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Being from the central U.S., I definitely know my way around the midwest and can totally tell you the hot outdoor spots to check out for the best camping.  While I love to explore the neighboring states close to my home, I know there’s a WHOLE lot more awesome outdoor spots to discover.  I know I overlook many lovely spots and today I want to make that right by highlighting some of the absolute best spots on the east coast for camping and being outdoors.  I think I just go on autopilot and automatically think of the western U.S. along with the mid west for great outdoor experiences .

This is probably because when I think of the east coast, my mind automatically goes to all the big cities and urban areas the east is known for.  I love

NYC so much and can’t wait to go back, but there’s so much more to the east coast of the United States.

The beautiful rural areas of the east coast are unique with their rocky coastlines and treed wilderness and need to be explored. Road trips are the way to explore it all right now.

We’ve put together a guide for the best East Coast Camping spots so you can plan your next camping adventure along the east coast! Make sure you take your road trip gear!!

Our list is arranged starting in the north and takes you along the east coast to the southern tip of the U.S.

So you’ll have options for camping starting in Maine all the way down to Florida.  All along the way, there’s many different types of camping experiences so you can pick whatever you’re in the mood for.

If you’re like me, sometimes you need to be pampered and sometimes you want to rough it.

Either way, you should find something in our list that speaks to you.

In most of these locations you can do backcountry camping, regular campsite camping, or you can break out the big rig and drive into your perfect RV spot within the campground.

Make sure to check with the campgrounds before planning your trip to make sure there’s availability.  East coast camping spots fill up fast!

Bar Harbor Maine – Acadia National Park

• Season:   Mid May – Mid October
• Type:  Tent and RV Camping
• GPS Coordinates:  44.3386 N, 68.2733 W

Campers of all levels will find something to enjoy in Acadia. Acadia National Park is one of the premier national parks in the United States and at 45,000 acres, it’s vast!  Located on the Atlantic coast of Maine, you’ll find beauty in the rugged coastline along with lakes, wetlands, forests and beaches within the park.

There’s plenty of room to go “off-grid”, yet the town of Bar Harbor is only a 15 minute drive.   A great spot for camping in Acadia is Blackwood Campground.   Blackwoods offers something for everyone.

At Blackwoods, all the campsites are wooded and within a 10 minute walk to the Atlantic Ocean.  You’ll be able to enjoy the beach with swimming or canoeing and make sure you get up early to catch a mesmerizing sunrise that Acadia is known for.

And, don’t miss checking out some of the numerous lighthouses in Acadia, some only accessible by boat.  As a bonus,  the park offers a free shuttle to Bar Harbor in case you feel like heading into town for a bit.

Pro Tip:  No showers here – located ½ mile away.

Burlington Vermont – North Beach Campground

• Season:  May 1 to Mid-Oct
• Type:  RV’s, Small and Large Tent Camping
• GPS Coordinates:  44.496101 N, 73.2361 W

Vermonters love the outdoors and North Beach Campground in Burlington is another great east coast camping area where you can experience all that is Vermont.

Burlington is located in Northwestern Vermont on the eastern shore of Lake Champlain.  From 10 miles of bike trails to a large beach with a snack shack and lifeguards, there’s plenty to enjoy at North Beach.

They offer many amenities including a playground and campsites with bbq’s picnic tables, and fire rings.  Also, they have flush toilets and running water! yay!  Don’t forget this is bear country so take care to keep your food safely secured.

 waterbury, Vermont – Little River State Park

• 3444 Little River Rd.
  Waterbury, Vermont 05676
• Season:  Late May – Late October

We fell in love with the Woodstock, New Hampshire area this past summer. So much beauty to see out here. Woodstock is a quaint small town with lots of outdoor activities to do in all seasons. In summer the hiking and biking scene was super busy. We did a lot of hiking in the White Mountains around Franconia Notch. The natural beauty of this forested land is awesome. It’s amazing, incredible, stunning and every other superlative you can think of. Just go here!!

• Route 3, Franconia, NH
• Season: Open Year Round for RV’s. Tent camping: late May to early October
• Mid-October to Late May with limited services.
• Pets are not allowed.
• GPS Coordinates: Latitude: 44.17784060 Longitude: -71.6965159

Cannon Mountain RV Park

Located at the north end of Franconia Notch, Cannon Mountain RV Park has 7 full-hookup campsites.
Canon RV guests have access to Echo Lake Beach at no cost and without reservations, but you must check in with the attendant at the hut for wristbands.

