Mount Desert Campground

Slept in my rental car because of cooler temperatures. Office staff were very nice and accommodating. Nice sites and easy to navigate. I paid for a shower but it was cold. They gave me the money back right away. Just ask other campers which showers worked for them. Some are finicky, but that is just like many other campgrounds, no reason to give less stars. The gas station down the street was clean, efficient and friendly too.

We camped for years and years at Mount Desert Campground with our four children and my Sister-in-Law and her two sons. The kids are all grown now and are taking their own camping trips to this amazing place. It is a family run campground with immaculate grounds and bathroom facilities on Somes Sound in Mt. Desert, Maine which is right next to the fabulous town of Bar Harbor and Acadia National Forest. There are so many activities and amenities just minutes from this lovely campground but, if you choose to stay put...you will not be disappointed. There are lovely camp roads to walk, run, or bike. Fresh air to breathe, an epic long dock to catch and release crabs near, kayak or canoe rentals, and so much more. The Camp store has wonderful provisions including homemade bear claws in the am to enjoy with coffee or tea. It is above and beyond a family favorite place to camp in Maine.

Wonderful spot right on the water. Super close to Bar Harbor an Acadia.

We reserved a site with a water view (all the waterfront tent sites were already reserved). The tent platform was nice (they provided the nails for anchoring the tent corners. By using platforms, they have allowed many more tent sites where terrain would have made it impossible. Our site had electric (a potable water standpipe was across the street).

Restrooms were very clean and there was plenty of hot water for the coin operated showers.

Wifi is great at the Gathering Place 24/7. Very intermittent at the tent site—but we’re camping so not an issue. Gathering place had hot coffee and fresh baked goods in the am—but get there early as croissants and scones sold out quickly!

The shuttle was not operating when we were there (June 2021) but once operations return to normal, there is a shuttle to Acadia. The location is great—both to visit the park and for access to Bar Harbor. Camping is so reasonable that we felt eating out for dinner every other night was justifiable, given the cost of hotels in the area.

There is a kayak launch and floating dock. But be very aware of tide schedule!

Super nice campground with plenty of space between sites. We had a site with water and electric hookups right along the water of Somes Sound. Our site had a deck, picnic table, and fire ring. Short drives to all the Acadia national park attractions and trails. Bathrooms were very clean. Check in and out was simple. Would definitely stay again.

We had originally booked a week stay here for July 2020, but then … you know.   They rescheduled us for July 2021 and we just got back.  I will first say that getting a site here is like registering for college classes in the 90's or getting Billy Joel tickets:  You have to get up at dawn on the day they release them in January and hope you get into the class you want.  It was wild and absolutely added to the excitement of this campground.  

Overall - it's a terrific campground and we will absolutely be back.  Not at our site though… not at our site… our site was not great.  A10 … it was small… covered in roots and I mean they were everywhere and you felt as if you were going to just trip at any moment.  It also rained our first day and our site flooded (see photo), it was not great at all.  The fire pit was also about 30' away  down a hill, which could be charming but you were just grateful to get down to  there without breaking your ankle on a root.    I know nature happens but with the price you pay for this campground - they should not have a tripping hazard flood zone for a site (#A10).   

Here are the pros / cons (there are way more pros)

Pros

• You are right outside Acadia National Park.   It's amazing - and the hiking trails and lakes / ponds for kayaking are so beautiful, it's bananas. 
• Great, friendly and efficient check-in process.  The office has wood and ice for sale and it's very convenient.   
• There is a spot called 'The Gathering' place that has free wifi and great coffee and treats in the morning as well as ice cream in the evening.  It was nice on rainy day when we didn't feel like making coffee.  
• Bathrooms and showers are clean, well maintained with a rustic cabin charm.  (hot water for shower is $1 [4 quarters] for 5 minutes). 
• Almost all the sites have tent platforms, which is excellent … especially if your site is an uneven, root invested, flooding hell scape (#A10). 
• The campsite is on Sommes Sound so there are incredible water views and kayak / canoe launches. 
• It is, hands down, the most quiet place we have ever camped.   You can hear a bit of traffic from Route 3 where we were (#A10  #evil) but it was not too bad in my opinion. 
• No animals allowed during peak season, which to me is a pro.  I like animals - but not running all over a campground. 

Cons

• There are no dedicated sinks to do your dishes.  I was very surprised by this - as this campground is very expensive and I just assumed they would have them.  I double checked on their website and there is no mention of this that I can find.  It was very disappointing.  We made due - but I feel they should absolutely mention this on their site.  Again - I may just be inept and can't find it but I have now looked a few times.  
• Some sites have water and electric, which is great!  Some have one or the other, which is great!  Some have neither, which is fine.   However, large sections of the the hoses and power cables run along the ground and through sites which is not great at all.   For our site (#A10  #evil  #floodzone) between the roots and the hoses, you felt as if you were auditioning for American Ninja Warrior.

