Best Cabin Camping near Big Bend National Park

The Chisos Basin in Big Bend National Park is cool whether you’re in a tent or a camper. It has a ton of pros: bathrooms close by, being the coolest place in the park (serious bonus in the summertime), close proximity to hiking trails (don’t miss the Window trail!!!) and it close enough to the Chisos Basin restaurant and store you could walk if you’re feeling ambitious (it IS uphill haha!). My only complaint for this campground is how cramped it feels! If you’re trying to get away from it all and feel open space around you Chisos may not be your best bet. Sites are small and very close together.

This is a great location to mountain bike in Big Bend Ranch State Park and on the Lajitas trail system, but also you’re only an hour away from sitting in the Big Bend National Park Chiso basin parking lot to do great hiking. Terilinga Texas is a fun town nearby and there’s a place to buy groceries called the Cottonwood general store in Study Butte. I am a single camper and Rancho Topango is only $15 a night and you get hot showers and flush toilets and some of the sites have a roof built over the picnic tables to help keep the searing Texas Sun at bay

Colima 2 is a primitive campsite in the Chisos Basin in Big Bend National Park on the Colima Trail. My boyfriend and I backpacked to the campsite from the Chisos Basin trail head down Pinnacles trail to Boot Canyon. The Northeast Rim trail was closed at the time due to respecting space for the peregrine falcons and their nests. The night before, we camped in the Rio Grande campground which wasn't secluded enough for us, so we decided to reserve this campground at the Chisos Basin Visitor Center the next morning. Camp was super easy to set up here. There was a bear box included and plenty of flat ground for easily tent setup. There was PLENTY of tree coverage which was nice because it got hot out in the afternoons under the sun. We chose this campsite because we wanted to hike the South Rim on the same day. We offloaded some weight from our backpacking packs after setting up camp in the mid afternoon, got to hike the South Rim for the remaining hours of daylight, and enjoyed dinner back at Colima 2. The next day, we hiked back to the Chisos Basin trail head on the Laguna Meadows trail. Colima 2 offered the seclusion from other campgrounds we were wanting, and it's definitely on our radar when we return to Big Bend National Park.

Big Bend National Park is a beautiful place to visit and stay at if you're ever in West Texas! During the day some of the best places to visit (there's to many to list) are the Hot Spring located right on the Rio Grande, Santa Elena Canyon, The Window Trail, Tuff Canyon, Dog Canyon, Cattail Falls and of course the Chisos Mountains. At night time you must stay awake to see all the beautiful stars! The milky way is easy to see and the stars are so bright! River trips are available and are super fun! If you're lucky, you might spot all the beautiful wildlife! The temperature is definitely hot in that area, but I've loved all the adventures Big Bend has had to offer!

This campground offers some of the best views in the park. There is a massive individual campsite for tents and RVs, as well as a large group site area. The campgrounds or less than 1 mile from the park store and the lodging on site. There are literally thousands of miles of trails within Big Bend National Park. The trail head to Emory peak extends directly from the campground. Another good trail coming out of the campground his window trail. The sites are clean and equipped with their boxes and plenty of space for parking as well as overflow parking. I go here twice a year and I never want to leave.

This was my second visit to the Chisos Campground  in Big Bend National Park, TX. The past visit was in the fall and this year I wanted to experience spring in the park. As usual, the campground was great. The bathroom facilities were clean and close to the campsites. Water was readily available near all of the sites as well. My site this last trip was not as private as my previous trip last fall, but it was a later reservation and I was lucky to get a site for 4 days in the most popular time of the year to visit. Plan far in advance as this is a popular campground and about 10 to 15 degrees cooler than the others in the park