Whether you're an RVer or tent camper, Los Padres National Forest, CA is a great place to post up for the weekend—or longer. There are tons of hikes and other fun activities to partake in. Experience some of the most stunning views that California camping has to offer. Search nearby campsites and find top-rated spots from other campers.
"Been here in all seasons. Normally very nice weather. Had back in and pull through sites, all good experience. Great trails to hike or Mt. Bike ride. Easy access to the beach. Very friendly staff."
"Clean facility. Heated pool and jacuzzi. Concrete pads and lots of trees. Connected to El Cap Canyon that has cabins and yurts. A really great store there with events like wine tasting and concerts."
"Great staff, great long term campers, great amenities! Will definitely go back for another visit!"
"Lots of permanent campers or long term folks. They had horseback riding and a small playground. We came in late and it was hard to find our map and site reservations."
"Flying Flags RV Resort& Campground is one of my favorite RV resorts. It is located in Buellton, CA very near the historic town of Solvang, as well as Lake Cachuma and Los Padres National Forest."
"We had a premium site at $185 a night and it was nice, but it was on the main entrance road so that was a little annoying."
"Then I made the climb up the mountains to Rancho Oso. I stayed in the 5th level that had full hookups, and it was tiered in 7 levels, with an average of 10 spaces a level."
"We chose it because it was near Santa Barbara. And it was affordable (with Thousand Trails). So near to Santa Barbara is a relative term. It’s a 35 minute drive on a lovely windey mountain road."
$42 - $49 / night
"It does sit next to a branch of the Kern river…unfortunately it was dry. The campground is clean and well maintained. Sites are level dirt for your rig and a clean cement pad for your chairs etc."
"Nice park adjacent to a great bike trail of 50+ miles. The river is not always running as in some of the pictures. Gravel pads concrete patios surrounded by grass."
"We were hesitant at first from working remote by being so close to the highway, but the tall wall that separates the highway and the park works very well."
"We needed an overnight in Santa Barbara and chose this convenient location. Yes, there is highway noise but it is like white noise to me."
"This is a pricey rv park, but great location and very busy. It is competitive with the others around and think it was the best one in the area."
"At first we were unhappy seeing we had a site close to the outside road (189), but quickly changed our minds."
"Very nice RV Park At very reasonable rates, paved roads, great amenities, bar and restaurants"
"Nice RV park with level pads, a restaurant, and a pool. Also across the street from camping world. Only con is parking is on DG rather than cement and in the morning it is muddy. Paid $49.50"
$70 / night
"Just a simple RV park outside of the campgrounds! I was happy to stay here in my van while in town to work. Great hot showers and quiet. Shore power plug in."
"Very quiet, next to the golf course. Shade available at some parts of the lot but not all."
$47 - $65 / night
"The location has plenty of room for any size trailer. Great location to the beach."
TravelerThere are a handful of parking pads just below the Hi Mountain Lookout. Pit toilets, picnic tables, and fire rings only. No water. AT&T cell service, but no Verizon (as of Summer 2016). Partial view through the trees out across the Los Padres National Forest, depending on the site selection.
Higher ground clearance is recommended getting up here! The dirt fire roads can get pretty rutted. AWD/4WD make the trek up a breeze, tho!
Flies can be INCESSANT in the shade during the hotter months...
LegendThis was our fourth stay here. Been here in all seasons. Normally very nice weather. Had back in and pull through sites, all good experience. Great trails to hike or Mt. Bike ride. Easy access to the beach. Very friendly staff. Nice amenities. One of my favorite places. Will be back again.
GuideSanta Margarita Lake is a lovely, quiet medium size lake used for drinking water in San Luis Obispo County, Los Padres National Forest. There are 60 campsites; 54 tent/RV, 2 Boat-in and 4 horse camps. There is a playground and a pool available in summer as swimming in the lake is not allowed. Canoe/boat rentals are available as well as a launch ramp and marina store. This lake is popular with smaller fishing and recreational boats. Amenities include flush toilets in main camp, picnic table, fire pits but no hook ups. Reservations are online except for horse camps which require a phone call to County Parks 805-788-2387, fees run 38$-36$ per night.
