Hillsborough River State Park

Best state park in the Tampa area for experiencing the Hillsborough river. Rented a tandem kayak for the first time there - easy to book online ahead of time and quick getting into the water. Parking lot 4 is where kayak rentals are - Leslie was very nice & helpful with the whole process. We saw multiple gators, turtles, and even had an otter pop up right in front of our kayak! Definitely will be back 😊

If you love being in nature, kayaking, biking, hiking, this is your spot. You can rent kayaks, canoes and paddle up/down the river and it is breathtaking. It definitely looks prehistoric... except for the buildings and signs scattered throughout, lol. The gators, birds, turtles are seen in their natural habitat. The "rapids" were a cute surprise. The water was so clear. There are several hiking/biking trails and bike lanes all over. There's a cool suspension bridge. There were several parts of the park that were closed from hurricane damage and the pool was closed but the rangers were friendly and the weather was perfect!

I spent the morning walking a few trails with my dog. The trails are easy and well marked. I did notice the common areas needed some maintenance, caution tape was wrapped around tables that needed repair. But I'll be going back.

Absolutely BEAUTIFUL State Park! My brother, nephew and I just finished a 3 night stay. Check in was great, smooth and friendly! The one way road and specific destinated areas for bikes/peds was great. The map is perfectly marked and very easy to read. Bathrooms were cleaned and well kept but small stalls. Some of the latches left far too much gap when closed. We absolutely want to come again but 2 things make me question that. First, the men's bathroom (at least in our loop 1) had no privacy for the shower (see photos). The only privacy you get is when you're actually in the shower. You have to undress, dry off and dress out in a hallway fully exposed to anyone else that might also be in there or walk in when you're mid dress. You have a curtain that closes off the shower hallway from people just coming in to use the toilets and when you're actually showering, that's it. My brother wasn't comfortable with that but we certainly were not comfortable with that for my 11yo nephew. Sorry but absolutely not. I'm not sure why the women's bathroom each have changing privacy but the men's don't. Why??? Second, site proximity. I know this probably isn't a big deal to most and certainly not anything that can be changed now but only having a wooden fence between you and your neighbors is really not the outdoor camping experience we look for. Fortunately I was able to get a site that had no neighbor on one side so we just faced our tent that way and had an awesome view. We had a great time, the rapids trail was our favorite. The sound of the water rushing over stones is so calming. I wish we had more time there. Someday we might return but possibly only under a day pass and stay elsewhere.

Nice campground. They are updating fences and picnic tables. The river is great for kayaking but we did see 6 alligators on our paddle. Money must be tight because the road into the campground was full of potholes and a lot of structures had caution tape wrapped around them. The campground is huge so it is a long walk, bike or drive to get to the playground, trails and river. There are nice looking yurts in addition to rv sites. Loop 2 was a little more spacious than loops 1 and 3. It was cold during our visit and we had to ask for bathroom fans to be turned off. Bathroom was freezing but water was warm in the shower.