17 campgrounds · Check availability for any dates.
Lake Isabella-Kern River KOA and KRS RV Resort @ Camp James house premium glamping accommodations within scenic surroundings just minutes from Lake Isabella and the Kern River. The area's upscale canvas accommodations and yurts combine rustic charm with modern amenities including fully-furnished interiors, comfortable bedding, climate control systems, and private outdoor spaces. "This is the best camp ground we've ever stayed. The views are fantastic, the atmosphere is perfect," noted one visitor about Lake Isabella KOA, highlighting the property's unique appeal. Most glamping units feature electricity, quality furnishings, and convenient access to clean, well-maintained bathroom facilities with hot showers. Some accommodations offer private bathroom facilities, while others provide communal access to recently renovated shower houses and restroom facilities—all maintained to high standards of cleanliness.
The glamping experience at these Kern River properties extends beyond comfortable accommodations with exceptional outdoor recreation opportunities. Camp James sits directly on the Kern River, offering immediate access to premium fishing spots, whitewater rafting, and tubing adventures during summer months when water levels moderate. One reviewer highlighted, "We loved it. Corner site on a creek that ran through the campground. The creek was great to sit in to escape the heat and float down." Both locations provide organized activities for families including movie nights, bingo sessions, and craft activities like rock painting. Glamping guests enjoy convenient access to Kernville's dining options, with the Kern River Brewing Company and Pizza Barn (which delivers directly to campsite) being particular favorites. During peak summer season, most glamping units require advance booking with three-night minimums, though availability expands during spring and fall seasons when temperatures remain pleasant.
"All sites are well kept, with access to clean bathrooms and coin operated showers. Staff is friendly and available when needed. Prices are a tad high but expected with a clean upscale Campground."
"Clean showers and bathrooms. Polite guests. Respectable to after hour policies. Ground keepers make sure everyone is happy. Full hook up sites make it easy. Shaded tent sites make it comfortable."
from $39 - $340 / night
Check Availability"A great place to relax in the heat right down the road from Lake Isabella. They have a wonderful pool and splash pad for the kids. The staff was amazing! They have pizza and a small bar to relax in."
"Laundry right on site! Close to lake Isabella and all of the Kern. Great for last minute reservations too, online booking works"
"I do a lot of camping, this one is a great campground if you want to go swimming, waterskiing, windsurfing, fishing, or just enjoy the beautiful scenic views of Lake Isabella."
from $36 - $38 / night
Check Availability"there is only one place for trash upon exit), but every site has a beautiful view of the mountainside and the stars, and if you get one of the good sites along the river, you're a few steps from the best"
"Camp 3 is a good location if you can book it quickly outside of the Summer months."
from $36 - $154 / night
Check Availability"The campsites were clean and spacious, the bathrooms were sanitary and showers were hot. Only downside happen to be the on-site general store was shut down the whole weekend."
"Beautiful nice place Close to the river"
from $77 - $400 / night
Check Availability"A nice secluded campground up the river from kern’s more populated sites, in the heart of the Sequoia National Forest."
from $36 - $114 / night
Check Availability"At one point we even ran out of TP and had to drive to the neighboring campground down the road to ask the host there for some more rolls, which she happily provided."
"Porta-potties were kept clean and trash was emptied from large trash containers regularly. Bears are common in the area and there are no bear lockers for food. So keep this in mind."
from $60 - $240 / night
Check Availabilityfrom $36 - $160 / night
Check Availability"We had site 117 and it was a nice spot with no fire pit. Full hookups and really I can’t imagine you could have a nicer park in Bakersfield. They did a great job!"
"We picked it because of the location and found it a nice little place to pull off HWY 99. "
from $43 - $54 / night
Check Availability"Good value campground, paved pull through sites with table/chairs and fire pits. No powered sites but has a water fill point. Decent toilet and shower facilities. Paid $20 for a night in January 2026"
"For $32, you can get a site off the river and have a little camping pit and picnic table and you’re around other RVs and it’s good."
ScoutA great place to relax in the heat right down the road from Lake Isabella. They have a wonderful pool and splash pad for the kids. The staff was amazing! They have pizza and a small bar to relax in. Most of the sites have shaded trees. They do movie nights and pancakes on certain days. A wonderful little place.
