Carolina Beach State Park Camping: 2 Miles from the Beach!

The Carolina Beach State Park camping area is wildly underrated! With 79 campsites perfect for tents, campers and RVs as well as 6 camping cabins, you have plenty of options.

With just a 2 mile walk/drive to the beach, you can’t beat how close this gorgeous state park is to the beach. Plus, you won’t believe the affordability of camping instead of staying in a hotel or rental house.

Carolina Beach is a small beach town located just south of Wilmington, North Carolina. And while you wouldn’t think there would be affordable camping near a major city and beach, I’m here to tell you why you should take a camping trip in Carolina Beach State Park!

Important Links

Carolina Beach State Park – Main Page
Carolina Beach State Park Camping – Make Reservations Here
Park Map – Hiking Trails
Campground Map – Campsites/Cabins
Carolina Beach – City Website
Wilmington, NC – City Website

Location

Carolina Beach State Park camping area is just 20 minutes south of Wilmington, North Carolina. This gorgeous state park is only a 2 mile walk/drive from the Carolina Beach Boardwalk, which my husband and I took advantage of while camping here.

The campground is also just 2.5 hours south of Raleigh, NC, 3.5 hours southeast of Charlotte, NC, and 3.5 hours east of Columbia, SC. Making Carolina Beach the perfect location for a quick weekend of camping at the beach.

Fees

North Carolina State Parks do not charge for day use in their beautiful state parks. So you are free to explore the trails and stop in the visitor’s center while you are there.

But there are a few fees to be aware of if you plan on taking a trip to Carolina Beach State Park camping area.

Boat Ramp Access is $7 per vehicle
Camp sites without hookups are $26 per night
Camp sites with Full Hookup are $36 per night
Camper Cabins are $78 per night

Parking

Parking is free in the state park. Whether in the picnic area, at a trailhead, or the visitor’s center, you can park and enjoy the park for free.

**However here’s the big fee to be aware of**

Parking anywhere in Carolina Beach between March and December is $5 per hour. Yes, $5 per hour (or $25 for the whole day) anywhere you can find parking. Otherwise there is a hefty fine of $150. And from what we saw, a lot of the lots are 2-hour parking only.

This is why we left our truck at our campsite and simply walked over to the beach. It was about a 35 minute walk, but we would stop at Good Hops Brewing for a drink and a quick break. A bike would have been great here, but we didn’t have our bikes with us.

So now that you have some important links, and know about the fees in the park and area, let’s look at how long you should stay at Carolina Beach State Park Camping area.

Time to Spend Here

My husband and I camped here in our 25 foot travel trailer for 9 days. We booked 2 days at a dry campsite and the remaining 7 at a site with full hookups. I’ll get into why we had to break up our trip in a little bit.

Anyway, this was plenty of time to visit the beach several times, hike the trails in Carolina Beach State Park, and to check out Wilmington on a Sunday morning.

While here, we saw people stay anywhere from a day, to a weekend, to a week. The clean and centrally located bathhouses were great for an extended stay and if you aren’t much for camping, you can rent a camping cabin.

Personally, I would recommend a week here. There is so much to do in Carolina Beach and of course Wilmington is so close you can spend a decent amount of time over there as well. There are dozens of restaurants to try and who wouldn’t want a week long beach trip without the expensive price tag of a rental house!?

So be sure to check out Carolina Beach State Park Camping Area if you are looking for an affordable beach getaway!

Now, let’s discuss the campground.

Campground

The Carolina Beach State Park Camping area is very competitive! I mentioned earlier that we had to start on a site with no hookups before moving to a campsite with full hookups. This was because all of the hookup sites were booked on the day they became available!

All campsites can be booked 6 months in advance. And trust me, in the summer months, the sites with full hookups WILL be gone within the day that they become available.

So the minute you plan your trip, make sure you book your site. You can book your campsite here.

Carolina Beach State Park sign at entrance.

Details

69 Tent/Camper/RV sites (no hookups)
10 Camper/RV sites with Full Hookups
6 Camper Cabins
2 Group Camping Sites
2 Bathhouses
A Dump Station and Dumpsters

Tent/Camper/RV Sites (Dog Friendly)

With 79 total campsites, Carolina Beach State Park camping area is a great place for just about any type of camping. From tent camping, to over-landing, to teardrop trailers, to fifth wheels and travel trailers, there are tons of ways to stay.

I will say, make sure you are careful to read the description of what can fit in the site you intend to book. Some of them are pretty small…so watch out.

10 of these campsites are Full Hookup, but they are very competitive to get in the summer months, so make sure you book one of these sites 6 months in advance.

69 of these are what some would call dry camping. We did see several campers on these sites, but they were running a generator so they weren’t totally in the heat and dark.

Group Sites (Dog Friendly)

Carolina Beach State Park camping area has 2 group campsites. They are perfect for boy/girl scout groups, youth groups, etc. Unfortunately, these sites can’t be reserved online, and can only be reserved by calling 910-458-7770.

These sites are along the Swamp Trail and are all walk-in sites, meaning you park your car at a lot and then carry in all your gear. Each designated area for cars can only accommodate 10 vehicles, so make sure to carpool.

