Illinois Beach State Park

This place is a wow. We arrived on a Tuesday and had our pick of sites. All sites are spacious and well taken care of. If you are fortunate to be on the 300 loop, you are camped by t he beach with only a small dune between. Listen to waves, crisp air off the lake. Some biting flies, but not extreme.
Fill over the weekend with really respectful campers.
Camp hosts were helpful and friendly.
Lots of walking paths along the water or inside multiple nature preserves.

We checked in Wednesday and had our pick of the sites. Chose 327 because it has a path leading to the beach. It was perfect minus allllll the poison ivy everywhere. I am shocked no one has it. Also no shade at this site. But we loved this site. 200 feet from the beach. The electrical kept going out in the entire campground which made it super hot with no shade. But overall we’d come back again. By Friday the campground was nearly full. One night our neighbor didn’t sleep and would go in and out of his popup over and over, but whatever. I didn’t sleep but wasn’t mad at the guy. We would stay here again!

I loved it here. Stayed here most of April. It was cold, windy and rainy but I wouldn't trade it for anything. Both my spots were a 1 minute walk to the beach but the lake wasn't visible through the tree line in spot 304. 210 had a view of the lake. Both spots were very level although I could see how on the other side of the 300 row where leveling might be a bit more tricky. There were a few nights we had electrical problems though I'm still not sure if those were on my end or theres even though it's middle of May now and I haven't had a problem since. Staff was friendly if a little talkative. There were picturesque parts of the beach full of rocks and stone and other parts full of sand. Our last night there was on the night of the full moon and the waves were very ocean like. I didn't want to leave and will definitely be heading back.

I would definitely camp here again. We camping in our travel trailer and my sister was tent camping on the same site. Tent and RV allowed on a single camp site for only $25 a night (Illinois Resident rate)

Parking spot for RV was graded gravel but not level, but fairly easy to level the trailer. And very wide for those just learning to backup their trailers.

Only have 30AMP electric at the site, no water or sewer hook ups. There are several water stations to pull you RV to for fresh drinking water. And there is a two lane dump station to empty either on your way in, or mid-stay or on your way out, that also has fresh water for drinking available for refilling your tanks.

We were there first week of October when all sites are first-come first-served. It was pretty empty. In September you could not even get a reservation.

If you need to use the on location bathrooms they were tolerable, but glad we have our own in the trailer.
There has been some flooding due to high lake water levels so some sites are closed.
And the beach facilities are a total disaster from the Walking Dead. Supposedly funding is approved to upgrade/replace, and it is needed. If you are a self contained camper, this place is great. If you are tenting... make friends with your RV owning friends and family!!!

With a reservation through Reserve America check in is fast and easy. Many of the sites are wooded and have a fair amount of shade depending on time of day. It has been a dry summer and the sites on the north end still show softness, middle to south end sites are dry and have solid ground. It is an old campground, sites show wear and tear, but are still comfortable.

llinois Beach State Park in Zion, Illinois. Site 209, electric only, dump station available. About 60 channels on the antenna. We did not have a clear view of the southern skies from our site for our Dish. Excellent 4G Tmobile service.
$25 per night. There are no permit/park entrance fees for the state parks in Illinois.

This is a great state park! Huge amounts of space between sites. We are on a end of a tight U turn. We are about 55' with the truck and trailer and it was tight.
The beach on Lake Michigan is a 3 minute walk from our site. Great walking/biking paved trails and the roads are paved. There are bathhouses throughout the park and lots of camp hosts. All the staff are super friendly.
Definitely will return!

Have hiked here many times (southern trails near the Nature Center), but since we recently got a travel trailer, this was the first time visiting the campground. We had a site 316 backing up the the beach (short hike away). Was heaven seeing the sunrise from my dining table. We were checking out the park for a trip later in fall. The shore is somewhat dated with structures long since boarded up, but I remember it as a kid in its heyday. ILLINOIS NEEDS TO SPEND SOME MONEY AT THIS PARK!
Bring your bikes to take the trails north to the marina and beyond.
Cannot vouch for the cleanliness of the facilities since we had our own.

What a great place to camp. We had a wonderful experience. We choose sight 322 with 30 amp service. Easy walk or bike to Lake Michigan.

Entrance to the park is very easy. If you are coming from the South don not follow the GPS. Go further north and come back. The path we took was ok in an RV but there are better routes. I recommend IL 173 to 137 South.

Camp office and check in was very smooth. Everyone was friendly. They offered maps and park info.

We camped in an RV and loved this location. We stayed in the 300's first for the 50 amp, but it is mainly a parking lot. Positives are that you can hear the waves crashing nearby, restrooms/showers are close and sites are level. Cons - too busy in that area, not as scenic. Restrooms need TLC and could be cleaned more often. We moved to the 100's to have a better view. Had 30 amp which was still fine...Could not hear the waves as good, but we had a great shady spot with not as many neighbors. We saw deer in the woods!

We love the location, lots of things close by, including Chicago only 45 minutes away. Zion has a few restaurants and grocery stores. Piggly Wiggly and CVS are nearby and clean. Resort and conference center is within biking distance and has a bar and restaurant with great views. Site 110 was great. First come, first serve for the 100's. Cell service was actually better in the 100's. It was pretty slow near the back in the 300's.

Camp Hosts were friendly and helpful. Check in was easy. We would definitely stay here again.