So the bathroom is not five star. Grow up! Coyotes singing five part harmony every night. Clear, starry skies. Sand Hill Crane choruses. The moon shining through hundred year old pines. Ancient shorelines.Gangster squirrels! Never ever leave any food unattended.

Oh we love this place. It can be secluded if we go to the south beach. The rocks and lake are so pretty. Easily can spend a day. Trails are neat. Walking on sand made us tired but worth it. Parking can be filled up pretty early. There are good food options around.

The campgrounds are very nice. They are well-spaced apart from each other so you get a lot of room to set up tents or whatever. The distance from camp to beach is super short. The beach is great with enough distance to hold many visitors. The bathrooms at the campgrounds were icky. The sunrise was beautiful over the lake. I will be returning here to camp in the future. We had a problem with the hiking trails. We couldnt finish one because it turned into a swamp and the water got too deep. So we turned back. We saw frogs and birds. The wildlife was nice here. All in all good experience and I would recommend visiting.

Great quick family camping spot close to Chicago. No booze is allowed at all. It has a huge lakefront so you can get a nice spot away from the crowds. The beach is made of pebbles and rocks not true sand. Bring water shoes or sandals for sure. All spots have electricity and there are real bathrooms and showers. The camp sites are right on top of each other so there is no isolation or privacy. There is a piggly wiggly 5 min from the campground for supplies. You cannot collect firewood and its expensive! $6 for a small bundle wrapped in plastic with a plastic handle. Bring wood or buy nearby. The campground has ice for $2 Blackberries were everywhere and fruiting like mad! There are lots of retirees in RVs and lots of tent camping as well. Kids are everywhere on the roads playing so follow the 10mph speed limit. This is definitely a family spot. Perfect for a quick get away cooking over a campfire and the classic campground experience

First time here. I have to disagree with many. I bet back in the day this area was beautiful. Unfortunately the lack of state funding and beach erosion can clearly be seen. I thought the area was clean. We walked for miles and did not see garbage. I do recommend wearing aqua socks as the mix of sand and gravel can do a number on your feet. We definitely plan on returning with our bikes to also enjoy the bike trails. Great place to get away from the big city and enjoy nature.

Drove up on a Tuesday mid-morning. Hardly anyone there. Ample parking space. Beach is open to swim - water is pretty chilly and waves were strong due to the wind. If you walk down to the left of the beach you can set up your chairs or umbrellas and sit there for hours. Its a nice quiet beach to come and get away for a while, you forget youre in Illinois! There are trails as well to walk and hike and you can even bring your dog! Will definitely come back and make this a weekend family trip!

Its a quick getaway from the city and suburbs if you want to feel like going to a beach without driving for more than an hour. Place has ample of parking areas and no entrance fee. The water looks clean and blue. Its quaint and nice to just relax, have a quick picnic, read a book under a shade, lay on the sand, play in the water, walk on the trail or sunbathe however I wouldnt recommend it for families with small kids because it is a rocky shore, pebbly for small feet, some areas have trash scattered around, and it is a little run-down with cracked pathways. Not ideal for swimming either.

We went to the state park to enjoy the beach. We went on a cloudy day with a chance of rain. The beach was basically empty. There was ample parking and lots of changing areas/bathrooms. The beach was nice but the water was very cold. We went in July and the water was chilly. I would suggest wearing water shoes because the shore and water is rocky. The park is free to enter so that’s nice. This park is much quieter than North Avenue beach if you want to spend a day on Lake Michigan without many people. It felt like we were on vacation. We packed a picnic lunch and ate on the sand. We wanted to hike the trails but they seemed to be flooded with water so we walked along the beach.

Beautiful Illinois state park on Lake Michigan. Tons of mosquitoes but that’s okay if you come prepared. Scenic drive up Sheridan road if coming from the city. All sites were full but easy to social distance when outside. The camping sites here are larger with parking pads/electricity. Water spigots placed conveniently. Facilities were being cleaned regularly. People still wearing masks in common areas. Beach was not packed at all. Great hiking trails. Cool little back roads hugging the lakefront up here.