GuideCalled to see if they had availability for the night after the office had closed, but a woman answered and gave us late check-in instructions. Clear list of available sites, amenities and prices. Pull-through site we chose wasn’t quite level, but close. The pull-through sites alternate direction of entry. Concrete pad, grassy areas in between on the door-side; neighbor’s hookups on the hookup side. Pad was long enough to stay hooked up and wide enough to have slides out, but if the neighbor on the hookups side has slides on that side, they’d be almost touching . Full hookups worked fine. Restrooms good, but the stall doors didn’t all lock. The freeway noise was pretty constant, and there was an occasional sour smell from the river, I guess. Would stay here again.
GuideWhile visiting Los Padres National forest on a Valentines Weekend, we unfortunately couldn’t do much camping near the higher altitudes due to high wind gusts so we headed toward the other camps, Davy Brown and Nina. Only problem was these were all reserved!! Why I hate most camping in California Bc nothing is ever available. Either way I hate these type of campgrounds where there are fire pits, and bathrooms, and typically more humans nearby. So we ditched that and settled on a campsite off the road since the sun was setting. It was off one of the many horse/hike trails and was at least flat and somewhat further from the road and hidden by brush and trees. It was a nice night and enjoyed a quiet night alone on the forest. We only needed to do an overnight since we were doing the wineries and we’re staying at an bed and breakfast the next night. Overall it was nice but rather stay in 2 other spots we found that could make for future camping trips. ☺️⛺️
RangerFlying Flags RV Resort& Campground is one of my favorite RV resorts. It is located in Buellton, CA very near the historic town of Solvang, as well as Lake Cachuma and Los Padres National Forest. The campsite is in a beautiful setting surrounded by green rolling hills. April, May is the perfect time to visit.
The resort features a plethora of housing options, including vintage trailers and airstreams, cottages, luxury tents, and RV/tent camping spots.
Free WiFi, a full laundry facility, pools, and a hot tub, every aspect of your stay is covered. For a relaxing time, they have poolside cabanas, a communal fire pit, picnic areas, and a communal TV lounge with pool and foosball tables.
If you have children there is a playground as well as bocce and horseshoes. There is a full fitness center in case you want to get your workout in without the heat. All of the amenities are very well maintained, including the bathrooms and showers. When you get hungry the campground/resort has a few options.
There is a full fitness center in case you want to get your workout in without the heat. I rode my bicycle to Solvang, which is 4 miles away. All of the amenities are very well maintained, including the bathrooms and showers. When you get hungry the campground/resort has a few options. There is a convenience store and snack bar on-site, as well as the Campfire Cafe, an eatery with a full menu that allows you to eat in or even deliver to your site.
In case you are feeling like an adult beverage, Flying Flags has a fairly extensive wine and beer bar. There are also restaurants, convenience, and grocery stores within walking distance. The location of Flying Flags is perfect if you are looking to venture out for an evening or you are here for the wineries.
There are several museums in the area, including the Solvang vintage motorcycle museum. There are also golf courses, breweries, wineries, a casino/resort, and the Solvang farmers market. This resort and campground overall is a very nice spot to stop on a long journey, or just to get away for a while.
Well worth the trip. It seems like the RVs in the RV park are newer, the park is pretty upscale. I would assume most of the people are full-timers, retired couples who are spending some time in the park. Although it was beautiful weather, you hardly see people outside, it seems like everyone is keeping to themselves. I am not sure why that is.
ScoutA great campground in the Los Padres National Forest. It is well maintained and has a small creek running through it. There are some good shady spot, however, they fill up quick. Toilets are basic but fairly cleaned and stocked. Fire pit, fire restrictions may apply, stand alone grills and picnics tables are encluded.
ScoutWe 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.
LegendHuge campground! Variety of sites from dry to full hookups. Anything with hookups is cramped though. We originally booked FHU and opted out for much more spacious dry site. Dry sites really vary but all are largish. Fire pit at 409 put in a strange location so that we is located on the back side of our trailer. Really no other way we could have configured it. For such a large park with so many amenities I cannot believe the dog park is downright tiny. But park during week is largely vacant so a lot of space to let your dog run (which is against policy). Sure the place is a muddy mess is the rain. Ground squirrels got the place all torn up but hey they were there first. Generally this is a great destination resort! Go see the monarch butterflies in Goleta in winter months. They overwinter there!
Discover the beauty of RV camping near Los Padres National Forest in California, where stunning landscapes and a variety of amenities await outdoor enthusiasts.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is the most popular RV campsite near Los Padres National Forest?
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular RV campground near Los Padres National Forest is Sun Outdoors Santa Barbara with a 4.5-star rating from 19 reviews.
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