Best Dog-Friendly Camping near Pinetop-Lakeside, AZ

We're frequent campers, and this is one of our favorite spots in AZ! 

The tent-only campground is small, but the sites are large and have multiple great clearings for tents. Lots of shade and easy paths for walking around the grounds, plus there's potable water at several sites. Central bathrooms with running water are kept very clean, plus there's trash service and a (very friendly) camp host if you need anything.

Directly across a small road from Big Lake and the boat ramp. There are several places to go right down to the shore, and it's only a 5-6 minute walk along the road to the general store and boat rental area, where there's also a fish cleaning station. Brookchar is just down the road from the giant Rainbow Lake, so you'll hear some RVs and ATVs on the road, but very minimal. 

We camped in site 12, which in our opinion is the best! Closest to the lake with water views, plus parking right outside your site for 2 vehicles (other sites, you park in a main lot). Bring your fishing gear and kayak/SUP (can also rent very reasonably)!

Over Memorial Day weekend, we saw highs close to 80 and lows in the high 30s/low 40s. Only sprinkled once!

It's also just an hour from Pinetop-Lakeside, so it's easy to make grocery stops or even grab a coffee (try Pinetop Coffee House + Roasters right on the highway!) on your way in/out.

Los Burros was a beautiful little spot, tucked away in the pines near Pinetop-Lakeside, AZ. There are at least two camping spots that include a fenced in area for your horses to stay. There is a trailhead right in the campground (Los Burros Trail) that is moderate/easy and perfect for an afternoon or morning hike. There was cattle in the fields just about 1/2 a mile up the trail, but they didn't seem to mind the hikers/mountain bikers. Free range horses were in the fields across from the campground when we stayed and they paid us a visit during breakfast - they seemed to be well acquainted with people and were not scared to come right up to our truck and our tent, but they were easily scared away by tossing a few small rocks around where they were. Each campsite is complete with a fire ring with a grill cover. Overnight the site was very quiet, which was surprising because the campground was full - it seemed like most people staying here were planning on staying more than 2 or 3 nights and were pro-campers.

Horseshoe cienega lake and campground is located off the 260 about 45 minutes east of Pinetop-Lakeside. First impressions: wow! The lake in and of itself is beautiful and very similar to the other small mountain lakes in this area. It is visible right off the road. Fishing and kayaking is available here but you have to buy a special fishing permit for the White Mountain Apache Tribe.

The campground is open between May and October. No reservations, first come first serve. We stayed in a large group over Fourth of July week and of course this place was packed. That said, the sites were still far enough away to have some privacy.

The campground sits between the lake on the north and a spectacular cliff with a river running at the bottom on the south end. This was an awesome view! The river is accessible and you can hike down to it.

This is just a simple campground, no hookups, with amazing views! I would love to go back again not on a holiday weekend!

This is really a Park Model Resort that has about 25% of their sites set aside for RVs. The RV sites are scattered throughout the park but they have tried to group them together as much as possible. The sites are pretty level, really wide, and fairly deep. There is a concrete patio with each site. Sites are covered in cinders which are a bit of a pain. They present a somewhat soft surface which is like walking in about 6 inches of soft sand. Almost all the sites have a tree planted right at the front next to the road. Some of the trees are a bit wide which really makes getting into the site difficult. Even though the sites are wide the RV parking area is between the patio and the sewer connection which is about 11ft wide. When you combine that with landscaping and patio covers on some of the park models and getting in some sites can be real challenging for a larger rig. We have a 40ft motorhome and have been to this park probably 8 times. So far we have made it in and out but with some new scratches and a bit of maneuvering. Cell service is pretty bad here. We have Verizon cell phones which usually worked for phone service but sometimes cut out. We have Verizon and AT&T hotspots. AT&T worked the best but not fast enough to stream anything most of the time. There is Wi-Fi offered for a fee but we have not tried that. They also offer cable TV which I believe is free. They have a couple of dog parks, nice common areas, laundry, and a small gym. They have some other clubs and activity rooms but all of those have been closed due to Covid.

I have been coming up to the White Mountains since I was a kid. Rainbow campground has been our go-to spot for camping. There are 3 loops that are FCFS. The rest of the sites are reservations. The sites all have picnic tables and fire rings. There are full bathrooms throughout the area and pay showers when is not covid. Big lake is a short drive from the campground, where you can rent a boat, fish from shore and a small store with supplies. There is always wildlife around, especially skunks, so watch your pets. The sites are laid at where you don't feel like you are right on top of your neighbor. None of the sites in Rainbow have hook-ups, bit there is a dump station down the road. There is another campground for full hook-ups down the way.

Probably the most beautiful campground in Arizona. Just outside Show Low, in the eastern part of the state, you are nestled in the pine & juniper of the region. Despite being in the middle of a developed area, once in the park, you feel appropriately isolated. We were at a reserved tent site (Osprey 12). All tent sites overlook the lake & a couple of them even have creeks running through them after rain. Visited family on a full hookup site & while the pads are huge, it seemed like you were more exposed to your neighbors. The tent loops all have access to a vault toilet & the middle loop has showers as well (the other loops are still walking distance from showers). There are several day use areas & boat ramps to the lake. Saw (& heard) many different birds & animals. Can't wait to go back.