Best Tent Camping near Santa Clara, NM

Recent Tent Reviews in Santa Clara

236 Reviews of 17 Santa Clara Campgrounds

• 

  Teresa T.

  Legend

  

  Dec. 2, 2024

  Stallion Campground — Caballo Lake State Park

  These spots are great

  If it were to stay here again, I'd stay in this campground as the layout is a lot nicer and more private. This campground is full and none of the others are right now. Nice walking trails and spots with some privacy and full hook ups.

• 

  Teresa T.

  Legend

  

  Nov. 30, 2024

  Percha Dam State Park Campground

  Not as nice as in the past.

  I stayed here in 2018 and the trees didn't look very good. They must have had to remove a lot of them and the spots are now in the sun. Very hot and dry most of the year and the river doesn't run most of the year either. Stickers everywhere and the trails are not well maintained.

• 

  Teresa T.

  Legend

  

  Nov. 29, 2024

  Manzanos RV Park

  Next time I'm in the area, I'm staying here

  I chose to stay in town this visit but these spots are much nicer and there are trails and things to see very close.

• 

  Teresa T.

  Legend

  

  Nov. 29, 2024

  Silver City RV Park

  Well maintained town park

  I think the campground is very nice and convenient to downtown. Full hookups, clean bathrooms and for the summer, nice shade. A lot of local tenants but it was quiet and well cared for with just a few spots coming and foing.

• 

  Teresa T.

  Legend

  

  Nov. 29, 2024

  Lower Gallinas Campground

  If it were open, would be great

  As the photos show, I'm not sure this is open. Nice long and private spots if it were open.

• 

  Teresa T.

  Legend

  

  Nov. 29, 2024

  Upper Gallinas Campground

  Strip along the road

  This is the most exposed of the campgrounds to the road. Nice and close to get to a picnic table but I'd stay at one of the others before staying here.

• 

  Teresa T.

  Legend

  

  Nov. 29, 2024

  Railroad Canyon Campground

  Nice campground

  Of the handful of formal places to camp, this is very small but very nice. Trees, a decent hike on a maintained trail. Only a few spots to take but cute if you get one.

• 

  Teresa T.

  Legend

  

  Nov. 29, 2024

  Wrights Cabin

  Not maintained

  This is a picnic ground and you park on the road and walk up to. It is not maintained and I don't think the pit toilet is open

• 

  Teresa T.

  Legend

  

  Nov. 29, 2024

  Kingston Campground

  Free place in a cute town

  I walked through Kingstown and which is a friendly, adorable town. It is just up the road from their provided campground.

  The campground is really just a couple of spots with a picnic table and not a destination but worthy of stopping if the mountains are cold.

• K

  Kim G.

  Ranger

  

  Nov. 14, 2024

  Little Vineyard RV Park

  Some amenities but dated

  We stopped here for an unplanned overnight. It is ok. Friendly staff. Clean but dated bathrooms. Took 5 minutes to get hot water in the women’s shower and the water stream was very small. No space between rigs. Lots of people driving out late and early. Think some folks must live here and be heading off to work. Big clubhouse area with a library. Also indoor pool. Didn’t use these facilities. There is a laundry but we did not check it out. Reasonable price but we wouldn’t choose to stay here again.

• U

  UT801

  Ranger

  

  Oct. 17, 2024

  Manzanos RV Park

  Great option in Silver City

  Man, free pulled pork BBQ every Sat. evening garnered this place the 5th star!  :) 

  Stayed 4/23- 4/30. Nice RV park just outside of Silver City with large spaces and junipers between the spaces. We were in #16 which was huge. Full hookups, laundry. Only one bath with a shower. Naturalized pet relief area with some desert vegetation. Dirt road to the place from Kirkland. No playground so saw no kids staying there. Seemed like mature, respectful RVers. Some folks were extended stay, seemed like any long term residents were in a different area; overall nice, neat, quiet, and tidy. John keeps things in good order.

  BTW, in Silver City for Tour of the Gila, cool to see the stage races.

  Food aside: Heated up some frozen Bertolli pasta dinner and then: nothing on Sat. night because, free BBQ!!  Donations appreciated.

• 

  Patricia N.

  Ranger

  

  Sep. 23, 2024

  City of Rocks State Park Campground

  Fun place especially for kids

  Our grandsons loved this place. We went without reservations so there was no open place but they allow the overflow to camp in the group sites if they are empty.

  You can spend hours exploring all the rocks. 

  With reservations you can get a spot with power but they are closer together. We were very happy with the great place we had. Would love to go again.

