Best Glamping near Kearny, AZ

Recent Glamping Reviews near Kearny, Arizona

160 Reviews of 9 Kearny Campgrounds

• 

  christian N.

  Scout

  

  Nov. 11, 2017

  Lost Dutchman State Park Campground

  Great

  Lost Dutchman is one of the best campsites to wake up in. One of my favorite trails in Arizona.

• 

  Debbie W.

  Scout

  

  Apr. 9, 2019

  Lost Dutchman State Park Campground

  Great View, Great Trails

  This is one of many outstanding Arizona State Parks. Sites are clean and most level with mix of electric and non electric. Suggest you make reservations well ahead for busy winter months!

• 

  Lisa S.

  Ranger

  

  Dec. 15, 2020

  Lost Dutchman State Park Campground

  Great Hiking

  Arizona State Park campgrounds are generally developed to maximize profit at the cost of minimizing camper experience. Lost Dutchman offers one bath house to service five or six loops of campsites piled one on top of the other. Because there are so many sites, the campground is managed like a military operation with untold Numbers of rules and regulations to understand and follow. If you fail to follow, a Ranger will be by to repremand and straighten you out. Coyoties are bold here and will enter your camp even if barking dogs attempt to deter. I reserved four nights but left after two. Tortilla Flat SP up in the Superstition Mountains NEAR Canyon Lake or BLM/National Forest dispersed camping is tmore to my liking.

• 

  D Scott D.

  Traveler

  

  Oct. 11, 2023

  Spencer Canyon Campground

  Somewhat crowded

  I spent my late-September camping weekend at Spencer Canyon Campground in the Santa Catalina Mountains near Tucson, Arizona. Overall it was an ok experience, but I’m kind of nitpicky. The campsites are a little too close together for my taste. There was some noise at night, but for the most part folks were well-behaved during my 2-day stay. There is a nice view of the Tucson city lights at night, although I tend to want to avoid such things while camping because it takes me out of the experience. The staff was friendly and helpful. The site that I had was pretty small, but I came too late to get choice of the bigger ones.

  For those who don’t mind a somewhat tightly packed campground and a view of sparkly city lights at night, Spencer Canyon is a nice place to stay.

• 

  Alejandro D.

  Scout

  

  Apr. 25, 2021

  Windy Hill Campground

  50/50

  For every good thing there was a bad. We stayed at Coyote Loop. You can’t fish from the shore because all the dead trees that go out about 10 feet along the entire shore (awesome if you have a boat; I guess). I expected lots of generators and the sound that it makes, myself included. I didn’t expect three campsites to be taken up by the same group of people and here F-bombs all night till 10 o’clock. Then people turn high power lamps on you and everyone for long periods of time because they can afford expensive toys but not a simple flashlight. It was peaceful at 10:00pm and we could hear the lake wildlife. Maybe not a good place to take children. There seem to be one super secret place to dump your trailer water, grey & black. While you can dump there for free; you cannot find it without a treasure map, a devining rod, and a map of the stars. Don’t bother asking the site Camp Host because his directions were equally as cryptic; if you can find them at all. I and to wait to get home and map it so here it is:

  PQJV+2J Tonto Basin, Arizona

• 

  Dray S.

  Guide

  

  Sep. 8, 2019

  Spencer Canyon Campground

  Great, easy getaway if you don't mind company

  Spencer Canyon Campground is a nice campground approx. 20 miles from Tucson up the General Hitchcock Highway(often called the Catalina Highway or Mt. Lemmon Highway). It is located approximately 3 miles past the Palisades Visitor Center and the entrance is marked well by a big brown sign as you approach. Phill and Denise, the friendly campsite managers will give you advice and suggestions about campsites that suite your needs. The photos attached to this review are from campsite#6, which is close to the Phill& Denise’s camper location and the highway- yes, we did hear road noise. Most campers chose locations deeper in the campground, but we were there on a busy weekend so most of those“deeper” campsites were occupied. All sites have a large bear box, concrete picnic table, charcoal grill and an iron fire pit. The picnic area of the site is level but the whole campsite is NOT so pick your location carefully if you want to pitch your tent on a flat, level plot. We did find some firewood left over from prior campers but recommend bringing your own, dry wood if you have room in your rig. In my observation, there is a rather nice, vessel toilet house strategically located to serve 6- 7 campsites. There is also a water faucet to be shared by 6- 7 campsites. Campsite#6 has its own faucet so others might also. There are 60+ campsites throughout Spencer Canyon and I would suggest that those“deeper” in the campground are more desirable. It should be noted that most of the campsites are close together, that is, about 50-75 feet apart, hence, my“... if you don’t mind company” comment. It should also be noted that Phill& Denise are really nice and helpful, the campsites are well maintained and clean, it is only 22 miles from Tucson and less than 6 miles from the mountaintop hamlet of Summerhaven, and is situated at approximately 7,900 fee of elevation. Thus, Spencer Canyon Campground is a great getaway from the Arizona heat and close enough to Tucson for a 1- 2 night weekend.

