Harpers Ferry / Civil War Battlefields KOA

I forgot to update that it took several calls, long waits etc. but they did refund me eventually. I am upgrading it to 3 stars because the staff were friendly onsite. I still wouldn’t return there.

AVOID!!! Place is a dump. Roads are pot-​holed. Sites are narrow and roads are narrow for RVs. Was told we would easily fit with our RV, turned out to be a complete nightmare. AVOID!!!

We just went back this past weekend and took my brother’s family. Again, KOA Harper’s Ferry didn’t disappoint. From the activities such as tie-​die shirts, pool, and movies, to the pancakes and cannon firing. It’s a resort with no reason to leave.
If we could only keep the drunks out of our camping spots at night, it would be prefect.

When we pulled into the Harper’s Ferry KOA one late September day, the sun was shining, birds were chirping and the campground was filled with Confederate flags and «soldiers» in Confederate uniforms.
That’s when my friend I was following made a U-​turn in the car and screamed «OH H*** NO» and drove away. Apparently we overlooked the whole «Civil War Battlefields KOA» part of the title.
So outside of the movie «Sweet Home Alabama», I didn’t really think this was a thing. Thanks to my upbringing with Oakland Raiders fans and Comic Con attendees, I have the requisite experience with weirdos in costumes, but civil war reanacting people kinda freak me out, especially when they are waving the flag of the wrong side and reanacting a war that happened over 150 years ago that we all know the ending of. Sometimes if you’re a little bit tan, you have to wonder how they feel about you.
But we had a reservation and my friend already paid for the cabin, so we were here to stay for the weekend. I lured my friend with a case of beer. We checked in with the staff who were friendly and we were slightly surprised we each had to pay a $ 6 amenity fee. We got wristbands for the free pancake breakfast and then drove off to our camping cabin.
There were 3 people and 3 dogs (did I mention it is super dog friendly) and we stayed in a one room camping cabin ($ 65). It came with two bunk beds and it was as clean as a whistle. Besides a few stinkbugs there were no creepy crawlies. This is definitely camping for non campers. The deluxe cabins are basically single family homes.
Now for the pluses or an explanation of what your $ 6 amenity fee was going towards):
–This place is very family friendly.
–Free pancake breakfast every morning. There is a pancake tent outside in the morning, just walk in with your bracelet, and order!
–GIANT JUMPING PILLOW! They describe as a cross between a trampoline and a bounce castle. I was the only person of legal drinking age on it. THE BEST THING EVER.
–Huge Outdoor Chessboard and putt putt course
–Jr. Olympic-​size pool, indoor arcade and free indoor movie theater.
–Super close to the Harpers Ferry National Park, which is where we spent our days. They offer bike rentals and you can bike to the park’s parking lot and catch the shuttle to Harpers Ferry relatively easily.
–Huge indoor bathrooms with individual showers (with hot water).
Downside
–Bring your own linens for the cabin, but then again I’m not sure if I would want the campgrounds to provide linens anyway.
–The cannons. They like to fire off cannons on weekends especially during reenactments. If you have a dog this is a problem. During the time I was there one pug was so scared by the loud boom he got out of his collar and booked it. I don’t think they found him. My dog was shaking so bad, I had to carry her around for a night and rock her to sleep on the porch swing outside.
–As other reviewers, mentioned the sites are a little close together, and it ended up being to close to comfort for one of our neighbors (not involved in the reenactment, but she sure let us know her mindset was still stuck in the 1800s). Long story short, she decided she didn’t like «our» cars by hers and I ended up with my SUV tilted at a 40 degree angle in a ditch. I couldn’t drive it out on my own and when I sat in my car frustrated, maybe possibly tearing up, a little boy scout head pops over the the passenger side asking if he can help.
Then boy scouts started popping out from everywhere like meerkats. Some of them even had full beards which scares me. Since none of them are old enough to drive despite the beards, they grab their scout leaders, then they grab the confederate soldiers and the ignorant lady’s husband (who seemed to be embarrassed by his wife) come out to help.
These helpful and friendly people made that camping trip unforgettable for me. The rest of the weekend was AMAZING, basically I was crashing campfires and got the smores hook up from the boy scouts. We loved it so much that we all are going back this year, we just hope for better neighbors.

The places overs a lot of activities for the entire family and they’re included with the camping fee. We enjoyed the free pancakes each morning.
As others have mentioned, the camping spots are packed in and you’re right against the next site. I didn’t like that the fire ring and table are against the road. You can’t sit back and enjoy the fire without foot traffic. At our site, it would have been difficult to have had a group site around the fire due to the site layout.
They don’t sell fishing licenses so plan ahead. We couldn’t find a local store that sold MD fishing licenses.
Overall, it is a good place for those camping with kids. We are planning to take our own back in the near future.

