Ocracoke Campground — Cape Hatteras National Seashore

 This was the third of the four Cape Hatteras Nat’l Seashore campgrounds we stayed in. It had a similar feel to the Oregon Inlet campground. It’s also $28/night, and like the others, you must reserve the site through recreation.gov. We pulled in without a reservation, picked a spot, then pulled up the app and reserved and paid. Recreation.gov doesn’t charge a service fee, which is nice. 

We liked it here so much we added a second day. Really easy access to the beach. Campground was quiet and peaceful. We stayed here during off season in early November so I’d imagine it’s probably a completely different vibe in the summer. Watch out for spiny sand spurs(?) that stick in your dog’s paws and your socks- very painful and they’re all over the grassy areas. 

OK cell service, Verizon was a little slow but ATT was ok. Wide open sky for solar panels and starlink. Loop D does not allow generator use at any time. 

Dumpsters available, as well as plastic, glass, and aluminum recycling bins.

No wood fires allowed here.

Some sites have power and water for $35/night. There’s a dump station and water fill available. Like the other two campgrounds we stayed at, the showers are in this short door outhouse type setup, and our understanding is that the water is cold. We did not use the showers. 

We were traveling south along the Outer Banks and the ferry from Hatteras to Ocracoke was very easy to ride with our 26ft class c RV, and it was free.

Ocracoke - National Park campground in Ocracoke, NC: We stayed here in November a couple years ago. This time we drove through only for this review. We remembered how our previous November visit was so delightful. Crowds were absent at the campground, on the beach and in town. Lovely.
(Scale 1- bad, 5-Very good

(70 yr olds in 17’ trailer with a desire for a campsite that has at least some visual privacy offered - after the trailer is in the spot.)

Overall Rating: 3 Price 2023: $ 14 w interagency pass Usage during visit: Light Site Privacy: Mostly a very open park like campground surrounded by low growing shrubbery. Site Spacing: Moderate Site surface: Blacktop Reservations: Required Campground Noise: Quiet.
Road Noise: Not located near a highway.
Through Traffic in campground: No reason for a drive through. Best sites are on the outer loop, but there will be more traffic as campers come and go. Electric Hookup: No Sewer Hookup: No Dump Station: Yes Potable Water Available: Yes Generators: Allowed Bathroom: Flush toilets Showers: Yes Cell Service (AT&T): Yes Setting: Very open park like bordered by sand dunes Weather: High in Themis 60s when we drove through Bugs: Not this time of year. Solar: Very good solar Host: On duty. Their sites are near the entry Rig size: Large rigs can find a spot Sites: Most sites do not offer much if any visual privacy. Among our favorites, that offer some visual privacy after the trailer is backed in the site are B1, D1, D3, D5, D23, D25, D37. Other better sites: A1,7, B3,5,12, C1,3,5,7, D7,9,13,15,17,19,27,30. Some of these sites are pictured below.

Super quiet, clean and chill campground. Easy bike to town. Great access to beach. Mosquitoes are bad but this is Ocracoke!

Level paved sites close to the dunes. Limited cell connectivity but convenient to Ocracoke. Clean and well cared for, cold water showers only.

Paved, level parking pad on sandy grass sites tucked between the dunes and vegetation in Cape Hatteras National Seashore in the outer banks by of North Carolina. No hookups, but water and dump are across the street, and generators are allowed.

I stayed at Ocracoke Campground during a two day north-to-south traversal of the Outer Banks. This ended up being a perfect jumping off point for enjoying the town of Ocracoke in the evening and the following morning, then taking the afternoon ferry to Cedar Island. The beach is also just a few yards away.

The Outer Banks are about one foot above sea level, and it had just rained, so a lot of the campsites here were flooded. The sites along the dunes were high and dry, though, and I got one of those. There was plenty of room for my tent, and the stakes went into the sandy soil easily but held fast. For company, I had a small community of burrowing ghost crabs. These were very fun to watch, but also very shy, so good luck getting photos.

The bathrooms here were clean and modern. Showers are located in separate buildings.

We spontaneously added two days onto our beach camping vacation at Bear Island and took the Cedar Island Ferry to Ocracoke after being away from the island for 7 years.

Ocracoke in itself is a gem. But it is hard to find traditional lodging in town unless you book months in advance. We booked our site three days before our arrival and there were multiple spots open. We arrived after check in and our packet was conveniently tacked on our site marker.

Camping here makes it super affordable to enjoy everything Ocracoke has to offer while giving you direct access to the beach.

Pro tips- •Get a dune side site- we’ve camped here a few times and found they have less mosquitoes than the grass spots and are a closer walk to the dunes.

•For maximum privacy, look closely at the map and pick a spot where the community paths through the dunes for all campers are not right next to you.

•Bring lots of bug repellent and tuck in early to avoid bites. Spray your gear with high grade permethrin before your trip and bring spray and candles also.

•Bring shade- there’s little to no tree coverage.

