If you’re planning to stay closer to home this summer for your family vacations, look into state park cabins for a great value. You get the benefit of hundreds or thousands of acres of open space and hiking trails and other recreational activities that US state parks have to offer. The accommodations can vary considerably and the best ones tend to get booked early, so now is the time to start thinking about where you might want to go.

Some states, like Illinois and Oklahoma, have state park resorts with full-service hotels and loads of activities. Others have huge family reunion cabins, cabins on lakes or tucked away in the wilderness. They’re more comfortable than camping and vary in terms of their degree of simplicity or luxury. Some have tent cabins, which can give you the sense of camping without having to pitch a tent. A tent cabin usually has the same type of open campfire cooking.

Check out Nebraska’s state parks - several are western themed. Louisiana has state park cabins on the bayous, South Carolina has state park cabins on the beach, Kentucky’ state parks have lodges, and even Hawaii has state park cabins, which book very early.