Best Tent Camping near Twentynine Palms, CA

Recent Tent Reviews near Twentynine Palms, California

985 Reviews of 31 Twentynine Palms Campgrounds

• R

  RICH

  Traveler

  

  Oct. 27, 2021

  Palm Springs-Joshua Tree KOA

  GREAT Place but kinda pricey.

  Tent sites were massive, basically could be used for RV as well. Everything on the grounds were nice and as expected with KOA quality but the price is a bit much for tent camping.

• F

  Fairen T.

  Guide

  

  May. 4, 2019

  Idyllwild Campground — Mount San Jacinto State Park

  Quiet Mountain Camping

  Offers wide range of tent camp sites, RV camping, showers, toilets. Beautiful scenic hikes. Small creek runs through property. Campsite grills and picnic tables.

• 

  Leslie M.

  Guide

  

  Jul. 15, 2018

  Military Park Miramar Marine Corps Air Station Big Bear Recreation Facility

  Excellent Site

  We tent camped here for 3 nights and loved this campground. The tent sites are spacious - can’t exaggerate that enough. the workers were friendly and helpful. The bathrooms were clean and had plenty of showers available. There is a playground centrally located, tennis court and basketball - all equipment available from the office. They also had board games for use and a pool table inside. There are a couple of pontoon boats available for rental as well! We took out kids on a couple hikes, be sure you have an interagency pass for parking at trailheads! Fantastic getaway!

• 

  Elliott B.

  Legend

  

  Jul. 5, 2016

  Banning Stagecoach KOA

  Nice site if you're in a RV, not really for tents or pop ups.

  Overall a nice campground with decent sites, but really not for tent camping at all. They say they have some tent sites, but pretty much every site is setup with gravel pull-in or pull throughs which you'd not really want to set your tent up on. They do have a "tent village" which you can camp on, but again, not really ideal for tents. They do have really nice facilities for washing your cloths or yourself along with a nice club house for unwinding. While each site doesn't have a fire ring, you do have a table and there is a group fire ring along with a pool and playground. You are a bit inside the city of Banning and not too far from the train tracks, so if you're not in something super insulated you'll probably hear a bit of train noise like we did.

• C

  Carolyn W.

  Guide

  

  Oct. 24, 2020

  Jumbo Rocks Campground — Joshua Tree National Park

  Incredible mosaic of nature!

  Words truly can not do this place justice. Joshua Tree National Park is such a beautifully preserved mosaic of nature and human history. We only had two short days here but we can not wait to return and explore more. The ecosystems of the wetter Mojave Desert and the low desert of the Colorado yield differing plants, water canyons, twisted rock formations, and towering monolithic rock formations that are both beautiful and fun to climb. This is a boulderer, hiker and climbers dream. The Joshua trees in and of themselves are both dreamy and mystical. Although there are other camps in the park which seemed to be more remote, we liked the idea of securing a reservation instead of worrying about a first come first serve situation. Because of this, we found this to be an ideal camping spot for location, and proximity as well as eliminating the worry of not getting a site.

  For us, the unseasonably warm weather for October affected the hikes we chose to do as we were not acclimated to the extreme and dangerous heat. Despite this, there are plenty of shorter hikes as well as an amazing 18 mile Geology self driving tour ( note you need four wheel drive) exposing you to diverse and gorgeous desert landscapes and even a hike up an extinct volcano.

  We found Jumbo Rocks campground to be well kept, and clean. There are 124 tent sites and some RV sites. There are no hook ups or drinking water in the campground so all provisions must be brought in prior to entering the park. There is a small town called Twentynine Palms which is about 10 to 12 miles away where you can get water, firewood and your basic amenities. The campsites were rather close together but because of the beautiful rock formations it seemed like you were more isolated than what you were. As long as the neighboring tenters remembered that others were close by and kept voices down it was peaceful. The most amazing part of this park were the stars at night. They were unbelievably brilliant!

  As an additional side note, any type of hanging lights, hammocks, clothes lines, bunting, etc. is forbidden in the park. Hefty fines are awarded to those who violate the rules and attach to vegetation, Joshua Trees, or the Junipers. Lastly, there is little to no shade here and the temps can get extreme. I’d suggest bringing an additional canopy tent for shade as until the sun sets the tent is a sauna sand does not provide relief from the heat.

• 

  Harry E.

  Traveler

  

  Apr. 23, 2021

  Joshua Tree Lake Dispersed Camping

  It’s free

  Good home base for Joshua Tree is NP campgrounds are full. Pretty barebones. A few weirdos, but enough space to steer clear of them. The wind can be brutal if you’re tent camping. Have large stakes.

• P

  Pete

  Scout

  

  Sep. 29, 2020

  McCall Equestrian Park

  Wonderful view, horse campsite

  This is listed as horse campsite, but there’s few tent sites available. Not crowded and winds from mountains keep area cooled.

