City of Rocks State Park

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.

$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.

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.

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.

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.

Great stay, amazing campsites, clean restrooms, friendly camp hosts. Hiking trails. Great view of the stairs.

The park is far away from everywhere and offers a very quiet and peaceful experience. The rocks are spectacular as is the night sky. The visitor center appears to have limited hours so I had to go online to learn more. There are trails that take you up into the rocks and into the desert.

Wonder of the world. Beautiful rock maze in the middle of nowhere. Some water and electric spots but the best are dispersed. Water is available on site.

Woke up on Christmas Eve to the most beautiful sunrise. This place is amazing with first come first serve spots. I was fortunate to get a great spot and even got a hot shower at the main building.

$10 fee

Cool trails right off the camp sites into the rocks. The full hook up sites are off on a paved area but the dry camping sites are right in the middle of the rocks.

We are full-timers in a 36 ft Class A with a Cherokee Trailhawk tow. We were here for a few days in early April in site 14-Gemini(dry camping). The campground does get rather busy, but most of the sites are well spaced, so it doesn’t feel too crowded. Many of the sites were surprisingly level, although some present significant challenges to getting level. There are several trails in and around the park. Most are rather easy, but Table Mountain trail can be rather strenuous in a few places, but the view of the campground and surrounding are is awesome. Terri made friends with several of the resident Ravens while we were there. 

AT&T coverage was close to nonexistent, with only 1 Bar of LTE service and speeds of only 0.6 MB/s without a booster. We had an unobstructed view of the sky and so we were able to receive all 3 SW Dish satellites and Starlink had up to 19 MB/s. We didn’t try to load any OTA channels. 

There is a winery with tastings, La Esperanza, just 20 miles away, whose wines are really pretty good. There is also a private hot springs, Faywood, that is just a couple of miles away, on the way to the park from US 180.

Clean, well run park with many nice sites tucked in the rocks. Best for small rigs and tents, though there is an electric section also. Wander through the rocks or take a longer hike up a nearby butte.

The park is beautiful and the boondocking spots in the rocks are super unique. Just becareful if you have a bigger rig. We were suppose to fit in our spot per the length requirement, but wash out made it nearly impossible to fit and be level. It was fine we made due, but I can't imagine doing it with a larger travel trailer or motorhome. We have a 30 foot class A.

Sweet park for most all your outdoor needs. You can park and walk around the beautiful rock formations with good trails for walking. Plus there is an observatory that opens up there already great night start viewing.

General: This state park is aptly named; as you approach it, it looks like a pile of rocks was dumped in a field! There is a mix of electric and non-electric sites; however, the electric sites are lined up like a typical RV park with no privacy. The non-electric ones are the gems in this state park. 

Site Quality: Again, the non-electric sites are nestled among the rocks and spaced so far apart that for many of them, you don’t even see your neighbors. Each one is unique due to the rocks, and most are very generous in size. A fire ring, concrete benches, and a metal picnic table complete each of these sites. 

Bathhouse: Vault toilets are spread throughout the campground and are clean. There is a comfort station near the visitor center with flush toilets and showers. 

Activities: There are several short hiking trails throughout the park. We had enough cell (Verizon) to be able to see where they were. The visitor center is open 9-4 and unfortunately, we arrived at 4:30 pm and departed at 8 am the next morning. 

I love the uniqueness of this campground and the privacy between the non-electric sites.

The campsites within the rock formations are just spectacular. We enjoyed every minute of our stay. Great for biking and hiking.

Last week I visited Faywood, New Mexico which is located about halfway in between Silver City and Deming, and I came across a unique terrain with structures of Boulder rocks that are “formed of volcanic ash and sculpted by wind and water into rows of monolithic blocks”, according to stateparks.com; I had never seen anything like it.

This unique and tucked-away gem has all the perfect essentials for a State Park including a Visitor Center, hot showers and clean restrooms, dry camping, picnicking and a Botanical Garden .

