Best Tent Camping near Corona, NM

Great Host. Good showers. Some reserved and some FCFS. Close to food and gas. Millions of gnats. If tent camping or need to be outside to cook, etc beware!

Great sites looking out over lava field. Close to Ruidoso NM, three rivers petroglyphs. Not too far from white sands. There are great campsites and some great tent sites.

Nice tall shade trees at all sites. Clean facilities (vault toilets). Some tent sites have brick wind structures around their picnic tables, which can be a handy especially with NM spring winds.

Great campground with interesting features, most sites have a water spigot, tent sites toward the back were very private with lava walls between sites. Vault toilets near rear sites, flush toilets and good hot showers near entrance, nice little camp store, great camp host who kept the place nice, a steal at only $7 with water and showers!

This was a great campground. Friendly host, paved roads and good accessibility. Hot free showers, water onsite. Tent camping was cheaper only $7 but felt too remote at far end of campground for me traveling solo with my dog so I stayed in a site with electric near bathrooms and camp host. Paved walking trail and informative posts through the amazing lava flow bed. Sites have shelters and fire rings but are exposed and it was VERY windy while we were there. Prickers if you venture even a few inches off paved roads - my dogs pads got cut and took a few days to heal. Hot showers were amazing and bathrooms clean. $18 for sites w water and electric. Some sites online reservation, some first come.

Awesome little campground in the high desert just west of Carrizozo. I arrived around 830 pm on a Saturday night in the middle of August and had my pick of spots. Fellow campers were quiet. RV hook ups available and showers/toilets available for both RV and tent campers. You can hear infrequent cars on the nearby highway (US 380) but it didn’t bother me. There are little grill tops near picnic tables, but the wind kept me from getting a good fire started. There is a roof shelter over the picnic table as well. Amazing sunset and sunrise and incredible stargazing. Only complaint is the bugs. SO MANY BUGS. No mosquitos that I noticed but plenty of annoying lava gnats and bigger things. Bring your bug spray. $7 for tent sites, $18 for RVs. Lava field has some paved trails through it, but it would get awfully hot during the day with the black rock. Might not be great for kids. Cacti with big ole thorns and the campground bordering the lava field have a bit of drop off. This campground holds a place in my heart, I’ll be back again.

This was my introduction to a BLM campground and what a great introduction. Situated on an old lava flow, Valley of Fires campsites offer an introduction to a desert landscape. There's a small nature hike and a slight rise in the middle of the campground that offers a nice view.

Site have a grill, trash, water, and a shelter; with no natural shade, you'll appreciate the sun shelter in the heat! There are vault toilets throughout the campground, but there is a central bathroom that offers flush toilets and showers. A couple of the sites are accessible with a concrete pad extending from the parking area to the shelter/picnic table/grill. The tent sites have a raised gravel pad.

If I were choosing a campsite, I'd see if the RV site on the back side of the hill is available. It is separate and therefore quieter than the others and offers a broad view of the monument and the tent loop below.

If you're here in the winter, I'd recommend a trip to the Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge (1hr away) to see the sandhill cranes. 90 minutes south you'll reach White Sands National Park. Both are worth your time, though for White Sands, check before you go; it is sometimes closed in the morning for missile testing.

We just spent two nights here(in early May, 2021) and there are many great things, but we also had two big problems.

Problem one (probably only an issue in 2021). The sites, and in fact most the campground, have been re-blacktopped. It LOOKS great. So shiny and new. But the stuff is still quite tacky, and we ended up tracking tar into our RV and getting it everywhere. I accidentally knelt on the ground to look at something under my rig, and now I have a ruined pair of pants. When we put our leveling blocks down and leveled our rig, when we left, we found we had left giant lego-shaped impressions in the tar. And when it gets even hotter there in June/July...yikes, it's going to be a problem. Hopefully by next year, it will be better. But this is really something to watch for.

Problem 2: They did a great job re-surfacing everything(see above) but most of the sites, despite looking lovely, are very un-level. We had one heck of a time levelling our 30 ft class A. The sites slope front to back AND to the side. A recipe for a real leveling challenge. We walked around the campground and saw lots of very precariously propped-up rigs(our own included). It's a shame they didn't fix some of this before they resurfaced everything.

The campground, otherwise, is great. The spots are generously sized and spread pretty far apart. Each site has water, a metal picnic table with a substantial shade covering, a fire pit and a grill. Most have 50 amp electric, which worked very cleanly. Water pressure was acceptable.

