Newport Dunes RV Resort

We ended up here after a futile search for an affordable hotel in the area. Even though it was not inexpensive, we secured a beachfront site. The sites are in three sections: standard, deluxe, and premium. There are also cabins and a group tent area (on the public beach). 

The reservation process was not easy – you cannot make same-day online reservations and have to navigate a detailed menu on the phone to finally get to the reservation desk.

We arrived after dark, just as the office was closing but were able to get our information packet. Payment is in full when you make the reservation. As we expected, the sites are stacked up next to each other like dominoes with minimal foliage/fencing to separate the sites. The beachfront and preferred sites have a concrete and sand pad while some less expensive sites have just sand. 

There are codes to enter the restrooms, the bike path, and the pool. The restrooms were clean as were the showers, with good hot water and decent water pressure. 

In season, there are many activities and amenities offered including a water park, water sports rentals, a bistro, a snack bar, movies on the beach, and a swimming beach. About the only amenities available in November were the pool, two hot tubs (although one was not working when we were there), and the .75-mile concrete path around the lake. A gentle water aerobics class is offered three times a week. There is also a marina, but we don’t have a boat so we did not explore this. In season, you can rent pavilions, and pool or beach cabanas, all for an additional cost. 

Although this is a fully contained resort, it is not quiet. You will hear road noise and at certain times of the day, near constant noise from planes at nearby John Wayne airport. 

This was an affordable respite for us on a long road trip, but it is VERY expensive in season (about three times the price of “winter” rates). Also, it would be an entirely different experience when fully booked!

Each spot has fence around it which is nice. Very clean facility. A bit loud on the weekends.

Wonderful spot for families looking for a place with lots to do. Standard sites are really small. Super busy place.

Fun pool and close to the water to swim

It’s a huge campground. Short term and long term sites. Sites are very tight. Vehicles line the streets because there is no room to park. Lots of kids everywhere and people have lawn chairs and bikes in middle of the street and nobody moves for cars. Kids seem to have no supervision at all. People are not friendly. Nice pool but it’s full of people and little kids splashing and screaming. Long term stays (1 month) is in the back and you have to travel through the maze of golf carts, people walking dogs, cars parked everywhere, kids playing ball in the middle of the street. It’s way too full. It’s not cheap and you have no view of the bay. Management could offer larger spaces so we’re not crammed like sardines but if they did they’d lose money. Can’t do that!! It’s clean and well maintained except we backed into a site and a tree had grown over the fence and damaged the top of our RV. The spaces are not long nor wide. Each site is fenced in so you have to stay within your fenced area.

Great time “glamping”. Close to home with all the amenities!

We've stayed at Newport Dunes many times, and it's great for a last-minute beach vacation especially when most state beach campgrounds are booked out way in advance. 

There's a nice bike trail that circles around the bay, which is great for kids. Also, lots of amenities for families, including playgrounds, water toys, movie nights and fire pits. The convenience store sells RV supplies, snacks and beer/wine. You can ride your bike to Balboa Island across PCH, spend a day at Fashion Island shopping center, or drive to the beach. 

A few cons: The beach is not exactly close. You will definitely have to drive. And the bay can sometimes get stingrays. Finally, the campsites do feel a bit like a concrete jungle with few trees and very close proximity to your neighbors.

Awesome beachside bar and grill.

This place is amazing! We've stayed twice and loved it. The beach front sites are definitely worth it. The other sites are very small and tightly packed. We played on the inflatables in the bay and everyone loved it. Adults and kids alike. People are friendly and the park is well maintained. Although the price is very high, we will likely return in the future on a special occasion.

All the bells and whistles are available at this resort RV park including renting an RV on site. The location is great located right on the bay with lots of walking/bike riding trails, a beach with kayak rentals, and walkable to many restaurants (although Newport isn’t really a walking town). This is not the spot you want to go if you want some peace and quiet as it’s jam packed with families and party goers and is quite large. The sites vary from tiny dirt spots to larger paved ones right on the beach if you’re willing to pay a lot and book way ahead of time. I’m personally not a fan of this circus and look forward to moving on to a smaller, naturally beautiful campground like Crystal Cove State Park down the road.

