Best Tent Camping near Shoshone, CA

Easygoing great rv and tent sites close to all Death Valley sites

I love that they have separate parts of the campground for RVs and tents so you don’t have to hear generators if you’re tent camping. Our site had some trees that we pitched the tent under for shade. Bathrooms were clean with running water and a dishwashing area too.

The best part about the campground is the location! Super easy to get to all the great sights. We were tent camping in site 14 which has an RV spot, fire pit and a picnic table. We were across the street from the bathrooms and they are flush and have a dishwashing station. The campground was quiet even on New Year’s Eve! Great December camping

This is where most people come to stay when they are in the park.  Can be corwded and if you are a tent camper you need to pick a site far from the generators of the massive number sof RVs.  There are good tent sites with space and protection.  But there are also tent sites out in the open with no cover or shade.  Choose wisely. The wind can be as much ot=f a factor as the sun.

I am one who like solice so a crwod is not for me.

Positives are that you are near the Furnace Creek Resort so you have access to a store, a restaurant and gas.

Also it is a short walk to the visitor center which allows you acces to the most up to date info on what is open in the park.  I always stay a day or two here to cover the sites on the southern end of the valley.

When there is super bloom this is wheer you want to be  - easier access to teh bloom sites.

Very cool natural features included with this campground. On the lower level (reserved for tent camping) has some shade trees, rock formations, flush toilettes, water, fire pits, tables and grills... It's amazing set up. The upper portion of the camp (where I stayed) is set up the same as lower, only difference is RV's can camp here. Very nice, quiet and clean campground. The use of generators are prohibited on both the upper and lower campgrounds FYI

This campground was quiet and clean and centrally located in the park. No hookups, but there is a dump station with potable water available near the entrance.

The spaces are REALLY close together but when we were there the park was mostly empty…maybe a dozen other campers in the whole park. Tent camping only on the lower loop…upper loop had MANY large, pull through spaces. Our camper is small, so the space felt big though. Picnic tables and fire pits at each site. Self serve pay stations, discount for Access Pass holders, I will definitely stay here again if I come through Death Valley again.

I've camped here many times and have always liked it here. It is in the center of all the attractions. Can be a little noisy with the crowds and RVs. 

We decided to come here one year in early September last year and it was still pretty hot even at night. We were tent camping and it was difficulty to sleep due to the heat. We did a walk in site and there were plenty openings. In the middle of the night there was a sudden dust storm so we had to pack up the tent and equipment quickly. There were 2 or 3 other tent campers and they also packed up. We ended up just sleeping in the car that night, lol. The RVers were fine. 

Other than that it's a great campsite. Haha. Close to the visitor center as well. Clean restrooms.

We stayed here for one night on our way to a campsite inside Death Valley NP. Location is about an hour outside the park in a tiny little town that’s pretty quiet. They do have a Chevron and a diner that probably covers most traveler’s needs. It’s also situated in a beautiful area with gorgeous mountain views.

We stayed in a 22 foot RV at one of the hookup sites, they also have several tent sites and a few cabin spots. There’s a naturally heated pool, which looked pretty nice but we chose not to use for COVID reasons. The whole camp was super quiet while we were there with not many other campers. Weather was great this time of year. I would probably stay here again.

Perfect base camp for exploring Death Valley National Park. It's located a quarter mile from the Furnace Creek Visitor Center where you can check in to pay the park fee and ask the rangers any questions. They always post the current weather and encourage visitors to stay safe in the heat. It's about 20 minutes from main attractions in the park including the Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes, Zabriskie Point and Badwater Basin Salt Flats.

Campground Pros: Nice bathrooms and large sinks for dishes (also with potable water), Sizable camping spots, great location

Campground Cons: Very little shade, plan to bring a canopy if you are tent camping, no showers

Overall a great campground - just make sure you're visiting when the weather is decent. Super hot temps can ruin the experience pretty quick - and fill your tank before you drive into the park!

This campground location was ideal as it was right next to the visitor center. Like most NP camp sites, they are pretty close to one another. Most sites had no or little shade and you’re lucky if you get one with a little bit of brush to hide from the beating sun heat. The picnic tables are metal, which doesn’t make sense to me given everything gets really hot in the desert. Fire pit was also provided, but we didn’t use. There are few bathroom locations within the park, they were cleaned daily and very basic, but with running water. You have to dump your trash all the way near the front of the campground. RVs with generators made a lot of noise and were not separate from tent sites. The stars at night are amazing!

