22 Overnight Camps To Send Your North Carolina Kids To In 2022
It’s time to start making summer plans. Are you going to let your kids just stay home all summer? Or do you want them to have the experience of a…
It's time to start making summer plans. Are you going to let your kids just stay home all summer? Or do you want them to have the experience of a lifetime? What about sending them to camp? There are tons of overnight camps in North Carolina. I'll never forget my first experience with camp. After spending a weekend at some with my dad for what is now called Y Guides, falling in love with the movie The Parent Trap, and hearing about my friend's experience I knew I wanted to try it. So this shy little 8 year old went to camp for a week and fell in love. That week-long session turned to two weeks, to a 4-week stint as a Counselor in Training, and finally 4 years of the best job ever.
Full disclosure I made my choice because it was the camp my friend went to (she ended up going somewhere else a couple of years later). The other deciding factor was that I liked the food. Maybe not the best metrics, but I never once regretted that decision. I spent 13 summers at camp and in total almost a full year of my life). And I'm not going to lie doing the research for this list made me a little homesick for those times. I'm a fierce advocate that it's something every kid should experience at least once. In fact, I regularly donate to a campaign that helps send kids to camp that otherwise can't afford it. Because it's not cheap to house, feed, and entertain your child for an extended period of time. But if you can give the experience to your child I promise you it's worth it.
I could talk forever about how camp changed my life and turned that tiny, shy 8-year old into someone she could have never pictured. From the opportunities, the goals, the failures, the successes, the friends, the friends, and counselors, and the new experiences it truly made me who I am today. No matter what you are looking for there is an overnight camp nearby that can fit the needs of your child.
Some are co-ed others are all girl or all boy. Maybe a small intimate experience fits best for your kids. While a large camp was just what this only child needed. Some offer a more rustic experience others have cabins and buildings with air condition. You can choose to be deep in the mountains, on the coast, or on a lake somewhere in between. Many offer similar activities and schedules. Each place has something that makes it unique whether that's a rich history or a new story your child can help write.
There are many more camps I could have put on this list, but here are a few to get you started. Some I have attended for a weekend, one I still go back to for alumni events. Others are ones I have friends that attended and some I was just introduced to today.
22 Overnight Camps To Send Your North Carolina Kids To In 2022
YMCA Camp Thunderbird
Location: Lake Wylie, SC
Gender: Co-ed
Ages: 6-16
Days at camp are divided between adventures on land and lake, with scores of options for campers to choose that fit their age, interests and abilities. Our Bandanna Program encourages participation with rewards for campers who challenge themselves by setting goals and trying new experiences.
YMCA Camp Cheerio
Location: Glade Valley, NC
Gender: Co-ed
Ages: rising 2nd grade-rising 10th grade
Cheerio offers campers the chance to participate in various activities that help them explore and develop their potential and lives as young Christians in a safe and supportive environment. Perched atop the eastern side of the Blue Ridge Mountains, Camp Cheerio sits on 135 acres of pristine land with plenty of room to run, play, and grow!
Camp Glen Arden
Location: Zirconia, NC
Gender: All girls
Ages: rising 1st-11th grades
Glen Arden is a place where young women can gather without labels, girls are celebrated for their individuality, and character counts. At summer camp, everyone can challenge themselves to experience new things without the worry of judgment or ridicule from peers.
Camp Piper Hill
Location: Siler City, NC
Gender: Co-ed
Ages: 8-13
Piper Hill has a beautiful large spring fed pond, friendly farm animals, horses, fishing, gem mining, artifact scavenger hunts, camp fires, farm games to play indoors and outdoors, plus crafts and maker spaces.
Camp Greystone
Location: Zirconia, NC
Gender: all-girls
Greystone provides an outstanding summer camp experience for girls of all ages. Nestled in a beautiful setting and offering an amazing variety of activities, Greystone encourages fun and growth in a safe and uplifting community.
Camp Wayfarer
Location: Flat Rock, NC
Gender: Co-ed
Ages: K-10th grade
Averaging 200 campers per session, we are intentionally smaller than most overnight summer camps. We find this size allows for a deeper connection with campers, helping them not only succeed in their camp experience, but in life beyond Camp Wayfarer.
Camp Pinnacle
Location: Flat Rock, NC
Gender: Co-ed
Ages: 7-16
The right summer camp experience can be a defining and formative experience in a young life. Camp Pinnacle is all about making memories, fostering lifelong friendships, and creating more confident and capable children in a kind, nurturing, and welcoming community.
Rockbrook Camp
Location: Brevard, NC
Gender: All girls
Ages: 6-16
Rockbrook provides a unique overnight summer camp program of recreation, adventure, creativity, and fun. From horseback riding, whitewater rafting, pottery, and swimming to campfires and exploring a chilly mountain stream, each day at camp is filled with new experiences and great opportunities to develop lasting friendships.
