Traveling has become so darn expensive (mostly thanks to hotels and rental cars) so I've been…read moretrying to find places within driving distance to explore this year so I can drive and also camp to save money and connect with nature more! I loved this campground. It's quite large with lots of lakes and bodies of water. I didn't get to hike a ton but the one trail I did hike was great and very peaceful. I reserved campsite 159. I will say that the campsite next to it was basically right on top of mine so it would be great for a group site! It was also located right by the bike/hike trail, so that was good for me but could see how it wasn't as private as other sites. Loved the check in process and great location related to Kalamazoo.

This is a beautiful campground and the bathrooms were clean and new. HOWEVER, there were mosquitos…read moreand poison ivy everywhere - even in the middle of the campsites! My kids had to wear sweatpants and sweatshirts in 75/80 degree weather. We couldn't go anywhere without there being poison ivy within 5 ft of us. Our group (especially my children) were all covered in mosquito bites (we are talking 10+ on each of their faces - even with using bug spray, and multiple other methods of deterring mosquitos!) The staff were rude and unprofessional. The DNR officers were belittling and grumpy toward a large family group (adults with small children). This was our first time camping at this state park... and likely the last time camping at a Michigan state park. I am so disappointed in how Michigan is using their resources to create a "family friendly" campground when the way people are treated are not reflective of that. The campsites are not safe for children. Do better for someone else's sake, Fort Custer.

Best camping experience in a long time, maybe ever. Staff extremely friendly and helpful…read more(especially Brandon amd his grandfather). Clean facilities. Wood cheaper than at the gas-station (even if you have to buy it on the premesis). Canoe/Kayak rental and ride on the premises. Just a short distance from South Haven, breweries and wineries and a blueberry farm. Will definitely be back! Thank you for the experience. Chris S.

Would highly recommend this place. My spouse and I are originally from the Pacific Northwest and…read morenow live in Chicago - so we are always looking for little nooks within 3 hours of the city. This is a little gem of a campground that's pleasantly filled with comforts and modern amenities. The campground itself is very small, but it's quiet, & has a steady body of water. I will be staying here again. I spent the weekend sitting in my hammock and enjoying hearing the water. 5/6 of the cabins face the water just as an fyi, so it's like a private paradise. The town of SoHa is really fun too and a great place to wine, dine, & explore. The cabins are basic and rustic with one plug in to charge your electronics. There is one light in there but it does get dark at night. Bring a nightlight. The queen bunk beds are great and comfortable. I would say more like 2-3 people could comfortably sleep in a cabin due to space and the cabins get hot at night! There's showers, there's toilets, there's cabins- oh my! The showers run on a unique token system. 1 token=$1=3 minutes of hot, private, shower. Tokens are purchased on site. the showers are game changers because they're open 24 hours with cameras outside so the owners monitor who goes in/out and your safety. As a queer person, I felt comfortable & safe at this campground.

Shady Bend Camp Ground was forced to close after the oil spill in 2011(?) which is unfortunate…read moresince I had heard so many good things about it from my friends while they were open. I've been told that it will not be able to reopen, and the property has had to have been sold to a private company with no intention of reopening it.

Very quiet and peaceful campground. Woman's shower house was always clean. Men's bathroom and…read moreshower house was nasty.

We had such a great time here! Last minute trip to Join our friends who have a camper there,…read morethought maybe we would tent it and were able to rent a little camper place for the weekend! Super nice and reasonable! Also had a tour of the apartment area they have which is nice if you want to do the campground scene, be across from the beach and than have a nice area to go back to! We will for sure be back! Kelly was super sweet and so happy we were able to spend our last weekend of real summer there!

Depending on the weather, this beach can be very rocky, or very sandy, and often both…read more This is a great beach for rock hunting anytime, and even if it's extra rocky because of heavy rain or wind, there's still nice sandy areas of beach. There's also one very large dune area that takes quite an effort to climb, but is very fun.

On the recommendation of folks at the main Park Headquarters, we walked through the woods on one…read moreof the few trails here, all leading to sandy bluffs that rise above Lake Michigan. We were rewarded with a gorgeous view of the truly colorful shades of blue of the Lake. Combined, the trails are only about 3 miles in length since this is a narrow, alongside-the-lake State Park & the trails go from the main roadway, to the top of the bluffs & then back again to the roadway. Further down that roadway is a campground, a good amount of parking, a playground, picnic tables, grills, open fields, and, the best part of all, the mile long beach, which is comprised of super soft sand, space to stretch out, a not-as-enjoyable view of a water treatment plant, & the fun of collecting smooth, soft stones that dot the beach, The waters of Lake Michigan don't come much above your waist for a good 75-100 feet, so it's easy to stay cool while you stand around with sisters (that was us!), and others. Parking is $11/day

Can I please add another star? Visited with my husband and…read moredog. The folks here went above and way beyond to accommodate an unusual need I had. The grounds are meticulously maintained with level, shaded spots that provide great privacy. If you have kids, they will NEVER get bored here. Well-stocked store, clean laundry facility. If we are in the area again, this will be our go-to place!