Pros: Reasonably priced, fairly quiet campground that is close enough to Furnace Creek w/out being in the thick of it. Great scenery surrounding the campground. Modern toilet/sink facilities and potable water.

Cons: Weird site designs - the site boundaries are not clear, so I had no idea which picnic table or fire ring belonged to my site or my neighbors because they seemed to be situated right on the edge of some of the sites. Almost no shade (which is a given), and the campground is very dusty covered in sharp edged cobbles. This is obviously not something they can control, but you'll want to keep it in mind if tent camping - definitely bring 1 if not 2 heavy duty tarps for under any tents, and I would recommend a canopy or awning of some kind. The oddest thing to me, however, is why they would go to the trouble of installing flush toilets and sinks, but not go one extra step and have showers. Even cold-water only coin-op showers would be awesome, and much appreciated at the end of a hot day hiking!

Given all of the above, however, I'd probably choose to camp here again if I was in the park. :)

My husband and I were at Death Valley 8 years ago (2011) staying in Furnace Creek hotel rooms. This year (2019) we returned with our tents as part of a California National Park tent trip and wow were we surprised! The park has had a major renovation with great shopping and options for your stay. With our senior park pass we get into the parks free and camping is 50% off, so our two night stay was a whopping $16.00. We drove up to the newly remodeled inn that has rooms for 350-600$ a night, and while we were there, someone was arriving via helicopter, truly a luxury resort. We learned that the owner of the LA kings hockey team has purchased the resort and has many improvements planned.

We were reminded how far everything is within the park, you may choose to hike a trail and it may be an hour or two drive away, there is gas in the park, but you may a nice price for it! The main gas station in furnace creek had gas for $5.46 per gallon, however gas at the stovepipe wells was only $4.21.

We choose the hike to zabrieski point for sunrise and sunset, the natural bridge (very rough road) and the 8.5 round trip hike to wild rose peak which was very challenging.

This year, Scotty’s castle is closed until 2020 due to flood damage, so we were happy we had seen it on our prior visit.

We camped at furnace creek campground which is one of the few open after Memorial Day and is first come, first serve, no advance reservations. We arrived around noon and most sites were available, however later that night, most were occupied. The campground has many toilets with running water and flush toilets, and there is a dishwashing station by most bathrooms. There are tent sites and full hookup sites. There are trash dumpsters with areas for recycling and empty propane containers. Each site has a picnic table and fire ring.

There is a golf course, swimming pool, horse riding (closes in May), many nice restaurants and a spa.

Here’s the best deal, for 10$ per person you get a pool and shower pass for all day! The pool is awesome, spring fed warm water. The showers have massive pressure with hot water.

...because it actually has grass and trees! (Campgrounds down the road in Tecopa are just bare lots for the most part.) The Shoshone RV Park also has nice clean showers and laundry facilities, as well as wifi, which is helpful as there's generally no cell service or data in the area.  I didn't try the warm pool, so I can't vouch for it, but I did walk the nature trail and see the endangered pupfish in the habitat restoration area (check out https://www.newyorker.com/news/us-journal/the-queen-of-the-desert for more information on the town and the restoration projects) and enjoyed the winter birds (phainopepla, verdin, marsh wren, and of course ravens). The Shoshone Museum is worth a visit as well.

Probably not the best place to camp in July as it is extremely hot. Found a nice tent spot (site 100) and set up our tent behind some trees. Some of the campground feels like a giant parking lot but the sites near 100 are nice.

This campground never fills up, but is more oriented to RV type camping. While there are no hook ups, the ground is ROCK hard and impossible to get a tent stake into. If there is a wind, the tent is gone.

The sites are close to each other, but the plus side, as I said, you can ALWAYS get a site.

What can I say you are in Death Valley where the heat can get so insane you can feel it collapsing your lungs and melting your face but at this campground that can be a lot less of a problem as you are welcomed with the temperature at the visitor's center. Sure it is still hot and miserable most of the time, but what better way to embrace it than to just let it all hang out so you can see it.

I was very interested in this campground just inside of California when I was staying in Nevada over the first part of the year, it had great reviews and looked like a nice campsite. When I arrived I was not disappointed at all it was well kept, offered some shade and had nice even sites for tents or RVs alike.

Unlike my usual desire to have no amenities, I feel like staying in place like this I need a few luxuries just in case. So it was nice to find sites with electrical hook ups and potable water. The electrical hook ups made it nice for having a small fan which didn't rely on batteries which can drain quickly and that made it more than comfortable on the hot evening.

