Date of Stay: July, 2017 - $46.00
I can't tell you how much we appreciated finding Bakersfield RV Resort! We ended up there after a couple of days driving through excessive heat advisories and some desolate landscapes with dust, parched earth and little to no shade. It was SO nice to pull into such a wonderful, level, clean resort like this. It really is first class!
We were driving a 25' motorhome with a tow vehicle (42' over-all) and were escorted to our ample, pull thru, concrete site with FHU. This is definitely big rig friendly. We had no trouble finding south for our DirecTV satellite dish. After setting up, we took advantage of the wonderful, on property restaurant and went back to our RV happy and cooled off with full bellies! They will deliver to your door if you want to stay in.
Our 2 doodles appreciated the sporadic patches of grass...especially after days of dusty campgrounds with stickers that stuck to their paws and fur like velcro.
We were just there for an overnight, but if ever we find ourselves in Bakersfield again, we would not even look at other places to stay. The amenities...massages, pool, fitness center were unused by us, but would be a welcome treat next time. We paid $45.90 total (Good Sam, FMCA, etc). It was a bit steep for just an overnight, but had we taken advantage of the amenities, the cost would have been a better value.
One of the best options in the area
Date of Stay: July, 2017 - $50.00
We stayed at Yosemite Pines after leaving S Lake Tahoe on our way to Yosemite National Park. The area was in a drought for 5 years until this April, so most everything around there is pretty parched...so I'm guessing the condition of this RV Park (and others) has suffered. Certainly not lush like the photos on their brochure and website.
We felt lucky to get a spot on short notice for our 25' motorhome with toad and were grateful we did not have to unhook. Best I could tell, for proximity to Yosemite and offerings, this is one of the best options in the area. We scoured all the review sites and none of them gets consistently great reviews (4 or 5 avg) and this one seems to be the highest rated. Perhaps the most attractive thing about this park is its proximity to Yosemite N.P. - about 30 min away. Just be aware the drive up coming from the north was pretty steep and twisty. No problem for our 42' total length Sprinter chassis RV with toad, but we got behind a 5th wheel that was really struggling and was averaging about 5 - 10 mph.
After checking in, were escorted to our spot. Our site (#65) was mostly red dirt, with dried up grass around the edges. Very un-level...like 7". The difficult thing to deal with was all the stickers (not the sharp kind) that attached themselves to our dogs feet and legs...tons of them. It was super dusty, which I imagine is better than the opposite...mud, which I can see being a big issue when it rains. Really, unless they spend thousands of dollars to add gravel to the entire park...or turn pads into concrete, there really isn't a way around that. Our spot had a little shade depending on the time of day, but there is ample shade in other spaces. There were plenty of RV's of all types and sizes. Lots of families. There is a petting zoo with a couple of donkeys, a llama, rabbit and goats. Fun for the kids. Speaking of kids...we don't have them, but this seems to be a great campground for kids...nice pool, petting zoo, playground area, with bocce ball, Horseshoes, tetherball, etc. We didn't use the showers, but the restrooms were clean.
The camp store is well appointed with a few items for camping and snacks. There is a small Deli, which makes sandwiches, etc to take with or eat in. We had breakfast burritos, toast,
bacon, etc...all made to order. All the staff we encountered was friendly and helpful despite being such a busy week (July 4th). There is a great, large, raised dog wash if your pooch needs a bath. If you tent camp, prefer Yurts, want a cabin, have a group, this spot is worth considering. The brochure said there is propane and a dump station. We didn't use the Tengo WiFi and we didn't have cable at our spot...actually, don't think it was working since they scratched it out on our paperwork. It wasn't one of our favorite places we stayed on this trip, but we felt safe and the staff plenty friendly...it is just dusty and dry (drought) and older. I could see, if this area were to recover from the drought, this being quite an oasis.
It was crowded when we were there, so it might be good idea to reserve during peak season.
Great place to overnight when passing through!
We stayed at Santa Rosa RV Park in late June 2017 when passing through the region. I have a vacation home in Santa Fe, so am pretty familiar with the topography of NM and this campground is quite typical of the region. It's the desert, so finding campgrounds with a bunch of grass and trees is wishful thinking. NM stresses water conversation, so most all residents and businesses landscape accordingly. I was pleasantly surprised Santa Rosa RV Park has quite a few trees on the property, as shade can be scarce in NM.
