The 7 Best Campgrounds Near Cape Cod

Campers Haven RV Resort is unique in that it’s located right on the Nantucket Sound, with its very own 500-foot private swimming beach. You can stay in a tent or an RV, or you can rent a home or cottage. Note that this is primarily an RV resort, so be cautious of the fact that there are only 10 tent sites and two rental houses. No matter where you stay, you can take advantage of their amenities, including a snack bar, mini golf course and basketball court. 

The Cape Cod National Seashore is trickier to stay at than other camping options in the area, mainly because you aren’t actually allowed to tent or trailer camp, though you can “in self-contained, off-road vehicles with a seven-day or annual permit.” The beauty of this national park is that it offers 40 miles of shoreline spread over six swimming beaches with lifeguards in the summer, along with marshes, cranberry bogs, lighthouses and more–everything you’d want in a coastal area. Keep in mind if you want to camp during July 4th week or Labor Day Weekend, you’ll need to mail in your reservation earlier in the year as spaces fill up.

You’ll find the North of Highland Camping Area toward the tip of Cape Cod, in the town of North Truro. This town is about 10 minutes from Provincetown, so you can take the ferry from Boston if you prefer not to drive down the entire Cape. This is one of the best campgrounds for tent camping, with 237 sites on about 60 acres of pine forest. It’s completely surrounded by the Cape Cod National Seashore, with one of the Cape’s very first beaches, Head of the Meadow, about a half-mile away.

Nickerson State Park is an inland camping area with 400 campsites in the Cape’s pine woods, though you still can access the Cape Cod Bay on foot or bike. Here you can swim and fish in the fresh-water kettle ponds; walk or bike on the 22-mile Cape Cod Rail Trail; and swim, canoe and kayak at Flax Pond.

If you’re not totally sold on camping in a tent but want to get a similar, and more luxurious, experience, glamping is for you. Normandy Farms, located between Boston and Cape Cod in the town of Foxborough, is a family-owned resort that’s been around since 1971. You can in your own RV or tent, or you can rent one of their deluxe cabins, yurts, or safari tents. The cabins and yurts come complete with a queen bed, pull-out couch, fireplace, bathroom and kitchen, so while you’ll be camping, you’ll still feel right at home. There is a bike park, disc golf course, dog park, swimming pools, tennis course, and more right on the resort.

While Foxborough isn't quite in Cape Cod, word is that there will eventually be a luxury campground opening in Falmouth, as the new owners of the former Sippewissett Campground have plans to transform it into a more premium camping destination.

The Shawme-Crowell State Forest is another inland option that offers over 285 camp sites, along with roads and trails where you can hike and horseback ride along. Open year-round, a stay at this campground will also get you beach parking at the Scusset State Reservation, which you’ll want to visit any time of year, not only during the summer months.

The Scusset Beach State Reservation, located on the Cape Cod Canal, is a great option for trailer camping, with 98 sites available for use. There are places for swimming, saltwater fishing, and bicycling along the canal.