Best Tent Camping near Oconto, WI

Tent campsites near Oconto, Wisconsin range from established campgrounds to dispersed backcountry options in the surrounding forests. Newport State Park Campground, located on the Door Peninsula, offers walk-in tent sites with Lake Michigan shoreline access, while primitive tent camping is available at Oconto River off Mountain Lake Road, a dispersed camping area in the national forest. Old Veterans Lake County Park provides tent-specific sites with basic amenities for those seeking a more established camping experience.

Most primitive tent sites require campers to pack in their own water and supplies, as amenities are minimal. At Newport State Park, all tent sites are hike-in only, ranging from 0.5 to 2.5 miles from parking areas, with each site featuring a fire ring, bear box for food storage, and access to pit toilets. The dispersed tent camping along Oconto River features drive-in and walk-in access with limited facilities—pit toilets are available but no drinking water, trash service, or hookups. Campers should check seasonal restrictions, as some areas close during winter months or have specific fire regulations during dry periods.

Areas farther from developed campgrounds offer deeper seclusion and darker night skies for tent campers. One camper noted that Newport State Park "is a great place to take a short backpacking trip to quiet campsites that are near Lake Michigan," making it ideal for those new to backcountry tent camping. The Oconto River dispersed camping area provides a more rugged experience with direct river access, though reviews mention finding trash at some sites. Tent campers at Old Veterans Lake enjoy more privacy than typical campgrounds, with sites spaced well apart and easy lake access for swimming and fishing. Most backcountry tent sites in the region feature either lake or river frontage, providing natural water features as focal points for primitive camping experiences.

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Best Tent Sites Near Oconto, Wisconsin (10)

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Recent Tent Camping Photos near Oconto, WI

28 Photos of 10 Oconto Campgrounds


Tent Camping Reviews near Oconto, WI

453 Reviews of 10 Oconto Campgrounds


  • Fred S.The Dyrt PRO User
    Oct. 28, 2021

    Dovetail Acres Campground

    Relatively New RV Campground

    Convenient to Sister Bay in Door County, Wisconsin. Off of WI Hwy 57. Large open field. 27 pull-through RV sites are equipped to handle the biggest RV’s by providing 34′ x 75′ sites. 33 back-in RV sites. 10 walk in tent sites. Pets welcome - $5/day pet fee. New restrooms & showers. No cell service, but very good free WiFi service. Clean campsites, well maintained. No privacy between sites. Gravel driveways. Picnic table. Fire ring. Convenience store & gas station on site - Dovetail Trading Company & Citgo gas station. Registration in store. Accepts reservations. Campground was still open on Oct 23, 2021, even though it's season ended on Oct 18. This is a good campground for RVs. I camped here when I couldn't find another campground that had available sites. I thought it was overpriced for camping in my camper van with no hookups needed, but it was okay in a pinch.

  • Kirsty G.
    May. 1, 2019

    Newport State Park Campground

    Beautiful and easy hike in sites

    My husband and I stayed at Newport State Park April 12-13th, 2019. We hiked to site 16 but ended up hiking back to site 1 because there was still quite a bit of ice on Lake Michigan by site 16. Both campsites had a fire ring, camp bench seats and bear boxes. The privy by campsite 16 was preferable because it had a half wall instead of being enclosed. Campsite 1 shares its outhouse with campsite 2. The hiking was very easy with minimal elevation change. Lake Michigan was beautiful to look at. Being early spring in Wisconsin it was still slushy and was depositing ice on its shores. A great place for people looking to backpack/hike in. We will be going back.

  • H. K.
    Jun. 26, 2022

    Baileys Grove Travel Park and Campground

    Clean, friendly & overall great

    We really enjoyed this campground!

    The owners were very accommodating. We had a late check in and they still hooked us up with firewood, ice and quarters for laundry!

    It's super clean. The whole campground is nicely cared for. There are plenty of trees and shade.

    There are central flush toilets and showers plus portable toilets scattered throughout the campground. The port o potties are lit at night and pleasantly clean. I generally loathe port o potties but these were actually pretty nice.

    The laundry is open 24/7 which is really convenient.

    The individual sites have a picnic table, fire ring, electricity and water. There wasn't a tent pad but the ground was level.

