Best Equestrian Camping near Stafford, TX

Brazos Bend State Park Campground offers equestrian accommodations near Stafford, Texas with designated horse camping areas. The campground provides several options for overnight stays including tent sites, RV spots with hookups, and cabins. Horse owners can access miles of riding trails that wind through the park's diverse landscape. Many sites feature water and electric hookups alongside ample space for horse trailers. The park maintains well-marked bridle paths that accommodate riders of all experience levels. Regular trail maintenance ensures safe passage for horses throughout the property.

Trail access begins directly from the equestrian camping area, allowing riders to start their journey without trailering to separate locations. The park's trail system connects to scenic routes along the Brazos River and through wooded areas where wildlife viewing opportunities abound. Riders frequently spot alligators sunning themselves near water features throughout the park. Horse campers should bring their own portable corrals or highlines as permanent corrals are not available at individual sites. Water access points for horses are strategically placed throughout the trail system. The park requires proof of negative Coggins test for all horses, and reservations are strongly recommended for equestrian sites, especially during weekends and peak seasons.

Best Equestrian Sites Near Stafford, Texas (3)

    1. Brazos Bend State Park Campground

    47 Reviews
    Thompsons, TX
    17 miles
    Website
    +1 (979) 553-5101

    $12 - $75 / night

    "Hikes and wildlife are good too, lots of easy trails along water for the kids, cool ponds, great little observation tour to climb."

    "A quick, 45 minute drive southwest will get you out of the concrete jungle that is the sprawling Space City metropolis and into one of the lushest, greenest parts of Texas."

    2. Houston West RV Park

    6 Reviews
    San Felipe, TX
    27 miles
    Website
    +1 (281) 375-5678

    "Nice mini lake and walking trail"

    "This park is only about a block off of Route 10 near Houston. Great place to stay if you are just passing through. The pool and hot tub are nice, and the lake is pretty."

    3. Pistolville

    Be the first to review!
    Baytown, TX
    40 miles
    +1 (540) 850-5025

    $45 - $65 / night

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Equestrian Camping Reviews near Stafford, TX

53 Reviews of 3 Stafford Campgrounds


  • K
    Oct. 1, 2016

    Brazos Bend State Park Campground

    Brazos Bend

    The best part of this park is the observatory, which has special events and regular weekend hours pretty much all year. It’s absolutely worth staying up late for this! Hikes and wildlife are good too, lots of easy trails along water for the kids, cool ponds, great little observation tour to climb. There are standard RV/tent sites, screened shelters (for sleeping), and rustic cabins, horse sites, and youth group sites. The sites are pretty spread out and maybe half of them are very shady. Awesome little park outside Houston.

  • Brittany S.
    Sep. 27, 2018

    Brazos Bend State Park Campground

    Alligators OH MY!!!

    Brazos Bend is alligator headquarters! This is my son's favorite park, right up next to Dinosaur Valley State Park. So first i'll tell you that the facilities are nice and pretty new it looked like. There are tent, group, equestrian, and RV sites, plus cabins and screened shelters. They have a few hike and bike trails, but nothing very challenging or long, but everything else they have is what makes it the bomb!

    There are six lakes, a creek, and the Brazos river in the park, so if you go during summer take bug spray, or bugs will eat you alive. Also tons of spiders...so yeah. You can fish at some of the lakes, and most of the lakes have a viewing pier where you can bird watch and look for big alligators.

    OK, the Nature center is the coolest thing ever!!! They have snakes, spiders, and lots of fun stuff for kids. My son got to touch a king snake and a baby alligator, which was so cool. They also have lots of planned activities going on, so make sure you check the calendar or ask a park ranger if they have an event going on. We got so lucky that they had a group of alligator hatchlings that they brought out for all the kids to see and did a whole informative, interactive discussion. They brought out like 60 baby alligators in tubs and showed the kids how they feed them and how they would release them back into the wild. It was the most amazing thing! They made sure every kid got to touch one, and there were a lot of kids.

    So yeah alligators are awesome, but on top of all of that, there is an observatory in the park. If you go on the weekends they have tours and shows at the observatory. There is an extra fee, but it is well worth it.

    Bring a hat, sunscreen, good shoes, and bug spray is a must!

  • Eby H.
    Jul. 23, 2017

    Brazos Bend State Park Campground

    Ranger Review: Kameng Boots by Mishmi Takin at Brazos Bend State Park

    Campground Review

    It's incredible that I was born and raised in Houston and have lived here the past four years but haven't made it out to Brazos Bend State Park until now! A quick, 45 minute drive southwest will get you out of the concrete jungle that is the sprawling Space City metropolis and into one of the lushest, greenest parts of Texas. Brazos Bend is a "Nature Lover's Paradise" - there is abundant wildlife. There is great fishing, ample bird watching, and lots and lots of alligators (!). Lots of trails for walking, running, biking, and horseback riding. The George Observatory is a pretty amazing feature of this park (but only open Saturdays).

