Best Dog-Friendly Camping near Magdalena, NM

Dog-Friendly Camping Reviews near Magdalena, NM

102 Reviews of 21 Magdalena Campgrounds

• 

  Berton M.

  Legend

  Oct. 11, 2022

  Escondida Lake Park & Campground

  Simple Campground Next to Train Tracks

  This is a basic campground located about a mile from I-25. The campground has the basics but that's it. It's a good place to stop while traveling thru New Mexico. There's a baseball field and a small lake adjacent to the campground. The trains do blow their whistle in this area. 

  Cell Coverage: Good

• 

  Patrick B.

  Guide

  Oct. 16, 2022

  Water Canyon Campground

  Can't beat the price (for now)

  You don't often find free developed camping at the end of a paved road in New Mexico, but Water Canyon is one of those exceptions.  It seems to be one of those spots that people don't take the time to get off the highway to explore -- on a weekday in July there was only one other campsite occupied.

  There are about a dozen campsites, vault toilets, trash cans, a group campsite at the bottom of the hill and easy access to some great hiking trails, all about ten minutes outside of Socorro and an hour from Albuquerque.

  While the campground is free for now, I did see some notices posted about the Forest Service taking public comment on levying a $10 per night fee per site.

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• M

  Mark M.

  Legend

  Oct. 17, 2024

  Datil Well Recreation Area Campground

  Good trails straight outta campground

  Stayed 2 nights. No reservations, so had to take chances. Several spots open on a Friday. Most spots roomy and decent spacing. Clean toilets and water and only $5 per night; $2.50 with a Senior NPS Pass. 3 spots have electric hookups but all taken. Quiet (other than one morning before sunrise). There is a host site. PieTown down the road with excellent pies--If you go, eat at Pie-O-Neer (best option---great reviews and did not disappoint). Sign said they're open year round. Good proximity to VLA (Very Large Array).

  One very good ADA accessible site with concrete walk straight to bathroom from ADA site.

  Trailhead at one end of campground, with some good routes/options, Easy to moderate. We did pick ripe pinyon pine nuts that had fallen on ground (Oct. is pickin' season). They were very good eatin'.

  One camper started generator up well before sunrise…  :(

  ALSO: Shout out to New Mexico Volunteers for the Outdoors (NMVFO) who did trail maintenance there a while back (per sign near trail) :)  yay!

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• 

  Rio J.

  Traveler

  Feb. 9, 2021

  La Vista RV Park

  Beautiful and Affordable NM Stop

  We stayed at La Vista for one night on our way through New Mexico heading to Utah. The owners are extremely friendly and were very helpful. They are a couple who own the park independently and you can tell the long term renters are happy there.

  We woke up to a gorgeous view of the nearby scenery and were just a half mile from a Loves to gas up and head out for another day of driving.

• 

  Kathryn R.

  Scout

  Apr. 3, 2023

  San Antonio Riverine Park

  Overgrown and alot of dead tree branches

  I would not recommend anyone with an rv or travel trailer to use this site. I was hopeful from the one picture that there would be some nice green trees which is hard to find in New Mexico. I arrived there's a steep decline to go into the park. There are a few big pot holes to be weary of. Most of the area looks to be overgrown and most of the trees look dead. I didn't see any budding in early spring and no signs of greenery. It was also very difficult to turn around. I ended up with a few scratches on the travel trailer.

• D

  Daniel C.

  Guide

  Sep. 28, 2023

  Datil Well Recreation Area Campground

  Very Nice and Newly Renovated

  The sites were very nice and clean with some sites in the woods and others in the clearing. The sites in the clearing have concrete telescope pads. The pit toilets were like brand new with solar lighting. Big rigs would have trouble fitting into this campground.

  Datil, Mew Mexico is a few minutes away and has a combined gas station, restaurant, and grocery store for your needs.

  And, a few miles west on US 60 is Pie Town, New Mexico with two bakery's that sale fresh baked pies. But they sale out quickly.

• 

  Reuben

  Guide

  Nov. 3, 2020

  Kiva RV Park & Horse Motel

  Humble but still pretty nice

  We live in Albuquerque, but wanted to spend a day hiking the Sevilleta National Wildlife Refuge. Kiva RV Park is just a 5 minute drive from the NWR, so we stayed there on a Friday night, so we could get up bright and early for our hiking the next day.

  The folks running the place were very friendly. Led us to our spot and made sure everything was okay for us. It's a fairly humble place...gravel roads and parking spots. No concrete to be seen. Each slot has a fairly wide planted area, but this is not patches of green lawn. They have mature native trees and shrubs that are well maintained. Plenty of big cottonwood trees provided shade. The place is clearly run on a low budget, but is well maintained and there is pride in the work here. When we visited, it appeared to be nearly full, and it felt like perhaps 50/50 mix between long-term residents and overnight(or nearly overnight) visitors. There is a large corral area for horses. We walked over to it but there were no horses there. There's a little dog park, a bathhouse and laundry. We didn't use any of those amenities, so I can't comment. I believe the laundry is listed as free.(This is not the case with the wifi, which was complex and had a fee.) I just used my hotspot from my Verizon service and because we had 4 bars, that worked just fine for streaming some Netflix that night.

  We really like the place. Lots of neighbors, but everyone was very friendly, and no late partying. A few kids. But really, it was all very pastoral and nice. We'd stay here again. 

  Not all was perfect. Aside from the less-than-friendly wifi: 1) The sewer hookup is just an open pipe. No threads. A little stinky when you take the cover off.  2) It is almost literally right next to the interstate. There's no denying those traffic noise is real. We slept with no issues, but if traffic noise doesn't act like white noise for you...you might want to look somewhere else. We're lucky; but I know this is a deal-breaker for some.

  They do offer a Good Sam discount of 10%, so with tax, we paid $34. Well worth it. Very nice stay.

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• 

  Greg R.

  Guide

  Sep. 14, 2022

  Kiva RV Park & Horse Motel

  Hot weather, but great customer service.

  Nice area, clean, shade trees and the management works with you no matter what. Little noise from I25 but very pet friendly. Will be back.

• 

  Jorge G.

  Guide

  Nov. 27, 2023

  Datil Well Recreation Area Campground

  Well kept gem in the Western New Mexico highlands

  Well maintained little BLM campsite right on US-60. Remarkable night skies when clear. $5 a night gets you access to brand new, clean solar toilets, (they light up at night even with no power!) water during the warmer seasons (already off as of 11/25) and mostly decent phone signal if you care about that. 

  The Eagle Guest Ranch nearby has a gas sation, basic necessities, alcohol, and a cafe that serves all your standard diner fare. Beautifully polite people staffing the place. A highlight in the mostly barren stretch between Magdalena and Springerville. 

  The campground is attached to a fantastic 3.25 mile loop trail that takes you to three fantastic vistas and isn't hard at all. 

  Worth as a stop for a day, or a destination for a weekend trip. The Very Large Array is a stone's toss away; as well as further hiking opportunities in the Gila National Forest by way of NM-12, and the Cibola National Forest by way of the aforementioned US-60.

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