East Portal Campground, near Estes Park, Colorado, is a fantastic spot for families and nature lovers alike. Tucked away at the end of a quiet road, it offers a serene atmosphere with clean facilities and friendly hosts, making it a great base for exploring the nearby Rocky Mountain National Park.

The campground features well-maintained bathrooms and hot showers, which visitors appreciate after a day of hiking. Many campers have enjoyed the spacious sites equipped with picnic tables and fire rings, perfect for evening gatherings. One happy camper noted, “The campground was clean, had a great playground, and quiet hours were respected.”

Wildlife sightings are a highlight here, with elk and mule deer often wandering through the area. The campground also has a small store where you can grab essentials like firewood and ice, adding to the convenience of your stay. Plus, the nearby hiking trails provide easy access to stunning views and outdoor adventures.

While some campers mentioned that the sites can feel a bit close together, the overall vibe is friendly and welcoming. Whether you're pitching a tent or parking your RV, East Portal Campground is a solid choice for a memorable camping experience in the heart of Colorado's natural beauty.

So close, yet feels so far away from the hustle and bustle of Estes Park. This very popular campground is located at an elevation of 8,300 feet at the end of a beautiful road just west of town. There are wonderful views of the snow covered peaks in Rocky Mountain National Park and access to the East Portal Reservoir which has ample opportunities for fishing. This double loop campground offers shady sites suitable for tenters and campers with small RVs and trailers shorter than 22 feet in length. It is especially well-suited for families and outdoor enthusiasts looking to explore nearby nature and trails in Rocky Mountain National Park. Sites at this campground open up to views of Rocky Mountain National Park and starry nighttime skies. A mature blend of ponderosa and lodgepole pines interspersed with groves of aspens makes it a wonderful home away from home. It is an ideal setting for guests seeking recreation and relaxation. The camping season runs from mid-May to late September.

The Estes Park Campground at East Portal has 66 sites suitable for tents and small trailers and RVs. There is a maximum length of 22 feet for RVs. All sites are equipped with picnic tables and campfire rings, some with ADA accessibility. Guests also have access to drinking water, flush toilets, hot showers, water & electric hookups, dump station, firewood and ice sales, and a playground for the kids.
Cell phone service is spotty and there is no wi-fi, so please plan accordingly.

East Portal Campground at Estes Park

Estes Park is the gateway to Colorado’s Rocky Mountain National Park. Expect long entrance lines heading through Estes Park into Rocky Mountain but know that your campsites will be worth it.

Obviously, the best camping near Estes Park is in Rocky Mountain National Park. RV and tent camping spots go quickly in Rocky Mountain, especially in peak season, so get your reservations well in advance. If you can’t get a spot in one of the park’s campgrounds, you can utilize ample Forest Service land on the other side of Estes Park. If you’re looking for something a bit less trafficked, head towards Pinewood Springs, CO, and climb any of the numerous mountains on the way.

Estes Park

Estes Park, CO is a great camping destination for adventurers of all types. Discover secluded campsites where you can reconnect with nature. Or maybe you like to bring your family and friends along. Either way, there are Estes Park campgrounds just for you. Discover great camping spots near Estes Park, reviewed by campers like you.

The Best Camping Near Estes Park, Colorado

Just south of Estes Park, this small organized campground was perfect for our first trip of the season.  The bathrooms were clean, and close to almost every site.  They had a very nice playground for the kids with a climbing wall.  The camp store was tiny, but had a few things we needed and super friendly.  And the best was that the campground was just steps away from a trailhead into the National Forest.  We hiked about 4.5 miles roundtrip to Sprague Lake.  

Small, clean, convenient 

Three amigos traveled to Estes Park for a week and stayed at the East Portal Campground which as a great budget option with great amenities!  Had stayed here previously and found it to be suitable for the needs of basic camping!

A great getaway for guys trip!

