Canyon Campground, near Malibu, California, is a fantastic place for those looking to enjoy the beauty of nature while being close to the beach. With spacious sites that offer a mix of privacy and accessibility, it’s a great choice for both tent campers and RV enthusiasts.

This campground is known for its clean facilities, including restrooms and showers, which visitors appreciate after a day spent outdoors. Many campers have highlighted the short walk to the beach, where dogs are welcome, making it a perfect spot for families and pet owners alike. One visitor noted, “Nice short walk to the beach where dogs are welcome.”

For those who enjoy a bit of adventure, the surrounding area features stunning rock formations and tide pools, ideal for exploration. While some campers mentioned the lack of Wi-Fi and spotty cell service, it’s a great opportunity to disconnect and truly immerse yourself in the natural surroundings. 

Canyon Campground also has a camp store and food trucks nearby, so you won’t have to venture far for supplies or a bite to eat. Whether you’re planning a quick getaway or a longer stay, this campground offers a laid-back atmosphere with plenty of opportunities for relaxation and fun.

Leo Carrillo State Park's Campground is fully opened. Vehicular access to North Beach remains closed at this time.

Camping Information:
**Max trailer height is 13'6" **

Visitors will be able to reserve campsites and lodging six months in advance from the current date. Bookings may extend from the arrival date to the desired departure date – based on availability and the park’s maximum stay rules. 

Firewood Policy:  Burning firewood, Duraflame, and charcoal briquettes is allowed in the fire rings only when fire level permits.  Check the sign near the entrance kiosk for the day's fire level.

Showers:  The park has only token-operated showers. The token machines accept ONLY one-dollar bills. Change for larger bills is not available at this time.


Dogs allowed in day-use areas, campground and North Beach (north of Lifeguard Tower 3). Dogs not allowed on backcountry trails or South Beach (south of Lifeguard Tower 3).

Canyon Campground — Leo Carrillo State Park Campground

Lake Sherwood, CA is a great camping destination for adventurers of all types. Aside from great camping spots, you'll find hiking and many more outdoor experiences. Thinking of traveling with kids? You're in luck—Lake Sherwood is surrounded by family-friendly activities. Get the dirt on all the best camping near Lake Sherwood. Browse campgrounds by amenities, site types, and more.

Lake Sherwood

The Best Camping Near Lake Sherwood, California

I had spent many summers camping with friends at Leo Carillo State Park.  Various campsites with easy access to one of the best beaches in Malibu. Close to everything fun in So Cal- Close to The Pier, Malibu, Hollywood, LA and more.  Camping under the oak trees and in a small canyon. Lots of local wildlife- deer, coyotes, hawks, snakes, bugs and tidepools on the beach.  
Camping in tents and RVs. Cold foggy mornings from overcast however it clears up.  Cool or cold nights and mild days.  Decent wading into the ocean and good surfing all around. Not too bad with rip-currents and is great for younger kids too!  The rangers at this park love to entertain the kids and they have lots of Jr Ranger programs through the local surrounding areas! Look for them! 
One of the best beach camping locations in So Cal HANDS down! It gets crowded quickly so book early

Summertime Hangout

Easy to set up camp, great view! Fire pit at each site, firewood for sale at the  camp host site. If your on the beach watch the tide. 

Great place to stop for the night

Great spot on the Malibu-ventura border.   A stones throw from a great point surf break and great tide pools!  The getty villa is right around the corner too!   Tokens for the showers...so prepare for that.  Little store inside the campground will help with anything you might have forgot! 

Can never go wrong here!

Beautiful campground within walking distance to the beach.

Beautiful

Little pricy but the campground is well maintained.

The bathrooms are maintained and there are plenty of them in the campground. Fresh water spigots at each site. Fire pits with grill grates. Seems like the sites in the middle of the campground are larger than the ones on the perimeter.

Group sites in the back of the campground with a little hike in from the cars.

Easy beach access.

Cool Area

We liked this campground.

Pros: Campsites were large and many had a decent amount of privacy. Try an pick one up against the mountain so there are no people behind you. An easy walk to a beautiful Malibu beach is always a plus. There is a separate beach for dogs, a major reason we’ll be back. Water and bathrooms close. Showers hot. Scenery is great, both mountains and beach to gaze. We went during the week so campground wasn’t full but I would have liked it if it was full

Cons: a bit pricy at $60 a night for an RV electric only site. Bathrooms could use a facelift. Our site was great except for some empty beer cans and broken glass here and there.

neither pro nor con: no cell phone service in the campground. About 10-15 minutes away from gas and other stores. The little general store has limited hours, so dont rely on having a close place to get things you forgot.