Clean, friendly with the best views of the beautiful Somes Sound. We rented a kayak at the campground and explored the sound. The camp site was close to the bus route which, will take you all over the Island. Overall a great place to stay. Look forward to returning and staying there again.

I never thought I would spend 55$ a night for a campsite. There are sites that are more expensive, and sites that are cheaper but I figured why not spend the money to stay right on the water. Even sites that don't sit on the water have a great amount of space and trees. Due to Covid this was all I could find for a planned Acadia trip in the fall. After my stay, I can honestly say it was worth the cost and I would highly recommend the campground. 

Since the campground sits among the rocky and mountainous coast line, they have spent the time and money building leveled platforms for all the sites. Without the platforms, the campsites would be quite miserable. I have a hard time believing any other campgrounds in the area have invested so much to make their land so comfortable for their guests. 

The bathrooms are amazing. Built with wood and lots of ventilation, the open air prevents them from getting musty or moldy. Bathrooms have outlets (or at least the women's do). They are very clean and well kept. 

They sell firewood, ice, and have a coffee shop. Brilliantly, you get whatever you need and they simply use your campsite as a "tab". Usually they rent kayaks as well but this was on hold this year due to covid. 

Its a great location relative to Acadia. It's only about 15 minutes to popular areas of the park (Cadillac mountain, Jordan pond, etc.). Bar Harbor is also easily accessible. The campground is equally convenient to get to the less popular areas of the park such as the Schoodic region or Bass Head Island.

This is our favorite campground. Perfect sites. Raised tent landings. Beautiful views of the ocean/marsh. Kayaks for rent. Not too far from acadia National Park and Bar Harbor. Clean bathrooms. Well marked. Highly recommend.

Beautiful campground located on the water. Clean, hot showers ($1.00 for 5 minutes) a gathering place with free wi-fi, coffee and pastries for sale, kayaks for rent and many other amenities. Campers over 20 feet are not allowed. The sites are large however the terrain is difficult to navigate. There is NO dump station located at the campground however a few miles down the road, there is a campground that allows you to use theirs for a $20.00 fee.

Just spent a week here and we can not say enough good things about it. I’ll start with the staff. They were exceptional in every way. Very friendly, including the children who seemed to be working there, and very responsive to any questions we had. The facilities were immaculate. Cleanest and most well designed bathrooms of any campsite we’ve been to, and we’ve been to a lot. The sites are all very private and secluded and the quiet hours were well observed. Due to our late booking we ended up at site C44. I was a little worried I would be disappointed not being at one of the waterfront/water view site but once we arrived we soon realized that every site at this campground is special in its own way. With that said, we will try for one of the waterfront sites next year but don’t be disappointed if they are not available. Even though this campground is not directly in Acadia you are no more than a 15min drive to any of the sites in the park. We were able to explore the park by day and enjoy the campgrounds at night. Our only regret is that we didn’t have more time to spend at the campground. The kids loved crabbing of the floating dock and riding bikes around the campgrounds all day. Bikes are a must. If you’re planning a visit to Acadia (which is well worth a visit) make Mount Desert Campground your home base. You won’t be sorry. Oh I almost forgot the amazing local ice cream served nightly at the meeting place. Don’t miss it.

This was our first trip to Acadia National Park. Mount Desert Campground was awesome. Bathrooms were clean. Views were outstanding. Amenities (docks and shops) were great! We WILL be back.

While I prefer backcountry camping every once in a while car camping is required. In the case of this campground I’m not sure how it gets any better.

Our friends beat us to the campground and grabbed one of the platform sites that overlooks the small lagoon. The car is within 30 to 40 yards of the campsite making it easy to go back for supplies. This platform site we rented in the beginning of September was one of the best views I’ve had camping.

While I did not interact with the camp ground staff or utilize their facilities, I have recommended this to many friends who are going to Acadia national Park. If you had kids this would be a great location as we saw many families.

Stayed here 2 nights in June. Large CG with many, many sites. Some waterside, others back up the hill a bit. The sites themselves were big and had trees enough for multiple hammocks. They also have wooden tent platforms at each; as most of the ground is rooted and uneven. Waterside sites are expensive, so keep that in mind. Each loop has its own bathhouse with showers that cost a dollar(in quarters) for 5 minutes. Fire ring and table at each site.

I love this campground for tents or small trailers/vans. Most of the tent sites have wooden platforms! The scenery is great and it’s close to the park. Showers are $1 in quarters for 5 min which is more than enough time. Hot and clean.