When we first got to Estes Park every campground was full, so we looked into others in the area and found east portal. We thought it was going to be pretty mediocre compared to the others, however when we saw the campsites we were wanting to stay at, our campsite at east portal was way better. We had shade, amazing bathroom/showers, and everything was right by us! The only slightly annoying thing was that we were so close to other campers, which sometimes was disruptive. Otherwise this place was awesome! The nice bathrooms were well worth the price, friendly park staff, and drinking water!
Also they had two really cool hiking spots right next to the campground that led to the lake over the mountain! Great experience!

East Portal!

Stayed a Saturday night at the Estes Park East Portal campground.  We brought out 22ft RV and it fit the site perfectly.  Anything larger will be difficult to navigate.  The park is very conveniently located near Estes Park and Rocky Mountain National Park.  They have nice sites although some are small and very close to one another.  They have clean bathrooms with showers and even have a playground.  We had no cell service nor is there any wifi.  We took the east portal trail which is a beautiful hike and goes near the reservoir.  Nice place to camp!

East Portal RV camping

The campground was decent. Some of the spots were quite "cozy". We lucked out with a nice roomy spot with a few trees. The best spots are A42 and 1-3. The bathrooms were well kept with nice showers. The camp hosts were very friendly. The best part of this campground is that you can hike into Rocky Mountain Park from the campground and there is a nice reservoir within easy walking distance. Close to Estes Park, but far enough away to actually feel like you are camping!

Great location!

This places is awesome for RVS it has water, sewer and electric, but it also had good bathrooms and showers. Some of the spots seemed kind of small, but our 25 foot fifth wheel fit well in the spot that we had, however I'm not sure if the giant RVS would necessarily fit too well. Other than that it was a wonderful place, can't wait to go back!

Beautiful 

This Campground was beautiful! This has become one of our favorite campgrounds and we try to stop here at least once a year. I would highly suggest booking a site as soon as possible as campsites fill up very quick. Our last trip we forgot our bundle of firewood but we could pick some up at the front desk. This campground is surrounded by lush trees and beautiful mountains. The Rv sites are very close together but the tent sites feel very secluded. We saw many deer during our stay. I would highly suggest this campground. 

Absolutely Stunning

Wonderful campground

Very clean and has good amenities, cheaper and less crowded than st Mary's but still isn't exactly roughing it. As always, Rocky Mountain National Park is epic. Pictures from winter adventures.

Very Clean

I stayed at tent site A27\. It was clean, quiet, convenient. It's located near the rest rooms, showers and the food storage locker. Everyone who was on duty as a camp host was super knowledgeable and friendly.

When I arrived they did have a bear in moving through the campgrounds, however, during my stay there weee no bears in the area.

i really enjoyed my stay here. If you are looking for cell phone signal at your campground, you will not get it here.

Nice clean campground

It was alright being here. Spent a night here after exploring the park. We sort a night in the park as well. We typically judge a campground by how expensive it is and how many people. We would rather a place with no amenities and no people. We got all the amenities and all the people haha. Still after living out of your van for a while a hot shower is worth any amount of money and noise. Well worth the shower. if your just doing a couple day trip it could be worth finding another place. if you need a hot shower id go for it stinky.

Hot showers!

The sites are on top of each other and people walk right through your site. Our dog nearly bit someone because he was so stressed, and he's a lab. The only redeeming trait of this site was the showers. We split time between this campground and Collegiate Peaks in BV and wanted to leave to go back to BV the minute we got to Estes.

Crowded!

We enjoyed our stay here. This campground had nice, clean bathrooms and showers. We did have to share bear lockers with our neighbors but it wasn’t too big of a deal. The site we had did have a pretty nice tent pad. Not all of them have a level tent pad like that. Staff was very helpful and it was a pretty close drive to RMNP. There is a trailhead near the front of the campground that leads to several trails. Very pretty place to stay. 

