Salt Springs Recreation Area

PROS

A camp host came to our site immediately after we unhitched to advise that our one tow vehicle tire on the grass will get us a $250 fine from US Forest Service officer. Funny, we never ever saw a USFS officer patrolling the campground. 

Entrance gates closed at 8pm requiring code to enter 

Immaculately maintained park. A small army of maintenance staff always working. Even one night at 930pm in the bathroom. 

Saved $156 with America the Beautiful pass 

Site 32 shady 

Asphalt parking pad surrounded with sandy gravel 

Moveable metal picnic table 

Pedestal BBQ grill 

High sided metal fire ring with 2 unremovable cooking grates 

One hook lantern pole 

Campfire wood for sale at registration office 

No street lights in campground so good dark sky viewing if neighbors have their rig lights off which most nights they were lit up which also lit up surrounding campsites 

Able to get T-MOBILE signal on our T-MOBILE WIFI device 

Many squirrels ate from our hand 

CONS 

In 8 days never saw a USFD vehicle drive thru the campground

$8 fee to make on-line reservations 

Site 32 not level 

Absolutely no privacy from any other site 

In 20 degree exterior temperatures, both campground bathhouses had windows open, whole house fans operating in full capacity and ceiling fans operating on high. Obvious park maintenance does NOT want anyone taking a shower when interior bathhouse temperatures were in the 30s and the bathhouse was a freezing wind tunnel! It was even difficult using the toilet. 

Loud and rowdy campers all weekend long—day and night. Quiet hours not enforced

Highway 19 traffic noise 

USFD clearing project on east side of campground. Heavy equipment noise for 9 straight hours day after day!!! 

No notice water outage for 2 hours 

No park WiFi 

No T-MOBILE cell service 

No public phone for emergency calls

Salt Springs National Forest is a very nice place. The big problem here is that some politician must have received a big kick back to give this contract to American Land and Leisure concessionaire. The prices American Land and Leisure charge to access these PUBLIC grounds is exorbitant!!!!!! An example, a family of four to enter the springs would cost$48.00. That is just the entry fee into the spring area.

Our site was a really good size! We had plenty of space on all four sides. The bathhouse by us was always clean. There’s only one walking trail, but that gave us a chance to just relax. The springs were beautiful. The pizza place across the street was really good. Traffic is pretty noisy since you’re right off a busy road.

Great CG in the Ocala National Forest. Older paved site, with awesome hook ups. The camper sat on a fairly level paved pad which was a pleasant surprise. Easy drive to the Salt Springs, which is in the same park and a must see. Staff and guests were all so friendly and helpful. It was about an hour and fifteen minutes to Daytona and St Augustine. We have Verizon and Dish Network, which both worked perfectly. No cable, WiFi or other cell carriers. Not much in the area, but it did have gas stations and a few places to eat close. Overall a very good experience. Should be a 4.5 star review

Very well maintained. Site was level and clean. Water sewer and electrical outlets are in great condition. Would recommend it to anyone.

Very nice campground with full hookups. Bathroom was very clean and the grounds were well maintained. The springs were closed due to the rising river from hurricane Ian, but we made due with visiting nearby Palatka and Ravine Gardens State Park.

We were able to get a first, come first serve site over Labor Day weekend and what a treat! Large site that accommodated our 30’ travel trailer, a tent, and badminton net. One of the few places I have found with full hookup AND allows tents on site. A nice bike ride to the springs for swimming. Grills and fire pits at each site. Beautiful oak trees have us plenty of shade. Surprisingly quiet despite being full…mostly families from what I could tell. We really enjoyed it and will be back!

Beautiful swimming area in natural spring. RV sites are asphalt, most are level (except 94-101 were on a bit of hill). Sites are large and spread out with lots of shade trees but not plantings between sites. I thought that would bother me but sites are so large it wasn’t an issue. 30 and 50 amp connections, water and sewer, all very well maintained. Large picnic table, plus nice grill and fire pit with grill on swing arm. Large clean bathrooms and showers. Staff was great. T- Mobil customers have no connections so plan accordingly ;-)

This is a very well kept campground unless you are looking at a hosts site. Host sites are very cluttered and messy. This really brings down the look of this campground. The spring area stays well kept and the boat ramp is convenient. There is a Marina but you have to leave the campground to get to it. Full hookups at every RV site and primitive tent camping has potable throughout. I paid $32 with my national parks access pass.

All site FHU. Site 13 is level with little shade. No laundry on site but little mall with laundromat, post office, 2 restaurants, Dollar General is nearby (we biked there). Bathrooms are clean. Springs are great - we watched blue crabs. There are manatees outside the area roped off for the park - you can swim with them.

Large paved sites. Clean bathrooms. Price has gotten a little high but at least they have Wifi near bathhouses now. On the weekends campers aren't allowed to park near the spring and have to walk the mile to it.

Wide open. No privacy if one is not camping they charge 11.00 per person to go.to the springs If one is camping one is NOT allowed to drive to the springs handicapped or not. There is a barricade and a guard no exceptions.

We have an amazing time every time we go!! Tents sites 130s are closet to the spring. I had full cell service. Spring is beautiful and nice to swim, kayaking is good with easy free launch. Nice ranger store with camping basics and a little shopping center near entrance with food and dollar general.

We camped in an RV this time. We were walking distance to bbq and volleyball nets. So the common area to grill and play was nice and spacious.

There were some beautiful trails for a hike. On the way to the springs I saw some really nice private camping available. Just look at the map and pictures to find the best spot.

The kids had a blast swimming in the spring and kayaking in the lake. Tent campsites weren’t spread out and zero privacy

This was a great spot with full hook ups and bath/shower. There is a salt springs that is free for campers to swim in.

