Smugglers Den Campground

Smuggler's Den Campground is synonymous with the description of the campground and is indeed a hidden gem. We spent 5 glorious days there and it was magnificent to say the least in September 2025. The staff were so accommodating and attentive to our needs. Kim and Cheryl were the best. Reign and Troy, the owners were so caring, compassionate and considerate to our needs. We made our reservations after hours and they created a site for us which in our opinion is the best site. It is secluded, quaint, quiet and encapsulated between beautiful trees, deer can be seen appearing often piercing thru the wooded area. Site number 16 will be our choice when we visit our favorite city in Maine, which is Bar Harbor. We will make sure our reservations are made around the availability of site number 16. The campsite has beautiful apple trees aligned throughout the trails, games for adults, children's playground, and a beautiful swimming pool. Also, a newly built shower house that's spa-like and soothing. Even if you have your own accommodations, we utilized this beautiful shower. It is located in a tranquil setting where apple trees are nestled among the trees that are beautifully pruned. As we were walking throughout the campground, we were choosing which tree we wanted for Christmas, that's how beautiful, clean and manicured this campground is maintained. Smuggler's Den is our favorite campground that we have ever seen and that's quite a lot because we have visited many campgrounds. The service alone with the attentiveness from the owners and staff have propelled Smuggler's Den to our number one camping destination.

Smuggler’s Den is one of the nicest campgrounds we have ever stayed in. The sites are spacious and each one has a fire ring and picnic table. The sites are level and the one we had was concrete. Lots of shade, very pet-friendly, and so many amenities! The new bathhouse is luxurious! There are cabins, park model rvs, and apartments to rent. The campground is located close to all the sites in Southwest Harbor and is a short drive from Bar Harbor and Northeast Harbor, but off the main road so traffic noise is not an issue. Lots of hiking trails and the staff is wonderful. I can’t say enough about how friendly and helpful everyone there is. Highly recommend and will definitely stay here again if we’re in the area.

This campground is very pretty with lots of trees and the campsites aren’t too close together which is very nice. They were very easy to book with and responded quickly when we needed them. There are a ton of activities for groups and families (pool, volleyball, basketball, corn hole, playground and lots of open play space). There were no issues with the hookups.

The check in office has a very sparse store but you could get a few essentials if needed.

My issue was with the laundry room and bathrooms. We had to use their showers. I would give that bathroom a 2 and we’ve stayed in campgrounds all over so I have a good comparison. There is no heating or AC. It’s cold here so you freeze in there. The shower heads spray literally in every direction and the showers are super tiny. There are only hooks so there is no place to set your things in the bathroom. If you take them into your shower stall they will get wet due to the shower heads sprays above the curtain. If you actually need to use an electrical outlet, there are only two right by the toilets. In the morning, you don’t want to be right by the toilets. Trust me! My husband said the men’s bathroom is a mess as well. Doors don’t shut or lock. Same issues with the showers .

The laundry room is a mess. There are three washers but I’m not sure they get cleaned. Two of the four dryers don’t work. There is no place to sit inside. There are two chairs outside the laundry room but that doesn’t help if the weather isn’t good.
You need quarters. You can get them from the office when they are open . It’s $2.50 for the washer and $0.50 for 30 minutes of drying.

If you don’t need the bathroom or laundry room , it’s perfect here

Its a nice campground in a wooded setting...unfortunately though the men's bathroom was desperately in need of an upgrade. The doors to the toilet stalls dont secure and one of them is so tight I got stuck in there and had to kick my way out, lol! The dent in the door indicated that I wasn't the first person to have to bust out.

Been here during our Trip north for leaf peeping and experienced perfect communication and very friendly staff in a nice environment. Acadia Trolley access on campsite is very useful and a reliable service. Restrooms especially Toilets could use some remodelling... Definitely recommended!