Best Tent Camping near West Des Moines, IA

We tried to stay here on probably the hottest day of the year. It was just wayyyyy too hot so we made sandwiches and decided to drive through the night, but it wasn’t this KOA’s fault! Very friendly staff. Tons for kids and families to do. My only complaint is that where we were, tent spot #1...there wasn’t really any soaration of the tent sites. People moved in beside us and were literally in our site because there wasn’t anything stopping them. Probably a better place for RV camping over tent camping.

Mormon Trail is absolutely beautiful. Myself and some friends tent camped there over the weekend and we were not disappointed! It is a very small state park with only a couple tent sites/camper sites, so it is not over populated. The drive there is easy and beautiful. Big RV’s/campers might have a difficult time getting there as the road turns into a one lane, curvy gravel road. AT&T has absolutely no service there, but US cellular does. No showers/clean bathrooms, just 2 waterless restrooms. The lake has a very large, mostly shallow, swimming area, the water is absolutely perfect, along with a big sandy beach area. You can boat and fish on the lake as well. The stars are also very bright and beautiful (we are from a city with the light pollution hides them). I would highly recommend visiting this campsite if you love off the grid camping and don’t need to shower/primp everyday. What a relaxing/fun weekend we had!

We stayed at the West Des Moines KOA for the Nationals Softball Tournament for my daughter in July. There were 6 families that stayed there with us. It was so much fun because we were able to all be either on buddy sites together and one had a patio site. The pool was refreshing for the girls and all of the activities kept them busy and having fun! All while being close to the city but the beauty of the country!!!

We were able to camp in a tent near RVs without feeling crowded. The restrooms, showers, and playground were all close by…great for camping with kids. There were some nicer than ours and some with less privacy or further away than we’d prefer.

A nice mix of convenience and privacy. Perfect location to showers and playground for kids. Ample space for our needs, but not overly private

Newton KOA

This is the primary location for camping in Newton. It’s right off interstate I-80 and is very close to the Iowa Speedway.

There are places to go tent camping but it’s primarily setup for rvs. The tent camping spots have a picnic table and fire pit.

The RV sports are pretty nice, most have the usual hookups. This place can get pretty busy when there is a race going on.

There is a creek in the back and some pretty easy hiking trails to explore. There is a fish cleaning station near the creek. They do also have a pond with bass and bluegill. They also have a pool by the office but it’s currently being painted.

Overall this is a pretty nice KOA and it’s very clean and maintained. You can hear the interstate but you get used to it.

We go camping at Breezy Bay and it’s our favorite. We tent camp, so the modern bathrooms (with showers!!) is a huge plus. The spots are some of the biggest we’ve seen at any campground, so there aren’t many and it’s almost always quiet. Lots of trees for shade but the lake has trails and a swimming beach with watercraft rentals. Truly a hidden gem in central Iowa!

If you want to go out in the country and do some tent camping this is the place!

The lake has been drained and dredged and is slowly filling back up. It’s pretty spacious and has lots of room for tent camping. I wouldn’t bring an RV here.

There are bathroom facilities by the lake area and the camping area which is near the back.

The fishing here used to be really good with catfish, bluegill, bass. They do allow boats (electric motor only), kayaks and canoes. I haven’t fished here since they updated the lake.

There are hiking trails and one that goes to a back pond. There is a butterfly garden and playground for the kids to explore. There is also a shelter to have parties with picnic tables.

It’s nice that’s it’s been updated and cleaned up.

Spent 2 nights tent camping here. We stayed at site 4, glad I read reviews on here. I personally would not want to be in a site beyond number 7 as it gets too close to the dump station and subsequent “sewage lagoon”

Shower house was clean, pretty quiet, and only 5 miles off the highway

Great place to go tent camping, very clean and quiet. They sell firewood bundles for $5. Easy trails for the kids to go hiking and playing in the creek to cool off in the heat. There is even a pond for fishing that you can take a trail from the campsite to. 100% going to go back and camp again.

Small county park with clean showers and restrooms. Several short trails, mile mile and a half maybe. Tent camping is always available (literally - was just there over Labor day weekend and had no trouble getting a spot on Saturday), with maybe 20 electric sites, no reservations. New this year is firewood for purchase. Not far from the famous High Trestle Trail for you bicycle enthusiasts! My wife and I teardrop trailer camp here as often as we can.

I stayed at Adventureland for the summer months and had no issues. The staff was very helpful, plenty of laundry/restrooms throughout the campground and pretty clean overall. Concrete pads with full hook ups (30/50 amp, water and sewage) make setting up quick. Tent camping is an option in the back of the campground. Nature is not really the draw of this campground, convenience is more the approach. With a theme park on one side and a casino on the other, both in walking distance. It’s more of a park and party place hahaha

Ledges State Park

Ledges is an amazing place. It has so much to do. There are long trails to hike, creeks to play in.

You can bring your tent or RV and camp. The RV camps have water/sewer hookups. The primitive tent sites are usually pretty clean and can get pretty busy on the weekends.

There are lots of bridges that get flooded out and are fun to drive over. Most of the kids like to hang out near them and get splashed.

Its a fantastic place to enjoy the outdoors and especially in the fall. Also if you go to Ames stop at Great Plains pizza company.

I camped here in 2021 and I enjoyed it but the first night I was there I ran my vehicle down the second night I was there I took a tour on the campgrounds and got verbally accosted but another camper for walking near their campground and then I mistakenly left some food out and my dog and I were woken up by wild dogs.
In 2022 I came out again and it was a much better adventure the campgrounds are beautiful they have two different electric sights and they have a newly furnished tent site.

We went to this state park with family and had a great time. We chose to do a walk-in tent site because my brother in law recommended it. The site was great! It had tons of trees, dirt area to set up tent, and nice grass surrounding it. The fireplace and picnic table we unexpected with a walk-in site, but a good surprise :) We camped mid-October and were pleased to see the modern bathrooms still open too! Loved the canyon drive and it’s fabulous views :) We heard about an awesome bicycling trail that connects this park with another and are already planning a trip to go back and do a bike trip! Excellent experience.

This is a great spot if you plan on staying in the area and want to go to Adventure Land or Prairie Meadows. There are lots of restaurants near by like Spectators and Jethro’s BBQ.

As far as the RV park goes it’s pretty busy, mostly small families and older folks. The lots aren’t very big and you are kind of packed in there. They have a swimming pool and a fishing pond. The office also has a little store to buy goods.

They do have a small area to tent camp in. I probably would stick go rv though. There are also comfort stations lol for showers and bathrooms.

They do also sell firewood and during July 4th Adventure land puts on a really great fireworks show.