• 

  Eli S.

  Traveler

  

  May. 31, 2022

  Upper Pinal Campground

  Upper Pinal campground

  Me and thefamily decided to go camping for the weekend and chose this campground. On the website it says that the road is good enough for sedan vehicle which is true in good conditions. If you're afraid of heights this might not be the drive you want to take as most of the way you are looking off the side of the mountain with no rails.

  It is all worth it once you make it to the to top. Unfortunately with the fire restrictions we weren't able to light a fire and the hiking trails were closed. Please keep in mind that you are at elevation and temperatures drop significantly. We stayed at campsite 1 which seemed to be the biggest of the 3 sites there. We didn't have any neighbors the whole weekend but I can see this place getting busy.

• 

  Krista Z.

  Legend

  

  Apr. 2, 2018

  Upper Pinal Campground

  Ranger Review: Renogy E.LUMEN Multi-functional Flashlight at Upper Pinal Campground

  Campground Review

  Upper Pinal campground is tiny. I’m not even kidding you… tiny. There are literally 3 campsites surrounding a 100 foot wide dirt turnaround in the center. The campground does not take reservations so it’s a long way to drive with a good chance you won’t find an open site. However, if you’re lucky enough to get one of the spaces you may really enjoy it. To the South is Unit 1 (where we stayed) and it’s an uphill driveway with a raised area with a fire pit and metal picnic table. If you have a small tent you can camp on the elevated area near the table and fire pit but otherwise you do have room to back in a small pop up trailer (beware, it is a curved driveway so if you aren’t comfortable backing up a trailer I wouldn’t suggest it). The site is almost completely surrounded by very tall trees which blocked both most of the morning and afternoon sun.

  The East side of the circle is Unit 2. This is right on the edge of the circle and could be easily pulled right up to. The downside to that is that there is little to no privacy for that camp unit. It also has a fire pit and picnic table.

  The North side has another campsite with a smaller (and straighter) uphill driveway. You wouldn’t be able to put a trailer facing towards the fire but you likely could camp with a small pop up in this unit and park lower down the driveway.

  The West side of the circle had the single unit unisex bathroom building. It was really clean and well stocked with toilet paper (but another camper one of the nights we were there decided it was a smoking room, yuck).

  The entire area had a lot of downed and broken trees for firewood. We could have easily supplied our fire all weekend with just broken pieces but we had a small handsaw so we were able to cut slightly larger logs from fallen trees.

  The only other thing I’d touch on is the road to get to the campground. I wouldn’t suggest trying to travel up without decent ground clearance. There was a bit of wash boarding and obvious ruts in the road from where the road was traveled when muddy. We have gone through that area in snow/slosh and I wouldn’t even want to travel that road without 4 wheel drive in that situation. Know your vehicle and your driving skills!

  Product Review

  As a Ranger for The Dyrt, I get products to test from time to time – on this trip I tested the Renogy E.LUMEN Multi-functional Flashlight. Upon opening the box I noticed the flashlight was much larger than I had anticipated. As such, I don’t think it would be ideal for everyday carry. However, it does have quite a few really neat features and I think it would be a great addition to any bug-out bag. Of course, my curiosity got the better of me and I was dying to test the seat belt cutter (because I’d rather know how it’s going to work before my life depends on it). Luckily, I had the belt from an expired car seat and decided that would be the perfect test subject. I angled the belt over my chest where a shoulder strap would sit and it was hard to get it to cut all the way through. It took a few tries and a lot of strength but it did make it through. I could imagine that while a knife may cut through it easier in a panic situation I’d hate to end up accidentally stabbing myself using a knife instead of the safety guided blade on this flashlight. To see the full video check out the YouTube video here: https://youtu.be/xWqkgSS7iEs

  In addition to the belt cutter the flashlight can be solar charged and has a USB out so you can charge other devices. If you plan to use the solar charger the manual says it can take up to 30 hours for a full charge. Thankfully, there is also a USB charging option to cut that charging time into around 6 hours. Depending on use you’ll get anywhere from 3-7 hours of use from each charge. The light itself is very bright but of course using the brightest setting will put you towards the lower end of the usable time at around 3 hours.

