Fort Fisher Air Force Recreation Area

We loved our stay at Blakeslee and were very impressed with the accommodations and location! This Air Force Recreation Area (AFRA) is open to military ID card holders (active, retired, DOD, etc). Our family friends recommended it after they visited with their RV. My mom made the reservation via the main office and there were very accommodating and helpful with all of the information. We booked a "cottage" and they have various ones to pick from (1, 2 and 3-4 bedroom). We stayed in a 2 bedroom cottage and it was all one story, had queen beds and twin beds in the layout, a common area, fully stocked kitchen and multiple bathrooms. The floors are cement so we took the advice of others and brought padded mats for our toddler and baby. We were also surprised with all of the kitchen items- utensils, pots, pans, toaster, microwave. There is no dishwasher so bring your own dish soap. There is also a washer and dryer. Sheets and bedding are provided. The wifi was the only thing that was a bit spotty and no strong signal. We loved the outdoor seating area overlooking the courtyard and watching the sunrises and sunsets. You can walk or drive over to the museum and check-in area. There is also a restaurant open to the public called Riverview. Next to the restaurant is a pier where we say people fishing and a sign that said watch out for alligators. We walked, enjoyed the scenery and spent time at the beach. You just cross the street and there is a public beach access walkway very close to the property. We also took the ferry from Fort Fisher to Southport which was a fun experience. The aquarium is also really close and of course Carolina and Kure Beach. We had a great stay! Thank you!

Great place! Can someone let me know the schedule for the restaurant as of July 2022? It doesn't seem to match up with Google. We camped here July of 2021 and had a spectacular time. The camp store has lots of goodies and you can rent bikes, surf boards and other outdoor recreation toys, the staff are very friendly and accommodating, you can walk to the beach as well as to the Cape Fear River where there is a boat slip and a pier with great fishing to be had.

We enjoyed the housing and the proximity of the beach. The kids loved the sidewalk paths for their scooters. We were questioning how well the kitchens would be stocked and were pleased to find all the basics including what's shown in the photos. The hint for bringing house shoes or socks is a good one as the floors are frequently sandy and chilly. A large towel for wet feet right inside the door is another helpful addition as the floors will be slick after rinsing off.

Fort Fisher is for military so you must have a military ID to book. We had the whole family for spring break staying in 2 of the 4 BR cottages and had an RV in the RV campground. We had stayed here 25 years ago and the cottages have been upgraded substantially. The biggest plus are the beautiful beaches of Kure Beach which can be accessed by crossing the highway at one of the two access points. Its an easy walk but with all our beach gear we needed a wagon. There are 10 to 15 wooden steps however to get down to the beach. The beach drops off where the water meets it so it is over your head very quickly and the waves were very strong so it could be scary for young children. We went the second week of April and it was cool and windy. We did swim every day however....cold but fun! There is also access to the Cape Fear River for fishing from the dock on Ft. Fisher. The restaurant there is currently closed and the hours of the check in location are limited but they have a way to check in after hours. Golf carts can be rented on Ft Fisher but can only be used on the rec. area. We rented from SUNFUN rentals so that we could go on the road. Their rules are electric carts only in Kure Beach and only on roads with speed limits of 35 mph or less. Our 6 person cart would only go 10 mph so we were a little nervous driving on the 35 mph roads which were pretty busy even in April. The RV park is very nice. Spots are spacious but there are few trees and very little shade so could be hot in the summer....it was perfect in April. They seemed to have many other places you could park your RV with no hook ups and spots for tents but I am not sure of the rules for those. The houses had nice front porches and and many of the larger units were in a circular common area with a sidewalks and lots of room for playing and flying kites. This was great for watching little kids. There were quite a few kids there and they had fun playing in this large common area. There were also basic grills and picnic tables in this area. The cottages were nice enough....typical institutional furniture. Beds were comfortable but the kitchens were not well appointed. If there is a must have you need for cooking, you should bring your own. The floors were polished cement so kind of a cold feeling but very practical for beach living. Internet was terrible but they had some TV channels. Apparently you could check out a cable box but I don't know what that was about. These cottages were all you needed for a fun beach vacation. We loved the NC Aquarium but you must book in advance. We also enjoyed the Venus Flytrap trail, the Fort Fisher State Historic Site (be sure to see the film), the Arcade and Pier at Kure Beach and the donuts from Wake n Bake.

Great place to stay. Beautiful area. We stayed in an overflow spot that had electric and water with an amazing view of the Cape Fear river. The pool was closed during our stay. The regular sites are spacious and concrete with picnic tables. The beach is located across the street. Golf cart rentals, kayak rentals, and many other amenities available on site. Definite return for us.

This was the first time staying at this location for my wife and I. We had reserved an RV overflow site, which was very near the pier overlooking the Cape Fear river. Our site had electricity, but nothing else. There are 34 RV sites, 30 which have full hookups and numerous 1, 3 and 4 bedroom cottages that are available for use by anyone with a military ID. The cottages are located close to Fort Fisher Blvd and just across the road from Kure Beach. I have provided a sunset photo taken from the pier.

We loved our stay at Blakeslee and were very impressed with the accommodations and location! This Air Force Recreation Area (AFRA) is open to military ID card holders (active, retired, DOD, etc). Our family friends recommended it after they visited with their RV. My mom made the reservation via the main office and there were very accommodating and helpful with all of the information. We booked a "cottage" and they have various ones to pick from (1, 2 and 3-4 bedroom). We stayed in a 2 bedroom cottage and it was all one story, had queen beds and twin beds in the layout, a common area, fully stocked kitchen and multiple bathrooms. The floors are cement so we took the advice of others and brought padded mats for our toddler and baby. We were also surprised with all of the kitchen items- utensils, pots, pans, toaster, microwave. There is no dishwasher so bring your own dish soap. There is also a washer and dryer. Sheets and bedding are provided. The wifi was the only thing that was a bit spotty and no strong signal. We loved the outdoor seating area overlooking the courtyard and watching the sunrises and sunsets. You can walk or drive over to the museum and check-in area. There is also a restaurant open to the public called Riverview. Next to the restaurant is a pier where we say people fishing and a sign that said watch out for alligators. We walked, enjoyed the scenery and spent time at the beach. You just cross the street and there is a public beach access walkway very close to the property. We also took the ferry from Fort Fisher to Southport which was a fun experience. The aquarium is also really close and of course Carolina and Kure Beach. We had a great stay! Thank you!

Great place! Can someone let me know the schedule for the restaurant as of July 2022? It doesn't seem to match up with Google. We camped here July of 2021 and had a spectacular time. The camp store has lots of goodies and you can rent bikes, surf boards and other outdoor recreation toys, the staff are very friendly and accommodating, you can walk to the beach as well as to the Cape Fear River where there is a boat slip and a pier with great fishing to be had.