I’ve never ventured into the KOA world before, so I really had no idea what to expect when we pulled into Harpers Ferry on a late January night. Let me just start off by saying that this is a campground for people who don’t like camping. The cabins and campsites are super close together and the wilderness is all but nonexistent. There are tons of activities to keep you busy (but they’re «seasonal» — not available in the winter). The place was practically deserted when we arrived, and we had peace and quiet the whole time we were there. We were on a long road trip in the middle of the dreaded «polar vortex» and my requirements were few: I needed a cheap place to stay with a door that locked, electricity and/​or heating, and preferably access to some hot running water and a toilet that flushed. The cabins seemed a little steep (almost 90 bucks after all was said and done) considering it didn’t include linens or a private bathroom, but I scored a «hot deal» (check the campground’s main site!) and ended up with a buy-​one-​get-​one-​free night, so it ended up being a great value in the end. Also, know that the cabin rate doesn’t include resort fees, which ended up being another 6 bucks per person per night. Which… ugh. I hate that surprise fee crap. Just include it in the price of the lodging so I don’t have the checkout sticker shock, please?!
I was pleasantly surprised with the cabin itself. There were a few minor cobwebs, but only one creepy-​crawly was spotted over the course of our two night stay; it seemed really clean otherwise. The idea of mattresses with which you had to use your own linens kinda had me worried before we arrived, but the mattress covers were an easy-​clean type material that didn’t skeeve me out or anything. We kicked it with our sleeping bags and little self-​inflating camp pillows, and I will say that it was (surprisingly) one of our more comfortable rests along the way. I was also THRILLED to see that not only was there a little heater in the wall, but it was also turned on and chugging right along when we arrived. As mentioned in another review, the gap at the bottom (and up the side) of the front door was pretty big — I would say at least ½ to ¾ of an inch, maybe even more. As such, the cold air was just flowing right in, and even with the heater on full blast, we found it necessary to supplement with our own little space heater that we had brought on the off chance that the cabin didn’t have heat. Pro tip — we blocked off the biggest gaps with our partially-​filled laundry bag, which allowed the heater to keep us comfy in the below-​freezing temps. Other details that the website was pretty vague about: there were two bunk beds in the cabin — one with two singles, and one with a single up top and a double below. There was a wall A/​C unit AND a separate little wall heater. Two windows, one front and back, which had curtains and screens, and looked like they would actually open if you wanted to do so. One tiny little bench (maybe 3 feet wide?) near the back of the cabin between the two bunks was the only seating. One very small (maybe 4ft x 2 or 3ft?) mounted to the wall beneath the front window. One little double-​plug outlet (or is it receptacle?) on the front wall between the table and the door. Broom and dustpan behind the door, a deadbolt that was a little tricky but lockable, and a weird bar-​raising rope-​handle setup instead of a doorknob (fun for the 5yo), a little swing on the decently deep porch, a fire ring, and maybe even a picnic table out there too?
The common restroom facilities were pretty decent as well. Several stalls in the women’s restroom that all seemed clean enough (though one was out of order), with at least four (?) sinks that had super hot water if you left them running long enough. Everything was well stocked. It bears mentioning that although the place never was really dirty, it didn’t appear that anyone had actually come in and swept or done any sort of cleaning the entire time we were there. Your mileage may vary in the busy summer season. My main gripe with the restrooms — they were RIDICULOUSLY cold. Like, have to leave your coat on while you potty kind of cold, and face and hands hurt from the stupid cold hand dryer air kind of cold. There were vents in the ceiling, but they weren’t doing much good at all. We actually brought our space heater down the second day just to make things bearable in there. The two shower rooms that opened to the outside were the same way — ridiculously cold. However, they did have a separate entrance with several other shower rooms inside that were much warmer.
All in all, I was pleased. I knocked off a star for the high-​ish price for pretty bare-​bones lodging and the fact that they had those surprise fees at checkout. And another star because the bathrooms were STUPID cold (which probably means they’re stupid hot in the summer). Climate control needs to be rectified, yo! :)

This KOA is very family-​centric and it does a great job of it. Any given weekend there are low-​cost/​free activities just about every hour. I’ve stayed here 5 times and this last time was the first time I really looked around; I was most surprised by the movie theater! (Also surprised that a small part of me wanted to make a tie dyed shirt.) For adults, they happened to be hosting a wine tasting seminar which I thought was super cute. We had one of the cabins on the south end and didn’t have too much noise, that allowed us to sit around our fire and have beer in relative quiet.
I saw about 100 employees while I was there and I found every one to be very polite. After initially booking we found a coupon code online and they allowed us to apply it when we checked in (saving us about $ 50). Next time I may plan ahead and try to hand-​select my cabin/​site so that we are closer to the activities and amenities, but I know that it means sacrificing the quietness.

If you want to camp at an RV tailgate, this is the place for you. Maybe trying to find privacy and a patch of grass was too much to ask. Harper’s Ferry KOA campsites are about 10 yards by 10 yards, one on top of another, and on hard dirt and rocks. There’s a makeshift mini golf course and a free pancake hut, so all in all scenic surroundings and the «great outdoors» are hardly present. I suggest another campground, if you’re looking to actually enjoy the nostalgia of camping.

