Best Camping in NC

July 16, 2007 8:26 AM

Where is the best place to go tent car-camping in North Carolina over the Labor Day weekend?

My girlfriend and I are looking for a beautiful natural campground that is primarily (or all) tent camping, has hot showers, might allow a dog, with some interesting geographic features (or places, such as Asheville) nearby. We also want cooler weather so I think this means somewhere out towards the Blue Ridge Mtns. It could also be in VA. We are traveling from Chapel Hill, NC and would like to keep the driving under 5 hours. We would also entertain the coast. I found old AskMeFi posts that nibbled around the edges of this question but didn't really get at what I was looking for.

posted by philmas to travel & transportation (6 comments total)

Hot Springs. There's the big campground in town which is almost all tent camping but has amenities like showers and stuff; there's a somewhat more primitive campground up the mountain a bit; there's the hot springs tubs with cabins. 40 minutes from Asheville, hiking galore and it's beautiful.
posted by mygothlaundry at 9:45 AM on July 16, 2007

I also recommend Hot Springs. I rented one of their little rustic cabins, but there were tent and RV sites there as well. The hot tubs (right across the street from the campground) are glorious! SO much nicer than a chlorine hot tub! And you can schedule a massage after your soak, then walk back all relaxed and happy. And it's on the Appalachian trail, so plenty of hiking.

The weather can be hot and sticky though. Even the mountains aren't immune to that.
posted by happyturtle at 1:49 PM on July 16, 2007

Pisgah. The "helping out friends with questions" thing is awesome. Until they're all "Hey, will you post your best most seekrit awesome camping spots on a public forum?!" But yeah, Pisgah is sweet. Besides, it's got sliding rock.
posted by zpousman at 8:49 AM on July 17, 2007

Hot Springs looks really nice but so doesn't Pisgah. Thanks to each of you for your suggestions. I'm going to do a bit more research on both of these places and then decide. Thanks much.
Phil
posted by philmas at 7:15 PM on July 17, 2007

I'm looking at tent sites at Pisgah campground zpousman and it doesn't have showers. Is there any place nearby where you can rinse off some dirt after a days hike while staying at Pisgah? Thanks for your feedback.
Phil
posted by philmas at 4:49 AM on July 24, 2007

Um, yes. There are showers at Sliding Rock.

There are also some pay campgrounds in pisgah, but I always camp in the car-accessible free spots, which have water but no showers. I think you can just shower at the campgrounds for $4 or $5 or something. Worst case, you could spend time in the back country and then do your final night in the pay campground and take hot shower. HTH.
posted by zpousman at 12:05 PM on September 19, 2007