I could never get reservations during the summer and now I see why! This place is awesome! We found a trail that lead right to the beach with beautiful sights. There was plenty to do for the kids and the camp sites are very large.

As Ive stated on other water access reviews there would not be any I dont like. This of course is at the top of my list. For those that like to take advantage of swimming & picnicking you cant beat it. And for those of us that enjoy just walking & talking, just north of the beach,, you can take that walk on the rocky shore or on the path above.

One of the most beautiful shores off Lake Michigan!Wish they would instill more social distancing requirements. We left one day after driving into all lots of parking on property full of cars and droves of people just after covid19 lockdown was lifted.Great place to watch sunrise from your car safely!

Went with a friend to just sit and enjoy our wonderful Lake Michigan.we went to a quieter area to avoid many people. those in this area definitely kept their distance however it is hard to walk down the paths because people need to pass right by where you are. it was wonderful to breathe in the fresh air and feed my soul after so long being in the house or only able to take short walks.

Good place to get away from the hustle and noise. I prefer going during the week to lessen the chances of hearing screaming kids. Not that I have anything against kids but I go there to relax. The south has a lot more beach and can be almost like its all to ones self. If the winds are from the west, youll have to deal with the boring black flies.

Beautiful park and the staff was really friendly and helpful but who in the world designed the showers????!!? The water was way too hot - and dont get me wrong, I love hot showers - but I probably was close to getting 1st degree burns and there is no way to adjust the temperature. And then the shower aims towards the front of the stall and the water is extremely powerful and all my clothes and shoes got soaking wet. Also I ended up having to call the office because the shower wouldnt turn off on its own like its supposed to. Gallons of wasted water. ️ very disappointing.

Beautiful beach on Lake Michigan. Great to spend a few hours watching the boats and listening to the waves hit the shore.

Nice beach with beautiful long stretch shoreline. Parking is close by. Forest preserve nearby. If maintained well, this would be a true hidden treasure. It is less crowded, and the park closes at 8pm. Enjoy the views, come prepared with food.

Went here a few years ago and it was very nice. It was raining but the views and area was nice. Definitely worth going to see and spend time and see the area and the lake.

The beach at the north was beautiful and relaxing. I did not enjoy the hike at the Dead River as much,but still a beautiful day spent.

Beautiful clean water with amazing rocks everywhere! Bring water shoes .. if you wanna cool down and swim. Water is def cold! Even on hot summer days! Big parking lot close to water big plus! Dont get lost on the resort section keep driving till the end youll eventually reach public beach or stay the night at the resort. You can bring floaties just dont float away! Beautiful drive and tons of Nature to explore

Nice camp grounds, beautiful beach, easy commute from Chicago. My boys (4 and 2) loved their first time camping. We will be coming back regularly to get away from urban life to reset the soul.

Simply amazing! So beautiful. Water is gorgeous. Shoreline is rocky so bring water shoes.

Very good beach to enjoy with family and friends. We enjoyed walking on the trail. During this pandemic, it was a big relief spending time at the beach. Too much crowded near the car parking areas. We walked far away and stayed away from the crowd.

Easy access to beach from parking. Free parking, and picnic area available. Beach area is a little small but stretches far if you dont mind walking. Clean and enough room for social distancing. Bathroom in the park area is a little old, but acceptable given the crowd. Not much concessions, except for the McD on the nearby main street. Family friendly crowd during our visit. Will return next time.

Good for a day out. Simple trails, a beach a park to have meals and BBQ. Reach by 9/10 AM to avoid crowds. Zion Beach has rocks and it’s not a good swimming zone

Illinois beach state park appears to be clean. Ample parking is available in the north and south beach where there are 2 separate lots and is within walking distance to the cool waters. Picnic areas with mature trees are also within walking distance. The picnic tables are ample and widespread. Theres a volleyball net, a playground nearby for the little ones. Best to come early, before 12 noon which is safer for social distancing. The bathroom situation is however undesirable, outdoor portapotty not as malodorous. It was our first time for our family, but worth future visits.

