Lake George Escape Campground
Cabin 413
If you have fond memories of summer camp and want to revisit those days or share them with your children, Lake George Escape is for you. We visited Memorial Day Weekend and the schedule was jam-packed with fun for the entire family. From arts and crafts to bike parades, to family kickball games, the fun continued all day and night.
If you have not already done so, check out my review of our cabin during our most recent stay at Lake Geroge Escape. And to find out how we stay here on a budget, be sure to read my post about our Thousand Trails Cabin Pass. Without our cabin pass, these cabins retail for over $300 a night during the busy summer season.
Playground Area
The centerpiece of the recreation area is the pool and playground. The large heated pool was undergoing repairs during our most recent visit, but the staff worked diligently to have it open by Sunday. The repairs were still ongoing, so if you plan to visit this season, I would call to confirm the pool is fully repaired and reopened. Please note, they do not allow balls or floats in this pool. In prior years, there was a kiddie pool adjacent to the main pool, but it was filled in with sand this year. My kids are sandbox fanatics, so they were very pleased with this change.
This park boasts one of the nicest campground playgrounds that we have experienced. In addition to the standard swings, including baby swings, they have a large climbing structure with slides, bridges, and plenty of places to explore. My kids were out here each morning as soon as we would let them out of the cabin. The best part was, there were always other kids there to play with. Between the playground and pool are the mining structure, shuffleboard courts, and horseshoe pits. Shuffleboard and horseshoe equipment can be checked out from the front office, and you can purchase bags of gemstones and fossils from the store.
Mining Area: Bags with gem stones and fossils can be purchased at the store.
In this area is the restaurant and bar, Riverside Provisions. Their food is delicious and they even have an ice cream window. There was a DJ playing each evening we were there. It’s such a nice place to gather with a larger group to relax. My kids are still a little young to leave unattended at the playground, but when they are a bit older, the patio gives enough of a view of the playground that parents of older kids could easily enjoy a drink or snack while their kids play.
Blow Up Water Slide
During our stay, they utilized the large field for activities such as family kickball, movies on the big screen, and three huge blowups that were available periodically throughout the weekend. We were familiar with the largest water obstacle course from the previous summer, and it continued to be a hit with my oldest. Due to the uncertainty of the status of the pool on a holiday weekend, they brought in two additional blow-ups. One was a dry obstacle course and the other was a large water slide. Both were huge hits and my oldest enjoyed them for several hours each day. I know what a stressor the pool was for the staff, and we greatly appreciated the fact that they brought in additional entertainment to occupy the kids while it was closed.
As you move from the pool area toward the front entrance, there is an area with cornhole and a public campfire ring where they hosted free s’mores one night. Just beyond that are the activity center, arcade, and miniature golf. The activity center hosted several events plus arts and crafts throughout the weekend. There is a small fee to play miniature golf. There are also courts for volleyball, basketball, and tennis. Equipment is available at the front office/store.
The main building houses the check-in/check-out desk, as well as a very well-stocked store with everything from souvenirs to camping supplies, groceries, and even beer. This is by far the largest and best-stocked store at any campground we have visited. The activities staff often hands out coupons for the slushie machine. Golf carts can be rented from this location. This is also where you can catch the wagon ride that ran nightly on our visit. It is a large open-air wagon towed by a pickup truck. They usually start around 6 or 6:30 pm and run for a few hours. We like to jump on the first ride since we have little kids, but if you miss the first one, hang out on the side of the main building and they will be back around for you. We have always found it to be a fun crowd, good music, and a great way to see the entire campground.
View from the evening wagon ride
The Schroon River wraps around the campground and serves as a place to tube, kayak, canoe, and swim. Once the river is a bit warmer, the campground hosts tubing trips daily. They also rent kayaks and canoes, but they were not yet available for the season when we visited. I much prefer the crystal clear water of Lake George, so despite the 55-degree water temperature, we visited Million Dollar Beach that weekend on one of the days that the pool was not available. I am not opposed to river swimming, but when you pit that option against a swim in Lake George, it will always be the lake for me.
This is a big campground with lots of roads for riding bikes and scooters, walking, or taking a ride in your golf cart. The campground even hosted both a bike parade and a golf cart parade that weekend. You are able to bring your own golf cart or rent one from the campground. I will say, the golf carts are ridiculously expensive. When we inquired last year they were charging around $100 per day. We have rented a golf cart at Disney’s Fort Wilderness for about $60 per day. When a business out-prices Disney, I’m out. We are just as happy on our bikes and it’s a nice way to sneak in a little exercise.
Memorial Day Bike Parade
In addition to everything listed above, the activities staff ran bingo, Build-A-Buddy (just like Build-A-Bear at the mall), and a variety of arts and crafts for both children and adults. We had an action-packed weekend and the kids are already asking to go back. And if that’s still not enough fun, the campground is located minutes away from Lake George Village. They run a shuttle to and from The Village so you don’t need to worry about finding and paying for parking. Check the activities guide for run times. If you decide to The Village, be sure to check out our Top 5 Must Do’s in Lake George before you do.
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