Campgrounds and RV parks near Ellisville, MS

Water recreation centers on Geiger Lake inside Paul B Johnson State Park, a 225-acre freshwater lake stocked with largemouth bass, bluegill, bream, shell cracker, crappie, and channel catfish. The park also has a designated swimming area, disc golf, a splash pad, playgrounds, and nature trails through longleaf and loblolly pines. A Mississippi fishing license is required for anglers between 16 and 65. De Soto National Forest surrounds much of the area and offers hiking, paddling, and dispersed exploration across a large tract of southern pineland. Families often pair a lake day with a visit to the Armed Forces Museum at Camp Shelby, roughly five miles north of Paul B Johnson State Park, or a trip into Hattiesburg for restaurants, the Longleaf Trace rail-trail, and USM game weekends.

The Ellisville area has a humid subtropical climate with mild, short winters and long, hot, humid summers. Winter lows rarely drop far below freezing and daytime highs are typically in the mild range, which makes cool-season RV travel comfortable and keeps campgrounds like Paul B Johnson State Park open year-round. Rainfall is spread across the calendar, with January among the wettest months and November typically the driest. Spring and fall are the most comfortable windows for tent-and-RV mixed groups, with warm days, cooler nights, and lower humidity than summer. Spring also brings the risk of severe thunderstorms, so travelers should watch forecasts and know their site's shelter options. Summer is peak booking season at lakeside sites and family-oriented parks, with weekends filling well in advance. It is also Atlantic hurricane season: tropical systems can push inland from the Gulf between June and November, occasionally forcing park closures or evacuations in southern Mississippi.

Most private parks in the Ellisville and Hattiesburg area offer level, full-hookup sites with 30- and 50-amp electric, water, sewer, and Wi-Fi. Hattiesburg/Okatoma KOA Holiday typically adds amenities like a pool, dog park, fishing ponds, and long pull-through sites suited to big rigs. Shady Cove RV Park accommodates travel trailers, fifth wheels, and larger coaches. At Paul B Johnson State Park, expect 125 RV pads with water, sewer, and electric hookups on rolling, wooded terrain around Geiger Lake, plus 25 primitive tent areas and 16 cabins. Pets are not allowed in or around cabins, villas, motels, or any state building. One camping unit is allowed per pad, and fireworks, portable generators, and metal detectors are prohibited.