The Dyrt is here to help plan your best camping near Padre Island National Seashore. Camping, hiking, biking: however you want to spend your days near Padre Island National Seashore, you'll find great campgrounds with The Dyrt. Get the dirt on all the best camping near Padre Island National Seashore. Browse campgrounds by amenities, site types, and more.
Stay at one of 48 water and electric campsites or 50 drive-up primitive sites. (The water and electric campsites are 1/3 mile from the beach.) We have portable toilets along two miles of the beach. Full restrooms and showers with hot water are located near the water-electric campground.
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.
Malaquite Campground is open to tents and RVs on a first-come, first-served basis (no reservations). It is between the dunes with beach access. There are designated paved and gravel camp sites, restrooms, cold water showers, and picnic tables. Some sites have grills and shade structures. No hookups but a dump station and potable water are on the road to the campground. Campers with a paid site in the campground can pitch a tent either at the site or on the beach in front of the campground.
In Port ‘A’, it’s all about fun in the sun and sand! The beaches of Mustang Island are fantastically unique. There are eighteen miles of uninterrupted public shoreline, open for street legal vehicles and all things beachy! The warm Gulf waters and soft Texas sand are the perfect backdrop for a day full of beach, recreational activities, and nights highlighted with moonlight strolls. Parking a car on the beach requires a $12 annual sticker that can be purchased at City Hall (710 W. Avenue A), our local grocery store Family Center IGA, from local convenience stores or from vendors located on the beach. The sticker allows the vehicle to park along the beach from the City Limit at Lantana Dr near Horace Cladwell Pier through Port Aransas Beach to the Kleberg County line (south of Bob Hall Pier) making it valid in Port Aransas and Corpus Christi. 58. An additional $40.00 permit is required for Port Aransas camping. Small campfires 3 ft. x 3ft. are allowed on the beach.
Bird Island Basin lies along Laguna Madre with easy access for fishing, birding, windsurfing, and kayaking. There are 35 RV and tent sites and 10 additional tent-only sites. All sites are side by side on gravel. The tent-only sites are walk up to a sand flat. This area is also for day use activities. Vault toilets are available at the north and south ends with day use areas in between.
$43 - $80 / night
Legend
You can drive right on the beach like a highway, in fact people do even in big rigs. You can park right on the beach.
Scout
Great spot to pull up set a tent up or pull your own camper in. Just get a $12 parking permit at the stripes gas station and you're good to stay over night!
Traveler
Good day- My name is John and my wife and I live in Dana, North Carolina... Just south of Asheville. Back in May, I had booked two(2) RV spots(one for us and one for dear friends coming in from California). I booked for a week, running from 5- 12 October, at a total(pre-paid) cost of$1,433. However, on Friday, 27 September(8 days before our trip), our region experienced Hurricane Helene. One hundred and twenty feet of our driveway was wiped out- totally washed away. The main road to our home was also washed away. Roads in and out of the area were destroyed and there were thousands of downed trees and power poles. The destruction was and remains hard to convey. We lost power and all communications for 13 days. We had no way in or out of our property for over a week. On Monday, 30 September, I was able to hike out to our local post office where I found I had one bar on my phone. I called family and friends, including the other couple that we were supposed to meet At the Firefly RV Resort. I explained the situation to them and asked them to call Firefly, cancel the reservation and,(given the circumstances) ask for a refund. The staff at Firefly were beyond rude and refused any consideration of a refund. When pressed on the matter by our friends, and stressing the dire conditions that all of North Carolina was facing, the Manager at Firefly told our friends the following-- and this is a direct quote:"Well, if the government would stop sending money to Ukraine, maybe they would have money to give to North Carolina." Enough said. I would strongly ask all conscientious RV-ers to BOYCOTT the Firefly RV Resort.
TravelerFirefly Coastal Bend Resort in Corpus Christi is the perfect getaway! The resort is incredibly family-friendly and pet-friendly, making it an ideal destination for everyone. The private beach is stunning, and the fishing spots are fantastic for those looking to relax by the water. The staff is amazing—always helpful and welcoming—and the management company is doing a phenomenal job keeping everything running smoothly. We can’t wait to come back and make even more memories here!
Scout
Amazing pool. Clean. Large space. Staff that is attentive to the needs of the customer. Artificial grass and palapa for shade and to limit mosquitos. We will definitely be back.
Scout
Large brand new resort with comercial laundry, pool, hot tub, great internet pool and hot tub. Very clean
GuideThis is our second time to Boondock on the beach. We were at marker 25 and once again thoroughly enjoyed it. It was Labor Day weekend so it was PACKED. People will pile in on top of you, but that’s the way it is. Not enough beach for so many people. The meter maid lady will harass you endlessly, but we just ignored her and continued having fun. There is a 3 night maximum in a 21 day period. Don’t try to outsmart the meter maid. She takes pictures of license plates and writes down the departure dates. She enjoys enforcing the rules.
