Best Campgrounds near Santa Margarita, CA

Oh, hello you beautiful cove with your heavy waves and moss laden boulders. Hello more birds, more deer, more meddling raccoons than expected. Hello hiking and biking trails. Hello local market with your reasonably priced ice and more reasonably priced beer. Hello. How have you been off my radar all this time?

I've lived only several hours away for 11 years without knowing this simple loop campground was even here. The state park offers days worth of outdoor activity and views forever and ever, with the ability to feel alone only miles from town. The sunset from the cliff is a must.

There is a little camp store, but it was closed during my visit (closes at 4pm). The campground is spare, and the camp host spent the better part of the day I was there smoking weed with friends. No shade, you do you, and they were friendly but the campground wasn't as kept as it could be. My site had trash from the previous resident and the grounds were...okay. The campground is fairly open site to site with the bathrooms in the middle, which I was surprised to find were flush with a faucet. There are two water spigots but they are a bit hard to find. They are right in the middle but hidden behind things. 

Sites 17-19 have a decent amount of shade and the most foliage separation. They back up to the park, and there are trails on the hillside above, so people coming off the trail might kind of be able to see you (briefly) as they pass. Raccoons will 100% rush your site as soon as you go to sleep to see if there are any fun goodies laying about. Put stuff away. Some sites have bear boxes, so I assume...bears. However, not every site had one. I assume because the bears aren't that much of an issue, but I'm not a bear expert, or anything.

We just returned from a stay at Pismo Coast RV Resort, and unfortunately, it did not live up to expectations. Check-in was fast and easy, and on our first full day, the weather was perfect. The kids enjoyed the pool and arcade, which was a great start. However, several advertised amenities were either missing or in poor condition. We went looking for the mini golf course that’s promoted on their website, only to find it completely ripped out and blocked off— very disappointing since it was one of the reasons, we booked this resort. We also searched for the ping pong tables, which appear to have been left outside and are badly warped and unusable. Another letdown. The basketball and tennis are combined into one court, so only one activity can be played at a time, and we never did find the horseshoe area. Our group included eight people and two travel trailers. We had told the kids all about the resort's amenities, which played a big part in our decision to book. It was disheartening to find that many of the features we looked forward to simply weren’t available. Dinner at the on-site restaurant was equally frustrating. Service was extremely slow, and there weren’t enough umbrellas to provide shade— we ended up sitting with the sun in our faces. One of our guests wasn’t even asked for their drink order before the server walked away. When we finished eating, it took over 25 minutes just to get our bill, despite the restaurant being nearly empty(maybe 4 tables outside, 2 inside). We felt completely ignored. The first night was peaceful, as it should be. But the following day, large RVs surrounded us and parked so close they encroached on the grass behind our spot. Some opened their toy haulers, making it feel like we had no privacy— just 5 feet from their setup. That night was extremely loud until 11:30 PM, even though quiet hours start at 10 PM. With on-site security, we expected better enforcement. It wasn’t just one or two campsites being loud— it was several, with shouting and laughter like it was a private party. If you’re looking for a quiet, family-friendly place where you can count on the advertised amenities, this is not it. We had high hopes that this would become an annual trip, but based on this experience, we won’t be returning. Really disappointed.

This campground is fairly open and trees are sparse, but the sites are spaced sufficiently apart that they afford privacy. No hookups, but there’s water at each site and conveniently located flush toilets, sinks and showers.

Right off Highway 1 for a bike ride and walking distance to a beautiful rugged beach. We nerded out on birds and wildflowers.

The campground was full during our stay, but we found the campground quiet at night.

Directly behind the campground is a large, unattractive human-made pond. Lots of fencing, plastic sheeting and a herd of sheep who may have been put there to graze down the grass and weeds. A little jarring in the context of the natural beauty, but nbd. The sheep were actually kind of entertaining.

Rangers and camp host were super friendly. Host sells firewood. Cambria is the best bet for groceries and other necessities. San Simeon is more limited and fancy.

Extremely limited Verizon service here: 1 bar flitting on and off.

Stayed in the non electric spots in our camper. The site next to ours was occupied which made parking the trailer a little tricky- almost like parallel parking and the sites are close together like a parking lot. Could not see the ocean from site 1 but had a little more space/privacy since it was a corner spot. Bathrooms were clean enough and a short walk to the beach! Some scattered litter, but nothing too crazy. We loved walking along the beach and watching the wild life. Our dog at the campsite kept the squirrels away, but they were definitely looking for food at other sites.