New Glarus Woods State Park

Handful of sites, not very level. Lots of bugs, had raccoons fighting outside my tent. Was right across from the New Glarus brewery.

Small rustic campground, large sites. Beautiful area. Trails are well groomed and easy hikes. Great bakery in town!

This campground is small, which is what drew us to visit. About half the sites are walk-in, which made us believe they would be quiet and secluded. There was no one next to us, but it was far from quiet.

These sites are right next to the highway and (at least during the week) are subject to continuous, round the clock highway noise. The highway seems to be a regular truck route, with lots of semis driving by at all hours. Since the campground is in a hill, you get to hear the trucks revving up for a climb, then engine-breaking on the way down. Super fun to wake up to multiple times throughout the night! It was jarring, and we barely slept. Not a great time, especially when we had our toddler with us.

Maybe it’s better over the weekend? But weekdays? This spot is an absolute nightmare and should be avoided.

The Bison Trail was a beautiful trail running through a prairie. It was right next to a busy road, but still worth it. Not sure if I would camp, it’s a very small park, but glad I stopped

Camped here in a camper van. Very quiet (mid week in September). Very well maintained trails. Most sites are spacious, shady. I did not check out the tent sites, but the one I did see was really nice. A bit of highway noise, certainly nothing bad.

I camped at New Glarus Woods for two nights during a warm stretch in November, 2020 while hiking the Ice Age Trail. Wooded campsites with fire rings. Clean, pit toilets and water pumps. Definitely a great campground for those looking to car camp while segment hiking the Ice Age Trail.

Throughout the summer of 2020, I camped at a number of Wisconsin state parks in the southern part of the state but hadn't gotten to camp at this one yet. While driving through the area I visited the park in December- photos won't show its summertime beauty but my walk through the park identified some ideal spots for camping. 

The state park is open year-round, camping open May - October. The first thing I visited were the walk-in campsites. There is a loading zone parking lot with limited time parking. Access to the 14 walk-in sites is via a single trail with campsites on either side of the trail. There is a decrepit but functional pit toilet. All the walk-in sites have a picnic table and each is tucked off the trail into the woods.

The downside to the walk-in sites is their proximity to a major highway. While walking through the campground I could easily hear the road noise. If I were looking to get away from civilization, or at least pretend to be far away from it all, that road noise would be a constant reminder that I wasn't. The further down the walk-in site trail I got, the closer I got to the highway and in fact, car headlights showed right up the trail as I was approaching the last set of campsites.

When looking at a map and choosing a site, the walk-in campsites on the same side of the trail as the toilet are a little more private and secluded, and back up to expansive woods. The sites on the other side of the trail are nice but they are a little closer to the freeway and don't have as much forest coverage behind the campsites. The furthest walk-in site is at least a 4-minute (slightly downhill) walk from the parking lot. The centrally-located restroom is no more than 2 minutes from any of the walk-in campsites. Sites are between 40 and 1,000 feet from the walk-in loading zone.

If walking to your campsite isn't your thing there is also a family campground with 17 drive-in (not drive through) sites located along a typical one-way paved road system. Unfortunately, this side of the state park is bordered by a different and only slightly less traveled road than the walk-in sites. Some campsites are sandwiched between the loop road and the main road, are lit by nighttime traffic headlights lights. As the campground road continues toward the group campground it veers away from the main road and offers a bit more privacy. These are the sites I'd select if I were to camp here.

Of the group campsites, 55 and 56 are in a nicely wooded area with shade. 52 53 and 54 are in an open area with no shade. The family campground is serviced by two pit toilets centrally located to the campsites.

Due to the very small size of this state park, lack of much to do except one hiking trail through it, and proximity to two main roads, I would not recommend the state park. There are many others in southern Wisconsin that have far more to offer. 

Seriously, if you're looking for a Wisconsin state park in this neck of the woods, check out Yellowstone Lake or Blue Mound State Park instead. See my review of the latter for specific spots that would be awesome for tent camping.

Although the park is tiny and you can’t really escape the sound of the road, the walk-in sites are spaced out well and heavily wooded. Perfect for a quick escape from city life.

