Best RV Parks & Resorts near Amistad National Recreation Area

My son and I tent camped at Spur 406 at Lake Amistad circa 2010 when the lake was high before the drought of 2011 and the low lake levels afterward. Simple campground with several sites. Great place near Highway 90 to camp. There wasn’t anyone else camping there that night. It’s on the opposite side of the lake from Del Rio and it gets very dark. There were lots of stars. We went wading in the lake at night where the old highway enters the lake and it’s easy to walk in the water or swim there farther out. The next day we caught a yellow scorpion in a jar and later released it. Good times. There was a simple bathroom. The sites have grills and maybe metal shade structures and picnic tables. There are no RV hook-ups but the road and sites might be conducive to RVs and trailers. The spur is a good 2-lane paved road but I don’t remember how big all the sites are. Per 2020 official website, camping fee was $6/night. Great place.

The RV park is in an old Military installation that has been converted into housing, camping, golf course, swimming at the spring and has a museum. The grounds are very pretty. The CG is well worth the $19 (with Veterans Discount) per night for a pull through with full hookups. Sites are level with pea-stone and hard packed gravel. Easiest setup so far. CG has a clean laundry room for only $1 a load, community room with books for sharing and a nice community use fire pit area. The staff is so nice and very knowledgeable about the Fort's history and local area. Only reason why I gave it 4 stars is because the sites are close to each other and wifi is null. Verizon is good and we used out hotspot for TV & laptop.

The Southwinds marina is a nice area within the Amistad National Recreation Area with a boat ramp and camping. The boat ramp is open to the public but the camping options and boat rentals were reserved for military and law enforcement only as of 2013. Users often come from Laughlin Air Force Base, which is located on the eastern edge of Del Rio. U.S. Border Patrol also have access. I’ve never camped here but it’s a nice place.

We stayed 2 nights at San Pedro, using it as a base camp to explore Amistad National Recreation Area. It's very close to the Spur 454 boat ramp, which we used to launch our kayak. You can also get over Diablo East, Governor's Landing, and the Figueroa trail for good hiking by driving maybe 10 minutes. 

The non-tent sites all have covered picnic tables with a concrete pad and charcoal grill. There are quite a few pit toilets dispersed amongst the sites. There doesn't seem to be anyway to get down closer to the lake from this campground. 

When we were there, we saw 4 - 5 other campers in the campground and everyone setup spaced apart. We heard lots of coyotes in the distance just after sunset.

Okay, this is definitely an experience to stay here. If you are looking for a luxury or even moderate RV park, don’t stay here. However if you are someone who can find the diamond in the rough...go here. The owners are super nice and there is a bar on the park that is kickin! Everyone you meet in the bar will be your best friend before you know it and you’re gonna be hugging them and Facebook friending them on your way out.

I camped here with my granddaughters and had a wonderful time. This is a small park that is centered around two main attractions. First is the actual cavern. Kickapoo Cavern is a moderate size cavern and completely undeveloped. The park staff conducts a hard hat and flashlight tour once a week, so reservations are a must. Next is the Stuart Bat Cave. About 1 million Mexican Free-tail Bats exit the cave at sunset to search for food. The viewing area is very nice and handicap accessible. You can also watch them return, which is quite impressive, if you get there before sunrise. Also there are many hiking trails to occupy the rest of your time.

The park has several campsites with full hookups. There is a dump station and fires are allowed in fire rings. Be sure to check the park website because the bats are seasonal and the park may not be open 7 days a week.

All in all this is one of the hidden gems in the Texas state park system.

Campground is located just a few miles from Del Rio, Texas and is part of the Lake Amistad Nat'l Rec Area. Great location if your looking for a safe, quiet, level, overnight stay location with good cell service signal (AT&T). Not so good if you're here to enjoy the water as there is any lake access from the campground proper (hence the 4 versus 5 star rating). Nevertheless, very clean and numerous pit toilets, covered picnic tables, and 30 or so level sites await the road weary RVer. And if you do want to enjoy the lake, lake access is a few miles nearby.

This campground is your typical Texas desert environment, and has awesome pictographs that you can view via guided tour! There are hiking trails that trace the rim of the Seminole Canyon and have views of the Rio Grande. We did the Fate Bell guided tour which is not very strenuous and takes you down into the canyon to see 4000 year old pictographs. Definitely worth it as they are fading due to man made changes in the environment and won't be visible to the eye much longer.

We stayed in site 6, which was a bit disappointing. Since you're in a desert there's not much to divide the sites, but they are spacious. The prime real estate is in the loop with sites 18 - 31. The outer sites on that loop have a really great view! The no hookup sites on the other loop (9, 10, 11, 13) also have nice views. The primitive camping area is actually pull through RV sites that just never got their hookups so if you're up for camping with no hookups those sites can accommodate large rigs. 