Camp Highlander
Location: Horse Shoe, NC
Gender: Girls camp and boys camp
Ages: 6-16
Camp seeks to build boys and girls of courage, honesty, integrity and faith, and to help them become all that God intends them to be. In all we do, from the social structure of camp to our programming, from opening day to closing day, we seek to uphold, promote, teach and exemplify these four core values.
Camp Merri Mac/Camp Timberlake
Location: Black Mountain, NC
Gender: Merri Mac (Girls) Timberlake (Boys)
Ages: 1st-11th grade
Girls come to camp to have fun and we believe the happiest environment is one in which the love of God is demonstrated by the staff and felt by all. We are often asked what makes Merri-Mac so special. No one expects a simple answer, which is good, because there really isn’t one. The best we can come up with is that we pay attention to details, and we’re really good at building places where girls grow through friends and adventure.
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YMCA Camp Sea Gull/Seafarer
Location:
Gender: Separate Girls and Boys Camp
Ages: 6-16
Camp is an ideal setting for campers to experience and learn sailing and powerboating. Along with sailing and powerboating, Camp Sea Gull and Camp Seafarer also offer a wide variety of land and sea activities including skiing, swimming, fishing, creative arts, archery, riflery, canoeing, nature/environmental activities, paddle boarding, golf, tennis and more.
YMCA Camp Harrison
Location: Boomer, NC
Gender: Co-ed
Ages: 6-16
When someone joins us at YMCA Camp Harrison, they can expect to enjoy God’s creation, build relationships and challenge themselves as they learn new skills. Our campers develop lifelong friendships by embracing authenticity and accepting their differences. While many of our visitors join us as guests, they leave as family.
Camp Arrowhead
Location: Zirconia, NC
Gender: All boys
Ages: 1st-11th grade
At Camp Arrowhead, boys learn to use their skills, knowledge, and resources to accomplish their goals rather than depending on others to carry them through. Fostering a boy’s confidence in his ability to succeed is paramount to him becoming independent.
Camp Mondamin/Camp Green Gove
Location: Zirconia, NC
Gender: Mondamin (Boys) Green Cove (Girls)
Ages: 6-17
Our goal is to build self-esteem while teaching community living skills, respect for the environment, and a love for the outdoors. We work hard on cooperation, and don’t spend much time on competition, so there aren’t any cups or ribbons or medals. We believe effort and reward are related, and the reward is sweeter when it’s earned.
YMCA Camp Kanata
Location: Wake Forest, NC
Gender: Co-ed
Ages: 6-15
Camp Kanata is intentionally rustic. From our wooden cabins and bunks to our no electronics policy, campers connect with each other in the real world – face-to-face and friend-to-friend – during activities, meals and evening cabin time.
Camp Gwen Valley
Location: Brevard, NC
Gender: Co-ed
Ages: K-10th
We offer a farm, wilderness, and traditional program where we foster community building, lifelong friendships, and a connection with the land. Our founder, Mary Gwynn created a camp based on the values of simplicity, acceptance, a non-competitive program, and an appreciation of the natural world.
Camp Carolina
Location: Brevard, NC
Gender: All boys
Ages: K-11th grade
Camp Carolina is an overnight camp and a boy’s summer paradise, serving boys from K-11th grades on 220 acres, with a private lake, nestled in Lamb’s Creek Valley and bordered by over 2 million acres of public lands that include Pisgah, Nantahala and Cherokee National Forests, Dupont and Gorges State Parks and The Great Smokey Mountains National Park.
Camp Canaan
Location: Rock Hill, SC
Gender: Co-ed
Ages: 5-16
Canaan Resident Camps are an epic adventure full of memories, friendship and fun! Our fantastic overnight summer camps on The Island in Rock Hill, SC include a week of adventure, personal challenge, making new friends, building personal strength and spiritual connection.
Camp Chatuga
Location: Mountain Rest, SC
Gender: Co-ed
Ages: 6-16
Send your child to Chatuga to enjoy structured days of outdoor fun; meet cool counselors who are great role models; and experience a wholesome, stress free, family atmosphere perfect for fun and personal growth through relationships and nature!
Camp Sewee
Location: Awendaw, SC
Gender: Co-ed
Ages: 8-14
Through hands-on group and individual activities, campers explore the unique wonders of South Carolina’s coast including barrier island ecology, marine wildlife exploration, late archaic Native American culture, birds of prey, salt marsh studies, and more! We hope to cultivate a love and respect for the ocean, inspire coastal conservation, build confidence, and develop character through safety, education, and of course, FUN!
Camp Kanuga
Location: Hendersonville, NC
Gender: Co-ed
Ages: 2nd-12th grade
Our program is designed to build independence and self-confidence in youth while teaching the importance of respect toward each other and the world around them.
YMCA Camp Watia
Location:
Gender: Co-ed
Ages: 2nd-10th grade
