Established Camping
Los Banos Creek Campground — San Luis Reservoir State Recreation Area
About
State Park
Gates close at sunset (open at 6AM) - code is provided to campers for emergency use.
Access
- Drive-InPark next to your site
- Hike-InBackcountry sites.
Stay Connected
- WiFiUnknown
- VerizonUnknown
- AT&TUnknown
- T-MobileGood
Site Types
- Tent Sites
- RV Sites
- Standard (Tent/RV)
Features
For Campers
- Trash
- Picnic Table
- Phone Service
- Reservable
- Toilets
- Alcohol
- Pets
- Fires
For Vehicles
- Sanitary Dump
- Pull-Through Sites
Relaxing weekend getaway
Campsites are mostly at the water’s edge of the small-ish reservoir that’s main attraction (at least this time of year) appears to be fishing. Porta pottys are clean, no potable water but I loved being able to camp right on the lake and fish just steps from my car. I was in site 12 and I’m glad I did. My dog was mostly not leashed and no one seemed to care. Super chill and cozy but not much to do if you like activity and adventure. Warning: the water crossing is no joke!!!! When I arrived it was about 7” but when I crossed the next day to go into town it was 9-10” high and flowing fast. I was legit scared (I have a Hyundai Kona) but I made it across. The people at the booth said it can get even higher and there’s no way to know when or why.
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Oasis in the sun
Really quiet campground nestled into the hills with a beautiful reservoir. The water was nice and cool for swimming or just floating. Not to mention the water was only a few steps away. Very small campground which made it not feel crowded. Portable Potty bathrooms which were not to bad and well maintained. I would recommend it to anyone looking for a diamond in the rough campground.
Small, private, waterfront
We came last summer and stayed in sites #5–7. We arrived about 9pm, unaware that the gates close at sundown. They close and there is NOBODY there to open them for you, so we had to check in the following morning. They do provide a code for you should you need to exit, or if you do arrive late like we did. Just be sure to call ahead of time and check in for the code. This information is posted on the website, but we missed it, so this was on us.
It’s a small campground, only 14 sites I believe. The entire campground is right on the banks of the reservoir so water access no matter where you’re staying. Sites #5-9 are the flattest and beach front. I’m not sure what it’s like now after this year’s rain, but there was a sandy beach front leading into shallow water. It was perfect for our young kids to play in safely (with life vests of course) and we could still be at the campsite and keep eyes on them.
There appears to be only one water spicket and it’s right at the corner of site #5, so it can be a little awkward depending on where your tent is at. There are also several porta potties across the road from site #5 but they didn’t smell. They appeared to be well maintained.
Site #5 appears to be the largest site. We fit our 3 tents at the one site and used the other two just for parking. We originally had site #2 booked as well, but it is a very small spot. Big enough for one 6 person tent. So we all crammed into site 5 but with no problem. We really enjoyed the privacy and smallness of this campground. The camp hosts were very friendly and not bothersome. We plan to return again this year!
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Location
Los Banos Creek Campground — San Luis Reservoir State Recreation Area is located in California
Directions
Located along the shore of Los Banos Creek Reservoir.
Address
31426 Gonzaga Road
Los Banos, CA 93635
Coordinates
36.98649303 N
120.93965982 W