Beautiful site, and gorgeous springs! We were there four nights with our grandchildren. Went everyday to the springs. They had a blast!

It was our first time out with our new camper and we throughly enjoyed the camp grounds. Very clean and well maintained. The springs are beautiful and refreshing.

Nice campground and area....

Spacious sites with paved parking, grass, and shade. Can’t ask for much more! Facilities were clean, the staff was friendly, and the spring was incredible. We enjoyed the walk but some may want to bring a bike and drive to the spring area. We had a great stay and will definitely be back.

I went on a weeknight in May and was one of 3 other campers. The area was very clean with little mosquito activity, but the yellow flies were ferocious. I was able to go down to the springs right when they opened and was the only one there, so I got to see a family of otters! The campgrounds felt safe and despite all the bear signs, I only was harassed by a begging squirrel.

Overall this place was one of our favorites. Most sites offer plenty of space although some can be angled and need to be leveled up with levelers even though it's on concrete. I love having open space behind most sites. If you do your research you can find amazing sites. Not to mention all are full hookup and plenty to do. You have 2 hiking trails that i could see with one being mountain biking as well. The springs are beautiful and you have access to a boat ramp and ability to go kayaking. There is a basketball court and horseshoe. There is also places for get togethers and trash cans and recycling. You're also close to silver springs and juniper springs. Overall it's very clean and the hook-ups are well maintained. The only problem i saw was not allowing personal golf carts. I believe they should allow them if you have personal insurance liability if they are worried. Other than that everything was amazing and can't wait to go back. As far as cell signal, i was able to test 3 service providers. T-mobile is non existent. Att has pretty good coverage and speeds were decent enough for email and possibly some video. Verizon used to be bad but i believe a verizon tower was built nearby and our Verizon hotspot worked very well, even for Netflix.

Such a special place would definitely recommend. Our site was huge! But packed shade that was only drawback.

Close to a nice spring (not the most beautiful of the area). Tent site are fine. Very friendly staff.

It’s our second trip here to see the manatees.

Saw them every day at the springs, kayaked with them, swam in the springs, did a little fishing. Saw turtles and crab as well. Very busy on weekend but great throughout the week. Sites are large and not much privacy. They do have a huge back space between campsites, some trees with the hanging moss. Just beautiful. Bathrooms were very clean. Camp hosts nice and checkin staff helpful. They have sites to reserve in advance and some are first come only which is nice for travelers. They do have tent camping as well. A small boat launch too. They do charge a day use fee if not camping. The springs are nice and gave areas for picnics. Bugs are just starting to come out due to the warmer weather. You can access Lake George if you follow the spring river for about 5 miles. Was such fun our golden retrievers loved it. Do dogs allowed at spring swimming but could swim at boat launch. Fire rings, metal picnic tables, grill and light pole.

First very limited cell service. That's about the only gripe. Very spacious spread out sites all paved and level. All sites are Back-in and angled which is nice.

When in Ocala National Forest, we stayed at Salt Springs, Juniper Springs and Alexander Springs. Our favorite camping site was Juniper Springs.

Heads up! The different sites within the forest are operated by different concessionaires and you have to pay to use (even day use) them individually! If you’re camping, you don’t have to pay day use fee. If you want to see multiple sites and ok with moving camp, you can save a few bucks

Pros

• Our favorite spring was Alexander springs but Salt Springs is so PRETTY. At Salt Springs, we saw crabs and fish in the water...very neat!
• staff was pretty helpful :)
• dishwashing sink area

Cons

• NO privacy at sites with electric. I didn’t see primitive/ tent sites. Campsite is multiple rows of RVs with nothing between each site.
• bathrooms are fine. I didn’t use the showers but they were all running the duration of our visit. Couldn’t figure out how to turn them off!

The campground is large and the sites are spaced decently. There is no barriers between the sites, so no privacy. It is close to the road so you do hear road noise. The bathrooms weren't the best but not that bad. The bath house I used had one shower broken that ran the entire time I was there (2 nights). Also, large industrial fans click on when you walk in, so it was very cold.

The springs are beautiful and we will definitely be back to go swimming during warmer weather.

Very beautiful. 5

Salt Springs Recreation Area is part of the Ocala National Forest. It’s the oldest national forest east of the Mississippi River and protects the world’s largest sand pine scrub forest. The Salt Springs gets its name from the magnesium, sodium and potassium levels in the water, giving it a slight salinity. We made our reservations online at www.recreation.gov you can also call 877-444-6777 the local office is(352) 685-2048. We’re a married couple in our forties traveling with two dogs and a cat in our 37 foot motorhome. We stayed at Salt Springs campground for about a week in February. It was$34 for full hookups or$23 for tent camping. American Land& Leisure does a great job managing this recreation and camping area, the staff are professional and friendly. It’s a very safe and well lit campground. Activities include spring swimming, basketball courts, horseshoe pit, fishing, snorkeling, hiking, boating and kayaking. Canoe rentals are available. Nearby in the town of Salt Springs you will find a grocery store, gas station, restaurants, post office and laundromat. Don’t expect big box stores to shop in, this is a very small town and a place to get away from the world. We stayed in a full hookup site and had lots of space to ourselves, at least 25 yards to our neighbor on either side and about 40 yards to the next loop behind us. It was a flat site and very easy to level our motorhome. Sites are fully equipped with fire ring, grill, lantern post and picnic table. The tent sites include a bear locker. We loved the recycling opportunities at each trash container. They recycle plastic, glass and aluminum. The bathhouses are a gem, extremely clean and well taken care of. For campers in tents they offer a kitchen sink area to clean your dishes. Overall we loved our stay here, we went swimming multiple times with our snorkel gear and drove down to Silver Springs on two separate days(one for the glass bottomed boats and a second day to go kayaking).