Guadalupe River RV Park and Campgrounds

Note: This is NOT the Guadalupe STATE Park!

Check In: 1p Check Out: 12p

⛺ Site#34- Back-In| Pull-Thru

💲45 per night (Pull-thru sites not along the river are $5 cheaper)

• Water
• 20/30/50 amp- 2 poles, one on each side of site
• Sewer
• Fire Ring
• Picnic Table
• Site Pad: Asphalt/gravel

👍🏻 Pros:

• Next to the restrooms/showers
• Discount for going to Anhalt Hall events

👎🏻 Cons:

• NOT very level. Slopes a lot front to back. Could be a pull-thru
• Lots of carpet burrs. Don't go barefoot and watch fur babies

📝 Park Notes: 

• Dump Station
• Select items for sale in the office
• Restrooms/ Bath House (looks better from the inside)
• Tent sites are available along the river
• Good place for tubing, Rvers have a parking lot down by the river
• Laundry
• Cabins
• Propane
• Winery across the street
• Bring tubes or kayaks
• There are some RVs and equipment parked near the office so it's not the best looking campground
• Some long-time residents. RVs need to be cleaned.
• There is a cave on site, but it was closed for some construction at the time we were there

❗ Lots of deer on the roads and in the park this time of year- drive with caution after dark

🐦 Wildlife:

• Birds: ducks, hawks
• Deer

More info on my website at https://denisevajdak.com

We are newbies with no experience pulling a trailer. We’ve previously been tent campers, but Covid-isolation affected our brains, and we bought a Cargo trailer that we’re converting into a comfortable travel trailer for the 2 of us. We are retired, and contemplating just living out of our trailer, and staying in National Parks.

Our Maiden Voyage was to Guadalupe State Park in June 2021. We haven’t camped in the summer before because of the heat in Texas, and in a tent there wasn’t much we could do to battle it. We offset high 80 temps on this trip with some periodic cloud cover, two electric fans plugged into shore power, tree shade, and the AC in our trailer. We brought a mister and hose that we could’ve hooked up to the Park’s water, but didn’t end up needing it.

We were comfortable and able to relax and enjoy ourselves by sitting in the shade, and each of us having a fan on us, and the trailer’s AC unit makes having a trailer worth every penny, even if you have nothing else in it. That being said, once you had to get up to do anything active, the sweat and need for water was back, and back to our fans and shade we ran.

The camp sites in this park were well shaded, and well spaced. The Park was clean. Great for riding bikes on its main streets, but not on its trails unless you’re into bumps, jagged drop-offs, and un-smooth mountain bike terrain. Having said that, many trails were closed while we were there because of recent rains, so some of those might’ve offered smoother bike trails.

The Trails are great for walking - shaded, and scenic, and at this time of year there is quite a variety of wildflowers around. You need to get up close to see these to appreciate their genius. Erika got a lot of good pics. I wouldn’t say hiking is great, only because it’s not a huge park.

Beautiful kayaking vistas, but getting your kayak easily to a drop-in point seemed like a challenge if it’s not easy to carry. We didn’t research this totally though, and might’ve missed an easier way to do it. Our camping neighbor found another park about 15 miles from us, that picked him up at our park, drove him to a drop off point in their park, and he took a 4 hour kayak spin directly back to our park. Where there’s a will, there’s a way.

Bathrooms and showers were excellent and clean. And shore power was good. We were able to purchase bags of ice at park entrance. No problems with bugs or mosquitoes which was nice.

We stayed in the Cedar Sage campground for a month -- two weeks in site 5, then gone for the weekend, then 2 more weeks in Site 3. The loop is designed for smaller rigs, there is a 20-foot limit due to how the sites are laid out. 

There's a small parking asphalt pad and then the sites extend out to the side or behind the pad. There is a raised dirt platform area for tents or screen tents. Each site also has a fire pit and a large picnic table.  All the sites have the same sized parking pad (which seemed quite level throughout the loop), but the space beyond that pad varies quite a bit. Some are quite large and others a bit small. (Site #5 has a huge camping area with great sun in the afternoon.) 