Great family-friendly RV campground / resort…read more Our site was beautiful - it backed up against a forest and was close to the pond. It was a bit tight / cramped (my picnic table was virtually on top of the neighbor's sewer line), but the neighbors were friendly and everything was clean and well-kept. The restrooms and showers were spotless. Cute playground - we loved the pirate ship. The pond was a great place to walk our dog, and it seemed like most people (like us) were cleaning up after their pets because we didn't see dog piles everywhere like many other campgrounds in the area. One warning: This place is surrounded by a pond, a lake, and plenty of forest, and has a serious (but understandable) mosquito problem. We tried to sneak in eating 2 slices of pizza quickly upon arrival before putting on bug spray, and my youngest son got 14 bug bites on his legs in less than half an hour. Beware and plan accordingly! I'd highly recommend long sleeves, long pants, and shoes and socks, even if it's hot outside. Biggest qualm: my son was crying for the last 10 minutes of our drive because he was going to pee his pants and this is in the middle of nowhere - we hadn't seen a gas station or anywhere legal for him to go "number 1" since leaving I94. I'll admit I drove 15mph in a 10mph zone on the way in, because the map showed a bathroom next to the pool on the entrance road (before any of the campsites, before any pedestrian areas), and I wanted to avoid a pee-pee incident. After dropping them off, I stuck to the speed limit even when it dropped to 5mph. I was chastised (politely) upon check-in to watch my speed, which is completely reasonable. Separately, someone ran up to my wife and child (neither of whom were driving) as my 5-year-old came out of the bathroom and yelled at them, which is not okay. There are good ways to handle an admonition, and bad ways, and whoever yelled at my wife and son needs to learn a bit of tact. This is the only reason our stay wasn't a 5-star experience. It wasn't an isolated or stranger incident as the yeller was also the person who called the front desk to complain about it and I'm certain was a local / seasonal / permanent resident. There's "enforcing rules" and then there's "yelling at children for something they had no control over," and the management here was much closer to the latter.

After being seasonal for 5 years with no problems, we were told by the owner, Cova we could not…read morerenew for 2025. Only reason he gave was he was losing money and was going to downsize. Total BS! Other friends who had been there 9 years were told the same thing. How is turning away $2800 per family going to help you downsize?? We believe he has received offers from contractors who will pay more. We will stop by next summer and check out. BTW, he talks about being a real Christian, but his actions do t show it. Stay away at all costs!!

Very nice Christian oriented campground. Its quiet and everyone camping is friendly. Very little…read moreto offer in recreation, and after a decade membership we are leaving because of the 10% annual increases in price. Management doesn't seem to care about their long standing customers. And if you want to visit family it costs $2 per person. Many other places cost a little more, but offer a lot of recreational things to do and dont charge for family visits.

This was the worse campground I've ever stayed at. The bathrooms were too dirty to use, only one…read moreshower and it was too nasty to use. I watched two dogs jump out of their little fence and try to attack a woman and her dog, these dogs had been aggressive for days and the dog's owner only got a warning. If a young man hadn't have jumped to the rescue, they could have seriously harmed this poor lady and her dog. These same campers also had their older children on their site fist fighting and cussing each other out, still nothing was done. There were no trashcans to throw away trash or doggie bags. It was the absolute most stressful campground I've ever been to. Will never go back!!!

The camp itself is pretty with lots of lush greenery. However, the bathrooms are disgusting! There…read moreis blood on the walls of the shower, the floors look like they have never been clean, cobwebs every where in the shower and bathroom. The park rangers drive around a ton which is great but if they could actually clean the bathrooms, that be nice!

Perfect. Cleanest bathrooms in any campground I've been to, so clean I decided to use them. Almost…read morewanted to take my shower sandals off as I felt they were making it more dirty. steamboat ride was fun with the kids, drinks and a band. 15 min drive to downtown Grand Rapids. Incredible riverfront views if you can get one do it. Very friendly staff/ownership. Work on the road and Cell service was good to great from both T-Mobile and AT&T though AT&T got spotty during the middle of the day. Playground and pool kept the kids entertained all day

NOT FAMILY FRIENDLY…read more Bad atmosphere for children: The management allegedly uses foul language up to and including the "Fbomb" liberally toward young children. Please keep in mind this campsite is on a major river that is very dangerous to anyone, especially children. In the past, they have also had drug overdoses resulting in death.

The park is under some construction through September which is a bummer but from what they've dug…read moreup, it looks like there will be some great improvements. The ball field will go away but they're putting in new playground equipment, new pavilion, new basketball courts and updated restrooms. In the meanwhile, the parking lot is still there, the river is still there (note the warning about eating the fish) and it's a nice, peaceful spot. [Review 11208 overall, 984 of 2019.]

This is our go-to putting-in point for kayaking to Arcadia Ales (it's round about an hour's paddle…read more-- longer if you're feeling leisurely and faster if you're going for a big workout). Plenty of parking, tons of covered picnic area. We staged about 75 kayaks/paddleboards/canoes there for a recent Kanoe the Kazoo event and it didn't feel too crowded on the riverbank, which was awesome. However, you've got to be pretty strategic about how you put in (fortunately we had seasoned paddlers leading our group who gave good advice about how to put in, but those who tried to enter the river closer to the woods/fence/parking lot got caught up in some wicked current. Be sure to put in farther out toward the picnic structure and park and paddle across the river then let the current drift you across the mini-rapids. Don't forget -- it's unsafe to eat the fish from the Kalamazoo River. We saw tons of people fishing on our recent excursion and really worried about their health. A few people were sad to see a small tent city on the river's edge -- personally it made me happy that some of the homeless had found a more pleasant haven than the city parks. Just a matter of perspective, I suppose. One of the "tent cities" was also a group of 5 matching, new-looking tents so I suspect that group was a group of people kayak-camping.