Best Tent Camping near Manhattan Beach, CA

The first thing you should know about Tapo Canyon Park is that for actual tent camping, you will be in either decomposed granite or concrete. The second thing is that there is no cell service and no phone landlines there. 

The park is very nice, and very well maintained. There is a large grass area with an upgraded playground, ample covered picnic area for large groups, and an archery range (private, but open to the public on Saturdays).

The archery range is one of the best in California. There is a members area and the original range is open to the public on Saturdays from 9-1, with a nominal $5 fee.

The campsites are designed for RVs. I have camped here in a tent and there is no way to drive a stake into the ground. The sites are fairly large and well spread out for an RV lot. 

Each site has a fireplace, picnic table, and full hook ups. There is not much shade. The sites are very well maintained daily by the camp host Terri. 

At night you can hear the coyotes calling as they roam the rugged hills, but don't worry it's a very safe park.

I would give the park 4 stars for camping in an RV, 2 stars for tent camping, the facility as a whole is probably a 4.

This is a great camping spot. The beach is across the street. Facilities are closer then that. The Navy Exchange down the street has camping supplies. The cost for a tent site is $10. An unbelievable place.

Our campsite & the bathrooms were clean & well maintained. However the location of tent camping v RV camping is awful. We are tent campers and had a nice spot with a beautiful lake view BUT the RV site was directly in front of the lake between our tent & the lake! So when a monstrous RV drove in all we could see was the side of the thing & we had to go around it to enjoy the view.

Very well maintained campground with RV and tent sites. It’s right on the PCH so you get some great views of the pacific and the beach is just across the highway. It’s a bit noisy since the PCH is a heavily traveled highway and isn’t very remote, if that’s what you’re looking for. Great campground for families.

This is a great small, hike in camp ground with no privy but decent tent sites. There's no running water but the creek is usually running so come prepared with your own water and something to treat the creek water with. Check for fire restrictions and dig your cat holes at least 200 feet from the water. Or bring WAG bags and pack it back out. Very much like Hoegees campground. Good for families abs Scouts.

After experiencing both amenities this place is more or less for RVs and 4/10 as for they do have the tent camping on the steep incline and not too many sites but for RVs couldn't be happier plus the people here are nice and friendly you do have your Karen's but you're going to have them everywhere we enjoyed the lake the view the weather it could have been better over here will definitely be returning you can stay for 20 days and then you have to leave for 60 days and that's fine with me I'm looking forward to returning

I can't deduct stars for how crowded it was during Labor Day Weekend. I think it was a treat that we were able to book on a fairly short notice for a holiday weekend. The pool is awesome and huge compared to other campgrounds. It was overly crowded this Labor Day weekend but what do you expect, right? It was hot. They had a live band, movie night, roomy campsites. It was loud and rowdy in the tent camping area but calm in the RV area. I had T-Mobile and had ZERO reception here. I have since dropped T-Mobile and got Verizon because it seems like T-Mobile reception is terrible at most campsites. We are looking forward to going back soon.

Giant oval loop with camp sites all along both sides. Rv sites, tent sites and equestrian (horse) sites. Paved road is good for bike riding. Behind my Camp site was a few different hiking paths. Restroom buildings have water, toilets, and showers. It says to bring quarters for the showers but they were free. Each site is typical... Picnic bench, fire pit, and metal grill. No gathering fire wood, gotta buy it at local grocery or gas station. $20 a night. Lots of families with kids. Feels really safe here. Saw the park rangers driving around and the front has a gate guard who checks you in. Also only 10 minutes away from city.

This is a nice campground. Very close to the city but still with visiting. I’m a van camper so I rented an RV site because I wanted shade trees. The tent camping sites in the first section have very little shade. Maybe one or two sites have shade. You definitely have to bring a canopy. I camped there in Nov2020 it was a nice getaway. The view of the lake is beautiful. I enjoyed seeing all the ducks on the lake. Each campsite has a table and fire ring. The bathrooms have flush toilets and the campground is kept clean and trash cans are emptied daily. It has a fish cleaning area with running water too. Must put away all your food because the raccoons will get into it. Overall it’s a nice local place to camp if you live in Santa Clarita, Ca.

I have been camping here for many years. The sunsets are always beautiful and the weather is usually awesome!
The shoreline may be covered in rocks or not, it depends on the tides and the past storms. This is not a great swimming beach but if relaxing, short walks and sunsets are your thing, it’s a great spot.
The ocean has some resident sea doggies and dolphins which are always fun to watch! Might even spot a 🐳 whale at the right time of year!
The campground is getting smaller as Mother Nature has been taking her beach back. Previous storms have taken a lot of the north end and a couple on the south end.
The toilets are out houses and there is some water across the campground road. The camp host has wood for sale. The highway can be loud at times but it will quite down at night so you can hear waves and rocks rolling. Oh and bring your own shade. Winds can kick up so be prepared!
I have an RV but if you tent camp, watch the tide water marks and monitor your distance or you might just get wet! LOL. Happy Camping! 🏖⛺️

Quick and easy is my trips to Thornhill Broome!

5 miles north of Neptune’s Net, Los Angeles/Ventura county line at Point Magu Rock! 

Depending on the time of year, the beach may be very rocky or it may be smooth. This is not a great beach to swim and if you tent camp, be sure to know where the high tide line is!  

The bathrooms are out houses. No showers but there is water facets scattered across the road.  This is dry camping only but you can dump after your stay at Sycamore Cyn campground which is only a mile or so away. 

This campground is a line of spaces right on the beach and up against PCH. The car noise does slow down at night so you can hear the waves crashing!

The winds can kick up pretty good here also!  Be prepared to baton down the hatches!  