The best of both worlds

Leo Carillo has a few campsites but the one we went to was along the beach. RV's are lined up along the beach so you are super close to your neighbor. However, when the sun goes down and if you sit in your tent or Camper-van, you don't really notice the other people and you can take in the starry sky with the sound of the ocean (which is AMAZING). If you want a peaceful camping experience you just have to hope for quiet neighbors. Also arrive early for a campsite or book ahead. We got lucky and arrived before a lot of other campers but heard it can be hard to get a campsite here.

Beautiful at night and early morning, can get crowded

We live in the South Bay and went camping here for just one night. It was a quick drive up the coast and onto this hidden gem. You get access to a private beach with gorgeous California hill views of PCH behind you. Perfect place for families or even RVs. 

Peaceful and Serene 

I love this beach! It's a great place for surfing, whale watching in the spring, bird watching, and looking at seals. There's a little general store and nice bathrooms. Plus, tons of places where you feel like you can get away from the crowds.

Ocean and Wildlife

the most expensive CA state park i've camped in, and they had a digital "iron ranger".

I love camping by the ocean!

Across the PCH from the beach

I’ve been camping here since I was a kid. Great place for kids. Gets busy in summer but still nice. Camping isn’t on the beach, which I like, but water is a short walk away. Love this place.

Great for families 

**Campground review (3 of 5 stars)**

The Canyon Campground is located on a spectacular stretch of the PCH just north of Malibu. Like most other California State Parks, it is quite expensive. The sites are located in a dusty coastal sage scrub valley, often right on top of each other.  This place is packed with RVs and families on vacation during the summer, so don't expect to find peace and solitude here. There are full facilities (e.g., showers, camp store), but the $45 per night fee is the highest we've paid for any camping.

One perk is that you can walk to the beach within minutes. Also, one of the few dog beaches in LA is only a couple minutes drive away. Luckily, dogs are allowed in the campground too. If you can look past your nearby neighbors, the views of the nearby Santa Monica Mountains are charming. It's also only a short drive to some spectacular hiking and bouldering. If you bring your crashpad and shoes, the sandbox and temporal boulders are about a 15-30 minute hike upstream, and you certainly won't have any crowds there! Finally, don't forget to reserve your site far in advance (you can do this online), especially for weekends. Otherwise the rangers recommend showing up at 8AM on a Friday or Saturday to try to snag one of the few walk-in sites or a site from cancelled or no-show reservation.

**Product review (4.5 of 5 stars)**

As a Ranger for the Dyrt, I get to test products for review for some of my camping trips. On this trip, we tested the [Matador](https://matadorup.com/) camera [base layer case](https://matadorup.com/collections/matador-products/products/camera-base-layer?variant=16831186502) and the [lens base layer](https://matadorup.com/collections/matador-products/products/lens-base-layer?variant=16831195590). See our demo video, presented by my husband, the photography pro. These are two phenomenal products that offer some sleek protection for your camera and lenses. 

Pros:

*   easily removable from bag
*   modular designs fit most cameras and lenses
*   sleek and unobtrusive
*   high-quality and durable material
*   super lightweight, adds no weight to carry

Cons:

*   no mechanism to clip the camera base layer to the camera or strap, which can be somewhat cumbersome while attempting to take a quick shot
*   some larger DSLR cameras may have a small gap on the sides of the base layer that lacks complete protection if the lens is left attached

Overall, these two products provide ample protection while you're trying to snap some great photos in the outdoors. I don't think they provide quite the same level of protection as larger bags with more padding, but that's not what they're aiming for. I felt a tremendous peace of mind having my camera dangling from my neck in the base layer while scurrying down the steep sand dunes, which I certainly wouldn't have felt had I not had the base layer on.

Ranger Review: Matador Camera Case at Leo Carrillo State Park

While the campground was quite busy and loud at times, the hike and bike area was rather quiet.  Camp store for basic items. Squirrels are very aggressive and will eat your food if left unattended.  Lots of shade trees.

Nice Hike and Bike Area

Came to camp here just after a major holiday and the place was clean as if it hadn't just been packed. Several bathrooms and showers available as well as a great little store with a good selection of basics and beyond with friendly staff.

