Searching for the perfect place to pitch your tent near Arco? The Dyrt can help you find the best tent campsites for your next trip. Each spot offers quick access to one or more of Arco, Idaho's most popular destinations.
This campground has 21 campsites with a maximum length trailer size of 35 foot. Seven sites are located along Iron Bog creek and the rest are out in the open sage-brush. There is one hand pump (during summer months) and two accessible restrooms. Four campsites have shade-awnings. Non-reservable campground with a $10.00/night fee. Hitching rail available, one group campsite with 25 person capacity. Nearby Iron Bog Lake, Brockie Lake and Fishpole Lake. Smiley Mountain looms overhead. Use is light, with the exception of holiday weekends.
This area serves as a base camp for climbing the tallest mountain in Idaho. It has 5 campsites, accessible vault toilet, No drinking water, safety and informational signs. Nearby areas of interest include Earthquake site and Mackay Reservoir.
$5 / night
Copper Creek/Garfield Campground is a primitive, non-fee, non-reservation campground composed of 8 campsites in a canyon carved by Copper Creek. This area is accessible from May through October. Fishing is available in area streams. Mormon Hill trailhead is located at the end of Forest Road #130. This trail extends north into the Challis National Forest. Campground amenities include a vault toilet, picnic tables, fire rings, and hitching posts for stock.
The Wildhorse campground has 13 sites in a heavily wooded setting. There are two handpumps that provide water in the summer months, and two accessible vault toilets. Nearby areas of interest include Boulder Creek Lake, Waterfall Trail, and the head of Wildhorse canyon.
Legend
Free designated dispersed campsite along Sawtooth Nation Forest Road 137. Camped here at the end of September 2024. Very large designated dispersed site set downhill from the forest road; no issues with dust from this road. The area is level. May be able to park 3 rigs. Tent camping is possible back from the parking area toward the metal firering. This area can accommodate 3 or 4 tents, or one big hot tent. Corral Creek is just down a short path from the campsite. The sound of the creek can be heard at the site. Very quiet area. Mountains on either side of the site. The parking area is dirt and gravel. The "tent" area is grass and dirt. Don't see opportunities for hammock camping. No cell service. No shade; solar recharging and Starlink possible. 3 day limit. Hiking trailheads and vault toilet at the end of the forest road.
Legend
$10 (paid $5 with senior pass). First come, first served. Camped at site #10 in late September 2024. This primitive national forest campground was not busy during my visit. Copper Basin Loop Road accessing this campground, which has a gravel surface, was in good condition; there was some washboarding in a few places. The campground has a lower loop and an upper loop. The campground has a mix of pull-through and back-in sites; some leveling may be reuired in some sites. Site #10 is a short gravel pull-thru in the upper loop, good fit for my campervan, although very close to the campground road. There is a short path from the site driveway down to a picnic table and metal fire ring. The ground is a little chewed up from voles and cow hooves. Tent and hammock camping are possible. This site has partial shade; others in the loop are open. Little privacy between sites. Depending on the site, you can get a view of Copper Basin from the upper loop. The upper loop has two clean vault toilet facilities; I didn't use the vault toilet in the lower loop, but assume that it is clean. There is a hand water pump in both loops but shut down for the season during our visit. Trout fishing in nearby Star Hope Creek was pretty good; it's about a 1/4 mile walk from my campsite. No T-Mobile or AT&T cell service. Overall, a pretty campground; mostly wooded. I would camp here again. Boondocking is also possible along the Copper Basin Loop Rd.
Legend
$10 ($5 with interagency pass). First-come, first-served. Camped one night in site #13 on Sept 24, 2024. Gravel road to this out-of-the-way campground was in good condition. Pretty part of the Challis National Forest. Nothing remarkable about the campground itself. Looks like some of the sites have not been maintained in a while; overgrown with weeds, grass and sagebrush. Sites have tables and fire rings; some had shade-awnings over the tables. The vault toilets were clean. The hand water pump did not pump water; water was probably turned off for the season. No payment envelopes were provided - maybe because it was the end of the season. No hiking trails. Most sites are in the open with no shade; a few were shaded near the creek. Gravel campground road and site driveways. Site sizes varied. No privacy between sites. Tent camping possible. Solar recharging possible at my site. Great views of the mountains around the campground. Very quiet, peaceful evening; only one other site was occupied during my visit. No T-Mobile and AT&T cell service. There were several boondocking sites on the way to the campground.