    I definitely recommend this campground and will stay here again when I return to Door County.

  • Lee D.The Dyrt PRO User
    Jan. 14, 2025

    North Bay Shore Park

    Peaceful stay on the bay of Green Bay

    General/Site Quality: Small (35-site) campground on the west shore of the Bay of Green Bay; some have water and electricity, and some just have electricity. Sites 14-23 are on grass while the others have paved camper pads. All are level and very generous in size. While they don’t necessarily have a physical separation between them, sites are spaced a good distance apart from each other. Each site has a picnic table and a fire ring. In the center of the loop, there are some nice mature trees. 

    Bath/Shower: At one end of the loop, there is a two-stall, one-sink restroom for each gender plus two showers; at the other end of the loop there are two vault toilets. All were clean. 

    Activities/Amenities: There is quite a bit to do here. Fishing, boating (separate fee for the boat launch), swimming, kayaking (but you need to bring your own – although the literature says there are boat rentals, I did not see this). There is a nice playground and a smaller swing set; both are in different locations behind campsites, making it a bit awkward to access. In the day-use area, there is a fish cleaning station, a basketball hoop, and a somewhat dated playground. There used to be a volleyball area, but the net was no longer there. Self-serve firewood is available. There is a dump station.

    The fee of $20 per night was very reasonable and our stay was very quiet and peaceful for a campground that was about 2/3 full on a Monday after Father’s Day.

  • Kevin M.
    Sep. 5, 2016

    Newport State Park Campground

    Great for short backpacking trips

    Newport State park is a great place to take a short backpacking trip to quiet campsites that are near lake Michigan. I haven't been able to score a site yet with lake access but have heard there are some. The sites I have booked have both been large enough for 3 2-person tents and have a food storage bin in each.

    If you are new to backpacking and want to try out your pack before heading off on a multiday excursion, I would highly recommend coming here 1st.

    The rest of park offers a nice beach and some playground equipment for the kids.

  • Amanda L.
    Jul. 8, 2018

    Tennison Bay Campground — Peninsula State Park

    Quiet yet filled with scenic adventure

    This campground is HUGE! Definitely take a map if you’re offered one or find one. It is so beautiful, lots of shoreline and so many things to do from biking and hiking trails, to a lighthouse & museum and much more. Located in Door County, the peninsula also offers lots to do from Mini Golf to Shipwreck kayak tours. I could have spent a month here and still have more things to try out.

    Do beware of raccoons though! Be sure to put all food in your vehicles at night or if you leave the campsite. The showers weren’t amazing, but I did get to shower with a tree frog, so that’s an experience.

    I also suggest bringing an air mat or sleeping pad if you're tenting. The ground is really quite hard. We had a tough time getting our tent stakes into the ground and ended up tying the tent to trees in a couple spots instead!

    Visited June 2018

  • Adam S.
    Oct. 4, 2021

    Newport State Park Campground

    Backcountry Camping

    Site 12 is amazing.

    I have been coming to Newport for the last year and have stayed at sites 2, 9, and 12.

    All sites have a fire ring, bear box, and access to a toilet.

    Site 12 is my favorite of the three sites I've been to so far. It's a two mile hike, but I use a bike with a trailer which I highly recommend for any site if you don't like to hike your stuff in like me.

    There are two trees that are perfect for putting up a hammock near the shoreline. You can watch the sunrise to the east of you, and take a short walk down the shore to watch the sun set to the west of you.

    There is a private pit toilet for site 12, and the site is about a hundred yards off of the main trail so you definitely have privacy. Nobody really hikes this far down the trail at the park anyway.

    The stars at this park are amazing on a dark night as it is a dark sky area with no man-made light within many miles.

    Highly recommend Newport at any site if you are looking for a place that is more secluded.

  • Megan P.
    Aug. 22, 2019

    Baileys Woods Campground

    Our 1st pick for Door County Camping! Quiet and Close to Everything!

    We absolutely love this campground and it is our first pick when it comes to staying in Door County. It is in the middle of the Door Peninsula and just minutes from anything that you would be interested in doing, including catching amazing sunrises from downtown Bailey's Harbor (Just a short 1.2 mile walk away)! Main road in front of campground is not busy and its very easy to run or walk on without really having to worry about cars.

