74
Huron-Manistee National Forest › Manistee Ranger District › Michigan
› Mason County
› Free Soil
› Lake Michigan At Manistee Campground
› Campsite #74
Campsite #74 at Lake Michigan At Manistee Campground, MI
$40
Campsite #74
| 8 people | |
| 48 ft | Back-In |
| 1 | weak |
5/9
Campsite #74 Features: Back-In parking, RV Site, Tent Site, Trailer Site, Pets Allowed
Campsite Reviews (7)
4.0 out of 5
| 5 star | | 57% |
| 4 star | | 43% |
| 3 star | | 0% |
| 2 star | | 0% |
| 1 star | | 0% |
@GailW2758976 · Camped on Jun 16, 2025 at Campsite #74
This is a very nice clean quiet campground with plenty of space between sites. There are 4 loops, 2 are Reservable 6 months in advance, and 2 are First Come First Serve. It's strange because one FCFS loop has flush toilets but the other 3 have only pit toilets. One would think the flush toilets would be on a R loop. We have a larger, but not huge, travel trailer plus a full size truck which must also be parked on the paved pad, so reservable is best for us as site we fit into are few. BEWARE: filling your water tank is NOT ALLOWED, so fill up before you get there. In fact, the water pressure is so bad here it takes forever just to fill a gallon water jug. Seems this close to Lake Michigan they would have plenty of water with good pressure! And, this campground which has 100 paved campsites--so it's obviously not just a tenting campground--also DOES NOT have dump station! The campground is separated from Lake Michigan by a dune, making it a bit of a walk "over hill and dale" through beach sand to get to the water, so keep this in mind if bringing chairs, etc with you to use on the beach. But the nice thing about the dune is you are not getting blasted by the wind off the lake when sitting at your campsite. We have camped here several years and found the hosts to always be friendly and informative. So except for the lack of a water fill and dump station, it's a great campground and I highly recommend it.
@BrianM6776107 · Camped on Jul 9, 2023 at Campsite #74
Great campground.
Suggest the RESERVED campsite loops post that those particular loops are for reservations ONLY.
Post first come, first served in the other loops that are non-reservable. Too much confusion.
Also, appears campground hosts did more driving around instead of cleaning restrooms, etc. The toilets were filthy!
Suggest the RESERVED campsite loops post that those particular loops are for reservations ONLY.
Post first come, first served in the other loops that are non-reservable. Too much confusion.
Also, appears campground hosts did more driving around instead of cleaning restrooms, etc. The toilets were filthy!
@DeniseM3444425 · Camped on Jul 24, 2022 at Campsite #74
The LMRA offers 4 circles of camp sites. Two circles are first-come-first-served and 2 are reservation-only. Though we reserve the perfect campsite on a quiet circle in the woods every year for our annual family camping trip, we always return in the fall and have camped on every circle at some point and have never been disappointed. Every circle is walking distance to the beautiful Lake Michigan beach, hiking trails, and bike path. There is no cell coverage or internet, which is just the way we want to spend our yearly get-away to the Lake Michigan Recreation Area. The campground hosts have always been friendly and helpful. Our family returns to this area every year because it is our favorite place to camp and only 3 hours from home. If you are interested in walk-in camping, you can find that at the LMRA as well, not to mention designated rustic sites in the surrounding Manistee National Forest.
@GailW895 · Camped on Sep 27, 2021 at Campsite #74
Well run campground in a beautifully wooded area with access to the white sand beach at Lake Michigan. T There is a small dune between the campground and the lake, which is accessible by a short trail from the campground, or a short drive to the beach parking lot.
There are 4 camping loops with a total of 100 sites. The 1st and 4th loops are first come first serve, and the 2nd and 3rd loops are only reservables...no matter what it says on the registration web site. Be aware that you are required to keep ALL wheels on the blacktop pads, NOT on the gravel. There are tall posts embedded at the end of the pad to prevent backing off the pad, with many so tall that the tail of the RV will not be able to back over them, wasting part of the pad use. With that in mind, so check the size when reserving and reserve a larger spot than you think necessary. There are many sites that are large enough for the big RVs, and even on the first come first serve there are some large sites, but not as many so they may already be occupied. Tents are not restricted to the smaller sites so they may occupy a large RV site, which yes, is frustrating. The sites themselves are very spacious by most campground standards. In fact, from some spots you can hardly see your neighbor. Generators are allowed but not during quiet hours.
WARNING: Fill your fresh water tank before arriving! We were told there are a few places that allow you to fill up before the long road into the park. Yes they have water in the campground, but you are not allowed to hook a hose to the water supply to fill up there, probably because the water pressure is terrible. It takes a long time just to fill a couple of 5 gallon containers, so it would be a time consuming job to manually fill your RV tank. There is no dump station, but there are other's in the area so that was no problem, although there may be a charge to use them.
All in all, very nice place to stay and we will be back!!
There are 4 camping loops with a total of 100 sites. The 1st and 4th loops are first come first serve, and the 2nd and 3rd loops are only reservables...no matter what it says on the registration web site. Be aware that you are required to keep ALL wheels on the blacktop pads, NOT on the gravel. There are tall posts embedded at the end of the pad to prevent backing off the pad, with many so tall that the tail of the RV will not be able to back over them, wasting part of the pad use. With that in mind, so check the size when reserving and reserve a larger spot than you think necessary. There are many sites that are large enough for the big RVs, and even on the first come first serve there are some large sites, but not as many so they may already be occupied. Tents are not restricted to the smaller sites so they may occupy a large RV site, which yes, is frustrating. The sites themselves are very spacious by most campground standards. In fact, from some spots you can hardly see your neighbor. Generators are allowed but not during quiet hours.
WARNING: Fill your fresh water tank before arriving! We were told there are a few places that allow you to fill up before the long road into the park. Yes they have water in the campground, but you are not allowed to hook a hose to the water supply to fill up there, probably because the water pressure is terrible. It takes a long time just to fill a couple of 5 gallon containers, so it would be a time consuming job to manually fill your RV tank. There is no dump station, but there are other's in the area so that was no problem, although there may be a charge to use them.
All in all, very nice place to stay and we will be back!!
@Nathaniel03479 · Camped on Sep 25, 2020 at Campsite #74
Loved the campsites!
@BethC1278019 · Camped on Aug 30, 2020 at Campsite #74
We absolutely loved this campground! It was quiet & secluded. Barely any cell coverage, which was expected & welcome. Vault toilet rooms were big & cleaned 2x day (Covid procedure maybe?). Bring your own sanitizer. Ten minute easy walk to boardwalk from Oak loop, & then you had to walk over a small dune to reach the water. You could also take the awesome trail that led across the top of a dune through the forest. Great walking paths in all directions. We heard, but didnt see, several unique birds (owls?), and saw dozens of deer as we were driving in & out of the campground over 3 days. We could hear the waves crashing when it was completely still. The grill & firepit shared the same fire ring which made it a little awkward because we were expecting a separate grill. No biggie though! We were on the outside of the loop, so probably had a little quieter experience than those in the middle of the loop where the sites back up to each other. Ice available for $2, but wood was $7, so we bought cheaper wood at a roadside stand. There were young families, older couples, & a single gal all camping while we were there. Tents & campers in neighboring sites. It was a beautiful area, & a great place to have a last family trip befor our daughters wedding.
@MatthewP515566 · Camped on Jun 19, 2020 at Campsite #74
Good campground, bring bug spray
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