• T

  Todd S.

  Scout

  

  Aug. 13, 2024

  Meadow Creek Dispersed Camping

  Meadow Creek,NM

  Road is a little rough but well worth it. No one camped near us. Was able to let the dogs roam without fear. Lots of wood in the area. A small creek along the road. Good hiking area. Will definitely go back.

• 

  Mike H.

  Scout

  

  Jul. 24, 2024

  Hillsboro RV Park

  a gem

  great rural campground. lake valley ghost town is worth the ride

• A

  Andy W.

  Scout

  

  Jun. 2, 2024

  Dream Catcher RV Park

  Escapee Park

  Nice level spot, but winds must blow year round in one direction, the trees are actually leaning. Nice check in clerk, but never provided a code to Showers. Locked by the time we tried the doors. Sitting outside at night the winds blew a constant Gasoline Vapor, even filled the RV. Great place for a one night stop, make sure you get the Shower Code!

• L

  Luis R.

  Scout

  

  May. 31, 2024

  Percha Dam State Park Campground

  Great area with shaded areas

  Stayed in the open area not at a site . Area I parked had a big area with shaded trees, very quite at night and had no issues with neighbors

• 

  Brian and Janet S.

  Guide

  

  May. 29, 2024

  City of Rocks State Park Campground

  Unique and affordable

  $14 for an RV site with electric and water. Good TMobile service.

  They have reservation as well as first come first serve sites.

  Amazing volunteers, so knowledgeable and fun to talk to. You could just walk around the rocks and campground or take one of the trails out into the desert landscape. We had our bikes and were not disappointed!

  Would absolutely come back.

• 

  Brian and Janet S.

  Guide

  

  May. 26, 2024

  Caballo Lake State Park Campground

  Beautiful place

  When I called about availability we were told there were a lot of dry spots available. Works for us! When we got there the person at gate had no idea where the campgrounds were and would not let us check out sites without paying for day use. The campground had water shutoff on Memorial Day weekend. No bathrooms or showers.

  Management aside, this place is gorgeous. We dry camped by lake right under mountains. Would not pay for campground with no water but for $10 to dry camp by the water, love it.

  Great T-Mobile service. Easy to access.

• 

  Cari E.

  Guide

  

  May. 20, 2024

  City of Rocks State Park Campground

  Quiet & Unique

  I spent two weeks here at three different sites, and while I was ready to get back to civilization (the park is fairly remote), I genuinely had a relaxing time.

  The bathrooms/comfort station are clean and fairly new—the only downsides are they’re only open from 7am-5pm to conserve water and it’s a bit of a trek by foot if you’re at one of the far campsites. I also had strong enough reception with T-Mobile to work remotely, and good service through Verizon as well.

  Site 25 (Crab): a truly iconic site within a park where nearly every site is a gem. Downside: very little privacy and no shade from the afternoon sun. Upside: Site is level, great sunset views and a quick walk to the pit toilets.

  Site 24 (Hercules): Connects to site 25 via a the rock formations, but more private as it’s not directly on the main loop. Again, close to the pit bathroom. There’s a fun and semi private climb up into the rocks to the left of the picnic table that will give you a stellar sunset view. Site is level and protected from the worst of the south/SW winds. I also saw the most wildlife from this site (marmot, roadrunner, jack rabbit, and more). Downside: the site curves rather drastically and is best suited for vans, tent camping, or very small RVs; little shade as the tree that used to offer shade was removed.

  Site 30 (Triangulum): hands down, the best site in the park IMO. Lots of shade and privacy as it’s set far back from the main road; it almost feels like you have the park to yourself. Pit toilets are conveniently at the end of the drive. Downside: people climbing through the rocks occasionally end up near your site, but no one ever wandered too far; the windmill does makes some noise but it’s really not too bad; this site has FULL shade, which is ideal unless you run on solar panels. For a few hours a day I had to back my van into the sun, which put it at a fairly severe angle as the drive slopes once you back out of the sweet spot by the picnic table; very little protection from the wind, but there is some.

• 

  Roger W.

  Legend

  

  May. 4, 2024

  City of Rocks State Park Campground

  Non Electric - Each Site Unique

  City of Rocks, NMSP: NON- ELECTRIC Sites: Sites Nestled into Uniqueness. One of the best campgrounds , in regards to campsite layout, we have stayed in during 4 1/2 years of full timing - (Electric sites are not so. They do have views, but are crowded together.) (Scale 1- bad, 5-Very good

  (71 yr olds in 17’ trailer.)

