Combination campground/waterfront access area. Lighthouse can easily be seen from the waterfront area, and the campground apparently sits on the site of one of the war battles. The lighthouse can also be walked to if you have time. Nice little area, and I'd check it out in more detail if I was back in the Salem area. read more

See all

This is a neat area to explore if you have some time and like to look for rocks. We followed a pathway that took us from a rocky beach to a sandy one and we found lots of little treasures. What a great way to spend a day with the family. read more

Winter Island Park - Campgrounds Near Me - Salem, Massachusetts

1) this is a campground. You can camp out in a tent or park your RV here. 2) it's on the point of Salem, amazing views. 3) used to be a fort used for 400 years. Old airplane hangar at least 60 years old. 4) lots of hiking trails, beach access. 5) this is a beautiful place. There is so much more I could say. This is an understated park with a lighthouse and many other attractions. That it's a campground so close to Salem is amazing. Recommended! read more

Tent camped here for a few days. Have strict rules regarding fire pits and you must bring your own or rent. The site was well kept and the views were amazing. Really nice park to take a morning stroll in. Fellow campers had good attitudes as well. The Salem Skipper is an alternative to Uber and very affordable. We did have to fend off a raccoon one of the nights. It was very aggressive. I am not a super seasoned camper so I will prepare better for future excursions. People complain about the bathrooms a lot on here I see. I personally didn't mind them. Yes it wasn't the four seasons but the water was warm. read more

I visited Winter Island for a walk and found it to be a nice, decent park. The park features a breathtaking sunset and a lovely Waikiki Beach. It has a camping theme, offering numerous RV spots and camping supplies. It's a peaceful place to enjoy family time near the old US coastal station. The circular walking path on the island is less than a mile. I was a bit surprised by the $15 entrance fee, but the staff kindly waived it since I planned to walk for less than an hour. read more

See all

The three stars are for the magnificent view. Otherwise she can think of it as parking where you would normally put the boat trailer in the parking lot when you leave for a day out on the water. There's no place to put your garbage. They got rid of the dumpsters for some reason and we're baffled when we asked her to put our garbage after two days of camping. They ask if we were checking out and we said no we just have two days worth of kitchen garbage to dispose of. It was like they hadn't thought of that. There is no dumping station for your gray and black water tanks on the premises. They give you a voucher and you go down the street to the municipal dumping station. This next part is for the management if they get around to reading their reviews. The bathrooms! Come on people. Let's get a power washer in there, blast it with some bleach and detergent, and then paint it. Paint is really cheap and the bathroom is a disgrace. Remove those nasty drapes, update the fixtures because the shower one doesn't work, and that small stall is just scary. Most paint stores including Home Depot, have what they call Oopsie paint. It's been mixed and wound up being a different color. You can get it for greater than 50% most times. Get a sprayer tape off the windows and blast the whole room with fresh paint. Pretty easy And make a big difference. If we come back to the area we'll check in with reviews and see if anybody's done anything with the bathroom before we ever consider coming back. The view is everything. read more

Five stars strictly based on the views (beautiful and varied) and the trails (well-maintained). I can't speak from personal experience as to how well it actually functions as a campground, although at a glance it seems that the people are nice and the park is well-run. So basically all I'm qualified to do is recommend that you take a walk here. Which I do, highly. read more

See all

I came to Winter Island in the December-Jan time frame (very cold). I don't recommend walking to Winter Island Park as it has a very long road with no sidewalk. Although the walk was very peaceful, it was also a little sketchy in certain areas. I definitely recommend to Uber there if you don't have your own vehicle. However you stump up on a beautiful view with beautiful water waters. Also, there are no Restrooms available but a porter potty that is not very sanitary. We came thinking it would be nice to have a picnic but we didn't last even half an hour. Definitely worth seeing and taking photos. Also I walked from downtown Salem to here and it took about 49 minutes and I definitely had to get an Uber back to my Airbnb because the wind was mighty cold! read more

