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Best Dog-Friendly Camping near Golden Gate National Recreation Area

891 Reviews

H. Dana Bower Rest Area Northbound provides free overnight parking for vehicles of all sizes near the Golden Gate Bridge, with pets permitted throughout the area. The rest area features toilet facilities, drinking water fountains, and trash receptacles available 24 hours daily. Campers reference The Dyrt for top tips on camping near Golden Gate National Recreation Area, California. Several pet-friendly accommodations exist within 30 minutes of San Francisco, including Marin RV Park with full hookups and Samuel P. Taylor State Park Campground offering tent, RV, and cabin options. Dogs must be leashed at all times, with most campgrounds enforcing a 6-foot leash rule and requiring owners to clean up after their pets.

Nearby trail systems offer multiple pet exercise options, though wildlife encounters necessitate keeping dogs under control. The area experiences significant temperature variations, with reviewers noting it can be surprisingly cold near the Golden Gate Bridge even during summer months. Raccoons are common at H. Dana Bower Rest Area, making proper food storage essential when camping with pets. For those seeking more amenities, Olema Campground allows pets at their cabin and glamping accommodations, while Anthony Chabot Regional Park provides electric hookups and shower facilities for both tent and RV campers with dogs. The convenient ferry access from Marin RV Park allows pet owners to explore San Francisco while leaving their RVs securely parked at the campground.

Map showing campgrounds near Golden Gate National Recreation Area, CaliforniaExplore the Map

Best Dog-Friendly Sites Near Golden Gate National Recreation Area (90)

    1. Samuel P. Taylor State Park Campground

    53 Reviews
    Lagunitas, CA
    17 miles

    $35 - $225 / night

    "This campground is less than an hours drive from San Francisco. It is along Sir Francis Drake Boulevard which takes you through a bunch of very cute tiny towns."

    "Scenic, quiet, dog friendly and close to awesome swimming holes. We booked the MG2 group site and worth the $. It was tucked away and heaven."

    2. H. Dana Bower Rest Area Northbound

    13 Reviews
    Sausalito, CA
    2 miles
    Website

    "I decided to stay here, because it was the right location for my road trip, it was free, and I thought the view of the city would be excellent."

    "Reasonably quiet on the side away from the road. Very safe, police patrols throughout the day/night. Good hiking areas nearby. Bathrooms and trash cans. Highly recommend as it is also completely free."

    3. Pantoll Campground — Mount Tamalpais State Park

    15 Reviews
    Stinson Beach, CA
    7 miles
    Website
    +1 (415) 388-2070

    $7 - $25 / night

    "Pantoll is a pretty campground located adjacent to the entrance to Mount Tamalpais.  You can hike to, bike to, take the bus to, or even drive to this campground.  "

    "This is an ada compliant walkup campground situated near the top of Mount Tamalpais. Featuring 13 sites ranging from standard campground style to a few more secluded areas."

    4. Marin RV Park

    11 Reviews
    Larkspur, CA
    6 miles
    Website
    +1 (415) 461-5199

    $99 - $115 / night

    "Great location to the city and Muir woods. Good stores near by. Narrow sites. No room for awning. Close to gather. Sites are gravel and level. Nice area for pets with view."

    "30 mins away from the City. A bit pricy but that is to be expected in SF."

    5. San Francisco RV Resort

    16 Reviews
    Pacifica, CA
    15 miles
    Website
    +1 (888) 707-1477

    "If you want a great little place with quick easy access to San Francisco that has a great view of the ocean this place is great! And affordable!"

    "Very nice park for an on the water location, I've been to some where you can't even turn without hitting someone."

    6. Olema Campground

    24 Reviews
    Olema, CA
    21 miles
    Website
    +1 (415) 663-8106

    "Pros: Has numerous amenities including hot (free) showers (cleaned daily), flush toilets, full hookup RV spots, laundromat, US Post office, fenced playground, dog park, drive in tent sites, and firewood"

    "We nestled our Sprinter between to large pine trees and took the dog for a walk. Then headed down the road for our first dinner indoors since February!"

