Brookside Campground

Bathrooms and other facilities were nasty. Right beside main road and loud rafting busses and 18 wheelers went by all night. Camping lots were right on top of each other. Had to play extra for kids. Pool was nasty. One night I counted 13 cats. At one point the water stopped working. Women bathroom door would not shut. No I would not stay here. Look at other sites reviews. Not a great place to camp.

For our third trip up to the Nantahala River, my girlfriend and I decided to camp the night before rafting the river. While researching where to camp around the area we came across Brookside. This place is pretty awesome, honestly.
First of all, if you love cats, you will love this place. They always have a bunch of kitties around, 25 when we were there. There are cats of all ages, cute and friendly as can be, just ready to greet you upon arrival. They seem to stay right around the house though, so don’t worry, they don’t wander into the campgrounds. The campsites are well kept and each site had separate recycling which was nice to see. If you have a group with more than one tent, site 36 ½ looked like it would be awesome; large area with lot’s of privacy. We stayed at site 36 but the was a whole other area on the other side of the creek that looked awesome too. Great prices too and they even had a few grocery essentials stocked in case you forgot something like we did.
Everyone that works there is super friendly as well. They make you feel right at home.
We’ll be going back for sure!

Kathy and Bob ran this campground back when my parents were honeymooning! I was born a few years later and this became one of our favorite spots for family camping trips.
My boyfriend and I have come here the last two summers, the most recent time meeting up with friends in TN and SC. We LOVE this place, despite the 10 hour drive! They are dog friendly, as long as you’re not leaving your dogs alone or loose (they have a billion cats because people dump their pregnant cats here — there are ALWAYS kittens!). It is THE cheapest campsite — I don’t think they’ve changed their prices — ever!
There is a creek that runs through the campgrounds. Many of the sites offer water and electric, and there are RV sites. There is a bath house on site, possibly the cleanest campground bath house I’ve ever been in (and I was in Girl Scouts, so I can assure you I’ve seen my share)!
I love white water rafting and kayaking (if it’s cold, do yourself a favor and rent a wet suit or the last hour will be MISERABLE) on the Nantahala. There’s hiking in the Smokies, beautiful mountain drives, and the Smokies train (haven’t had the money to do that yet!). I really enjoy white water tubing in Deep Creek at Bryson City — possibly not for very young kids. Get a colored tube with a complete bottom, NOT the black ones with the plastic seat because they aren’t so fun when you hit rocks. If you bring your dogs, you can board them at Ridgeline (HIGHLY recommend them) in Whittier while you spend the day on the water!