  Overall Rating: 5 for the non-electric sites. The are nestled into semi private/private locations. I did not see a non-electric site that I would not enjoy. Even the worst of these sites would be among the best at many campgrounds. Sites in the back loop where we stayed were among the best. Price 2024 : $10 for non-electric sites Security: I think the gates are locked at night. Not sure.
  Usage during visit: Electric sites were full . Primitive sites had some availability. Site Privacy: Good to great Site Spacing: Many sites are very well spaced.
  Site surface: Gravel Reservations: Yes Campground Noise: Quiet Outside Road Noise: Too isolated for this to be an issue.
  Through Traffic in campground: None Electric Hookup: Availability Sewer Hookup: No Dump Station: No Potable Water Available: Yes Generators: Allowed Bathroom: Pit toilets are throughout the campground. Showers: No Pull Throughs: Yes, there are some.
  Cell Service (AT&T): 0 - 2 bars depending on location Setting: Primitive sites are set among the rocks. Electric hook up sites are close together, but have a view of the rocks and desert. They are not as nicely laid out.

• E

  Eric B.

  Scout

  

  Apr. 26, 2024

  City of Rocks State Park Campground

  DON'T camp at site 28; park management is terrible

  This is an amazing place with beautiful rock formations that you can spend hours exploring. Overall I really enjoyed staying here and seeing the sights. However, I ran into two issues (one major) while camping at site #28:

  1. There is a large wasp nest in the base of the tree at this site. Depending on the time of day, there can be a LOT of wasps flying around throughout the entire area of site#28, making the entire site unusable. Notably, this nest is in the only shaded area of the site, so you have no usable shade. Once you bring food outside, even more come out and they get aggressive. I got stung twice while trying to eat outside. I contacted the park about this by e-mailing the park manager (Gabriel Medrano) twice. He never responded to the e-mails. I also called the park office during business hours, but they did not answer. I left a voicemail, but they never called back. Clearly this park's management does not care about its guests. I later talked to one of the rangers. They said they are not allowed to disturb the wasp nest by spraying it or doing anything else due to directives from management. In other words, the park manager would rather preserve a dangerous pest instead of ensuring visitor safety and park usability.

  2. There is a windmill near site #28 that makes a very loud and annoying metal grinding noise when it turns slowly. It is shockingly loud and at first I thought that there was some sort of metal fabrication factory or construction site nearby. This happens any time of day or night, depending on the wind, and can be clearly heard from most sites on the west side of the campground. It would be loud enough to wake someone in a tent, but probably not an RV. Again, I e-mailed the park manager (Gabriel Medrano) about this, and didn't even get the courtesy of a reply.

• 

  Crista G.

  Traveler

  

  Apr. 21, 2024

  Iron Creek Campground

  Lovely quiet free spot

  Clean, quiet campground not far from Emory pass. Pit toilets, fire rings, and picnic tables. Only a handful of people there on Friday night

• 

  Heather K.

  Ranger

  

  Apr. 20, 2024

  Silver City RV Park

  Great spot for a night or two

  I stayed here for CDT Days. Great location walking distance to everything. There’s a grocery store around the corner. Super quiet. Woke up to the birds chirping away. Priced fairly and would stay here again.

• D

  Denise G.

  Traveler

  

  Apr. 14, 2024

  Manzanos RV Park

  Clean, secluded, serene

  Great place and close to sights, yet nestled in a lovely spot.

• 

  Melissa S.

  Guide

  

  Mar. 30, 2024

  Gold Gulch Road

  Nice place to pull over for the night

  We came in after dark, but the roads were clear and it was easy to set up. Quiet.

• j

  john

  Traveler

  

  Mar. 27, 2024

  Hidden Valley Ranch RV Resort

  Very nice and not expensive, no tent sites

  2-night minimum, at the end of a maintained gravel road. I have a camper van, no hookups, and paid $48 for two nights. Large rec room with full kitchen, satellite tv, pool table, and pop/candy/ice cream for sale. Laundry and hot showers. Very friendly and a majority of sites are long time full timers. Cash or check only, no credit cards. Good wi-fi. Propane available. About 10 miles to town and 30 miles to City of Rocks state park.

• K

  Korey Y.

  Guide

  

  Mar. 20, 2024

  Dream Catcher RV Park

  Nicely kept

  Nothing extravagant extra clean. Well taken of. Nicely helpful heated shower rooms. I looked at it Lots of restaurants nearby. There was lots of availability staff very nice