See all

My family and I visited Winter Island Park during our time in Salem. It was nice to drive around and see the sights see the water and visit the different facilities at this park head. It was a lot of fun walking I enjoyed seeing the beach and see in the lighthouse that was out on the water from the beach read more

See all

Not like any RV resort or anything. Most RV spots are on pavement but we loved this place!! No one bothered us at all, left our dogs alone. Great trails around the park. Trolley into town, but suggest taking a cab as it's cheaper!! We weren't sure about this place but we ended up having one of our best camping trips here!! We didn't use the dump station but it was available to us! Will return next year!!! read more

See all

Five stars for the park, two for park staff. Winter Island is beautiful. With great views of the harbor and Marblehead, a pretty beach, camping, and walking trails, it's really nice. I spent many summers at the beach here, and it is a favorite family spot. I recently held my sister's bridal shower in the function hall. It's not fancy, but it was here for sentimental reasons and it worked out well. However, trying to reserve it and work with the staff was awful. The staff is unprofessional and lack follow-up/coordination skills. My dad had an easier time planning her graduation party on the patio/gazebo a few years ago than I did with her bridal shower, and based on my experience, I would never plan anything here again. But you should definitely visit, even if it's just taking the trolley tour around Salem, which stops here. Just don't host an event here. read more

Winter Island Park - Lighthouse - Campgrounds Near Me - Salem, Massachusetts

Good little campground. Very helpful staff. David went above and beyond to insure that our after hours check in went as smoothly as possible. Great place to stop on a coastal road trip. Thanks again David! read more

Incredible view, friendly staff, very clean camping site. It's not free(it was shown as free camping site on the internet), paid $39 as an entrance fee. You must checkout before 11 am! Well.. Okay. Be ready for raccoons. They didn't let us eat our food :/ They provide free wi-fi, every site has barbecue and picnic table. Showers and restrooms were clean enough but not enough for that big camping area. Here are couple of pictures. read more

See all

The RV waterfront spots in the parking lot are different than we are used to, but new experiences are always fun! It's a beautiful place to spend a few days walking around and enjoying the views. read more

See all

We sort of ran into the park by accident while just messing around in Salem. What a neat place, with beautiful views of the water and lots of peace and quiet. In fact we hardly saw another person even through we spent several hours there. A lovely little lighthouse called Fort Pickering is located kinda hidden away behind some trees. We almost walked by it. You can walk right up to it but it is not open to the public. No museums or gift shops, just the quiet little lighthouse sitting here all alone. Looming views of a huge powerplant type place can be seen to the SW it you're into that kinda of stuff. The park is sort of out of the way, but when your had your fill of the tourist traps in Salem, it's worth the time to find the park for a look at a lovely little lighthouse and some great views of the water. read more

As a Salem resident, you can get a Winter Island sticker for $20 for 2 years, and it's totally worth it (the sticker gets you into a few other parks too, like Forest River) so you can go to Waikiki beach. Waikiki is my backup beach for when Crane is full. It's a fairly small beach that can fill up on really hot days, but still feels peaceful. It's in a cove, so it's a nice place to swim with calm, warmer water. it's walkable from downtown too! read more

Winter Island Park - Campgrounds Near Me - Salem, Massachusetts

This was a great place to kick off the summer and my first introduction to camping. Certainly not your typical camp grounds as it's literally a parking lot for RV and car parking but grassy areas for tents. It's very small which I loved and we had the best spot! Our pop up doesn't take up much space so the area we had seemed huge. Picnic table, water and electricity, and a private beach! We brought our chiminea and were able to have a fire and also use our small charcoal grill. We were surrounded by water and it was beautiful. The bathrooms were clean, although only 2 showers and 2 toilets so it must get hectic during busy times as the grounds are also open to the public. There isn't much to see so I certainly wouldn't pay to enter for the day and I'm sure I wouldn't have enjoyed as much if we hadn't reserved a specific spot (lot 12 is the best!). The staff and harbor masters were incredibly friendly and gave us great fishing tips! I would certainly return for another couple days of camping. read more

