Best Tent Camping near Columbia, CA

Good tent camping. The Merced river runs along the east side of thr Park. I think there are beaches but can't confirm it (see pics).21 tent sites ,showers, bathrooms, lost of tables and water for the sights to share. The camp does need to catch up with maintenance in he facility though,lighting and cleaning. No camp host while we were there, that could be why?

Wow, let's say we had a nightmare ishhorrible experience. We rented a tent camp site for 2 nights. We were given an RV Slab camping site. It had the tiniest barbecue grill available. The water that was coming out of all the faucets,  was red and brown. People weren't allowed to shower that night. Once night fall came, the camp's site was infested with roaches Everywhere, they went in all our grocery bags and under them. Went into and under all our boxes that we had. The roaches hid under our tents also. There also seemed to be a termite infestation. We had to cut our camping trip short after spending over a thousand dollars on supplies, food, the Camping site and parking fees The workers that drove by, especially Travis, were nice and Welcoming. Dogs have to be on a leash at all times. If you want to go into the lake with your dog, You have to walk very far away if you didn't rent one of the tent sites at the lake front area. Had to fumigate my vehicle when I got home with all my stuff in it. I pray none of the bugs will be in my stuff at home. I heard many other guests screeching and shouting, omg theres cockroaches every where. Good to know, we weren't the only ones disappointed. The owner Jake refused to refund me, or my two guests that wasted their 50 dollars in parking fees, although the trip was cut short due to the conditions. Jake offered for us to stay another night. Will never be back. Beware.

We tent camped on the river here and really enjoyed our stay. We floated on the river in tubes, visited Nearby Rainbow Pools, went into Yosemite Valley a couple of days, the park is about 5-10 mins from the entrance to Yosemite but we didn’t mind we enjoyed the drive into the valley and used it as an opportunity to spot wildlife. We had two young kids (6 &8) and the campground restrooms and showers were perfect after a long day hiking, they were well maintained, good water pressure. These restrooms were located at the ponderosa tent sites, we had some family also camping in RVS along the river and I can’t speak for those restrooms. No cell service & WiFi is unlikely to work so prepare to be unplugged..they do give you printed directions to the closest area to get a signal depending on your carrier. The staff was very friendly and helpful! We will definitely be back one day. Side note: we came during COVID so reservations to Yosemite National park were required, therefore the park and surrounding campgrounds were not as packed as they normally would be. (This was heavenly).

Great location right in the valley. Amenities were nice (showers, laundry, food). The three-sided cinder block enclosure was a bit rustic and dirty. Would have felt cleaner actually camping in a tent where you can control what comes in and out of your personal space. Hiked several days in the park and took in sunset from Glacier Point (while doing the 4 mile hike earlier in the day from the valley floor up to the point). Beautiful!

Our group stayed in a tent campsite for one night in August 2016. This was our first campsite for a 2 week national parks road trip.

My biggest gripe with this campground is that it is not stated anywhere on their site that you cannot park your car in your campsite. At least for us, we had to park down a hill and walk up to our site. We spent our entire evening and the next morning walking back and forth, back and forth, back and forth anytime we needed something from the car. Having the car in the site is so so much better and all the other campgrounds we stayed at were set up that way.

Additionally, the entire campground was incredibly dusty, more so than any other campground we stayed at during our trip. The bathrooms/showers were not very well maintained (quite dirty and dusty) although the stalls did all have toilet paper. It was also quite a walk from our tent site which was located in the back part of the campgrounds.

Staff were generally helpful and they have everything you'd need in their office/general store (ice, firewood, snacks, etc).

Overall, we were happy to have found a campground nearish Yosemite at the last min since most things book up really quickly inside the park, but I'm happy we didn't stay here more than one night.

Got one of the furthest sites tent camping. Could see all the stars. They also provide bear boxes for each site.

Beautiful tent camping above the Yosemite valley. Close enough to drive into the valley but far enough to not be surrounded by people at all times. Make sure to bring hammocks! Great trees to lounge in!

Tons of Gold Rush history here, nice rv glamping featuring showers and a boat launch at first camp, more primitive tent camping up the road at second camp (my fave). I've been camping here for years, it's my favorite in the world!

Great option if your looking for full rv hookups. If you’re tent camping, this might not be the best place. Bathrooms were very unclean but the park gets the job done as a place to sleep while visiting Yosemite. No Verizon or T-Mobile coverage. Wifi available for purchase.

We starter visiting Modesto Resivor in the sixties. My father would hail all of our gear out to one of the many islands, and let the kids and dogs run free. Now that we are older, we camp on the shore line. Rustic tent camping near the water-skiing course is my favorite. Quite nights and darker stargazing. Blonde Beach is where your likely to find us Jetskiing.

The tent sites were right on top of each other and there was nowhere to park. You had to climb a steep hill to get to them with your car and again to the actual spot. The people were awesome, the facilities were clean and the pool was refreshing. They have WiFi that works great, a store with ice, snacks, and food.

This campground was awesome. We went in the middle of summer without reservations and we were able to get a tent site. This camp site is at the head of the Upper Falls trail so you can get an early start and see some great sunrise scenes. Plenty of toilets and water sources at the camp site, just bring your filter.

I know that you don’t know me but trust me! Tamarack Flat is an awesome campground and definitely worth being a short 30 minutes away from Yosemite Valley. It is first come first serve but I have never had any problem acquiring a campsite. While it is remote, it is beautifully scenic and with many campers nearby, you don’t feel like you’re out in the wilderness alone. There are bear boxes at every site as well as a fire ring/pit. I would highly recommend camping here if you are tent camping or have a small unit. You will not be disappointed.

Our visit was great!! We came in late at night with 1 spot left. We camped in a tent and in the bed of our truck. We went in June which was a little chilly at night but sleeping under the open starts was to die for. The sites were clean and had plenty of space between them. Most of the people camping alongside were likeminded people (not everyone camps in tents and those who do just 'know' how to enjoy their surrounding). The campsite had bear proof bins at each site to hide your food etc. our dogs were welcome and kids were entertained with nature. Tenaya Lake wasn't far away which was the best part of the whole trip. Only con is it's usually really hard to get a campsite in Yosemite in general. We have tried before and ended up having to leave the park late at night as there was nowhere to camp. We lucked up this time!

Beautiful area to camp, still far from the actual Valley but quiet enough to make day trips. Very dry dirt, like when you step there is a puff, so 1yr old was plenty dirty right away! Facilities are just bathrooms and water station. RV hookups and tent sites. Sites are close together and all around you. There is not enough coverage for true privacy. There were hammocks all over and I wished we had one. Bear boxes are large enough to cover all your food needs. Kids enjoyed it for their first trip and we even had a dear visit our campsite!