All campsites at Kartchner feature electric hookups and water. Your camping fee includes use of the shower/restroom, water, electrical and dump station facilities.

All campsites have a table, hose bib and power post. Each back-in site power post is 110 volt AC with a 30 amp RV connection and a 20 amp receptacle. Each pull-through site power post has a 220 volt 50 amp AC & an 110 volt 30 amp AC RV connection and a 20 AMP GFI receptacle. Sites vary in length from 35’ for the shortest back in sites to 60’ in the pull through sites; all sites are single width. Sites have ample room on the side areas for pull out units.

There are three handicapped designated sites (one is a pull through site), 12 pull-through sites and 43 other sites of varying sizes. Handicapped designated sites have paved access to the site and adjacent restroom, a paved pad, and wheelchair accessible table.

Waste bins and shower/restroom facilities are located on the upper west end of each campground. Restroom buildings have bottled water vending machines and dishwashing sinks located on the rear east side.

Important Note: At this park, the entrance gate is closed nightly at 10 p.m. The two-loop campground is located off of the main road past the Discovery Center on the southwest end of the park. Camping fees are payable with cash, Visa or Mastercard at the Contact Station the day of arrival, or at the Discovery Center the following day. Fees must be paid daily or in advance and there is a 14-day stay limit.

Access card keys for camper after-hours entering the park are administered by the four Campground Hosts.

Kartchner Caverns State Park Camping — Kartchner Caverns State Park

Tent camping, Cabins, RV Camping, ton's of hiking from various levels of difficulty. Kartchner Cavern's is the main attraction here. Call ahead for availability and tickets. But don't miss all the other amazing hiking trails and nature center. Also check out the other astronomy programs they have from time to time. Tuscon is a "Dark Skies" community that offers amazing views of the night sky.

Amazing State Park and wonderful Endowment to Preserving Nature's Splendor

So very very pretty! The giant mountain is a perfect backdrop for camping! It's super dark at night, so sky viewing is great!

Spectacular 

I can’t lie it got 5 stars on the bathroom/showers alone!!!  Beautiful scenery great places to hike. Rangers and park staff are so friendly and great with kids. Park hosts are all business as I’m sure they see all kinds. we really only interacted with them upon set up. No dog run but dogs are welcome you just have to keep them on a leash. Spacious showers good water pressure.  If you’re in a tent I did notice a sizable platform area. Lots are fairly level. We had some wildlife visit or site.  We also took the tour of the caverns. It was good but extremely humid so beware. It was about 30 min drive to Tombstone I think. 

Beautiful 

Kartchner caverns is an incredible place in the desert. It’s worth it to take the cavern tour! Beautiful views from the hiking trails. Large campsites.

Amazing

We pulled in after dark and were gone by morning! We wanted somewhere to see the stars! It looked like a super clean park with paved roads, plenty of RV hookups and bath/shower house. We did tent camp. I wish we could have stayed longer to see the caverns, but this was just a pit stop on our road trip!

International Dark Sky Park

Beautiful scenery and a lot of awesome places to hike. Rangers and park staff are so friendly and helpful. Our Park host was super nice, but definitely keep things in order. Dogs are welcome you just have to keep them on a leash and pick up after them. The Caverns are the main attraction, please make your reservations early.  At different times of the year different parts are open, mostly depends on the bat migrations.  Caverns are a must-see!  It is close to Tombstone and other attractions.

Beautiful Park and the Caverns are awesome

April 18-20, 2019  Enjoyed this park. Very clean. Site had electric and water. Restrooms with showers, flush toilets and heat. Elevation 4,639. We did not get to go on the cave tour. 

Kartchnea Caverns State Park

I typically rate campgrounds as they fit into 1 of 5 categories. This campground will be rated as a Regional/Public Park — Grounds that are on public lands, and have a cost for entry and/or overnight stay. 
Ratings for this category are based on:
Cost: 5
Allure of the park/lands: 4
Amenities as available (bathrooms, showers, hookups, etc): 5
Layout and privacy of sites: 4

We wish we had more time to spend here! We used these grounds as a jumping-off point to visit Tombstone (meh), Bisbee &amp; Lowell AZ along with a few other small ghost towns. We also headed to Chiricahua National Monument on our way out of here, though it is a trek(about 90 minutes). The area is remote and has a beautiful mountain backdrop. We weren’t able to explore the caverns at the State Park but will on our next visit! We’ve heard the tours fill up daily, so make reservations for your planned stay. 

