Best Dog-Friendly Camping near Jal, NM

I always stop here on my to North TX from Southern New Mexico. Gorgeous dunes and sunrises and sunsets from anywhere at this camp. The bathrooms are always super clean and there are even showers!

You can pay at the courthouse or just see the county commissioner who works at the maintenance shed at the park.

We were on our way across from Carlsbad Cavern to Texas. Saw the sign and a few RVs in the 'campground' and pulled in. There is a little lake, or maybe just the irrigation pond for the golf course... some picnic tables. Wasn't sure if we were supposed to pay? No signs about camping, but obvious RV hookups. We were just car camping. Pulled in to a spot, used the porta-potrys, crashed for the night and were on our way. Some people were fishing. We saw a nice sunset. Definitely not a destination, but fine for a free night on the way to somewhere else.

Great spot to overnight. Free electrical and water. Free dump station. Donations excepted. City park one block away. Restaurants within walking distance.

Stayed 3 nights for free. Donations accepted. 5 sites available on a first come, first serve basis. Used 30 amp and water hook ups. 50 amp also available. Trash and waste disposal on site too. City park a block away. Clean and safe. Chamber personnel are welcoming and kind.

Downtown Andrew's Texas for free. Can't beat it. Electric, water and dump up to 3 days.

Stayed 1 night on our way through. Went sledding down the sand dunes. All spots are blacktop. Park staff were very friendly at check in! Easy to make a reservation online.

Stayed here for just the night last night, and had a great experience! We drove in around 9:30 pm with no issues, took hot showers in the nice clean bathrooms, then camped in our tent, and woke up to a beautiful sunrise over the dunes. 5 stars!

Stayed one night at this campground located just off I20. In a nutshell, It is like camping at the beach without the ocean. Strong winds and sand dunes everywhere! Fun for kids to slide down the dunes. No shade. Was an interesting stopover.

Great spot in what seems to be an area without a lot of camping. Stayed one night passing through. A bit windy. Super close to interstate and train, but noise wasn't an issue. Super clean facilities. Gorgeous dunes. The sunrise and sunsets are special!

This park is very cool. It’s not as interesting as White Sands or Great Sand Dunes, but what it does have that those National Parks don’t is the ability to camp right on the dunes. Spectacular sunsets and night skies.

The air is so dry and it's so far from light pollution that the milky way reaches down and embraces you at night time. I have never seen the stars so bright, and so purple a swath of contrasting colors in the midnight sky.

This was a very spontaneous stop for us, but it was quite breathtaking! Very rare site to see this much sand in that area. Amazing for Kids, families and adults of all ages! Great for taking photos at sunset. Nice camp site. 5 stars!

Some of my best photos of our road trip happened here at this state park. But it was one of my least favorite places to camp. Just because of the sand. But that is what you get when you camp at a place called Sandhills.

The sites are pretty close together and there is nothing to break up the view between you and the other sites. Covered picnic tables but if it's windy, the sand is everywhere. Also when it's hot out the sand just adds to the temps.

Now on the plus side, the sunsets and sunrises are amazing. Because of the sand you get clear views of the horizon.

There was a lack of wildlife, matter of fact we saw zero critters.

Wild “little” sand dunes on what seems to be the side of the highway. Had a blast biking through and taking a toboggan down the dunes. Windy at times so be aware when eating outside or storing anything out there. Beautiful sunset and grills and shelter/picnic tables at the sites too.

The staff was extremely friendly and helpful. We played on the snd dunes all day and camped. The campsites were sand with a covered picnic table and grill. The picnic table was moved because storms were coming and we put tents under pavilion. It would have been perfect for stargazing if it had not been cloudy all night. Other campers were quiet and it was a very clean park with clean bath house. Be warned that this is oil country and the trains run constantly, day and night and they are a few miles away. Sand dunes are probably best enjoyed during cooler months and definitely best after rain! We picked the perfect time in April! Flowers blooming everywhere and new growth around walking trails. Dunes were a blast!

We camped one Friday night and were among only a handful of campers. The sites are small because of the sand and the paved driveways are starting to crumble. Many sites share a covered picnic table pad. The dunes are really beautiful at sunrise and sunset so it's definitely worth a short stay.

General: Small (25-site) campground in one loop. Temporary park headquarters as the huge visitor center at the entrance was under construction when we were there. 

Site Quality: Sites have paved driveways, covered picnic shelters, bbq, electric hookup, and water a spigot. Some sites are back-in and some pull-through. We watched some larger rigs try and fit into the back-in sites, which are smaller than the pull-throughs. Our site (25) seemed to have two picnic tables and two BBQs (there were some on the other side for the site next to us so not sure why there were two in our site unless two campers would come together?) 

Bathhouse: There is one all-in-one and one regular restroom with two additional showers (and a connecting door between them. Hot water and soap dispensers but no paper towels. The showers were incredible – hot water, great water pressure, and clean. One of the best campground showers I have ever had! 

Activities: Explore the dunes! There are no designated paths; you are free to climb the dunes and explore. Saucers are available to rent for $6 and wax for $1. The sunsets are beautiful. The constantly shifting sand makes beautiful patterns and great photographs. If the moon is not full, night sky photography. 

We thoroughly enjoyed our stay here exploring the dunes (and the incredible shower!).

Reserved at spot at Monahan's Sandhills just because it was a good stopping place on our way from Dallas to Big Bend. I didn't do much research and didn't know what to expect (honestly, my expectations were low, with all of the drilling activity going on in the Permian Basin). When we pulled in to the campground from I-20 I was shocked by the beauty of it. 

In October 2022, the visitor center was closed for renovations but I think it will be really nice once it's finished. The campsites were pretty well spread out and the facilities were good. But I couldn't get over how unique the landscape was. Definitely a hidden gem. Perfect pit-stop on the way to Big Bend but would also be a great place to stay for a few days.

Great place. It is a small campground but all the pads are level. Bathrooms are clean. It’s quite, sand dunes and sky are a sight to see. We enjoyed our two day stay.

Nice and quite campground. Sand dunes are cool and o see but hard to walk in with the sand so soft. Sites are spacious and have a picnic table. Good for a day or 2 stay. Only downside is no sewer hookup at site but does have a dump station close by.

Very convenient state park. Very clean and well kept. Sound seems to carry so you can hear all the conversations in the campground.

Stopped in for a night. Pretty dunes but not my cup of tea but I can appreciate it.