La Jolla Indian Campground

They do not post anywhere on their website about the water being toxic for you or your children.I made a reservation and immediately cancelled it when finding out the water was not safe. They will not take any calls and will not answer any of our emails. We want our refund and we will take further measures if we don’t hear back within a timely manner.

The manager does a Horrible job at running this place. There is no guarantee that you will get your spot or even get a spot. They will not refund your money even if you booked ahead of time. The manager admitted to us that they overbook. The manager is very disorganized, but the staff is friendly. The river had a lot of trash in it. We saw bags, water bottles, beer cans, food containers and food floating down the river. Bathrooms are dirty and most options are porta potties. No soap so you need to bring your own to wash your hands. I will not be coming here again.

The camping is tight because there isn't designated camp sites. But the sound of the stream is peaceful at night and wonderful sound to fall asleep to. Beware people cutting through your campsite to get in and out of water. Not sure if we'll go back.

Pre-Covid, I would go to la jolla every memorial day weekend. Its very family friendly. I highly recommend this location to camp.

We had a wonderful long weekend at the La Jolla Indian campground in March. It snowed on Palomar mt and so we were able to go up enjoy the snow and then come back down the mountains in around 30 min. We loved the sites some are smaller than others and the ones right on the water are not always the best. Look forward to spending some summer nights there as well

Please, please, PLEASE spare yourself. This campground is total trash, literally. There was trash all long the river, the algae was disgusting that I couldn’t even let it splash on me let alone let my 9year old tube down the river. Zip lines? What zip lines? That place look deserted not even workers were around. 10pm lights out was more like midnight clubbing. The RV sites were extremely tight that we couldn’t even set up camp outside let alone use the mandatory wood purchased at check in. To cut it short, we booked for 3 nights, arrived at 3pm and left before noon the following day! DONT DO IT!

Went for one day Saturday afternoon. Checked in at 11am friendly park staff and clear directions. Sites are FCFS even with reservation. Casino and gas station/convenience store open, ask about the Free Play promos when filling up! Casino staff also very cool and super clean inside. Lights out by 10pm but people we up til at least 12am. Port-o-Potties and vaulted toilets. Creek had harmful algae bloom so only at ankle height but imagine it’s nice when full. Will definitely go back for a 2-night stay.

This place is always fun. The river is always fun especially on a hot day.

My family and I stayed here recently to get away.  This campground is situated right next to San Luis Rey River.  Any riverside camping in San Diego is very rare.  The River was small, but the sounds were nice.  Weather was great.

The restrooms here are awful; poorly lit and maintained.  Wish they'd put some effort into making the place look cared for.

Pretty cool campground. There was a lot to do there, but at the time we went (end of February), we really couldn’t take advantage of it all. For example, they offer river rafting, but it was a little too cold to get into the water. That was no issue for us because we didn’t go there for that. They also offer zip lining, but again, we went there just to camp.

The spot we initially reserved was located on the little river, but once we got there, we realized we were a little too packed in with the rest of the visitors, so we requested to move to a more open spot. The management was able to accommodate our request, which made the visit much more enjoyable. Our first spot was RV spot #7. Please note that if you reserve that spot, you’ll be tightly packed in between #6 and #8. It’s not a big deal, but there are more open spots along the river if space is a desire of yours. We ended up with spot #15, which was directly across from spot #7 towards the center of the camping area. It was a bigger site, so we had a bit more breathing room, and were still very close to the river.

One thing to note is that if you plan on having a fire, you must purchase wood from the little store that is few minutes up a hill from the campsite. They offer bundles of wood for $5 a bundle, but the wood doesn’t last long. We went through about 4 bundles per night. They don’t allow you to bring your own wood, but they don’t appear to enforce that too closely.

All in all it was a good campsite albeit a little on the pricey side, but again, there’s a lot to do. We would totally go back, but try to time it better during spring.