    7. Anthony Chabot Regional Park

    29 Reviews
    Castro Valley, CA
    23 miles
    Website
    +1 (888) 327-2757

    $25 - $200 / night

    "Midweek in June the park, which is fairly large, is still nearly empty."

    "as usual some spots are better than others but most close to restrooms and/or water. lots of poison oak and star thistle right off trail. great deterrent for kids to stay out of tick areas but id worry"

    8. Bootjack Campground — Mount Tamalpais State Park

    3 Reviews
    Stinson Beach, CA
    7 miles
    Website
    +1 (415) 388-2070

    "Quick access to some solid trails, beautiful views, and close proximity to a park and San Francisco. Just be ready for a winding drive with some sharp turns and sheer cliffs."

    "Most sites are near the road and you’ll hear bicycles all night. Though, you can see the city shine in the distance. Cost us $25"

    9. Candlestick RV Park

    5 Reviews
    Brisbane, CA
    11 miles
    Website
    +1 (415) 822-2299

    "Or Muni which takes about double the time including walk to the station. Great WiFi. It's a parking lot with close neighbors. Nice and clean facilities."

    10. Half Moon Bay State Beach Campground

    27 Reviews
    Half Moon Bay, CA
    27 miles
    Website
    +1 (650) 726-8819

    $35 - $165 / night

    "We rarely make reservations to camp in California Beach Parks, as they are usually filled up weeks or even months in advance."

    "No dogs allowed in the beach in the park but a short walk away there is a public beach that is dog friendly, so that was nice for our doggo."

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Recent Dog-Friendly Camping Photos near Golden Gate National Recreation Area

90 Photos of 90 Golden Gate National Recreation Area Campgrounds

Dog-Friendly Camping Reviews near Golden Gate National Recreation Area

891 Reviews of 90 Golden Gate National Recreation Area Campgrounds

  • Michael I.
    May. 18, 2018

    Kirby Cove Campground — Golden Gate National Recreation Area

    Great views, but lacking in things to do at campground

    Kirby Cove is a campground different than I have ever experienced before. You’re clearly very close to everything (i.e. San Francisco), while feeling like you are away from everything at the same time.

    The campground is located in the spectacular Golden Gate National Recreation Area and down a 1-mile dirt road from Hwy. 1. You’ll get a gate code when you make a reservation so you can access the road.

    All sites are walk-in, so depending on which site you get you might want to bring a cart of backpack to haul your gear to your site. We camped in site #1, which was awesome, but also the furthest from the parking lot at about 800 feet each way.

    The views from site #1 are spectacular. You’ve got front row seats to the Golden Gate Bridge and San Francisco to your south. The site is located on a bluff just above the Kirby Cove beach.

    Battery Kirby is right there at the campground and interesting to explore. Active from 1898 to 1934 the battery in quite interesting to walk through, despite the vandals that have clearly spent a lot of time there. Aside from the battery there isn’t a lot to do at the campground and we spent half a day picking up garbage at the beach.

    There is however a ton of wonderful hiking in other parts of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, but you will need to drive to access the other trailheads.

    Before camping here we were warned about the fog horn going off all night, but we didn’t hear it once during the night, so maybe we got lucky.

  • N
    Sep. 26, 2021

    San Francisco North-Petaluma KOA

    Great camp for the kids

    This KOA is pretty big with plenty of options for RV sites. Wide variety of full hook-ups or partial hook-ups. Like most (if not all) KOAs, you can also tent camp or tent cabins. Good size dog park for the pets to run and be free, as well as plenty of fun activities to entertain the kiddos. For us, this is a great spot to shoot down the highway and pull in for a few days to get away from the hustle and bustle of normal life! Close to downtown Petaluma with plenty of premium shops and restaurants.

  • VThe Dyrt PRO User
    Oct. 26, 2025

    Sonoma County Fairgrounds RV Park

    Santa Rosa Fair grounds review

    We love this park, we are full timers with a severely autistic son and this park has plenty of spots so we usually dont have neighbors. They have an amazing Laundry room that gets cleaned practically everyday and a little dog park that is the only dog park my Mufasa can go to. The park itself is like a little slice of heaven and surrounded by the town so nothing is that far away. It is 5 min away from the Planet fitness and it is quiet and has a night security guard too.