See all

Don't get me wrong it's a busy area, locals use the trails and parking lot for exercise and dog walks, etc. (There was even a high school cross country event on our last day.) For tenting there are some nice secluded spots. The RV spots are around the perimeter of the parking lot but do have some amazing views. Waikiki beach is an unexpected surprise and the trails and historic Colonial era Fort are a joy to explore. That being said the people who work there, for us anyway, will bend over backwards to help you. We trashed the front end of our truck on a pothole in Lynn, Mass. and had to stay 2 extra days. They moved around incoming campers to accommodate us and comped us the fee because it was our anniversary, and our mechanics bill was over $800 (not that I whined a lot). What to keep in mind is your a mile or so from downtown Salem, the Peabody Essex Museum, psychic witchy stuff out the bootie, and the Orange line which goes right into Boston. Oh and if you've ever wanted to sail on a schooner sunset cruise here's the place. read more

See all

Take the Newbury Port/Rock Port into The North Station or Wonderland into the Aquarium. They are 25-30 mins from campground. We had to camp in a parking lot and where not allowed to have fires. However the bathrooms were clean. There are only three showers and two bathroom stalls to service this campground. All in all cant complain too much. I will look for something to better fit our needs for next year. We actually want to feel grass under our feet and trees around us. read more

See all

We were really skeptical when booking online from out of state, but were pleasantly surprised. We arrived on a Sunday evening to masses of people, beaches full in addition to about 100 people having their own party in the grass around the bathroom and parking lot full of cars. We had a spot in the RV field and were happy to see it was a short walk from the bathroom but very quiet on that side of the park. The RV field is a sandy dirt lot with RVs parked around the back edges. We stayed Sunday- Thursday, I'm not sure if we got lucky or it's just quiet during the week, but all the RV spots were filled yet it was the quietest camping we ever experienced - No parties or loud drunks. Most people seemed to be just sleeping there and then out touring all day or enjoying the island. There were many tent sites along the roadway in just about any open grassy area - they didn't seem to be much privacy for the tent areas. The other main RV spots were along the edges of the parking area, odd, but the water and beaches surround 3 sides of the parking lot and have beautiful harbor views. I can understand an outdoorsman would be disappointed in this "campsite" but if you know what your getting into it is a nice place to stay. The only reason I would not give it 5 stars is the bathroom. There are two, I repeat TWO, toilets in the women's bathroom and my son reported that there are two toilets and one urinal in the men's- and sometimes hundreds of people in the park. The majority of campers are self contained RVs, but those RV have to drive out of the park to another place to empty their holding tanks..... so where do you think every campers is headed to bright and early for their morning constitutional?! We did not have a bathroom in our camper so it was a pain to wait in line almost every time we had to go. I can not even imagine what it's like over a weekend!! If you are staying over on a Saturday you may as well bring a shovel with you because you may not get in to a toilet in time. Even on the weekdays we ran out of toilet paper and hand soap on multiple occasions. To be clear, the cleaning staff was SO good. Each morning there was someone there scrubbing the bathrooms really well, but after hundreds of uses each day the bathrooms really take a beating. I am positive that if you wanted to hold an event in the city of Salem they would never let you get away with so few toilets with 100s of people, and its ridiculous that they received local tax $, in addition to entry fees, parking, boat launch and campsite fees and only provide that small inadequate bathroom. In the end we would definitely stay again on a weekend day or off season, and would come anytime for a relaxing hike or stroll around the waterfront. read more

See all

While the park itself is nice, the "campground" leaves a lot to be desired. We pulled in in our VW van, it looked like nice grassy spots, then we were escorted to the public parking lot near the water. No picnic table, obviously no fire ring as it was a blacktop parking space. We couldn't unload and set up camp in anyway as it was not a secure place. My wife said the bathrooms were disgusting as well (since it is a public park). Needless to say, we did not spend the night there. I would guess it's ok for self contained units, but not our situation. read more

Winter Island Park - No where on this map does it indicate it's a parking lot. - Campgrounds Near Me - Salem, Massachusetts