5min walk to the beach.

close to beach, well shaded, clean bathrooms

Super location. Friendly staff. Beach is close by. Bit of a party scene when we were there so not super quiet, but fellow campers were very friendly. Facilities are a bit dated

great beach camping

Recent fires and winter storms hit this area hard, and they ate still cleaning up. But the sites have mostly been repaved and are clean. The power was out to part of the park (our bath/showers were still up and running), but we were part dry camping anyways, so all good.

There aren’t sewer or water hook ups, electrical only, but for me that’s perfectly fine for a long weekend or short week with 2 kids and 2 adults. They do have 3 dump stations, too, so that made it nice!

Short jaunt to the beach under the highway, small store with basics in camping area, and lots of walking trails around.

Great local camp stay

We spent 3 nights at this campground and had a great time. They have a camp store right in the middle of the campground that has essentials. Bathrooms were nice. Can’t wait to go back. 
Walking distance to the beach. Best part. 

Loved it

Fun place to spend Summer by the beach! Definitely gets booked quickly, so reserve in advance but in slower months first come first serve is generally just fine to settle into a good spot. The beach is walking distance to a well known surfing location. Very popular area and can be known for partying at night. The moon is a beauty out here at night, with moon flowers everywhere. Fire pits are available at campsites, with restrooms, and a local shop in the campground that nearly sells about everything you’ll need. There’s backpacking sites at no charge but for a standard campsite there is a fee. Each standard site is $45 a night, sites with electric hookups are $60 a night and there a group site for $225 a night. Parking is limited so additional vehicles per campsite is $12 a night per vehicle. Once you’re through the gate there is absolutely no cell service here. Overall it’s just a fun place for a weekend with friends to hang out, grill and go surfing at Leo!

Surfers Haven

Nice campground super clean and friendly!

Nice Beach Campground Close to Malibu

Can someone inform me if I can camp here with a tent last time I went it was closed?

Is this open?

Close by in northern Malibu, it’s perfect for a weekend getaway, close to beach / surf. Hot tip, bring bikes to get to the beach. 

Easy la getaway

I love camping at Leo I grew up going here, some of my best memories are riding bikes and hiking around the campground with friends. As a kid I always felt safe and my parents let me roam free. It’s crowded during the summer for obvious reasons, but I think that’s part of the charm it’s a great place to people watch and make friends with your neighbors. Highly recommend booking 6 months in advance if you want a summer weekend spot. 
The beach is a short walk, bike ride or drive away and the north end of the beach is dog friendly. Campers have priority at the beach parking lot. It’s only an hour drive from LA but you can see the stars and hear the waves crashing at night from your campsite. Quite time is 10 but it usually gets quite around 12. Rangers do try to enforce it but they are understanding and will give a few warnings before getting stern. Hope you get the chance to visit this cool spot...wishing I was there now! 

10/10 beach camping near LA

We stayed one night. Nice experience. It was super quiet after 10p.m., but it was a Monday night. 

About 60% of the sites have shade.  Check the ReserveCalifornia.com site pictures to see what the site looks like before you register. Open the map then click on the site to see the picture. 
https://www.reservecalifornia.com/CaliforniaWebHome/

It’s a short walk to the beach. Nice beach. Dogs are only allowed on the beach north of Leo Carrillo Beach. It’s a little longer walk. 
A couple of notes: 
The Dyrt info says $12 but that’s for day use only. The tent sites are $45, plus $9 registration fee;hookup sites $60, plus $9 registration.
There is a flock of South American parrots that come by and feed on the flora seeds in the area. 

Nice campsite

Family camping weekend. There is a cute general store onsite. It’s small but carries plenty and has a coffee machine. It was so much fun riding our scooters and skates all over the grounds as all the sites are situated on a loop. Restrooms were nearby these two sites and had token showers. Lots of ants at our site but we set up camp right under the big tree and hey you are in nature. Beach is not far (walkable) but recommend a wagon or something similar to bring your beach gear. Water was very cold of course. Dog beach is located on the north beach. Porta-potties at the beach. Fishing allowed. Was so much fun discovering the tidepools and exploring the coastal cliffs and caves.

When you want to camp close to LA

We visited here last weekend. Had reservations for site 30, which was nice. However, very loud inconsiderate neighbors.  They had a huge clan of screaming children and barking dogs. Plus they ran their generator during quiet hours.  We walked around the park on day 2 and saw a lot of open sites, and requested to be moved if possible. While the person at the kiosk did let us move, she was not friendly about it, and in fact was quite rude. She said they have every right to be loud in a public place. What about our right to enjoy nature in peace? If I went to a movie theater, a public place, people do not have the right to be loud and ruin my experience, right? Beware of L. Albers, she is not nice.  In any case, we moved to site 118, which was beautiful, and quiet.  The sites are all pretty big, and are spread out.  A bit of a long walk to the beach, but we didn’t have kids, so it was ok. I would go back. 