Theres electricity, and its really quiet, the beach is beautiful . Its a really great place to get away . Theres even food places nearby .

Same amenities as any Illinois State Park but wow... super clean facilities, friendly staff, beautiful place right on Lake Michigan.

Lots of cool smooth rocks on the beach. Water is a beautiful blue. Very relaxing place to be. Parking is very close by. Only downside is all the trash on the beach. It was very hard to keep the little one from finding things she shouldnt play with. Kind of gross, but as long as you avoid the flotillas of garbage washed ashore, its great.

Clean and relaxing beach where you dont have to pay for an insane amount of $. I was able to get to the water even with crutches, so that says a lot about the accessibility. The sand were made mostly of rocks (not too stabby however) and the water was pretty cold today. Great place for a quick escape if youre looking for somewhere away from the city!

Love this beach! Quiet, peaceful short walk along Lake Michigan. Bike trails connect to it. Easyparking nearby. I feel like this is a hidden gem as we only saw 2 other people. We attempted Indiana Dunes National Park to gain access to the beach but it was a 1 1/2 hour wait just to park and $12 per out of state vehicle. IMHO, skip the line and head to this more remote, intimate beach on Lake Michigan.

This park was beautiful!!! It was out first time here, the beach was very clean and the lake look amazing!!! There were several spots to lay and relax and also places to walk or BBQ. Great place!

The beach was not open or at least the parking was in a forest preserve area and completely full. People were walking but according to maps it was far. We drove another 20 mins away to Simmons Beach Island and it was WAY better!

Quiet beach, mostly families. Water was cool but not freezing. The perfect antidote to the reality of covid in the summer.

This is a beautiful stretch of land right along the lake front with lots of things to do. An enjoyable place that can lift ones spirits just by being here.

The beach initially looked nice not crowded at all. We were so happy to finally get to some water during this pandemic. Well we found out why no 1 was there. BITING FLIES FLIES FLIES!! we were fine for the 1st 10 min laying out then we were getting swarmed and getting into the water didnt help either. The flies were so bad they literally followed us to the car. I NEVER had so many flies on me!! Lord of the FLIES beach!

The beach part is rather small and gets rather crowded quickly. There is a pebble beach a little further north that can be a little secluded if you get there early enough, around 8AM. They have public grills for family picnics and public facilities which arent very clean.

Our favorite beach! Always so clean and just a lovely beach in general.

Easy parking, no cost.Lots of small rocks.. primarily as you get near and in the water, so water shoes might be a good idea. Theres a newer small bathroom building and porta potties, but the big buildings were in bad shape. Looked old and maybe were just hit by the recent storms? Walking trails around there too. Overall, not the best beach, but we still had fun!Its closed on the weekend right now during the pandemic.

Awesome beach access with miles of hicking trails and marina. The campground is nice and close to the lake.

Very old run down hotel. Rooms are very small and no direct view of the lake. They are ALL considered partial view for the lake. The beach is not close to be decent. Its very dirty. I didnt try the pool or the restaurant but both looked ok. I just tried it once but never again. They need major renovation there.

Very nice its somewhere I would like toVisit sometime in summer with the family

Our goal was to make happy memories at the beach. We went to two other beaches at first but since we werent residents in the area we couldnt get tickets to get in. So we went to Illinois Beach State Park. Its free and it wasnt crowded (socially distancing). The kids had a blast and we accomplished our goal.

Its the north shore great trails.great lake.wild life you have to see this wonder

Beautiful shores! Its quaint and nice to just relax and have a quick picnic!

This is our second time camping here. It is lovely. We are in amongst tall pine trees, with only a five minute walk to beautiful lake Michigan. Very relaxing and fun skipping rocks and watching sailboats. Decent bathrooms and showers in campgrounds, but there are some abandoned bathhouse/ snackbars by the beach that look unseemly and possibly dangerous...not sure if that relates to campground or not. Other than that, this is a great place to camp.

Nice park, and trails. If you plan to spend the day at the beach, bring bug spray and water shoes!

Nice place, kind of a weird area. Hiking trails are okay.