We reserved a spot earlier in the day while on the road and the owner was nothing but professional and friendly. The campground was easy to find off I-40 west. We arrived after hours and had several pull throughs to choose from. It was quite dark and the site numbers were hard to read. We found a spot that was fairly level with full hookups. Access to our pull-thru, FHU site was not a problem for our motorhome with tow vehicle (25' motorhome with toad - 42' overall). We did not have to unhook our toad.
The drive down into the park from the front is relatively steep, but not crazy. The interior streets were easy to navigate and there seemed to be several pull thru sites, so I'd say this campground is big rig friendly. All sites are hard pack dirt. It was nice to see there were some grassy areas that were well watered and taken care of...which our dogs appreciated. The park was fairly full, but not completely booked. There is a pool, tent sites and a restaurant. The next morning we were bummed the restaurant was not open. Oh well. We would stay here again if passing through. We paid 38.75 including tax and discounts.
Date of Stay: June, 2017
Rate Paid: $38.75
Nice place to stay when touring the Trace
We were driving the Natchez Trace first of June, 2017 and ended up taking a chance getting a spot at Timberlake after-hours. We were in a 25' Motorhome, so were flexible with our site selection. We drove around a bit before selecting a spot that seemed fairly level. The park was pretty full and the roads somewhat confusing to navigate. The site we selected had tall trees with a dirt pad...it was not along the reservoir as all of those were taken by folks who looked either permanent or who were staying awhile. It appeared many of the RVers were there for the water sports. We had our dogs and it was a nice park to walk around. There is a fenced in tennis court with a basketball and we fiddled around in there late at night and were able to let our stir crazy dogs run off some steam. That was great, although we wouldn't have done that had there been anyone on the courts. Aside from electric and water, we didn't take advantage of the facilities as this was more of an overnight for us. The next morning, we went to pay and the woman was frustrated with a new computer system...thankfully I had some cash and paid her $25, which made her quite happy as she didn't have to deal with trying to figure out the cc payment system. It is a lovely park. I'd certainly stay here again if passing through the area.
Date of Stay:
June, 2017
Rate Paid:
$25.00
Date of Stay: July, 2017 - $38.00
Overall Rating: 4.5 stars
RV: 25' Motorhome with toad (42' overall). Didn't have to unhook the tow vehicle in space #2
3 week trip and this was our in the top 3. It's not large. It's not a resort, but that didn't matter. I'd give this 5 stars in context with other spots in the region and for the obvious attention to detail and wonderful food. 4 stars for the sites...while ours was roomy, we walked around and others were more cramped. The owner was great - she clearly puts forth a lot of effort and pride into her campground. It has that "personal touch". The rock gravel was in perfect condition and there were many "personal touches",
We intended to stay elsewhere and had put a deposit on another campground in the area, but after driving through it...we high-tailed it out of there. We cancelled that reservation and went online and found Raton Pass RV Park (formerly called Cedar Rail). Luckily for us, we got the last pull-thru site! We arrived a bit past their hours, but the owner and her staff stayed to get us settled in. We were starving and tired and asked if the restaurant was still open. She told us it had just closed, but she said she'd make us dinner and bring it to our site! She started reeling off her menu...lots of slow smoked meats, etc (definitely not for Vegans). The offerings were numerous, and it was hard to decide what to order. We settled on fantastic homemade lasagna, marinated chicken, white beans (to die for), cole slaw, potato salad, rolls, tea, etc. I enjoy cooking and she is quite a cook. Nothing like a home cooked meal cooked and served by someone else! What service! Our site (#2) was not next to anyone, but rather alongside the wide driveway area...not your typical site location, but actually worked just great for us.
The campground is up on a hill with beautiful views and the sunset was stunning. The air crisp and clean. There is wifi, but we were strongly warned not to stream Netflix or download a bunch of stuff because she would know and cut us off. Fair enough. That was her only "thing". The campground is clearly a labor of her love...incredibly clean, spotless and level. The hookups were in great shape and well positioned. We intended to eat our meal outside and enjoy the sunset, but it was a bit chilly and windy, so we didn't take advantage of the picnic table. The gravel was firm and well-maintained. The bathrooms were spotless. There are 2 washers and 2 dryers. I took advantage of the facilities, something I rarely do, and enjoyed a nice, long shower. Our dogs appreciated the lack of "stickers" we'd been encountering the previous 4 days. We didn't walk down to the tent camping area, but it looked to be a great little place to explore with the dogs. The other campers were quiet and friendly. We walked around and enjoyed the views and cool air after driving through excessive heat the previous 3 days. This was "just an overnight", but we would have been happy to stay longer. We would definitely stay at Raton Pass Camp again...for the ambiance, views, services, cleanliness, friendly owner/staff and amazing, homemade food. We spent $60 for our site AND dinner for 2.
