Juniper Springs Recreational Area (Ocala National forest) - $9 Golden Age Pass – Site 7 (9 is good) a pull through. **This campground has a raccoon problem a major one. Raccoons all over during the day in campground on the trails and at the springs. Campers and day visitors are feeding them and they think it is cute. We first met one on our bikes and he would not move and get out of the way next we were having lunch at our site on a beautiful picnic table and one came out of the woods and straight at us. He would not stop he was coming for our sandwiches. We had to grab our food and go into the camper. He circled us for about twenty minutes smelling our bike and our camper and picnic table. At the springs we saw them all over the area every time anyone left their picnic table the raccoons were on the table and into their stuff. We have been around raccoons but never have we seen this many out during the day and not afraid of humans. Florida needs to fine anyone who feeds them because this is a beautiful park and the raccoons are not shy and come out during breakfast, lunch and dinner time. There is even a hawk in the park who has stolen steaks off the grills while people are cooking. This campground is beautiful with three loops one for tents and the other two for anyone for a total of 79 sites. Many pull through sites. Bathrooms are nice and there is a lantern stand at each site. There is a short walk to the springs and they are nice to swim in. A little nature walk with a historic mill museum on the property. There are no hookups here so this week you did not need reservations but on the weekends you do all year long. During the snowbird season they are always full. There are canoe rentals for the near 8 mile canoe run through the Juniper Prairie Area which takes over four hours. At the springs there is a convenience store with camping supplies, beach supples, food, drinks etc. One might see at this campground deer, black bear, turkey, birds and more raccoons than you want to see.. They do have interpretive programs during certain times during the year at the amphitheater. This is a beautiful campground and I think since there were only about ten campers when we were there we saw more raccoons then normal. We camped here in a Motorhome.
Campground is very pretty, well maintained, and staff was very helpful and friendly. The lake is beautiful, however the only thing this park is lacking is a pool. If they installed a pool at this park it would rate above a "10" We camped here in a Travel Trailer.
Campground was very clean and well kept. Staff was friendly and helpful. We had a fairly level back in site. The hook-ups were at the back of the site and were shared with another site directly behind ours. I had a little trouble reaching the hook-ups. The interior roads are paved as is the large parking lot at the office. We stayed for three days and did some lake fishing in the very pretty lake on which the park is situated. Be forewarned to take some cash with you for any item that you may want to purchase in the camp store. They only accept credit cards for the site rental! You must pay in cash for anything else. We observed that some of the sites closer to the lake were very un-level with one coach sitting with their front tires almost a foot off the ground! That observation and the positioning of the hook-ups were our only complaint and are the reason for the 8 instead of a 10. We would definitely stay here again as long as we got one of the sites on top of the hill where they are fairly level. We camped here in a Motorhome.
This is not a bad park, but it is mostly a mobile home park with the campground being just a small part of the property. There are numerous seasonal campers parked permanently in the RV portion that are obvious winter residents. The lake is very small, (large pond actually), and it is overgrown with vegetation along the shoreline. There are also houses just across the water. The place is nice, clean, etc. It is just not a lakefront "resort" for vacationing or weekend camping. It is, however, very close to Silver Springs and shopping. We camped here in a Motorhome.
This park was very nice however, the snow birds try to run the place. Right on the water
and great fishing for catfish and pan fish. We camped here in a Motorhome.
Review Rating
[ 7 / 10 ]
2001
$16
Nice quiet park with some permanent moblie homes in a sepatate area. Some waterfront sites(#1-13). Lake swimming. We camped here in a camper.
This RV Park is very conveniently located across the street from the Silver Springs attraction and water park. It's an older park but very clean well maintained, lots of trees. All pull through paved sites. Staff is very friendly and accommodating. Pool was very nice. Near shopping and other area attractions. Would not hesitate to camp here again. We camped here in a Fifth Wheel.
Review Rating
[ 9 / 10 ]
July 2009
$34
A very nice campground with friendly folks. It is easy to find and right across from Silver Springs Park. We arrived late to find info on their bulletin board with a map directly to spot. We got set up in no time. The only issue was the spots were close together, but we were only there over night. We would camp here again. We camped here in a Fifth Wheel.