•Don’t miss out of Ocracoke Coffee Co for coffee and baked goods and Dajio for lunch and/or dinner. Shrimp hour is 2-5!

Bathrooms and showers do need updated and could definitely be in better shape but otherwise we had no issue.

We stayed here on memorial day weekend. The park was at capacity but there was plenty of room for everyone.

The spaces are really far apart and from what I can tell they are all pretty level. The campground is super convenient to the beach but you cannot drive on the beach in front of the campground during the summer.

The camp hosts did a good job of maintaining quiet hours and helping campers when needed.

My only complaints are that there is absolutely no shade on any of the spaces and that the bathhouses and showers are pretty gross. I've been to NPS campgrounds before and they were all much cleaner than this.

My wife and I love to tent camp, and this is our second visit here.  Here is the breakdown:

• $28/night

• Showers are cold water only, but they do have great pressure

• No matter where your site is located, there is easy, easy, so much easy access to the beach

• Park Rangers seem attentive, as we have seen her/him patrol each day of our visit

• Dogs and cats and I imagine other animals are welcome

• Cell Service is spotty for both Verizon and T-Mobile

• No shade

No complaints with this campground, but I do want to elaborate on cellular coverage.  I think The Dyrt mentions that T-Mobile has availability.  This is kind of true.  It comes and it goes depending on your location at the campground.  I am a T-Mobile customer and I have been connecting to U.S Cellular towers during my trip🤷‍♂️.  I am on. the sound side of the campground (west side), and last year, we were closer to the ocean and our coverage was "better".  Point is, your mileage my vary.

Don't hesitate, put your phone away, bring a sunshade, and relax.  You will not regret it.

This was a very pleasant campground in November when it was 80% empty. A short walk over the dune to miles of empty beach. No hookups and cold showers, but the natural beauty and sound of the surf at night made it perfect. The pads are short and sites are close with no privacy. Can't say how it would rate when full.

We just returned from 5 days at Okracoke. Our first few days we experienced high winds, gusting to 30 mph. We spent the first night worried our tent would blow down and the following day reinforcing our guy lines and stakes. Our sight, D5, was on the dunes making sand screws a necessity. The sand spurs in the dunes proved frustrating, especially for our dog Max. The bathrooms were very clean and the water deliciously potable. At night, the absence of ambient light made star gazing a breathtaking experience. There are no fires allowed at the campsite nor are they allowed on the beach In October. Camping just seems better with a campfire and it is an element of camping I sorely missed. The town was a few short miles away with a well stocked grocery and hardware store. The Pony Island Restaurant served fabulous takeout breakfast from a walk up window and lunch at the Okracoke Oyster Company was divine. (The Reuben was one of the best I ever had) The hosts, including their dog, were lovely and helpful. If I were to return, I'd definitely choose a grassy site instead of the dunes and the sand spurs and be prepared for high winds.

Its not a bad spot, but $28 is a little high when you're just using a tent. you can't see the ocean from your camping area, but its a 3 minute walk there. When I came here I thought we'd be allowed to tent camp (without having a fire) anywhere on the beach, so the need to pay a fee was a let down.

T-Mobile DOES have service on most of this island, as I am writing this review from the camping area.

Bugs were not an issue.

Stayed here for a night, loved it, it was a minute walk to the beach through some beautiful sand dunes and then you had pretty much the place to yourself. I will say how I was camping the lack of shade made it frustrating to stay at my campsite. (I was on a motorcycle, so no shade was available for me)

I love that they have quiet hour and people actually abided by it. Everything is nice and clean, on the water. Family friendly, and I highly recommend

Great spot within walking distance of the beach. Showers and toilets throughout the campground. Wouldn’t recommend walking barefoot due to hot sand, cactus, and burs.

Ocracoke is a great place to “recharge” the batteries of life pure and simple! Falling asleep listening to the sounds of the ocean; to look up at night and see our galaxy the Milky Way and all the stars revolving around Polaris is simply awe inspiring and a slice of heaven! We tent camped D-28. The steady breeze kept the bugs away all 3 nights. 4x4 to the many beach gates is a definite must. Lower tire pressure to 15-20 psi is highly recommended

The beach access is super convenient and the beach is absolutely perfect. The stargazing at night is exceptional. Camping is pretty tight as spots are close together but it gets the job done. Beware of bugs, biting flys were quite the nuisance. But overall a great stay and the nighttime stargazing here is something that is just hard to find anymore.

Lovely sandy setting! Campsites basic with picnic tables and grills. Grounds are well kept. Bathrooms tidy, beach shower enclosures with cold water, refreshing on hot days :)

Being there in May might have made it - 70 and 80 - but what a nice campground with a very cool town 3 (flat) miles away.

No electric, plenty of sun, beach 300 yards over the dunes (hear it all night), and a very nice beach to boot!

In town try Helios for breakfast, Eduardos for lunch, Oyster house or the Flying Melon for dinner.

Come prepared for bugs tho’ only pesky for us one night.