  • L
    Nov. 13, 2023

    Vineyard RV Park

    Plug in and recharge!

    Took a last minute reservation. Call even if online says booked. Hot showers, great laundry facility, fenced dog park. I needed to recharge my camper van and relax from a couple weeks of city vanlife. Felt tucked away but close to every store you could want.

  • Eric D.
    Jul. 2, 2019

    Olema Campground

    Private Family Oriented Campground

    Pros: Has numerous amenities including hot (free) showers (cleaned daily), flush toilets, full hookup RV spots, laundromat, US Post office, fenced playground, dog park, drive in tent sites, and firewood for sale. Cons: expensive, sites are close and poorly defined and the after hours check in procedure doesn’t prevent overlapping.

  • Andrea A.
    Feb. 10, 2021

    Santa Cruz North-Costanoa KOA

    Great if you know what to expect

    We had a very nice stay for a long weekend. The pull through spaces are extremely tight to the point that our slide out was hitting vegetation and our neighbors awning was about two feet from our Rv. But, if you expect that, it’s a great place to stay. Very clean, well maintained, and about a 20 minute walk to the ocean. Decent takeout from the restaurant and great cocktails! Very convenient dog park. We had almost the entire row to ourselves after checkout on Sunday. We will definitely return for the full experience when all restrictions are lifted, but will leave our two big dogs at home as there wasn’t much space for them.

  • Kristi D.
    Oct. 24, 2023

    Skyline Wilderness Park

    Great Napa Valley views

    Great place to hit Napa Valley. Staff was super friendly. Spots were pretty level, but close together. They gave free wifi but it was not consistent. It constantly dropped.

    They had a great little fenced in dog park which was great for our dog. The bathrooms were pretty clean with nice hot water. Codes needed for showers.

    Very quiet, no issues. We had friendly neighbors. There were people coming in for day use to use the trails for hiking, biking etc. We didn't get to explore as we were strictly in area to wine taste and eat some good food. We enjoyed our time there and would stay there again. $65 a night. Pricey compared to some places in CA, but probably a good price for Napa.

  • BRIAN O.The Dyrt PRO User
    Apr. 28, 2022

    Pillar Point RV Park

    Pricey, but worth it

    Great spot right off the highway and on the beach. Lots of activities and places to eat within walking distance. Surfing, walking/bike trails, kayaking….Pet friendly

  • Cristina A.
    Aug. 11, 2019

    Lower Blooms Creek — Big Basin Redwoods State Park — CAMPGROUND CLOSED

    Amazing camp sites

    No matter what site you reserve, all the site are amazing! We had #108. Near the bathroom, wash room, garbage dumpsters. The only con was the windy road! I eat sour patch kids to help with getting car sick. Easy to find. The site is pet friendly. You can only walk the dogs at paved areas, no trails. Our dogs still had fun. The redwood trees were amazing! Definitely an experience you will never forget!

Guide to Golden Gate National Recreation Area

Explore the beauty of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area while enjoying the company of your furry friends. Several campgrounds in the vicinity welcome pets, making it easy to embark on outdoor adventures together.

Dog owners appreciate the amenities at these campgrounds

Pet-friendly campgrounds include great activities

Dog-friendly activities while camping near Golden Gate National Recreation Area

  • Take your pet for a stroll along the picturesque trails at Tilden Regional Park, where you can enjoy the natural beauty of the East Bay.
  • The Marin RV Park is conveniently located near local attractions, making it easy to explore the area with your dog.
  • Experience the vibrant wildlife at Benicia State Recreation Area, where you can enjoy scenic views and outdoor activities with your furry companion.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is the most popular dog-friendly campsite near Golden Gate National Recreation Area?

According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular dog-friendly campground near Golden Gate National Recreation Area is Samuel P. Taylor State Park Campground with a 4.3-star rating from 53 reviews.

What is the best site to find dog-friendly camping near Golden Gate National Recreation Area?

TheDyrt.com has all 90 dog-friendly camping locations near Golden Gate National Recreation Area, with real photos and reviews from campers.

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