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Bentonville, VA

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Shenandoah River State Park

4.5 (55 reviews)
Open • 8:00 am - 4:30 pm

Shenandoah River State Park Photos

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Allen D.

Situated along the picturesque banks of its namesake, the Shenandoah River State Park has over 1,600 acres of recreation for the whole family! My boys and I parked at Culler's Overlook and were immediately welcomed by an incredible view to the west. We hopped on the easy 0.5 mile Overlook Trail to the visitor's center and then the moderate 0.5 mile Hemlock Hollow Trail down to the canoe launch parking area. The parking area at the end of Hemlock Hollow is expansive and has quite a few tables for a picnic. The canoe launch is about 100 yards from a 15 minute pickup and drop off zone. Was disappointed to see some people couldn't walk their trash to one of the many trash cans, instead opting to leave garbage on their tables. This park has a LOT to offer, and we were only able to scratch the surface during our visit! Can't wait to make it back and see the rest of its sites.

Mark J.

Absolutely Beautiful! Bears , Deer , Rabbits, Eagles , Fish , Mountains , galore! Beautiful Park! Extremely Clean, Safe w/ regular patrols! Camp Grounds, Picnic Areas and a Visitor Center! Go check it out today!

Entrance to Shenandoah River State Park
Neal E.

Interesting story about this park. Some 20 years ago we used to camp along the South Fork of the Shenandoah River in a campground in the George Washington National Forest called Hazards Mill - just a bit south of where this park is. To get to Hazards Mill - one had to drive down Indian Hollow Road, cross the South Fork on the low water bridge, make a left and pass through a good bit of private land. A lot of locals would go down to this area on weekend evenings and party and make a hell of a racket - so much so that the locals petitioned to have access to the National Forest through their land closed. I was out exploring today and on the way down - I came across Shenandoah River State Park - it did not exist back in the 1980s when we used to camp at Hazards Mill. I had heard of Shenandoah River State Park though - even though I thought it was made up at the time. I was watching an episode of NCIS - in that episode - a Marine was found dead in Shenandoah River State Park. Enough rambling. It's a very nice park. And apparently very popular. This weekend they were having some sort of event called "Parkfest" and the park was packed with visitors, campers, picnickers, and sightseers. At the entrance station to the park - a park ranger handed me some information about the park. I then stopped in to the Visitor Center to look around. I asked the ranger at the front information desk how long the park had been open - she stated it opened in 1999. There are shirts and other park paraphernalia for sale at the Visitor Center. And very clean and well maintained restrooms. I then drove down toward the South Fork of the Shenandoah River. A park ranger flagged me down at the stop sign/T-intersection to advise me where to park - as there was not many places left to park as there were so many people in the park. I advised him I was just doing a drive through since it was so crowded. I also stopped at Cullers Overlook in the park and got out to check out the vistas/views of the South Fork of the Shenandoah River and the Massanutten Mountains to the west. Pretty view! Nice park - would love to come back in the Fall and camp and fish for a couple of days!

Night time setup at campsite
Jason L.

This "state" park (not to be confused with the national park) is fantastic! Beautiful all around, super clean, campsites are nice and big. Went the week before Labor Day weekend. Stayed there 4 nights/5days, and had a blast (#31 & #28). Both campsites are steps away from the trails which literally runs along the river. Bathrooms were very close, with laundry services available too. Picnic table, and fire pit in every campsite. Has electric hookup for 50 & 30amp. It says only 50amp on the reservation site, but there is 30 amp as well. Water hookup as well. Firewood can be purchased (on honor system) for $6 a bundle cash. Cell service is fine for T-Mobile. Had no problem streaming movies via Netflix through a projector onto a screen to have movies under the stars. The sites along the trails and river are absolutely beautiful. Brought our e-bikes and rode along practically all of them. I would be cautious on riding regular bikes on the trails, as on the sheets it rates some of them as moderate or easy for bikes, but they are more on the difficult side. We had e-bikes thank god as you do need that extra power to get through the trails at times. Can't imagine how hard it would be on regular bikes. The river itself is amazing. Just down the trail is a place that rents tubes, kayaks, etc. $30 per tube. It takes about 2.5-3 hours to float down the river. Or if you have your own, there's river access points along the trail. We tubed it, and it was so relaxing. The state park visitor center has souvenirs and small items you can purchase. We stopped at the Walmart nearby (about 10-15 mins drive away) to stock up on groceries and other items. Nearest gas station is about a 10-15 min ebike ride away. It is nice and peaceful. Well worth it. Would stay again!

