Elma is the perfect place for adventurous campers and RVers. There are tons of hikes and other fun activities to partake in, as well as sights to see and explore. You're sure to find the perfect campground for your Elma camping trip.
$12 - $45 / night
"This is a very nice, typical Washington state park with plenty of trees, greenery, hiking, pathways and even a lake."
"It was rainy and the fire pit area had plenty of puddles. Lots of folks came in later in the evening with multiple cars and sat out talking; plenty of them packed up and left before 8 am."
"It is located at the base of Summit Lake, with a dock and great swimming spot. There are tent sites, adirondacks, and cabins. There is a great big field and lots of trails."
"This campground is about 45 minutes south of Quinault Lake in Olympic NP. So it adds a lot of extra time and miles to explore ONP. It is about 20 minutes to the beaches, which was great."
"Bathrooms are clean. Laundry facility works really well. And the little walking trails along the river were gorgeous. Again, for a tiny town, this site was a treat."
$35 - $90 / night
"Coho campground is a forested campground overlooking a large alpine lake. Lots of old growth forest, birds and squirrels live in the campground."
"Coho campground is a wonderful spot but it is a 35 miles off of the highway. If you go, pack everything you need. There are no stores or gas stations once you hit the paved road to the campground."
$12 - $50 / night
"Decided to take my pups camping, invested in a ton of gear and chose Twin Harbors based on the short distance to the beach as well as crabbing in Westport."
"We took our small children to Twin Harbors and found it to be a nice escape from the heat."
"Great quiet park with friendly staff always there to help. Bathrooms and showers are clean but super cold in the fall season. Each site is laid out to be so private and filled with trees."
"It’s close enough to both Seattle and Portland to make the drive fairly painless, and once we arrived, it was easy to set up in our stall."
"Good location and good price that felt safe. Okay spot to stop for RVs passing through. Also has a store, laundry, and the bathrooms were clean."
"The staff was so friendly and the surroundings fairly peaceful and wooded. This isn’t fancy, and there are quite a few long-timers, but it was as expected."
$24 / night
"In fact, this campsite is a nice trail gateway to Olympic National Park. Ranger station as you drive in, different elevations for each set of campsites."
"One of the prettiest lakes in Washington. Can get pretty busy in the summer but mostly empty otherwise. Little to no cell service. lots of options for camping and backroads all around."
$25 / night
"The campground is small and right off the road but traffic noise isn't bothersome, particularly if you snag a site on the lake. Overall, you can't beat the location. "
"This beautiful lakeside camping spot is perfect for a weekend at Lake Quinault!"
"Electrical HU only but dump site available. It's right off the beach with a little shop in walking distance. There's also a motel with an accessible laundry room nearby."
"Our Trip down the coast ended at Pacific Beach Washington, camp or rent a cottage and walk off deck to your own private ocean front spot!!"
LegendThis is a very nice, typical Washington state park with plenty of trees, greenery, hiking, pathways and even a lake. There's a camp store along with several large outdoor kitchens that would be good to use for groups. Many of the structures like the kitchens and even bathrooms were built back in the 1930s by the CCC, which is pretty cool. It's just far enough off I-5 to not have the freeway noise, but close enough to be convenient. It's also nearby to Great Wolf Lodge if you're looking for a place to stay near there.
On the other hand, the RV sites especially are basically in a big field with a cement road going around it. The sites have tables and fire pits, but no privacy what-so-ever. The tent sites are slightly better, with more trees, but still very close to one another.
The campground also has glamping available (canvas permanent tents) that looked cool.
TravelerBeautiful spot, though tightly packed and crowded/noisy. We stayed in spot 59 on a Saturday night. It was rainy and the fire pit area had plenty of puddles. Lots of folks came in later in the evening with multiple cars and sat out talking; plenty of them packed up and left before 8 am. We walked the fen trail, which was spooky and different from our home of Colorado! Reservations needed. There are also glamping cabins. Nice clean bathrooms with flush toilets, water available at multiple locations, showers available with tokens.
ScoutThis an ideal beach access resort. There is a very nice pedestrian walkway bridge over a small stream and then a short walk through the dunes to a beautiful ocean beach. During certain times of the year vehicles are allowed to drive on the beach through various access points within a couple of miles of the resort.
We visited this resort during the off-season in November and during the middle of the week. There were only 8 other campers in the park with a few long termers. You can purchase a membership but it is not necessary to stay here. Visitors are welcome but it can be very busy during the summer time and holidays. I would call for availability.
This is an older park and facilities show their age but the bathrooms and showers were very clean. There is a dedicated tent only area and a few cabin rentals. RV sites are side by side and back to back. There is no shade. RV sites are full hookup with water, power, sewer and cable. There is also a dump site on location. Wi-fi is available for a fee, otherwise not accessible. We forgot to sign-in to our Winegard Gateway before arriving so we had data but no Wi-fi. Gravel sites with a little grass and fairly level.
Pet friendly but dogs must be leashed. Our dog had a great time running on the beach and walking the trails in the dunes.
Propane and ice available on site.
There is a community fire pit and portable propane fire pits are allowed at the sites.
Not all sites have picnic tables.
The town of Ocean Shores is about a 20 minute drive.
On site resort manager, Timothy and his wife, were very friendly and always willing to help.
