We stayed at two campgrounds within Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore: D.H. Day Campground and Platte River Campground. We spent one night at each.
D.H. Day Campground
- Quick Facts
- Hookups: None
- Dump Station: Yes
- Fresh Water Fill: Yes
- RV Friendly Sites: Some
- Location: Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore
- Link to NPS website
On our first night in Sleeping Bear Dunes, we stayed in D. H. Day Campground. This campground is in the northern portion of the park. We liked the location right off the Sleeping Bear Heritage Trail and only a short drive to the Dune Climb. One morning, we biked the Sleeping Bear Heritage Trail, and we hiked the Dune Climb one afternoon/evening.
We also liked that the sites felt fairly secluded. Some of the sites were a little tight, so larger campers may have some trouble squeezing in. There are also no hookups at this campground, although we were able to fill our freshwater tank upon arrival and stop by the dump station when we left.
Platte River Campground
- Quick Facts
- Hookups: Electric
- Dump Station: Yes
- Fresh Water Fill: Yes
- RV Friendly Sites: Yes
- Location: Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore
- Link to NPS website
Our second night at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore was spent at Platte River Campground, which is in the southern portion of Sleeping Bear Dunes. We booked this night because of a last-minute change of plans, so we took whatever site we could find. We ended up with a site right next to the restrooms/showers, which meant that we had a lot of noise and people cutting through our site even late into the night. If we stay here again, I would try to avoid booking immediately next to the restroom. On a positive note, it was nice to have the electric hookup after several nights of dry camping.
This campground was a short drive from Platte Beach, where we put in our kayaks to paddle on Lake Michigan. Quite a few people were also tubing on the Platte River, which ran into Lake Michigan at the beach.