Where my tent was located the short shrubs provided a nice wind break however I did notice in some of the more open spots it can get a little blustery and we noticed several dust devils popping up across the area in the distance, very common for this region.

The campsite does accept reservations however when we were there mid week in late spring it wasn't packed so no reservation was needed.

I did notice that some of the areas were marked with heat warnings which included closure postings during certain times and warnings about temperatures after 10 a.m. I was fortunate in that it wasn't terrible just yet but already it was beginning to get that way despite it being spring. By summer I would not recommend staying here unless you were able to get inside of an RV it would be far to hot for myself in my little tent.

TIPS:

• Keep hydrated when staying here or at any of the Death Valley campgrounds.

• Obey postings of warnings, they are there for a reason!! We were listening to a ranger in the visitor center and he was telling us some statistics and it was enough to make you want to listen to everything you hear them say!!

• Fuel up before getting to 1/4 tank anytime you are entering the Death Valley or Mohave area you never know what will happen and you would rather be safe than sorry in case you are rendered stranded , at least with gas you can rely a bit on your air.

This is beautiful desert floor campground in a national park with 136 sites & 18 hook-ups, washrooms, water supply & fire pits.

The sites are large enough for big tents but the RV’s are close by so keep that in mind if you are looking for a quiet spot. I found that the sound of the RV’s didn’t bother me too much but I was aware they were there.

The bathrooms and water sources are great! The nearby store is air conditioned and carries ice cream, which is nice in the daytime heat after a beautiful hike through marble canyon or playing on the dunes!

The sky at night is incredible! I’ve been to a lot of places but I have never experienced the Milky Way as incredible as it was in Death Valley! No light pollution really helps!

The ground is hard, so bring a mallet to stake your tent down. We got stuck in a sandstorm at night and ended up hanging out in the tent playing card games till it passed. It was no joke though, we woke up with a layer of sand on us, inside the tent.

Got up there around 10:30-11:00am on Sunday. “Champion Road” is a decently maintained dirt/gravel road and there are camp sites scattered on both sides, all different shapes and sizes. I took a small road off to the right towards the mountain and found a pretty secluded site. My site had a rock fire ring from previous campers and a cleared away flat area for a tent. I brought a small table luckily because there was nowhere to put stuff other than hanging in the trees, on the ground or on a log. My tent is a 2 person 6ftx7ft tent and was too big for spot so my tent wasn’t positioned very well, other sites may have been better. I think because my site was a bit more off the main road it had fewer campers therefore was not as well kept. My site was very rocky and well covered by large trees, not another site within a 400 meter radius. I didn’t check out many other sites so can only speak for mine. It was a little dirty from previous campers, but after a quick walk through and clean up it was homey. Next time probably will find a little bit more “developed” spot with larger area for my tent and cleared away rocks. Great for the short time I was there and serve me well for getting away and hanging by the fire, listening to music and watching the stars. Definitely will be going back soon. Maybe do some thing to make the spot a little better for the next camper and bring bags to take your trash (and others trash) with you when you leave. Enjoy!

Not a bad campsite but no shelter. We had really strong winds that came down the wash and lots of trouble getting our tent to stay in one place. Ground wasn't conducive to tent pegs so sandbags covered in rocks worked but it was way too windy for us.

RV with us was ok. 25ft 2WD and it made it in far enough to have passed about 5 campsites. There are more but the road turns to high clearance neeed after about 2 or 3 miles.

Camping after 1st mile allowed. I don't think campfires are allowed.

This was my first time camping at Hilltop. I reserved online, which is great, so when I got there I just pulled into the spot. The camp host came by and asked for either my ID or the reservation.

I stayed in Spot 1, which is nice if you want to be a little secluded, but I did have a lot of traffic noise when trucks or loud motorcycles came by. The tent area was level and smooth, which was a big help when Tent #1, which set up beautifully in my living room, refused to, in spite of much coaxing and cursing. I had to drive back into town and buy Tent #2, which was watertight even when the rain came pouring down.

There is no running water in the campground. Spigots have been capped, and where there once were showers, there are now portable toilets. In the larger group areas, they (and the trash bins) fill up fast, but less so in the remainder of the campground. Walk a little bit farther and you'll likely find a cleaner portable. This campground is very tent friendly.

If you want truly incredible views, reserve spots 9, 10, 11, 13, 14, 16, 17, 18. 22, or 23. All are on the outside edge overlooking the valley below. There are also deer that graze when the campground is quieter, and nearby access to a lot of hiking areas.