Swimming

Lake Piru Recreation Area

228 RV Sites

Lake Piru Recreation Area in Piru, California, offers 228 RV sites on a 1,200-acre reservoir in Ventura County, with 30 and 50-amp service, ADA-accessible sites, and rigs accepted to 55 feet on a big-rig-friendly layout. Full-hookup, electric-only, and no-hookup back-in categories serve every budget, with a marina and boat rentals on site. Two hundred twenty-eight back-in sites span full-hookup, electric-only, and no-hookup configurations, carrying water, sewer, and electric where noted on 30 and 50-amp, sized to 55 feet, with fire pits, picnic tables, and site WiFi. Accessible sites are available. The tiering by hookup level is genuinely useful — self-contained rigs can take a no-hookup site at a lower rate. A general store, laundry, dump station, restrooms, showers, and firewood handle the practical side. The reservoir carries the recreation. A marina and boat rentals put guests on the water, with boating, water sports, canoeing, kayaking, swimming, and fishing all running from the property. A disc golf course, walking trails, hiking, volleyball, basketball, horseshoes, a playground, and a dog park fill the grounds, with planned activities through the season. Pets are welcome. Lake Piru sits where the Santa Felicia Dam impounds Piru Creek in the Topatopa Mountains, surrounded by the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area and Los Padres National Forest — one of Southern California's most scenic accessible mountain lakes, roughly 60 miles northwest of downtown Los Angeles. Summer draws heavy demand from the LA metro. Reserve well ahead for warm-weather weekends.

from $32/night

Bakersfield River Run RV Park

63 RV Sites

Bakersfield River Run RV Park in Bakersfield, California, offers 63 full-hookup RV sites along the Kern River, with 20, 30, and 50-amp service, cable TV, and rigs accepted to 80 feet on a big-rig-friendly layout. Six categories publish their lengths directly — back-ins at 50 feet, pull-throughs at 60, and river view back-ins at 60 — with a pool, fitness center, and clubhouse on site. Sixty-three sites span standard back-ins, 50-foot back-ins, pull-throughs, 60-foot pull-throughs, river view back-ins, and 60-foot river view back-ins, all carrying water, sewer, and electric on 20, 30, and 50-amp with cable TV and site WiFi, sized to 80 feet. Publishing length by category is genuinely useful — you know what fits before you book. A general store, laundry, propane fills and exchange, dump station, restrooms, and showers handle the practical side. An outdoor pool anchors the warm months, with a fitness center, clubhouse, and recreation center open year-round. The Kern River runs alongside the property, and the river view categories are worth requesting. Pets are welcome. Bakersfield sits at the intersection of Highway 99 and Rosedale Highway in Kern County, the southern anchor of the San Joaquin Valley. That places the park at the junction of the Central Valley's I-5 and Highway 99 corridors and the mountain routes toward Sequoia National Park and the southern Sierra Nevada — practical access that road trippers, snowbirds, and weekend travelers all use. The park operates year-round. Winter snowbird traffic and summer highway travel both drive demand — reserve ahead for holiday weekends.

from $56 $49/night

Surf Outpost

95 RV Sites, 35 Tent Sites

Surf Outpost in Malibu, California, offers 95 full-hookup RV sites and 35 tent sites on the Pacific coast, with 30 and 50-amp service and rigs accepted to 45 feet. Ocean view, premium ocean view, and XL categories join no-view back-in sites, with beach access across Pacific Coast Highway. Ninety-five back-in sites span no view, no view XL, ocean view, ocean view XL, and premium ocean view categories, all carrying water, sewer, and electric on 30 and 50-amp with site WiFi, sized to 45 feet, with picnic tables. The category structure is refreshingly plain about what you are paying for — an ocean view or not, and extra length or not. Thirty-five tent sites round out the lodging. A general store, laundry, propane fills, dump station, restrooms, and showers handle the practical side. Beach access is on foot: down the driveway, right on PCH, then to the signal and crosswalk at the gas station. Stays of four nights or more in September run 20% off, applied automatically. The beach carries the recreation, with surfing, paddle boarding, swimming, hiking, and horseback riding all available. A dog park sits on the grounds. Pets are welcome. The Malibu coast's surf breaks and the Santa Monica Mountains meeting the Pacific make this one of the most photographed coastlines on earth — and full hookups here are genuinely scarce. Summer is peak on the Southern California coast. Reserve as far ahead as you can.