Nice, clean campground near RMNP

While more expensive than Forest Service or BLM campgrounds, we recently had a great experience at East Portal over the busy 4th of July weekend. Despite being walk ups, the camp hosts were extremely helpful in finding us a site, and then moving us around to an even better site. Highly recommend the sites on the south side, they are much more secluded if you are tenting. Clean restrooms and facilities. Close to great fishing and hiking (close as in, you can walk to them), and an easy drive into Rocky Mountain National Park and Estes Park.

Well maintained campground with great hosts

This campground is at the end of the road, zero traffic noise, lots of shade from trees, nature trails, deer visit in the mornings. Facilities are exceptional, clean, free with camping. Each site has a bear box/ food locker to keep food items safe and stored near your site. So quiet at night...good sleeping! Friendly hosts! Great camping in the Rockies!

Friendly, quiet, clean...great!

Estes park is definitely worth the visit, it's absolutely beautiful. and who doesnt love camping somewhere beautiful?

breathtaking views

We stayed at Estes Park Campground at East Portal when we visited Rocky Mountain National Park this past July 2018\. At first I was disappointed that we could not Moraine Valley or Aspen Grove campgrounds within RMNP, but I am SO GLAD we ended up staying at Estes Park Campground at East Portal! While it is a private campground and is more expensive than a State Park, National Park, Forest Service or BLM campground ($35 for a standard tent site without hookups…it increases with equipment hookups), I think it was well worth the extra money.

Estes Park Campground at East Portal is a short drive away from both RMNP and the city of Estes Park, so you are nearby everything. The camp hosts were extremely friendly, and shockingly, while there was a fire ban in place inside RMNP and outside the park near the Grand Lake area, campfires WERE allowed at Estes Park Campground at East Portal, so long as they were small and contained within the fire ring (which did have a grate for cooking!). The hosts at Estes Park Campground at East Portal had firewood for sale, and even dropped it off for us at our campsite! They also had ice for sale.

The sites are not extremely private, but are all surrounded by tall, thin trees. The trees are perfect for hammocks, so if you have a hammock, bring one! Also, the trees would be useful for handing extra tarps if a thunderstorm was to pass through the area; we had tarps and bungee cords and ropes at the ready in case a storm came. We were lucky, a HUGE storm had rolled through the night before we arrived, and another started just as we had finished packing up the car to leave Estes Park.

Each campsite has a newly build, raised tent pad to set your tent up on - the management is extremely strict that campers MUST place their tents only on the designated tent pad. I did not have a problem with that, as the tent pad is nice and flat, and has some compacted sandy soil which helps keep the dirt out of your tent. The sites are separated by thin logs placed on the ground.

**WARNING:** You ARE in bear country, so be bear safe and use the shared bear bins available in the campground! Our party had two adjacent campsites, so we were able to share the shared bear bin amongst just our own party. The neighbor on the other side of us had a bear bin, and it didn’t appear that he had to share his with if his neighbors. Try to lock all of your food and toiletries inside the food locker - they are large, and we have always been able to fit our big cooler into locker. If you do have to leave a cooler in the car, I was once told by a ranger in Yosemite NP that bears can recognize coolers when peering into car windows - he suggested putting put a towel and gear over your coolers when keeping them in the car overnight in bear territory.

The best part about this campground is that it had hot **FREE** and clean showers!!!! As a California girl who’s used to the extreme drought conditions, having a hot free shower available was absolute heaven while camping. There was also a big farm sink outside the bathrooms for dish washing and water bladder filling - it was extremely convenient.

There is only one trash receptacle area in the campground, up towards the entrance near the playground. Even though the campground is fairly small, we were lazy and kept our trash in the cars at night, and dropped it off in the morning when we were headed out to RMNP. There is also a water spigot near the garbage bins - it was a good reminder that we hadn’t filled up our water bladders for a day of hiking.

Estes Park Campground at East Portal is located at the very end of a road, so it is nice and quiet, without noise pollution from traffic. The campground is only about 20 minutes away from Moraine Park inside RMNP. It was easy to get to and from the NP, where we went each day to hike and search for moose.

