Fort De Soto Park Campground

This campground is very nice in its layout and the park itself was great! The nearby beaches were quite enjoyable and we did like the privacy the sites provide.

However we camped here in June the mosquitos were so bad that we had to end our stay early. Being from central FL I understand mosquitos but these were swarming. I am not sure if they just had some infestation but it was not tolerable for us and we had originally planned to stay 4 nights but ended it at 2.

While the bathhouses were nice, while taking a shower we were fighting the mosquitoes who seemed to have made a home in there.

I would totally come back in the winter, or some time when the mosquitos were not swarming.

We use a Peplink BR2 Max Duo and I was able to get great signal with both the T-mobile Sim and the ATT Sim, and had no issues with my Internet and streaming.

We finally got a waterfront spot after a year of trying, and it was worth it for the sunset views. We stayed in the rv loop with no pets, and it was very quiet. You can’t swim from the water sites, so you’re just paying for the view. I don’t think there were any bad spots because even the inner spots off the water were HUGE…as in an RV, a boat, and 2 vehicles fit in many of them. We saw a handful of raccoons, but nothing like we’d read about. Would definitely go back.

There's a reason that this is a hard campground to get into. It's clean, the sites are fairly large and private, there's a lot to do at the campground, and the staff is friendly. We stayed in three different sites during our 5 days. Each was large and private.

There's plenty of hiking, kayaking, and biking that can be done in and around the campground. We didn't go swimming due to the algae bloom, but the kids loved the playground. The bathrooms were a little dated, but the showers were hot.

Overall, we will be back!

Our timing was off to stay here two days before Christmas 2022, and more the fault of the weather (winter storm Elliott) than the park. Red tide left the beach littered with dead fish. Cold temps, windy, rainy. Having said that, there were things the park has the power to improve. Badly potholed roads, sandy/muddy campsites, unheated bathrooms without any light during the day, dim at night, and could have been cleaner. This park has a lot of potential. Sites are private and many have waterviews. A visit during nicer weather could be a better experience. But for the price, not a good cold weather park. The reservation system needs updating. Very cumbersome.

This is a pretty area and at different times of year is probably a 5 star stop. For us, the red tide seemed to have killed off fish and there were dead fish all over the campground so we mostly stayed in the RV avoiding it and the smell.

The campground is very strict about a 1pm checkin. Even though the spot we reserved was open, we couldn't check in even 15 minutes early. If you bring pets, you can have 2 BUT you must show valid rabies evidence. We called our vet in the parking lot and they were able to email us evidence. I appreciate protecting pets but we've never had this before for our indoor persian cats.

Otherwise this was a quiet, dark, and peaceful stay. We had business in St Pete's and this was about 30 minutes away with two minor tolls with our sunpass.

We are full time and of all the campgrounds we have stayed at, Fort DeSoto remains my favorite. Many of the sites are too tight for a big rig. We have a 35' 5th wheel and it fit easily into site 162.

We have a Pepwave Max Transit Duo for AT&T and Verizon service. AT&T had download speeds of 15.7 and upload speeds of 3.84. Verizon was 11.68 for downloads and 0.06 for uploads. Our Mifi with T-Moble had download speeds of 13.41 and uploads of 6.25

Site 95 was wonderful. Probably not for rigs bigger than our 28' motorhome. Tight entrance to the site. Access parking pass for the beach is included when using your car pass. Heads up, there is a walking trail directly behind the site between you and the water. a few people and dogs coming and going, but really no problem.
Stayed with a 6 and 9 year olds and they has a ball. Showers were awesome and clean!