from $75/night

Sun Outdoors Santa Barbara

79 RV Sites, 24 Tent Sites

In Goleta, California—eight miles west of downtown Santa Barbara on the Santa Barbara Channel coast where the Santa Ynez Mountains' chaparral ridges descend to the Pacific and the Channel Islands National Park's offshore silhouettes anchor the ocean horizon in one of the most visually spectacular coastal settings in California—Sun Outdoors Santa Barbara provides 79 full hookup RV sites on concrete pads, 24 tent sites, a heated pool and spa, an on-site llama and goat farm, docent-led nature trail hikes, and the Santa Barbara wine country and downtown proximity that makes the campground a genuine base for California coastal living rather than a highway overnight stop. The llamas, the docent nature hikes, and the on-site market stocked with craft beer and local wine are the three details that reveal a property designed for a specific and destination-minded guest population. Seventy-nine full hookup RV sites on concrete pads with 30 and 50-amp electric, water, sewer, cable television, and WiFi connections, along with fire pits and picnic tables at every site, constitute the RV infrastructure. Spacious pull-through sites accommodate large motorhomes without the lateral precision that back-in sites impose. Twenty-four tent sites on leveled pads with Adirondack chairs and fire pits provide the tent camping option in the Santa Barbara coastal environment. A heated pool and spa serve the year-round California coastal camping season's aquatic recreation needs across months when an unheated pool would be impractical. A dog park, playground, laundry facilities, and lawn games round out the family recreation amenities. The on-site market—stocked with camping gear, craft beer, and local Santa Barbara County wine—reflects the property's specifically California wine-country orientation and eliminates the drive to a Goleta grocery or wine shop for guests who want to stock the campsite directly. Seasonal outdoor movie nights on the lawn extend the evening programming calendar with the ambient California coastal setting that a movie under the Santa Barbara stars specifically capitalizes on. The on-site llama and goat farm occupies the intersection of agricultural heritage and novelty animal interaction that has proven consistently popular in the California agri-tourism market—functioning not as a theme park attraction but as a working farm adjacent to the campground whose animals are accessible as a practical feature of the property's 55-acre operation. Docent-led nature trail hikes through the campground's natural areas provide the educational natural history programming that the Santa Ynez Mountain foothills' chaparral and oak woodland ecology makes genuinely interesting for the nature-engaged visitor. Downtown Santa Barbara—eight miles east—provides California's most intact Spanish Colonial Revival architectural heritage in the commercial and civic buildings that were rebuilt in the 1920s after a 1925 earthquake destroyed most of the original downtown, creating the stylistic coherence that no amount of planning oversight can produce in a city that wasn't flattened at a moment of strong aesthetic consensus. The Santa Barbara wine country in the Santa Ynez and Santa Maria Valleys, accessible from Goleta via the San Marcos Pass or Highway 101, produces the Pinot Noir and Chardonnay that Alexander Payne's film Sideways made internationally famous from 2004 forward. Sun Outdoors Santa Barbara is open year-round in the Santa Barbara coastal climate that makes year-round camping genuinely viable. The Mediterranean climate—mild winters, warm but not extreme summers, and the marine influence that keeps temperatures moderated across all seasons—makes every month a reasonable time to visit. Reserve early for summer weekends and the Santa Barbara wine harvest season in September, visit the llamas before the pool opens, and let the Channel Islands' offshore silhouettes on a clear morning earn what the California coast looks like when it's not in the fog.

