Best Cabin Camping near Happy Jack, AZ

This place is huge! Nestled in the red rock country of Arizona, this Thousand Trails campground offers a scenic and tranquil escape. The sites are well-spaced, and the amenities include a pool, hot tub, 2 dog parks, hiking trails, river access and clubhouse. Its proximity to Sedona, Jerome and local wineries makes it an excellent choice for those seeking relaxation and exploration.

We love this campground! We have camped here around 5 times and always had a great stay. They have a pool and hot tub, mini golf, playground, pickle ball court, clubhouse, and lots of crafts and activities for the kids! The bathrooms and showers are very nice and clean too!

We have camped here three separate times for a month each time. It is beautifully landscaped and has large sites, some shaded. They have a great heated pool and hot tub. The staff is very friendly and there are activities every weekend. Within a 30 minute of Sedona which had some of the most awesome hikes ever!

We went over Thanksgiving and had a splendid time. The staff is super nice and awesome. There was so much to do from mini golf, painting classes, live music, dinners, karaoke, and free breakfast 3 days a week, hot tub and heated piol. There are lots of trees and it’s a great park to walk around. At the back you have the River you can walk around and you are surrounded with mountain views. Very dog friendly and they even have a dog park, and “office” dog. I would rebook here again we had such a lovely experience.

50amp sites a narrow and mostly taken by full timers so plan on using a 30 amp. site. they are all gravel sites with picnic tables and grill. ask of the grass sites. they are close to the pool and seem nicer. amenities are great-pool, hot tub, club house, mini golf, off leach dog area. only down fall was fire ants. with the lake of rain in the area they ants were all over. the river is nice a small hike from the camp. great fishing area we’d go back in the fall or spring to hot in the summer

This is a hidden gem Thousand Trails campground for us. So many amenities. The off leash dog park, pickleball court, and hot tub/pool are just a few to name that we use! On the weekends they have a wonderful food truck that also serves espresso drinks and fresh pressed juice! Bathrooms are clean and showers are pretty big. Full hookups at most sites as well! We have stayed in both the premium sites and the regular and have enjoyed both. Pool was closed this last visit for renovations but they say it should be open any day now!

We just stayed here this past weekend and we will definitely be back! This place is amazing! Nicer than most KOAs and similarly priced but with more stuff to do. There is a heated pool ( like actually heated) a hot tub, a cute playground, basketball half court, pickle ball courts, mini golf course, dog park, and a river nearby. On top of all they that have great activities available on the weekend like kids crafts, a movie night, live music and a nice campfire. Honestly this place is very well cared for and it shows. The staff were all very friendly, and public bathrooms were some of the nicest and cleanest I’ve ever seen! The even offered free breakfast on Sunday. Also they weren’t too close to the freeway ( we have a pop-up so we hear everything at night), but only a few minutes from gas stations and Starbucks as well as McDonalds and other fast food places.

Stayed here for two weeks. This campground is nestled behind some hills right next to the Verde River. It’s a beautiful setting with a huge variety of sites. There’s a mix of full timers and daily/weekly visitors. The entire staff is very friendly and helpful. I can’t say we met a bad neighbor either, and most were super nice people.

We stayed near the pool lodge. The pool and hot tub were very clean. There is a horseshoe pit, tennis courts, and basketball courts that didn’t seem to get much use. Still, nice to have for people staying longer term.

The only irritation I had was the speed limits. I understand the reasoning, but getting in and out of the park was a pain just because it took so long to drive 5-10 mph for 1-2 mile stretches. Most of that drive is through uninhabited areas, but I think Thousand Trails is just covering their rears for liability sake.

Oh, and internet is almost non-existent. I had a T-Mobile, AT&T, and Verizon phone, and all were pretty much worthless most of the time. We paid $15 for a week of WiFi, but ended up asking for a refund as it was even more unusable than our phones. Still, you can only ask so much from a campsite when it gets far enough off the grid.

So, overall a great experience, and would definitely love to stay there again in the future.