Most of the sites also have great views of the lava field. The field itself has a 2/3rd mile loop trail with lots of interesting information. We actually walked it 3 different times, first in the evening(and we really enjoyed when the bats came shortly before sunset) and discovered new things each time. There are other, longer trails around, but when we were there the visitor center/gift shop were still closed for COVID and we had no one we could get good information from. We stumbled across a couple of trailheads, but were reluctant to go too far, not knowing what we were in for. The grounds also include some outstanding tent camping sites, if that's of interest. The dump station is easy to get to. There are also several new looking restrooms, but when we were there, all were closed(again, due to COVID). That was fine with us, but if you're needing restroom facilities available, maybe call ahead.

It's a lovely place and we look forward to returning.

We love it here! We stayed for a weekend at campsite #6. Ours and A few other sites have RV hookups (electric only). No sewer hook up but dump station on site with water. There are multiple Drinking water spigots available; one next to our campsite 6, at the group shelter, by the dump station, and another spigot at the office / visitor center (closed right now) but that had a lock on it. Some sites have a nice brick and metal shelter and a charcoal grill, but all sites seem to have a picnic table, and fire ring. This is a pretty small electrical loop campground and some sites are pretty close, separated by trees, and vary in driveway length. There’s tent sites (some have good privacy) as well as day-use only sites that look very clean and with shelter. Our site had the picnic table and charcoal grill on one side of the driveway and the fire pit on the other side which is kind of weird but that just means we can drive in or back in depending on our awning side preference. I saw in some reviews that this was a problem for people.

Behind our site there’s a horseshoe area and group site not too far after. The group site has a small parking lot across the way for it and has a large shelter area with nice cement tables and large grills. Next to the office there’s a trail for the outer loop and nature trail. There are several trails within the park and all are pretty easy (kid-friendly) and not too long. This is a pet-friendly campground with dog stations to pick up after your pet. Make sure to bring your own firewood and kindling as gathering is not allowed in the area. There is phone signal for t-mobile and Verizon as well. Vault toilets were clean but no showers.

There is no lake or stream/river in the state park. The nearest lake is Manzano Lake it’s about 10 minutes from the campground in the small town of Manzano. Fishing and picnicking, not a very large lake - more like a pond really but still beautiful and something to see and do. Currently the lake just opened and there’s a sign at the entrance that the fish have not been stocked. Not much for some decent stores around but a grocery store in Mountainair (25 mins away) Also nearby is the Quarai Ruins (15 mins) to check out which has some trails and also pet friendly so long as they’re on a leash.

Also, getting here by GPS, just takes you to where the pavement ends on HWY-131 but you’ll need to go another mile on unpaved road to get the the campground. Just follow the signs for the state park. Also, make sure to check on weather because although the unpaved road is typically well-grated and maintained; when it rains hard - it tends to wash out which makes the last mile to the state park hard for some. Also, there’s not gas stations nearby to this camp.

Overall a great and beautiful place to stay. Definitely bring some bug spray and repellent, lots of flies and mosquitoes to be had! There’s not a whole lot to do besides relax, eat, and check out some trails so bring your own entertainment as we brought a remote control all-terrain car, frisbees, lawn darts, board games, card games, etc to entertain the kids. We would definitely recommend the place and we will certainly be back!

Valley of Fires is a great state park with both RV- and tent-friendly spots. It's developed with covered, powder-coated picnic tables and flat, raised tent pads, a bathroom, and if my memory serves me correct (because I can't quite remember) showers.

Valley of Fires wouldn't be the best place to spend a full day as the black, volcanic rock holds a lot of heat. However at sunrise and sunset, the views are not to be missed. Use Valley of Fires as a good stop-over for trips across New Mexico.

Nice clean restrooms full amenities electric, water, tank dump, this area has a lot of history. The lava tubes, the town of Carrizozo White Oak and Capitan. These are all towns that Billy the kid frequented back in the day also the ghost town of White oak was the largest gold mining town in New Mexico.

Due to New Mexico Governor’s decision to close state owned campgrounds, we scrambled to find a place to stay prior to visiting White Sands...thank you BLM!!

This area provided a peacefully quiet landscape with expansive views of the lava valley and a memorable sunset. The area was well maintained and offered a 1-mile informational loop hike through the lava field. First Come, First Serve with pay at entrance envelopes.

Flush toilets and showers were unfortunately locked due to the state’s covid ordinance and there was no management on site, but there were multiple potable water pumps and pit toilets available.

Terrific waypoint between Carlsbad Cavern and White Sands.

Gem of a USFS campground in the Cibola National Forest near Corona, NM. Can get crowded on weekends and most especially during Fall hunting season.

Note that directions from Maps/Dyrt tries to send you the wrong way off County Rd 22, so follow the brown signs to the campground and you can’t miss it.