from $75/night

Arrowhead Tree Top Lodge

1 Cabin, 19 Hotel Rooms

Arrowhead Tree Top Lodge in Lake Arrowhead, California, offers 20 cabin and hotel-room accommodations at 5,100 feet in the San Bernardino Mountains, with an outdoor pool, walking trails, and a creek on the property. A wedding venue and mountain setting serve guests two hours from Los Angeles. Twenty cabins and hotel rooms make up the accommodations — this is lodging rather than an RV park, with no sites or hookups. Restrooms and showers serve the property, with WiFi throughout. The lodge also operates as a wedding venue, which the pine and cedar setting supports well. Pets are welcome. An outdoor pool anchors the warm months, with walking trails through the forest and a creek running the property. Birding is productive across the mountain terrain, with swimming from the area and a lake, golf course, wineries, and skiing all nearby. The elevation is the point. At 5,100 feet in the rim country above the Inland Empire, mountain air runs 20 to 30 degrees cooler than the valley floor below — which is the entire reason Southern Californians make the drive. The Rim of the World Drive's panoramic views stretch across the San Bernardino Valley to the Pacific horizon, and the contrast between elevation and valley is what gives the Lake Arrowhead corridor its character. The lodge serves guests year-round. Summer heat in the valley drives the heaviest demand as visitors escape uphill, with winter bringing snow and ski traffic to the same corridor. Reserve well ahead for summer weekends and holiday periods.

from $119/night

Pismo Sands RV Resort

48 RV Sites, 4 Cottages

Pismo Sands RV Resort in Oceano, California, delivers a comfortable and well-equipped coastal camping experience on California's Central Coast, positioned near the Halcyon Road exit along US-101 with easy access to the Oceano Dunes, the beaches of Pismo Beach and Grover Beach, and the wine country of the Santa Barbara County interior that makes this stretch of the California coast one of the most rewarding destinations for travelers who combine beach recreation with vineyard touring. The resort's gated community layout and resort-caliber amenities provide a premium experience in a region where campground options range from bare-bones state beach sites to RV park accommodations. The resort's infrastructure serves guests looking for comfort alongside the natural appeal of the Central Coast setting. An outdoor pool, laundry, general store, game room, library, playground, shuffleboard, and Wi-Fi create a well-rounded daily amenity set, while full hookup utility connections serve self-contained RVs with water, electric, and sewer access. The gated entrance provides security for guests leaving rigs on-site during day trips to the beach, vineyards, and state parks that fill a Central Coast itinerary, and propane fills and a dump station address the practical mechanical needs of extended-stay travelers. The Oceano area's natural landscape is shaped by the Guadalupe-Nipomo Dunes Complex—one of the largest coastal dune systems on the Pacific Coast—where windswept sand mounds, freshwater wetlands, and seasonal wildflower displays create a coastal ecosystem of genuine ecological significance and visual drama. The Oceano Dunes State Vehicular Recreation Area provides the only California state beach where highway-capable vehicles and ATVs are permitted to drive on the sand and dunes, creating a unique motorized recreation environment alongside the non-motorized swimming and beach access that defines most of the surrounding state beaches. Pismo Beach's iconic pier, the family-friendly shell shop and seafood restaurant corridor of Price Street, and the historic Pismo Beach Monarch Butterfly Grove—where tens of thousands of monarch butterflies overwinter in an eucalyptus grove from October through February—provide easily accessible day activities within a short drive north of the resort. The Edna Valley, Arroyo Grande Valley, and the broader Paso Robles wine region extend north and east from the resort's position, offering tasting room access at wineries recognized for chardonnay, pinot noir, and rhône varietals in a wine country setting far less crowded than Napa or Sonoma. San Luis Obispo's vibrant downtown, Hearst Castle at San Simeon, and Big Sur's coastal cliffs all lie within comfortable driving range along the Pacific Coast Highway corridor. Pismo Sands RV Resort operates year-round in the Central Coast's mild Mediterranean climate, where summer fog and marine layer typically burn off to warm afternoons and winter temperatures rarely drop below the low 40s Fahrenheit. The resort's sheltered location just back from the immediate shoreline moderates the wind exposure that beachfront sites experience, and the combination of pool, gated security, and comprehensive utility hookups makes it a particularly appealing base for snowbirds who winter on the California coast. Reservations for the monarch butterfly season and summer school-vacation period should be secured well in advance.

