Best Glamping near Watkins, CO

The views, wildlife, and geology in the park are astounding---add to that the yellow aspens in the fall and you have classic Colorado camping not far from Denver. There are a lot of different options: typical state park camp sites, cabins, and a yurt, as well as backpacking/backcountry sites. We did the yurt in the winter and it was amazing, but make sure you have a jeep (or similar) and bring everything you need.

Have stayed here in a tent, in a yurt, and in a cabin. All are great! Bathrooms clean. At 10,000 feet, it can be colder than you expect and watch out for the altitude effects! Yurts are wayyy fun.

I've stayed here twice, the first time in a tent, and the second time we rented a yurt. The tent spaces are very close to one another so the yurt was way worth the upgrade. This campground is a bit urban-feeling. Had nice shower house and bathrooms.
We had a lovely day hanging out by the lake.

This is a very popular Colorado State Park and campground for alot of reasons! The park has campsites for all sizes, shapes and styles of campers, trailers, tents and has cabins and yurts to rent as well. I like loop B for the pull throughs and nice spacing between sites. Loop D is a favorite as well , it’s close to the restrooms with showers and laundry. The park fills up quickly over the summer weekends ( reservations required) but I check for cancellations ... you never know or try for weekdays if you can.

There are RV, Tent and Yurt camping sites. Bathrooms, showers, dishwashing area and laundry facilities but still in nature and beautiful views and trails, especially in the non-electric tent sites. Great staff at the check in area.

I've stayed here twice; once via tenting and another with a yurt full of fun people. Both stays were wonderful. The facilities are clean, convenient and easily accessible. Golden Gate Canyon park has loads of moderate hiking trails with beautiful pine and Aspen views. Highly recommended.

Well, sorta camping if you consider a yurt camping. This was the perfect winter getaway for winter hiking. Unfortunately there was not enough snow to cross country ski as advertised. Overall the park has nice trails and some elevation gain. It made for a nice quick getaway.

was just beautiful all the staff was wonderful and made our first in Co wonderful I would deffiantly recommend this place for sure beautiful views the yurt was awsome and we tent camped last night please come visit and see for yourself they have archery, a beach, horse stables and ring, large lake to fish, clean bathrooms and courthouses will stay again if we are ever in co again😁😍❤

Reverend’s Ridge Campground is part of Golden Gate Canyon State Park. Besides the campground reservation, you need a daily car pass ($10) or a yearly CPW pass ($80). The campground is well equipped with running toilets and showers during the spring and summer. They also have. Washer and dryer in their facilities. The campground has an area for tents only, RVs, cabins and a few yurts ($90 per day with a minimum of 2 Days). The site is quite big and the sites, at least at the tent site, were fairly distanced from each other which gives you some privacy. The area is covered with pines and a lot of aspens. There are plenty of trails and a few ponds for fishing. In general, this campground is very good and has really good amenities. Trails were pretty busy due to the excellent weather. Panorama view area is walking distance from the site. Avoid driving there since you probably will walk the same distance from your car. Parking were extremely difficult and CPW were giving citations.

What a great spot to spend the day. Traveled to Colorado from NJ and this is spot is really breathtaking and relaxing.

Fairly spread out sites but very little shade. Full hookups but Colorado price increase and state park access fees are nuts! Each site has a concrete parking pad, but for some inexcusable reason they're very NOT level.

Our first visit to Colorado was not a disappointment. The cooler temps (compared to Texas) was a very happy bonus for us. Hot air balloons, geocaching, hiking.... more than enough to keep us busy.

The spots are so private I had my 3 year old pee on trees the whole time. The park is clean (showers were a bit sketch but fine) and honestly a treat to camp in. All spots I saw were pull through. Hands down the best sunset I’ve seen in Colorado so far.

Camped here one night as we prepared to leave Colorado for home. The park is in the city, but surprisingly doesn’t feel that way. The place was busy and no privacy between sites. Bathrooms were clean and well kept. There were a few “interesting” characters in the park. Felt like they came here to party and hangout on the weekend. It was a convenient camping experience.

It was absolutely beautiful the time of year I went. It didn’t feel like I was in Colorado, it felt like I was in a sea of gold. So beautiful and so out of the way. It seemed like no one knew about it!

