a dog in it. They were really well-behaved. Lots of families camped and used multiple sites across the road from each other. The park was completely packed, but we still had a decent amount of privacy. There are trees in-between each of the camp sites so you aren't staring at your neighbors. We were able to hang up two hammocks right beside the tent pad.

The tent pads are some of the most generously sized I've seen in a state park. They were mostly level and topped with crushed gravel. Each site had a large picnic table, fire ring, bear pole, and room for a car. The paved area for parking and campers weren't as level, and most people got creative with leveling out the campers.

Product Review

As a Ranger for The Dyrt, I get products to test from time to time. During this trip I was testing out a new meal from Mountain House. We got to try the Turkey Dinner which is a freeze-dried meal in a pouch. This is the number one brand I use when backpacking, so I was really excited to try out a new selection. The pouch included two servings of 240 calories each. I used my Pocket Rocket to boil water, then poured the boiling water into the pouch, gave it a stir, and sealed it up. I always make sure the pouch is completely sealed, then lay it on its side. In my experience, this helps all of the freeze-dried goodness to soak up the water better. After five minutes, I opened up the bag, gave it another stir, and sealed it back up. My wife was just coming back from her shower and was so excited that dinner was already ready. It was super fast! She ate her half of dinner off of a camp plate, and I had my half out of the pouch. When backpacking I eat the entire pouch (calories are good!!), but for car camping it was the perfect amount to split.

The turkey dinner was absolutely delicious! There were full chunks of turkey in there. The stuffing was filling. I couldn't really see the veggies since they were chopped up, but the flavor was perfect! My favorite part of the meal was discovering the quote on the bottom of the pouch when I laid it on its side.

SiteR4
Month of VisitJune
  • Review photo of Holliday Lake State Park Campground by Andrea N., June 14, 2018
  • Review photo of Holliday Lake State Park Campground by Andrea N., June 14, 2018
  • Review photo of Holliday Lake State Park Campground by Andrea N., June 14, 2018
  • (13) View All
Reviewed Jun. 2, 2018

On a hill

Bring leveling supplies! some sites are reservable, some are not.

As it is a state park you are only allowed to swim when lifeguard on duty in designated area.

Fishing from shore or non motorized boat.

kayaks and canoes available for rent.

Hiking and ranger nature programs are nice.

camp hosts have been helpful.

Month of VisitSeptember
  • Review photo of Holliday Lake State Park Campground by Marcy S., June 2, 2018

Frequently Asked Questions

  • How much does it cost to camp at Holliday Lake State Park Campground?

    Camping at Holliday Lake State Park Campground can cost between $30.00 and $80.00 depending on the site.

  • Does Holliday Lake State Park Campground have RV hookups?

    According to TheDyrt.com, Holliday Lake State Park Campground has 50 amp electric hookups, water hookups and sewer hookups.

  • What is the max vehicle length at Holliday Lake State Park Campground?

    Holliday Lake State Park Campground allows vehicles up to 36 feet.

  • Are fires allowed at Holliday Lake State Park Campground?

    Yes, according to campers on TheDyrt.com, fires are allowed at Holliday Lake State Park Campground, although make sure to check current fire restrictions in the area.

  • Is there cell phone reception at Holliday Lake State Park Campground?

    According to campers on TheDyrt.com, Verizon signal is good, AT&T is unknown, and T-Mobile is unknown.