from $72/night

Grey Squirrel Resorts

19 Cottages

Grey Squirrel Resort in Fawnskin, California, has welcomed families, couples, and group retreats since the 1950s, bringing more than seven decades of mountain hospitality to a collection of 19 private cabins spread across three wooded acres on the quiet north shore of Big Bear Lake. Tucked in the small mountain community of Fawnskin—across the lake from the busier Big Bear Lake resort corridor—the resort provides an intimate and unhurried alternative to the high-traffic south shore lodging scene, giving guests direct access to San Bernardino County's premier mountain resort while preserving the peaceful forest character that defines the north shore experience. The 19 private cabins accommodate a range of group sizes and comfort preferences, offering more privacy and enclosed space than hotel rooms while maintaining the forest-immersed setting that draws visitors to Big Bear Lake in every season. On-site amenities include a pond, spa, walking trails, and wedding venue capabilities that make the property versatile for romantic retreats, family reunions, and celebration events alongside standard vacation stays. Pet-friendly policies, a general store, and Wi-Fi support extended stays, while the resort's access to golf, hiking, and mountain biking from the property ensures guests can build active itineraries without driving across the lake to the south shore infrastructure. The Fawnskin area's forest setting—ponderosa pine, white fir, and black oak woodland at approximately 7,000 feet elevation in the San Bernardino Mountains—provides a true mountain environment that contrasts sharply with the Southern California coast and desert communities that send the majority of Big Bear's visitors up the mountain. The north shore's relative quiet and the absence of the commercial density found on the south shore give Fawnskin an off-the-beaten-path character that has attracted loyal repeat guests to properties like Grey Squirrel for generations. Big Bear Mountain Resort, accessible via the south shore road around the lake, offers skiing and snowboarding in winter alongside mountain biking and lift-accessed hiking in summer, making the surrounding mountain landscape a legitimate four-season outdoor recreation destination. Big Bear Lake itself provides boating, fishing for trout and bass, kayaking, and paddleboarding from multiple marinas and launch points, and the PCT-adjacent trail system of the San Gorgonio Wilderness to the south provides backcountry hiking access to some of Southern California's highest and most dramatic mountain terrain. The Moonridge Animal Park and the Baldwin Lake Ecological Reserve provide additional nature-focused excursions in the immediate area. Grey Squirrel Resort operates year-round in Big Bear Lake's four-season mountain climate, with winter skiing season from December through March and summer's lake and mountain recreation driving the two peak demand periods. Fall's aspen and black oak color in the surrounding San Bernardino National Forest creates a third visitation surge in October, when the mountain's foliage rivals the more celebrated deciduous displays of the eastern United States. Cabin reservations for winter ski weekends and summer holidays fill months in advance, and the resort's intimate 19-cabin scale means early booking is essential for any stay during Big Bear's peak windows.