Good Sam rate. This is an old park, most sites are full time and OLD rigs with park models and "permanent" trailers. But what the heck, I don't intend to live here. Flat blacktop sites with plenty of room, good water pressure lots of channels on the cable, friendly staff, and, immediately across the street from Silver Spring and a water park. You walk there and save $7 for parking. Good idea -spend the night, spend the day at the park, spend another night and be on your way. I would not stay here long term, but for a few nights it's fine. We camped here in a Motorhome.
Paid a weekly rate for two weeks of 142.50 per week. Streets narrow, With a 35' 5th wheel able to pull in and out but close. Desk person advised coming into site from wrong side and had to go around. That said, very quiet park, neat and clean. cable is available but you have to contract with local company to hook up. Long term only. Close to Ocala and easy in and out. Would stay again. We camped here in a Fifth Wheel.
I found this campground to be quiet and nice...the Hosts were great, leading me to the camp site...we stayed two weeks and enjoyed the park. We camped here in a Motorhome.
A very big, impersonal camp ground, mainly for snow birds who have a permanently placed
trailer...other than that it is a place to stay if you want to visit this part of Florida. One of the staff would not accept $ until (I guess) the person who ran the park returned...It was a nice place to stay, but don't think I would stay there again. We camped here in a Motorhome.
This quiet country park had pull through sites and cable, and we camped there for half price due to our Passport America camp club membership. Staff was helpful and we enjoyed our stay. We did have difficulty getting into the park with our 40' rig and tow car, since the sign on the main highway sent us down the wrong road, a narrow dirt road with tight turns and a few low trees. We did find out that the web directions were more clear and would have taken us down a paved, wider road, with no tree problem, so our exit was easy! Being out in the forest, our cell phone reception was spotty, as was our wi-fi air card. In spite of that, we would definitely stay there again .We enjoyed the quiet atmosphere and the ducks on the pond outside our rig! With an end spot and the pond, we had an oversized spot. Wonderful. Even with the location of the park being away from town, we felt the park was worth the little bit of extra driving to get to town or to attractions! We'd stay here again, for sure. We camped here in a Motorhome.
This park is awesome, it's beautiful and quiet. We are surrounded by the Silver Springs national forest. Plenty of planned things to do. Oh!,and the bathrooms are spotless clean all the time. This park also has seasonals at a very good rate and the owners are fantastic! This place is a paradise: landscaping, the pond, and the club house. We camped here in a Fifth Wheel.
In an area populated with old, worn-out RV parks, this newly revitalized facility is a real find. It is in a secluded setting, but very near to shopping, restaurants, national and state parks and other attractions. The park itself has been greatly improved with dog parks, modern restrooms, club lounges, an exercise facility, sparkling clean swimming pools, hot tubs, a general store, restaurant and more. It is gated, private and secure. The staff is very friendly and receptive to new ideas. Rental units are predominantly in the front section of the park. Sites in one of the three sections have been mostly sold out to private owners. (All of the remaining sites are ultimately for sale). Some shady sites are available, but generally the park needs more time for trees and foliage to be planted and to grow. We spent four nights here and used our Passport America membership. We camped here in a Motorhome.
Stayed in the Preserve section of the park . Paid extra for bigger site and the other amenities they advertised. Preserve pool is rather small ,there were no lounge chairs at the pool, hot tub was broken the whole time we were there. Ground around the pads were very wet and had a lot of fire ant hills. Front area pool was very nice and had a hot tub that worked! The best part of the entire resort is the little restaurant , great food and employees! When they get all of bugs worked out this section will rate much higher. We camped here in a Motorhome.
The rate shown is for Passport America. We had two fifth-wheels parked on sites 10 and 11. We enjoyed our stay because of the clean swimming pools, nice restaurant, good hookups at the site and level cement pads. This is definitely one of the best parks I've stayed at. We camped here in a Fifth Wheel.
We enjoyed this park very much! The pull thru lots are spacious and level, and some have shade trees which is a bonus in Florida summers. The pool is huge and very clean. The hot tub is nice as well; however it broke while we were there, but maintenance came immediately. There is a nice lodge to gather with friends for games, etc. and a nice variety of books to read. The park is spotless and the folks are exceptionally nice and helpful. We REALLY enjoyed the cafe on site...great specials and delicious food! Grocery stores, etc. are within 5 miles. We plan to return to enjoy the other amenities (fitness center, canoeing, billiard room). We camped here in a Fifth Wheel.