The price is very fair at $30/ night for electricity and water hookups. The showers and bathrooms were always clean. The layout was quite nice with plenty of personal space. 

Worth mentioning, we were there in January and it was very, very cold. We were unaware just how cold AZ could get. This was our awakening.

Very cool state park

Fabulous views and the campground is very well maintained. Each site looked to be very spacious with plenty of room between neighbors. The hosts were friendly and helpful. While we were the fire restrictions had been lifted so we used the fire pit to enjoy at night. The only negative that we found was they didn’t have a dog park but I’m assuming that’s because there are so many hiking options the dogs get plenty of exercise. There are bathrooms and showers available and cute little casitas if you don’t have an RV. Electric and water hookups but no sewer although the do have a dump station so it made it easy. Overall I highly recommend this campground

Love this campground 

As a solo female traveler this place was just what I needed for the week. Great amenities, super kind camp hosts, spread out spaces. Awesome dog friendly trails, walk to 4 different trailheads right from camp. Stars were awesome because all guests actually respected the no bright exterior lights rule. This is a great full-service stop for a vanlifer looking for a simple, well-accommodated week. Charge up those batteries and have a nice shower after a post-remote workday hike. Say hi to Paula for me. 


I Love it Here

This is an open desert State Park campground with a fancy, cavernous registration center you have to park and walk a few hundred yards to enter. The gift shop was closed. 

The campsites are close together affording little privacy. Each has water and electric hookup, a picnic table and fire ring. The back in sites are paved and level. The bathrooms with showers were clean and well appointed. 

The Camp Host greeted me once I was settled. He Wanted me to be aware of the rules and regulations of the campground.  Before he left, he asked me if I was traveling alone. The campground host circled the campground in his golf cart several times each day peering into each site on his way by. The only other campground I experienced his behavior was in Lost DutchmanState Park up near Apache Junction. 

I hiked the Foothills Loop which was challenging in spots especially around the apex. Walking sticks are recommended. The views were awesome.   

I’d give this four stars, but I don’t like feeling surveilled

Nice hike

Wow, what an awesome AZ State Park! If you live in Arizona and haven’t camped here you are doing something wrong! It’s a quick weekend getaway from Tucson or even Phoenix. 
The camp hosts are friendly and stopped by to say hello, leave us maps, and give us the run down on a few rules. Kartchner is a designated Dark Sky park, so they do a great job of making sure everyone keeps the lights off after 8pm so you can enjoy the stars. It really is an awesome perk of the park!
The campgrounds are immaculate. Like the cleanest and most well taken care of sites I have ever seen. Everything was perfectly raked and swept prior to our arrival. *We didn’t use the restrooms, showers, or dish washing stations due to covid, so we can’t report on those. We did notice family restrooms, which is always welcomed with little ones!
We walked around the loops, like we always do when camping, to make note of the best ones for future trips. There were too many to count! All the sites looked spacious (for state park standards), clean, and had plenty of mesquite trees (perfect for learning how to climb trees for the first time!)
The hiking trails are aplenty and dog friendly. The caverns are a quick 5 min walk from the campsites. We didn’t visit due to covid, but in the future plan to visit the caves, discovery center, and cafe. 
Although the campsite seemed to be most occupied by snowbirds, it really is the perfect destination for families too! We can’t wait to go back!

A treasure in the desert

This is the cleanest campground I have been to.  The bathrooms are well kept, there is a nice hiking trail close and you can reserve a spot to see the caverns too.  Close enough to Tombstone as well. Really like this place.  

Great Place!

1-17-2021 site 33. 
Talk about clean! This is by far the cleanest campsite I have stayed at. The camp host are really nice and really do care about the camps. 
Nice and quiet at night. Electric and water at the sites. And some cool Arizona fire rings. 
We weren’t able to go into the caves because of our small child but there is a hiking trail which was nice. 
Great weekend getaway. 
Site 33 is right next to the cabins so are kinda close to there fire pits when relaxing but all the other sites look perfect. 

Cleanest campsites ever! 