GuideOverall nice site with full hookups & wi-fi/cell. Had a nice shade tree but it can be real sunny without one. Laundry right on site! Close to lake Isabella and all of the Kern. Great for last minute reservations too, online booking works
RangerReview
Made reservation on Recreation.gov. Arrived at 4pm. Sites are said to be assigned upon arrival. Camp host was the only tent found pitched in the entire campground. It’s during the pandemic and some places are closed. Campground sign said full. Yelled to see if anyone was there in the campsite and no answer from the camp host. Left a voicemail with campground to let them know my name and reservation info and I have was going to look for a spot. Picked a spot with shade - very few available. Some trees, but not large Sequoias like you may expect since it’s near the Sequoia National Forest. This place is desert hot and might be a bit miserable for folks to just hangout here. There’s no hookups. It’s near Lake Isabella. Went to bed and didn’t see a camp host that evening. ANTS!! So many ants in my camper in the morning. Ack!! Talked to a waitress in town and she says the campground I was at is known for an ant problem. Had to get diatomaceous earth at the hardware store in town along with ant traps galore now that my camper was overrun. Find out from the locals this campground has a reputation for being bad. I had to reconsider my plan to stay there and went elsewhere... so frustrating.
GuideOur experience here was really frustrating for multiple reasons, but for the sake of this review I will try to highlight what is important for other campers to know. We had a bad experience from the beginning when we arrived at Hungry Gulch and were blown off by the camp host for asking who we could ask some questions of since we had made a reservation online at Recreation.gov and it was unclear what to do since there are not assigned camp spots. Since we had a kayak lesson to get to we called the Sequoia Recreation line and were told that we could pick any empty campsite, put our tent there and then it was OK to leave and the camp host would come along later to check our reservation (again which was done online so we had no other proof besides our email). We pitched our tent, went off for our kayak lessons, and when we got back to the campsite around 9 pm there was another family in our site and our tent was gone! The camp host took down our tent and gave our spot to someone else because we "didn't have the proper tag and hadn't checked in with him,"which of course we tried to do. So, I had to go find him and explain to him how I had done exactly what I was told by Sequoia Recreation and then he had to drive around for 15 minutes to find us a new spot and didn't even offer to help us put our tent back up that he had taken down (at what was now almost 10 pm). We were surrounded by people playing really loud music on a speaker on one side, another group that was drunkenly yelling on another and loud road noise. Someone came around the sites at like 10 pm and of course everyone was quiet for all of 5 minutes and then we didn't see anyone else after that checking on things. At 12:30 am we had enough, asked both groups to be quiet and while it helped some, both were still making lots of noise. After a long day of kayaking I was exhausted and gave up. We packed up our site at almost 1 am and left out of sheer frustration and ended up having to get a hotel in Bakersfield just to get some sleep. Beware of this campground and know that they're tricky with their sites. There are not a ton of bathrooms and the sites on the periphery of the campground are really close to the road with lots of noise. There are some sites with shade but not many. I am giving it 2 stars for location and proximity to Kern River activities and Lake Isabella.
LegendI do a lot of camping, this one is a great campground if you want to go swimming, waterskiing, windsurfing, fishing, or just enjoy the beautiful scenic views of Lake Isabella. If this campground is full check out my other review on Boulder Gulch. These camps do get full on holidays and in the summer so always reserve in time. Also what I do like about this site is that they have flushed toilets lol the host is always nice and welcoming. Also your phone will have some service but just make sure to turn it off and enjoy being out in nature. That’s the whole point right 😁. But other than that awesome camp, very clean and only some camps offer shade not all.
CONS: when it does get full, obviously there will be so many people and it does get loud and noisy. People will be playing loud music.
ScoutThe lake isn't that great. But they are improving their facility. Running water and restrooms are available. Spots available near the water
LegendKern River is a great place in the hot California Desert. This place has everything to make you feel at home. Several large sites for tents or RV's , bathrooms with full showers, a pool, splashpad and water play area. They have these weird Banana bikes which were fun. I was in complete heaven when I saw the coffee bar! There is a big pavilion with cooking areas for everyone!
This is close to several nearby attractions. They offer great wifi services. Great places if you have little ones. so much to do and all of the staff was wonderful.
They have Cabins too! I didnt stay in them but they are pretty cute.
GuideStayed here on July 4th weekend. Campground is small and there was plenty of day traffic to the Trail of 100 giants across the road. No running water and has pit toilets but camp hosts kept them VERY clean and they were very helpful and managed the crowds well. Definitely have to drive around to hunt for some water to hangout in/by. I usually stay on the eastern Sierra side but thought I’d give the western Sierra a go. Not sure I’d stay again but it’s a good spot if your passing by and need a place to stay on way to your destination.
ScoutBeautiful spot. Old school mountainside camping in the tall trees. Campsites are around 6,000’, pit toilets, grills, steel fire pits, picnic tables and potable water taps. We spent a night in late May and there were only a few other sites occupied on a Wednesday night. This is a hidden gem. It was 100 in Mojave and 70 in the TMP. Gorgeous tall evergreens and some larger oaks, a few might be old growth? ***Note: this is not a place for large RVs or trailers. The road in is tight and twisty with no shoulders and some trees and rock faces snug up against it. The campground is very steep, the roads are one lane and very very curvy. Some sites are very near each other, others are more dispersed. There are large groups sites.
