Best Glamping near Merrimac, WI

Conveniently located next to absolutely nothing just due northwest of Fort Atkinson, you’ll love Pilgrim’s Campground for its successful delivery of (capital letters) P&Q! What I love most about this location is how they keep all the RV campers penned in up against the slight diagonal embankment, which actually provides some pretty phenomenal views of the surrounding areas (if not your next door neighbors) as well as excellent drainage and subsequently separated from the primitive TV campsites. These latter sites are placed just due southwest of the grounds and are pitched perfectly in a tree-lined meadow, encircled by freshly cut corn fields, where you’ll find no shortage of amazing animals coming to graze throughout the day (and night) from deer, raccoons, opossums and endless tag teams of squirrels. 

Because there isn’t so much around, be prepared to bring everything with you (save ice and wood, which is sold on-site). While the bathroom / shower facilities are just passable, what you are giving up in terms of creature comforts is more than made up for in the sheer proximity to all of nature. During the warm summer months, there’s a small in-ground pool on-site, which sits right in front of the main office. All of the standard camping surround-sound elements are here from fire rings and picnic tables to water, electrical (50 / 30 / 20 / 15 amp) and sewer hook-ups. In all, there’s about 100 sites here at Pilgrims Campground, with the lion’s share of this pet-friendly property dedicated to overnight and seasonal RV / 5th Wheelers offering both back-in and pull-through sites. 

Insider’s Tips? Here’s a few: (1) If you don’t mind some rough hiking, there’s fantastic ‘spazierengehen’ to be had just wandering around the countryside in the bountiful corn and bean fields or head over to nearby Dorothy Carnes County Park for some decent trails to explore; (2) In the event that you don’t like being awaken too early from all of the nearby roosters, then bring some ear plugs; (3) When you grow tired of having to forage through either your on-board RV mini-fridge or bear-proof Cordova roto-molded cooler, then look no further than ‘What’s the Point’ (no, seriously, that's the name of the restaurant!) for traditional Midwestern comfort food like corned beef & cabbage, fried fish, BBQ ribs and prime rib; (4) Should you come bearing watercraft and looking for a decent spot to dip your kayak or canoe at, then check out Rose Lake State Natural Area, which BTW is quite small, but very convenient, or try out much larger Red Cedar Lake or Lake Ripley; and (5) Cell coverage and WiFi is pretty horrific in these parts, so bring a booster or plan to leave civilization behind you. 

Happy Camping!

This is our second stay here as RV campers. We stayed for 3 nights over the Memorial Day weekend, and it was packed with campers. There are 2 main sections of the campground: the new part that is all full hook-up RV sites and the older part which is a mix of W/E and S/W/E. The new section will be a lot better next year, but *just* finished construction and it is still a wide open area. It was dusty and hot because the grass isn't gown in yet, there's still a ton of sand, and no trees. So the new sites currently have little to no shade (see pictures). If you have a big rig and need pull through with full hook up, it may be worth it. We chose to get a smaller campsite with just W/E because there are trees and shade, and it just feels a little more like camping. Also have spots for hanging hammocks, and some sites are positioned well for groups.

Despite the very crowded campground, the bathrooms were immaculate. Even the Men's room was super clean. They have 3 indoor showers in each gender bathroom, and a couple of outdoor shower stalls. The pool was also open, and warm enough to swim in. They also had some fun activities for the kids, but it was a challenge to maintain safe distancing with all of the interested people.

I think this is a great campground for families that want some of the nicer amenities (pool, rental bikes, games, etc) that the nearby state parks are lacking. It's our preferred campground to use as base camp for hiking and exploring nearby. You're only a 10 min drive from the Dells, but you have the fee of an up north campground. The owners are super helpful and nice. Once the  new area fills in with grass and some shade trees, this place will be 5 stars in my book. Did I mention there are 2 dog play areas? Really well kept and a wonderful touch.

We camped on site 120, a “red carpet” site which means full hooks ups, grill, fire pit, cement slab, 2 wrist bands to do the activities and 2 welcome drinks. I used to come here as a kid and the park still looks very similar still- nostalgic for sure! But they’ve definitely made some upgrades to the pool- which has a slide a separate hot tub and a separate kids area. The roads are wide enough, but very narrow. We are a 33.6 ft rig so navigating around parked cars was a challenge as people had their vehicles right to the road. TIP: the site markers come out of the ground so if you need to, remove it so you can get in. There is TONS OF STUFF for kids to do here!!! It was Halloween theme weekend so there was trick or treating, a haunted house, dance party… lots of stuff. My fav thing as an adult is the “Hey ride!” They pile people onto a trailer turned wagon and drive around the park and yell “HEEEEEYYYYYYYYY” to every person they see!!! (Don’t forget to say “Hey!” back and wave! 🙂) it’s so fun to see the kids on that thing! They also do ceramics and have a wonderful selection of food at the Pool (as well as a wonderfully stocked bar.) They do Yogi Bear Cartoons each night which is neat! The rent golf carts by 30 minutes but the park isn’t giant, you don’t really need a cart unless it’s for the hills. If you go to the boat area- take your vehicle if you don’t want a work out on the way back up.