TravelerI have camped here a number of times over the years. This is a nice woodsy campground just south of Olympia, WA located on Deep lake. It has a very old growth forest feel to it. This campground offers many activities: hiking trails, fitness trails,fishing, boat rental, and even a concession stand. The fishing is good for trout,bass, and sun fish. This park offers both hookup and non utility tent sites as well as glamping tents.
Cons: most of the hookup sites are in a field with zero privacy but there are a few that are much better like the last spot I stayed at.
The primitive sites are better but the roads are quite narrow with limited access for RV's.
The "Glamping tents"are very nice but crazy expensive at over $300 a night. Like most of the State Parks reservations book up quickly so it pays to plan ahead
Pros: fishing is pretty good even from shore. The day use area is great but pretty rustic. Lots of trails to hike but not as well marked as I would expect. Really close to Seattle so it is ideal for a weekend getaway Friday after work.
LegendWhen venturing to Mount St Helens area I wanted to find a campground relatively close by to stay before visiting the next day. I found Lewis and Clark State Park along the way and opted to give it a shot for an overnight. The site looked comfortable and quiet and was well shaded and welcoming.
Pulling into the campground I noticed several areas to enjoy recreationally alongside camping including public park areas with covered outdoor kitchen zones perfect for those enjoying the area for day use. Additionally there were several areas with play equipment and outdoor activities for singles or the family to enjoy.
Pulling into the camping loop area sites were well spaced and shaded by large vibrant trees. Soft mosses lined walkways and created a feeling of being deep into the forest without being far removed from actual civilization and it was a nice departure from many of the more commercial looking camps of the area which lacked the forest feel.
The camp site I chose was equipped with the standard amenities of a picnic table and fire ring and the pull in section was just large enough for my smaller car. Throughout camp I did notice some sites were designed specifically for tent campers while others would cater better to larger units. Something unique about this location was it offered bike in campers sites as well with much smaller pull in areas but just as much space to spread out and set up their tents.
The bath house was very nice as it was heated and had hot water, though when I was there I did encounter a slight concern with using this bathhouse because there was a current e coli water warning which was displayed throughout camp on all water spigots. This left me more than a little leary about using the water in the bathroom turning what could have been a warm amazing shower into a bit of a concerning experience.
Because of this concern I noticed they had hand sanitizer placed in the restrooms, which was a great concession considering the issue at hand.
While this was a campsite I did enjoy, I feel as though with the water concerns I could not fully embrace all the features of camp which did hinder me slightly from fully being able to embrace all of the options. Should I return to this area I would check in advance to see if the water was a concern before staying another night.
The campground, like many in the area, advocate recycling. Not only will you find trash cans and dumpsters throughout camp but you will also find recycling barrels scattered throughout camp. I truly enjoyed this feature of the park as it is making a difference in the bigger picture and you can commonly find items created from recycled items such as benches and tables located throughout various state parks as continued improvements occur.
All in all, for someone just wanting to enjoy a night at a quiet campground this would be a great one to check out in the area. While it lacks some of the amenities of other campgrounds in the area which are more destination style camps it has a lot of charm for those wanting to enjoy fun with family or friends in a more traditional camping style.
TIPS:
TravelerThe Quinault Lake campground in Olympic National Forest is one of those rare quiet and scenic car-camping sites where you can fully immerse yourself in the beauty of the place without having to backpack or drive up rugged remote roads. We camped in early October and there were many beautiful sites to choose from. And I mean beautiful. We chose a site right on the lake with a tent platform under a Western red cedar and a separate section with a full table. There was a bathroom just a short 2 minute walk away. It rained - as it tends to do in the Olympics - all night but with the shade of the cedar and our waterproof tent we remained dry. The campground is just down the road from the Lake Quinault Lodge - a beautiful, rustic resort where we showered in the morning, sat by a roaring fire, and got a delicious (and decently priced) breakfast.
LegendWhen we go crabbing it is usually our of Tokeland. We checked out Bay Center and were so pleasantly surprised by this KOA. This place really has it all!!
-Full Hookups, complimentary showers, wifi, cable, and a snack bar.
They have clam beds just for campers, or a day fee for those wanting to rake without camping. Some of the sites are pretty open but if you went with a large family it would be perfect. You can only have 4 people to a tent campsite and 6 to an RV site, which puts some limitations on people.
They have spaces for RV's and trailers, tents, cabins, yurts and even have trailers you can rent to stay in on site!
This is a great spot for families who do not necessarily want to rough it and want to enjoy a smooth weekend being cared for by great hosts!
GuideThis place had it all; open RV camping, secluded van camping, tree canopy car/tent camping, walk-in camping, and themed safari tent camping, and one cute mini airstream.
Lake down the road. Water and electrical hookups, dump station with dump water and fresh water.
Restrooms and showers are scattered around. Showers are coin based and there is a machine to turn your dollars into coins.
TravelerDecided to take my pups camping, invested in a ton of gear and chose Twin Harbors based on the short distance to the beach as well as crabbing in Westport. It was great, the bathrooms were clean, staff incredibly friendly! The east side camp sites were reservable and private with trees around each site, and the West side first come first serve but closer to the beach. I had reserved on the east side but ended up moving to the West side since my pups love the water. There's a fire pit in each site and picnic table. Just overall great experience
Frequently Asked Questions
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular glamping campground near Elma, WA is Millersylvania State Park Campground with a 4.1-star rating from 31 reviews.
TheDyrt.com has all 39 glamping camping locations near Elma, WA, with real photos and reviews from campers.
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