Evening view from the first set of stairs
Leanne S.

This is my absolute favorite camping place, and I've stayed at quite a lot. My dad and I have been coming here for a 4 day weekend every summer for about the past 12 years. We've seen many changes within the campground. The addition of nice bathrooms and showers within walking distance of your site was definitely a nice touch :) you used to have to drive to one of the picnic areas to use a flushing toilet, which wasn't convenient if you had to go in the middle of the night. The campsites fill up on the weekends, so we like to get there sometime on Thursday when there's less people so we have a night of peace and quiet before too many families arrive. This also allows us to have our pick of some of the better spots with the most privacy and closest river accesses. The river is usually about waist deep and so great for wading out into to fish, though it does get pretty deep in a few spots. We always catch tons of fish, but don't eat too many or you may get mercury poisoning. The campground has two different private river accesses, or you can take a 1 min car ride down to the public picnic areas where the is a canoe launch. The campsites are nice bc they're not so packed together that you feel like you have no privacy like in some other campgrounds I've been too. There are many nice hikes throughout the campground of varying difficulty levels. But be careful, I've seen a few copperheads around. Almost stepped on one once when I was little bc they camouflage so well. It's a short drive to a scenic overlook, which also provides dumpsters so you don't have to keep trash near your camp and attract animals. The visitor center has been recently remodeled and looks great. If you leave the park and take a right, after about a mile or so drive is a small gas station where you can buy ice and worms for fishing, they're not available at the visitor center unless they've added that since last summer. I'll be going again next week so if they have I'll update. It's about 20-25 min away from the nearest town so if there's bad weather you can go spend some time there, there's shopping and restaurants, also a walmart if you run out of snacks, drinks, etc. This was especially nice last year when I forgot to pack my sleeping bag and pillows :) it's also not too far from skyline drive and some cool caverns if you're looking for more to do. Ok so an update. Just got back from a 3-day trip here (July 2014), and as always the place was amazing and clean. What really caught my attention was the addition of a zip line! It's still under construction, but I look forward to using it next summer!

Cabin 4 Porch
Horatio C.

We rented a couple of cabins for a mini family get together at Shenandoah River State Park. It was centrally located for all of us--only a couple of hours drive for everyone (from opposite directions). The cabins were outstanding and they were what we expected (I think they are nearly identical to the cabins at James River State Park). I posted several photos of/from the cabin we stayed in (Cabin 4). Cabin 4 had views of the river, but our other cabin (6) did not. The leaf-off views were amazing, but it was ridiculously cold and windy. If you visit in the winter, bring the right apparel! Bring coffee filters if you plan on using the coffee maker. Other VA State park cabins have them, but maybe they are just left there from previous campers and not actually provided by the park. I had to resort to instant coffee. We are planning to return in early spring or late fall of 2011.

Jodie C.