If you like to camp on a dirt patch in VERY close proximity to neighbors, surrounded by chain link fence(!), then you may enjoy this place. For us, no way. Super expensive and not at all worth it. I would have rather slept on the side of a road. This is not what I consider camping.

We aren’t used to staying at RV resorts like the Newport Dunes, but it was a fun change of pace.

We typically camp in our 1987 Volkswagen Vanagon Westfalia, but it broke down on our drive to Death Valley National Park so renting a cottage here at the Dunes was a great plan B while the Van was with the mechanic.

We rented the Large Cottage in the back because we needed a kitchen for cooking all the food we’d packed. The small cottage would’ve been fine if we didn’t need to a oven, stove and large refrigerator. Beach front cottage was almost twice the price so staying in the back was great.

The resort was well run. A great pool. Fun beach. Nice market. Worth the stay.

Gorgeous little lagoon off the bay. Even the furthest sites were only a five minute walk to the water while carrying our kayaks and paddle boards. Decent bathrooms. Nice market, snack shack and bar.

We spent 5 days at here and loved it. While we came a little too late for the obstacle course the paddle boards and the cove were amazing. The spots are great with full hookups and fellow campers are nice. Will come back and spend more time here in the future.

Great place with a lot to do! Take the family and bring the toys! This place is the best of both family and party atmosphere! Be warned it is not a sleepy RV park.

Amazing - beyond words- worth the insane high prices for bay side camping and large spots. High end area- really nice and true five star RV resort- I would rate 6 if I could. I stayed in multiple spots and having another trip there in a month bay side!

Beautiful weather, great location, full hook ups, fun activities, family & pet friendly!

This is a very clean and well maintained park with a lot of amenities.This place is very family oriented and the staff is very nice. This location is close to good shopping and great dining options.We stayed in spot 2118 and it had a nice view of the bay.Be fully aware that these spaces can be very tight, overall we will stay again

So we just spent 4 days here in late October and the weather was 85 degrees! We were right on the water. These spots usually run 300$ plus a night at the peak season.. but the winter rate is 100.. This place has everything on site.. even a smalll store with all the essentials (kinda pricey) the showers are clean and plenty of hot water.. they have coffee in the general store.. I’m not sure I’d spend $300 a night in the summer .. but definitely $100 in the off season..

Close to the beach and restaurants

My favorite RV resort. Located in the back bay of Newport Harbor ND has it all. This place is super clean and super accomodating. They have cottages for rent if needed and you can have up to 1 tent on an RV spot. Bike trails for the kids and Balboa Island is just right down the way. Expensive but well worth it.

This campground has small sites like most RV parks do, but there was a lot of fun things to do with the kids. They had a movie on the beach when we were there, and fun water toys out. It was rather expensive though.

I hope you like cozy. Neighbor in campsite next to us yapped his belligerent drunken mouth all weekend.

stayed here in an rv. plenty of amenities, embarrassed to admit I used the pool with a perfectly good beach right there lol cl an large pool. used our own kayak in the bay.. quite a workout! evenings on the beach were nice as a lot of folks head back to the comforts of their campers. sites are close together as in all rv parks but everyone seems to respect the quiet hours.

We stay here every year. They have activities for the kids like arts and crafts, an inflatable obstacle course or you can rent paddle boards or watch a movie on the beach. There are fantastic running/bike trails along the Back Bay. The campground is clean and right on the beach.

Have camped at new port dunes several times, they have a beach front for group tent camping on the sand, and also have tent camping in the resort. You can camp with RV's, Trailers, tents, and they also rent out cabins. In the middle of the lagoon they have blow up obstacle in the water to climb on.. great place to relax. It's pretty pricey because it's a resort but well worth the trip.