    We arrived at Brazos Bend on a Friday afternoon and were able to walk-in no problem. Walk-in rate is $12/day + the daily park entrance fee ($5 for adults, free for kids). I have a Texas State Parks Pass so we didn't have to pay the entrance fees (saved us $40 for two nights of camping!). Additionally there were several other great options including: Full-Site RV hook-up ($25/night), Standard Camping ($20/night, incl. water & electricity), and 14 Cabins ($80-200/night but have everything you could ever need or want).

    We did a lot of nature walks, game playing, and swimming during our two days at Brazos Bend State Park. Summer is probably not the best time to visit any park in Texas - its hot and muggy and the mosquitos are out in full force. Bring your DEET. Seriously. Despite that though, we were very pleasantly surprised by the amenities (swimming pool, screened in picnic tables, fire pits, and tent pads!)

    Product Review

    As a Ranger for The Dyrt, I get products to test from time to time - this past weekend at Brazos Bend I tested out the Kameng Mid eVent Waterproof Hiking Boot by Mishmi Takin.

    These boots have got it all.

    First, these boots are hella comfortable! I was blown away how comfortable they were right out of the box. Over the years, I've owned many pairs of hiking boots and they all required a significant break-in period. Not these!

    Second, they're waterproof AND breathable. Not water resistant, like actually water proof.

    Third, the look great. All 3 color schemes are fantastic I had a tough time choosing between green, grey and orange.

    Fourth, so lightweight. These only weigh 1.5lbs so even though they are boots, they won't weigh you down.

    5/5 Would Recommend.

  • Myra P.
    May. 6, 2018

    Brazos Bend State Park Campground

    Texas round trip

    Before we stopped at the Brazos park we went from Pottsville Arkansas to the beaches in Texas .Started out in Houston and seen the San Jacinto Monument , The Washburn Tunnel, Aquaworld in down town Houston. Went over some Big bridges . Than we went to the beach in Galveston and spend the night in the back of my explorer what a night great view and the breeze was nice . The next day moved on to travel down the coast to the Port Aransas and crossed on the ferry heading to Mustang Island beach. Than passing Corpus Christi down to Padre Island . Can't remember the name of the beach we spend the night on . The next morning we headed out away from the coast and back towards home . This it where we stopped at the Brazos park and sleep in one of the screened rooms . The park was beautiful and the moss on the trees make you think you have gone back in time . But a last we have to go home!

  • Troy W.The Dyrt PRO User
    Dec. 31, 2019

    Brazos Bend State Park Campground

    Brazos Bend State Park + Aligators!

    Ok, I'll admit it. I visited this park for one reason only… to see alligators.

    Brazos Bend State Park does have other attractions like miles of hiking trails, campsites, water fowl and migratory birds, but the real attraction for me was simply to see live alligators in their natural habitat. If you have the same motive, this park will not disappoint. 

    This park is located outside of Houston. During much of the year the temperature can be warm to hot and muggy. I think that the best time of the year to visit might be in the winter during November, December or January. At other times of the year you may need to fight off mosquitos as big as alligators.

    There are a number of trails to hike, but I chose trails that would provide the greatest opportunity to see alligators. So we hiked along the 40 Acre Lake to Elm Lake Loop. We first saw a number of water fowl - ducks, cranes, egrets. Then right along the trail we saw a fairly large alligator. Now there are signs that warn to stay a safe distance away from the alligators and it is solid advice. But simply staying on the trail allowed me to pass about 30 feet in front of a resting alligator. I'm guessing that if the alligator wanted to get up and chase me it could have. I just calculated that I didn't need to be faster than the alligator, I just needed to be faster than my hiking buddies.

    We all survived and it was a pleasant experience.

  • Carly H.
    May. 6, 2017

    Brazos Bend State Park Campground

    Getting back to nature

    We recently decided we wanted to spend more time outside and over the last year started accumulating camping supplies. When it was finally time to put them to use we chose Brazos Bend because it wasn't to far from the city and had a lot of hiking trails. This park is amazing! We saw around 15 alligators while hiking, and these are animals in the wild in their habitat (not like the gator farms where some dude is sticking his head in ones mouth). The have a nature center where park rangers give you info about the animals in the park and let you see snakes and baby alligators up close. The campsites have a fire pit, table and grill and for the most part lots of shade trees. All the hiking trails were accessible right from our site. Since we only camped overnight we didn't use any of the facilities but heard they were very clean. We ended up buying the texas state park pass and cannot wait to come back!

  • R
    Jul. 31, 2016

    Brazos Bend State Park Campground

    I Love This Park!

    I live ~1 hour away from Brazos Bend State Park and while I've been to the park dozens of times, I have never actually camped there. The facilities are similar to most parks, water, fire ring, reasonable spacing, and some have electrical hook-ups. I do love to sneak off early on a Saturday or Sunday to run on the trails. The park doesn't open until 8 but the gate is normally open by 7 AM. Brazos Bend State Park offers two distinct experiences. The West side is shallow oxbow lakes that have been left behind when the Brazos River changed course. These lakes are swampy and are home to a diverse population of waterfowl as well as gators. The East side of the park is entirely different offering trails through a hardwood forest. There are several massive live oaks along the trail that are absolutely majestic. While running in the forest, I have spooked deer and wild hogs. The highlight was the time a bobcat (?) hopped out of the woods in front of me and ran in front of me for some time before he realized I was behind him. I don't have any pictures but here are some good ones from a race that I ran in Dec 2015 (http://running.competitor.com/2015/12/photos/photos-2015-brazos-bend-100_142060).