from $75/night

Lemon Cove Village RV Park

47 RV Sites, 10 Tent Sites

Lemon Cove Village RV Park in Lemon Cove, California, provides the most convenient RV park gateway to Sequoia National Park and Kings Canyon National Park in Tulare County's foothills community at the edge of the Sierra Nevada, positioning guests at the Kaweah River corridor where CA-198's approach to the giant sequoia groves begins and the transition from the San Joaquin Valley's citrus agriculture to the Sierra's granite and conifer world unfolds across the drive from the park to the park entrance. Lemon Cove's gold panning access on the Kaweah River and the boutique shop's local products reflect the foothill character of a community whose Sierra Nevada proximity creates the full range of national park experiences—from the General Sherman Tree's 52,500 cubic feet of wood volume to the Kings Canyon's 8,000-foot granite walls—within a 45-minute drive. The park's facility serves the Sequoia and Kings Canyon gateway visitor with practical camping infrastructure and the unique recreation opportunity of gold panning in the Kaweah River's placer gold deposits: a river and stream nearby for the gold panning activity, an outdoor pool, volleyball, horseshoes, sports courts, RV storage and boat storage for extended equipment needs, boutique shop with local products and souvenirs, open year-round operations for all seasons of national park visitation, boating access nearby, pet-friendly policies, showers, bathrooms, laundry, propane fills, dump station, and Wi-Fi collectively provide the services that Sequoia-bound visitors require from a foothill base camp. The swimming access in the Kaweah River's pools during summer provides natural alternative to pool swimming. Sequoia National Park's General Sherman Tree—a giant sequoia measuring 52,500 cubic feet and estimated at 2,100 years old, the largest living tree on Earth by volume—is the anchor attraction of a park that protects the largest remaining groves of giant sequoias in existence in a landscape of sublime Sierra Nevada scale. The Sherman Tree's 36-foot diameter base, the Congress Trail's loop through the Giant Forest's sequoia grove, and the Moro Rock granite dome's panoramic Sierra Nevada views create the Sequoia experience that draws over a million visitors annually to the Tulare County park. The park's Lodgepole and Dorst Creek campgrounds provide the in-park camping alternative for guests whose itinerary includes multiple nights at elevation. Kings Canyon National Park's Kings Canyon—the deepest canyon in North America at 8,200 feet from Spanish Mountain's summit to the Kings River—provides the geological superlative that makes the adjoining national park system's dual-park designation the most impressive combined wilderness in California. The Cedar Grove area at the canyon's floor provides the most accessible deep canyon experience in California's national park system, with the Roaring River Falls and the Zumwalt Meadow trail delivering concentrated natural beauty in the canyon's innermost accessible section. The John Muir Trail's northern terminus at the Mt. Whitney trailhead connects the park to the 211-mile wilderness trail that ends at California's highest peak. Lemon Cove Village RV Park operates year-round in Tulare County's foothill climate, with the spring wildflower season on the Kaweah River corridor from March through May preceding the summer Sequoia visitor peak by weeks in a timing that creates the most uncrowded and comfortable early season national park access from the Lemon Cove base. The summer Sequoia season from June through September coincides with the park's maximum visitor volume and the California heat that makes the Sierra Nevada's cool elevation a primary appeal for San Joaquin Valley residents seeking relief, and the fall season's golden oak color in the park's mixed forest and the reduced crowds that September and October bring create the most rewarding conditions for unhurried giant sequoia exploration.

from $57/night

Vinyl Vineyards

4 RV Sites, 6 Vintage RV Rentals

Vinyl Vineyards in Paso Robles, California, offers six vintage Airstream trailers themed to legendary musicians — Billie, Bowie, Cash, Jagger, Janis, and Zeppelin — alongside dry camping sites including an ADA-accessible option, on 120 acres of working vineyard. Sites take rigs to 50 feet, with a pool, hot tub, and disc golf course on the property. The six themed Airstream trailers are the signature accommodation, each named for the musician it is styled after. Dry camping sites accommodate self-contained rigs to 50 feet with fire pits, picnic tables, and BBQ pits, including a dedicated ADA-accessible site — note these are dry sites without hookups, so plan water and power. A general store, laundry, restrooms, showers, and WiFi handle the practical side. You may receive SMS messages before, during, or after your stay; reply STOP to opt out. An outdoor pool and hot tub anchor the property, with a disc golf course and walking trails through the vineyard. The dark rural sky makes for strong stargazing, and birding is productive across the acreage. A golf course is nearby, and wine tasting is effectively on site. Pets are welcome. The vineyard sits on the Union Road Wine Trail in the Adelaida District of Paso Robles — the largest wine appellation in California by acreage, where calcareous limestone soils and marine-influenced temperature swings produce Rhône varietals, Zinfandel, and Tempranillo. The trail's boutique wineries built their identity in deliberate contrast to corporate wine tourism. Harvest season and warm-weather weekends drive demand. With six trailers, reserve well ahead.

