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San Clemente State Beach
Blufftop ocean camping with easy beach access and a developed campground that makes the trip simple. Not hidden or especially rugged, but the sunsets and coastal views absolutely carry it.
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This is the running notebook of camps I would actually return to, not just the places that happened to photograph well once. I care about spacing, wind, shade, bathrooms, site feel, and whether the trip still feels worth it after setup is over.
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ARTICLE
Best camping near Phoenix in summer
Higher elevation, shade, water, and cooler nights for summer camping near Phoenix.
ARTICLE
Best beginner campgrounds in Arizona
Low-drama Arizona campgrounds for first-time campers who need the trip to feel worth repeating.
ARTICLE
Best places for people who hate camping
The comfort-first camps I would use before trying to sell anyone on roughing it.
ROUNDUP
Best campsites in Arizona
The short list I would actually send someone to first.
REGION
Best camping near Payson and the Mogollon Rim
High-country lake, creek, and pine camps near Payson and the Mogollon Rim.
REGION
Best camping near Flagstaff, Arizona
Lake campgrounds, pine forests, dispersed sites, and high-country weekends near Flagstaff.
REGION
Prescott camping
A shorter-drive mix of pines, lakes, developed sites, and shoulder-season trips.
REGION
White Mountains camping
Cooler eastern Arizona lake camps and longer-weekend escapes.
REGION
Southern California beach camping
Coastal campgrounds where ocean access, wind, and reservations drive the plan.
REGION
Hawaii camping
Beach parks, forest camps, permits, weather, and lighter island setups.
ROUNDUP
Best lake camping in Arizona
Arizona lake campgrounds where the water is part of the trip, not just the map pin.
ROUNDUP
Easiest weekend camps from Phoenix
The realistic options when you want a good weekend, not a logistics marathon.
ROUNDUP
Best cool-weather camps
Where I would go first when the point is better air, layers, and sleeping well.
ROUNDUP
Best campgrounds with showers
The developed campground picks where a real shower changes the whole trip.
GUIDE
Best easy camps for new campers
Easy beginner-friendly camps where the first trip can feel manageable and worth repeating.
ROUNDUP
Best beach camping
The shoreline camps that still feel worth it once the wind, sand, and setup reality show up.
ROUNDUP
Best quiet camps
The picks where calmer sites and less noise actually change the whole mood of the trip.
ROUNDUP
Best camps for summer escape
Cooler-air camps I'd actually drive to once the valley heat stops being funny.
Coast & Mountains
Southern California
Beach bluffs, mountain lakes, and the trips where the weather does a lot of the work.
Desert Season
Southern Arizona
Lower-desert and borderland camps that make more sense when the Phoenix heat backs off.
Nearby Escape
New Mexico
A little farther from Phoenix, but useful when you want cooler air, different terrain, or a new loop.
Red Rock Park Campground
A backup plan that turned into a full winter storm campout with snow, ice, and bitter cold. The conditions were rough, but the red rock setting and the heater keeping the van alive made it memorable.
Caballo Lake Campground
A simple, quiet New Mexico stop with big pull-ins, ramadas, hookups, and a short walk toward the Rio Grande. Not especially dramatic, but clean, comfortable, and better equipped than I expected.
High Country
Flagstaff
Pines, lakes, cooler nights, and the obvious first move when the desert starts cooking.
Edge of the World
Big cliff-edge views and one of the more dramatic camp settings around. The payoff is real, but so is the exposure, so wind and weather matter a lot here.
Marshall Lake Campground
Open meadow camping with big sky, soft morning light, and a quieter feel than the more built-up lake campgrounds. It is a good place when you want space and do not mind a little roughness.
Ashurst Lake Campground
A developed lakeside campground with open water views and a little more breathing room than some of the busier Flagstaff lake spots. Good for an easy overnight with real campground structure and a nice setting.
Canyon Vista Campground
A forest-rim campground with a calmer feel and access to nearby trails. Not flashy, but dependable and easy to settle into, especially mid-week.
Lakeview Campground
A lakeside campground with open sky and easy access to the water. Good views help this one, though it can feel exposed when the afternoon wind starts moving.
Pinegrove Campground
Tall pines, cooler air, and a solid developed campground feel near the lake corridor. A good basecamp kind of place when you want simple access without much hassle.
Dairy Springs Campground
A classic developed pine campground in the Flagstaff lakes corridor. Simple, family-friendly, and good when you want shade, cool nights, and a familiar campground setup.
Lake Mary Campgrounds
A straightforward high-country lake camp near Flagstaff with cold nights and easy access. Convenient, familiar, and a solid choice when you want a quick trip without a long drive.
Double Springs Campground
A shady campground with easy access to the Lake Mary area and a comfortable developed layout. It is more about convenience and pine cover than any huge standout feature.
FR 171 Dispersed
A simple dispersed option close to town with shaded pull-outs and no real services. More practical than special, but useful when you want flexibility and do not need much.
Cinders OHV Area
Volcanic cinder hills, open exposure, and a rougher kind of camp than the forest sites nearby. Cool in its own way, but windy, dusty, and better if you know what you are getting into.
