Valley Of Fires Recreation Area

Valley of Fire CG, NM: The RV area sits on a ridge. Great views. Tenting area sits by itself. No views there, but looks nice. (Scale 1- bad, 5-Very good

(71 yr olds in 17’ trailer.)

Overall Rating: 5 for a campground offering space and extraordinary views. Price 2024: $ 35 w interagency pass Security: no Usage during visit: RV area was full every day. Site Privacy: no Site Spacing: nice Pad surface: blacktop Reservations: Some sites require reservations. Some sites are first come first serve. Campground Noise: Nice and quiet Outside Road Noise: light trafficed highway might create some noise for the first few sites.
Through Traffic in campground: Some day visitors. Electric Hookup: some sites Sewer Hookup: no Dump Station: yes Potable Water Available: at most sites Bathroom: one main bathroom. Also, two smaller bathrooms towards each end of the campground. Showers: yes. Clean. Push button timer type. Hot water Pull Throughs: yes Cell Service (AT&T): four bars Setting: on a ridge overlooking the black lava flow on one side and desert on the other Recent Weather: windy Solar: definitely Insects: none Host: yes Rig Size: large rigs, no problem Sites: 1-14: views both ways. Extraordinary sunset views. 15- 18: the views are nice, but one direction. away from the valley of fires view. 18 & 19 are more secluded.

We were able to catch a first come first serve site. It had awesome views of the mountains and a nice shade shelter. The pit toilets were clean and showers are always a plus. The hike through the lava rocks was informative and easy. Love this place!

This is a great campground for a quick overnight trip or a longer stay as homebase while exploring the area. Nice easy access pull thru sites with amazing views of the sunrise and sunset. Nice short paved nature trail through the lava beds. Park and bathrooms are very clean. Camp host is friendly and helpful.

Large, generally private spots with FHU for RVers. Some tent spots also. Interesting area. Clean bathrooms and showers. Interesting interpretative trail.

Our beagle is a 11 in April and wife and I are seniors and we walked the nature trails walked 3.5 miles. First walk this year. The lava flows were great to see up close! Camp ground is well kept and facility’s are great. Oh by the way dog got a drink and crashed on the couch when we got back to motor home. Stayed in site 10 right next to the showers and bathrooms suppose to have high winds Sunday. Might spend a day or two omore than planned.

Great campground with interesting features, most sites have a water spigot, tent sites toward the back were very private with lava walls between sites. Vault toilets near rear sites, flush toilets and good hot showers near entrance, nice little camp store, great camp host who kept the place nice, a steal at only $7 with water and showers!

This was a great campground. Friendly host, paved roads and good accessibility. Hot free showers, water onsite. Tent camping was cheaper only $7 but felt too remote at far end of campground for me traveling solo with my dog so I stayed in a site with electric near bathrooms and camp host. Paved walking trail and informative posts through the amazing lava flow bed. Sites have shelters and fire rings but are exposed and it was VERY windy while we were there. Prickers if you venture even a few inches off paved roads - my dogs pads got cut and took a few days to heal. Hot showers were amazing and bathrooms clean. $18 for sites w water and electric. Some sites online reservation, some first come.

This is a wonderful campground with amazing views. Each campsite has a great view of the surrounding area. There is a small hiking trail that explores the lava flow. 

The campground has water, electricity, and showers. There are also reservable and first come first serve sites. 

Cell Coverage: Good

Great sites looking out over lava field. Close to Ruidoso NM, three rivers petroglyphs. Not too far from white sands. There are great campsites and some great tent sites.

This was a great gem overlooking the lava rocks. They were very friendly and had accessibility.

Great Host. Good showers. Some reserved and some FCFS. Close to food and gas. Millions of gnats. If tent camping or need to be outside to cook, etc beware!

Scenic in every direction, facilities were well maintained and spacious, camp host was as good as they get. Sites are separated and large. Stayed an extra day just to enjoy the park.

This area is really beautiful and walking through the lava field was a really memorable experience. Easy, accessible, really nice central bathrooms. If you’re a tent camper, do yourself a favor and grab site #25, all the way at the end. It was the most secluded-feeling spot in the place and it has an awesome campfire cave/wind shelter

We were able to get the last spot, when we pulled in around 4 pm. It fills up fast.. Cool trail through the lava flow. Great views of sunrise and sunset.

Nice place. Spot # 1 has no electricity or water. Last spot available even in march just after a snow. Not much in town. Could not find a propane fill station but two stores have exchange bottles.