I absolutely enjoy being in a place that is preserved in its authenticity and City of Rocks State Park is all of that and a bag of organic chips. It is not just another “area of attraction”, but it is a place for healing, stillness, discipline and community. The miles of hiking and biking trails through rolling grasslands gives you an opportunity to reconnect with yourself, walking into the fields to sit in stillness and listen to the migration of the numerous bird species disciplines your senses, and for those of you who enjoy making new connections you will quickly find yourself in conversations with humans alike or vastly different in ways that allow you see yourself, and others, in the form of how God sees us all — in love and in truth.

This was a FCFS stopover, but we enjoyed it. Interesting sites among the rocks. All dirt and some with a challenge to get level. Very quiet at night.

I hesitate to give even 4 stars but I will with being able to camp among giant boulders. Facilities were all closed.

Really cool, smaller state park. Very well kept and clean. Excellent sunset views and stargazing. Be sure to bring something to provide shade if you get a spot on the west side of the loop. The northern sites (15-19) seemed to be more private. Each site had a picnic table, fire pit with grill, and a trash can. The northern restrooms were clean and only about a 2 minute walk from our site (17). We had 2 bars of AT&T service pretty consistently.

 As with any park in the southwest, watch for snakes. We shared our site with a 4ft rattlesnake that came out at dusk and dawn. Its den seemed to be somewhere in the triangle between sites 16, 17, and 18. It left us alone because we left it alone. 

Very unique landscape, great campsites but wow the wind was too much. We had friends go in spring who said it was windy and we went in mid May and it was the same story. If you get lucky and it's not a wind tunnel this place would be amazing. Clean and well-spaced sites. Friendly park staff too.

This place is so unique. Many sites are tucked away in these massive boulders. Clean facilities and nice visitor center. You are the middle of the desert so be prepared!

So we actually did not camp here. We cancelled at the last minute and stayed in a hotel due to a sick child. But we visited the park just now for the last 2 hours! It is a giant playground if you love rocks! Our kids weaved in and out of the almost endless rock formations! As for the camping, there is a strip for campers and tents and some have electric hookups. They all have a covered picnic table and fire pit. There are also campsites within the rocks! Those all have a picnic table and fire pit, no electric. There are vault toilets around as well as a very nice visitor center with flushing toilets, showers, and accessible bathrooms/showers. The visitor center bathroom is extremely clean and has water and vending machines. The visitor center has toiletries for sale and we grabbed some t-shirts for the kids! We will be back.

Beautiful spot. Amazing rock formations. Probably one of the coolest campgrounds I have ever stayed at. Each site is named after a constellation you can see in the sky at night from the campground. And during the day you can see for miles and miles, it’s just so beautiful, call me, and serene! Definitely coming back.

We parked our cargo van in the tent camping spot since we dont need water or electric hookups. The tent sites are up in the rocks and they are very cool. The bath house is new (located at the visitors center) and has clean showers and toilets. We really enjoyed staying here for the night.

Little bit expected Fred and Barney to rumble up from around one of these massive natural stone megaliths at any moment! Hey this campground is nice, for being situated in the middle of nowhere desert land! Be aware: it’s hot, it’s cold, it’s sandy, it’s windy, you might not be able to stake your tent where you want (um rocks, big underground rocks). Each non-electric campsite is nestled between the huge rock formations! There’s a group campsite that’s also used to host star-viewing parties (June 21st if memory serves). There is also an RV area with hookups out in the suburbs. The visitor center has some history and information about the area as well as showers and (I assume) potable water!

Trail biking and bouldering enthusiasts will love this picturesque campsite!

If you need wifi, this is not the place to stay. However, be sure to visit for the day. It is so unusual. The camping spots are really cool! Pets allowed

Nearly prefect camping. At Citt of Rocks you wIll fInd a wonderful opportunity to view the native wildlife of NM. Noteworthy: the stars, the trails, and opportunity for climbing and jumping on rocks. This park is great for kids.

Things to be cautious about: We almost stepped on a camouflage rattlesnake, the bees take over the drinkimg water (if you turn it slowly, they don’t seem to be bothered), and the bathrooms weren’t as good as they could have been.

All and all, it was a great geological experience.

It is a fun campground to go rock climbing. Hot in the summer. We also went in March way cooler.

There are some sites with power but the sites surrounding the huge rocks are rustic, we love this area, so much to see