Mystic KOA Campground, 118 Pendleton Hill Road, N. Stonington, CT 06359
Family Owned. Clean bathrooms, clean facilities and clean campgrounds. Camp in tents or get a cabin. There are lots of kids activities. For the adults, if you are looking for some extra free time to play, Foxwoods Resorts is less than a 30 minute ride away. All KOA campgrounds are owned by families. In order to be a part of the Franchise, the campgrounds must be family owned. I believe that is the best part about KOA grounds. It is run by families for families so they understand what our needs are.
They have so many activities for the kids and not all KOA campgrounds have the same activities but they do have more or less the same look with the cabins and play areas. We have gone to a few KOA campgrounds and they do have a sort of rewards type of program where you can save money for all your stays. If you love camping and plan to do a few times a year then invest in the program but if you are only going once or twice a year, I suggest passing on the program.
The cabins are all clean and very nice. They are different and some are newer than others. You can also have one tent in front of the cabin as well for those who came with you who came for a real camping experience.
We love the campfires at night and beautiful starry nights. When the skies are clear and you can make it to a very dark area, the amount of stars you see at night is incredible.
You can either purchase the firewood at the campgrounds or take your car to a local area that sells them for a lot less. If you have kids, make sure you buy the packets that make the fire turn into different colors. I wouldn't recommend toasting marshmallows after you throw the packet in because it is chemicals that you are throwing into the fire to change its color. That is just my personal opinion.
If you do decide to go camping, try not to go less than 3 days because you really want to be able to enjoy your time together.
Just a side note, there are no lions, tigers or bears so if you hear someone scream, it is probably because they are suffering from a charlie horse. haha Oh how I loved this trip. We must have woken up the entire campground from first screaming so loud over nothing and then laughing twice as hard because we had to laugh at the situation and ourselves. My poor cousin, we thought something was attacking him with the way he screamed. All he said was I am okay it was just a charlie horse.
Port Jefferson Ferry, 102 West Broadway, Port Jefferson, NY 11777
The area is beautiful and there are lots of activities. This ferry will cut your driving time to KOA Mystic Campgrounds. The ferry ride is awesome and relaxing. KOA campground is about 20 - 30 minutes away from the ferry dock in CT.
https://88844ferry.com/default.aspx
If you live in Long Island, New York like I do, taking the ferry is not a bad idea. We drove up to CT first but after the weekend we had, we decided to take the ferry back. It was about an hour and half long but we really enjoyed the ride. It was relaxing and the sun was out so we sat outside and enjoyed our surroundings and our company. Make sure you get on that line early because there are a lot of people who want to take the ferry back.
Once we arrived at Port Jefferson, we arrived at this marina area with restaurants and little shops. It was actually a very pretty area and if we were not so exhausted, we would have stayed and explored the area. The ride is definitely worth it and KOA Mystic Campgrounds is not too far so you can easily get there with no hassles and enjoy your camping trip.