camping vacation - not at Disney

[wifeofjack]

We will be picking up our new camper in the next few weeks and have decided to do a camping vacation in September. We have 2 weeks to go away somewhere different. We have been to Colonial Williamsburg, Amish country, coastal Maine, Vermont, Pigeon Forge, and lots of other areas nearby.
Do any of you savy campers have any ideas for us? Like I said, we do have 2 weeks to travel, so we want to make this a camping vacation to remember.
We plan to do Fort Wilderness in 2012, when I am officially retired and can take a month or so to travel to and from the Fort. There are too many places and things to do on the way there and back.

 

[retired and happy]

How about the coastal Carolinas, particularly the Charleston area, lots of history and restortaion houses there. Or Branson MO for shows and touristy things?

 

[ftwildernessrick]

Sorry, I skipped over that you had been to Pigeon Forge already.

How about Gatlinburg/Pigeon Forge.
If you camp in Gatlinburg I would recommend a place called Twin Creek RV Resort (TL rated 9.5/10/9.5) It used to an old Venture Out RV park years ago & is still well maintained.
If you stay in Pigeon Forge I would recommend Twin Mountain Outdoor Resort (formally Creekstone RV Park, TL rated 7/8/6.5). This is an older campground that is still well maintained and mostly shaded. Pads are mostly crushed rock and could stand to be more level. You can even request a site that backs up to the Little Pigeon River, which is good for innertubing. If you want to stay at someting newer, the Pigeon Forge KOA is a few blocks away, but does not have as much shade.

 

[JCJRSmith]

Mt Rushmore and the Badlands. We did that over a two week vacation a few years ago. It was a lot of driving but it was well worth it.

 

[SimbaKY]

Have you considered Lake Rudolph in Santa Clause Indiana? We have camped there a few times and really enjoy it. There is a map of all the sites online and you can request /reserve a particualr site when you call them directly.

Also right down the road is Lincoln Park, state park camping. Lincoln's boyhood home and museum.

Right next to Lake Rudolph is Holiday World. This is an amusement/water park and is really family friendly. Free beverages and sunscreen throught the park.

Nearby is Santa's Candy Kitchen (original building from the 1930's - try the reindeer shoes candy- TDF!) and Santa Museum. Nice little town with an interesting history.

 

[dtum]

Drummerboy campground in Gettysburg, or Cherry Hill RV Resort and DC. Both great places. I know you said you did Amish Country, but what state. Evergreen RV Park in Mt. Eaton, OH is great!

 

[Disney Bunny]

Drummerboy campground in Gettysburg, or Cherry Hill RV Resort and DC. Both great places. I know you said you did Amish Country, but what state. Evergreen RV Park in Mt. Eaton, OH is great!

I liked Drummerboy campground. We were there a few years ago for the Civil War re-enactment in July.

Myrtle Beach, SC has a great KOA. Charleston is a great place also. We enjoyed camping around Grandfather Mountain near Boone, NC. Outer Banks of North Carolina can be nice that time of year also.

 

[dtum]

We went in July for the re-enactment also. It was very strange walking around downtown Gettysburg dressed for summer while others were walking around in big hoop skirts and full wool uniforms.

 

[owensmama2007]

Try James Island County Park in Charleston, SC...we spent almost a week there last year in July and loved it! (Tried to post a link but I don't have enough posts on here yet to do that so just google James Island County Parks and it will take you to the Charleston County Parks page and just choose James Island from the drop down menu for more info!) We're actually headed back there the first week in August.

They have great bike paths, their own waterpark (that isn't crowded as mainly the campers use it and you get a discount and pay only like $12/day...it isn't just for kid's either. There is a lazy river, a wave pool, and a 5ft pool to just swim around in) and many other things to do.

Charleston is a beautiful city with lots to do...they have a couple beachs that are nice, too.

Also, Savannah, GA is just about a 2 hour drive so if you like Paula Dean, I'd also suggest going to her restaurant, The Lady and Sons, and just walking around Savannah.

