Swimming

Boulder Creek RV Resort

68 RV Sites, 3 Cabins

Boulder Creek RV Resort in Lone Pine, California, offers 68 full-hookup RV sites and three cabins at the foot of the Sierra Nevada, with 30 and 50-amp service, cable TV, ADA-accessible sites, and rigs accepted to 60 feet. Back-in and pull-through 30/50-amp categories join a pool, hot tub, spa, recreation center, and library beneath Mount Whitney. Sixty-eight sites run in back-in 30/50-amp and pull-thru 30/50-amp categories, both carrying water, sewer, and electric with cable TV and site WiFi, sized to 60 feet, with fire pits and picnic tables. Accessible sites are available. Three cabins round out the lodging. A general store, laundry, propane fills, dump station, restrooms, showers, and RV storage handle the practical side. An outdoor pool and hot tub, sauna, and spa anchor the property, with a recreation center, clubhouse, library, playground, dog park, and walking trails filling the grounds. A lake and creek support fishing, hiking runs in every direction, and planned activities run through the season. Pets are welcome. The setting is among the most visually spectacular of any campground in California. Mount Whitney rises to 14,505 feet — the highest peak in the contiguous United States — directly above the Alabama Hills, whose rounded granite formations have served as the backdrop for hundreds of films. Lone Pine sits in the Owens Valley between the Sierra's eastern escarpment and the White Mountains, with Death Valley to the east. Spring and fall are most comfortable in the Owens Valley, with summer bringing Whitney permit-holders and hikers. Reserve well ahead for the climbing season.

from $45/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

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

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

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

Camp Ikigai Animal Sanctuaruy 501c3

20 RV Sites, 3 Cabins, 100 Tent Sites, 1 Glamping Site, 1 Yurt

On 72 off-grid acres in Yokuts Valley in the Sierra Nevada foothills of Fresno County, Camp Ikigai Animal Sanctuary offers an entirely different kind of RV and camping destination—a 501(c)(3) nonprofit farm sanctuary where horses, sheep, dogs, and cats roam freely through the property and guests stay in tent sites, RV and van spots, hammock camping areas, or a tiny cabin on a private deck with sweeping valley views. At 40580 Ruth Hill Road, approximately 30 minutes from the entrances to Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks and 90 minutes from Yosemite Valley, the sanctuary provides an off-grid, animal-centered retreat that makes the Sierra Nevada's greatest parks accessible from a setting that's genuinely unlike any other campground in the region. Sites are primitive and the experience is intentionally off-grid—Camp Ikigai functions as a working animal sanctuary first and a campground second, and the accommodation reflects that priority. RV, van, car, skoolie, and tent sites are available alongside hammock camping and the small cabin, with each option providing a different relationship to the farm's natural and animal-centered environment. The private deck and valley views available from the cabin offer a sunset and sunrise experience that rewards those who plan ahead. Water and fire safety practices appropriate to the Sierra Nevada foothill environment apply throughout the property, and guests should arrive prepared for primitive conditions in a genuinely remote setting. Yokuts Valley sits in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada at elevations that transition between the valley floor's agricultural character and the higher-elevation conifer forest that begins above 4,000 feet. The property's 72 acres encompass oak woodland, chaparral-covered hillsides, and the private valley terrain that creates the views from the upper portion of the property. The sanctuary's animals—horses with established individual personalities, sheep, and a resident dog and cat community—move through the space freely, creating unexpected encounters and the kind of interspecies observation that's simply not available in any conventional camping environment. Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks, jointly administered and together encompassing more than 1,300 square miles, protect the world's largest trees by volume—the giant sequoias of the western Sierra Nevada—alongside the deepest canyon in North America, the High Sierra's most dramatic alpine terrain, and the headwaters of the Kings and Kaweah Rivers. General Sherman Tree, the world's largest living thing by volume, stands in Giant Forest. Kings Canyon's Canyon View Trail descends into one of North America's most spectacular river canyons. The parks receive far fewer visitors than Yosemite despite matching its scenic grandeur, making the experience measurably less crowded during peak summer season. Camp Ikigai operates year-round, with the foothill location providing milder winter temperatures than the high Sierra and a spring wildflower display on the hillsides that makes March and April particularly rewarding. Summer days are warm in the foothills but the higher elevation provides meaningful relief from the Central Valley heat. Advance reservations are required for all site types, and the nonprofit nature of the operation means that booking directly supports the animal sanctuary's ongoing work. Reserve your site at Camp Ikigai and let the Sierra Nevada foothills, the resident animals, and the valley views create a camping experience that no conventional RV park can approximate.