• 

  Paige H.

  Traveler

  

  Jun. 19, 2022

  Jumbo Rocks Campground — Joshua Tree National Park

  Super Sick

  Awesome tent sites in Joshua Tree, tucked between some Jumbo Rocks. The sites are pretty spacious and private and have primo scenery and star gazing opportunities.

• 

  Gary H.

  Traveler

  

  Jan. 5, 2025

  Indian Cove Campground — Joshua Tree National Park

  Big rocks and lots of sunshine

  Nice place to visit in early January. With sunshine and daytime temperatures of 60s and 70s. Most sites are suitable for tent camping or small campers.

  Would be a 5 star if it had water, a dump station or electric.

• S

  Solmar L.

  Scout

  

  Aug. 2, 2019

  Barton Flats Family Campground

  Cool Spot!

  Came here for a weekend, good spot for tent camping, I went on an off trail hike, cool, fun area. Some views. Drove over to the lake but couldn’t find parking. Very quiet and clean as well.

• 

  Bryan S.

  Guide

  

  Sep. 24, 2020

  Serrano

  Standard

  Big government campground. Big spots but it can be difficult to get reservations. Lots of tent sites that cram way too many people in. Close to the lake

• 

  jeff B.

  Guide

  

  Dec. 6, 2021

  Jumbo Rocks Campground — Joshua Tree National Park

  Camping in the big rocks

  Super campspots among the boulders. Great hiking out of the campground. Some of the tent sites are "really" walk in sites so it makes it a bit more challenging if sleeping in van. Bring everything you need ie. Water!

• 

  Rae M.

  Guide

  

  Feb. 22, 2020

  Jumbo Rocks Campground — Joshua Tree National Park

  Cannot miss

  Very primitive camping, but location, views, hikes, and adventures nearby make it all worth it! We had site #6 and tent camped. It was back a little away from the road and people which was nice. Be sure to bring in your own water. We filled up our jug and got provisions in 29 Palms before heading into the park.

• 

  Stephanie C.

  Scout

  

  Apr. 15, 2023

  Twentynine Palms

  Twentynine thousand stars - oh my

  Loved staying in twentynine palms to explore Joshua tree and the surrounding areas. Pioneer town was so fun. Headed in to Palm springs. Wow!

• 

  Jennifer M.

  Traveler

  

  Jun. 7, 2020

  Idyllwild Campground — Mount San Jacinto State Park

  Close to town and close to each other.

  While I fully appreciated the location, the scenery, the quaint community of Idyllwild, the campsites were TOO close and on hills making relaxing and tent camping a bit of a downer. It felt like we were right on top of each other. We had loud campers on 2/3 sites near us. I don’t think I would camp here again.

• D

  Dawn

  Traveler

  

  Nov. 29, 2020

  Thousand Trails Idyllwild

  Fabulous!!

  We took our RV here just for one night but we can't wait to go back.  RV sites, tent sites and cabins.  Has a resort feel with a cafe, clubhouse, horse back riding and more.  Facilities are clean and convenient.  Operators are there to assist and in touch via text if you need anything.

• A

  Amanda T.

  Traveler

  

  Mar. 1, 2021

  Joshua Tree Lake RV & Campground

  Expensive for tent camping.

  This listing was showing as free but when we showed up that was not the case. For simple tent camping, this cost $15/person and charge $5/per kid and pet. Must be gone by 11am. Overpriced for what we needed. Very loud and rude campers next to us until early morning hours evens though it’s against the park’s policies. Disappointed. Front lady checking in was very pleasant. No discounts for Veterans, only active duty.

• M

  Michelle S.

  Traveler

  

  Sep. 8, 2018

  Joshua Tree Lake RV & Campground

  Comfortable, Clean & Pretty!

  very nice campground. Always clean. Small store onsite. Small lake. Some sites are full hook-ups and many tent sites. Quiet and peaceful. I’ve stayed many times - September, October & May. The Joshua Tree Music Festival takes over the campground for a week in October and a week in May. Wonderful time to stay and hear such a huge variety of music and art!

• 

  Gustavo M.

  Guide

  

  Jan. 4, 2021

  Joshua Tree Lake RV & Campground

  Great Open Space

  Great open space minutes from Joshua Tree park and next to Twentynine Palms town. A lot of OHV rolling around and a few scattered groups. We got some wind that luckily died down. Great place to see the sunrise and sunset.

• 

  Carlyne F.

  Legend

  

  Feb. 23, 2021

  Sportsman’s Club

  Sportsman’s Club, CA

  Located in Twentynine Palms California, the campground is only ten minutes away from Joshua Tree National Park. The sites are flat. It’s essentially a dirt parking lot with hook ups. The host was nice and accommodating. They provide firewood for purchase and all the WiFi information upon arrival. The property is gated which made us feel safer at night. We thought it was costly for what the park provided, but understand the location is what makes it more expensive. Convenient and close to the main road!