There are dolphins and seals that swim back and forth. Pelicans and sea gulls. If you’re really lucky, you might see whales!  

There’s a camp host selling wood but nothing around unless you drive back to Neptune’s. 

Dogs need to be on a lease...despite my video!  LOL 

You will be sited if they catch your dog off lease!

A fun place to camp and surf! This campground is literally on the beach, along the PCH with picnic tables and fire rings it’s one of the few on the beach that actually allows fire. There’s not much to this campground, it’s simple and straight to the point... just surf and sand. If you’re looking for more you will be disappointed. Sites are fairly close together with limited options for RV’s but if you’re tent camping and don’t mind neighbors, it’s just enough. Sites run approximately $35 a night for a standard site, depending. There’s a camp host and ranger at the entrance but keep in mind they lock the gates for vehicles entering at night and if you leave you can not get back in until they re-open next day! Doesn’t matter if you have a pass or not you can not re-enter and there is no permitted parking on the highway as a backup option. This campground is vulnerable to flooding, due to location. Some photos have been included of the campground when it’s flooded as well, so that it may give travelers a better idea of what they may encounter if conditions aren’t exactly in their favor. But if you’re just looking for a simple night on the beach with friends like us, some surf and a beer... this will do the trick!

I really liked this place, and would definitely go back. This is on the smaller scale of campgrounds, which is very nice. Less chance of drunk, noisy neighbors. When we went, us, and the other family we went with, were the only ones in that particular section. The kids had plenty of room to run around and get dirty, and there was a playground with an old school merry-go-round within sight of where our spot was. RV’s are allowed as well, but those sites are separate from the tent sites, which is nice too. The drive was 45 minutes to an hour from our house, which was great. You don’t have to go far to go camping. The one drawback was the camp host. We always bring our dog with us, who is a diabetic alert service dog for our two boys. This particular person kept telling us that the dog had to be on a leash, and that he was not allowed in the playground area. We explained to her that he was a service animal, and is allowed under the ADA to go anywhere. She wasn’t having it. Hopefully this person’s time as the host is over, because this really is a great spot.

I stayed here Labor Day weekend for tent camping! So, since I don't plan to camp here again for awhile, I should let you in on the secret(?) that the best campsite is Site 29!!! Reserve this one if you can!! It's the furthest away from the road and taxi dropoff, so it can be frustrating if you have to lug all your stuff, but it's well worth it. This site is much larger than the other sites. I think it's because it's at the end and it's not big enough to make into 2 separate sites. There's also a lot of shade relative to the other sites, which generally don't have much. This of course changes depending on the time of day. Site 29 also seems to be more separated from the other sites, whereas the other sites seem to be stacked on one another. 

The ranger was very helpful. The bathrooms were pretty clean and well-stocked the whole time, which is impressive since it was such a busy weekend. 

The shuttle is $2 exact change.

I appreciate that there are covered trash cans scattered amongst the sites so we don't all have to lug our trash to a big smelly dumpster. 

The ranger said that AT&T and Verizon have service at the campground. My friends have Sprint and they did not have service. 

Ok that's all I can think of for now. Have fun camping here! :)

I have been to this campground twice now. I would love to go back again one day. There is a nice size creek that runs adjacent to the campsites, which appears to run only during snow melt. It was dry one of the times we camped there, the other time it was flowing very good. I would estimate that it was probably around 40-50 feet wide when we went there. You do have to drive through the creek to get to the campground, so a small car probably would not be advisable when it is really flowing. I drove my small Toyota pickup through it with no problem.

A forest adventure pass was required.

Campsites were very clean. Has pit toilets, which were also very clean. No electricity or water at the camp site. No dump station. Has fire rings.

We tent camped both times.

A mother bear and her two cubs did visit us on one of the visits. We did find what looked like mountain lion footprints. There is wild life. No bear containers at the time.

This campground is nestled in a valley/canyon and is next to Fenner Canyon Conservation Camp #41.

There really are no views other than the surrounding trees and landscape, but was still very beautiful.

It is a very quiet place to stay. Depending on the traffic from the nearby Highway 2, you might hear some of that traffic, but it is not bad at all.

At the time of visiting, we did not have cell phone service in that canyon.

Very large park for RV, cabin and tent camping. As it's listed as a "resort", we figured it would be pretty upscale. Disappointment upon our arrival. Floods have been in the area and much of the sites were closed and being cleaned?? The road closest to our site was washed away (from earlier reviews it's been months), so a long jog or drive around the perimeter to get us to the pool, laundry and hot tub…speaking of which, the pool, hot tub and laundry facilities all needed attention. You could actually see people's footprints (bottom of pool and on pool and hot tub entry steps)…that much sand, dirt, etc…I didn't venture in. When we arrived, we started driving around to find the best site for our rig. We're a 32ft class A w/20ft enclosed cargo trailer tow. So, all in all about 55ft. Well, that wasn't easy. Most of the park's electric and some sewer connections didn't exist or were "down" for repair. We have yet to actually SEE someone working on these issues. We are currently here and checked in for a two-week stay. After some boon docking prior to our arrival, we wanted all the bells and whistles the park boasted they had. Took us just over THREE HOURS to find a decent spot. Many levels to this park and most didn't have a decent WiFi (we have our own router) signal. Some sites had dumpsters blocking them from being a true "pull-thru". That left us with about two areas to choose from. It's dusty, dirty, and, really, not ready to be called a "resort"….more rustic than we'd been looking for or what website photos showed. We would not recommend this "resort" to anyone. Several folks with dogs they let simply sit outside and bark, poo, etc….strict rules against that, in most all resorts we've ever visited. Unless you plan on tenting, cabin or what have you, it's not worth it. Very disappointing! :(