We opted to stay in site 19 that was very level and had a 270 degree view. Moon rise, sunsets, sunrise, beautiful. The comfort station was super clean and warm. The privies were interspersed throughout camp so you could find one when needed. My husband and I enjoyed the paved hike through the Lava fields. One dis advantage for such a wonderful view, very windy.

Windy but the lava flow was worth it. Small pull- off campsites with water and power. Very interesting geology lesson.

Located on BLM land, Valley of Fire Rec Area is a great spot for one night or fourteen night stay! Located just off US Rt 380 west of Carrizozo, NM, Valley of Fires has clean bathrooms and showers, as well as clean sites.  Each site has a trash can, fire pit, shelter, and picnic table. There are handicap sites as well. Some sites are level, some not so level.  Large rv's can easily be accommodated in most sites.  Verizon cell signal was excellent.  One word of caution, it can get very windy at times!  Spectacular sunrises and sunsets!!

This spot is hot! Literally. It is the perfect central point for exploring the state and is made up of lava rock. But even in the middle of a snowstorm, it is incredible!

There is minimal shade so ideally camping in an RV or in early spring or Fall would be best.

I was here when there was a freak blizzard and snowstorm that almost took my tent on a flying adventure so I was forced to sleep in my car.

The snow did make the igneous rock so beautiful though. There are lots of spots, for RV’s to pull through with power. There are also dumpsters, clean bathrooms, and a showerhouse.

This is a recreational area so I’m guessing that in the main season it is filled with off roaders and hikers.

There are also great trails that head out from the campground and with it being on the main road going across the state, it is a perfect spot to set up shop for exploring.

It is just a few hours from White Sands, Albuquerque, and Taos.

We got to the Valley of Fire State Park on a Wednesday at 1 p.m., knowing that it was a first come/first serve. We stopped first at the Visitor Center & the Ranger told us we should still be able to find a spot since it was mid-week. We got the LAST spot with electrical hookups, which we needed because highs were 89. I suggest getting there much earlier in the day, because there were many circling around looking for a spot. Very nice covered picnic tables with grill & fire pit, but these could not be used because of drought. We saw several big horn sheep in camp, where they came up to drink from a bowl at another campsite. BEAUTIFUL state park!!

This BML maintained campground is like new! There are no reservations, so it’s first come. An iron ranger for payment is at the entrance, but there is also a nice ranger on site who drives around the campground in a ute. I camped in a pull through site a few up from the entrance, but there was very little road noise from Highway 380, which is a beautiful drive. Most camp sites have electric, paved pads, covered picnic tables and fire rings. RV dump is also on site. Camping with electric is $18 and Dump station costs $15. It also costs $6 to take a shower. I didn’t visit the bath house, but like everything at this campground it looked maintained.

The highlight for me was the location, the experience of camping next to this extraordinary geologic site, and the 3/4 mile Malpais Nature Trail that offers a boardwalk style hike through the lava flow. 

Quiet camping with distant views of White Sands Missile testing area, Little Black Peak and amazing stars!

We just spent two nights here(in early May, 2021) and there are many great things, but we also had two big problems.

Problem one (probably only an issue in 2021). The sites, and in fact most the campground, have been re-blacktopped. It LOOKS great. So shiny and new. But the stuff is still quite tacky, and we ended up tracking tar into our RV and getting it everywhere. I accidentally knelt on the ground to look at something under my rig, and now I have a ruined pair of pants. When we put our leveling blocks down and leveled our rig, when we left, we found we had left giant lego-shaped impressions in the tar. And when it gets even hotter there in June/July...yikes, it's going to be a problem. Hopefully by next year, it will be better. But this is really something to watch for.

Problem 2: They did a great job re-surfacing everything(see above) but most of the sites, despite looking lovely, are very un-level. We had one heck of a time levelling our 30 ft class A. The sites slope front to back AND to the side. A recipe for a real leveling challenge. We walked around the campground and saw lots of very precariously propped-up rigs(our own included). It's a shame they didn't fix some of this before they resurfaced everything.

The campground, otherwise, is great. The spots are generously sized and spread pretty far apart. Each site has water, a metal picnic table with a substantial shade covering, a fire pit and a grill. Most have 50 amp electric, which worked very cleanly. Water pressure was acceptable.