  The flashlight also boasts a compass on the bottom of the handle. We tested this a few times and it seemed to be completely inaccurate against 3 other compasses we had. I was able to true it up a bit by running a magnet along the needle a few times but that seemed to be a temporary solution. My 2 cents is that I would not trust this compass as a first choice.

  The last thing I wanted to touch on was the magnet on the side of the flashlight they state is for mounting and storage. When I tried to hang my flashlight on my metal fridge it buckled under its own weight slamming on the ground and breaking one of the plastic clips for the wrist strap. It will not support itself in ideal situations and definitely will not support its weight in a violent car accident. If you choose to put this in your car it will need to be secured by some other means.

  So overall, would I buy it again… yes. For the price you can beat the peace of mind knowing that if you were to get lost in the woods you’d have a way to charge your phone to call for help and have a light source if necessary.

• 

  Michael L.

  Guide

  

  Jul. 25, 2019

  Upper Pinal Campground

  Very secluded and awesome

  The trip to the top of pinal Mountains is a journey,  very cool and beautiful scenic views,  the road is not the best, especially if you don't have a higher clearance vehicle. 

  Overall it is Awesome,  took an hour from Globe to the campground because speed is minimal.

• 

  Thomas P.

  Traveler

  

  Feb. 8, 2021

  Pioneer Pass Campground

  Be careful in the Winter months .

  Probably beautiful. Had to turn around and drive all the way back. Do not go unless you have a 4x4 or are positive about the condition at the top. It was 67° in Globe this day. I have an E350 dually and I was sliding. I turned around at the sign. Was told several people in cars and trucks were stuck from a guy coming down.

  I did find "1" campsite on the way down. Sky was amazing at night. Good luck.

• 

  Ryan D.

  Traveler

  

  Sep. 2, 2024

  Pioneer Pass Campground

  Great place for a quiet night amongst the pines while you explore the Pinal Mountains

  The campground is nestled in a secluded canyon amongst the Ponderosa Pines and next to an intermittent mountain stream. The views on the drive up from Globe to the campground at 5,900 feet are gorgeous.

  The campground and bathrooms were clean. Some of the sites are a little close together, but others are nicely separated.

  Each site has a nice fire pit with a grill gate and a concrete picnic table.

• 

  Krista Z.

  Legend

  

  Apr. 8, 2018

  Pioneer Pass Campground

  Ranger Review: Midland LXT500VP3 (Up to 24 Mile Two-Way Radios) at Pioneer Pass Campground

  Campground Review

  I love that there is a free campground in the pines less than 2 hours from the valley. However, I don’t love the way this campground is laid out. All of the campsites are accessed from a one lane dirt road with a lot of blind corners. The forestry service states that there are 23 sites available in this campground. After being there and looking through the campgrounds I’d say this is more like half a dozen to ten areas that can accommodate 2-6 “sites” each. At least 3 of the sites are immediately off the main road and one of the fire pits is less than 10 feet from the road. About half of the sites are walk-in access only.

  We stayed in site 22 which could be driven in to with a small trailer and while looking for firewood realized that site 23 was actually 50 feet uphill directly behind us with no access other than walking directly through our site. Site 22 had a concrete picnic table that showed a lot of deterioration around the edges (so much so that some of the rebar support in the center was clearly visible) and a grill that had been bent and torn off of the metal fire ring. All of the sites are no more than a quarter of a mile from a bathroom building. The bathrooms were stocked with toilet paper but weren’t the cleanest bathrooms I’ve ever seen. There are a lot of downed trees on the sides of the roads and near the campsites. If you foraged for sticks you’d likely find enough already cut to size to last during your trip. If you have a chainsaw or hand saw you could easily have more than enough wood.

  Roughly sites 15 through 21 were located near a small parking lot and all walk in sites. They all shared a large open area in the center. If you tried to setup a trailer in the parking lot the closest fire pit would be 40 or so feet away. I didn’t take specific notes on all of the clustered units but every place we pulled in to seemed to have one access point and multiple tent spaces with fire pits and picnic tables very huddled together. I wouldn’t want to be in such close proximity to a complete stranger but they would be really great for groups.