Mogollon Rim
Mogollon Rim
Fast elevation, forest roads, developed campgrounds, and the classic weekend escape from Phoenix.
Rim Campground
The quick FR 300 campground near the Rim edge, with 26 parallel-parking sites, no potable water listed, and Woods Canyon about three miles away.
Bear Canyon Lake Campground
A quieter lake with a more tucked-away feel and a little effort required depending on where you set up. One of the better options when you want water without the full developed-campground feel.
Blue Ridge Reservoir
A narrow canyon reservoir that feels different from the usual Rim lakes. Early water can be glassy and beautiful, but wind and exposure can change the mood fast.
Sharp Creek Campground
A creek-adjacent campground with good shade and that nice water-nearby feeling. Pads can be a little tight, but the setting helps it feel more alive than a standard loop campground.
Christopher Creek Campground
A popular creekside campground with a friendly, busy kind of energy. Easy walks, good water sound, and a setting that makes it feel more fun than isolated.
Woods Canyon Lake Campground
A classic high-country lake with pines, cooler temperatures, and easy appeal. Popular for a reason, but weather can turn fast and the easy access means you will rarely have it to yourself.
Black Canyon Rim Campground
A smaller FR 300 / FR 86 campground tied to Black Canyon Lake, sandy pine sites, and General Crook Trail access. Quieter than the bigger Rim hubs.
Mogollon Campground
A deeper FR 300 campground just past the Woods Canyon turnoff, with 26 parallel-parking sites, gravel loops, and potable water in season.
Canyon Point Campground
The larger, more built-out Rim basecamp near Willow Springs Lake, with developed loops, some electric sites, and trail access from camp. Useful, but busy.
Crook Campground
A developed campground with mixed shade and access to Rim viewpoints nearby. Not the most dramatic spot on its own, but steady, useful, and quieter mid-week.
Sinkhole Campground
A smaller 26-site campground on Willow Springs Lake Road, with chip-seal roads, Willow Springs access, and General Crook Trail nearby.
Houston Mesa Campground
A bigger developed campground close to town with multiple loops and an easy setup. More practical than special, but a good option when you want convenience and full campground structure.
Spillway Campground
The compact Woods Canyon Lake campground for fast fishing, electric-motor boating, and loop-trail access. Convenient, popular, and best for small rigs.
Granite & Pines
Prescott
A practical middle ground: cooler than town, easier than the Rim, and close enough for short trips.
Mingus Lake Campground
A cooler mountain campground with overlooks nearby and a different feel than the lower-elevation Arizona spots. Wind can show up here too, but the elevation and views help set it apart.
Dead Horse Ranch State Park
A full-service state park campground with paved loops, nearby lagoons, and a much more built-out feel than the forest campgrounds. Great when convenience and amenities matter more than isolation.
Lower Wolf Creek Campground
Shady ponderosa camping south of Prescott with a quieter forest feel and a practical developed layout.
Potato Patch Campground
A shady developed campground on Mingus Mountain with easy access to viewpoints and cooler air. Good for a straightforward forest stay without much complication.
Powell Springs Campground
A smaller wooded campground that feels quieter and less polished than the big-name spots. Best when you want a simpler forest stay and are fine with fewer frills.
Cooler Nights
White Mountains
Higher country for longer drives, summer relief, lakes, and trips that feel farther away in a good way.
Pacheta Lake Campground
A high-elevation lake spot with colder nights, crisp air, and a cleaner mountain feel. Great for stars and cooler weather if that is what you are after.
Fools Hollow Lake Campground
A more built-up recreation area with showers, hookups, and a very easy campground setup. It is not roughing it, but it works well when comfort and access are the point.
Show Low Lake Campground
Pines above the lake with easy access to the ramp and nearby services. A good practical lake campground, though weekends can make it feel a little busy.
Creek Country
West Clear Creek
Water, crossings, and canyon shade where the details matter more than the map pin.
Island Camps
Oahu
Coastal camp notes where access, weather, and reservations matter as much as the view.
Ahupuaʻa ʻO Kahana State Park
A striking valley-to-sea setting with lush surroundings and a real sense of place. Beautiful and memorable, but it also asks for more respect and awareness than an ordinary beach campground.
Bellows Field Beach Park
Wide sand, calm water, and one of the easier coastal camp setups on Oahu. Great for a beach camp that feels open, relaxed, and actually enjoyable to hang out in.
Keaīwa Heiau State Recreation Area
A forest-edged campground with cooler mornings and a different feel than the beach parks. More subdued and local in character, with the historic setting adding something real to it.
Island Camps
Hawaii
Big Island and island-trip camps where the setting changes the whole camping equation.
Ho‘okena Beach Park
A black-sand beach camp with easy reef access and that humid oceanfront feel that sticks with you. Strong setting, simple setup, and best when the water is part of the plan.
Volcanoes National Park
A completely different kind of camp with lava fields, fern forest, mist, and colder damp nights than people expect. More atmospheric than cozy, but that is exactly the appeal.
Red Rock Trips
Utah
Desert camp options for bigger drives, cooler seasons, and scenery that carries the trip.
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