This campground was just as beautiful and spectacular as the actual Acadia National Park (which is very close by). We tent camped here and our site was beautiful, as well as secluded from others nearby. Each site had its own privacy - that was our favorite part - you felt like it was just you and nature, but in reality you were surrounded by people. The view over the lake was unexplainable. Facilities were clean. All around an amazing campground!!

My husband and I stayed here in June 2018 in our popup. We had some trouble manuvering our camper into our spot because of the one way roads through the campground, but once we were in it was a perfectly cozy and private site! Bathhouses were nice and clean. Overall we loved our stay and can't wait to come back!

The location of this campground is perfect for a camping trip to see one of America’s most beautiful parks. Right outside the northern part of the park, you can easily get into the park without being right in the middle of the park where more people are. You have access to the water, the campsites are smaller but give you a great feeling of being in the woods. Showers and bathrooms are great too!

Very nice campsites, bathrooms and showers were very clean and easily accessible. Friendly and helpful staff. Only about 10 minutes from Acadia National Park and many great lobster shacks nearby. Would definitely stay again. Only thing was tent sites were a bit pricey.

We loved our woodsy site just a few hundred feet from the lake. Bathrooms were well maintained & the friendliest people worked there ready to help with anything you needed.

Mt. Desert Campground offers a car camping experience that is rustic enough to feel like you are enjoying the outdoors but not too much that you feel like you are roughing it. The location is great for accessibility to adventures to different parts of Mt. Desert Island but also is a great setting at the top of Somes Sound to be okay with just hanging out at the campground for a day. The main gathering spot (aptly named the Gathering) offers a spot to get some tasty treats in the morning and evening as well as wifi. The cold brew coffee in the morning is a nice treat while camping.

Had direct access to the ocean- brought our kayaks out. Also enjoyed riding our bikes around the campground. Many people were out early digging for clams. Close to Acadia- we drove in each morning to hike. Acadia is a dream- definitely recommend going. Campsites were spacious and private feeling despite being pretty open. Portapotties around if you can’t make it all the way to the bathrooms.

Our neighbors recommended this campground to us, and it did not disappoint. Booking online was easy, check- in was smooth. We chose a campsite with a platform on which to put our tent. Each campground includes a fire pit and picnic table. Our site was right next to a potable water spigot, and within easy walking distance to a bathroom building which includes full plumbing and metered showers (4 quarters for 5 minutes). The Gathering Place was where we went when we needed wifi access and Gifford's of Maine ice cream. At night you could find teens hanging there to check their social feeds. The Free Island Explorer bus also makes stops at the campground if you want to access different parts of Acadia or go into Bar Harbor without worrying about finding parking. We loved it here and definitely plan to return. Next time we're going to try to get one of the campsites on the water… those are prime locations! We highly recommend Mount Desert (pronounced the French way: dessert) Campground. Best camping experience we've ever had!

A nicely wooded campground. We had electric and water at our site; a simple luxury we're not used to. It's a big campground with a maze of well marked, one-way roads. We took advantage of the island shuttle which picked us up right at the campground.

beautiful campground. clean bathhouse. hot showers. ice cream/wifi shack is great place to meet friends.

Anyone who’s been to Acadia knows there is a bottleneck to get on the island, and it’s really busy with narrow streets and too many cars. sometimes when I just want to camp and not deal with traffic we will camp here, at MDI camping. We tent camp, and Next to the GIGANTIC pool there are backwoods sites, which are perfect for us because it’s furthest from the road and you barely hear the cars, AND it feels like you’re in the wilderness but within walking distance to bathrooms and running water.

Great stay! Bathrooms are clean and well maintained with showers. Campground within 15 minute drive from Bar Harbor and Park Loop Trail. Breathtaking views from the lake! We stayed in a platform site. It was better than expected.. we’ll be back for sure!

The campground was beautiful and had great amenities. the staff was very friendly. I took 2 stars away due to the very expensive price for tent sites.

This is an absolutely beautiful campground with some tent sides literally on the sound. I woke up every morning to the loons calling under rolling fog. Just beautiful. The campsite strategically spaces sites apart both spacially and with elevation. It’s mostly covered with thick pines so even walking to the bathroom gives the illusion of a hike. The tent sites are beautiful with flat cedar pads built level for your tent(s). The bathrooms are also cedar making them smell amazing. I plan to go back there many times!!

Absolutely love this campground! My aunt and I stayed for a week while visiting Acadia National Park. Sites right on the water. Woke up one morning to a bald eagle in a tree next to our site. Showers and toilets on site. Wifi available at one of the buildings where they also sell coffee in the morning. Close to hiking as well as lots of restaurants with great seafood. Would recommend to those looking for a nice campground for car camping while visiting Acadia.