Magnolia Beach, near Port Lavaca, Texas, is a laid-back spot perfect for those who enjoy free camping right by the water. This area is all about simplicity, with a hard-packed shell beach that makes it easy to park your rig and set up camp.

Visitors often rave about the peaceful atmosphere, especially at night when the sounds of the ocean take over. Many campers appreciate the outdoor rinse-off showers, which are handy for washing off the sand after a day of lounging by the Gulf. As one camper put it, “Just chill. The place is clean, not much around and free.”

While the amenities are basic, the charm lies in the natural beauty and the opportunity to unwind. You’ll find plenty of space to spread out, and the calm waters are great for a relaxing day by the shore. Some reviewers mentioned the convenience of being able to explore nearby cities like San Antonio and Houston, making it easy to enjoy both urban and beach life.

If you’re looking for a quiet getaway with a touch of authentic coastal charm, Magnolia Beach is a solid choice. Just remember to bring everything you need, as this spot is all about embracing the great outdoors without the frills.

Be aware of the tides and high tide line when choosing a beach campsite. Strong winds or storms can significantly elevate tides and create hazardous conditions along the Gulf Coast.

Magnolia Beach

Austwell, TX is a great camping destination for adventurers of all types. Discover secluded campsites where you can reconnect with nature. Or maybe you like to bring your family and friends along. Either way, there are Austwell campgrounds just for you. You're sure to find the perfect campground for your Austwell camping trip.

Austwell

The Best Camping Near Austwell, Texas

About a mile stretch of beach parking. Free, hard packed shell beach. 15 picnic shades with tables. Outside shower, flush toilets.  Can park on beach or by shades. Plenty of trash cans. Very clean. 14 day limit. 

Good free beach 

What a great beach boondocking location! Fantastic view and hard-packed sand that made it very easy to drive on. We only stayed one night and will stay again next time we’re in the neighborhood. It was not crowded. Overall we had a really good time.

Great Beach camping

Located between Port Lavaca and Port O'connor, TX. A mile or so of no-fee camping. No designated sites. Hard packed sand/sea shell surface, with paved access roads. Beach is pretty clean but beach appropriate footware is required. There is a bath house with free lavatories.  We were there in August 2019 and March 2020 and the inside showers (4) were locked. There is a free use outside shower. 
There are picnic tables covered with 4 open sided concrete shelters. There are trash barrels in front of all the shelters. The picinic shelter closest to the rest rooms is wheelchair accessable. 
No electric, sewer or water sites. This is a very windy place. If you tent camp, low profile strong tents are recommended.  I've seen many RVs with generators, PV solar arrays and wind turbines. There are small convience stores and bait and tackle stores nearby. There is a fishing pier towards the Southern part of the beach. A few RV campgrounds in the area. It is kept pretty clean. In the warmer months the crabs like to hide in the bathrooms out of the sun.  Don't be alarmed, they stay away from people.  Don't miss the Camel memorial at the Southernmost entrance. There is a Geocache in the area. 

Free boondocking (dry camping) beach

Lover it. Park just feet from the water. Has restrooms. I stayed 7 days.

Great place to camp

This is a BEAUTIFUL beach! You camp right next to the water and can listen to the (gentle) waves all day and night. The beach is really level. There are garbage cans, showers, and pavilions with bbqs. 
The sand is mostly varying sizes of crushed shell so careful walking barefoot. You can watch the ships go by, the fish jump, seagulls and sandpipers running around the beach all day, I have been told, dolphins occasionally swim through. We fished, kayaked, and rode our trikes. Every one there is super friendly and it's fairly quiet. 
And it is completely FREE! 

Amazing!!! 

Easy access, easy parking on hard packed crushed shell &amp; sand. We parked feet from the ocean, pay attention to high tide and park accordingly. We were there in mid November so too chilly to swim but still mid 70s so beautiful weather for fishing and hanging out. We caught a huge flounder for dinner. There's a 14 day stay limit although I'm pretty sure there are some who stay longer. Restrooms and showers available- bring your flip flops for the shower! Good place to collect shells and memories ❤️ IG @_GoWanderWithUs

Beach boondocking at it's best!!

During fair weather this beach is great! It's hard pack, natural she'll sand, easy to drive on and we'll kept. However, we experienced a cold front this week (Thanksgiving week 2020) that was very difficult. The wind was treacherous coming off the bay, the surf was angry. It was not the beaches fault of course, but from what I have heard it's pretty common here.

Wonderful during fair weather

A mix of folks RV, car, tent camping! Some folks are definitely here for a long time.

Pros
- you can drive right on the beach and park feet from the water
- plenty of space on the beach
- pier at the end of the beach if you want to fish!
- little pavilions with tables underneath
- FREE!!

Cons
- one night we had BIG mosquitoes, there is some swampy standing water nearby 
- bathrooms are older. There was toilet paper but no soap or paper towels. 
- cold showers are at the back of the bathroom building, individual rooms. One shower room smelled like pee, another like smoke :/ but what can you expect for free?!