The amount of rain we've had this summer, specifically in the last 60 days has been historical. You can see the impact here at the Shenandoah River State Park. There is no lazy river tubing today my friends. There is only raging, rushing water taking down anything in its path. It's amazing. I drove around and got out a couple times near the picnic area to take pictures. What a great place to bring your family for a cookout. Water fountains and grills, tables and shelters. I saw a boat launch neaby as well. Next I hit the visitors center and bought some t shirts. The view is nice from there but the plants are pretty invasive and it was hard to see the whole building even when I was right in front of it. Maybe it's only due to the weather (rain and high humidity), that no one has trimmed up the area. I can understand that. It's been a rough summer this year. If it wasn't raining, it was 105° + humidity. Unbearable to be outdoors at times. I stopped off at Cullers Overlook. It was a beautiful scene. Trailhead here. Also when I started to pull out of the area a cute little bear cub went running by. He was so tiny!!! But fast though. One eye blink and he was gone. I drove out to the horse and camping area and started my trail there. Lots of parking! I hiked 7.48 miles. It was very enjoyable. The legend said it was difficult but I didn't find it to be so. I did bear bottom to big oak to shale to cullers. I will definitely come back and hike more trails. They were very well maintained and you'd be hard pressed to get lost. The trails are color coded and maps are available at the ranger station. $5 to get in on a weekend for a day. Ok for horseback and mountain biking. #findyourpark #Vastateparks are the best parks!

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3 years ago

Nicest park outside of the National Parks. Plenty of shelter for parties and they have restrooms as well.

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Great place! They have zip lining and cabins, along with lots of other amenities! Check it out!

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Customer service is decently bad. And now it's making me write more in order to post so yeah that's what I'm doing

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Ask the Community - Shenandoah River State Park

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Review Highlights - Shenandoah River State Park

“The bathhouse has electricity, 4 really large shower rooms, nice toilets, plus it's cleaned every day by the rangers.”

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Low Water Bridge Campground - Inside Luray Caverns not that far away, entry is around $20 a person but worth it!

Low Water Bridge Campground

3.6(40 reviews)
1.5 mi

This place is amazing! It seems to be a family run place which adds so much to the charm. The staff…read moreis extremely nice and helpful. They are so inviting to everyone and seem to really care about making sure your stay is as good as it could be. And it's all a great value. The sites are close and not very private. The people next to us had rented two sites next to each other and were being extremely loud during the day which kinda sucked because we came to relax, but that is no fault of the campgrounds. We've had two different spots on the river and it is amazing to wake up to the sound of a flowing river in the morning. Port a Johns are the only bathrooms in the campground area, but in the main building, a short few minute walk away, there are four bathrooms with toilets and full warm showers. They are kinda dirty but it's camping and to have a hot shower was amazing no matter how dirty they were. I was just happy they were there at all. You can rent tubes from them to float the river and they give you a ride a couple miles down the river and drop you off to float and you can float right back up to you campsite when you reach the campgrounds! It's amazing! Make sure you check the river levels before going so you can have a smooth float. If the river is too low, you'll scrape your bum on rocks but it's still fun none the less! My go to. Can't wait to go again.

Terrible smell from the portal potty dirty no toilet papper! Lady tried to charge me for extra…read moreheads on the first night I had not even checked in till the following morning. Rude couple made us turn down the music and not allow us to sing . Camping was to be singing songs and fun . Rude ass couple ruined the entire stay . NEVER AGAIN!

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Low Water Bridge Campground - Atleast i did not have to sleep in the puddles

Atleast i did not have to sleep in the puddles

Low Water Bridge Campground
Low Water Bridge Campground

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Gooney Creek Campground - The stars at night!

Gooney Creek Campground

3.3(27 reviews)
3.3 mi

I stayed at gooney Creek for three nights beginning October 11th. I am confident that I had the…read moremost pristine site in the campground right on the creek with water and electric hookup. I've camped for the past 50 years and sitting by the creek at gooney Creek was one of the most beautiful campsites I've ever sat in. Although I did not meet the owner, I spoke with her and she was very helpful! On site a gentleman named James was incredibly helpful! I'm a woman traveling alone in a pop-up camper and he helped me set the whole thing up... A very kind and generous soul! If you're interested in a bunch of bells and whistles... This would not be the campsite for you... What it offers is amazing nature along a creek... If that's what you're interested in... Then this would be the spot for you. Yes, there is some highway noise at times but if you sit close enough to the creek like I did... I couldn't even hear it I loved it here and totally give it a solid five stars for letting you immerse yourself in nature... Thank you to the owner and thank you to James! Mary

The pictures are deceiving. Campground was dirty, tires and old tarps layed out on the dirt. Grass…read morewas overgrown and the "Airbnb" looked like shambles from the exterior. For an "Airbnb"," it did not look safe nor welcoming. The cabin and tiny home don't look anything like the pictures, it's dull looking and has trash everywhere. I expected more based on the ratings and pictures. Owners need to do better.