Most of the sites seem to be good for privacy and all are well spaced out so you shouldn't feel cramped even when the campground is busy. 

The bathrooms in this loop seem new. They are well-designed and clean, plus they have shower rooms that are separate from the bathrooms. The showers had great pressure and plenty of hot water. 

Cellular service was good for Verizon and T-Mobile overall. It could periodically get weak but would come back quickly. We used Verizon and T-Mobile for video calls and other work and did just fine. Occasionally had to use our cellular boost to get great service, but it was decent without the booster, too -- at least in sites 3 and 5. We heard from others and noticed when walking around that some sites had less cell signal. (Probably depends on trees and terrain, as some sites sit more on a hill than others, and surrounding trees vary from site to site. 

The park boasts miles worth of trails, some that take you along the Guadalupe River. Note that it doesn't take much rain before they close the trails down (first closed to bikers and equestrians, but then to hikers, as well).

The park is very popular and fills up on weekends, even in the winter. During the summer, we've heard it's extremely popular. If you can't get a campsite, there is a large day-use area near the river to enjoy. 

The park is about 3 miles down the state park road before you even get to the entrance, so you take that into account if you need to run to town for supplies. But a Walmart and HEB+ are about 8 miles away(although driving time is deceiving because the hilly, curving roads mean taking things slower with an RV).

If we have a need to be in this area again, we will definitely look at booking here again.

Will and I wanted to get away after being stuck in the house for months and finally camping opened back up in Texas! We wanted to check out San Antonio as well and this offered both the peace + quiet of a campground plus not being too far from downtown San Antonio. We were lucky enough to get a spot (I’ve heard that this is a difficult place to get a camping spot so book in advance!!). The first day we got to the park and set up camp we were lucky enough to get a spot close to the river. They are doing construction on some of the other sites so space really is limited if you want to camp here. We pitched our tent at a nice shaded spot and made our way to San Antonio. We came back to the campground around 12am and used an entry code to get in as the gate was closed (which is nice if you are looking for a secure spot to camp!) The next day we packed up and headed into the park. We only had a one night stay but it was perfect. You have to be packed up by 12pm but you are allowed to stay in the park until closing at 10pm. We took our raft down to the river and floated for the afternoon. The visitors section of the river was a little crowded. I can’t imagine what this park is like when it is in full swing/not limiting its guests. Other than that it was clean and the campsites were really nice, they had raised gravel patios for tents. The only thing we didn’t really like was that they weren’t drive up sites so we had to hail our gear to the site.

Scene: family of 5, young boys ages 7,4, and 3 months, two medium/large dogs, and a 21’ travel trailer.

Reservations over the phone, great customer service, was told we were getting the last spot available perfect for our size trailer.

Upon check in things were a little unorganized, we found our spot and instantly realized why it was the last spot. There are 3-4 aisles of rvs parked in rows and then there is spot 32, which is at the end of a row behind and in between two other spots. Basically three trailers will make 3/4 of a square, and space 32 is the bottom of the square. So our awning and front door came out into the center and front door of both our neighbors. We basically had a little courtyard for the three of us, which equaled zero privacy for any of us. Thankfully everyone was really nice, it was just extremely awkward. However spaces 31.32.&33 would be awesome for three families or friends to all be together.

The hook ups are great but our electrical kept tripping and shutting off our A/C which wasn’t fun with a baby inside most of the day . But a small problem in comparison to other things can can go wrong.

There were facilities that were busy but we never explored those so we can’t give a fair rating on that.

Price is ok, but a little high for what you get. Or didn’t and in our case, even a little privacy would have been worth more money.

The grounds are kept ok, a little bit of trash here and there, management is just okay, very nice but very unorganized.

The walk to the river was short and fairly easy, and my kids absolutely loved it. It was shallow enough for them to sit down and ride some baby currents.