Lots of good taco options in the town over! We enjoyed Mr. Tacos barbacoa and al pastor tacos.

Free beach camping!

Some places are just best discovered than read about, and Magnolia Beach is one such place. We came for a night, and stayed for a week. This place just might win the award for the most chilled-out camping area on the continent– but it would have to muster enough enthusiasm to enter the contest. Rather, all enthusiasm here is geared toward fishin’ and sittin’. 

  

Drive through the small village into an unassuming beachside residential neighborhood and out onto the beach itself, where there is room to park nearly 100 RV’s. Most tent campers set up at one of the picnic pavilions where there is a bit more beach grass. The bathroom building has flush toilets, warm-ish showers (individual stalls), and external beachside rinse off showers. 

  

Since the area does not charge a dime for your stay of up to 14 days, it is super important to take care of the place, i.e. don’t ruin it for everyone. So, bring plenty of drinking water, and carry away all your rubbish. The area does have trashcans, but not a large collection dumpster. 

  

There is one convenience store/ take away restaurant with the usual suspects of chips, and beer–you can get a pizza to take back with you to the beach. The closest town with grocery stores, and other services is Port Lavaca, about 12 miles away. There is another similar camping area just down the road toward Indianola which has a similar set up if you find Magnolia Beach too noisy or crowded.

Chilled Out Vibe All Around

Free beach camping. There’s plenty of other campers here. And seashells everywhere!! By day there’s a seeming ugly view of an oil refinery across the water... but by night that place lights up and there’s something more whimsical about it. This was fun for a one night stop along the way.

Free  beach 

The other reviews were very promising, and I have to say I was pleasantly surprised by the atmosphere of peace and relaxation. I live in north Houston, and it took us about 3 hours to get there, on a Friday afternoon. Since we went in the wintertime, there weren’t that many people, but the people we met were very nice and welcoming. I highly recommend the burgers and breakfast tacos from the one stop shop up the road from the beach. Can’t wait to come back soon when the weather gets warmer! 

Chilled Out Getaway 

Magnolia Beach is a mid-nineteenth century beach front community that offers authentic charm because it has not been gentrified. No high říše condos or pretentious sea side mansions, and no casinos or fancy resorts. There is a large inland estuary for birding and an elevated walk way with an observation deck leading into it. An interesting early history of the originál settlement Has been documented on about 20 plaques sited in the area of the estuary walkway.

There are a number of options for where to park your rig, but all are waterfront and on the beach. The further down the beach side road you drive, the less congested sites become. There are dumpsters but that’s it. 

Authentic Charm & Free Camping

Just chill. The place is clean, not much around and free. The beach is made up of shells, not sand, so some sort of protective shoes are needed. That aside, there is not much to do here except to relax. And that is just we wanted. 

When we stayed in early April there were plenty of other campers but at least I haven't been subjected to the sound of generators. It appears everyone is here for the same reason,  chill. 

This is dry camping so bring everything you need. Any size rig will fit. Cell service is fair with 2 to 3 bars of Verizon 4g service. 

You can't get closer to the water without getting wet. 

Amazing water front camping-and it’s free. The town has a store 2 min away for any last minute essentials. Definitely staying here again. 

Free Beach Camping 

We have been here 3 days and staying 2 more.  Have showers and restrooms but we haven't used them. Nice quiet time on the water 

Awesome free camping

Great setting on the beach with water at your back door. Site is ground seashells (hardpacked) for a great road surface to drive on and park your rig. There are shower/ bath houses at the east end of the camping area. Did I mention that it is FREE?! 

Dry camp beach

Beautiful views, but the weekends get very busy. I stayed the full 2 weeks and loved my time there! Free bathrooms and showers if you are willing to brave the cold water. No warm water - But it’s free! Definitely glad I stayed.

Very busy on weekends

Plenty of space water is very calm not much noise especially at night definitely would go back 
Free 👍

Great location 

Kind of an off the beaten place but a real gem for Boondocking. 


Wonderful  

This is a very beaten up part of a beach, but great for free camping! I would come here again for the camping part, not for a beautiful scenery(there's a factory right over the water on the other side which meant I did not want to swim in this), definitely not for the showers or restroom, but I would to sleep. The showers are absolutely horrendous. I told myself even if they were cold I'd use them, but these don't look to have been used in years and are DIRTY. Same as the bathroom, but those I'd have to use. It's beautiful to wake up to a beach no matter what and the best thing is that you don't need 4x4 to go here. It's hard shell beach, so there's no way you're getting stuck. Me and my friend used the outdoor shower made to wash off sand to rinse our bodies, but I wouldn't do a full wash in it. I also loved the fact that I could go to San Antonio and Houston then come back to the beach! I know it's about 2 hours away, but I definitely do not want to stay in a hot city. The best part about this place is if you keep your windows open at night a very nice breeze will keep you cool.

Photos of Magnolia Beach

Real photos from real campers