Echo Lake State Park is jaw-droppingly gorgeous. Of all our travels across New England, this spot is one of the most beautiful ever. And Franconia Notch State Park is full of spots like this. It’s scenery like no other – truly magnificent!

Lafayette Place Campground

Lafayette Place is the place to camp within Franconia Notch State Park. You’ll be right in the center of all the hiking, biking, swimming and fishing activity.  A lodge houses a registration desk and offers a selection of camping supplies. Each campsite is wooded and has a picnic table, car parking, and an open fireplace. There are coin-operated showers and a camp store. Lafayette Campground provides 97 wooded tent sites. 

Hampton Beach State Park-Hampton, New Hampshire

• RV Only
• Season:  Late Spring – Mid Fall
• GPS Coordinates:  42.93194 N, 70.79861 W

How fun is camping on the beach?!  At Hampton Beach State Park you can experience a New England campout at the beach.

This place is really unique for an east coast campground because it’s for RV’s only.

You’ll be just steps from the beach in this smallish campground located directly on the New Hampshire coast.  You’ll have fun experiencing miles of sandy beaches for fishing, swimming, picnicking and whale watching!

Even though the campground is smaller, that doesn’t mean there are no amenities.  You’ll still enjoy things like a camp store and fire pits but keep in mind showers are cold water only!

Plus they’re super close to the Seabrook/Hampton Beach town line so you can run into town if need be.

Pro Tip:  No pets are allowed in the campground between April 1 – September 15.

White Mountain National Forest-Campton, New Hampshire

• Season:  Year Round
• Type:  Tent, backcountry camping and RV camping
• GPS Coordinates:  44.1486 N, 71.4530 W

Breathtaking Alpine scenery abounds in White Mountain National Forest, a national park that straddles eastern New Hampshire and  western Maine.

At almost 150,000 acres the expanse of this wooded park is like no other especially in the Fall with all the beautiful colors.  If you are planning a road trip anywhere along the northern east coast you really should make your route through at least part of the White Mountain National Forest.

While camping at White Mountain, you can take in the tallest mountain peak in the northeast – Mount Washington at 6,288, or just take in the views from the historic Mt. Washington Auto Road or the Mt. Washington Cog Railway.

They even offer gondola, chairlift or aerial tramway ride for awesome viewing of all the park’s beauty! We did this and it is truly spectacular.

Winter or Summer there’s plenty to do here, whether it’s hiking part of the Appalachian Trail that goes through the park, flying down the mountains on skis, snowshoeing around in the backcountry or simply taking it easy, you’ll have a wonderful time in this gorgeous east coast setting that perfect for campers.

Pro Tip:  Stop at the Gateway Visitor Center (exit 32) off Interstate 93 to get great information on your stay at the park.

Provincetown Dunes Edge Campground-Provincetown, Rhode Island

• Season: Late May – Late September
• Type:  Tent & RV Camping
• GPS Coordinates: 42.0616 N, 70.1871 W

The little state of Rhode Island is wildly popular with outdoor enthusiasts, including campers.  Check out Dunes Edge Campground located within Provincetown for a unique camping experience.  It’s cool because the campground borders Cape Cod National Seashore, yet it’s within walking distance to quaint downtown Provincetown.

So you can have the best of both worlds!

The site does have good facilities including a decent camp store (with fresh coffee – yay!), nice showers and bathrooms as well as laundry facilities.

Shenandoah National Park-Luray, Virginia

• Season:  Early Spring – Late Fall
• Type:  Camping, Backcountry Camping, RV
• GPS Coordinates:  38.4755 N, 78.4535 W

Located only about outside of Washington DC, Shenandoah National Park offers urbanites a convenient way to get away from it all.  Camping for east coast suburbanites has never been so convenient!

Located within the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains and with 5 unique campgrounds from small to large, campers will be able to find somewhere comfortable to pitch a tent or park their RV.

Once you’re situated, explore the trails, waterfalls and even hike a portion of the Appalachian trail which goes through the park. If you decide you’d like to rough it a little less than usual, there are 4 lodges within the park that welcome travelers.

Pro Tip:  Get your digital entrance pass online to save time.