See all

We didn't get stabbed, so that's good. We arrived on a Thursday afternoon ready to camp not knowing much about the place. The attendant at the entrance was the nicest person we ever met, perhaps because he knew we planned to camp. The regular sites are right near the bathrooms and footpaths, so, no privacy. We downloaded Priceline and shot back to Boston to stay in the city after 45 minutes. read more

It's a good "campground" if you don't like parking in your designated parking and you don't like staying at the camp site you reserved. It's also a good "campground" if you like having a car drive passed every 2 min because of a wedding happening directly across the small road and having your camp site trashed by squatters. Overall if you like staying in a crap hole come and reserve a camp site that will have someones garbage thrown all around your camp site and all their camping gear still at the spot that you reserved. Oh and if you like not being able to use the camp office when you have a problem this is the place for you!!! read more

I have to disagree with the review below. Being born in Salem, I always looked at Winter Island as a place you can go that not every shithead at the Willows can get into. And don't get me wrong...The Willows is a Salem institution (Hobbs Popcorn, Chop Suey sandwhich) - but can be a bit much on a weekend. Winter Island is the perfect place to BBQ and drink beers (in a plastic cup), while sitting outside with some awesome views. Wiffle Ball, Volleyball, you name it...you do it. read more

nice amenities & scenery. idk if i'd recommend actually camping here but the views are lovely and the land is nice overall.

Much better than the Willows. More quiet, more isolated, less douchebag rebelious teenagers, less families with screeching kids whose parents ignore them. The Salem area doesn't have too many great places to relax and unwind, so I consider this place a hidden gem. Hidden as in, everyone goes to the Willows and they ignore/don't know about this place. read more

This is a nice relaxing place if you live in Salem you can get a 2 year pass for $20.00 dollars if you do not i believe it's @ $ 15.00 dollars to get in they have a small playground for kids, a small beach called Waikiki beach you can go swimming and try to get a tan....they have plenty of parking and small trails to go for a hike/walk what's also relaxing is you can sit on the benches and watch the boats go by if you have a RV or tents you can camp out there. They have a small store if you need to get a few items, and a pretty cool lighthouse. read more

Nice, Nice water views with abit run down feeling. A couple of buildings that could be restored its original grandeur, making it excellent. that of,course requires state money... I won't hold my breath read more

Winter Island Park - Campgrounds Near Me - Salem, Massachusetts

What a treasure Winter Island is. If it weren't for the power plant and sewer treatement facility right next door, it would be perfect. It's not Winter Island's fault that one of the most beautiful sites on the North Shore would end up with coal-burning stacks and sewer vats as neighbors, but that's what being in a regional population center can do to ya. The latest insult to add to the park is the threat of a wind power turbine. I'm all for wind power, but do they have to plop a humungous turbine right smack in the middle of the parking area and picnic benches along the shore? Go put it on the coal plant land! Oh well. I just turn my back to the crap view and soak up the beauty of the rest of Salem Harbor, the open sea, and the gorgeous panoramic view of the North Shore and islands. The park is being considered for a major overhaul that would repurpose the old buildings there and make them a lot more attractive. In the meantime, it's still a great place for even us locals to camp overnight, either in a camper/RV or on the tent site across the way. There is a small "general store" for buying necessities and ice cream, lots of parking space, a sandy beach (nice enough, but it can get kind of messy with litter from inconsiderate vistors, along with trash that floats in from inconsiderate boaters), plenty of grassy lawn for kids to cavort, and a big gazebo (a roofed shelter without walls/sides) that campers can dine or relax under on rainy or too-sunny days. A tidy bath house with showers, toilets and sinks makes for a full-service campground during the summer. Come for the day or camp out overnight in a tent or camper. I think the rate for now is $15/night for tents and $30/night for campers and RVs. Day parking is $5, but Salem residents can buy a sticker for $20 that is good for 2 years and allows them to park in any of Salem's municipal parks that have paid parking during the summer season. Winter Island is a treat. And hey, where else can you enjoy the "tropical breezes" of Waikiki Beach without having to fly all the way to freakin' Hawaii? read more