Don't miss taking a few mile drive to the west to check out the Pecos High Bridge views!

This state park is really in the middle of nowhere. It has a tiny campground, with only 5 RV sites. The sites feel well spaced with trees in between them giving you privacy. They have sewer hookups at the official RV sites, and a dump station if you stay in one of the no hookup sites. The sky is amazing at night! They have good hiking and allow mountain bikes on the trails. We stayed 2 nights and definitely want to go back again to experience this park. We hiked most of the trails, but did not get to see the bats due to the time of year, and did not get to do a guided tour to the cavern so have a great reason to go back. There is no cell service so you can fully unplug and relax.

Ok. On to the next. Its just north of Del Rio, TX...named the nations friendlist boarder town. Crime rate is reportedly almost non existent around here. I did notice a TON of boarder patrol agents and police cruising everywhere around here......anyway, this is yet another campground maintained by the national park service and they do a great job. Not quite boondocking perse..... but 10 bucks a night, 5 If your a senior. First come, first served. Only 15 spots. Can stay 14 days. Was talking to one of the park service workers and he gave me the scoop on a couple other nice spots around here and still part of this national recreation area....ill stay a couple night here, than I'll check them out.. (big bend will just have to wait). No hook ups but I don't need them. My solar is cranking away. There are several potable water stations, trash cans and vault toilets if ya need them. Some sites are level, some aren't. Vzw and att Cell/data service are both strong. Laughlin Air Force base is about 20 minutes south of here and is the largest air force training base in the country. ~350 air force pilots graduate from there every year. More planes take off and land there everyday than any other airport in the country....when I was driving in on rt 90...there was a steady stream of Talons coming and going....right over the road. I hear them buzzing around the lake too. This lake...is really a reservoir. Lake Amistad was a joint project between the US and Mexico. The damn was completed in 1969. Amistad means "friendship". It was made from both the Rio grande and the Devils Rivers. It covers almost 65,000 acres, 851 miles of shoreline (574 in Texas...rest in Mexico) and has a max depth of 217' and like many bodies of water in the SW water levels are low, however it is still a popular rec area and is well known for fantastic bass fishing. Several televised Pro tournaments are held here each year. It is the 2nd biggest lake in Texas. Pretty impressive right? Yeah...glad I stopped! Quiz to follow later...lol.

This small campground sits high above the banks of the Amistad Reservoir, but unfortunately, a little too close to HWY 90. The campsites enjoy a stunning view of the Chihuahuan Desert landscape and the water. The sites are spacious with lots of room for bigger rigs, and enjoy a shade structure over the picnic table area. 

With potable water and clean pit toilets this campsite is worth the inexpensive fee.  Bring your solar panel because there are no electrical hookups.  With water recreation opportunities just a stone’s throw away, the boat launch is just below the campground, you can escape the heat of the day. There are just a few hiking trails nearby for more land-based recreation. 

We spent just one night at the campground and it was an easy drive in and park situation. But we found the numerous trucks along the highway a little disruptive of our sleep starting around 4 am, when they begin to hit the road. There are other campgrounds along the Amistad Reservoir that are not as impacted by the road, and they are definitely worth a look. 

The city of Del Rio, TX is a short drive away where you can get anything, including a Starbuck’s coffee – which has become, for us, the indicator of modern suburbia. Be sure to check out some of the amazing Mexican Food of this well-integrated, bi-lingual, boarder town.

First, this park is normally only open weekends and is closed some months so check before going. You must book and pay in advance on line as they take no money at this park, there is no store, nothing to buy. This park is VERY remote, a 22 mile dirt road is required to get to the park and it takes about 90 minutes to traverse that road. There are about 7 campsites for tents only, no water, no electricity, no hookups, and the only bathroom is maybe 5 miles away. There is no service is most of the park ( WiFi at park ranger office and service on top on the peak). To get to the river you must cross 3 streams, some 11 inches deep or so, very rocky, many cars cannot make this crossing, but you can cross it on foot. We have a 4 wheel drive truck and had no problem. If you are still interested, the park is amazing, the river is so serene, several waterfalls, beautiful trees, wildlife and some trails. We went in November, 2018 and the weather was perfect. We hiked all the trails, including the 12 mile loop which was challenging including crossing the water. We had a great opportunity to take a tour of the rock art and were so glad we did, Nora was a great tour guide, plus this was free!

Just 5 miles outside of Del Rio, Texas lies the limestone lined Amistad Reservoir which gathers the waters of the Rio Grande river on its journey to the gulf. Amistad means friendship, and as a dam project, was co-sponsored by the US and Mexico.  This park is a confluence of three distinct ecosystems, which makes the flora extra special.