Nice size sites

Nice campground 
Very family oriented
Great for kids to play, run and ride their bikes all day long
Walking distance to the beach
Convenient store located in campground 
Closest grocery store is about 10 minutes away

Lots of Rats at night
Make sure you bring rodent repellent

Great Campground for the family !

The best part of this campground is the quick walk to the beach.  Lots of families and trees to climb for the kids.  Going from the campsite to the sand was a very nice experience.  I camped on a Saturday night so the campground was full but that was expected as we were so close to L.A.  I will return for a quick getaway.

A very nice a family friendly campground.  

We spent our spring break here and had a great time. Me, my husband, and our 7 year old daughter enjoyed it so much we ended up extending our stay. The campground was busy but there was plenty of space between campsites. Everyone was pleasant including the staff that were very helpful and answered all of our questions. 

Great family vacation!

The campground is tucked away between 2 canyons amongst sycamore trees. The parking pads or trailer pads are very small, but the sites themselves have good space w/ fire pits and tables. Cel service is very scarce in the campground, you need to go out to the beach for service. The beach is within walking distance, great waves for surfing and awesome tide pools for the kiddos. There is also a dog beach and a couple rock caves to explore.  Overall, a nice getaway and not too far from home. 

Nice campground w/ beach access

I was lucky to roll in on a late Sunday afternoon and snag a last minute spot. Beach is a good surf spot. Sites are good sized and not too close to each other. Bathrooms have token showers.

Good spot to camp and surf

The beach has sand, tide pools, caves, beauty galore!

My favorite LA area beach

I thought this was a great campground, although I had the only campsite (#101) that didn’t have any shade. It is a huge campground with paved pads for cars and RVs. Many of the site had huge shade trees that you could fit several tents under. Sites were spaced a good distance apart. It is well maintained. There are flush toilets, hot showers, water, a dump station and a little campground store. My only complaint was the showers. Two tokens for a dollar, two minutes of hot water per token. It took most of the first two minutes waiting for the water to get hot. I ended my shower by rinsing off with cold water.

Beautiful Campground

We camped here for New Years 2016 and loved it. It was a quiet campground even on new years and had a good amount of room between sites. The site is pretty sandy so the tents get a bit messy, but otherwise the fire ring was great. 

  

The beach that you can walk to is an awesome dog beach. We had a blast here. I will say be careful about tar in the sand as that ruined a good pair of hiking pants that I was wearing.

Great local campsite for LA

Wonderful area with good hiking spots, beach access for both you and your dogs. 
Easy access to water every 4-5 bays, dumpsters close by, showers on site and a local store for some last minute amenities. 

Great Local Getaway 

Love this spot for it's tide pools and location off of pch.  

Great tidepools

This park has great access to a beautiful beach. A lot of surfers which was fun to watch. Not familiar enough with CA to judge but just to mention, you have to buy tokens to take a shower. We were told it was $2 for a 4 min shower. When you actually get to the shower it’s $2 for 2 mins. The sites are spread out enough you’re not right on top of your neighbor but they are still close and it was crowded! A lot of bikes and activity going on pretty late into the night. 

Great location 

Beautiful scenery of the ocean and nice to see the sunrise and sunset.

Love it

I've often come to the beach here but not the campsite. It's on the landward side of the pch and feels like you are away from everything. The beach is accessible by a short walk that goes under the pch, so no crossing this busy road. The site has a handy store for basic needs plus toys and shirts and emergency camp stuff.  Not sure if all the hookups are operational, we weren't able to get one, but there were tent campers on sites that had them? Like most places, best to book early to guarantee you get what you need. This site had a nice fire pit and table up a short hill and very private 

Unexpected, good campsite 

Large campsite, I saw many campsite with more the  8 person and lots of tents live together in one site with no problem. It's not a problem for 3 cars parking on site. Kids love tide pool. Cool camp store, they sell fire wood. Because we stay at site 42, it's quite far from beach so we have to drive to beach but not a problem for parking. 

Large campsite 

Had a great time at Leo Carrillo. It’s such a chill campground. Having the beach right next door is awesome. The tide pools are great, but there’s some really beautiful spots on north beach. 