GuideIt was a very short visit—one night. The campsite we stayed in had only a 50-amp connector, even though we needed thirty amps. We didn't test the receptacle to see if they were sending 30 amps through a 50-amp plug. The campground is very close to the Gulf. The beach is divided into three sections; the center is for people only. The left and right sections four wheel drive vehicles can drive on the beach until 10 pm. There are no issues at all, but you are not allowed to drink alcohol on the beach. I expect the fine would be steep but we didn't see any rangers at night. You can ⛺ camp at night. We drove on the beach without a four-sprinter—mostly packed sand. If you are going to take risks, I would check the tides. Our sprinter is heavy. If we got stuck, we would have to call a wrecker, which would have been pricy. We were one of two B vans camping. All of the 4 by-4 were light and would probably not be able to pull us out. We don't have max tracks or a winch. The park has day passes for 7 dollars, the campsite was between 20 through 30 dollars.
Scout
Rockport RV Resort sounds like a lovely coastal getaway, perfect for connecting with new friends, just like on omegle! The location and amenities seem ideal for a relaxing vacation.
Scout
Very friendly staff, down home type. New electric utility posts, clean showers and great location with Live Oak trees. Just over 1 mile to the beach. We stayed last minute on a weekend and we're taken warmly taken in. We'll spend time here again
GuideWe are Boondocking at MM 27 there are of course no hookups but I.B Magee allows you to dump and fill your tanks for $10. People pile on top of you during the day and we got a $281 ticket for parking parallel to the beach (we thought you only had to be perpendicular at the posts). That’s all the bad. Literally it. The beach is beautiful, the breeze is so nice we didn’t even run our generator during the day, the people are so fun, and the luxury of not packing our stuff up to drive to the beach every day is wonderful. We are already planning our next trip.
Guide
The price was right and I had water and electric hookups, but basically I was in a parking lot and all the grass around is full of briars. Made it really hard to walk the dog. Proximity to the beach was also really, if only the weather was a little better. The showers are a quarter pay situation and I paid $1.50 for a cold shower. When I went to ask the front office about it, they basically said "sometimes you have to run the sink for a minute". Sorry, but I am paying quarters for a shower that never gets warm that's a big dissapointment and then to met with indifference about it, hence the two stars. I also don't like that you don't get to pick your spot, you just show up, pay and they tell you where you are staying. It was the off season, so maybe things are better in full swing summer.
Scout
We've spent many winter months around the Corpus Christi, Texas area and visit South Beach frequently. Plenty to do; fishing, sunbathing, bird watching, photography, and on some evenings after dark you can spot deer and coyote come out of the sand dunes to feed on seaweed and fish remains. We prefer to camp at nearby Malequite campground for $5 a night with water, bathrooms and showers. The visitor's center has some supplies.
Ranger
This town is very tiny and wasn’t very welcoming. It’s hard to enjoy the water here.
Scout
We ended up staying 3 months. December, January and February. Love every minute of it. The staff is every helpful
ScoutIt sounds like Port Aransas offers a fantastic beach experience! The allowance for small campfires adds a cozy touch for those cookie clicker who want to enjoy the beach atmosphere well into the evening.
Ranger
The campground is managed through the county. From what we understand, they rebuilt it after previous hurricane damage. All pads are concrete with new hookups. Granted, the city allows boondocking on the beach if one wants to tackle that. But this park is the best I have seen on the island. Pads have a patio but do not have fire rings and picnic tables. everything else was great. The only downside was there are sticker burs everywhere. Victorias on the Bay is a great restaurant with a great atmosphere. Also, recommend Port A carts for golf cart rental. They currently have reduced rates. They operate out of the Port A Icecream Shop around the corner. One place I recommend everyone to steer clear is Castaways Seafood and Grill. The food was cold and bland, the service was slow. On our first night here, unbeknown to us, they charge a Cashless Transaction fee and apply sales tax to the fee itself. This question of business practice is not posted anywhere in the restaurant, instead, it is placed at the very bottom of the menu. I challenged this with the manager(Beverly) and she basically said to pay in cash or I could call the cops. She was rude and obnoxious. I can not confirm if other restaurants practice this, but always make sure to ask upfront. The is one grocery(IGA) on the island, a Whataburger, and shops galor. This place is busy during the summer months.
GuideThe camp ground’s only redemption is the closeness to the national park. There is really nothing there that would you wanna stay there except for that. Next time I would rathe stay at a camp ground one hour drive away from the national park in exchange for a better site.