Group Site 1 can accommodate up to 26 people and costs $45 per night. While Group Site 2 can accommodate up to 40 people and costs $55 per night. Each site has a pit toilet, but no running water/showers in the area.

Camper Cabins (NOT Dog Friendly)

And finally, we have the nicest, and most expensive, way to stay at Carolina Beach State Park camping area. There are 6 camper cabins to choose from.

The Camper Cabins here are all the same size and can sleep 6 people between a queen bed and 2 sets of twin bunks beds. None of the cabins have running water or a bathroom, so campers will have to use the bathhouses provided to the campground.

Outside of the cabin there is a picnic table, a charcoal grill, and a fire ring, for that touch of camping feel. There are also 2 Adirondack chairs by the front door for you to sit and enjoy the peace and quiet.

There is no smoking in the cabins and no dogs are allowed, unless you have a service dog. So you’ll have to leave Fido at home if you plan to stay in one of the camper cabins.

Price Comparison

While some of these options might sound nicer than others, a large portion of this is dependent on your budget. So, let’s look at the price of each accommodation!

**Please note that these are the prices listed at the time this article was written**

Group Camping Site #1

$45 per night
$315 per week

Group Camping Site #2

$55 per night
$385 per week

Tent/Trailer/RV Campsites (no hookups)

$26 per night
$182 per week

Tent/Trailer/RV Campsites (WITH hookups)

$36 per night
$252 per week

Camper Cabin

$78 per night
$546 per week

Our Camping Experience

Travel Trailer in Carolina Beach State Park camping area. (Site 10)

My husband and I camped here for 9 days. And between the full hookups, the clean bathhouses and the proximity to the beach, you can’t go wrong with Carolina Beach State Park camping!

We have stayed at many state parks over the years, and this might be the nicest. In all honesty, we wish we had stayed longer so we could have gotten more beach time in. Also, the area is buzzing with things to do!

Plus, with a price of just $36 per night for full hookups, you probably won’t find a cheaper option for staying near a very popular beach. We enjoyed being able to walk to the beach and hike on the trails too.

Hiking Options

Carolina Beach State Park has 9 miles of hiking trail throughout their 760 acres. We were able to hike several of them during our stay (primarily we walked to the beach in the evenings, so we didn’t get to them all.)

Here is the list of trails that are located within the park and if you want more details about hiking in Carolina Beach State Park, feel free to check out my post on Hiking in Carolina Beach State Park.

Trails

Flytrap Trail – 0.5 miles – flat with sections of boardwalk.
Sugarloaf Trail – 3 miles – easy with sugary white sand dunes
Campground Trail – 1 mile – easy and connects the Sugarloaf to the Visitor’s Center
Sand Live Oak Trail – 1.5 miles – easy and leads you to the least visited corner of the park
Snow Cut’s Trail – 0.75 miles – easy and leads you along the Intercoastal Waterway
TRACK Trail – 0.25 miles – easy and connects the Snow Cut Trail to the Picnic area
Swamp Trail – 0.75 miles – easy – where the group campsites are located
Oak Toe Trail – 0.25 miles – easy – connects the Sugarloaf trail to a marsh overlook
Fitness Loop – 1 mile – located just outside the front entrance of the park – perfect for walking

My husband and I hiked the majority of these trails and we can confirm that the trails were easy as well as very sandy. If you want to read more about hiking in Carolina Beach State Park, check out my post about it!

What’s in the Area??

You might be asking yourself, “Ok, so if I camp here, what else is in the area?” And I have a couple quick recommendations for you on that front!

Coffee: Crush and Grind was delicious! Plus we stopped there for a drink after a long beach day.

Ice Cream: Celtic Creamery had tasty ice cream that was so buttery smooth and they had over a dozen flavor choices.

Soft Serve Ice Cream: Beach Bunny Ice Cream and Coffee had these flavor burst soft serve flavors that were worth every penny!

Pizza: Fentoni’s Slice Shop had delicious slices of pizza! We bought an entire pizza and ate it on the beach one evening for dinner.

Donuts: Britt’s Donuts was the perfect cheap snack! Charging only $1.25 per donut, you can’t go wrong at this cash only establishment.

Drinks: We have a few recommendations for this one!

Good Hops: a great local brewery just outside the state park.
Nauti Dog: a bar inside and outside with plenty of tasty drinks to choose from.
Silver Dollar: the best prices we could find for drinks and they had live music.
The Tropical: brand new in 2024, this place has delicious drinks and a fun vibe.

Conclusion

Carolina Beach State Park camping area is a great place to camp with the whole family! From the close proximity to the beach, all of the things to do in the area, and the affordability, you can’t go wrong with making a reservation here. Just remember, if you want full hookups, you’ll have to book 6 months in advance!

This dog friendly state park has great trails, a boat ramp and a wonderfully peaceful environment. Of all the state parks we have camped at, this might be the best one. So if you’re on the fence, go for it!

As always, feel free to reach out to averagewildexperience@gmail.com with any questions about the campground or the area.

Happy Camping!