  The only other thing I’d touch on is the road to get to the campground. I wouldn’t suggest trying to travel up without decent ground clearance. There was a bit of wash boarding and obvious ruts in the road from where the road was traveled when muddy. We have gone through that area in snow/slosh and I wouldn’t even want to travel that road without 4 wheel drive in that situation. Know your vehicle and your driving skills!

  Product Review

  As a Ranger for The Dyrt, I get products to test from time to time – on this trip I tested the Midland LXT500VP3 (Up to 24 Mile Two-Way Radios). The radio itself is a good size and sits comfortably in the hand. The antenna sits about 2 inches taller than the unit and is hard plastic. There are removable belt clips for each handheld unit. The top of the belt clips stick out from the back of the unit about half an inch as if they were hinged but they are in fact not hinged and therefor just push into whatever it is clipped to. The main button you use to transmit is textured and made of an easily gripped rubber so it made talking very easy. The LCD screen is not backlit and when turned on displays only the channel being used (until the battery is low then it has a low battery indicator). The handheld units were easy to control with clearly marked buttons on the front.

  The set comes with a rechargeable battery for each handheld unit and a desktop charger. The desktop charging unit is small and light with red indicator lights to show when the units are charging. The desktop charger will charge both radios at once or you can use the power cord to charge one unit independently. The radios are supposed to be charged 12 hours for a complete charge. If you will not have access to an AC plug you can purchase the additional cable to allow these to charge via the cigarette lighter in a vehicle.

  Channels 8 through 14 are low power channels. We tried these radios in town, on the highway, and in camp using these channels and at best only had a mile of range. However, when we did have enough signal to make contact the voices were very clear and easily heard. We were able to use the low power channels to drive through the campground with a lead car looking for a campsite while the truck/trailer were parked near the entrance to avoid getting stuck somewhere that we could not turnaround. We also used them on the low power channels around camp when going for walks or to the bathrooms.

  Channels 1-7 and 15-22 are high power channels. We tried these in town (suburban area, no extremely tall buildings or geographical features… just houses) and easily got another half mile of range above the low power channels (somewhere around a mile and a half total). The voices normally came through very clear unless we were near overhead power lines in which case they had static interference. We also noticed that if I was near the end of the range of the radios and in a car I was able to receive transmissions but unable to send them.

  Overall, these radios seem to be pretty tough and easy to use with a decent amount of range. For the price they could be great for kids getting into radios, for use around a larger property/park area, between vehicles in a caravan, or around camp.

• 

  Michael L.

  Guide

  

  Sep. 14, 2019

  Pioneer Pass Campground

  Different but nice!!!

  This place is a little easier to get to than upper pinal, which is just on the other side of Pinal Mountains. This campground was set up kinda weird, but worked out good. I would definitely recommend trying this one out, and I will definitely go back. Bathrooms were clean and sites were pretty roomy for our teardrop.. Only 1 bar of cell service for At&t. But overall a great time here.

• 

  Jess B.

  Scout

  

  Oct. 4, 2019

  Pioneer Pass Campground

  Real Mountain Top View

  This campground is Free. There are 17-21 sites dispersed & in groups that include cement picnic tables, metal ring fire pits, and some sites also have Bear Boxes. There are 3-4 outhouses, no running water or amenities. To get there from Globe it’s 7 miles of dirt one lane switchbacks on the side of the mountain. I have seen campers before but it is not very easy to get up there with them. There are bears and other wildlife. Even have seen a tarantula (pictured). Like many state land out here they have cattle loose and they do travel the road up the mountain so keep that in mind.

• C

  Cindy S.

  Scout

  

  Nov. 30, 2019

  Pioneer Pass Campground

  I loved it but.....

  Quiet off the beaten path place.   Switchbacks most of the way up to the area.  Wouldn’t advise a “big” rig. But once there and settled in loved it!

• R

  Ron C.

  Scout

  

  Apr. 25, 2020

  Pioneer Pass Campground

  My favorite place in the whole wide world

  I have been going up there most Of my lifeThat is my favorite place in the whole wide world

• 

  Matthew H.

  Traveler

  

  Feb. 13, 2020

  Picacho-Tucson NW KOA

  1st Time at a KOA....