We wanted to stay here for the river tubing for the kids. It seemed like it would be so much fun. Unfortunately they had to block up the river because of the algae problem, so the water level was very low and the tubing was unavailable. But that is not something the campground could control. Just something to be aware of. The river (creek) does have beautiful shade trees and lots of rock formations and places to put a chair and read, which was lovely. The kids liked it. It is a small campground with a paved loop in the RV area so the kids could scooter and bike endlessly during the day. The sites are a good size and mostly level, hook ups were easy. We never used the public bathrooms, so can't speak to that, but free dump site was great. There are fire pits in a lot of the sites, but you (as usual) need to buy firewood up the hill before you get settled in. There were a TON of wasps everywhere, so be aware especially if you bring food outside. Because of COVID all of the other amenities were closed, but looks like they would be fun if they were open.

My nephews are obsessed with this campsite. They love to fish in the lake (never caught a thing) and will do it for hoooours on end. It’s an awesome spot for kids to run around and still be safe.

An absolute gem! Hidden treasure! Thanks Mother Nature!!! 

Bomb.com!

Love taking the kids near the end of summer for tubing.

This is a great place at the beginning of summer when the water levels are high. There is a small creek to camp along and tube down when the river is flowing. It gets very crowded here so get there early. It is first come first serve for tents. RVs can make reservations. Overall I always enjoy myself but can't stand dealing with some of the crowds.

La Jolla Indian Reservation is my first pick to go camping! I love the river that runs in the middle of the whole place. You can camp next to it as well and get in! It’s $35 per car they do have military discount. The total of $32 with discount. They also have porta potties every few 500 feet. It is next to a gas station not to far out to buy supplies or fuel up. NOT PET FRIENDLY ONLY REASON FOR 4 STARS

Site can get crowded and loud. Tubing on the river that runs through the site is awesome. Can't beat the price. No toilets or showers. Not far from Palomar Observatory.

La Jolla Indian Reservation Campground is located 30 mins south of the Observatory on Palomar Mtn, and 60 mins north of San Diego. There are ~38 reservable RV sites with hook-ups. Half of them are along the river front. There are multiple group tent sites and even more first come first serve, get in where u fit in, no hookup RV and tent sites. There is a gas station/convenience store just before the entrance, where a 20lb bag of ice is $4. Load up, you’ll need it. There are very few campgrounds that are near the water AND you’re allowed to play in the water. There are only two in SoCal, that I know of, the other is Yucapai.

We reserved RV space 10, for our tent trailer. The 30’ site was a tight fit for out 22’ trailer and two cars. But we’re able to put up out shade tent, tarp, and seating.

The good… RV Park area had a lot of trees that provided shade in the 100 degree heat. The hookups were easy and we had no problems with neighbors. The river cooled things down once it got going, you can rent or bring your own tube/river rat to ride down the river, at your own risk! Bring water shoes. Kids loved swinging on the make shift swings along the water. Propane grills recommended, not every site has a charcoal grill and depending on weather and fire conditions will determine if fire pits will be allowed.

The bad… the river only runs Friday to Sunday. However, Lake Henshaw turns the water on Friday at 7:30 am and it doesn’t make it down to the res until 4:30 pm. It was a long hot wait for water. Saving grace was the hose we brought to water down the dirt. Only one bathroom and multiple port-o-potties (sp?) and I don’t recommend those. Bring TP. The lines are long in the morning. There’s no grey water disposal. Keep track of your valuables. The first come first serve camp area tents to be more rowdy than the RV area, though both are loud (music & kids).

we stayed here because we wanted to do the zipline and they offered a discount to campers. we walked up and got a spot, the campground was very loud and crowded. california is in a drought so the water was very shallow and we couldn't tube in it as planned. we were warned about thefts prior to going so we didnt bring anything of value other than our tents and I'm glad we didnt. we ended up leaving after the zipline adventure because it was just too loud to stay. if you are looking for a party, this is the place but if you want a peaceful adventure in nature, go somewhere else.

Friendly staff, beautiful beautiful location, magical in many ways.

Sometimes the bathrooms we're a bit messy but never anything that was over the top they wee also very busy that weekend.