Overall, nice two night stay in our trailer, and in the water but being so packed in was a huge turnoff.

We were super excited to finally get out for the 2020 season and this was the first of a few parks for a two week trip. We stayed in the “primitive” tent campground Wagon Ford” walk in tent area. Our site was about 150 yards from the parking lot and about 300 yards to the flush toilets with sinks and running water. There was potable water at the bathrooms, but none at the campsites. Each site had a nice 16x16 tent pad, fire pit, picnic table and our site had plenty of shade and a trail down to the river. The shower sites at cedar sage campground were awesome, they look new,in fact they are building another shower area near the discovery center (which was still closed). The raccoons are bad, they got the site next to us, and even managed to get inside our big RTIC cooler and stole some of our food 😭. The River is great, but you need to bring your own tubes or floating devices as they don’t rent them. We hiked the Painted Bunting trail, the discovery loop and scenic overlook trails and the bald cypress trail. We saw axis deer and lots of birds. The trails were well maintained and marked.

There is no better late spring to early summer activity than getting good float down one of the rivers of Texas.  While there are plenty of put in spots, many do not have access to a campground which offers as many options as the Guadalupe River State Park.  

Under the supervision of the Texas State Park system the facilities for both day use and overnight stay are well maintained. Currently undergoing an overhaul which will offer new restrooms in one of the camping loops, they are constantly striving to better accommodate guests and provide a fun and relaxed get away for a day, week or weekend.  

Taking a trip through the camping loops I noticed each were well shaded and positioned in a way that the sun could trickle through the leaves to provide warmth on a cool morning but not so much that it would make the sweltering summer days more intense.  Large parking spaces could easily accommodate two vehicles at each camp and amenities ranged depending on the location of the site you choose.  

In the improved camping loops, sites came standard with electricity and water connections, with posts being positioned at the front of the site.  You would need to provide your own hose or cord to source this toward the rear of the site if desired. Camping sites each provide a large picnic table and lantern hook in addition to a tent pad which is constructed and elevated slighting from the ground around.

In addition, to the loop camp sites, there is another section designed for tent campers wanting to walk in.  While this area is well maintained, it is subject to closures with rains unlike the other areas.  When I visited, the recent downpour had forced closure of all trails and also this campsite as a part of the conservation effort for keeping the natural lands.  While I do appreciate this as a person who wants to protect our spaces so we can continue to enjoy them for years to come, I could easily see how it could also disappoint a camper who is having change their location to an improved site.

Throughout the park there are a series of trails for hiking, biking and even horseback riding.  A full map is provided at the front gate and can come in handy if you are wanting to find more than just the river trail while at camp.  But something also to consider when looking at this map is the trail system located across the road from what most consider to be the park.  This section is less populated with hikers and provides some of the most interesting hiking you will find at Guadalupe River State Park.

But let’s get down to what everyone really wants to hear about … THE RIVER!  

The river can be a source of a lot of fun and also traffic.  Being open for day use as well as for those staying at the park, the area provides a cool retreat to dive into the cool waters of the Guadalupe River. There are picnic tables lining the shoreline, some off the river and in shaded areas while others are in full sun.  There is a no alcohol policy which is enforced on busy days, so warning if you are a person looking to float and drink, this might not be the right place to put in.

A trail runs alongside the riverfront providing great views of the river’s path.  A nature center and amphitheater are located across the parking lot from the river highlighting educational materials for the entire family but with exhibits geared toward the kiddos. In this area currently there are only port a potty restrooms.

Tips:

• If you are planning on floating, make sure to read the guidelines by the parking lot.  Remember the river is not a loop so where you put in is not where you will end up.
• Book In Advance!  This park is very popular and quickly fills up on weekend, if you are planning a trip make sure you book well in advance to ensure you will have a site.
• Check the Weather!  The river’s flow is directly effected by the amount of rainfall. If you are planning a trip pull up the weather to make sure it will not make for unsafe conditions.