Best Cabin Camping near Monarch, CO

Very nice park recently acquired by Thousand Trails. stayed here for 2 weeks with my thousand trails membership. They have 30-amp and 50-amp full hook-up sites. they also have an area that provides very rustic camping by a creek. those are water and electric-only sites. nice putt putt golf and playground area.

cell service with Verizon and T-Mobile is non-existent. Park has wifi but it is very slow and not reliable. Hot spot at main building works well.

This is also a fishing pond for kids under 12. They can keep 2 fish.

They have an indoor pool and hot tub as well as an outside pool and hot tub in the upper camping area.

The park is beautiful, covered in trees, almost all sites are shaded.  We have 103 RV Sites, 5 cabins and 6 tent sites.  Facilities include a clubhouse/office, pavillion, laundry facilities and a great bathroom/shower facility.  Located just 2 miles north of downtown Gunnison, just before the Gunnison River.

We also have the best internet in the area!!

Stayed here while thru hiking the colorado trail, what a wonderful time! Salida is a quick drive away and the trail is only a mile up the road. Staff was incredible and store well stocked. Taking covid seriously too! Thanks Monarch!

Great location with full hookups for RVs. The description mentions back-in sites only, and while our electric hookup was conveniently on the same side, we had to run our water and sewage lines underneath the RV since those hookups were on the opposite side—this seems to be the case for all sites. The campground is perfectly situated at the intersection of the Gunnison, Taylor, and East Rivers, making it ideal for fly fishing. They offer cabins, RV sites, and long-term housing options. There's a small store with basic items, beer, and merchandise, plus a fly shop in the same building. There's also a restaurant, though it was closed during our stay, and coin-operated laundry facilities. Overall, a great stay!

In my opinion this place is kind of rundown and dumpy. Maybe it hasn’t been maintained bc of covid closures? Idk either way I wasn’t impressed. We had a tent site. The tent sites were small and along a cliff with the Arkansas below. Our “large” tent site barely fit our big cabin tent, with enough room to park our vehicle. Our tent was literally a foot away from the road you pull in on. We had 2 young kids with us and I would not call it very kid friendly. We were Constantly having to keep an eye on them. Either they fall off a cliff into the river or worry about them getting into the main 2 way camp road that huge rvs and trucks drive by on. It was very hard to “relax” while kids were trying to play. The sound of the river at night was nice that’s about it. The encounters I had with staff weren’t great. A bit rude and unhelpful. I feel the prices are high considering you can’t use any amenities advertised due to covid restrictions. There were a lot of “rules” they had I haven’t encountered in other campgrounds. There are much prettier/nicer campgrounds along the Arkansas River I would stay at.

I am not exactly sure why this area looked so much more dusty than other photos I had seen but when pulling into this campground I was a little shocked and underwhelmed.     I am used to KOA camps having some of the best amenities in the camping world but this one seemed a bit outdated.   While they did have some nice amenities, the campsites themselves seemed to have little to no shade and were more dust and gravel than anything.    

As a tent camper I have slept on some hard surfaces before and learned to pad my site accordingly for comfort, however there were a lot of large rocks in the area where tents would be located which were rather large.   With these present it is hard to imagine other tent campers having a positive experience here or having moved them for comfort.   Perhaps the best bet when staying here would be one of the unique cabins or RV options.   

Tent sites were very high considering they have no hook up connections.   After tax $40 this just was a bit over the top in my opinion.     The no frills style of camping in this area has a picnic table and nothing else to justify the price point. 

A positive to staying in the area was the proximity to many hiking trails and places to explore along the river.    I noticed that within a 5 minute drive I could easily be in several access points for recreation opportunities ranging from fishing to hiking.    The snowcapped mountain passes were only a short distance as was the ghost town of St Elmo.     This is a huge positive for the campsite.

One thing I really did enjoy about this site was the camp cook area which is accessible to everyone staying at the park.  In addition, there are a lot of small prairie dogs which make for a fun view throughout camp, especially near the road way.

On a negative note however, the bathrooms were outdated and in need of some TLC and the outdoor recreation space was in need of some soft space as opposed to the rocky landscape.

I want to say a bit about this campground. It’s the best we’ve stayed at in a long while. A new family just took over and this is their first summer. It has everything. Full hookups to tent camping. Full hookup sites are a bit tight but fine. It’s at over 8000 feet and the views are amazing. We can see snow. They have a nice camp store, WiFi that works, golf cart rental, a playground, kids games, a community area (even host occasional concerts) fishing, and a river running through. On site laundry and very clean bathhouse. It’s near a highway but we never found the road noise a problem. Didn’t even notice except an occasional truck using Jake brakes. It all but stopped at night.