Date of Stay: June, 2017
RV: 25' motorhome
We loved this park! We went to the website ahead of time as a stop-over while driving the Natchez Trace and chose our spot based on the website map, site dimensions/description and photos. Loved that they had photos...really helped us select the perfect site. We reserved a premium, river front site online and paid just under $41, including taxes and day use fees.
The campground has lots of trees/shade (not satellite friendly), a river, is easy to navigate, beautiful scenery, clean restrooms, and the campsites were incredibly wide/large with plenty of space cushion around so we weren't on top of our neighbors. Our site had hookups and was hard packed gravel/dirt. We had a premium spot on the river, but it was more for ambiance as the flow was practically nil during our stay. Our site had a picnic table and fire-ring. We had our dogs on 15 - 20 foot leads and they had plenty of room to play and wrestle on our site without encroaching on neighbors sites.
Lots of kiddos riding bikes and having fun, but it was nice and quiet at night. The park was fairly crowded for a Thursday, and the ranger came along around checkout time to make sure we were vacating our space so they could ensure the next person wouldn't find us still there. Fair enough.
I would definitely recommend this beautiful park and would not hesitate to stay here again...only wish we'd had more time here to chill and enjoy the nice weather (June 1, 2017).
We stayed at Thousand Lakes the first of July 2017. It is right off the little traveled and breathtakingly beautiful UT State Route 24 and is super convenient to Capitol Reef N.P. (6 miles to the entrance and another 6 to the Visitor Center).
Campgrounds in arid/desert areas, such as this, are going to be dusty and dry in the summer and muddy during the monsoons. In other words, don't expect grass and lots of trees and then rate down campgrounds in these regions merely because they are dusty/muddy. That said, Thousand Lakes is as one would expect in this part of Utah...flat, red clay, with beautiful views of the red rocks with photo-worthy sunsets. I didn't see, and can't imagine, a better option as a spot to stay while touring Capitol Reef.
Our gravel site was level, had a shade tree (something appreciated in this area as trees are scarce), picnic table, and a fire pit. There was plenty of space between us and the guy in the adjacent site. The maintenance crews seem to do a good job keeping the grounds in tip top shape and things working as they should. We were pulling a tow vehicle with our 25' Motorhome, so were 42' long overall and had room to spare in our site w/o unhooking the toad, so I'd say this RV park is big rig friendly. The interior roads through the campground were easy to navigate. Our dogs appreciated the patches of grass at the end of the aisles. There is a pool and playground for the kiddos. The camp store was one of the best we've seen and has a good selection of snacks, Camping items and souvenirs...the buyer does a good job. Staff was friendly. Restrooms...didn't use the showers, so can't comment there.
We paid $41 incl tax, for a pull thru with FHU (don't think we were credited for the 10% Good Sam discount). No complaints whatsoever and would stay here if passing this way again.
TIP: If you are visiting Utah, I highly recommend taking the more scenic (and slower) routes across UT...Hwy 24 and Hwy 12. The scenery is stunning and traffic practically nil. There are hills and steep grades now and then, so it can be slow going depending on your rig, but the landscape is so gorgeous, it's well worth it. I've traveled in and around UT 3 times and it truly is one of the most beautiful states in the country...the landscape is absolutely breathtaking...unlike anything you will see in other parts of the world.
Book With KOA
Click to find bookable tours and activities here
Everyone has their own idea of a "perfect" RV Park. Some like remote and open, some like great for kids, some like clean bathrooms and level pads, etc. You get the idea. I've come to learn there are people who flat out dislike KOA's. I'm not in that camp because I feel like I know what I'm getting with KOA. I could give this RV Park 3, 4 or 5 stars. 3 stars for the person at the check-in and other staff, 4 for the site/pad and 5 for location and amenities. I'm settling on giving this 4 stars.
This is a great KOA. It's a KOA Resort. It has car rentals, bike rentals, restaurants, horseback riding, lots of level sites with hookups, both pull-in and back-in. It has tent sites, restrooms, laundry, propane, cabins, security gate, a pool, slide, games, horseback riding, and other stuff for kids. We don't have kids, but this is definitely a great spot if you do. It also has some great, fairly private spots along the back edge - great views. It also has premium sites with concrete patios with a grill and metal table and chairs, if that interests you.
