Koreshan State Park — Attraction in San Carlos Park

The settlement area is cool and interesting to tour. Great place to kayak. Camping is another story. Most of the sites are horrible and poorly maintained. Mostly all sand. Found a spot where they have a huge pile of rocks for the sites and it’s just sitting there. I’ve been to many state parks in the state of Florida and they are all rock covered. Got a few rainstorms and the only thing happened to mostly every site, they went underwater and then they were a mud-pad. It appears they allow homeless people to camp also which makes it very undesirable because they are not here to enjoy the camping and environment. They are just there to use it to live and they treat it like a dump. I complained to the park staff and all they did was move them to a campsite “closer to me.” How unprofessional that was. The bathhouse is very old and outdated. The grout looks like it’s got embedded mold and some of the tile is falling off the walls in some of the showers. Either this is management not addressing it or it’s the state not taking care of it. This could be a super park if it was better maintained at the campsites. Also, when obviously somebody is here just to live and not enjoy the true camping experience, there should be rules in place to a least maintain a clean area. It’s not discrimination it’s fairness. In the pictures, notice the small silver clamp on the site post. We all have an exit date, and they do not have one. Why ? I have been here 12 days. The family (a lady) at the site said she has been here for about 21 days (same site). Guess the rules only apply to certain campers. I called the office and they said you cannot stay here more than 14 days. Here is a copy of the rule I found on the State Park website.

14 nights Length of Stay - Campgrounds During periods of high demand, the maximum length of a camping or cabin stay is 14 nights. After 14 nights, the camper must leave the park for at least three nights before returning for a new stay.

Upon leaving the campground (on my 14th day) I observed that the park staff allowed the family to again, move to another campsite and not leave for 3 days as the rule states. I understand the rule says “based on demand” to allow to move, but when speaking to a park staff member and camp host, they advised they received several complaints on the family and have had to speak to them several times. So why would you allow them to stay after the 14 day period, and continue to disrupt the campgrounds and other rule abiding...

Definitely a must visit if you are in the Estero area.

They open everyday at 8 am, which I am sure many people would be happy if they opened earlier, and close at sunset.

Parking cost $5 per car with 2 to 8 occupants, $4.00 per car with one single occupant, $2.00 per motorcycle and $2 per pedestrian and cyclists.

You can also camp overnight at the park , the costs is $29 per night.

There are kayak and canoes available for rent or you can bring your own as well. The cost for boat launches is $4 per boat.

The Koreshan State Park is also host to a local farmer's market every Sunday from 9am to 1pm. From fresh fruits, local honey and delicious foods and drinks, there is something for everyone there.

We bought local honey, a boldo tree (which I had been looking for quite some time) and some bags of local and freshly made kettle popcorn, which by the way were delicious and the best I've had in a long time.

The place is a true paradise for photographers or anyone looking to have pictures with a beautiful nature background. The Estero River crosses right through the park and it's perfect for pictures in the water rather than the beach.

Nature really thrives at the Koreshan, we saw many butterflies, birds, and a tortoise. There is always the possibility of seeing a gators, after all this is Florida but thankfully we did not lol

I'd recommend this park to anyone, my husband and I enjoyed and so did our young children and we also saw many elderly folks enjoying themselves and the history of the place.

Definitely check it out if you are interested in learning about the history of Estero and the people that were in charge of the Koreshan and if you simply enjoy beautiful nature and a good hike.

Next time we go back, it won't be on a Sunday and we will be bringing our own food and drink and having a picnic. The park features several picnic tables and the place is perfect for...

I was planning on having my wedding here. I have had my spots reserved for 9 months. They called me TODAY, LESS THAN TWO MONTHS FROM MY WEDDING To tell me they double booked me with a 3rd party service that rents out the sites at a higher rate for glamping and are telling ME that I HAVE TO GIVE UP MY SITES.

They have offered no help other than "move sites, get a refund, or re-reserve through that third party site at a more expensive rate."

Evidently the sites I reserved are no longer owned by the state, they're owned by the third party site through a contract. they're made into glamping sites and you cannot rent the site through anyone but the glamping company.

They removed what was once a beautiful campsite from the general public and turn it into a "galmp site". How many other sites are going to be bought out like this? All the prime sites that were tent only in North loop are now EXCLUSIVELY glamping sites. If you like doing your own camping, you no longer have that option on the best spots in the park no matter how early you book.

I and my entire wedding party are beyond disappointed in how this has been handled. We are being turned away from over half of our reservations. This is so unprofessional and honestly should be illegal.

They waited 9 months to notify me of THEIR MISTAKES and now, less than two months from my wedding, I have to scramble to notify my guests of the changes. I may even have to cancel my wedding because the sites seem to have already been rented through the 3rd party site and I don't want some random people in the CENTER OF MY WEDDING AND ALL ITS PHOTOS.

And to top it off, they don't seem at all apologetic about...