 

[mamaloya]

I vote for the coastal Carolinas. Myrtle Beach, Carolina Beach, and the Outer banks are gorgeous!!! So much to do over your 2 weeks. I have stayed at the KOA mentioned and it was fine. If you are military, there is a nice military campground in Carolina Beach with an awesome fishing pier. We joke that Myrtle Beach is the mini golf capital of the world. My only complaint about that area was that all the seafood I could find was fried. I am used to boiled, grilled and blackened.

 

[wifeofjack]

Thanks for all the suggestions. We have considered Myrtle Beach, hear the campgrounds are really nice there. We have also done some research on Cherry Hill Park near Washington, DC. Good thing we have a few more months to firm up our plans.
Whatever we do, it will be with the new camper, can't wait to pick it up.

 

[owensmama2007]

Thanks for all the suggestions. We have considered Myrtle Beach, hear the campgrounds are really nice there. We have also done some research on Cherry Hill Park near Washington, DC. Good thing we have a few more months to firm up our plans.
Whatever we do, it will be with the new camper, can't wait to pick it up.

Huntington Beach State Park in Myrtle Beach is nice too. It's a little bit south of Myrtle but the beach is great and isn't crowded at all.

 

[kampfirekim]

I vote for the coastal Carolinas. Myrtle Beach, Carolina Beach, and the Outer banks are gorgeous!!! So much to do over your 2 weeks. I have stayed at the KOA mentioned and it was fine. If you are military, there is a nice military campground in Carolina Beach with an awesome fishing pier. We joke that Myrtle Beach is the mini golf capital of the world. My only complaint about that area was that all the seafood I could find was fried. I am used to boiled, grilled and blackened.

Hi! I am new to the Dis, and even newer to this thread. Hope I'm welcome! Being a SC sandlapper myself, I totally agree that Coastal Carolina is fantastic! Myrtle Beach has scores of CG's to choose from. It is no joke that MB is the mini golf capital of the world. Golfing is huge year round. You are right about the seafood. Maybe next time you're there you should try driving a little south to Murrell's Inlet, the mini seafood capital of the world. You should be able to find what you're looking for there. DH and I went through the same thing our last visit. If you're willing to go deeper south Hunting Island SP might be an option. It is semi-tropical and off the beaten path, only w&e hookups, but many sites are close to the water with a great view. There are a lot of great places out there and we love trying a as many as possible, but as for me...I just click my heels together and say "There's no place like the Fort. There's no place like the Fort."

 

[testtubes]

If you want to travel and see the countryside, Branson, Missouri is a nice and slow paced vacation destination. There are awesome places to camp on Table Rock Lake with a short drive to see some entertainment.

 

[krhewitt]

Been to Cherry Hill in DC. It is really nice. We were camped near the back so if you can get closer to the front even better. The pools are nice. They have movies at night under the trees. The metro bus comes to the campground and picks you up. Also, the Grayline tour buses pick you up there and you can purchase you tickets in the office for the tours. They keep the park really clean. My family really enjoyed staying there.

 

[dtum]

Been to Cherry Hill in DC. It is really nice. We were camped near the back so if you can get closer to the front even better. The pools are nice. They have movies at night under the trees. The metro bus comes to the campground and picks you up. Also, the Grayline tour buses pick you up there and you can purchase you tickets in the office for the tours. They keep the park really clean. My family really enjoyed staying there.

Looking forward to Cherry Hill in October. Can't wait!

 

[mdoc]

A few of our memorable trips have been Myrtle Beach (1 week), Land Between the Lakes (1 week), and a trip west to the Black Hills/Rushmore/Yellowstone (10 days). This summer we're planning to do Grand Canyon/Vegas/Moab in 2 weeks.

 

[moseycat]

Upstate New York, the Adirondacks, is just beautiful in September. There's a terrific state park, Fish Creek, there. Almost every site is on the lake. There's no hookups though, you have to not mind roughing it .

We're headed to Cherry Hill next weekend; we have tickets to see the Terra Cotta Warriors exhibit at the Nat Geo museum. I hope the weather is good!

Karen

 

[Mickey'sApprentice]

Gulf State Park in Gulf Shores, Alabama