That said, I don't care so much about activities and rentals...I care about location, access into and around the sites, whether or not the RV's are packed in like sardines, security and whether or not the other campers look like they cook meth or cook hot dogs. I prefer the latter (i.e. this is a hot dog kinda place), and this spot met our criteria for this trip. Our gravel pull-through site was fairly level, had full hook-ups, a picnic table on grass, a fire-ring and was a respectable distance from our neighbors. We were towards the back and had no wifi or cell service. One of us has AT&T and the other Verizon. We didn't get any cell service until we were closer to Mt Rushmore. Well, AT&T kinda worked up near the entrance. Our satellite worked like a charm in our open site.
The location is excellent when you plan to stay a few days in the Black Hills and tour Mt Rushmore, Crazy Horse, Custer N.P., The Badlands, Deadwood, etc. I'd been to Sturgis in '09 on a motorcycle, so had an idea of where a good central spot would be for touring around, and this was a great option.
We didn't use the restrooms or laundry. We ate breakfast at the restaurant and it was just "okay" and our service was slow. In her defense, I think most everyone in the entire area was "over it" and ready to get the heck out of dodge as it was the end of "the season". Remember what it was like the last week or two of school every year? That's how it felt.
We paid $57.24 each night, for 3 nights, mid-Sept 2016 with a KOA 10% discount for a pull-through with electric/water/sewer.
Book With KOA
Click to find bookable tours and activities here
Everyone has their own idea of a "perfect" RV Park. Some like remote and open, some like great for kids, some like clean bathrooms and level pads, etc. You get the idea. I've come to learn there are people who flat out dislike KOA's. I'm not in that camp because I feel like I know what I'm getting with KOA. I could give this RV Park 3, 4 or 5 stars. 3 stars for the person at the check-in and other staff, 4 for the site/pad and 5 for location and amenities. I'm settling on giving this 4 stars.
This is a great KOA. It's a KOA Resort. It has car rentals, bike rentals, restaurants, horseback riding, lots of level sites with hookups, both pull-in and back-in. It has tent sites, restrooms, laundry, propane, cabins, security gate, a pool, slide, games, horseback riding, and other stuff for kids. We don't have kids, but this is definitely a great spot if you do. It also has some great, fairly private spots along the back edge - great views. It also has premium sites with concrete patios with a grill and metal table and chairs, if that interests you.
That said, I don't care so much about activities and rentals...I care about location, access into and around the sites, whether or not the RV's are packed in like sardines, security and whether or not the other campers look like they cook meth or cook hot dogs. I prefer the latter (i.e. this is a hot dog kinda place), and this spot met our criteria for this trip. Our gravel pull-through site was fairly level, had full hook-ups, a picnic table on grass, a fire-ring and was a respectable distance from our neighbors. We were towards the back and had no wifi or cell service. One of us has AT&T and the other Verizon. We didn't get any cell service until we were closer to Mt Rushmore. Well, AT&T kinda worked up near the entrance. Our satellite worked like a charm in our open site.
The location is excellent when you plan to stay a few days in the Black Hills and tour Mt Rushmore, Crazy Horse, Custer N.P., The Badlands, Deadwood, etc. I'd been to Sturgis in '09 on a motorcycle, so had an idea of where a good central spot would be for touring around, and this was a great option.
We didn't use the restrooms or laundry. We ate breakfast at the restaurant and it was just "okay" and our service was slow. In her defense, I think most everyone in the entire area was "over it" and ready to get the heck out of dodge as it was the end of "the season". Remember what it was like the last week or two of school every year? That's how it felt.
We paid $57.24 each night, for 3 nights, mid-Sept 2016 with a KOA 10% discount for a pull-through with electric/water/sewer.
We stayed here in our class C with a tow vehicle on Sept 6, 2016 and paid $39 for a pull-through site with full hookups. Gravel parking was relatively level. Friendly staff and clean park. We didn't take advantage of the close proximity of a cinema, restaurants and shopping within walking distance or the bike trails because we were passing through and only spending one night. There were several other campers, but we were nicely spaced out...mores than average. Lots of trees. The prime spots along the bike path were rented, so best to call ahead if you want one. Only issue was a gazillion mosquitoes (they actually sprayed the night we were here).
We had a tough time finding a suitable campground within striking distance of Winkler, Canada...and this area seemed the best option as far as proximity. Most other campgrounds seemed were closed or had less than glowing reviews, and this one was a crap-shoot with only one review before mine. Glad we gave it a shot. Would definitely recommend and would stay here again.