Best Cabin Camping near Vallecitos, NM

Stopped by this KOA to see what it offered for possible future stays. It's a compact campground that provides pull through sites as well as back-in and tent sites. They offer everything from 50 amp electric to cable TV. Sites are clean and neat. There's a dog park for your pets. Bathrooms are clean with hot showers. They have cabins available as well.

Great location for exploring Sandra Fe, Bandelier, and other national monuments.

We were very excited on our first night to settle into our campsite after a long day of adventuring. Just a short drive to the outskirts of Santa Fe in mountain country we found our campground, Rancheros de Santa Fe.

Upon entry the staff was very friendly and welcoming and we felt like this would be a great place to call home away from home.

The campsites were laid out well with room between campers and because it was the end of a weekend, they were not entirely at capacity which made for a pleasant sense of space in the great outdoors.

Our campsite was positioned in the "high road" tent site area which is a primitive campsite without additional amenities. Each campsite has a fire ring and also a picnic table for campers to utilize and a pad site for tents slightly raises from ground level.

It made for a beautiful night sleep under the chilly New Mexico skies.

By morning we ventured up to the public showers and restrooms which were clean and had amazon water pressure and hot water to set the morning in motion perfectly.

The facility also offers a pool and theater room during summer months so while we didn't get to take advantage we were excited to know upon return we would have these features available.

🐰🐰🐰🐰⚪️

Overall we give this campground a 4 of 5 Bunniea! The only things we noticed which kept it from a 5 were the lack of wifi reach in the back sections of the campground, wouldn't have been a big deal but cell service in the off grid location was also patchy so the wifi would have been handy. And the pad site was not designed for a tent quite our size. Our tent is a 12x8 and had a little side hang on on the 12 foot end.

Stayed for 3 nights. Awesome experience. Campground is rustic. Water and electric only. They do have a dump station but it is an extra cost. Sites were small and some hookups are in strange places. Our site #2 was shaded but hookups were at front of site and on wrong side so make sure you have enough power cord and hose. Campground does have a small bathroom and vintage rental trailers. You still have to pay for entry to springs but you get a discount for being in campground. The hot springs are amazing and you can leave and come back. Open till 10 pm which was great and we showered in the great locker rooms at the springs area before going back to camp. There is a great restaurant on site as well as beer and wine.

We stayed here two nights in July, 2020. We're from Albuquerque, so this was just a quick"local" getaway. This is a pretty sprawling campground, with all kinds of sites(tent only, large sites with only 30 amp service, some sites with full hook up, others with just water& electric and a few water only. Shop carefully! We got a full hook up 50amp site. There is a row of these in the southwest end of the park. These are VERY narrow sites. We snugged right up against the hookups, and still didn't have room on the other side to put out our rug. There are low bushes between the sites, so the awning worked, but very little room for chairs and such. Also, the water pressure was quite low. Weakest shower I've had in our rig. Not sure if this changes with the number of campers, though, since it is well water. Our area was VERY busy and full of some big rigs(most from Texas). Oh, and wifi is spotty. Our site literally had a repeater stuck in the ground right next to our rig, and we got a strong signal, but pretty weak internet. I had better luck just using my Verizon iphone's hot spot. But it was still nice. It's got a rustic feel, but didn't necessarily feel run down. BRIEF interactions with the staff were friendly enough.

We also enjoyed the on-site hiking trail. It is only.5 miles, but making the circle a couple of times was nice on our last morning. I can certainly see us staying here again. It IS pricey(our two nights, with Good Sam Discount plus tax, came to $102), but that's Santa Fe for you!

We have stayed on the Pedernal loop multiple times and it has always been great.   The sites are well laid out, with plenty of room between neighbors.  Access to the campground is restricted (closed 10pm-6am), so it is always quiet, with just those camping driving around.  Rangers and sheriff patrolled a few times.  Camp hosts were very friendly and helpful.   All the grounds are clean and well maintained, trash cans at every site.  The electrical pillar for our site was new and worked perfectly.  Water also worked with no issues.  Shower house is clean and well maintained.  Access to a few trails, but water access requires a bit of a drive.  Amazing views.

It's a lovely location, and the camp is hosted by the Army Corps. They do a good job, the facilities and grounds are very well maintained. Drinking and marijuana consumption is strictly prohibited, with the hosts making regular rounds. The sites are so close together it may as well be one big group camp; I could hear everything going on in the sites around me at all hours of the night. Even when folks were in their tents and campers. Forget trying to enjoy a quiet evening stargazing. Was surrounded by large family groups who were having a great time, which I'm glad about, but it is not my cup of tea for camping.

Great views of the lake in which you can swim (and boat). Not a lot of shade, unless you snuggle in with a Piñon tree, but we spend our days on the lake or hiking Ghost Ranch, which is a few minutes away.

This is one of the nicest Army Corp of Engineer campgrounds I’ve stayed in. Sites are spacious, all with a view, and with options from horse camping to full hook up. While it’s “lakefront” getting down to the water is a 20 minute hike.

Bonus Tip/ visit Ghost Ranch to learn about the vibrant history of the area.

Beautiful surroundings. Mornings chilly. Nice showers!

Great campground sitting up from the lake with awesome views. Free showers, several loops, tents separate from RVs- what more could you ask for! There is lake access nearby and some nice hiking trails, but to be honest, the main attraction is Abiqueu and Goergia O’Keefe country. Tons of great hiking to places she hiked to and painted. The campground is just a few miles from the town of Abiqueu, which was O’Keefe’s main home. Be sure to stop in and visit with the librarian, she’s a great resource for information about the area. And the gas station at the bottom of the hill has a pretty good restaurant! Sites don’t have any trees, but the sage provides a bit of protection from the winds. Be sure to stake your tent well as it gets very breezy in the daytime (winds die down with the sun set). One of the nicest amenities (besides the free showers) were the lantern hooks/posts. You just don’t see those very often. Camper beware, the tent only loop is next to the group campsites, so expect some noise.