Awesome place to chill to relax to go swimming no weeds all sand highly recommend it

The place is great and the facility isnt bad. Not sure why this place has bad reviews about the bathrooms or the beaches. The place is fine.

Good camping spot, saw deer, easy walk to the beach /leke from the park. Did see raccoons in trash, but park is clean. No water or sewer at sites, just electric. Some lots flood and they close them. Verizon cell coverage 2 bars.

This is a great beach to visit! It was my first time visiting this beach and lake, and I am definitely not disappointed!! Would recommend.

Great room. Pool is upgraded. We will be back.

Nice beach, natural so not sandy kind of rocky and not raked or groomed. That doesnt bother me but it does bother some. Old structure had collapsed and they put snow fence around it but looks like its been years since it collapsed. Not sure why they dont tear it down bit of an eye sore to an otherwise beautiful beach and facilities.

The beach was great! I stayed at the hotel part. Very clean, social distancing, and private. Parking very close, easy access.

This beach was very disappointing. The sand is intermixed with tons of rocks, you definitely cant walk without some type of foot covering. There was also broken glass and other broken up sharp materials mixed with the rocks. Its really not a place to bring small children. If youre going for the beach, drive across the border, itll be more pleasant.

Beautiful place to visit. Has fallen into some disrepair, but still great views and nice trails.

Even though the weather wasn’t ideal (I went in December) it was still gorgeous as ever. Very calming and peaceful. Not too many people were out and about on the beach which made the experience even better. Got to spend some time relaxing while watching the waves crash along the shore. I look forward to visiting again when it’s warmer out!

Nice clean beach and clear water! Many trails in this park to walk but didnt get a chance to explore. Will definitely be going to this beach again.

Has a nice paved trail that goes right next to the water. Walk by old closed beach bathrooms and shelters.Nice camp sites with a park, they sell fire wood, and both vault toilet bathrooms and comfort station type bathrooms.

I love this place. So peaceful️

One of my favorite places to go in the summer. Lovely hiking trails with wild flowers. Beautiful beach. Great for lake swimming.

Nice beach, ample of parking.. but can get crowded on certain days.

Beach was closed to cars. You could walk there . Much of Isherwoid beach washed away. Hiking through the paths was great. Beautiful nature!!!

Decent park can get busy nice to see the Lake. Large park, decent beaches, wish there were bluffs

This is one of the best spots to go camping. They staff is really friendly and nice. We look forward to another weekend in this place.

Great place to go out with kids. Campsite was clean and facilities were great. Kids loved swimming in the lake.

This place is a gem. Had an amazing time here with Kogan, Sandberg, Colin, Leeanna, Lavian, and a bunch of other friends. Campsites had flush toilets and drinking water. However the bathrooms do not have soap.

You have grill area in the parking, nice clean beach too, love it.

Beautiful state park right on lake Michigan. Electric only at the campsite the only drawback. Great cooler by the lake weather. Love this place!!

Great quiet place during the weekdays. But is CLOSED on weekends. Please change it on here and update the hours to avoid people wasting their time driving here. But overall a quiet beach.

It was a perfect, beautiful day . It was sunny, hot, breezy and water in the lake was amazing. We felt like we were on vacation, so relaxing. The only thing we would change it would be a lot less rocks on the beach. After walking back and forth from water to the chairs our feet felt like they went through torture. It was so painful.

Plenty of Parking. I suggest you bring some aqua shoes. So when you go in the water the rocks wont bother you and can walk better in the water and wont hurt yourself stepping on some sharp rocks.You can bring your cooler and inflatable stuff.

Not too many people visiting early in the morning. Beautiful wildflowers, monarchs...deer. Even picked up a few handfuls of trash off the shoreline. Leave it cleaner than you found it!

Gorgeous, crystal clear pure Lake Michigan. This is a great place for stone collectors to browse.

Very clean and not much people around. Peaceful place, good parking

Beautiful place to relax and fix your thoughts. I love it

I love this park! Easy to social distance and very beautiful.

