Papa Murph's Tavern & Campground

A cozy experience at the junction of nowhere. Best for camping a campfire. Highly recommended. You can also get awesome pizza delivered here. The bar itself has board games, pool and casino slots.
7 years ago (26-12-2017)

Papa Murph's Tavern is a great place for camping at Starved Rock on a budget. You have a picnic table, a fire ring, water, and an outhouse. Not fancy, but it's cheap and there is neither a curfew nor any rules about noise since there's no one near by to disturb. Probably not a good place for kids, but I only see that as a bonus. I'll also note that there are quite a few antique shops within about 45 minutes of here. On my most recent trip, I spent a day at Starved Rock and a day checking out 8 different antique stores.
7 years ago (01-10-2017)

Called at around 8PM on a Saturday looking for a tent spot to stay at for the night, and was able to get one. Can't beat it at $8 a person if it's only 1-2 people in your group. Pros: Tent spots are grassy and mostly flat. You get to choose your own spot. Fire ring & picnic table at each site. Cons: Right next to an intersection so the cars can be noisy when slowing down and speeding up for the stop sign. No quiet hours, (see side note). Fire ring had some leftover plastic bottles/garbage in it from a previous camper. Side note con: Had a rowdy group of 8-10 guys on the other side of the campground from me that were up until 1-2am playing music and yelling. A few of them were back up at 5am when I got up to leave and they were blasting music out of their car at that hour too. Some quiet hours might be nice, however some may see it as a benefit to staying here.
7 years ago (10-07-2017)

Camping here was a great experience. The staff is very nice and helpful. My only criticism is I wish there were more trees. Centrally located in the area. A good cheap stay with friendly folks.
7 years ago (29-07-2017)

We came during a busy weekend (memorial day) and there were no campsites left anywhere, except for this. Had very good times, on the campground and in the bar. Knocked some pool games and chatted up strangers - it was fun. The campground comes with fireplace and bench/table, but there are no showers or running water except for one tap in the middle of the ground. But that's good enough, especially for the price.
8 years ago (31-05-2017)