Sun Outdoors Central Coast Wine Country

156 RV Sites, 26 Cottages

Sun Outdoors Central Coast Wine Country in Paso Robles, California, offers 156 RV sites and 26 cottages with 20, 30, and 50-amp full hookups, cable TV, and rigs accepted to 60 feet on a big-rig-friendly layout, open all year. Concrete-with-grass and granite-with-patio premium categories join deluxe, standard, and group sites in the heart of the Central Coast wine region. One hundred fifty-six sites span standard, deluxe back-in, group back-in, premium back-in concrete with grass, and premium back-in granite with concrete patio categories, all carrying water, sewer, and electric with cable TV and site WiFi, sized to 60 feet, with picnic tables and BBQ pits. Specifying the surface treatment by category is unusually transparent. Twenty-six cottages round out the lodging. A general store, laundry, propane fills and exchange, restrooms, and showers handle the practical side. The property was formerly Wine Country RV Resort. An outdoor pool and hot tub and sauna anchor the property, with a fitness center, clubhouse, craft room, bar, and community fire pit besides. Corn hole, biking, a playground, and a dog park fill the grounds, with live music and planned activities through the season. Wine tasting, hot air ballooning, and a water park are all nearby. Pets are welcome. Paso Robles has grown into one of California's premier wine regions over two decades, and the resort sits among the tasting rooms and rolling vineyards. Harvest season and summer drive demand. Reserve well ahead.

from $49/night

Golden Village Palms Resort

Golden Village Palms Resort in Hemet, California, is one of the largest RV resorts in the state — a 55-plus destination in Riverside County's Diamond Valley with full-hookup sites, a spa, fitness center, mini-golf, and pickleball courts behind a gated entrance, open all year. Personal mailboxes and RV storage support the long-stay residents who fill it through the winter. Full-hookup sites serve the resort's largely seasonal population, with laundry, RV storage, personal mailboxes, restrooms, and showers handling the practical side, plus WiFi and recycling throughout. Check-in for RV sites is 1:00pm with check-out at 12:00pm; early arrivals and late departures may be available for a nominal fee, and cottage check-in times differ — confirm when booking. The amenity roster is the reason people come. An outdoor pool and spa anchor daily recreation, with a fitness center, clubhouse, craft room, and game room for the social calendar. Pickleball, bocce ball, shuffleboard, horseshoes, volleyball, billiards, corn hole, and sports courts fill the competitive side, with mini-golf and a dog park besides. On-site dining covers meals, live music and planned activities run through the season, and the resort also serves as a wedding venue. A casino, hiking, wine tasting, and hot air ballooning are all nearby. Pets are welcome. Hemet sits in the Diamond Valley between the San Jacinto and Santa Rosa Mountains, in the inland reach of Southern California — warm dry summers, mild winters, and a dramatic mountain backdrop, roughly 30 miles west of the Palm Springs resort corridor across the San Jacinto Fault. Winter is decisively the season. Book well ahead for January through March.

from $64/night

Sun Outdoors Paso Robles

287 RV Sites, 36 Cottages

Sun Outdoors Paso Robles in California offers 287 full-hookup RV sites and 36 cottages in the heart of Central Coast wine country, with 20, 30, and 50-amp service, cable TV, and rigs accepted to 50 feet on a big-rig-friendly layout, open all year. Elite back-in, elite pull-through, premium, and deluxe categories join a splash pad, hot tub, mini-golf, and bar. Two hundred eighty-seven sites span deluxe back-in, premium back-in, elite back-in, and elite pull-thru categories, all carrying water, sewer, and electric on 20, 30, and 50-amp with cable TV and site WiFi, sized to 50 feet, with fire pits and picnic tables. Thirty-six cottages round out the lodging — furnished vacation rentals are available if you do not own an RV. A general store, laundry, propane fills and exchange, restrooms, showers, and a concierge handle the practical side. A splash pad and outdoor pool anchor the summer, with a hot tub and sauna alongside. Mini-golf, a fitness center, clubhouse, craft room, game room, arcade, bocce ball, corn hole, golf cart rentals, walking trails, biking, a playground, pavilion, community fire pit, dog park, and bar fill the rest, with live music and planned activities through the season. The resort operates as a wedding venue, and wine tasting, a state park, and a water park are nearby. Paso Robles has become one of the most critically acclaimed wine regions in the country over the past two decades, and the tasting rooms start minutes from the gate. Harvest and summer drive demand. Reserve well ahead.

from $44/night