Beautiful lakeside camping just outside of Denver. Campsites are a bit close together, but great for groups! No hookups here but you have bathroom facilities and a visitor center where you can buy firewood. Campfires allowed in the fire pits. If you have an RV beware quiet hours from 10pm to 8am, no generators allowed. Lake is perfect for paddleboarding, kayaking and fishing and you will most likely have phone service if you are with AT&T or Verizon. Many day use areas, however vehicles and individuals are charged. For campers, if you bring more than one vehicle you will be charged daily for any additional ones. No drinking water is available, you must bring your own. Dirt roads to the lake are rough and narrow. Close to Deckers for incidentals. Intersects with the Colorado trail for hiking and biking and close to the Colorado River for tubing!

Stunning campground nestled right outside Golden and Boulder Colorado. We couldn’t believe it…so close but you feel incredibly removed once you get there. Campsites are close together but there is plenty of shade and coverage between sites. Great amenities: hot showers, laundry, firewood for sale, well marked trails. Our loop did NOT have water be aware and look at your maps before booking. Some loops have water and some do not. We did have electric though. Overall had a blast.

This was only a 15 min drive from our house, right off the highway! Campsites we’re clean and numbered but very close together with no trees to separate you from your neighbor. They have a nice lake for swimming (gravel beach) with paddle board, kayak, and paddle boat rentals. We did the paddle boards for $20 an hour (seemed a little high for an hour) but it was so much fun! The view of Red Rocks was a treat!

One other note, most of Colorado has a fire ban because of the lack of rain and wildfires. We were able to still have a fire, which is a MUST for camping :) but still be careful of course!

Enjoy!

Trees, trails and tranquility just an hour from Denver? Yes please! This is one of my new favorite spots -perfect for a quick weekend escape. We loved the roomy pull through spots for our camper, easy electrical hookups, super clean bathrooms and shower house. So many other campgrounds in Colorado have been hit hard by the pine beetle epidemic, but Reverends Ridge still has towering trees that make the loops feel private and remote. Dont mIss the easy hike to Panorama Point. From there you can let link to the rest of the extensive trail system through the park.

We love to visit Golden Gate Canyon State Park early in the season because it is very busy all summer.  This is our second stay at the park in March, and we have had wonderful snow both times.  

The Reverends Ridge campground has limited sites available this time of year but is still well maintained.  The campground office restrooms were open, heated and clean.  Trash dumpsters were available as were recycling cans. The electric hookups were on. There is no water available except in the restrooms. 

The campsite (C-35) parking area was plowed open to exactly the width of our trailer, so with more than three feet of snow on the ground we needed to get some exercise and do a bit of shoveling so we could back in and be able to walk along side the trailer and open the door! .More snow was falling as we set up but the scenery was absolutely magical.  About 25 yards of more shovel work made it so we could find and dig out both the table and fire pit provided.  We had a warming fire going in no time.  

Golden Gate is a wildlife paradise and as we worked we could hear Turkeys calling form the trees.  We were also graced with the presence of four huge Moose who had taken up residency and were lounging in the snow.  In the distance we could hear the yips and howls of coyotes.  

Snow graced us for the first of our Friday to Sunday stay, but warmer temperatures  arrived Saturday afternoon and the great daytime thaw and evening freeze common to Colorado mountains in springtime began in earnest.  This made for some cautious walking around the snow piled nearly everywhere. 

One of the great things about this park is the winter activities available on the many trails, and the added benefit of Nederland, Black Hawk, and Central City Colorado being within easy driving distance for some small town amenities if desired.  This is a great park, and my wife is wishing to visit when there is no snow!   😎

This was our first time staying at Bear Creek Lake. The park is not part of the Colorado Wilds or CPW State Park system, but daily vehicle fees are included with your camping reservation. Our towed vehicle was included when we checked in at the ranger station.

The campground is at the back of the park, roughly 2 miles from the entrance. There is a lot of bike traffic and windy roads. Sites are mostly level, electric only, and relatively close together. We stayed in Site 41 which was walking distance to the pit toilets and water spigot. We had no trouble fitting our 29' Class C, tow dolly, and towed vehicle. 

We filled our 7 gallon water jugs at the spigot to top off our fresh water tank. The spigot is the terrible skinny faucet that is not threaded as to dissuade RVers from connecting a fill hose to it. If you want to fill water jugs like we did, bring a short (<6') hose and a water bandit so that you don't waste water.

Pit toilets and flush bathrooms were clean and well maintained. The bath house at the center of the campground features coin operated hot showers, $2 for 10 minutes. The water temperature was very hot, but manageable. A great convenience since there are no sewer hookups at the sites.

This is a great place to camp if you want to explore Morrison, Golden, or catch a show at Red Rocks. The main park entrance closes at 9:30 and a back gate accessible from I-470 opens that allows access to the campground. We had no trouble getting an Uber to pick us up to go to Red Rocks, but had several driver cancellations trying to get back after a concert.