I have been camping for a long time (26+ years now) in everything from the basic lean-​to on up to my current 31′ travel trailer. KOAs are always high on my list for selecting campgrounds based on a few criteria:
1. They are always clean, especially the bathrooms
2. The staff are friendly and well trained
3. They control the noise in the campground
4. They are rarely just RV parking lots
5. The sites are designed for everyone from beginners to camping veterans
Harpers Ferry KOA is probably the most disappointed I have ever been with a KOA.
The bad:
— The campground is BUSY. We went on a non-​holiday weekend in July and expected it to be busy, but wow, it was like a section of DC had been transplanted to this campground. The sites are close together and very crowded.
— There are kids everywhere on bikes and it is very difficult to maneuver a large RV through the campground with the combination of very narrow streets, lots of people, hard turns with trees strategically placed on the corner of every turn, and cars parked at an angle partly on the road. Staff had to come through with us when driving and force people to move their cars because of where they were parked.
— A lot of the sites are unlevel, including the RV sites. Some of the tent sites, I don’t know how you would pitch a tent and sleep without falling out.
— Quiet hours were not enforced at all. It’s not a curfew, but it is supposed to be relatively quiet in the campground during those set hours
— The animal policy wasn’t disclosed when reservations were made. If there are breed restrictions, they should be disclosed when a camper mentions they are bringing a dog.
— The staff is very busy and it’s not uncommon to wait a long time when trying to talk to someone at the registration office
— Arm bands are issued when you arrive, and you are expected to wear them while in the campground. Apparently there must be a problem with unauthorized people.
The good:
— The staff was very nice and helped accommodate us when the original site they gave us was impossible to level on. Ron specifically was a big help in getting through the first hour of misery trying to get our camper to an acceptable position.
— They do have free pancake breakfast every day, but if you want anything extra (meat, juice, anything but syrup), it will cost you quite a bit extra.
— There are tons of activities and things to do for kids. If you’re looking for a family focused campground, this is it.
All in all, this place was a letdown and not an accurate reflection of KOA’s usual quality. I will not return here.

This campground has so many activities! Just look at the website. We were there Friday night and a full day/​night on Satuday. We didn’t even get to the putt-​putt, horseshoes, hiking, pool, or wine tasting. We did use the basketball court, dog park, arcade area, and nearby canoeing on the Shenandoah. A really nice treat was the free pancake breakfast both mornings. Another nice food option is a roadside barbeque stand very close by on 340W that has a delicious dry rub! If you don’t have a camper, the cabins are a good option. They are very basic but they seem new and the showers have great pressure and heat. You will need to bring your own bedding & towels.

My family and I have stayed here many times and have gone to several events. Dale and his staff do a great job. We are always happy with the location and the service!

i’ve never stayed at a KOA before. i’ve usually opted for small, family owned and operated campgrounds. the whole point of camping is fire and beer and quiet. this place was anything but quiet.
please note that if you have kids, then this is a great place. i, however, do not. the place was crawling with screaming kids in the heated pool (from 8am to 10pm nonstop), permanent moon-​bounce thing, putt-​putt area, etc. a quiet getaway turned into a «let’s getaway from the screaming kids at the pool.»
we stayed in one of their luxury cabins. bathroom, tv, fridge, microwave. i know. it’s not camping. at all. (one of our party required indoor plumbing. not my idea.) i guess the owner thought they were doing people a favor when they put the cabins right next to the pool. we were smack-​dab in the middle of the commotion, along the service road to the maintenance building, so there were gas-​powered golf carts whizzing by all the time. the cabins are very close together, so the feeling of isolation around a fire is nonexistent. just disappointing.
anyway, if i had kids, i’d go back. seeing as i don’t, i won’t be revisiting.

I cannot believe that I have seen KOA campgrounds across the US throughout my life but have never stopped there until recently. I have to say that I’m actually impressed with KOA and its offerings.
My first KOA experience was the one here in Harpers Ferry. KOA picked a perfect location for its campground. Plus, it is dog-​friendly. This KOA has a small putt putt course, a dog walk area, a swimming pool, a volleyball (sand) court, a basketball course, a horseshoe ring and one of those uncovered moon bouncy thingy. In addition, there’s a nice little trail in the forest. Just put on a good pair of shoes. I went with flip flops. Was I crazy or what!!!
Also, I’m not sure if it was a nightly thing but when I was there… KOA had a cannon and used it twice. I guess to impress the kids. But, heck, it scared my doggy (ok, really, it was my roommate’s)!
KOA had activities planned throughout the day for kids, like ice cream social, tie-​dyed t-​shirts, etc. So, kids will definitely not be bored here.
People were friendly here! There was ample space for RVs and tents and cabins placed throughout the grounds.
The bathroom and showers were clean! The store was small but nice.
Plenty of places to check out outside of KOA. White-​water rafting is nearby. Antique stores are nearby as well. Plenty of restaurants are available. And, if you’re in the mood to go gambling, there’s a casino in Charles Town… not far either.
Like I said, great KOA location!