Owners are super nice and helpful. And we even saw a moose. The stars are amazing here BTW.

The kids didn’t want to go anywhere they were happy just to hang out here at the campground.

This campground is located on hillside just off of Hwy  50 approximately 6 miles west of Salida, Colorado. A beautiful location. We stayed here two nights in June, knowing this is a relatively new KOA that used to be a private campground. We would have left at the end of the first day except that we met friends there and wanted to continue our visit with them. Water pressure was almost non-existent (we had to use our own water pump in the RV) and Wi-Fi was almost non-existent during peak times.

This campground is definitely not up to the standards of a KOA. We have stayed in at least 16 0thers. I am aware there are other nice campgrounds in this area competitively priced.

Management at the campground have registered our complaint, but no ne on their team was present to do anything. Staff was new and expressed their regrets for our complaint.

Riverside RV Park is on the outskirts of Salida, Colorado just off of US-50. The Arkansas River flows through the campground at a sedate flow. Our campsite (#8) was right next to and parallel to the river which provided some soothing sounds at night. It took a couple of tries to back our 20 foot travel trailer into the spot. The gravel site was level side to side but sloped slightly back to front. The bathrooms and showers are clean but a bit worn, and they are across the river bridge from the campsites and up some fairly steep steps. My wife is handicapped, so we had to drive around to the bathhouse. 

The campground is next door to a Sonic Drive-In and across the highway from a Wal-mart. It is within a half hour drive to rafting, horseback riding, hot springs, trailheads to the outback and high mountains.

We enjoyed our stay and would definitely return.

I stayed here throughout the summer in 2024. It is a great place to explore from into the many surrounding popular locations. Gunnison is 25 minutes out, Crested Butte an hour, Ouray, Silverton, Lake City, Arkansas River Wilderness all an hour to 90 minutes away. Many hiking trails in the National Forrest's are just a few minutes away. World Class fishing in the Gunnison River as well as Blue Mesa Reservoir. These are a few of the Pro's of this Thousand Trails Campground. The back in sites are fairly level. Some need a wedge level to bring your rig closer to level. Class A's have no issues backing into spots. 50-30-15 Amp, Sewer and Water at the majority of the spots. I stayed in the upper section and had no problem getting a reservation, even on busier weekends.

The dig is that you will be backed up and beside other campers. By this, I mean their rigs will be within 20 feet of you. Sipping coffee, you will be able to have a conversation in a low voice with your camping neighbors. Not a big deal for me, I am a friendly and generous neighbor. Heck, I even share the fish I catch with those that do not have a Kayak or fishing gear. There is no Cellular service at this Campground. They have Wi-Fi, but I cannot attest to its strength or reliability; I use Starlink. They have Laundry at $2 a load for wash and $2 a load for dry. A small swimming pool that closes at 8. Bathrooms with showers that are cleaned daily. A nice paved road throughout.

I use this Campground to explore and enjoy hiking, fishing and 4WD into remote areas near hear. I can stay 21 days, out 7 and right back for another 21 if I desire. I disperse camp and come back to do laundry, rinse tanks, resupply fresh water tank. Gunnison has a Safeway, Local Grocery and Walmart. The Walmart is not a super store and has very little in the way of groceries. Local Grocers and Safeway are your better choice for food.

Montrose is an hour away. However, Hwy 50 is down to one lane once in the morning and once in the evening due to bridge repairs. You cannot pull a trailer across the bridge at any times. Towing, you are required to use County Road 26 detour. It also has a pilot car guide and at only a few times a day. It is almost 2 hour detour. Check with Colorado Dept. Transportation for info.

Really enjoyed staying at this park, site was incredibly long but a bit skinny but did the trick. You can hear the river running almost everywhere in the park

Met great folks there, staff was very nice too.

This park (which comes up quickly on the stream side of US-50, eastbound or westbound), is historically located on a former 180-degree turn of the old narrow-gauge railroad. It is right on the S. Arkansas, which has browns and rainbows for skilled and licensed anglers. Pull-throughs & back-ins are generously spaced with ample shade. Full hookups, but weak & limited wifi, though adequate for email & non-streaming. Restrooms/showers/laundry very clean & well-kept. Good showers, but the timer-controlled lights may leave you in darkness while you're in there (not saying how I know this). BONUS INFO FOR TENT CAMPERS: Ask about the tent sites all the way down by the old powerplant pond. Absolutely idyllic. About 20 mins. to Salida, 50 min. or so to Buena Vista.

High altitude means cool to cold nights. Gorgeous area and park!