Best Glamping near Sonoita, AZ

When spending time on the road many times you will find campsite after campsite that is welcoming but not quite like home away from home. But when you drive through Tucson, there is a mecca filled with winter bird campers and long term campers which create a home away from home.

With only tent sites available on the facility, we were fortunate to find a site, however when we arrived we were so excited by the facilities we extended our stay by a day.

Office staff immediately greeted us and let us know about the facilities, which happened to feature a mini golf course, an indoor events facility, 2 swimming pools and hot tubs, an indoor recreation area and multiple on camp fire chinineas. In addition there was a fishing pond and dog park area.

Each of the 4 campsites were considered to be regular campsites instead of upgrade sites but when we arrived it was the most delux sites we had encountered along the way.

Pad sites were large and the first to actually accommodate our large tent and the ground was u like any we had seen before at a site. The soft mulch was similar to that of a modern day playground and made for a much more comfortable sleep over the two days we were there.

In addition to the standard picnic table of most facilities, this campground offered a kitchen facility at each campsite including a large copper sink and food storage as well as electricity and overhead lighting in the pergola designed to allow shade from the harsh Arizona sun.

It was the closest thing to glamping we had encountered by far!

Then as an added bonus, fresh fruit trees abounded ready for the picking. The front desk informed us of the allowance to pick what you want as everything was in season! An amazing treat on the road!

We spent many hours at the pool facility, enjoyed amazing neighbors, used the wifi and even did a load of laundry while in Tucson. The facility really was like a home away from home on the road.

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If the scale went higher we would rank it more Bunnies. There were no real areas we could see for improvement. Staff was very accommodating, long term and short term residents of the facility were amazing and this was a desert oasis like no other!

We visited for our first time for 3 nights and campground was full. Even so, we were surprised how quiet it was. Lots of day use spots if you want to picnic by the lake under trees. Camp sites are sparse (table & fire pit) but we didn't feel as tightly packed as those areas down by the beach. Nice trail out to Sonoita Creek. Store was well stocked and husband even found shaving cream with razor there. Marina has canoes for rent ($35 for 2 hours, with specials for Vets on Mondays and Seniors on Wednesday); 2-person kayaks also for rent (same price); and pontoon boats and row boats (didn't get prices). I got a good 3-mile walk in every morning just walking around campground and out to Marina and day use areas. Also nice that lake has no wake zone near campground and boats can go faster on furthest away part of the lake. You definitely need to bring something to use on the lake or take advantage if marina rentals!

Most sites have a lake view. Seems like Arizona takes good care of her parks. Lots to do in the area.

The State of Arizona has done it again with the Kartchner State Park. The Campiste is beautiful in a way only the desert can be and Kartchner Caverns is breathtaking. Recommend making reservations to ensure you get a long enough spot and get a spot in a tour of the caverns.

Camp host was friendly and helpful. Bathrooms were clean and worked well. Nice that the trailheads are just a few min walk from the campgrounds. The foothills loop is easy and takes you all around the area without being too challenging. Incredible stargazing experience- no lights after 8pm I believe and Kartchner Caverns State Park is a designated dark sky park by the International Dark Sky Association. Glad to live only an hour away from this Arizona State Park.

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.

-This was a great little spot! There is no light pollution besides maybe a neighbor that forgot to turn off their lights. -Kartchner Cave is walking distance with a great observation center even if you don’t take a tour into the caves. -Couple stores within 20miles for any forgotten items. -Spots a very large and spaced well. -Restrooms/showers well maintained *Shower water pressure is less than desired. -Visited Tombstone, AZ as well. About a 30min drive. **Watch your step, we came across a Diamond Back Rattle Snake about 4 feet from our picnic bench. ***It’s Arizona, summer times will be hot, our temp in June was 108.

We stayed here once in March of 2020. Must have Spring Break - tons of families, tons of kids, dogs and a few old timers. There's a couple short hikes from the campground that were OK. Lots of birds, saw a couple javelinas. 

There's some boat rentals and a small visitor center/general store. We had water and electric at our site. Sites can be pretty close together with boundaries undefined. Shore of the lake difficult to get to in places because of thick vegetation. East CG is maybe a little less busy than the west.

Lots of places to explore nearby - Tubac, Madera Canyon, the Town of Patagonia, Ramsey Canyon near Sierra Vista, which is a good place to resupply and other more far flung places like Tombstone.

It was to have a lake by the campground which is a little unusual in Arizona. The land is different than the Sonoran desert of Tucson but still cool. We probably wouldn't go back unless it was offseason.

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!

This has been our least favorite campsite in the Arizona State Park system so far in our travels. We shortened our trip and headed home early because it just wasn’t for us. I’ve listed pros and cons below, but to give you an idea of our camping style, we are a family with young children and a dog. We head out in our 24ft trailer at least once a month for a long weekend totally immersed in nature.