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Gooney Creek Campground - Hanging by a small fire... Someone left a few pieces of firewood... It was perfect!

Hanging by a small fire... Someone left a few pieces of firewood... It was perfect!

Gooney Creek Campground - Cooking by the river

Cooking by the river

Gooney Creek Campground - The river at sunset!

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The river at sunset!

River Run Campground

River Run Campground

2.8(26 reviews)
4.8 mi

This is a beautiful place to get away from it all. The River Run is beautiful and clean, very…read morespacious too. My Family really enjoyed this place l highly recommend it

We stayed here Memorial Day weekend 2018. This was our first time here and we loved it. The kids,…read moreages 11 And 12 met new friends and played all weekend with them, jumping in the river, manhunt/hide and seek at night, great memories! It was a busy and packed weekend of campers, all river-side sites were sold out but it so much fun being right on the river. Make reservations early-on to ensure riverside! We brought some tubes and went down the river several times. Kids swung from tree ropes/swings into river too! Staff was amazing, brought us down more wood and ice if we called for more and $ was extremely reasonable priced for wood and ice, not over charged a bit. We will be back again! We brought our 3 large dogs, no issues. Keep tied up and under control. No breed restrictions, everyone and their dogs behaved! I would rate 5 stars if there were public restrooms. I know this is a biggie for some people. No running water for showers, sinks or anything, just PortaJohns but they were clean! Bring an Xtra roll of Tp in case. As long as you are ok with that it's a good campground, on the river and for kids that can keep themselves entertainedor busy! Some nights the music could be loud from fellow campers but they tell folks that by midnight is "quiet-time". #Great time had by us all

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River Run Campground
River Run Campground - Rope swing into South fork Shenandoah river!

Rope swing into South fork Shenandoah river!

River Run Campground - With our 3 dogs, baby and kids.

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With our 3 dogs, baby and kids.

Front Royal Outdoors - Kayaking

Front Royal Outdoors

3.9(83 reviews)
4.5 mi

More like 3.5 stars. Tubing on the river was fun and our family of 5 enjoyed it. Our kids are 5-9…read moreyears old so we had to keep an extra eye on them and help them a little. We used the strap that came with the cooler tube to strap my youngest child's tube to another one. One employee told us we could purchase another strap to tether them together but then the employee in the shop kind of scoffed and said it wouldn't necessary. It was definitely necessary! We had to paddle after all the kids cause their arms and legs are too short to even reach the water and paddle themselves. The employees really didn't do a whole lot of customer service so I'm not really sure the tip (which was paid in advance) was worth it. We even had to carry all our tubes all the way back up the hill after we finished. The river itself is mostly calm and it is a beautiful area. But there was quite a bit of algae/scum in the slower moving water which grossed out the kids lol. And the island where we stopped to each lunch had some trash on it. Overall tubing was a good experience but the $200+ price felt like a lot for what it was.

Our float was nice despite the river being low and getting stuck a few times. However, the guy…read moreworking the front desk (the owner? I don't know, I see what I assume to be the same guy mentioned in several other reviews) was *incredibly* rude. I can't understand this; I own a business and if I ever spoke to a client like that, they would never hire me again. So I guess he doesn't count on repeat business? The guy driving the shuttle was nice enough but I also don't understand this whole tip jar thing for boating companies. All the guys do is drive us a few minutes down the road and unload gear. Is that not their literal job? Why isn't the company paying them a living wage? I'd definitely scope out other places given the customer service at this place

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Front Royal Outdoors
Front Royal Outdoors
Front Royal Outdoors - Packed sammichs and drinks for our 4hour long float.

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Packed sammichs and drinks for our 4hour long float.

Shenandoah River State Park - parks - Updated October 2026

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