This is a small, rustic campground with water and vault toilets. The outhouses are in need of some TLC or just a once through with a leaf blower. Most sites offer privacy with the over growth of trees and bushes which is lovely but in warmer months, it also means lot of bugs. There are drive-up sites, walk-in sites and a group campground. The drive-up sites are next to the road so you do hear cars all night/day and it is a tiny space so voices carry. It’s proximity to the brewery and the restaurants, shops, and bars of New Glarus, can’t be beat. Also on the Sugar River Trail so bring your bike!

The campground was small with only sites. There were only a few sites available to accommodate campers most were tent only. It was primitive with no electricity or showers available. Sites were secluded and wooded. A great bike trail starts right in the campground and goes for many miles. The famous New Glarus Brewery is right across the street. The old Swiss town is perfect for a weekend getaway.

Great spot for a weekend getaway. My fiancé and I actually spent 2 nights here and although it poured rain for half the trip, we still enjoyed every bit of it. We hiked one of the trails on site that we thought would only take 20-30 minutes, but ended up taking nearly 2 hours! There was a lot to gawk at too—got so many great photos. Even though it was Labor Day weekend, the park wasn’t crazy busy which made it better. Close enough to the small town and far enough for peace and quiet!

Note - this review is for the walk-up sites only This is our go-to campground when we decide we want to go camping with short notice. The park itself is neither very popular nor very interesting, so there are usually still sites available for reservation only a few days before your intended camping trip. The park itself isn't that interesting, but it is worth noting that it is located across the road from New Glarus Brewery. The brewery is an easy walk or bike ride from the walk-in campsites.

We have camped at several of the walk-in sites. The sites are all located along the bike trail, and carts are available for transporting your gear which means you can bring more gear than you would bring backpacking. The walk-in sites have a good amount of space between each site, however the sites on the east side of the bike trail get less level the further you get from the parking lot. All sites are shaded and have fire pits and picnic tables. The sites on the west side of the trail are more level but closer to the trail, so you have less privacy from passers-by. Our personal favorite site is #19. It is the closest site to the parking lot on the east side of the trail, but you have to take a short foot-path off the main trail to get to the site and the site itself can't actually be seen from the trail or the parking lot. This makes it very quiet and private, but still not too far from your car. The campgrounds do have a lot of raccoons so it is nice to be within an easy walk of your vehicle if you would prefer to secure your food. Site 19 is also very level and spacious, with plenty of room for at least two good sized tents. You can hear some road noise in all of the walk-in sites due to the highway being near by, but it's buffered a bit by the woods so it is more of a white noise.

The walk-ins have a vault toilet centrally located along the trail, and it has always been clean whenever we've camped there. A water spigot is also located centrally among the walk-in sites. You can take a short hike to the park's ampitheater from the walk-in sites, but they do not have programs very often.

Only stayed one night, we were in the area to visit New Glarus Brewery and do a river float trip in Albany (though we couldn’t do the float trip because the water level was too high).

I enjoyed our night here but I don’t think I would return to this campground. We were at sites 15 & 16 which is right off a county highway. I was surprised how close it was to the road, and it’s not just a road in the state park, it’s a highway with thru traffic. Also the smell of the vault toilets was almost unbearable, I would avoid campsite next to/directly across from the toilets...there some trails that if we’d had more time I would have loved to explore.

If I return I would be interested in checking out the walk in or group campsites.

Beautiful camp site where you forget the high way is nearby. The small town this site is located in was cute as well as they show off their Scandinavian heritage. Would highly recommend checking out the New Glarus brewery as well as it's one of the cleanest, and most impressive breweries I've been to yet. The amount of copper in the brewery was truly breath taking.

This park is a favorite stop of ours when we want to go visit new glarus brewery for a few beers. It's about a mile and half away. The park is simple. There are some really shallow tent spots though, so make sure you reserve in advance. The sites are clean, each with a fire ring and a table. Some have gravel, some dont. Some are deep enough that you forget where you are once in the tent for the night. The only thing I cant get over is the vault toilets. I would have thought they updated these by now. Creaky wood doors, BRIGHT lights, and always buggy. And of course the gross smell when it really heats up. But, at least theres a toilet. No sinks. There are some nice short walking trails and very close to a good biking trail. Wonderful town to stop in and eat at as well.

New Glarus Woods is a small State Park tucked away in the Southern Wisconsin countryside. Drive-in sites come with nice amenities. Walk-in sites offer a bit more solitude from the neighbors but nearby highway traffic is audible. One of these highways bisects the park so the occasional truck will drive by, but drivers are usually respectful of campers and day hikers.