• 

  Jessi P.

  Scout

  

  Jan. 28, 2021

  Painted Canyon

  Our favorite

  This is by far the best place to tent camp that we have found. We love hiking the rope/ladder trail loop during the day and star gazing at night. No bugs and the weather is amazing if you’re at the base of the canyon. There’s loose sand roads the further you get in, so 4wheel drive only if you’re trying to get far away from the main road. There is a bathroom towards the beginning, but nothing close to the main hiking area.

• 

  Mark C.

  Guide

  

  Sep. 1, 2016

  Lake Hemet Campground

  Lake Hemet RV & Campground

  This campground is a very large site, with huge amounts of RV and tent sites spread out, hookups and non-hookup sites, with a layout around the water of Lake Hemet. We only stayed for one night before continuing on to Idyllwild, so cannot speak for anything related to the actual lake but there was a lot of recreational boating and fishing going on when we were there in August. Our site was a tent site in the interior, we did not pay the extra money for a premium lakefront site. Overall it is your run of the mill campsite, but with the lake as a main attraction and focal point of course. With all of the families and kids it was more on the noisy side, and was noisy until later into the night. I would recommend this campsite on the value of the lake if that is something you are into, but other than that I would prefer something more quiet and peaceful. Another downside is visitor parking and I believe even day use of the grounds to get in were an extra charge. There is a large country style camping store before the gate. Overall, the surrounding scenery is still beautiful, and you can't really beat that.

• 

  Joe L.

  Guide

  

  Nov. 21, 2020

  Joshua Tree Lake Dispersed Camping

  Decent but not isolated

  Depending on where you camp the roads go from semi rough to very rough. Tough if it rains. Lots of established camps at the beginning with a wide spread of space. Great for RV or none tent campers all around. I'm tent camping so drove to the outskirts and decided that the softer sand at the beginning was more suitable than the cracked surface of the once was lake. Lots of space between camps but not many high trees so isolated but in sight. That and the rougher roads plus high traffic led to the 3 rating. Free is free and no one within 100 ft so 3 is what it is for me. Not bad. Not good.

• 

  Erika V.

  Traveler

  

  Jun. 14, 2022

  Boulder Basin

  Love it!

  Love camping here via both tent camping and van life. Beautiful surroundings and nature all around. Tricky to get to and recommend 4WD/AWD vehicles. Trailers would be tough on the dirt switch backs. Bathrooms are gnarly but tolerable if you’re in and out quickly. But they are clean and stocked, it’s just the stench! No water so bring plenty of your own. No open fires this time of the year but nonetheless enjoyable and plenty of stars to be seen. Plenty of bouldering to be had in the area. Super fun times! Can’t wait to go back!

• 

  Marissa S.

  Traveler

  

  Dec. 8, 2020

  Jumbo Rocks Campground — Joshua Tree National Park

  Beautiful!

  Campsite was perfect, the site is for 4 people but easily could have fit 8-10! 3/4 folks in our group tent camped while I slept in my car along the road right next to the campsite. The site itself only had enough room for 2 cars so be sure to budget for that. We had two pit toilet stalls right next to our site, there were some bees around the front entrance but the bathrooms themselves were fine. We stayed at campsite 83, pictures below, on 12/5. It was COLD out as well, I am from colorado but the cold hit different out here! Bring plenty of wood and warm clothes :)

• 

  Jeannie B.

  Guide

  

  Oct. 29, 2020

  Idyllwild Campground — Mount San Jacinto State Park

  Idyllwild Sweet Spot

  We keep coming back here. Great little campground with clean air, starry skies and big trees. Lake Fulmor is 3 miles away to take pups swimming off leash.  Idyllwild is a charming town for small town vibe. Nice trails close to PCT and rock climbing by Humber Park. Groceries are expensive on this mountain so pick up food in Hemet.  The Idyllwild campground is crowded and loud so we always stay at Stone Creek. Best electric site is #50 Best tent site is #26. Great little nature loop but watch out for the big cats and snakes!

• 

  cal K.

  Ranger

  

  Jan. 16, 2023

  Mecca Beach Campground — Salton Sea State Recreation Area

  Close together sites, great beach views.

  Salton Sea is such an interesting place. A bird haven for migrating birds - be sure to visit the Sonny Bono Refuge closeby. This camp had $20 basic tent sites, some full hookup sites available- paved, some sites along beach. One of the 2 loops were closed. Showers - tho no hot water left when I got to them and most bathrooms boarded up and in disrepair. Ample trash and recycling bins and water. Friendly host and camp wood available at $10 a pop. Check to see if sites are reserved at kiosk if you are coming without reservations.