Most of the sites also have great views of the lava field. The field itself has a 2/3rd mile loop trail with lots of interesting information. We actually walked it 3 different times, first in the evening(and we really enjoyed when the bats came shortly before sunset) and discovered new things each time. There are other, longer trails around, but when we were there the visitor center/gift shop were still closed for COVID and we had no one we could get good information from. We stumbled across a couple of trailheads, but were reluctant to go too far, not knowing what we were in for. The grounds also include some outstanding tent camping sites, if that's of interest. The dump station is easy to get to. There are also several new looking restrooms, but when we were there, all were closed(again, due to COVID). That was fine with us, but if you're needing restroom facilities available, maybe call ahead.

It's a lovely place and we look forward to returning.

Nice clean restrooms full amenities electric, water, tank dump, this area has a lot of history. The lava tubes, the town of Carrizozo White Oak and Capitan. These are all towns that Billy the kid frequented back in the day also the ghost town of White oak was the largest gold mining town in New Mexico.

Due to New Mexico Governor’s decision to close state owned campgrounds, we scrambled to find a place to stay prior to visiting White Sands...thank you BLM!!

This area provided a peacefully quiet landscape with expansive views of the lava valley and a memorable sunset. The area was well maintained and offered a 1-mile informational loop hike through the lava field. First Come, First Serve with pay at entrance envelopes.

Flush toilets and showers were unfortunately locked due to the state’s covid ordinance and there was no management on site, but there were multiple potable water pumps and pit toilets available.

Terrific waypoint between Carlsbad Cavern and White Sands.

This campground has a very nice host that keeps the campground sparkling! There are sites with electric and water. And very nice primitive sites also. Great views of Valley from all sites. Showers were clean and free! Very clean dump station. Close proximity to many other areas of interest that made for great day trips. Lovely section for tent campers just past the RV camping. Quite a few big rigs.

We love BLM campgrounds and this one is no exception!

We needed a place to pull over and eat our sandwiches. We were surprised that it was a full campground, bathrooms, showers, a book shop, fire rings, tables, spigots and in some spots, I suspect electric hook ups. There is a cash box by the entrance, so bring small bills. You can also pay at the book shop, but it was closed, as were the bathrooms. It may have been for COVID, so don’t rely on the bathroom there. We also noticed a very well maintained walking trail. This would be a great over night site or a place to stretch your legs on a long trip.

This was my introduction to a BLM campground and what a great introduction. Situated on an old lava flow, Valley of Fires campsites offer an introduction to a desert landscape. There's a small nature hike and a slight rise in the middle of the campground that offers a nice view.

Site have a grill, trash, water, and a shelter; with no natural shade, you'll appreciate the sun shelter in the heat! There are vault toilets throughout the campground, but there is a central bathroom that offers flush toilets and showers. A couple of the sites are accessible with a concrete pad extending from the parking area to the shelter/picnic table/grill. The tent sites have a raised gravel pad.

If I were choosing a campsite, I'd see if the RV site on the back side of the hill is available. It is separate and therefore quieter than the others and offers a broad view of the monument and the tent loop below.

If you're here in the winter, I'd recommend a trip to the Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge (1hr away) to see the sandhill cranes. 90 minutes south you'll reach White Sands National Park. Both are worth your time, though for White Sands, check before you go; it is sometimes closed in the morning for missile testing.

Awesome little campground in the high desert just west of Carrizozo. I arrived around 830 pm on a Saturday night in the middle of August and had my pick of spots. Fellow campers were quiet. RV hook ups available and showers/toilets available for both RV and tent campers. You can hear infrequent cars on the nearby highway (US 380) but it didn’t bother me. There are little grill tops near picnic tables, but the wind kept me from getting a good fire started. There is a roof shelter over the picnic table as well. Amazing sunset and sunrise and incredible stargazing. Only complaint is the bugs. SO MANY BUGS. No mosquitos that I noticed but plenty of annoying lava gnats and bigger things. Bring your bug spray. $7 for tent sites, $18 for RVs. Lava field has some paved trails through it, but it would get awfully hot during the day with the black rock. Might not be great for kids. Cacti with big ole thorns and the campground bordering the lava field have a bit of drop off. This campground holds a place in my heart, I’ll be back again.

This campground is run by the BLM and honors Senior Passes for National Parks. The campsites are well spaced and some back right up against the lava fields in Valley of Fires. There is water available and vault toilets. The sites have tables with a shelter, fire rings, grills, lots of space. There is electricity and showers in the RV sites.