Chill camping spot 

Nice big spots, close to the beach. Very quite. Needs to reserve at California State parks website. Dump station and water fill up on your way out not on the campsite, but thats no issue for us. Wifi not working but good 4G reception. Need tokens for the shower, so showered in the RV. 

Excellent . Big spots

The park and the signs outside the park say gate hours are from 8 AM to 10 PM. It’s 5 PM at night the gates are locked already they locked them at dark not at 10 PM at dark and there’s no camping here at all.

Dishonest signage

We visited Leo Carillo in March of 2022 and absolutely loved it. The sites are private and roomy, and they have everything you could need - a camp store, showers, and even food trucks! It’s about a 10 minute walk to the beach, which is pretty rocky and not too swimmable, but still gorgeous. Be aware though, the gates close early and if you miss them, you get locked out!

Lovely secluded state park close to town!

It was a great trip over all. The site was clean, there wasn’t a crazy amount of bugs. I do like that the store wasn’t extremely over priced. 

The one issue I had wasn’t with the site itself it was the other campers. On the first night there was a couple arguing at midnight and 4 am. The rangers eventually showed up but they didn’t care that they were disturbing the peace. 

Overall it’s a great spot to camp! Will definitely be back. 


Overall great experience except for other campers. 

We camped in site 103 and found it to be an awesome spot. We brought our infant for her first camping trip and from 103 you couldn't really see anyone else's camp site (site 102 was across the street from our spot but no one was there). It is also nearly as close as you can get to the beach and has quick access to shower/bathroom and water. 

  

Only downside was that while It was quiet at night, during the day you are near the entrance so there was a lot of foot traffic and cars/RVs driving through. It didn't bother us though.

Great spot at front of Campsite

This was a cool spot. There are a mix of nice open campsites, and more intimate ones. Nice short walk to the beach where dogs are welcome. 

Beautiful January Trip

Beautiful campgrounds in a canyon next to the beach. Clean restrooms &amp; showers. Spent 3 nights here &amp; wish we could stay longer. The only negative was no wifi or data. So zero internet on site. And Verizon phone signal was spotty at best. Once you get out of the canyon at the beach, the signal is back. But ya, no using data to do social media or watch shows or anything on phone. 

Canyon Escape

Amazing place to camp either for one day, but difficult to find availability 

Beautiful sunshine 

The sites are small. It is very difficult to back in to a spot when you have campers across from your campsite.

Not ideal for 30ft 5th wheels

Great beach camping experience with some minor drawbacks 

We just spent 4 days at Leo Carrillo in site 128 last week. The campground is tucked away in a beautiful canyon setting with lots of shade trees, which was really nice for keeping cool. Our site was spacious enough for our two tents and had a good fire pit and picnic table setup. 

The best part about this campground is definitely the beach access- it's about a 10-minute walk from most sites, and you can explore some amazing tide pools and caves once you get there. The kids loved searching for hermit crabs and sea anemones. Bring a wagon if you're hauling beach gear though, as the walk can feel long with all your stuff. 

Facilities were decent- bathrooms were kept fairly clean and showers worked well, though the token system($2 for 2 minutes) takes some getting used to. The camp store was handy for forgotten supplies and firewood. Cell service is virtually non-existent in the canyon, but you can get signal up at the beach if needed. 

Only downsides were some noisy neighbors on the weekend nights(seems pretty common here given the proximity to LA) and the sites can feel a bit close together when it's fully booked. [centimeters to inches](https://cm-to-inch.com) Also spotted a few rats at night, so definitely store your food properly. 

Despite the minor issues, we'd definitely come back. It's a great escape from the city with that classic California beach camping vibe. Just book well in advance for summer weekends and maybe bring earplugs if you're a light sleeper. 

Month of Visit: October

Great beach camping experience with some minor drawbacks 

Les employés sont super gentils on est arrivé à 19h et c'était ouvert. Choix avec ou sans électricité, petite épicerie, douches bbc et table. Calme et nature au rdv à quelques pas de los Angeles. Ambiance très familiale !

Calme et nature

Attention pour avoir accès à la mer, le véhicule doit faire moins de 8 feet! 

Attention à la hauteur

Walking path to beach, partial hookups, fire rings, camp store.

Fantastic Campground 

Nice clean sites, friendly staff. You can hear frogs and crickets and birds. There was a lovely warm breeze all night. Nice grills over the fire pits and nice picnic tables. Lots of families, some with better camping etiquette than others. Bring earplugs in case you get inconsiderate neighbors.

Photos of Canyon Campground — Leo Carrillo State Park Campground

Real photos from real campers