Best RV Parks & Resorts near Big Bend National Park

Cottonwood Campground is a quiet oasis in the western corner of Big Bend National Park. Reservations are required. Conveniently located between the Castolon Historic District, the scenic Santa Elena Canyon and the tail end of the Ross Maxwell Scenic Drive, this small, 22-site campground is one of the least-known and quiet campgrounds in the park. There is one group campsite and 21 individual sites. 

This is a remote campground in a remote park. It is dry camping, no hook-ups, and no generators are permitted. 

• Cell Phone Reception, No 

• Internet Connectivity, No 

• Trash/Recycling Collection. Yes, Year-Round 

• Food Storage Lockers, Yes, Year-Round 

• Laundry, No Dump Station, No 

• Potable Water, Yes on site

The campground is one of the lower places in elevation, 2200 feet in the national park, it is hot in sprint and summer, over 100F at summer afternoons. Not recommended from May to September, use instead Chisos Basin Campground(5,400 feet) where the temperature is lower 15 to 20 degrees than any campground near the Rio Grande

The skies at night are big and bright....deep in the heart of Texas! This is a beautiful - completely off the beaten path - well lots of amenities campground. We were there over Memorial Weekend, expecting it to be crowded, it was not. They have 101 camping spots for RV's - plenty of room to spread out. Big spaces can accommodate any size rig. We were pleasantly surprised with the lounge and swimming area, well kept, clean, everything you could need. If you need groceries, bring them with you, there is a small local store that caters high end good products, but not a lot of them. One local restaurant, one local bar, all part of the resort - if you want to golf, horseback ride, hike, all is available. The nearest anything though is Terlingua (which isn't much.)
What is great about the park is that it is the best available camping near Big Bend National Park. Big Bend is huge and beautiful, lots of water, hot springs, 4 wheel drive trails - it's a park that has a lot of history too. Go there, and go to the Big Bend State Park too - lots of local color.

Our maiden voyage in our 41 foot fifth wheel. A little concerned about finding a campground that could accommodate us, and have plenty of room. Big Bend Resort got us set up fine. 30, and 50, amp service with water and sewer. Our trip was during the third week of September, so campground was basically empty. Very clean campground, and the resort personnel were very friendly, and helpful. Our destination, while camping, was Big Bend National Park. Big Bend Resort was great location, as it was only about 20 minutes to Chisos Basin. We will most definitely be going back

Big Bend Ranch State Ranch is quite different than Big Bend National Park. While much of the national park has sky islands (mountains), much of the state park is classic desert. The park stretches from the desert to the Rio Grande River. There is a scenic road that runs along the river with a number of campsites. The campsite are drive up campsites, but somewhat primitive in nature in that there are not restrooms with toilets, sinks and showers. There are picnic tables and fire rings, but that is about it. There is not much shade cover at these campsites so it is helpful if you have a tent or canopy shade. The attraction of this park is the expansive views of the desert that one is able to view. The heat and lack of cover can be tough on the body, so bring lots of water and hydrate. Outside the park are some interesting towns like Terlingua and the old silver mining town of Safter.