Legend
Coordinartes: 44.16547,-112.90392. Beautiful views. Large dirt and gravel site, right along side to Skull Canyon Road, about a mile from ID Hwy 28. Canyon walls on each side. Rough narrow rocky track to the site from the highway; recommend high clearance. High humps on this track. Small rock fire ring. Grass and sagebrush all around site. Some leveling may be required. Tent camping possible. Very peaceful; can hardly hear road noise from highway. The only vehicle that drove by was a national forest truck. No cell service. There are several boondocking sites, some with vault toilets nearby, along Hwy 28 in the Birch Creek Recreation Area.
Traveler
We stayed here 1 night in mid-October, 2024. Bulletin board directed us to our reserved site. never saw any of the staff and received our welcome email at 9 a.m. the next day as we were departing. Poor trees are half dead. Stay was OK except for the racket from a neighboring property with massive loudspeakers blasting reveille in the a.m. and an annoying, caterwauling rendition of the Star-Spangled Banner at sunset. Nutty Arco.
Ranger
We came to Craters of the Moon early, ended up being there most of the day. Instead of going on and trying to find dispersed camping, we treated ourselves to a site in the park.
Sites are $15, and you must have the American the Beautiful Pass or pay park entry fee.
The sites are dry camping with toilet facilities and water (no dump station).
The sites are right in amongst lava field and is quite unique.
Campground was very quiet at night and very dark. Could see the sky and stars wonderfully.
Definitely a great park and place to stay.
Scout
Delightful creekside free campsites! Turn at the BLM sign and take a little gravel road to several free creekside spots! There are at least two pit toilets, one at a spot with two picnic tables, each has a great shade, fire pit, and a place for a camp stove! One has a flat raised gravel spot for a tent, which was good because we actually saw a couple mice. The second pit toilet was further down the road at a more separated spot, it looked like it was ADA accessible and also had a picnic table, etc. Close enough to Carey to get gas/ice. Only giving it 4 stars because of the mice (pack out your own trash guys! It isn’t hard!) and the complete lack of trees, the covers over the picnic tables did proved shade, but it still got crazy hot.
GuideWe arrived with a reservation for a rental RV, smooth and friendly check-in. But then... Small site, no shade at all. Nicely flat though. Firepit/BBQ filled with cigarettes, non-usable. Pool was as small as can be, 10 pax= overcrowded. Toilets and showers outdated, broken and terribly dirty. The neighbour will play a loud national anthem at 9 p.m. and an even louder reveille at 9 a.m. One can see as far as possible, but the scenery consists of old trailers and mess.
Pro's: The showers were for free and nicely warm. 4 washing machines ($1,75 half an hour) 4 dryers ($1,50 half an hour) Free wafles and coffee between 9a.m. and 10 a.m. Friendly staff.
Overall: nearly good enough for a one night stay. Never saw something like this before.
ScoutFor our family's first vacation in our new travel trailer, we foolishly chose to visit the KOA campground in Arco, Idaho. We had informed them of our late arrival around 11 PM. Upon arrival, they handed us a map and pointed to a campsite number. None of the spots were properly marked, but surrounded by other trailers, we assumed we were in the right place. The next morning, we discovered the bathrooms were absolutely revolting, clearly not cleaned for days, despite a sign claiming daily cleaning. Mud on the floors, mold and mildew in the showers, overflowing trash, and toilet paper strewn about—it was utterly disgusting. When we returned later that day, a staff member immediately confronted us, accusing us of lacking a reservation. We provided the requested documentation, and they disappeared. Then the owner or manager approached us aggressively, violently pointing out our supposed error on the map and ordering us to move everything to the correct spot—right behind where we had parked, already occupied by another family they had mistakenly placed. In a menacing tone, he begrudgingly decided to relocate the incoming family to our original spot. This whole scene unfolded in front of numerous families at the KOA, with no regard for our embarrassment or the other campers' discomfort. After this disgraceful ordeal, we decided to just pack up and leave, not even bothering to request a refund. As we were packing, the manager approached, still not apologizing, but handed me a receipt for a refund that I never asked for nor wanted. I informed him firmly that this was not about money but about their appalling mismanagement. I intend to dispute the refund because this KOA should not be associated with such incompetence and filth and I will not accept hush money.