Camp Three Campground offers primitive sites along the Kern River in Sequoia National Forest, approximately 40 minutes north of Lake Isabella. The campground typically operates from late May through mid-September when temperatures range from 50°F nights to 90°F days. River-adjacent sites provide natural cooling during summer months when the region experiences minimal rainfall and consistently clear skies.
River activities at Camp Three: Camp Three provides immediate river access for swimming and wading. "The River next to the campground is also easily accessed and great for all levels of play," notes one visitor. Sites near the water allow campers to take advantage of natural swimming areas with minimal hiking required.
Fishing spots: The Kern River offers productive trout fishing directly accessible from KRS RV Resort@Camp James. One camper notes, "There is great trout fishing right off the property, and the bathrooms have always been well kept and clean." Fishing licenses are required and can be purchased in Kernville at several locations.
Hiking nearby: Multiple trails access the surrounding Sequoia National Forest. From Headquarters Campground, campers can easily reach forest trails. "A nice secluded campground up the river from kern's more populated sites, in the heart of the Sequoia National Forest," reports one visitor who enjoyed the area's hiking options.
Riverside sites: At Camp Three Campground, the riverside location creates natural sound barriers between sites. "Best sites are right next to the river. Spacious with a good amount of privacy depending on the site you get. Easy to float to if you go up river," notes a regular visitor.
Swimming areas: Natural swimming holes form along the Kern River during summer months. At Halfway Group Campground, visitors enjoy river access for cooling off. One camper shares, "The campground is right up against the river so you will definitely hear it roaring at night."
Shade coverage: Tree cover provides essential relief during hot summer days. At Springhill South Recreation Site, campers find ample shade. "Tons of trees water and quiet. Just the way everybody likes it. Not too far from a general store and has tons of places you can hike," reports one visitor.
Reservation requirements: Most riverside sites require advance booking, especially for weekend stays during summer months. At Halfway Group Campground, group sites have specific size limitations. "There are a few different group sites available, with varying group size limitations," notes a visitor.
Water availability: Not all campgrounds provide potable water. "Keep in mind there is no running water at all here. Either bring your own or filter/boil the river water," advises a camper about Halfway Group Campground.
Wildlife encounters: Bears and other wildlife frequent the area, requiring proper food storage. Some campgrounds like Hospital Flat have resident bears. "We were warned of a resident bear that lives across the street but we did not encounter him or any other wildlife," reports one visitor.
Kid-friendly swim areas: Some sections of the Kern River create natural wading pools appropriate for children. At Kern's River Edge Campground, family amenities receive priority. "Well run site, with easy late check in process. Friendly on site camp hosts who sell ice and firewood... If you're a family with kids I think it'd be great," notes a recent visitor.
Campground activities: Several Lake Isabella glamping locations organize regular activities for children. At Camp James, structured recreation includes "movie night, bingo, even rock painting," according to visitors who appreciated the family programming.
Bathroom facilities: Restroom quality varies significantly between campgrounds. Some have flush toilets while others use vault toilets or portable facilities. "The bathrooms are sanitary and showers are hot," notes a visitor to Kern's River Edge Campground, making it suitable for families requiring more amenities.
Site access challenges: Many campgrounds have narrow roads with tight turns. At Hospital Flat, RV access requires careful navigation. "The website says several spots are good for a 30-foot RV. I do not recommend anything bigger than 24 feet or so. The road through the campground is very narrow, and lined with large boulders," warns a visitor.
Full hookups availability: When glamping in Lake Isabella, California with an RV, knowing which campgrounds offer utilities matters. Orange Grove RV Park provides complete services. "We had site 117 and it was a nice spot with no fire pit. Full hookups and really I can't imagine you could have a nicer park in Bakersfield," shares one RVer.
Seasonal limitations: RV sites near Lake Isabella often implement restrictions during fire season. "There are also no fires allowed at this campground (at least not during the time we went)," notes a visitor to Hospital Flat, highlighting the importance of checking seasonal regulations before arrival.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is the most popular glamping campsite near Lake Isabella, CA?
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular glamping campground near Lake Isabella, CA is KRS RV Resort@Camp James with a 4.5-star rating from 15 reviews.
What is the best site to find glamping camping near Lake Isabella, CA?
TheDyrt.com has all 17 glamping camping locations near Lake Isabella, CA, with real photos and reviews from campers.
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