Cherry Hill Campground – Darien Center, NY

Cherry Hill Campground is perfectly located if you plan to attend a concert at Darien Lake Theme Park or have a few days to enjoy the park without the enormous price tag of staying at the Darien Lake Theme Park accommodations.

There is nothing like attending a concert in the summertime. It is one of our favorite “date night” activities. Often, many of these are at Darien Lake Theme Park Amphitheater, which is a good distance for us to drive. Couple that with a late night and a few beers, and driving all the way home isn’t something we really want to do. Therefore, we were absolutely delighted when we discover this campground literally right across the street from the Amphitheater.

Cherry Hill Campsites

We went in pretty blind when it came to camping in this campground. I saw that it was ridiculously close to the concert venue and vastly cheaper than camping at Darien Lake, so I jumped. Not always the best move, but in this instance, it panned out very well for us. The campground has lots of really nice campsites, many of which are semi to fully private with lots of trees and shrubbery. They are all fairly large and level.

I made a reservation online; however, you are not assigned a site until you arrive. If you can’t arrive before 5 pm, you will need to arrange for late check-in. We arrived at almost exactly 5 pm, and once we checked in and were sent out to find a campsite, it became fairly obvious why they want you to arrive before 5 pm. By the time we arrived, almost all the campsites were occupied. We had to drive around a few times to find a vacant one. The site we ended up selecting was not private but was still a very nice campsite. The examples of the sites I have below don’t do the campground justice. However, people tend to get a little weirded out when you start taking pictures of their campsites. So you will just have to take my word for it.

Rules and Regulations

Cherry Hill Campground does have a lot of rules and regulations, but these are all set up to make everyone’s stay pleasant, and I have to say they did their job. When you make your reservation, you are alerted that you will have to pay a $25 cash deposit upon check-in. This deposit is returned to you the following morning upon check-out.

Only people 21 years or older can make reservations and the site must have at least one person who is 21 years or older occupying it.
Pets are allowed, however, proof of rabies is required and they must never be left unattended. Excessive barking is not tolerated and they have the right to refuse aggressive dogs at their discretion. Maximum 2 dogs per site.
Only 2 tents per site, $10 for a third tent.
Campsites must be kept relatively clean at all times.
No generators are to be used during quiet hours.
No generators above 70 decibels.
Fires only in firepits and absolutely no garbage is to be burned in the firepits.
The campground will not allow outside wood to be burned in the campground unless it is kiln-dried, store-packaged wood. Campfire wood is sold outside the office/store for $5/rack.
Loud, rude, aggressive and recklessly drunk behavior will not be tolerated. You will be asked to leave and your deposit will be forfeited.

Getting to the Concert & Concert Calendar

Darien Lake has a no-pedestrian policy; everyone must enter the venue by vehicle. Parking is included with your concert ticket.

On concert days, there are usually taxis that come to the campground and will make trips back and forth for a reasonable price. The taxis are very quick, and you can share the ride with others going to the concert. Lyft, Uber, and other rideshare drivers are NOT permitted into the campground. If you call a rideshare company, they must pick you up and drop you off in the office parking lot.

Schedule for 2023:

June 14th – Dave Matthews Band

June 16th – Luke Bryan

July 14th – Kidz Bop Live

July 15th – Sam Hunt

July 28th – Foreigner

July 29th – Boy George & Culture Club

July 30th – Outlaw Music Festival: Willie Nelson, Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats, Gov’t Mule

Aug 1st – Matchbox Twenty

Aug 3rd – Jelly Roll

Aug 4th – Fall Out Boy

Aug 6th – Godsmack

Aug 9th – Pantera

Aug 16th – Nickleback

Aug 20th -The Offspring with Sum 41 and Simple Plan

Aug 21st – All American Rejects

Aug 22nd- Lumineers

Sept 1st – Odesza

Store

The store/office is very well stocked with snacks, beverages (non-alcoholic), s’more supplies, bug spray, blankets, rain ponchos, and other camping supplies. The store also sells campfire wood ($5) and lighter fluid. The store’s hours are from 8 am -9 pm.

Safety and Security

All campers are issued a pass for their vehicle and wristbands to wear. The campground very diligently sets up a gate person who checks wristbands of the people entering the campground. It made me feel safe knowing that they ensured that no drunk yahoos from the concert wandered aimlessly up into the campground.

Prices

Tent Campsites are $44 per night, RV Campsites are $47 per night (no hook-ups), Lean-To Cabins are $60 per night, Unfurnished Cabin is $70 per night. There is a $25 upcharge & two-night minimum stay on Darien Lake concert nights. These prices include: 2 adults and 2 children, 1 vehicle, and 2 tents (1 tent with RV & Lean-To/Cabin sites.) Additional adults are $5 each, with a maximum of 4 adults per site, and additional children are $2 each, maximum of 8 people total.

Please note there is a $25 CASH security deposit required at check-in.