Camp Albemarle

My son attended summer camp here and he cannot wait to go back next year. The second I picked him he asked me “mom, can I do the voyagers camp next summer and do 10 days??”. He even tried convincing me to let him do another week (absolutely would have too if I could have!). If you are looking for a camp that offers fun activities, amazing people and Christian values, definitely give camp albermarl... My son attended summer camp here and he cannot wait to go back next year. The second I picked him he asked me “mom, can I do the voyagers camp next summer and do 10 days??”. He even tried convincing me to let him do another week (absolutely would have too if I could have!). If you are looking for a camp that offers fun activities, amazing people and Christian values, definitely give camp albermarle a try. We feel so blessed to have found this gem and cannot wait for the many many years of attending.

My 12 year old son just completed the Day Adventure Camp on Sam Hatcher Road and had the best time! It’s M-F 9am-4pm and each day is filled with something new- biking, kayaking, tree climbing, archery, as well as a short Bible study each day and time at the pool. He said the food was good and he gets hungry so I put money on his account for the canteen. The snacks are reasonably priced. The counse... My 12 year old son just completed the Day Adventure Camp on Sam Hatcher Road and had the best time! It’s M-F 9am-4pm and each day is filled with something new- biking, kayaking, tree climbing, archery, as well as a short Bible study each day and time at the pool. He said the food was good and he gets hungry so I put money on his account for the canteen. The snacks are reasonably priced. The counselors were all so friendly and you see them daily during pick up and drop off so if you have any issues, you can just speak right to them. My son made so many friends and had a great time. No phones allowed, we were all so pleased to start summer without screens, in the woods making friends and having fun. He can’t wait to go next summer!

My 12 year old son just completed the Day Adventure Camp on Sam Hatcher Road and had the best time! It’s M-F 9am-4pm and each day is filled with something new- biking, kayaking, tree climbing, archery, as well as a short Bible study each day and time at the pool. He said the food was good and he gets hungry so I put money on his account for the canteen. The snacks are reasonably priced. The counse... My 12 year old son just completed the Day Adventure Camp on Sam Hatcher Road and had the best time! It’s M-F 9am-4pm and each day is filled with something new- biking, kayaking, tree climbing, archery, as well as a short Bible study each day and time at the pool. He said the food was good and he gets hungry so I put money on his account for the canteen. The snacks are reasonably priced. The counselors were all so friendly and you see them daily during pick up and drop off so if you have any issues, you can just speak right to them. My son made so many friends and had a great time. No phones allowed, we were all so pleased to start summer without screens, in the woods making friends and having fun. He can’t wait to go next summer!

I don’t normally rant like this up here, but I am furious. Our daughter has attended 4 different overnight summer camps. She absolutely loves camp! However, our most recent experience was nothing short of a nightmare. We registered her for a week at Camp Albemarle, received the packing list, and packed accordingly. Check-in time was 3:00; we arrived at 2:20 and decided to wait in line until t... I don’t normally rant like this up here, but I am furious. Our daughter has attended 4 different overnight summer camps. She absolutely loves camp! However, our most recent experience was nothing short of a nightmare. We registered her for a week at Camp Albemarle, received the packing list, and packed accordingly. Check-in time was 3:00; we arrived at 2:20 and decided to wait in line until they opened at 3:00. We pulled up and were assigned a number, they directed us where to park and told us when they called our number we could go to check-in. We parked and assumed we had to wait until 3:00 before they started calling numbers; however, we noticed all these people with portable wagons stacked full of stuff barreling to the building to check-in. When our number was called, we grabbed her singular bag and went to check-in. We arrived at her cabin and met her counselor who said “hi my name is X” and then stood in the doorway the whole time, silent, as we tried to figure out how to unpack her stuff — there was no room. These girls had brought plastic stackable drawers, taken over all the shelves with all their stuff nicely displayed, and even had brought rugs to put in front of their beds. FYI - this is not moving into a college dorm, this is summer camp. The counselor was of absolutely no help … I had to ask “where can we put her stuff?” She replied “you can leave it right there in her bag”. Ok so she has to dig through her bag all week while these other girls (who we realized at this point obviously knew each other) have taken over the whole cabin??? Ok, moving on….we drove the 2 hours home and I cried because I just had this weird feeling this was not a good fit, these girls in her cabin seemed very cliquey, the counselor never once introduced them to each other, our daughter was on a top bunk and was stacking her clothes on nasty beams on the wall and sleeping with the rest of her stuff in her bed. Completely unacceptable. Not even 24 hours later I get a call from the nurse who seemed so sweet and said your daughter is here and not feeling well, she has a fever, sore throat and headache. I asked to talk to her and could tell she didn’t feel well so I jumped in the car and went to get my baby. On the way, I called the office to see if there was a chance of us getting a refund (we spent $950 on this camp), left a voicemail and as of now I still haven’t received a return phone call. I’ve since read online that refunds are not given, but a call back would have been appreciated even if just to discuss how to get a refund for the money I put on her camp store account. Since I picked her up I have learned they were given expired milk, sat on a basketball court for 2 hours that was covered in ants, swam in a dirty pool, the counselors seemed less than enthused with their jobs….and those girls in her cabin never ONCE spoke to her. Coincidentally, the one other little girl in her cabin (that wasn’t part of the clique of girls with the dressers and rugs) apparently left camp today as well because she couldn’t take it anymore. In addition, I found out the nurse who seemed so sweet was awful to her - treated her like she was a total inconvenience and didn’t believe her that she was sick making comments like “do you just want to go home?” and when she explained her symptoms said “interesting…”….and then she took her temp and realized she wasn’t faking it. While I was flying to camp to pick her up, she had to lay on a cot with nothing to do while the nurse played on her phone and never talked to her. I blame part of this whole scenario on the camp and part on the little girls that didn’t want to make a new friend or two. That kind of behavior is taught and starts at home, but for this to be a “Christian” camp it certainly isn’t living up to the mission and vision statements of the camp. I am completely disappointed in our experience here and we will absolutely not be back.

