Best Cabin Camping near Merrillan, WI

This is a diamond in the rough - exactly what we wanted on our journey.  Our criteria - less than $100, pet friendly and rustic. 

This is a sawmill that has it all - they run the mill when needed, but also have primitive cabins (where we stayed), full cabins with in house bath, electric RV/tent camping and more. Even wood fired pizzas with homemade crust most nights of the week and sometimes live music!

We were in cabin #3 - rustic.  Yes - it did have heat!  A little ceramic heater had it so toasty when it was 30 degrees outside we actually turned it off - so it's sure to please on chilly nights.  The interior was amazing - lumber that I'm sure came from the mill and ceiling planks that were gorgeous - left over planks from many years ago, stored in a shed and re-purposed for the cabin. The bed was very comfortable with clean sheets and squishy (in a good way) pillows. A small covered front porch and we just parked in front.

Bathroom - if you are in a cabin without a bath, it's very nearby. One of the largest, cleanest bathrooms I've seen.  He built it himself. Women's had 2 sinks with a large vanity area, about 3 stalls (very large - you don't have to squish into them) and two very large shower stalls with full doors - not shower curtains. Heated as well.

Pets - easy pet policy. Just let the owner know and it's no problem as long as you are responsible, pick up after them and leash them when necessary.  Just a small charge for them and they were very welcomed here.

He even has event space indoors (heated) and outdoors for weddings and such.  And hiking trails (6 miles) if you choose to take on the outdoors.

The owner plans on adding saunas and a hot tub in the near future - so this would be the place to drop for a while if you want something out of the norm, peaceful, rustic and relaxing. It's off the main road, behind a field in Amish Country.  Lovely place to stay for the night. Very quiet.

A great campground for a nice getaway, Cabins are affordable and packed with amenities. There is a small camp store and boat rental where firewood is available. Camp store not open on weekends

We were visiting our daughter in nearby Winona, MN. This place is also close to La Crosse WI. We stayed here three nights. We had very loose plans and called for a tent spot six months before our reservations. I was impressed Sandy, from front office, remembered me and our conversation. We upgraded to a cabin because rain and cold nights were expected. The cabin was the one for 4 people. The bed was really comfortable! There was a queen and a set of bunk beds. The cabin is small. Besides the bed there was one chair, a table, and a heater. No bathroom. The heater didn't work and it was replaced promptly. Cute little porch with a swing seat. It was all we needed so it was fine. The bathrooms were exceptionally clean. Hubby and son had a good hot shower, mine took awhile to heat up and stay heated. Laundry room was clean. There was a rec room with a pool table and pinball machines. There's a pool there but it was empty when we got there. Too cold to swim anyway. A large shelter area has a gas grill we were able to use. The two 4-person cabins are right by the entry way. You are far enough from the highway that traffic noise is not a problem. The main tent/RV area is behind the office. The sites are close together. The bigger cabin has a half bath and is in this area but a bit secluded.There's a playground for kids near the tent area. There is a creek that runs through the campground and you have the great Mississippi river on the other side of the highway. I really can't say enough though about the customer service of this place. Sandy was very accommodating to our changing needs. Even let us use the dump station a day early. I would stay here again. There aren't a lot of options in Winona and this was the least expensive and friendly!

Over all a great campground. Tons of rv spots and maybe a couple dozen tent sights have a minigolf course and a shop and can rent cabins as well. Have kayakes paddleboats and canoes for rent as well. Also have a beach with lifeguard on duty.

The cons tons of people and the lake more like a large pond is not to big u canno put any of your own boats on it and cannot wade in the creek but it is a beautiful place if u love tapps u can here it from the military base nearby several times a day

We enjoyed our stay at Champions as a getaway weekend. The food from the bar was amazing as an option, the kids stuff was busy at all times (showing us with older children) how happy the kids were. Our teenagers were still engaged in the activity of camping. We brought their bikes along which was fun to hit the bike trails at midway. We did find out the campground charters a canoe trip so if we had planned better we will do that next time. Great family time to get away. Very down to earth community business.

We stayed one with ones day notice after Labor Day. The site was waterfront and one hr prior to arriving experienced a mechanical problem with our tow vehicle. We made it to the campground. They were extremely helpful so much so that we were able to diagnose and resolve the issue on site with tools on hand. The restrooms were spotless. It appears many of the sites are season rentals.

Large sites. All type of rentals available. You name it, they have it. You are required to be military, DOD or retired military to rent some high dollar items (Pontoon, Boat with motor). Also boat safety certification required. North impact area is North of campgrounds. Mortors shooting one evening when we was there. Reveille, call to mess, retreat, tattoo and taps daily. If you was in the military and haven't heard bugle calls for awhile, this is the place.

Most of the campground is permanent campers. Many have added porches and landscaping to sites. Most of the permanent people are friendly and welcoming to overnight visitors. The feel of the campground is it centralized around the bar and the kids entertainment was just to babysit. The pool was overrun by kids so adults weren’t swimming. The campground hires immigrants to run all of the activities so because of the COVID-19 they were short staffed. Laser tag, zip line and the crafts were all closed. The zip line area and beach were not taken care of at all! Very over grown with weeds. We tried hiking around the river shore to find the beach but never found it. That area probably hasn’t been cared for in 5-10 years. The mosquitos were bad, they would come out in huge waves and sometimes we couldn’t stand being out of the camper. The roads were very dusty and since they rent out golf carts there is always traffic. It would’ve been nice for them to wet down roads occasionally to limit dust in the air. Many of the staff was friendly and frequently drove thru asking how the weekend was going which was nice. However one morning the owner drove thru and was very rude and strict. She threatened to take away our rented golf cart because our licensed 17 year old driver looked to young to drive. She was listed as a driver on all of the rental paperwork.

Overall it wasn’t a horrible weekend. The kids had fun swimming, we got out as a family to enjoy a weekend away from home. It just won’t be a campground that we return to.

Tons of activities at this campground! They have inflatable rafts, a game room, a pool, boat dock, permanent and non sites, sand pit for kids, pounce pad, basketball court and playground; it has more than enough to keep everyone busy!

This place is priced around the same as other places you might camp around Wisconsin and I believe is privately owned. The facilities are kept clean...there are always staff running around picking up or cleaning. WiFi was not free.

We stayed here for 2 nights on the way to Illinois over the summer. It was a busy campground and right off the highway. It seemed to be a mix of seasonal campers and people there for ATVing. There were constantly ATVs going in and out of the campground. Between that and the highway it was pretty noisy. The staff were friendly.