Best Campgrounds near Lakewood, CA

If you have an RV probably be alright. I have a roof tent and stayed at a primitive campsite. It’s pretty chill. The campgrounds themselves is extremely clean. If you come around March, keep your fire wood dry because mine got wet and couldn’t start a fire. We’re next to Camp Pendleton and I’m pretty sure I could hear gun exercises lol. About 1.5 miles from the highway. Not a deal killer but if you want complete peace and quiet, this isn’t it. The actual campsites looked like they have some nice space to them. Still small overall. The trail to the beach is 1.5 miles. The beach isn’t great unless you’re a surfer. A lot of surfers camping here. It’s a cool spot to get away if you live nearby and wanna camp and grill. If you’re coming from far away, I’d say check out the site on the actual beach. At least you’ll be on the beach.

Ps - if you run into locals on the trails, don’t be nice, because they hate you and hate that you’re there. They’re insufferable. So do you and enjoy yourself and don’t be polite to them. The staff and other campers are awesome though

Les employés sont super gentils on est arrivé à 19h et c'était ouvert. Choix avec ou sans électricité, petite épicerie, douches bbc et table. Calme et nature au rdv à quelques pas de los Angeles. Ambiance très familiale !

This state park has 14,000 acres. It feels secluded, but the city is only 20 minutes away. The trails are varied, accessible by horseback, hiking, biking. Some trails are ready walking, some very strenuous. The hills are green in spring. It's a beautiful oasis right near Riverside or Anaheim.

The "Airport Fire" burned through the area and their website says they are temporarily closed.

Clean bathrooms, friendly rangers, nice layout, cute wildlife, close to TCT. Only issue, which is probably just on all of Catalina, is that late hours of the night people are driving up the road in their golf carts which are super loud. So don’t get a site near the road if your an early or light sleeper.

Three miles from a the grocery and only minutes from north LA, you'll find a basic campground with flush toilets, coin showers, and easily accessible hiking trails. The sites are basic with campfire pit and grill, open space for a tent or rv, and picnic table. The inner circle of sites abuts the bathrooms and is better for groups. The outer rings on three sides have nice views, but some sites on the south side are shorter and abut a fence.

We stayed in site 59 which had a really nice shade tree and great views of a meadow and the cliffs out the back of the site. The sites are fairly open and close to each other, so be prepared to hear everything, and because the campground is close to the city it is popular with groups and families.

The campground was under fire warning all weekend, but faux wood (javalog or duraflame) and charcoal was still allowed. The camphost sold Javalogs, and there were plenty of options at the nearby Albertson's.

The state park is a former movie set and is filled with easily accessible trails for hiking and some for mountain biking. The primary trails were open fire roads with off-shoots to lakes, pools, meadows, and more. It was easy to imagine you weren't anywhere close to the city. During a holiday weekend the trails were fairly busy with day-use hikers, but even then, it was easy to get away and be on trails alone if you wanted. There is also a visitor center in the park, but it has limited hours.
The wildlife is abundant. There is plenty of birdwatching, and coyotes were wandering through the park and campground without fear. If you have a dog with you make sure they don't try join the pack. On a hike right out of the park a few hundred yards, I came across a pair of bobcats—mom and cub—making their way to a running creek.

I'd recommend a visit if you're looking for a close to town escape.

Be mindful of their shower token system. Otherwise, a nice spot. Not too close to the highway. We saw a coyote, so watch your dogs.

Great beach camping experience with some minor drawbacks 

We just spent 4 days at Leo Carrillo in site 128 last week. The campground is tucked away in a beautiful canyon setting with lots of shade trees, which was really nice for keeping cool. Our site was spacious enough for our two tents and had a good fire pit and picnic table setup. 

The best part about this campground is definitely the beach access- it's about a 10-minute walk from most sites, and you can explore some amazing tide pools and caves once you get there. The kids loved searching for hermit crabs and sea anemones. Bring a wagon if you're hauling beach gear though, as the walk can feel long with all your stuff. 

Facilities were decent- bathrooms were kept fairly clean and showers worked well, though the token system($2 for 2 minutes) takes some getting used to. The camp store was handy for forgotten supplies and firewood. Cell service is virtually non-existent in the canyon, but you can get signal up at the beach if needed. 

Only downsides were some noisy neighbors on the weekend nights(seems pretty common here given the proximity to LA) and the sites can feel a bit close together when it's fully booked. centimeters to inches Also spotted a few rats at night, so definitely store your food properly. 

Despite the minor issues, we'd definitely come back. It's a great escape from the city with that classic California beach camping vibe. Just book well in advance for summer weekends and maybe bring earplugs if you're a light sleeper. 

Month of Visit: October

Everything was fine. We stayed for 1 night to Visit L.A. . It was clean and the Staff was very nice. We called a night before and got a Site for our RV.

I can’t say that it was awesome but it wasn’t jaw dropping. Nothing to write home about but not uninviting.

There are 21 campsites and not all have tree’s but its walking distance from the creek. Its nestled between mountains and the night sky is gorgeous. We saw wild ducks too and some other desert critters. Has it not been for the nasty animals called inconsiderate humans blasting their music and fighting amongst themselves bringing their family drama until 6am, the camp site would have been marvelous. No ranger to domesticate those animals and remind them of quiet hours. Another group even brought a dj and karaoke. Seriously, no consideration for the rest of the campers. They want to get away from the hustle and bustle and be with nature but they can’f live without the modern day amenities and bring that noise we are all trying to escape to a place of nature. They even had BB guns and shooting them within the campsite. Idiots. The day the ranger did come by he was giving tickets to vehicles with no pass. Wish he came at night when he was most needed. Bathrooms are poorly maintained too. Never coming back for an overnight stay, a day trip will suffice.

Clean, quiet campground located in one of the OC Parks, with plenty of trails for hiking, mountain biking, and equestrian use. I stayed here on a weekday, and there were a few couple of vacant campsites in my area, so it was an extremely quiet visit. Bathrooms were clean and well stocked for my stay. I didn’t use the showers since I was only staying one night, but I heard they were free!

Rangers were very friendly and firewood was only $5 for a decent bundle that lasted me over 2 hours.

The city of Rancho Santa Margarita is right up the hill, so you can grab food and any necessities if needed.

My site backed to the creek, so I never had people walking through my campsite.

My dog & I slept in my van, but there was room for multiple tents, and a decent amount of shade in my spot.

My spot didn’t have its own water spigot, but there was one at a site across from me.

I was fortunate that all of the campers around me were quiet and considerate. I know that it doesn’t always work out that way, and having obnoxious neighbors can really ruin your experience.

Visiting family in Santa Ana and LA. Not to far for them to come to us and all to go to beach. Park clean and well maintained, personnel very kind and friendly Beautiful view from our site on area B. Crowded on weekend, much less during week Campground is not associated to adjacent Frank Bonelli Regional. Charge $12 to enter with vehicle but no fee to ride in on bikes