I've camped here twice, once solo in a tent and once in a cabin with my family and dog.

This facility is clean, quiet (depending on your site neighbors, of course), close to town, and has great amenities.

The tent sites had decent separation from each other with adequate shrubbery in between.

The cabin loop is wonderfully private from the rest of the park and a great getaway for anyone looking for some peace and quiet.

Bathrooms are well maintained, lots of trails, good fishing opportunities in the lagoons.

Absolutely will camp here again.

My goal was to find a nice tent spot nestled in between Cottonwood and Sedona, and along the Verde River for easy canoe access. Upon driving onto the property we were greeting by a very friendly gatekeeper who wished us a great stay and suggested spots for canoeing and exploring the area. 

We were happy to find that the resort had a lovely pool and jacuzzi, (perfect after a day of adventuring or traveling) warm, cozy bathrooms after sleeping in a tent site in 50 degrees, and large clean campsites, many of them with trees and many close enough to hear the Verde River water down below. Being unable to get to the river from our campsite was our only disappointment. We stayed in the "A" section, which has tent and pop-up spots around rows of their mini cabins and RV spots. We were initially worried about the noise from all of the RV's, being more of the backwoods camping sorts, but the entire place is very calm and quiet. 

A short walk across what the property will find you at Alcantara Winery. It was the perfect place to end our day of exploring the area. I'd certainly come back to the park in the future.

Outstanding one night stay at the DHR Cabins. The family had an awesome stay. Cabins right on the river, quiet and spread out enough. Walked and fished the river, so peaceful. Cleanest bathrooms I have ever been to at a campsite. Would suggest this to anyone, had a blast!

Ranger Review: Humangear at Dead Horse Ranch State Park

Campground Review

We had a great time at Dead Horse Ranch! We just moved to Arizona, so we went in with zero expectations and were very pleased with just about everything.

Just 2 days beforehand, we booked our cabin on the campground website, the official Arizona State Parks site. The process was seamless, and we even got to pick our specific cabin out at no extra cost or fuss. We even got a confirmation email with our cabin unlock code on it when we booked. So convenient!

When we arrived at the park, we were warmly greeted by the Ranger and given instructions on getting to the cabin and activities in the park. Our cabin was small but just what we needed. It has an air conditioner/heater, so what more could you want!

After settling in, we drove around and saw the park has a lovely fishing and paddling area. Sadly we didn’t bring our fishing gear or boat, so we will have to do that next time. But there are lots of covered picnic areas and shading trees along the water.

While there, we did three “hikes”. They have real hikes there, but we have a 5, 3 and 1 year old so we had to keep it mellow. But the nature walks they had were great for that age group and was just enough to not burn out the kids. One of the hikes, per suggestion of the ranger, leads down to a little lagoon of water stopped between two dams. The kids were able to splash and play there -- it was just perfect! We went there twice in the 24 hours we were at the park.

All in all, a wonderful experience. There is a lot to see and do at this park. My only criticism is the bathrooms for the cabins. They are just fine, but there are only 2 of them for 8 cabins. Instead of having a bathroom with stalls and showers, it is just two stalls total that include a toilet, urinal, sink, and shower in a big lockable room. Seemed like an odd choice. I had to wait to use the bathroom several times because of this, and only have the cabins were occupied.

Product Review

As a Ranger for The Dyrt, I get to test products. At Dead Horse Ranch, I tested a GoToob+, Flexibowl, and GoBites products from Humangear.

With the GoToob+, I decided to homemake a special hot dog sauce ahead of time and bring it to the campsite with me in the GoToob+. It worked perfectly! I especially love the new feature, called the LoopLock that slips up over the top of the cap as an extra security against leaks. When I have all my food packed for camping, the last thing I want to think about is leaking sticky sauce all over everything. Awesome feature.