TravelerArrived later than I wanted and was thrilled to find site 1, I believe this was the North entrance, was available. Great spot with a pit toilet and table. Plenty of room to park and level. Loved listening to the creek all night. Wet a fly the next morning and caught a great brown trout. Lots of little dinkers, too.
Guide
Free (donation box) camping. I have a hard time imagining this place filling up, plenty of field to park in. Most RVs were under a row of trees. Two vault toilets, on either end of camping. Not the cleanest or freshest I’ve used, but not the worst. Great scenery and birdwatching. Good stop on the way to/from Craters.
RangerGreat sites nestled In The lava rocks. Great hiking or biking the 7mi loop road. We didn't have reservations but got there early (2pm) it looked very full by 6pm. We got our spot, then drove our rv around to the different scenic spots and returned to camp 5 hrs later.
GuideIt was a special camping experience. They just renewed all the roads in the park. Campground is right next to loop around the park with some nice spots. Clean flushing toilets and water. Get there in time! We had one of the last spots at 5pm
Scout
Spent two nights here so we could visit nearby Craters of the Moon. Spaces are long and level at least. Fire pits are shared with 1-2 other spots. Our table was completely leaning over. Neither of the bathroom toilets would flush. The sprinklers came on in the middle of camp and soaked everything with no warning. Okay if you need a quick stop for the night.
TravelerNice sites . Some more suitable for tents, other for vans.
15$ per night, first come first serve. We were there Memorial weekend (Sunday) and there were still spots.
LegendStopped at Craters of the Moon on our trip home from Mt Rainer. It’s not a large campground, and it off the main road. A little hard to find. (Behind Pickle’s Place). Convent to Craters of the Moon !
Guide
Prices are 28$ a night unless you have the America the beautiful pass then it's 4$ they have caves that are free to access but you have to get a permit from the visitor center the spots are small and people get there late sometimes so it was a bit noisy at night we stayed for 4 days the hole attraction is because of lava formations over all a very nice stay
Traveler
This is a great campground We parked at site 7 We would stay there again and next time spend an extra day or two, riding the bikes through the loop
RangerFirst come first serve, clean bathrooms and water. Easy card payments for campsites. The geology of the area is really neat, and it's right off the main road drive through the rest of the park. Very unique.
TravelerPaved parking spot, with access for a smaller camper; a few tent sites. Drop toilet, fire pit, picnic bench, Disabled parking spot. True tranquility and bliss, and skies for days.
Traveler
I selected this campground after missing out on a nearby first come first serve that was fully booked. I am just thrilled with the campsites and cleanliness of the pit toilets and nearby stream and fishing.
TravelerCame after a few nights in Yellowstone to escape the crowds. Can’t recommend this area enough - the campground/bathrooms are immaculate and the scenery is super cool. Had a very private campsite, could still see the Milky Way despite the bright moon. Worth a detour for sure.
ScoutStopped here on our way to yellowstone. Fire pit, picnic table and a vault toilet. Quiet and peaceful. Will stop here again. Bugs were terrible but to be expected with water nearby lol
ScoutGreat campground, very unique setting, great visitor center. Loved it!
Guide
Large campsites next to stream nestled in a beautiful valley. Hiking/mtb trail next to campsites.
GuideUse satellite view to see the sites. One site had a picnic table, tent pad and pit toilet, but was already occupied. The second location had two picnic tables with awnings, two tent pads and one pit toilet, complete with a mouse. We took the further site and a couple arrived at the other site around 7pm. It was very pleasant and quiet, but might not be if there were several campers in the large parking lot. Great, clean spot by the creek.
Traveler
Nice & clean. Accommodating hosts. Nice & level pull thru and back in sites. Restrooms are key coded thus nice and clean. Great area for ATV/UTV riding!
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is the most popular tent campsite near Arco, ID?
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular tent campground near Arco, ID is Iron Bog Campground with a 4-star rating from 2 reviews.
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TheDyrt.com has all 15 tent camping locations near Arco, ID, with real photos and reviews from campers.