We found moose at Sprague Lake, around dusk! A momma moose and her yearling twins came down from the wooded hills to graze on the water plants growing in the shallow lake. They were pretty unconcerned by the crowd of people watching them, but it’s important to still give them their space, as they are very large, wild animals (ESPECIALLY during mating season, and when a momma is with her young babies). The moose were truly an amazing site to see, nobody in my party from California had ever seen a moose before this trip to Colorado.

The camp hosts said moose and elk will occasionally make an appearance at the Estes Park Campground at East Portal. We did not see either while at camp, but we frequently deer and fawns running through the woods directly behind the campground.

**WARNING:** in the woods behind the campground there is a NO TRESPASSING zone where there are piles of chopped, dead trees - those tree piles contain the remains of the trees that were infected by the pine beetle epidemic that has killed so many trees in the area. The piles will be burned in the winter and should not be touched or disturbed.

**CAMPSITE SPECS**

**Fees:** $35/night

**Plumbed Toilets**: Yes

**Drinking Water**: Yes

**Showers**: Yes (no coins needed!!)

**Picnic Table**: Yes

**Firepit**: Yes

**Cooking Grates**: Yes

**Shade**: Yes

**Cell Service**: Yes

**Animal Bins/Food Lockers**: Yes (shared)

**Trash**: Yes

GREAT campground right outside Rocky Mountain National Park

Peffect for getting outside of the crowds of Estas Park and not have to go into RMNP. Well shaded in most places but there isn't any underbrush at all. You are only 1 to 2 trees away from all the neighbors and there is little to nothing blocking views for privacy. But the facilities were clean and in good shape.

Tight Quarters 

Amazing views. Hiking. The rock climbing is off the chart.

Just perfect 

This camp ground has it all, nice clean bathrooms, with showers, blow dryers ect. There are camp sites for the RV camper with full hook ups, to nice level sites for the extreme Tent camper with pick nick tables and BBQ grills. The camp ground has a small store for grocery/miscellaneous camping supplies, that opens early and stays open later than most! This camp ground was reasonably priced, the staff friendly and helpful, and best of all was very clean and accommodating for all camper types! The camp ground had a map with a list of activities to do there, and places to go shopping, and places of interest! The drive through the canyon to the camp ground is unforgettably beautiful!!

Camp Ground for every camper type/level

They come right up to your tent so be prepared and make sure you use the food lockers to keep bears away. great location, great sites, good facilities. Easy to get into Estes Park and into RMNP. Site A22 was great!

Amazing wildlife

Best place to camp around. Wooded area at the end of the road. Book early!

My favorite in Estes

This is a basic campground with great views! The campground is on the side of the mountain with a hiking trail just outside the park into Rocky Mountain NP. There is a great meadow with lots of wildflowers, too.
Just a few sites have water and electric, but there are great views from many of them.
Saturday night there was a ranger program on mammals that was great for the kids.
There is a very small store with ice, firewood and some basic supplies.


Great views of the mountains 

**Campground Review: **

We really enjoyed our stay at Estes Park at East Portal! I can’t say enough good things. We passed so many parking lot campgrounds and were so happy we chose here. We had trees! Our space was large enough to accommodate our 20 ft travel trailer with our truck next to it, still leaving plenty of room for the picnic table and a chair circle around the fire. We chose to park next to the camper so as to not obstruct the view. Water and electric and a large bear box were provided. Our spot A66 overlooked a little field that every morning a little fawn would come up out of and sniff around. My kids enjoyed playing with sticks and rocks in this little field-something every kid should get to do! We had beautiful views in 3 directions(bathroom behind us). Speaking of bathrooms, they were large and clean! Auto flushing toilets, toilet paper and hand soap! A cleaning crew came in often and quickly. Individual shower rooms make for a comfortable and private hot shower very welcomed at the end of a day of nearby hiking. Mule deer came through every evening right by our camper to eat grass. One morning 3 large Bull Elk and a young bull came through the valley and up through the campground. It was so surreal! The stars were stunning too. We saw shooting stars and even the northern lights (flashing kind not curtains). Then on our last day, a rainbow could be seen right next to the campground. We could not have asked for anything more! The camp hosts were all awesome and very helpful. The location was central to most things that we wanted to do. No cell service and it was glorious! But if we did need it, about a mile down the road we picked it back up. There is a geocache very near to the campground right by a hiking trail-my boys enjoyed marking it off their list . I could watch them walk to it from the site. On our first hike we saw horse back riders from the YMCA and stunning views including a small waterfall. Wildflowers were scattered across the mountainside and there is a small reservoir for fishing-though we didn’t. The air was so clean and you could smell the pines. The site next to us was a walk-in I believe as it cycled through a few times in a week. The playground was small but my kids were satisfied. There was a rock climbing wall and swings. My husband said the dump site was not positioned perfectly for our camper but we were so happy they had one. The office has a small little store with maps brochures and some essentials or souvenirs. If we go back to Estes Park, this is definitely where we will camp again.