Here is the recipe for the Sweet Campin’ Sauce:

• 1/2 tsp Onion powder
• 1/4 cup Honey
• 3/4 cup Ketchup
• 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 3/4 cup Brown sugar
• 1 tsp Cider vinegar

Mix all these together in a saucepan until all sugars are dissolved and ingredients are melted together. Allow to cool slightly and pour carefully into your GoToob+ and snap on the LoopLock. Throw into your camping cooler and enjoy some high-class dogs as you camp!

Here is a video I made to show you how: Ranger Review: https://youtu.be/Oj7enCSig5U

I also really loved the Flexibowl and GoBites utensils. The Flexibowl has a lip that can be flipped up or down, if you want more of a secure “bowl” or more of an open “cup”. I used it for homemade cole slaw.

The GoBites utensils came in really handy, especially the sharp knife! I needed to cut up hot dog into tiny pieces for my baby, and the knife did a great job. Also love the little toothpick included in the box -- shows a level of thougtfulness.

If you want any of these products, visit http://www.humangear.com/

We really enjoyed our stay. We had an end/corner spot, which felt very spacious. The landscaping was nice with grass between units and trees in some areas. Felt more like a park than packed in parking lot feel of others. We also really enjoyed the pool and jacuzzi.

The military side of this campground has studio cabins, 2 bedroom cabins, yurts, and even hotel rooms for rent in addition to tent spaces. There is a nice office with coffee and hot chocolate, a fireplace, movies to rent, and various sundries for sale. There are some great running/walking trails and even a small playground for the kids! When there is enough snow, there is a tube run that is so much fun!

We stayed here over Labor Day weekend 2019. We had a lot of fun and really enjoyed the most remote yurt, Morning Glory. Morning Glory has great views and several people (staff and other visitors on the trails) mentioned that Morning Glory is the best yurt to stay in since it is both remote and it has amazing views of the San Francisco Peaks. Additionally, Morning Glory is also placed in the middle of a field with a nearby bench which is also really nice and makes this particular yurt feel serene. Arizona Nordic Village, previously known as Flagstaff Nordic Center, has a lodge, front country cabins and yurts (which are all within a few hundred feet of the lodge and nearby the highway), as well as back country yurts that range 1-3 miles away from the lodge (Morning Glory is a back country yurt). For the back country, AZNV offers gear shuttles at an extra cost of $40. However we packed all of our belongings in since we were not staying for more than a few days. Yurts and cabins come with a battery operated light inside, a propane grill and stove next to the cabin, porta potty a few yards away, nearby picnic table, 2 twin sized sleeping mats, and 2-4 folding chairs (2 in small yurts; 4 in large yurts), a small trey table, and stove (and stove brush and pan to clean ash out), and a fire ring. From what I can tell they also give you some firewood and a 7-gallon jug of water to put out your fire. For an additional cost you can purchase additional wood, which I did since I was unaware they would supply some firewood, but we hardly used this since we did not require the stove in the cabin since the weather at night is in the 50’s. We did try the stove out and found that 4 pieces of wood heated the cabin up a considerable amount within the span of a few minutes. After booking you get a confirmation email with details for your trip. The day of check in I got a courtesy call and was told I could stop in the lodge at check in for a nap and more info. The staff we encountered were all super friendly. We were told there is a black bear that roams the area but we did not see it and heard the bear usually does not make its way up to Morning Glory. Additionally, while vehicle are not allowed in the Forrest, Morning Glory is near a Forrest fire road which had some vehicles on it; I’m not sure that this is common— may have been due to the long holiday weekend. Additionally, I believe AZNV has one or two trucks and ATVs they use to help transport gear. Overall, I had fun and would go back. I don’t love paying for camping (We usually do free dispersed camping and pitch a tent), however this area is fun enough I would go back. The yurt experience was on par for what we are used to when it comes to camping, but it was nice not having to pitch a tent, blow up an air mattress, etc. Lastly, they do haul out your trash for you. I do recommend bringing baby wipes since the trails are dusty, and a headlamp for at night.

Cell service: I have Verizon and had four bars at the Morning Glory yurt and service at the lodge— however, service between the two was spotty.