Top Family Campgrounds and RV Park Listings in the Southwest

The Southwest's Top 100 Family Campgrounds and RV parks were selected based on criteria requested by family campers, including park amenities, beautiful outdoor scenery and educational facilities. The criteria included parks that offer hot showers, laundry facilities, hiking trails, family beaches, radio-free zones, visitor centers, educational programs, children's events and locations in the Southwest within 100 miles of a major metropolitan area.

ARIZONA

Mather Campground, Grand Canyon National Park, Grand Canyon
Mather Campground is located in the breathtaking Grand Canyon National Park located within walking distance of the rim of the canyon, with 327 sites that can accommodate tents, trailers, and motor homes. Each site has parking space, picnic tables, and fire pits with cooking grills. Flush toilets can be found throughout and showers and laundry are nearby. Free shuttles at the entrance will take you to most park areas from sunrise to sunset! There is plenty to do; free ranger programs daily, spectacular hiking, mule rides, river raft trips, walking trails, wildlife watching, or just relaxing and taking in the view.

CALIFORNIA

Channel Islands National Park, Ventura
Close to the California coast, yet isolated from the mainland, Channel Islands National Park is home to many species of animals and plants found nowhere else on Earth. If you visit the park, you will be one of a very select group, as you cannot drive to the islands. A short but exciting ocean voyage or a commercial flight in a small airplane will transport you to a place where you can step back in time. A marked contrast to the bustle of southern California, the islands offer the visitor a chance to experience peaceful solitude. Hiking trails range from the relatively flat terrain of Anacapa Island to the rugged trails at San Miguel Island. Birdwatchers will not want to miss the opportunity to observe the endemic island scrub jay, only found on Santa Cruz Island and no other place in the world. Santa Rosa Island offers unlimited hiking options with over 54,000 acres of rugged peaks, magnificent canyons, and exceptional beach walking on white sand beaches. Kayaking, diving, and backcountry camping can be experienced on the Channel Islands, along with some of the most spectacular ocean views ever seen.

Columbia State Historic Park, Tuolumne
The town's old Gold Rush-era business district has been preserved, with shops, restaurants and two hotels. Visitors have the chance to time-travel to the 1850s, imagining life when gold miners rubbed shoulders with businessmen and the other residents in Columbia. Visitors can experience a bygone era watching proprietors in period clothing conduct business in the style of yesterday. There are opportunities to ride a 100-year-old stagecoach, hire a "fine steed" for a horseback ride through the "diggins," pan for gold, or tour an active gold mine.

Forks Campground, Sierra National Forest, Bass Lake
Forks Campground, located in the Bass Lake Recreation Area, is on the Sierra National Forest northeast of Fresno. This campground has 31 units and is situated within a large recreation complex consisting of several different campgrounds surrounding Bass Lake. Forks Campground has long been one of the most popular campgrounds at Bass Lake due to its location and its proximity to resort facilities. The campground is just a short distance from the full-service resort community of Bass Lake. There are many backcountry trailheads nearby. Fishing, boating, water skiing, and hiking are the main activities found at Bass Lake. Forks Campground is available on the National Recreation Reservation Service (NRRS). The site is currently operated by California Land Management, a USDA Forest Service concessionaire.

Laguna-Cleveland National Forest, Mt. Laguna
From San Diego County, the campground is reached by taking I-8 east past Pine Valley to the Laguna Mountain Recreation Area/Sunrise Highway Exit. Take the Sunrise Highway north for 15 miles to Laguna. The campground offers 103 family campsites, a developed amphitheater that seats 100 persons, paved roads and spurs, flush toilets and pay shower buildings, year round on-site hosts, a variety of interpretive programs ranging from traditional slide shows and presentations at the amphitheater to nature walks for Junior Rangers, crafts for children, visits from the local volunteer Fire Department, etc.