Pros: -Close to Tucson -beautiful drive (topography and scenery) -although we didn’t partake due to covid there is a nature center & gift shop, market, boat rentals, and a ranger stations -primitive cabins with a great view -water and electric and on site dump station -bird viewing seemed awesome if that’s your thing. We aren’t birders, but thoroughly enjoyed the variety of birds in this area. -Junior Ranger program with fun prizes... posters and wooden badges. Although the rangers didn’t seem interested in engaging with the kids and just tossed them the prizes.

Cons: -the campground was not clean at all. Dog poop was everywhere and litter was strewn all over the campground. Our site alone was full of bits of broken plastic, paper, dog poop, and cigarette buds. It was disheartening that neither the rangers nor the campers take pride in this campground. We did our best to leave our site much cleaner than we found it. -while the sites are more spacious than an RV park, they are not as spacious as nearby karchner or roper lake. There is not any privacy. -many sites are not level. Our parking spot was level but nothing else. Leaving us without a great spot to put our chairs and table. -the traffic is non stop. Even up until midnight we had trucks driving through the campground. (This may have been campers or Border Patrol as we saw them driving through every couple of hours) -there is a lot of day use foot traffic through the campground. Between that and full campsites, we didn’t particularly feel safe outside of our campsite in terms of covid. Very few were wearing masks in congested areas.

With that being said, we will not be returning to this campground.

Fun place to spend a couple nights :) The camping area seems designed with RV campers in mind, but tent camping is possible as well. I would say the sites a a bit close together for my taste, but still manageable. Site #16 treated us well! The amenities were very nice and clean! A nice feature is the lake and boat rental within the park. Bird watching is very popular here we learned as we talked to others at the park. (There are also a few boat in camping site, which seems like it would be a fun adventure! We did not explore this on our visit.)

Campsite is o.k. Not the best especially because it was specifically designed for RV. They do provide water and other essentials

Campground was packed! Despite being crowded, it was quiet. Facilities are very clean and well maintained. Park rangers were driving through regularly, which was nice to see. Camp sites are well cared for.

Lovely blue water that makes an oasis of green around its edges with rolling hills. Various water activities (rentals on-site), swimming, and fishing are popular. Nice easy trails on site and many choices in other nearby state and federal lands. Great birding, check the migration schedules. Lots of neat wildlife including little lizards. Incredible stargazing. Find any hole-in-the-wall Mexican restaurant in the area for some of the best food of your life.

There are a lot of camping options, from backcountry/primitive to RV hookup. Make a reservation if you can. Varying shade. Good basic amenities and very clean (like all AZ State Park sites I've visited). Not too crowded for camping but the day-use water areas can get pretty hectic. Overall a lovely site that's a nice lush change of pace from the AZ desert.

Very nice lake and trials. Birds are abundant. ample room in the rv spots

Pleasant

Patagonia Lake Campground is well maintained. Very busy in the Winter months so you must make reservations well in advance. The visitor center is great if you have children, they have all kinds of activities for kids, and a junior ranger program. The RV spots are full hookups no sewer but there is dump station there on the premises. They have tent camping right by the lake as well. Cabins will be completed in October 2018. Staff very friendly and the grounds are well maintained. One of our favorites.

This campsite is well maintained but very, very busy! There’s access to the lake where you can swim, kayak, etc.

Great getaway for a weekend

We were here mid-week the end of May and the campground was almost full. There were lots of families with young children having a great time fishing and playing in the water. The Visitor Center is also child friendly. We were in a Class B in an RV site but there were lots of tent campers too. We enjoy the easy hiking paths around the park but have also brought a small boat on occasion. There is a nice place to launch a boat there and the lake is divided between places to take speed boats and a quiet place for those of us who like to troll peacefully.

Love it.. Clean nice.. We will always go back

Clean and beautiful

Patagonia Lake State Park Has a great camping site spots with power and water in great views for really reasonably priced. They have a little sand beach that the kids can play on with showers to rinse off before you head back to your little camp. Campsites are a couple minutes away from the mini sand beach. There is fishing. The little Marina also rents kayaks and paddle boats and houseboats. A wonderful gram campground highly recommended for those who have children and pets. Dogs are required to be leashed at all times.

Most tent and RV sites have electric, which is wonderful, and some of the sites are really close to the water. There are semi-clean bathrooms, but the shop is wonderful. And the water is a great way to cool off.  You can rent boats. Take your dogs out to other parts of the water, NOT the beach. There are stores right there so you don't have to go into town.

Very hard to get a reservation as this lake is very popular. Lake is smaller than you think, and most of it is a no-wake zone. They do rent boats st the small marina/store. Many sites are shaded and have a picnic table; some sites are built-in. Nice trails around. It is also on a major flyway so birding is good.