This State Park is an amazing place.  I’m lucky enough to live in Benson, AZ where it is located.  The Cavern tours (if you are lucky enough to get a reservation during COVID) are spectacular!  There is a short movie about the Caverns discovery back in the 60’s which is well done &amp; very informative.  The Rangers are knowledgeable &amp; the tours are wonderful.  The Discovery Center is well designed.  The Campground has around 60 sites &amp; the views of the surrounding mountains are incredible, especially at sunrise &amp; sunset.  There are a few pull through sites.  The bathrooms are very good clean (when opened due to COVID) &amp; the camp hosts friendly &amp; welcoming.  There are well marked trails for novice hikers &amp; more seasoned hikers.  Put this on your bucket list!  You won’t be disappointed!

Amazing State Park

Nice clean park, enjoyed the cave visit and took a few trail that run through the park.

Nice Park

We have been to the caverns several years ago did not know about the campground.  The camp sites are spready well apart which is nice, they are all paved and well set up and maintained.  The facilities were all great.  The hiking trails in the park were awesome providing adventures and scenery for all levels.  We used the park as a base while we toured the caverns and hiked in the park as well as to visit other nearby sites such as Sierra Vista, Bisbee, Tombstone and Benson.

Hidden gem in southern Arizona

Hiked the 4.1 mile trail with 4 and 2 year old. It was a 3 hour adventure that felt like 5 different bikes bc of all the different landscapes the trail takes you through. Truly one of best hikes I’ve ever done. Only negatives of campsite were the shower water pressure and the unlevel site we had. 

Great trails 

Stayed here in November of 2021 in a pop up camper. All the sites were full during my stay. Bathrooms and sites were all well taken care of. Camp hosts were very friendly but not intrusive. Fire wood was also available for sale. Definitely check out the caverns, you won’t be disappointed. You do need to purchase tickets ahead of time. 
There is plenty of hiking in the area too! 

Nice place

I love a campground that has hiking trails right there! The campgrounds wonderful… Showers are awesome. You just have to do the tour of the keys. It is a great spot you will not regret stopping here.

Sweet spot 

Super clean, sites are spacious and all with outstanding views. Very impressed with this park. The park does not allow you to come early to check in and that’s because they clean the sites, rack the gravel and make sure everything is pristine for your stay. Everything was outstanding. The showers were clean, the water was good and electric was stable. Each site had a fire pit and picnic table.

As others have said, it’s a dart sky park so the stars are popping out of the sky. 

There are bumper outs hikes to enjoy the scenery. All levels of exertion.  I highly recommend this gem of a park. 

Outstanding!!

Everything about this campground was great!  Lots of mesquite trees and prickly pears and birds.  Campground hosts were friendly and helpful.  The bathrooms and showers were clean and had plenty of hot water.  There are easy trails and more difficult trails for hiking.  

The caverns are definitely worth the tour and the nature center has some interesting exhibits.

Beautiful campground.  Tours available in the caverns.  

Generally quite, 830pm light discipline makes for a pleasant night sky viewing. Easy hiking near by. Large clean spaces and with RV slot. 

Great Night Sky

Each site is really big and everything is clean and well maintained.  Nearly all sites have electrical and water with a dump station located near the entrance.  Each site has a table and fire pit as well as shade from trees.  The park hosts the caverns and cave tours and a museum about the area.  We are headed on a cave tour today!  Nice trails surround the park and clearly marked for either hiking, bike or equestrian.  

Lovely, spacious and great facilities 

The camp sites are large, offer electric and water. You dump your gray and black at a location just outside of the camp area for free. Lightly shaded. There are picnic benches and fire pits at each site. You can easily walk to the cavern discovery center. There is ample area for little ones to ride bikes or play. Pretty views of the surrounding hills. There are clean restrooms. The stars at night are beautiful!  

Very nice place

We stayed here for 5 nights at the end of March, 2023. The campground has paved roads, showers, dump station, water &amp; electric hookups and the usual campsite set-up.

Three trails are located within the park. The campground itself is large, sites somewhat spaced apart and the grounds have a lot of stubby trees which were leafless when we were there.

A large visitor center is near the park entrance and the cavern is up the hill behind the center. We reserved and did the Rotunda/Throne Tour. It was very cool and our 1st cave tour. I would suggest reading the rules for tours before reserving. Access to the cavern is very controlled as far as how you get in and what you can take. There's quite a story about how this park came into being.

The location of the park allows quick access to the I-10 and the town of Benson, about 12 miles away. Other interesting sights are within an hour or so of the park.