Rainbow Springs State Park Campground

Beautiful well kept, clean park. We stayed at sight 45. We stayed 3 nights with full hookups. The bathrooms were clean but needed an update. The hot water and pressure was great! The laundry machines worked well and were $2.00 each. There is no internet. You have to drive to the other side of the park which is the Headsprings. There are remnants of the old park there and some overgrown cages that used to house some animals. We were told there are alligators at the springs but we didn't see any. We had subs one day at Gaetano's Subs. They were great! They are a must try if in town.
The only downfall to this campground was the rude elder lady/ranger. Be on your toes with her! She snapped at me when I asked a question about a brochure in the office. She said very loud and rudely, "I don't know! You'll have to read it!" She then must have noticed what she did and started to talk more, but I put my hand up and said "forget it" and walked out. The next day there were a group of people standing around talking about how rude she was. Beware of her!

PROS
Site 49 level and xtra wide. Picnic table, metal fire ring with cooking grate and pedestal BBQ grill

Non-climate controlled bathhouse 20 steps away from Site 49

Saw a wild turkey walking thru the campground a couple times.

Fairly good night sky viewing as many camper turned off ALL their exterior lights fairly early in the evening.

Firewood sold at Park Store along with other essential camping items

2 bars TMOBILE

CONS
Entrance gate closed upon our 2pm Monday arrival and emails from the park stated it closed at sunset No gate code had been provided in any of the emails we received from the park. We tried to call the park office, but no answer. So there we sat blocking the only entrance to the campground and no place to turn around. Luckily a registered camper came in behind us, walked up and used his code to open the gate.

Park Office Building Laundry. Filthy. 4 washers and 4 dryers. One washer full of water and unplugged.

Site 49. 100% gravel and weeds with no shade or privacy from any other site or roadway. Picnic table wooden top and one side bench in unusable condition.

Bathhouse for 17 campsites were 3-piece rooms (toilet/shower/sink), on for females and one for males. Bathhouse in Park Office closed for repairs our entire 7 day stay.

Park Map. I had to specifically request a park map and was provided hand drawn map which was of only the campground. No other information provided for the park such as hiking trails, etc.

No park WiFi

The attraction is definitely the river. The water is great. I’m not really into fighting for real estate on the water. You can rent kayaks at the campground…will be gone by 11. Can also rent up by the headspring. The swimming area isn’t much to speak of. One little bubbler in 7’ of water, so you can’t even wade in the water. Antenna picked up a handful of stations. Not much cell service with Verizon. Sites have sewer at the back, I barely had enough with my two sections of dump hose. Campsite are nice hard pack. Pretty level and fairly private.

Overall the campground is nice. The sites are spacious and offer adequate privacy from your neighbor. The only downside is cellular signal is very sketchy and if it rains you will get some muddy shoes from the sand. The head spring was great but you need to be there early and only pool noodles and life jackets are allowed.
The campsite swimming area was nice because it is just for the campers and if you have little ones it is pretty shallow.

We have camped at Rainbow for over 20 years in a number of different rigs and tents. Senior rate is about $21.00 per night (after they have added all the tricky new fees the State Park System has implemented). Always a great experience, and love the beautiful area. Gardens at the main spring site are lovely, and swimming in the springs is delightful. We like playing in the water at the campground too, and have taken jet skis, jon boat, electric motor powered rafts, to spend alot of time on the river, and find our peace there each time. Treat yourself to a trip there!

Sites were level, our site 42 had nice shade and decent privacy. had to use an extension on our sewer hose to reach the sewer cap as it is located in the very back of the campsite. We rented kayaks from the visitors center at the campground, the launch is a short walk from behind the center. Paddle right, upstream to the Headland park, then turn around and paddle back. Gorgeous trip with lots of wildlife to view if you're quiet. There are restrooms, a swimming area, visitors center, and trails at the headlands.

Zero internet even though verizon showed 4G with 2 bars. 4 TV air antenna channels.

We stayed here for 3 nights in Jan 2022. I booked the site many months ahead w no previous knowledge of campground. We probably had the worst site. No shade, sandy, no privacy.
However, everything else was great. The campground is quiet. It has its own access to RainbowRiver and canoe/kayak rentals for campers only. The actual main entrance to the state park is across the river and that is where crowds go. We tented a canoe on 2 days and paid a reasonable hourly rate. Rainbow River is beautiful crystal clear water. We saw pileated woodpeckers and wood ducks. We found a nice 1 mi loop trail to walk our dogs and didn’t see anyone else on the trail. The rate is 30/night and there is a 7/night utility fee.

If you come here please make the drive to the main park. It is worth a visit to see the springhead as well as nice walks through the old park itself. Read the park history, it is interesting old Florida.