Pros:

• Road in is reasonably well maintained and accessible (we saw a mix of trucks, RVs and vans all making way easily, even a few passenger cars; go slow)
• Several dispersed sites also available near entrance to campground and down road passed campground
• Pit toilets were fine and seem to be maintained; trash bins also available
• Reasonably spaced sites with tables and fire pits (no water to my knowledge, so pack in)
• Beautiful views up the road on way to a fire tower and a zone that’s still pretty bare from previous fires
• Family of livestock roam the area which is entertaining (just watch out for the giant cow pies)

Cons:

• Might see some dirt bikes/UTV traffic, which can get noisy
• Can get really crowded during hunting seasons and likely near holidays, so be aware (talked to a local and got the scoop from their many times staying here)

Large, generally private spots with FHU for RVers. Some tent spots also. Interesting area. Clean bathrooms and showers. Interesting interpretative trail.

Night one was decent, but the rest of the nights I had to hold the side of my tent up to keep it from collapsing despite multiple points staked to the ground. I’m happy I had strong stakes or the tent would’ve been gone. The wind comes in waves like hurricane bands. In one week we had the crazy wind every night, hail, and saw a dust twister at the base of the mountain. Lots of flies as well. At one point we had the back circle all to ourselves, but Friday large groups came out and were very loud until 1am. During the week everyone was quiet. The site layout was nice, private despite being close to the next site over. It’s pretty hot during the day and dips to the 40s at night. We liked the sound of the clicker bugs, they were pretty cool even though we never actually saw one. The trails are nice, vault toilet area is clean. The front office was closed our whole visit. I’d say it’s a cool place for a trailer or RV although the road is difficult in rain. Tents are fine, but be ready to move to the car for the wind or hail.

This area is really beautiful and walking through the lava field was a really memorable experience. Easy, accessible, really nice central bathrooms. If you’re a tent camper, do yourself a favor and grab site #25, all the way at the end. It was the most secluded-feeling spot in the place and it has an awesome campfire cave/wind shelter

This campground has a very nice host that keeps the campground sparkling! There are sites with electric and water. And very nice primitive sites also. Great views of Valley from all sites. Showers were clean and free! Very clean dump station. Close proximity to many other areas of interest that made for great day trips. Lovely section for tent campers just past the RV camping. Quite a few big rigs.

They have redone the bathrooms and showers as of about 2023. They also have a very cool ADA compliant scenic trail into the lava flow field.

They have electric and water hookups at this recreation area. They also have about 5 tent spots at the very back. You can reserve online and they also have some that are first come first serve.

Hosts are usually nice. The bookstore isn't always open due to staff shortages.

Well off the beaten path, but worth a few nights of peace and solitude. Went in July and the weather was cool in the 80's most of the time, cooling to the upper 40's at night. Isolated at the end of a road in the edge of the Monzano Mountains, it is fully treed with great shade. Good place for an RV or tent. Nice hiking (easy) trails. Flush toilets but no showers. Dump station. Very nice facility.

This spot is hot! Literally. It is the perfect central point for exploring the state and is made up of lava rock. But even in the middle of a snowstorm, it is incredible!

There is minimal shade so ideally camping in an RV or in early spring or Fall would be best.

I was here when there was a freak blizzard and snowstorm that almost took my tent on a flying adventure so I was forced to sleep in my car.

The snow did make the igneous rock so beautiful though. There are lots of spots, for RV’s to pull through with power. There are also dumpsters, clean bathrooms, and a showerhouse.

This is a recreational area so I’m guessing that in the main season it is filled with off roaders and hikers.

There are also great trails that head out from the campground and with it being on the main road going across the state, it is a perfect spot to set up shop for exploring.

It is just a few hours from White Sands, Albuquerque, and Taos.

Valley of Fire CG, NM: The RV area sits on a ridge. Great views. Tenting area sits by itself. No views there, but looks nice. (Scale 1- bad, 5-Very good

(71 yr olds in 17’ trailer.)

Overall Rating: 5 for a campground offering space and extraordinary views. Price 2024: $ 35 w interagency pass Security: no Usage during visit: RV area was full every day. Site Privacy: no Site Spacing: nice Pad surface: blacktop Reservations: Some sites require reservations. Some sites are first come first serve. Campground Noise: Nice and quiet Outside Road Noise: light trafficed highway might create some noise for the first few sites.
Through Traffic in campground: Some day visitors. Electric Hookup: some sites Sewer Hookup: no Dump Station: yes Potable Water Available: at most sites Bathroom: one main bathroom. Also, two smaller bathrooms towards each end of the campground. Showers: yes. Clean. Push button timer type. Hot water Pull Throughs: yes Cell Service (AT&T): four bars Setting: on a ridge overlooking the black lava flow on one side and desert on the other Recent Weather: windy Solar: definitely Insects: none Host: yes Rig Size: large rigs, no problem Sites: 1-14: views both ways. Extraordinary sunset views. 15- 18: the views are nice, but one direction. away from the valley of fires view. 18 & 19 are more secluded.