I don’t normally rant like this up here, but I am furious. Our daughter has attended 4 different overnight summer camps. She absolutely loves camp! However, our most recent experience was nothing short of a nightmare. We registered her for a week at Camp Albemarle, received the packing list, and packed accordingly. Check-in time was 3:00; we arrived at 2:20 and decided to wait in line until t... I don’t normally rant like this up here, but I am furious. Our daughter has attended 4 different overnight summer camps. She absolutely loves camp! However, our most recent experience was nothing short of a nightmare. We registered her for a week at Camp Albemarle, received the packing list, and packed accordingly. Check-in time was 3:00; we arrived at 2:20 and decided to wait in line until they opened at 3:00. We pulled up and were assigned a number, they directed us where to park and told us when they called our number we could go to check-in. We parked and assumed we had to wait until 3:00 before they started calling numbers; however, we noticed all these people with portable wagons stacked full of stuff barreling to the building to check-in. When our number was called, we grabbed her singular bag and went to check-in. We arrived at her cabin and met her counselor who said “hi my name is X” and then stood in the doorway the whole time, silent, as we tried to figure out how to unpack her stuff — there was no room. These girls had brought plastic stackable drawers, taken over all the shelves with all their stuff nicely displayed, and even had brought rugs to put in front of their beds. FYI - this is not moving into a college dorm, this is summer camp. The counselor was of absolutely no help … I had to ask “where can we put her stuff?” She replied “you can leave it right there in her bag”. Ok so she has to dig through her bag all week while these other girls (who we realized at this point obviously knew each other) have taken over the whole cabin??? Ok, moving on….we drove the 2 hours home and I cried because I just had this weird feeling this was not a good fit, these girls in her cabin seemed very cliquey, the counselor never once introduced them to each other, our daughter was on a top bunk and was stacking her clothes on nasty beams on the wall and sleeping with the rest of her stuff in her bed. Completely unacceptable. Not even 24 hours later I get a call from the nurse who seemed so sweet and said your daughter is here and not feeling well, she has a fever, sore throat and headache. I asked to talk to her and could tell she didn’t feel well so I jumped in the car and went to get my baby. On the way, I called the office to see if there was a chance of us getting a refund (we spent $950 on this camp), left a voicemail and as of now I still haven’t received a return phone call. I’ve since read online that refunds are not given, but a call back would have been appreciated even if just to discuss how to get a refund for the money I put on her camp store account. Since I picked her up I have learned they were given expired milk, sat on a basketball court for 2 hours that was covered in ants, swam in a dirty pool, the counselors seemed less than enthused with their jobs….and those girls in her cabin never ONCE spoke to her. Coincidentally, the one other little girl in her cabin (that wasn’t part of the clique of girls with the dressers and rugs) apparently left camp today as well because she couldn’t take it anymore. In addition, I found out the nurse who seemed so sweet was awful to her - treated her like she was a total inconvenience and didn’t believe her that she was sick making comments like “do you just want to go home?” and when she explained her symptoms said “interesting…”….and then she took her temp and realized she wasn’t faking it. While I was flying to camp to pick her up, she had to lay on a cot with nothing to do while the nurse played on her phone and never talked to her. I blame part of this whole scenario on the camp and part on the little girls that didn’t want to make a new friend or two. That kind of behavior is taught and starts at home, but for this to be a “Christian” camp it certainly isn’t living up to the mission and vision statements of the camp. I am completely disappointed in our experience here and we will absolutely not be back.

Everyone pretty much knows what is expected at a camp — grounds, cabins, counselors, water, canoes, good food, sailboats,games. Yes, camp Albemarle has all of these. But have you ever thought of using the camp for special events. Our church used it quite often for special events throughout the year and it was the perfect place to have a retreat, a cookout or a Halloween party. With its slight rol... Everyone pretty much knows what is expected at a camp — grounds, cabins, counselors, water, canoes, good food, sailboats,games. Yes, camp Albemarle has all of these. But have you ever thought of using the camp for special events. Our church used it quite often for special events throughout the year and it was the perfect place to have a retreat, a cookout or a Halloween party. With its slight rolling hills, beautiful grounds, and stately trees, however, we recently used it for a wedding venue with the vows exchanged with the “cross” and intercoastal waterway as a backdrop and what I call the most beautiful “tree of life” signifying family. It was personal and at the same time magnificent. So open your mind to the many choices you might have to utilize this very special property — or send your child to camp! You won’t regret it.