    The campground itself is small (.6 miles of roads if you walk every road in the campground), but the spaces are large with decent space between sites. The entire campground is in the woods, so each site is completely wooded. All roads and campsites are gravel, there is very little grass. If you are looking for grass to play on, they do have a large mowed area in along the road that is perfect. There is also a small playground for kids. Our children have a lot of fun on the playground and just running around our campsite. We don't need a pool, because there is an amazing public beach 5 minutes away in Bailey's Harbor. Other than the playground and very small camp store, there are no other amenities in the campground, but you don't really miss them because there is so much to do around Door County.

    There are tent only sites, pull through sites, and sites that will accommodate popup campers up to large pull behind campers. Seasonal sites are interspersed throughout the campground. All seasonal campers that we have met are very friendly. There are two bathroom buildings that have showers, one at the front of the campground and one at the back (which also houses 1 washer and 1 dryer). Bathrooms and showers have always been very clean. There are also porta potties by the tent only camping sites. There are also charging stations by the porta potties, since the tent only sites do not have electricity. Tents are allowed on electric only and water and electric sites. Owners are very accommodating and will allow you to put a camper and tent on the same site also. If needed, there are also sites which allow you to hook up to the septic system or you can drain your tank when you leave.

    Campground is dog friendly if your dog is on leash. They do sell firewood for $15 per wheelbarrow full (you fill, so you can get your money's worth on firewood if you stack it right). They do also allow you to bring in your own firewood. Owners allow campers to put charges for firewood and things bought in the store to be put on a tab that you can then close when you check out.

    This campground does not fill up too quickly. Depending on the time of year, you don't need much advance notice to book a site. If you would like to book for cherry season they recommended calling 4-6 weeks in advance. Otherwise I generally reserve a few weeks before arrival. They do provide a campground map on their website, so you can look ahead and choose your site. If you want one of the larger sites (pull through ones), I would suggest calling sooner rather than later because it sounds like those fill up faster.

  • E
    Jul. 8, 2018

    Newport State Park Campground

    Best hike-in camping in Wisconsin!

    This is the best place to camp in Wisconsin if you’re looking for a mix of outdoor adventure and touristy activities like drive in theaters and wine tastings. The site we stayed at was a 1.5 mile hike in. You could definitely bring a mountain bike to make the trip to and from your campsite faster but we enjoyed the hike. I’ve been for 2 separate 3-day trips and never once saw another camper. The sites are far enough apart to feel like no one else is around. Enjoy the best that Wisconsin has to offer!


Guide to Oconto

Tent camping near Oconto, Wisconsin offers a serene escape into nature, with a variety of campgrounds that cater to outdoor enthusiasts looking for a peaceful retreat.

Tent campers should check out River Park

  • Enjoy the stunning views and privacy at River Park, where each campsite is well-separated, allowing for a more remote camping experience.
  • This campground allows pets and features amenities like drinking water and picnic tables, making it a convenient choice for families.
  • Campers can enjoy activities such as kayaking and fishing along the river, enhancing the outdoor experience.

Local attractions near Oconto for outdoor fun

  • Explore the beautiful trails and scenic views at Old Veterans Lake County Park, perfect for hiking and fishing.
  • The nearby Pemene Falls Site offers a unique boat-in camping experience, ideal for those looking to combine water activities with their camping trip.
  • For ATV enthusiasts, McClintock County Park provides easy access to trails, making it a great spot for adventurous campers.

Tent campers appreciate these amenities at Harbour Village Campground & Water Park

  • Families will love the spacious sites and fun activities for kids at Harbour Village Campground & Water Park, which features a swimming pond and a water slide.
  • This campground is well-reviewed for its clean facilities and friendly atmosphere, ensuring a pleasant stay for all visitors.
  • With its drive-in access and pet-friendly policy, it’s an excellent choice for those traveling with furry companions.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is the most popular tent campsite near Oconto, WI?

According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular tent campground near Oconto, WI is Newport State Park Campground with a 4.8-star rating from 34 reviews.

What is the best site to find tent camping near Oconto, WI?

TheDyrt.com has all 10 tent camping locations near Oconto, WI, with real photos and reviews from campers.