    You will mostly have the trails to yourself early in the morning but you will see some people fishing or birdwatching. Later in the day you will encounter families walking or biking and large extended families enjoying the picnic facilities. It does get a little buggy during the summer but I find as long as I keep moving, the bugs aren't much of a problem.

    The last highlight of the park is the park is the George Observatory. The lines can get a little long but it is a wonderful way to get a view of the sky. When we went, you could see Saturn, its rings, and a couple moons. Again, if you are going in the warmer months, be sure to bring bug spray.

  • Drew P.
    Sep. 28, 2020

    Brazos Bend State Park Campground

    Favorite State Park Nearby

    I've been going to Brazos Bend since I was a kid. It's always fun to hike or bike around the trails and see all types of birds, alligators, and other wildlife. For us it is close by which is another added bonus.

  • Candy P.
    Jan. 9, 2021

    Brazos Bend State Park Campground

    Escape from the City

    This is the best place to escape from the big city and enjoy nature! There is so much to do. The hiking and bike paths are aplenty. We loved seeing the gators, especially when the babies were hatching (spot dozens of babies in the photos). The observatory is also incredible. There are so many friendly astronomy enthusiasts who are willing to share a peek through their telescope (pre-covid) and share their knowledge. Be sure to help keep light pollution down in that area so everyone can enjoy the stars (no flashlights or phones out). This is such a great park to enjoy and spend a weekend away from the city without traveling too far.


Guide to Stafford

Brazos Bend State Park offers specific equestrian accommodations near Stafford, Texas, located about 30 miles southwest of Houston. The region sits at an elevation of approximately 75 feet above sea level in the coastal plains, with a humid subtropical climate. Summer temperatures regularly exceed 90°F with high humidity, while winters remain mild with occasional cold fronts.

What to do

Astronomical observation opportunities: The George Observatory at Brazos Bend State Park Campground provides exceptional stargazing experiences. "The best part of this park is the observatory, which has special events and regular weekend hours pretty much all year. It's absolutely worth staying up late for this," notes Kim B.

Wildlife viewing: The park trails offer opportunities to observe native Texas wildlife in natural habitats. "If you want to see alligators in their natural habitat this is the park for you. There were so many. We even came across one on the trail eating a snake," writes Rebecca.

Fishing access: Most horse campgrounds near Stafford, Texas connect to water features where visitors can fish. "Nice mini lake and walking trail," reports Javier M. about Houston West RV Park, which offers additional water-based recreation alongside equestrian trails.

What campers like

Observatory access: Astronomy enthusiasts appreciate the stargazing facilities. "There are so many friendly astronomy enthusiasts who are willing to share a peek through their telescope and share their knowledge," explains Candy P.

Wildlife diversity: Campers consistently mention the variety of animal sightings as a highlight. "I've been going to Brazos Bend since I was a kid. It's always fun to hike or bike around the trails and see all types of birds, alligators, and other wildlife," says Drew P.

Well-maintained facilities: Visitors note the upkeep of the equestrian campgrounds near Stafford. "VERY clean campground. Very happy with the tidiness and keep up of it. The staff were great at check in. Sites are far enough away that you have privacy," reports Jules S.

What you should know

Weather considerations: The region's climate affects camping comfort. "If you go in the summer you need to watch out for mosquitoes," warns Joseph P. about conditions at Brazos Bend.

Peak wildlife viewing seasons: Alligator activity varies with temperature. "If you go on a moderate temperature day (this is the key. If it is too hot or cold you won't see Gators) you can see literally dozens of massive alligators," advises Ashley C.

Site selection tips: Different sites offer varied amenities and privacy levels. "In my opinion, the camper pads are really nice. Long and wide can accommodate small or large campers and motorhomes. They are fire rings picnic tables," shares Red S. about Brazos Bend State Park Campground.

Tips for camping with families

Educational resources: The nature center provides learning opportunities for children. "There is a small nature centre where you can pet baby Gators and learn about them," explains Ashley C.

Kid-friendly trails: Several paths accommodate younger hikers. "Hikes and wildlife are good too, lots of easy trails along water for the kids, cool ponds, great little observation tour to climb," recommends Kim B.

Budget considerations: Some parks offer discounted rates. "Every other campground in the Houston area seems to be $55+, but with AAA discount I only paid $45 here," mentions Tam C. about Houston West RV Park.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is the most popular equestrian campsite near Stafford, TX?

According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular equestrian campground near Stafford, TX is Brazos Bend State Park Campground with a 4.7-star rating from 47 reviews.

What is the best site to find equestrian camping near Stafford, TX?

TheDyrt.com has all 3 equestrian camping locations near Stafford, TX, with real photos and reviews from campers.