Spot is well maintained. Usually lots of others around so not super “off grid” but it’s nice and you can view the lake! Beautiful to drive around too. Pueblo land, be respectful!

My wife and I spent 3 days here in late May.  Because we planned out trip a little late, we actually stayed the first night in Spot 16 (no hookups) and then the last 2 at Spot 14 (electric and water).  Spot 16 was in the "Chama Loop" and I have to say, this loop is really not for our rig (a 30' Class A).  We had a pull in spot, and fit okay, but the spots here are all on the smaller side and we mostly saw tents and some truck campers and a couple of Class Bs.  We could NOT get level on our site without some serious efforts and more blocks than I really like.  We never got level enough to feel comfortable putting out our slides.  When we moved the next day to Spot 14 (in the Pedernal Loop, where the only electric/water sites are), it was much better.  Leveling was easy as can be.  The hookups were very conveniently located and we had no complaints here.  Very spacious lot.  Picnic tables under cover, a grill and a fire pit.  

Spaces between spots are fairly generous.  Not huge, but far better than most commercial sites.  We felt very much "alone" here.

Some great things:  the camp hosts Al and Cindy were INCREDIBLY helpful and friendly.  Best hosts we've ever had!  The playground is excellent (we don't have little kids, but we actually enjoyed the swings and such ourselves one evening!).  The views of the lake are very good (you can't get down to the lake from here, but the extra height made for great views), and the walking trail from the visitor center to the boat launch goes right through the park, so you can join it easily if you wish.  Dump station has two dump spots, which was nice.  There are lots of picnic areas, and the tent sites looked very nice too.  

Not the greatest:  other than the aforementioned levelness issues, I was amused to see how steep the road down to the little "front gate" is.  Not ideal for RVs!  You come down off a Mesa to the much lower campground on a fairly steep grade, and 2/3 of the way down, you have to stop to check in.  Just seemed weird.  The dump station has NO hose hookup for the non-potable water (just a weird contraption that sprays water everywhere), so no easy way to flush the black tank, which I don't love.

Connectivity:  no wi-fi.  And the cell signal is spotty.  We were able to use my iphone to create a Verizon hot spot, and actually, after a struggle, could watch some Netflix.  But then surfing sometimes went from slow but okay to non-existent.  My one word review would be:  inconsistent.  And now, we don't spent our time surfing the internet, but for doing research, checking email, etc., it was not ideal.  Workable, but not the best.

We'd stay here again in a second.  We've already talked about what we'll do next time we stay here.

Our family stayed here for four days (late June 2021) at Sites 21 and 25.  The first thing you will notice hear is how friendly the camp hosts (Al & Cyndy) are.  By being so involved with everyone that stays here I think that most guests behave themselves.  We had one "problem neighbor" (blaring music, loud generator, barking dog) but this was addressed quickly by the camp hosts.  Area is beautiful - I mean really beautiful.  Campsites are well spaced out with lots of extra parking.  New playground was a huge hit for our grandkids.  Facilities were kept clean.  Lots of things to do in the surrounding area (Plaza Blanca hike, Echo Amphitheater, Ghost Ranch) and the store in the town Abiquiu (Bode's) is very well stocked.  With the lake level so low there weren't a lot of boats on the water.  The Swim Beach is not really a beach with the water so low but the area around the marina is nice enough for kids to play in and around the water.  All in all a great place to camp and recreate.  We will certainly come back again.

General: 54-site campground in four loops; the Pedernal Loop has water and electric hookups, the Chama and Puerco Loops do not and there is a walk-in tent site loop. There is also overflow camping. 

Site Quality: Sites appeared to be mostly level (at least in the Pedernal loop); most were paved but a few were gravel. Most were back in, but some were pull-through. There are two ADA-accessible sites in the Pedernal Loop. Many have reservoir views. Site 14 has a generous-sized paved driveway. Completing the site is a lantern hook, BBQ, and covered picnic table. Too bad it was so darn windy that we could not enjoy these amenities. There was also a garbage can at the end of each site but no recycling that I saw. If you do not need hookups, sites 34 and 39 (in the Puerco loop) provide excellent water views. 

Bath/Shower House: Basic with two shower stalls, two toilets, and one sink. Very clean. There are also very clean vault toilets located throughout the campground. Did not use the shower so cannot comment on how well it works. 

Activities: The Abiquiu Lake Vista Trail is a 4-mile hike and bike stacked-looped trail (so you can add or duplicate interconnected loops). Boating access is one mile away. Fishing is also popular. There is also a volleyball net and a very nice modern playground. We were there at the end of April, so it was very quiet (which is the way we like it). Shout out to great camp hosts – we were greeted upon arrival and they made sure we didn’t have any questions or concerns. For $16, this is affordable but with the senior pass, $8 is a bonafide bargain!

Really enjoyed camping here. Great sites for our 17' camp trailer. Awesome view of Abiquiu Lake with amazing sunsets nightly. Hot showers, clean pit toilets, BBQs, tent pads, picnic tables & friendly camp hosts. Senior Passes work here for half price discount. Quiet time from 10pm-6am is enforced & enjoyed. Occasional loud boats & partying on the lake below on weekend nights so be aware. Wind gusts are common so tie down the tumbleweeds or they'll escape!