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**Product Review:** 

As a Ranger for The Dyrt, I get products to test from time to time and this time we chose to review  Fiber Light.

[https://fiberlightfs.com/collections/fire-starters-tinder/products/original-fiber-light-fire-starter](https://www.outdoorelement.com/product/fiber-light/)

My husband has been showing our 12 year old some camping how to’s and this was a fun thing for them to mess around with. They used a spark wheel to get it going (survival mode they said lol) and it lit quickly and burned for a long time! We timed a large pinch and it burned for over 5 minutes. Lights immediately with a flame lighter. Comes in a large fully packed round tin with a thick rubber band around it to seal out moisture. My son was the first to try and was not able to get lit with his Firebiner (first time using that too), but my husband got it lit right away lighting the kindling and a log. I was impressed with how much time we had to get the rest of the fire set up! This will definitely be useful in a survival or long hike situation. Thumbs up from us!

Ranger Review: Fiber Light at Estes Park Campground at East Portal

Absolutely perfect for us! We have a pop-up and we loved the campsite. Super clean, lovely area, and not crowded. We will camp there again  

Super clean showers!

We loved this park we stayed in the best site in this campground #A64 with a excellent view of Rocky Mt. NP.  We had water &amp; electric hook up and it has a dump station. We had Elk &amp; deer behind our site, and were close to Rocky Mountain National Park &amp; the YMCA which is nice. NO cell service yet if you went into the Rock Inn Bar had munchies &amp; a drink &amp; free wifi.  This campground is for 22' campers &amp; under but does have a few bigger but you have to call ahead they may not be available. 

  

There is a nice hike at the campground it has a following river with little falls, wildflowers &amp; rapid water.  It was the 4th of July so we thought we would stay put and enjoy the campground. 

  

We drove to the National Park many times, Devils Gultch, twin owls, Gem lake and the Mc Greggor ranch (built in the 1800's) nice ranch I think it was $5.00 to go inside.

Hidden Gem for smaller campers

This is our all time favorite campground.  The hosts are friendly and helpful but also enforce the rules, the bathrooms are clean, the sites are a good size, and the location is beautiful.
We camped in site A39 in a hard sided pop-up and used the electric and water hookups.

Favorite campground 

We spent one night here overlanding while visiting RMNP. The hosts were kind, campground is clean, nice hot showers, clean restrooms, outdoor sink. The campsites are not all super private, however everyone was friendly enough and respectful of quiet hours. Each site has a bear box, picnic table, water hookups, etc and we found it to be just right. We saw some deer and squirrels but that’s it for wildlife sightings. Would definitely stay here again.

Great place close to RMNP

Lots of good things to say about this place: Friendly, helpful staff and hosts, clean bathrooms in good shape, variety of sites to suit your needs (not a good place for large fifth wheels, it would be hard to maneuver into the sites), close proximity to Estes Park and RMNP. We travel in a van and had e/w hookup and there is a dump station to make a deposit on the way out. Only negative,  it not really a problem, is the narrow dirt road that was very rutted in places, so be careful. The sites are all different in terms of size and environment. We were in site A31, which was very spacious, gravel pad, but had a bit of a slope so we had to employ our leveling blocks to jack up one end. We would definitely stay here again if in the area. Just beware that there is no WiFi and cell reception is little to nothing.

