Hey there Boo-Boo! Catskills Camping At Jellystone Park

Our Catskills camping adventure at a Yogi Bear’s Jellystone Park Camp-Resort ranks among our top Mid-Atlantic summer vacations. Along with RV camping in the Pennsylvania Dutch Country and glamping in the Poconos, it gave us room to figure out our camping style.

Jellystone Park’s Remote Catskills Camping Location

We booked a tiny cabin at Jellystone Park at Birchwood Acres (888/726-7804) because of its remote location in New York’s Catskill Mountains, not far from home or the legendary site of the original Woodstock Music Festival. The closest town of Ellenville, tucked between several Hasidic vacation camps, has bungalow colonies, a good Mexican restaurant Gaby’s, some Borscht Belt era theatres and a surprisingly hipster feel.

And our campground? As one of 75 Yogi Bear’s Jellystone Camp-Resorts in the U.S. and Canada, this New York Jellystone is themed to the vintage animated series about bears. The vibe is super family-friendly, with a furry mascot (either Yogi, Boo-Boo or Cindy) riding around in a golf cart to greet campers and, on occasion, pose for photos… at a safe distance of course. There are several other Jellystone New York camping and glamping destinations for Catskills camping and beyond.

Jellystone Park’s Many Sleeping Options

The Jellystone Park camp-resorts can claim the ‘resort’ name because of their many sleeping and recreation options. Choices range from deluxe RV sites with all the hookups, to cabins ranging from rustic to multi-bedroom chalets, park model RVs, yurts, tent sites and more.  

We reduced our footprint on earth in a Rustic Cabin, petite in stature. Cabin CB-2’s screened windows and narrow bunks really reminded me of summer camp; the air conditioning, full size fridge, WiFi, microwave and small TV did not. There was a faucet, picnic table and fire pit outside. Facemasks were mandatory for visits to the spotless bathhouse, which has toilets and individual shower rooms, all about 100 yards away.

Jellystone Park’s Catskills Camping Village Layout

We liked that the Birchwood Acres campground was set up in neighborhoods. Our Boo-Boo Way was a tranquil setting that also gave kids easy access on foot to the playground, splash pad, swimming pool and general store.

Most camping sites are surrounded by trees. That’s a nice feature of this Jellystone campground for those who bring their own tents or smaller Popup TV trailers.

Yet everyone was friendly, waving as they passed in a golf cart or ready to offer tips on grilling. It was peaceful at night, when the only intrusions were fireflies or neighbors making s’mores on their fire ring.

Jellystone Facilities & Recreation

All Jellystone Camp-Resorts are loaded with different facilities. Look for a laundry room, game room and general store. In-camp stores rent or sell golf carts, firewood, cable TV, non-motorized boats, art ‘n’crafts and snacks.

In addition to one large pool, our campground had a signature Yogi Bear’s Water Park. A siren announces the tipping of a huge water bucket every 5 minutes at the splashpad. Inbetween, the waterslides are awesome.

Jellystone Parks often have lakes for fishing and recreation, plus ball courts, jumping pillows, minigolf, pedal carts and themed weekend events for kids.

Jellystone Park Makes Catskills Camping or Glamping Easy

The Sun Communities company is all-around attentive to guests. SunRV Resorts made a rigorous commitment to hygiene during the pandemic. The thoughtful welcome gift — a personal hygiene kit we still travel with — helped ensure the 100% safety compliance we saw throughout our stay.

The campgrounds are spotless too. Groundskeepers clean cabins, tend the firepits and scrub outdoor furniture. Two-person cleaning crews clean out cabin interiors. Toilets and individual shower rooms in the spotless common bathhouses were cleaned regularly.

We brought our own linens; we dumped our garbage. We had to leave the cabin broom clean. Not much ‘roughing it’ in my book for a memorable family vacation in the woods.