Best Tent Camping near Seneca, OR

This really is an RV spot. Yes, you can tent camp here but it's expensive ($24 for Oregon residents, $34 for out of staters) and it's right next to the road. It's loud. Really loud. Wake you up when you're sleeping loud.

That said, it does have all amenities: good Verizon service, firewood for sale, hot showers, tables, fire pits with grills, etc. And it's close to town. So for that it could be the right fit for people needing all that.

For me, I'd skip it, especially if you're in a tent.

We were surprised how quiet this state park was during our visit. Very clean and beautiful green grass through campground. Enjoyed the river trail along the John Day river. Perfect to cool off in during the hot summer months. Mosquitoes definitely come out at night and we were tent camping. A little highway noise at night but not bad.

Between the John Day River and the highway outside of John Day, this campground is beautifully maintained. The lawns are green, the bathrooms spotless. There are full hookup rv/trailer sites, tent sites, and hiker/biker sites. The restrooms include free individual shower rooms. There is some traffic noise but it isn't too bad. This is a first-come campground so no reservations are available. Get there early during the summer months.

In general, Oregon State Parks are great. This is another nice one with plenty of tent and RV sites available. Bathrooms and showers on-site. The park sits nestled in a picturesque treed area, near the Painted Hills. Great location if you are wanting to get to the Painted Hills area of central Oregon.

Touring through Oregon with my buddy on motorcycles, we had finished a great day of riding. Wanting to use his Oregon State Park benefits, we pulled into this spot. Although rather full, we found a great spot at the end of the ‘second loop’. Flat grass & plenty of room to pitch our tents far apart (he snores), gave me a great night’s sleep. Stunning sunset & lake views were gorgeous. Restroom & showers were clean!!

We hadn’t planned to stop here but with the day quickly disappearing on us we pulled in to the Clyde Holliday SP campground and had a very good night. Beautifully maintained grounds with nicely spaced sites. Easy to pull in and set up the tent. Mostly RVs but a handful on tent campers too. Clean, and free, showers which we really needed. It is right on Hwy 26 so the traffic noise is an issue, but otherwise a quality spot.

this is probably the nicest state park that we have ever camped in. we will definitely be coming back. it has large rv/tent spaces with grass and trees everywhere. next to a small stream with biking and nature hiking all around. the showers are huge, everything is clean and tidy and the hosts were very friendly

be aware that this park is first come, first served. we were in september but i would expect that it fills up early in the summer.

Beautiful and peaceful stay. We were able to snag a first come first serve campsite just before the 4th. Cons: Most sites are simple turnouts, more suitable for tents. No ATV use so our mobility was limited. There are a few sites to back a camper off the road. Pro: nice boat dock and access for swimming.

We ran across this nice little campground (CG) looking for a place to walk our pups.  Idlewild is located an easy 30 minute drive north of Burns, OR.  Traveling north, the original entrance is now closed but signage takes you to the new entrance about 1/4 mile up the road.  Down by the original entrance is pull through site 1, which is the only paved site in the CG.  Most of the sites are more suited for tents but there are sites that will handle small RVs.  There is a nice trail system that runs out the back of the CG near site 1.  If you want to get away from it all, this is a great CG.

I drove in mid-afternoon and was able to find a spot so easy.  the place was mostly filled by retired folks with their RV and generators going.  really it was only one that was a loud Generator... and not too close to me. it had a nice walking path next to a creek that some children were playing in. this is a very well maintained site in terms of the landscaping and the  bathrooms and showers. nice that the showers were not in the same room as the bathroom- which is more appealing that way instead of hearing people use the bathroom while getting clean. plus since it was a single room for the shower and could lock it was no worries of who would walk in- good feature for a family or couple.

The staff were very friendly as well.

I felt comfortable with leaving my tent set up and some basic  items there when I went for dinner

This is a basic USFS campground north of Burns, Oregon off of 395. There are few campgrounds off this highway so we always camp here. The fee is $10. There are vault toilets and seasonally a camp host with firewood. Standard clean vault toilets and water during high season. Fire ring and picnic table. There are pull through sites for larger rigs. You are surrounded by large pine trees. It is a popular campground in the fall for hunters. Highway 395 is not a busy highway so the campground is quiet. We always stay here when we visit this area.

We stayed here from the recommendation of family on the way to see said family in Idaho. What they did not tell us is that once we got there, we would be swarmed by mosquitoes. We were staying in our roof top tent, which kept the mosquitoes out, but meant that were were largely confined to that space. There was little we could do to get rid of them. Citronella candles may as well have invited them into our site. The only little amount of success we had was by building an intentionally smokey fire and sitting in the smoke. Yeah.. it was an early to bed kinda night. 

On the flip side, it was incredibly pretty situated on a river in a grove of trees. Thankfully, there was water hookups and even sprinklers running which kept the grass green and the dirt to a minimal.

We were looking for a campground to stay at on our way from eastern Oregon to the John Day wilderness area. Bates State Park was a perfect overnight spot, just far enough off Hwy 26 to be quiet and exceptionally clean and well maintained. There are no hookups, and it will be a few years before vegetation matures to offer more privacy between spaces, but the park was uncrowded and felt private nonetheless. There are very interesting signs telling about the logging history of the area as well as a playground and nature trails.

I stayed at the teepee next to the John Day River. There are two total and they are a little isolated from the campground. They provide a large camping area and fireplace with a beautiful view of the mountains behind the camp. The front view, however, leaves a bit to be desired. There is a highway in front of the campground and a big parking lot with rv water hookups, so vehicles are constantly coming in and out. There is also a restroom, which is a considerable walk from the teepee, and makes it feel more like a reststop than a campground.

The rest of the campsites are in a wooded loop and seem much nicer than the teepee area. The teepee inside is very bare bones compared to the luxury of yurts offered at other camp grounds. The floor is a concrete slab. There are six green acrylic mats and a small stool and very small space heater. There are holes in the bottom parts of the teepee and a giant gap in the ceiling. All of these elements would be nice in the summer. Trying to sleep in here when its 27 degrees is another story. Next time i will stay in a tent. The campground provides a free bundle or firewood.