Sherwood Forest Campground is a long time family run campground in an excellent location for enjoying all that the Wisconsin Dells has to offer. Our site had 50 amp electric, water and sewer connections. We were situated on the upper ridge of the campground, furthest from the office/camp store and swimming pool. Our showers were very disappointing. The shower stall had a single stackable plastic lawn chair and a curtain. No mirror, no towel bar or hook, no shelf or caddy in the shower for toiletries. To operate the shower, one must push in the valve, hope the water is a suitable temperature, and repeat after about 20 seconds, or keep pushing while performing your ablutions one handed. The swimming pool, while advertised as heated to 80 degrees, was not heated at all. There is a fairly complete camp store, a splash pad for kids, a game room and laundry available. Some seasonal sites are also available.

We came here to enjoy some river tubing! Free shuttle takes you up river for a 3 hour float trip. We reserved one campsite for 2 couples. There was a picnic table, fire pit and electric hookup onsite. Port o potties and spigot nearby and a dumpster for trash. They have non electric camp sites along with RV sites and cabins with everything you could need including kitchen and tv. Seems like a lot of people stay there for the long haul as there are some trailer homes with heavy decoration.

The general store has everything you would need available for purchase and there's a large bar/restaurant attached. We were there the same day of a wedding reception. Free mini golf and swimming pool for campers. Bugs were a bit of an issue but thats expected. The river is clean with a shallow sandy bottom which attracts many parties and fun times. Not exactly the place for a quiet getaway.

This was my first and probably last time camping at Cox Hollow. Let’s start with positive: easy access to the campsite I was able to park my car right by the tent. Bathrooms and showers seemed clean enough, but I would recommend wearing some sort of footwear while you shower. Now the negatives: loud and obnoxious families with screaming bratty kids, people leave food scraps so raccoons are not scared and come right up to you sniffing for food, people have zero courtesy and slam bathroom door non stop, not to mention slamming down dumpster lids literally all day and late into the evening. Oh and did I mention screaming kids? Apparently “quiet hours” are from 11pm-8am, well the noise continued almost into midnight hours and as early as 6:30am. Thumping stereos with loud music, also can’t blame dogs for barking, but we had a howler and it kept going all the time. Forget about sleeping in or enjoying the sounds of nature. I’d like try different campsite at this park, but won’t be returning to Cox Hollow.

Overall my family LOVED this campground. There is a decent sized pool that is clean and well-maintained with a smaller kiddie pool with a slide. There is also a man-made lake with a beach for swimming and bigger kids to enjoy the large inflatable slides and swim platforms. The campground is right on the river, and provides rentals for canoes, kayaks, and tubes. They will shuttle you as far up the river as you'd like to go, and you float or paddle back while enjoying all the sand bars along the way.

As an RV campground, the sites were level and grassy with at least one tree per lot. In the sites closer to the pool and lagoon (swim lake), they offer little privacy but are great for multi-family groups. We got a site with some woods in the back, so it was more quiet and private. The electrical and water hook ups were conveniently located, and the site was easy to get into. There were a lot of big Class A motorhomes, so the sites are plenty big. The tent sites are further away from the action, but have easy access to another bathroom and shower. They're also close to the river, and back up to a large corn field. There's a row of pine trees for easy hammock set up, and open grassy areas to let your group sprawl. The bathrooms were clean and nice, but they do have a $1 min for a shower. There is a change machine in the laundry facility.

The Resort also has an extensive camp shop and a huge restaurant with outdoor riverside seating. With live music and a full bar, this made for a really relaxing atmosphere if you're not up to campfire cooking. 

We enjoyed this campground and it's friendly staff and campers. Even through there are a lot of people there so you're not isolated in the woods, it wasn't loud or obnoxious with partiers. It's Wisconsin, so everybody was drinking beers and having fun but it wasn't loud and rowdy. The best part is the location on the Wisconsin River- you can get your fill of quiet solitude on the water, or float in a tube with a case of beer if you like. We enjoyed ourselves and can't wait to go back! It’s a great spot to use as home base for river trips, and don’t forget the Spring Green Desert conservancy nearby. Who knew there were cactuses in Wisconsin? Total hike is about 3.2 miles round trip, with a gorgeous view of the valley.

So I think my impression of this campground mostly has to do with the fact that although it’s an actual campground unlike what we usually do (dispersed camping), it was completely secluded. We were the only ones with a tent, and the rest of the people there were people who had set up semi-permanent RV homes. Although we did see some really cool set-ups, we didn’t see a soul and we weren’t mad about it! They had showers and a pool, as well as other amenities such as toilets and fire pits.This was definitely a relaxing spot, with very little noise and relative seclusion. Also to add the fire pits were actually metal rings, so you can move them wherever you want. Would definitely return!!