While we only stayed in this spot for a night, the place was absolutely amazing. We tent camped in section D and had direct access to the beach with our tent tucked behind the sand dunes. My only actual issue with the campground itself was our site had some residual trash left over from people before which is quite disappointing as we always pack out. Also, the bathrooms were kinda meh.

Do be prepared to have a way to keep nats away as our tent was filled in the morning.

Overall, this visit was spectacular and we will definitely be back

Ocracoke Campground

The basics: the campground is clean, bathrooms are clean, the sites and roads look newly paved with asphalt, the grass is pretty and the campground is on the other side of the dune from the beach. Also, the campsites are level.

What does the campground have? Cooking grills at each site, picnic tables at each site, recycling and garbage, outdoor showers with cold water (outdoor exposed like a beach shower and outdoor sheltered private shower with a locking door). The campground doesn’t have water, sewer or power hookups in the campground. There’s a hand fill water station somewhere I saw people filing their jugs up at. You can, however, get potable water and use the dump station for your rig outside the campground across the street just past the nature trail parking. Pull up satellite view on a map and you’ll find it.

Prepare for your trip. If it’s cold, consider how you’ll manage hygiene for few days if you can’t stand the water temperature. If it’s hot, consider how you’ll keep cool and have shade. I’ve read that mosquitos are bad in the warm months. The sites are exposed with no tree coverage. I didn’t mind this part at all. I usually want more privacy at campgrounds with large RVs because of their blinding outdoor white lights and imposing nature that make me feel less like I’m camping. But this campground has a ton of tent campers and people with small camping rigs. Like people are outside doing normal camping things like cooking, eating, sitting in their chairs talking. And it’s been cold!

The sites are smaller than you might expect. Our 22 feet camper van fit just fine. I mention this as I saw another reviewer complain that the sites aren’t long enough to accommodate a 35 feet Class A. This campground simply isn’t for you. Your car and rig must fit in your spot on the asphalt. If your car can’t fit, you have to park it at the campground parking. Tents are all setup in the grass. DO NOT PARK IN THE GRASS. The grass is so pretty. Why would you do that??? And it’s not allowed anyway. Don’t be “that” camper.

How did we keep clean during our three days in the cold? We showered in the van. This did require us to drive to the fill/dump station everyday. Which is just fine since we aren’t hooked up to anything or on leveling blocks.

Late check-in? We arrived at around 7:30pm. You don’t call for a key code or anything. Each reservation is posted at each campsite. Just park in your spot and check-in the next day at normal check-in time. There’s no central office. The camp host will greet you as you drive into the campground.

I give this campground an easy 5 stars.

Internet. T-Mobile doesn’t have service on Ocracoke. At the campground for Verizon on my iPhone 12, my connection was pretty okay: 7 mbps down, 0.7 mbps up and 205 ms ping. I connected my cell booster for a stronger connection.

This is a very unique and well maintained campground. Literally on the dunes and beach, nice camp sites, basic facilities. No hot water...but beyond that, a great place to camp.

Quiet, low key place to stay! They don’t have power and water at site, but you can run your generator from 7-10. There’s no hot water in the shower houses, but they are clean and well maintained. Overall great place to stay. Right in the middle of the town of Ocracoke and the ferry.

I had a wonderful late November five night, tent camping, surf fishing week at a wonderful, clean, quiet campground. I stayed in site D-17 and recommend any of those sites on the outer perimeter of D loop.

The bath houses were always clean. The park hosts were friendly and accessible. The town of Ocracoke is only a five minute drive yet a world away from this peaceful place.

Great campground if you are ready to fend off the bugs.

Can be windy and rainy.
The fresh fish in town is super for grilling.

Beach is empty (relatively.

The facilities are top notch and the beach area is out of this world. Great spot for a quick get away or even longer. Get out there and enjoy the beauty that nature has to offer.

I’m use to camping in the mountains so the openness of a beach campground was not some thing I enjoyed. But that being said this was one of the nicer campsites we stayed at in the Outer Banks. It was quiet clean and very close to the beach. You could also ride your bike into town on a bike path which was very convenient. They’re doing a lot of work on the campground. The night we stayed they were going to repave the roads and they’re working on the bathrooms. The stars were amazing at night and it was very quiet unlike the other campgrounds we stayed at in the Outer Banks later on our trip. I would stay here again.

Fabulous location! Getting there is half the fun. Take a 2 hour ferry ride to the island. Drive through the quaint town to get to the secluded campground. Huge dunes between campground and beach. Sites are well spaced. Hardly any shade so take your own, if you can. Just across the street, on the other side of the island, is the bay. Water is less than knee deep for as far as you can see....a fun place to play! No hookups and only cold water, primitive style showers.

If you love the beach you will love it here! Go to sleep hearing the ocean, wake up early to go over the sand dunes to see a beautiful sunrise. There is no electric or hot water in the showers, but that hasn’t stopped us in three years!

Site was clean and well maintained. Basic Beach camping on this beautiful island!