I LOVE WINTER ISLAND. First thoughts as we were approaching Winter Island: "WTF, it's next to a sewage plant?!" In reality, though, it couldn't be farther from gross than this. We camped here for one night and it was absolutely wonderful. We were so close to the water, we could have slept-walked into it. There isn't a lot of space on Winter Island, so except to get to know your neighbors (don't worry - they all seem extremely friendly). Also, don't expect any kind of professionalism or organization. Apparenlty, like the witch hunts, all of that was done away with a longggg time ago. read more

I've only been here on weekdays, but it wasn't crowded at all. Even though I live up the street, I have seriously been debating coming to camp. The only deterrent is that Salem residents have to pay $23 a night. Which, don't get me wrong, is not expensive, but I could just camp in my own backyard for free, if you think about it. The beaches are way nicer than at the Willows/Collins Cove. Lots of grassy areas to relax, and grills already set up for use. read more

We stayed for a couple nights at the campground in our C class RV. The views of the water are beautiful. The park/campground however, is a pit. Dirty, broken glass, cigarettes, overall filth. in addition, quiet time is 10pm - 6am. At 6am, trucks pull in with their boats to launch. read more

Camped here a night in our tent and got an amazing spot right by the water. It was amazing to be so close. I spent most of the time on the beach, searching for shells and running from the tide. Overall it was really fun and I had a great time exploring the trails and playing on the beach. It was also not a bad price for a great spot. I have one complaint: around 2am my father and I went up to the bathhouse to pee and two drunken fools (both dressed up fancily) were wandering around the place. I have nothing against getting dressed up for a night on the town, but I assumed they would close the gate because, you know, people are sleeping In here and drunk people don't usually have the best judgement read more

Located in a public park next to Waikiki beach with a lot of natural beauty, this place has a lot going for it but I guess I was expecting more. We had to park pretty far from our site. The bathrooms are gross and the water pressure in the showers intermittent / horrible. Not a lot of privacy for the campground area with people walking to the beach right past our space all the time. Lots of wild animals they i didn't expect including skunks and raccoons right next to our site. Seemed a bit dangerous and sketchy. read more

$15 for out-of-town visitors wasn't that bad considering that the parking spots limit the amount of people and guarantee a relatively peaceful day. If you have a boat to bring, there's an island about a mile out called Misery. It has wide, mowed grass trails and even a nice restroom. read more

Beautiful place. The man at the front gate was so sweet and helpful. Honestly went above and beyond what should be expected to make sure my camping experience was the best possible. I wish I knew his name to give credit where credit is due! Will continue to come back year after year! read more

We stayed at Winter Island Park last night and had a great experience. We are in a 40 ft bus and had a spot up in the field. The spots are right next to one another, but we didn't mind that. We didn't have a cord to hook up to electrical, but the owner was kind enough to loan us a cord for the night. The bathrooms and showers are clean. The people who work here are nice and helpful. The view of the water is incredible. I would definitely come back here. read more

Winter Island Park - Sunset and a storm at Winter Island Park. - Campgrounds Near Me - Salem, Massachusetts

See all

Very beautiful . Lots of boats a rv's. Hard to find parking. But it's a calm and clean environment. read more

Winter Island Park - My baby sleeping near Waikiki beach. - Campgrounds Near Me - Salem, Massachusetts

Wonderfully kept secret of Salem .... Relaxing to go with the family or just to be away for a little while read more

See all

I camped here for the entire weekend. I have nothing but good to say about winter island. I had a campsite that was big enough to play frisbee ,bocci and bean bag toss. We were drinking and kind of rowdy but nobody bothered us. The staff was very nice. The beach was beautiful. I brought my dog and it seems as though everyone else did too. It is very dog friendly. It is a great place for friends or for an entire family. I loved it so much I plan to camp here every weekend. It is now on Monday and nobody is here. I might have to camp here for an entire week. Also I ran an extension cord from the utility pole so the electricity was a bonus. I highly recommend Winter island. read more

Winter Island Park - Sweet hammock set up in the shade. - Campgrounds Near Me - Salem, Massachusetts

See all