Commerical Site, Please call for information, Tel: (480)288-9233, Paved Boat Launch

Canyon Lake Marina & Campground

Kudos to the wonderfully friendly guard at check-in. However, Canyon Lake Campground was easily the worst stay I have ever encountered at a camp site and I was quickly reminded why I do not stay at shared campgrounds very often. But the temptation of sleeping next to a lake and the gentle lapping of waves on the shore lured us in. There was no gentle lapping, and because our site was full of trash and because the trash bins themselves for the grounds were overflowing, there was a swarm of bees hovering around the trash can area. And what I later realized was likely a sugar high from their regular soda consumption from the cans strewn around, the jacked up bees hovered around our morning breakfast, coffee, and dinner and buzzed us regularly. One truck down the row of tightly crammed tent sites blared loud music over his speaker (yes just one, the other side was already blown out) for most of the sunset, and the site across from us allowed their chihuahua to bark obsessively at every passerby for quite some time. The group directly next to us slept split between a small tent, the truck bed, and inside of their truck. Hardly the "camping" experience most people generally consider. I highly doubt anyone in that camp ground was out to "experience nature" quite the same way that we were.

The more manicured RV sites were on a grass lawn and all led right up to the water, so I imagine their experience, aside from the shared bees and trash cans, could be quite different than ours.

We couldn't run away fast enough in the morning.

Worst camp spot I have ever visited

We camped there last weekend for our daughter's birthday. Campsites were close and neighbors were partying, drunk, and got in physical and verbal altercations whilst taking over our campsite. My daughter was scared about the fighting and asked to leave as well as her friends left and went home. We called security and they never came nor dealt with the problem. We ended up leaving the sites and it wrecked her party. We didn't even spend the night. We had reserved two sites for two nights and never even stayed to sleep. Poor management if this facility. We will problem never try to camp there again. But it's to bad because the sites are lake front. We wasted a lot of money and never got to camp.

Close quarters!  Limited space between sites.

There are 28 RV spots and 18 tent sites. There are restrooms and showers, although on a holiday weekend, they can get gross. The view from site C, D, 1-14 is the closest to the water and in my opinion, the nicest sites. There is a beautiful hike just across the road. The views from the top of the mountain are amazing. The water and the views are breathtaking. We had several RV's side by side which helps as the sites are close to one another so if you have noisy neighbors, I could see that being an issue. We had a wonder trip and will be returning in October.

My new favorite spot, close to Phoenix. 

I don’t know why they bother be so strict with noise from campers after 10:00. You can’t see it, but your 20 feet off the main road and if you are there on a weekend the road noise from the motorcycles and cars racing up and down the road to and from the bar will keep you up until 3:00 in the morning. If you manage to fall asleep finally by 3:00 and you are in a tent, be prepared to be woken up again at 4:30 when the boaters start launching their boats 5 feet from the tent area. 
I did not find the camp staff helpful, including the fact that we got there at 2:00 which is check in time and had to wait 30 minutes for someone to show up to open the gate.  We had very little interaction other than that.   Obviously the noise is not their fault, but if you are planning on tent camping there you need to be aware. 
It may be a good spot for RVs that have some insulation from the road noise and are further away from the boat docks, but if your tent camping, find other places. 
Note - no water available at all to tent sites. Not even a shared spigot.  The bathrooms were not working while we were there. They did provide a temporary trailer for showers and toilet but it was poorly stocked and filthy the entire weekend. 

Noise all night long and not from Campers

The campground itself was decent. Clean, basic spots with fire pit and picnic table. Fairly level, very little shade. We were in spot 135 which was a higher price because it was "waterfront" but all of the spots were pretty much waterfront so really not worth the extra money. The spots on the west end had grass and trees so they were actually nicer. If you're into kayaking or paddle boarding this is a great place to go. If you go to the east it's super quiet and calm and it goes back quite far. No boats go back there, it's peaceful and gorgeous. That was our favorite part of the trip. The drive to get there was a little scary in the RV, the turns on the 88 were very tight so you have to go super slow, but it's doable. We have a 25 ft motorhome, but there were much bigger rvs there too. 
At night there was a lot of noise from the road,seems like the 88 is the place to go on a motorcycle and they fly by at high speeds until about 10:30 at night. Super annoying cause it's loud but it at least didn't go too late. 
We also did the Dolly Steamboat dinner cruise and the food was amazing and the scenery was beautiful. 
No sewer hookup or dump station but you can pay $20 for a pump out.
All in all a good place to stay. 