  This was the first time we have ever been to a KOA as we have never owned a trailer until now. This place had a very friendly staff and the new own is on sight and working to make it even better. Our stay was 3 days, 2 Night and we enjoyed the weekend. Clean all around, heated pool, very kid friendly. The only down side and the reason for not get 5 stars is you can hear the Highway Traffic and Trains all night long.

• 

  Rae M.

  Guide

  

  Feb. 22, 2020

  Picacho-Tucson NW KOA

  Very clean and friendly staff

  We tent camped here one night. We’ve stayed at a lot of KOAs across the country and this is the cleanest one I’ve ever been to. Excellent facilities- laundry, bathrooms, pool area, dog run, and clear tent spots. Staff was so helpful and the camp store was well stocked. 10 minutes from Picacho Peak hiking and don’t miss the Ostrich Ranch!

• E

  Elisa

  Traveler

  

  Oct. 11, 2020

  Picacho-Tucson NW KOA

  Great hosts - nice level sites

  The Picacho/Tucson NW KOA was the first place we camped at when we purchased our Bunkhouse motorcycle tent trailer.  We wanted to stay close to home in case something didn't work on our camper.

  The KOA is clean and the hosts were great.  The sites are well spaced but could be a little bigger for more privacy.  The sites are made of small gravel and very level.  No roots, rocks, stumps, etc.  There is a picnic table, water spigot, electrical hookup and BBQ grill at each site, in addition to a fire ring.  Bathrooms are clean and there is a small camp store.  There is a doggie run in the park as well as a pool and playground for the kids.

  When we stayed, the new hosts had just purchased the KOA a few months earlier and they were working on improving it.  We stayed there in late 2019 (before COVID).

  The only reason I gave this KOA 3 stars instead of 5 is because of the loud traffic noise from the freeway.  There is literally no peace or ability to sleep during the night (in a tent camper).  Perhaps in a solid sided RV, it would be great, but we didn't get a wink.  I even slept with earplugs in and I could still hear the noise.

  I will not be returning to this KOA, but sure wish I could because it was really nice and clean.

• 

  Geoffrey Y.

  Traveler

  

  Nov. 23, 2020

  Picacho-Tucson NW KOA

  Great location, well managed

  Close enough to Tucson and areas south and an easy one to access from I-10. Clean and very well managed by cool new owners. Fabulous locally made pickled beets and eggs if not sold out. Super friendly hosts.

• R

  Ron N.

  Scout

  

  Apr. 17, 2021

  Picacho-Tucson NW KOA

  Stopped for the night

  Couldn’t drive any longer so used my KOA app on the road and booked it. Pulled in after hours and folder was waiting with map and site number. Very convenient to the I-10 with big gas stations nearby for coffee and gas for early exit. Full hook ups, easy pull through and well marked sites. Would use again if needed.

• C

  Christie N.

  Traveler

  

  Oct. 12, 2021

  Picacho-Tucson NW KOA

  Great place to RV and tent camp

  Very clean. Loved the designated tent area. Everything was in great condition and the staff were extremely friendly and helpful.

• 

  Jeffrey P.

  Guide

  

  Nov. 25, 2021

  Picacho-Tucson NW KOA

  This was ok.

  Clean camp with full hookups. We stayed here to get away and visit Rooster Cogburns Ostrich farm. That was fun.

• 

  Allison

  Scout

  

  Mar. 17, 2022

  Picacho-Tucson NW KOA

  Clean, but loud

  Not a bad place to stay, but wouldn’t stay here again.

• S

  Sophia

  Guide

  

  Nov. 4, 2022

  Picacho-Tucson NW KOA

  Desert Beauty

  So many beautiful desert plants, some Saguaros, Yuca, Agave… Really lovely, clean KOA with awesome wifi. It was pretty quiet at the time we camped here so that was nice. Spacious spots with a little Ranch with a couple of horses nearby.

• 

  John R.

  Scout

  

  Nov. 25, 2022

  Picacho-Tucson NW KOA

  Cool place

  Cool place, great staff.

• M

  Meagan B.

  Scout

  

  Jan. 2, 2023

  Picacho-Tucson NW KOA

  Perfect stop over

  Stay for a couple nights on the way up from Tucson. It was perfect and quiet except the trains which is not the fault of the facility. The laundry was perfect although busy and a little small. Over all was a nice experience and cannot wait to come back.