Ranger
I have lived and worked here for 6 years now. Absolutely love the wildlife and birding. This place is very rustic and natural as possible. I host the Hummingbird Celebration site now known as Hummer Hill across from 219. This event is the second week of September for the big Hummingbird migration south.
GuidePort Aransas offers miles of beach designated for camping and day use. You must have a beach camping permit to stay overnight. Weekends get a little crowded during the day, but it quiets down in the afternoon.
Watch out for coyotes! They are everywhere and can be aggressive. We had at least 5 in the area, but they never came closer than about 50ft away.
Scout
First time staying here and we had 2 issues in the 2 weeks we stayed.
TravelerStaff was great! Beach was amazing! Loved it!
Traveler
Pull up, pick your spot, set up camp and enjoy. I suggest bringing fresh water to rinse off. Make sure you look at the beach to make sure you're not in reach of the tide. Those are probably the 2 most important things.
ScoutI have been at this park off and on for four years. Have seen several changes many for the best. The park staff will go out of the way to help you if they can. They have come under fire lately for many things that are out of their control. Upper management makes the rules and require the staff to implement and inforce them. Last year we became full time winter texans. We checked out many places and found this park to be one of the best. A lot of people are upset about becoming kid friendly! Some of us that stay here have kids and grand kids and believe kid friendly is a great thing. Some people need to stop and realize that this is a business. And if not happy with them quietly move on to somewhere else and find out what they don’t like about that park! Because no park is perfect. Life is not perfect either. Congrats to the staff of Rjourney Rockport please keep up the wonderful work you all DO!
Legend
PROS
Owner, Doc, an Airstream aficionado, is extremely nice and friendly
Upon arrival, we were invited by Doc to walk the 2.5 acres campground and select a site
Campsite#4 concert pad level with some shade
City water pressure good during our mid-week stay
Meticulously manicured lawn and trees throughout the campground
Gravel roadway
Campsites have concrete patio surrounded by gravel and grass
Nice space between campsites
Entrance gates closed at night (not locked)
2 washers ($1.50) and 2 dryers available in a stand-alone building
Park WIFI available, but we did not use
T-MOBILE 2 bars
CONS
This campground is located along TX35 (4-lane highway) which there was non-stop traffic noise
Bring your longest stinky slinky as we needed 25 feet to make connection at Campsite 4
Campground bathhouse is a single bathroom in a stand-alone pod-type structure, which was out of service during our 3 night stay
Our $50 reservation deposit made via Zelle (36 days prior to arriving) was changed upon our arrival to a damage deposit. We were advised if there is no damage to our campsite upon our departure,$50 would be returned after we departed and it was returned just prior to our departure
Campground web page states Military Discount Rate, but no Veteran discount
No campsite picnic table or campfire ring, but you can bring-your-own above ground campfire pit and operate off the grassy areas
No pool or hot tub
Had to sign 8-page PARK AGREEMENT upon check-in but never provided a receipt for my cash payment(no credit cards accepted)
Ranger
This campground is amazing!!! The staff is very friendly & helpful. Perfect location. About 2 blocks from the beach. Restaurants and site seeing a few more blocks away. Nice & quiet well kept place. Level concrete pads. Plenty of regularly mowed grass for dogs.
ScoutThis campground keeps shouting “fun family activities”. So they advertise all over town about this great eggstravaganza they are going to have for all the kids not only in the park but in the area. The event is over, the kids are going through their loot, smiles on everyone’s faces. Then park employees start telling the kids “ oh, by the way, we want the eggs back”. What a hoot!
Camping near Padre Island National Seashore, Texas, offers a unique blend of beach vibes and outdoor adventure. With several campgrounds to choose from, you can find the perfect spot to set up your tent or park your RV.
Camping near Padre Island National Seashore, Texas, is a fantastic way to enjoy the great outdoors while soaking up the sun and surf. Whether you're tent camping or RVing, there's something for everyone in this beautiful area.
Frequently Asked Questions
What camping is available near Padre Island National Seashore?
According to TheDyrt.com, Padre Island National Seashore offers a wide range of camping options, with 104 campgrounds and RV parks near Padre Island National Seashore and 4 free dispersed camping spots.
Which is the most popular campground near Padre Island National Seashore?
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular campground near Padre Island National Seashore is Mustang Island State Park Campground with a 4.3-star rating from 31 reviews.
Where can I find free dispersed camping near Padre Island National Seashore?
According to TheDyrt.com, there are 4 free dispersed camping spots near Padre Island National Seashore.
What parks are near Padre Island National Seashore?
According to TheDyrt.com, there are 1 parks near Padre Island National Seashore that allow camping, notably Canyon Lake and Somerville Lake.
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