A Great stay

We went here with our 2 little girls ages 4 and 1. The views were stunning and everything was super clean. The owners told us great recommendations on where to eat and what to see. Great trails right there at the campground! Our site would have been amazing if the playground was there but they were redoing it since everything with COVID it seemed like the best time to do it! Which is fine..just means we get to come back!! We saw tons of elk and visit the Rocky Mountain national park everyday since its about 5 minutes away! REALLY enjoyed staying here!!

LOVED IT!

Made a mistake with the booking but the hosts were so amazing and helpful that we were able to work it out. There are bathrooms, showers, and a good amount of space between each site. You can purchase wood and ice at the store at the entrance of the campsites. 

Amazing views, Great hosts

Stayed here for 2 nights while visiting Rocky Mountain National park. Reserved in advanced, its on the expensive side. Camp hosts were great! Showers immaculate. Hiking trail from campground can take you into park. Our site was not big but worked perfect for our van. 

Great campground near RMNP

At the end of a road alongside Rocky Mountain National Park is this very cute (small) and very tidy campground. It's quiet, peaceful, treed and views abound. Limited facilities (4 showers and 4 toilets I think) but spotless. Wish there was a shelf or hook to place my toiletry bag on in the bathroom as those were the only available mirrors. Each campsite had a firepit, firewood available at reception.

Hidden Gem

We stayed 3 nights. The camp ground was very clean. All the facilities were clean and well kept. We stayed in spot A12. Had water and 30amp hook ups. The views were beautiful. We’ll definitely be back!

Labor Day Weekend 

Night 1 of 2, already like this campground. Bathhouses are good/great. Site 37 is close to 2, one is newer than the other. The old one is decent, new one is very nice with private baths/showers. Clean. 

Site is clean and fairly level (slight grade). Water/electric 30 amp. Somewhat close to next site but no big deal. Decent amount of privacy except for the wildlife! Elk we’re casually walking through!

Camp hosts David and his wife (Jackie?) were great when checking in, with tips on RMNP. 

Bit expensive with fees. Almost $70/night inclusive. 

Good signal with AT&amp;T

Nice facilities, all around good

Super sweet hosts that checked in on me. I felt wholly welcomed. Pretty energetic campground; it was like being at a block party.

Block party!!!

Nothing special. WAY over priced for the type of sites at this grounds. Hope you like neighbors because they are literally 5 feet from you. Car fees on top of camp fees. Greedy. I’m surprised they don’t charge additional fees for parking, water and bathroom use. 

Oh and I saw camp staff chase off wild life, just a deer roaming. Real great place. 

Overpriced for what you get

We loved this campground and it’s proximity to RMNP and Estes Park. The campground was clean, had a great playground and quiet hours were respected. The little store was nice and the camp hosts were friendly and helpful. We saw elk and mule deer in the campground on multiple occasions. Would definitely stay again!

Great place to camp!

Online reservation was easy as was the check in.  The staff were helpful and friendly.  Some reviews balked at the price and the tight spaces.  Expected in this sort of prime location.  Live with it!  That being said, we were there at the tail end of the season, with the other campgrounds around us literally closing.  The result for us was that we had few neighbors.  This made navigating the narrow roads and tight campsite much easier.  All in all a very pleasant couple of days.

Nice campground nestled in the pines

Family friendly campground at the end of a quiet road near RMNP. Quiet, no generators heard as big rigs won’t fit! Tents, vans, car camping and camper trailers fit well. Clean bathrooms, hot showers, friendly hosts, ice and fire wood for sale. Big playground and not crazy expensive. 

Photos of East Portal Campground at Estes Park

Real photos from real campers