The Adirondacks-Upstate New York

• Season: Early Spring – Late Fall
• Type:  Tent Camping, Backcountry camping, RV Camping
• GPS Coordinates:  43.3365 N, 74.4241 W

The Adirondacks, spread across six million acres, are 3x bigger than Yellowstone and equal in size to the entire state of Vermont!  The Adirondacks are actually made up of  12 distinct regional destinations.

Relish in the splendor of the Fall foliage, hike to your heart’s content or try your hand at fishing in one of the many lakes. 

Big Moose Lake and Fourth Lake are especially good for fishing.  You can explore the many mountains and also make a stop to visit nearby Lake Placid.

As you can imagine in a park this large there are many different camping areas.  Try the Limekiln Lake area for great east coast camping and amenities like a nice beach, boat rentals and full campground facilities including showers!

Carolina Beach State Park-Carolina Beach, North Carolina

• Season: Year Round
• Type: Tent Camping, RV camping Camper Cabins
• GPS Coordinates:  34.0459 N, 77.9139 W

For natural beauty and a dose of southern charm, check out Carolina Beach State Park,  named 2015 regional state park of the year!

The park is on the beach and offers lots of things for campers to do including miles of trails, picnicking, water sports including fishing and boating; and there’s a marina on site at this popular coastal spot.

There’s also on site rentals of kayaks, canoes, stand up paddleboards and bikes.

Pro Tip:  Park gates are closed and locked at park closing time, so make sure you’re where you need to be by then!

Hunting Island State Park-Beaufort County, South Carolina

• Season: Year Round
• Type:  Tent Camping, RV’s
• GPS Coordinates: 32.3585 N, 80.4521 W

You’ll find plenty to love in South Carolina at the state’s single most popular state park, Huntington Island.  Camping is available on this beautiful island at the north end of the park near the ocean.

There’s so many activities to do here you won’t want to leave.  They offer everything from fishing to boating to hiking to biking to the incredible dolphin watching cruise!

For you horse lovers, there’s also an Equestrian beach accessible from December through February.  And don’t forget the state’s only publicly accessible lighthouse is located right here and you can climb to the top for an awesome view.

 F.D. Roosevelt State Park-Pine Mountain, Georgia

Season: Year Round

Type: Tent, Trailer,RV,Cottages

GPS Coordinates:  32.8445 N, 84.8287 W

I’ve always had a fondness for F.D.R. and consider him one of our greatest presidents.  So to me, hitting up his old stomping grounds in Pine Mountain, Georgia is a no-brainer.

F.D. Roosevelt State Park is the largest state park in Georgia, at over 9000 acres.  It’s super surprising to find this kind of vast green space only 80 miles southeast of the Atlanta metropolis.

Here at the park, east coast campers can enjoy spacious campsites, 2 lakes where you can rent canoes and kayaks as well as almost 40 miles of trails to explore.

They also offer horseback riding, stables and trail rides.  How cool is that?!   It’s really a whole other world for east coast camping.  Be sure to check out Dowdell’s Knob for picturesque views.  It’s where FDR used to bbq, relax and ponder world affairs.

Dry Tortugas National Park-Off Key West, Florida

• Season:  Year Round
• Type:  Tents only.  Beach camping
• GPS Coordinates:  24.6333 N, 82.9200 W

I don’t know if this is technically an east coast camping area,-to me it’s more camping in paradise!  And,  what could be better?!  The Dry Tortugas National Park is a group of 7 keys located off the coast of Florida, about 70 miles from Key West.  In addition to it being the home of Fort Jefferson, it offers one of the most remote camping spots in the country.

Once you arrive, you’ll camp at Garden Key campground located on the small island of Garden Key within Dry Tortugas. You’ll need to plan ahead to reach the Dry Tortugas and the Garden Key campground is either by private boat or by the Yankee Freedom Ferry.

The daily ferry takes a max of 10 campers per day each way so book in advance to insure your space.  It may be a hassle to get here, but it’s worth it for the  awesome snorkeling and beautiful sunsets.

If you’re a diving enthusiast, you’ll love it here because you’ll be surrounded by the beautiful waters of the Gulf of Mexico, the western Caribbean and the Atlantic Ocean and have access to some of the best diving reefs in the country.

Pro Tip:  Plan ahead because it’s remote with no running water and no camp store, meaning you’ll need to bring everything with you, including fresh water.

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