from $21/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

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

Lakeshore Resort

22 RV Sites, 7 Cabins

At the eastern end of Huntington Lake in the Sierra Nevada at 7,000 feet elevation—a mountain reservoir in Sierra National Forest where the John Muir Wilderness begins on the opposite shore and the High Sierra backcountry opens in all directions from the lake's edges—Lakeshore Resort has been receiving campers, anglers, boaters, and High Sierra explorers since the 1920s. The resort's combination of RV sites, cabin rentals, restaurant, saloon, general store, and marina creates the self-contained mountain lake community that the Sierra Nevada's remote elevation campgrounds can rarely sustain, and the high-country landscape of Huntington Lake provides the visual and recreational context that makes the resort worth the drive up Highway 168. This is California mountain camping at its most complete. RV sites with full hookups, 30-amp electric, campfire rings, and picnic tables accommodate rigs up to 40 feet in length—meaningful at a mountain destination where the size restriction would otherwise eliminate many larger rigs from consideration. Cabin rentals provide the fully enclosed alternative for guests who want the mountain lake experience without a camping setup, and the resort's laundry, showers, and bathrooms serve both RV and cabin guests across the property's full occupancy range. The restaurant and saloon provide on-site dining and the evening social gathering space that mountain resort guests across California's elevation campground history have come to associate with Lakeshore specifically—a dining room with the character and history of a century-old Sierra resort. The general store handles provisioning, and the marina with boat docks provides watercraft access, rental boats, and the infrastructure that makes Huntington Lake's 1,500 acres of 7,000-foot elevation water genuinely navigable for guests without their own boats. A walking trail from the campsites along the creek and down to the lake connects the camping area to the water directly. Huntington Lake's high-elevation character provides a natural environment of specific appeal. At 7,000 feet, the lake sits in a landscape dominated by red fir, lodgepole pine, and the granite that defines the Sierra Nevada's geological identity—a combination that produces the cool summer temperatures, afternoon thunderstorm pattern, and crystalline air quality that the Central Valley's summer heat drives visitors upward to seek. Kokanee salmon, brown trout, rainbow trout, and catfish populate the lake, making fishing from the dock, from a rental boat, or from the resort's waterfront among the most reliable high-elevation angling experiences in the central Sierra. The John Muir Wilderness, accessible directly from Huntington Lake's trailheads, provides the High Sierra backcountry experience that the resort's position at the wilderness edge makes possible with zero additional driving. The Kaiser Wilderness, accessible from the north shore, provides a second wilderness area with its own trail system and high-country lakes accessible for day hikes from the resort's elevation base. The combination of resort-level comfort—restaurant, saloon, store, marina—and immediate wilderness access is specific to Huntington Lake's position and is not replicated at most Sierra Nevada campgrounds, which offer one or the other but rarely both. Lakeshore Resort is open from late April through October, weather and snowpack permitting, with the full season running from Memorial Day through Labor Day. The high elevation makes July and August the most reliable months for full-access recreation. Reserve the full hookup site early for summer, bring the fishing rods and the hiking boots, and let the 1920s Huntington Lake resort tradition earn its hundred-year reputation.

from $114/night

Almond Tree Oasis RV Park

11 RV Sites

Almond Tree Oasis RV Park in Coalinga, California, offers 12 full-hookup pull-through RV sites with 20, 30, and 50-amp service, ADA-accessible sites, and rigs accepted to 69 feet, along Highway 33 in the Central Valley. Site categories publish their exact length — 24 and 28 feet among them — with premium patio sites including an umbrella and two chairs. Twelve pull-through sites carry water, sewer, and electric on 20, 30, and 50-amp, sized to 69 feet, with picnic tables and site WiFi. The category naming is unusually specific: sites are listed by exact flat length and amp configuration, and the Traveler Premium Patio category includes an umbrella and two chairs. Accessible sites are available. A general store, laundry, propane fills and exchange, restrooms, showers, and cabins handle the practical side. Pets are welcome. An outdoor pool anchors the warm months, with a dog park and picnicking areas across the grounds. Coalinga sits in Fresno County near the valley's westernmost margin where the Diablo Range rises from the floor, making the park a convenient midpoint on the north-south run and a practical alternative to the I-5 corridor for travelers on Highway 33. The Kelly Slater Surf Ranch, Storyland, Adventure Park, and the Fresno Chaffee Zoo are all within reach, and the Jayne Travel Center, Save Mart, and other services are close by. The park operates year-round on a heavily traveled corridor. Spring and fall are the most comfortable in the Central Valley — reserve ahead for holiday weekends.

from $45/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

Paradise RV Park (Desert Hot Springs)

89 RV Sites

Paradise RV Park in Desert Hot Springs, California, offers 89 full-hookup back-in RV sites with 20, 30, and 50-amp service and rigs accepted to 50 feet, behind a gated entrance in the Coachella Valley. A pool, fitness center, dog park, and pickleball courts serve a private desert community near Palm Springs. Eighty-nine back-in sites carry water, sewer, and electric on 20, 30, and 50-amp, sized to 50 feet, with picnic tables and BBQ pits at the sites. The 20-amp option suits smaller trailers that do not need a full pedestal. Restrooms and WiFi serve the sites, and a gated entrance controls access — which matters for the long-stay guests who make up much of the winter occupancy. Pets are welcome. An outdoor pool anchors daily recreation, with a fitness center for the rest of the day and a community fire pit for the evenings. Pickleball and bocce ball courts fill the competitive calendar, and a playground and dog park serve families and pets. The mountain and desert setting frames the property on every side. Desert Hot Springs is distinct from the valley's southern resort communities. Its famous natural mineral hot springs sustain a spa and wellness industry that operates independently of the Palm Springs tourist economy, which gives the town a quieter, more restorative character — and the hot spring access is genuinely the reason many guests choose this side of the valley. The San Jacinto Mountains rise to the south, with Palm Springs and Joshua Tree National Park both within easy reach. Winter is decisively the season in the Coachella Valley, when snowbirds fill the desert communities. Book well ahead for January through March, and expect April festival weeks to tighten availability across the entire valley.

from $65/night