This is an ownership park with facilities to rent. It is a modern and extremely well-maintained campground. Laundry facilities were virtually new and spotless. The staff are courteous and responsive, and are clearly proud of the facility. Of special note is the small Cafe located just inside the park's gate. Open 6 days a week from 7 AM to 7 PM, it features good food and great coffee at very reasonable prices. The owner/waitress adds an upbeat note to each visit. The cost cited was the Passport America rate and all taxes for a full hookup site including cable TV. We will return. We camped here in a Travel Trailer.
Campground is one of the nicer locations I have been at in 3 years. Everyone friendly and helpful. Guide to site, all is neat and clean, paved roads to sites and very quiet. Only negative is that there is no Verizon coverage in park (must be on break somewhere else.) Will definitely stay here again. We camped here in a Fifth Wheel.
This was our 2nd time staying here. First class campground. I am thinking of buying a lot there for retirement. Staff very friendly and helpful. Has about every amenity you could want. We will be going back again several times and if they don't get crazy with lot prices will probably end up buying. We camped here in a Motorhome.
This past weekend was our first visit here. We stayed in site 51 in the "Preserve" portion of the campground. This area is for class 'A' coaches only. They are selling the lots or you can rent, as we did. The site was great. Full large concrete pad, cable, 50amp electric, and good water pressure. This campground pretty much as it all. Work out facility, laundry, and two club houses. On site restaurant and small trading store. The folks were very nice and they did not "have a baby" when we asked about a late check out (1 to 2 pm) nor did they ask for more $$$. The other large section of the park has it all, pull behinds, 5th wheels, etc... The entire area is kept nice and clean. This park is just outside of Silver Springs and the Ocala area. We will be back, especially since they honor Passport America year round... We camped here in a Motorhome.
This park is beautiful as it is located directly on the Silver River, which is spring fed nearby. They have their own small launch site as well as fishing area. Silver Springs and Ocala are very close by (minutes). The sites don't have much shade but are nicely maintained. I highly recommend this location. We camped here in a Travel Trailer.
Very nice campground undergoing extensive renovations. They are selling lots and it will become an member owned campground. Currently lots are running about $35,000. The park is clean and you can rent canoes to use on the Silver River. Not too far from Silver Springs. If you are looking for a clean modern campground this is one you might want to check out. Sites are large, but there is little privacy and there is a lot of construction. There is a small cafe on the grounds. We camped here in a Motorhome.
This is a great park in a good location. We enjoyed the church services, bingo, planned get togethers and local activities. We camped here in a Travel Trailer.
We reserved two weeks here based on the one previous review and their website. We explained we had a 40 foot motorhome when we made the reservation and reconfirmed it several days before our arrival. When we arrived they assigned us a site that had about a four foot drop from the back to the front. Had it been level the coach would have filled it with no room for our car. They made several attempts to find us a suitable site but they were either not level enough or like most all the sites, the concrete pad was completely broken up. None of the sites we were shown would comfortably fit a big rig. They also had asphalt pads that showed big depressions where the campers tires have sunk in. They did not ever try to get us in an asphalt site because they said we would sink in. This might be a good place if you have a smaller camper but it definetely is some place to stay away from if you have a big rig. They refunded our money and we located another campground. The current owners have had the property for little over a year and are making continuous improvements. Hopefully when they get done with the improvements we can give them another try. We camped here in a Motorhome.
Review Rating
[ 9 / 10 ]
March 2006
$25
This campground was formerly called Colby Woods. They are upgrading and we found it to be an excellent place to spend some time. They have canoe/kayak rentals located right on the river with easy put-in and if you have your own, it's about 250 yards from the camp sites. There is a large hall for adults to relax in with a fireplace, card tables and easy chairs or you can sit on the screened back porch or large covered front porch. The pool was large and clean and the hot tub met our needs after an afternoon paddling on the river. This campground is part of Passport America so our rate was only $14.50. The biggest drawback was the limited restrooms. They have only 2 showers per side, so if large numbers wanted them, it could pose a problem. However, since they cater to RVs, most folks will probably use their own. Tenters will be place in an open field near the road, which could be an issue with noise. Associated with the campground is a resturant that serves great breakfasts and lunches at very reasonable prices. I wish we had found this site instead of spending two days at the State Park. Definitely worth going back here! We camped here in a Motorhome.