After easy parking, a short walk brings you to a big, long, clean beach with a mix of sand and smooth stone. With plenty of space and easy water access, my only comment would be to families with small children that areas of shoreline can get deeper quickly.

Quiet an relaxing in the winter season!We experienced the park as a calm and piece full environment with a sand beach. There is plenty of parking space available and also bbq-grills to use in the summer. Trails for cycling and hiking are available- signs lead the way. Due to winter season and non weekend it was not crowded at all.Downside are the horrible public toilets - disgusting!

Nice place to camp. Bathrooms stink to high heaven. Dirty, filthy and bug invested. Illinois is near bankruptcy even though they tax the hell out of its citizens. Other then that its ok.

Beautiful state park. Gorgeous views of Lake Michigan. Very clean. Flush toilets and showers if you need those amenities. Playground, bike trails/hike for miles. Tent, trailer, and Rv sites. I have been coming here for at least 15 years. During the week it is very quiet. The weekends are usually booked solid. Make a reservation during the summer. Open almost year round. Great place if you are an RV traveling through the area.

I would give it a five but I got a sunburn. I mean the sun burn was completely my fault. Perhaps the four is actually the number I believe it deserves

No comment, as we didnt stay. Since I didnt reserve on line, I was given choice of 3 open spots. In reality, there were Many open spots. Maybe if had planned to stay 1 night, vs 3, one of those sites may have been offered to us.Was infor.ed campgrpund is open through december 31.

Clean and enjoyable beach. Water a bit cold but it’s worth every minute you spend there. A place to relax and let soul go. Meditation at its best. Come and explore all that Illinois haves to offer.

Been going here since I was a child and now I take my child here. Very nice beach however you might want to wear swim shoes as there are a lot of rocks mixed in the sand and lots near the shore.

Significantly less crowded than the beaches in Chicago. The only issue we had was the bug infestation. Having a bug spray is highly recommended. Id guess that it couldve been because of the beach maintenance difficulties during covid. The campsites look very good.

Its nothing like the Chicago beaches, (much more rocky) but it is available for the north side residences and has a good park to go with it. Many families go here

It was our first time here and loved it. Many miles of beach and its free!

Its beautiful! We stopped for a quick visit. The kids played in the water and on the beach. People were fishing and flying kites. Just a beautiful beach day. We come here every few months and its always worth it.

Beautiful view.. Decent prices.. Very nice staff.... I would definitely visit again

Astonishing playground! Staff is very polite and friendly. We came on weekday after labor day and it wasnt too crowded. There are plenty of spots available. Each has a fireplace with a grill thing attached, desk with benches and power socket (30amp). Overnight stay is $25/night. You can reserve a spot by calling them, but because there are a lot of spots you may find something when you get there. Good for RV any size as vell as SUV/Sedan car. The shoreline is great for a walk!

I went camping with my family during the rona, and the social distancing was a joke, they where open at 1/4 capacity and crammed everyone together in the WORST sites, and cleaned the ONLY BATHROOM at 9am and 9pm, so that sucked. it was almost as if the plan was formulated by a chimp that was doing drugs. Im 15 and I definitely could have made a better plan than that mess. Other than the camping the rest of the trip was enjoyable

I like having a state park next to beautiful Lake Michigan. Theres lots of trails you can walk or ride your bicycle on. Its close to the lake. So close to Lake Michigan, you may need a jacket sometimes when its a normally warm day out.

The beach was rocky which hurts your feet but what can you do about it. just wear slides or flip flops but its a very pretty beach. didnt stay the night, just went for the beach.

Such a beautiful setting on Lake Michigan. Love the modern decor. The restaurant and bar next to huge room having wedding. Gorgeous! Our srevice very good and food delicious, thanks to Violet, our server. She was so dear!!

Its just a peaceful & beautiful place to go

Beautiful place, not perfect but less people and it is just good to sit and relax by the beach. Swim at your own risk.

Stormy day at the beach but gorgeous nevertheless.

Bo complaints. Its free! Adequately policed by the state conservation cops (thanks guys) and clean. Swimming was nice. Was busy on July 4th but not overfull.