While much of the surrounding area was affected by the fires in recent years, Laguna was not touched. It is one of the few spots in this area that did not sustain any fire damage. Laguna is located in the southeastern portion of San Diego County in the Laguna Mountain Recreation Area, just 65 miles from San Diego. It is easily accessible to the populations of San Diego, Riverside, Orange and Imperial Counties. At an elevation of 5,500 feet, the area is primarily covered by black oaks, pines, and montane meadows. Sunrise Highway provides year round access for all visitors.

McArthur-Burney Falls Memorial State Park, Shasta
The 129-foot waterfall is the main attraction of the park. 100 million gallons of water flow over the falls each day. Additional water comes from springs, joining to create a mist-filled basin. Black swifts nest in the cliff behind the falls and rare nests of Bald Eagles can be seen along the shore line of Lake Britton. The park has six miles of hiking trails through evergreen forest. Lake Britton offers water sport activities. The park has 129 developed campsites.

Old Town San Diego State Historic Park, San Diego
Old Town San Diego State Historic Park presents the opportunity to experience the history of early San Diego by providing a connection to the past. Experience the Mexican and early American periods of 1821 to 1872. Even today, life moves more slowly in this part of San Diego, where the hustle and bustle is balanced with history and fiestas. Visitors are offered a glimpse into yesteryear, as converging cultures transformed San Diego from a Mexican pueblo to an American settlement. The buildings are old or built to look that way, and the departure from urban sprawl is preserved. Five original adobe buildings are part of the historic park, which includes museums, unique retail shops, and several restaurants. La Casa de Estudillo is a mansion built around a garden courtyard. La Casa de Machado y Stewart is full of artifacts that reflect ordinary life of the period. Some of the other historic buildings include the Mason Street School (California's first public schoolhouse), La Casa de Machado y Silvas, the San Diego Union Printing Office (site of the city's earliest newspaper office), and the first brick courthouse. The Seeley Stables Museum, with newly rehabilitated exhibits on overland transportation, houses one of the finest wagon and carriage collections. Visitors can experience a working blacksmith shop, enjoy music, see or touch the park's burros and engage in activities that represent early San Diego. San Diego became California's first Spanish settlement when a mission and fort were established in 1769.

Richardson Grove State Park, Humboldt
Established in 1922 and named after Friend W. Richardson, the 25th governor of California, the park is bisected by Highway 101 and the south fork of the Eel River. Camping, hiking, swimming, and just relaxing are popular activities throughout much of the year. Fishing for salmon and steelhead is good during the winter.

Richardson Grove State Park is where you first encounter significant old growth redwood forest when coming north. The 9th tallest coast redwood, a fallen tree ring study conducted in 1933, and a walk-through tree are immediately available.

The park offers a variety of nature programs during the summer, including evening campfire programs, Junior Rangers, and guided nature walks visitor center and nature store are located in the historic 1930's Richards Grove Lodge and are also open in the summer.

Van Damme State Park, Mendocino
The park features the lush Fern Canyon scenic trail system; the Pygmy Forest where mature, cone-bearing cypress and pine trees stand six inches to eight feet tall, and the bog, or Cabbage Patch, where skunk cabbage grows in abundance. The park's ten miles of trail go along the fern-carpeted canyon of Little River. A paved road is used by joggers and bicyclists. The beach is popular with abalone divers. Hike-in sites do not allow dogs.

NEVADA

Hilltop-Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest, Charleston
The Spring Mountain National Recreation Area, known to locals as Mt. Charleston, is situated about 45 minutes northwest of downtown Las Vegas. This beautiful retreat from the city is known for its skiing, hiking, bird-watching, rock climbing, mountain climbing, and, of course, camping. Hilltop Campground is located 40 miles from downtown Las Vegas at an altitude of 8437 feet. Set among pines overlooking the valley on the road that connects Lee and Kyle Canyons, this campground has 35 sites and an amazing view of the Mohave Desert. Campers come here for that view, to hike on nearby North Loop Trail, and to relax in the cool mountain air and escape the city.