There are many developed campgrounds throughout the Recreation Area, the San Pedro campground has a few sites that offer more privacy away from the main campground, and dozens in the larger, more open area.  Each is set up with a grill, picnic table and shade shelter. A large group campsite is available for reservation, but not during COVID. There are no electrical hook-ups (bring your solar!), and no water available at this campground.  Pit toilets were clean and hopefully they'll fix the lock on the doors soon (in the meantime, just use a stick).  Whaddya want for 6 bucks a night?  The stay limit is 2 weeks, and the rangers do check.

San Pedro is further away from the water than some of the other camping areas, but it was quiet, comfortable and lovely. Since the Verizon signal was super strong we were able to get a ton of things accomplished while also squeezing in some hikes, bikes, paddles, and runs. There are a few trails around, but lots of quiet dirt roads to stay active.  The boat launch was a short 2 mile drive away. And of course the crystal blue lake offers everything from swimming, fishing, paddling, and powerboating.

Del Rio is one of the larger cities along the border between Loredo and El Paso, so there really isn't much you can't get in town just a short drive away. We even got some work done on our truck and were able to just bike back to the campground whiel it was in the shop.  Drinking water can be filled at the Diablo East Campground dump station, about 4 miles away for no charge, and of course the town is full of water filling kiosks like all southern desert towns.

This park is a great escape to disconnect, view the DARK SKY and witness Mexican free-tailed bat emergence! Park campground is 25 miles after the turn off of US90. We stayed Friday and Saturday nights in mid-March. Few bats emerged during our stay; much better emergence in April as experienced in previous visits to Stuart Cave. 

Pros:

• Excellent DARK SKY campground

• Stuart Cave bat emergence nightly from a very nice viewing deck

• Small park

• Extremely quiet park during March Spring Break

• Good campsite privacy due to good brush coverage

• Most sites had a nice distance from neighbor sites

• Clean campsite

• Picnic table in good condition, especially eating surface

• Our site had aluminum picnic table on a concrete slab under a metal shelter; not all sites had metal shelter

• Clean restroom/shower facility

•  Campsite hook-ups in good condition.

• Level gravel campsite.  

• Pedestal BBQ grill, fire pit with grilling grate, double hook lantern pole and aluminum picnic table at each site.   

• Park roadways in good condition. 

• Park Ranger patrolled campground numerous times throughout day/evening 

Cons:

• No AT&T signal; no park WIFI, so completely without phone service and no public phone available for emergerncies. Had to drive outside of Park about 3 miles for AT&T signal.

• County burn ban prohibited wood campfires and ban posted on Park’s website. Park Ranger stopped by our campsite to tell us to put out our campfire, but we showed him it was a propane firebowl.

• Limited shade in campsites

• Must pack out all personally generated trash. Absolutely NO dumpsters; no garbage cans in park

• No campground host

•.  No entrance gate locked at night

• One and only restroom used by entire Park, so campers and day users. Women’s restroom had 2 toilets, 2 sinks and one shower stall

• Women’s restroom lacked consistent supply of TP and wall dispenser soap• Wildlife sightings limited to squirrels and armadillos

• No park store, so come prepared with all necessary supplies as Brackettville is closest small town which is 25 miles away with only a grocery store and couple fuel stations. Ulvade and Del Rio have the typical box stores.

Only stayed one night, in late March cool night warm day. Showers / bathrooms were nice, site was private with picnic table, tent pad, a ramada, water electric,  dump station.

We missed the tour, the vistor center was very nice, did a little exploring on our own, coming back for sure.

This campground has running water, pit toilets, and well maintained campsites (small camper van or tent - not good for big rigs). First come availability- we pulled in at 7pm and had plenty of spaces to choose from. No electric Beautiful views of the water Safe and clean Credit cards only to pay fee ($10)

We will definitely come back to this one. It is $10 per night to park overnight and the automated machine takes card! We found a nice spot that fit our 21ft travel trailer and 20ft van pulling it right next the the Reservoir. We woke up to beautiful views of the blue/green water and took a morning hike down to walk right out onto one of the natural jetty’s that goes right out into the middle of the water. The picnic tables on the way down to the water have usb charging that is solar powered and umbrellas built in. Perfect spot to have morning coffee/breakfast. We met some nice folks who also helped us back into our spot since it was dark. 10/10 for a boondocking experience

This is a very well managed RVPark. It is well kept with the usual amenities but also has a hiking trail and bird watching blinds. It’s above my level of expectation for the price.

Seminole Canyon is usually my first stop on my way to Davis Mountains State Park. I'm a tent camper.  Every campsite has all you would need. Water, electricity, and a table. Can be challenging if the wind is blowing hard but doable. Wonderful hiking trails with vistas over the Rio Grande River.  Also take the guided tour into the canyon to see the ancient pictographs.