Best RV Parks & Resorts near Temple, TX

I found this place while I was searching on thedyrt for a place to camp nearby Austin. I dropped by to check it out. To my surprise, this was more of a traditional RV park for long-term stays rather than a RV campground or recreational park.

The RV park is nestled into a North Austin neighborhood about 20-30 minutes from the center of town. The neighborhood has a mix of houses, empty lots and industrial facilities. The park itself is enclosed by a fence and security system.

I spoke with the manager and he said that he does accept stays of a week, but you must call to check on availability. Each parking spot has hookups for water, electric and sewage. The park has wifi, laundry facilities, restroom, mailboxes and security cameras. There are no real recreational amenities or facilities in the park or in the nearby neighborhood.

This is not really a place to camp, but rather to stay for a while.

We stayed here long term for work, in our camper trailer. This is a great place, for long or short stays. All sorts of rigs, maybe not quite the place for tents. The owner is very kind. The property is well maintained. Gravel pads, with all the hook ups. It's great not having to move to drain the tanks. There is a community area called the scale house, indoor and outdoor chill spots to enjoy the scenery. A small shower/laundry house, and overflow parking for boats, extra vehicles, etc. The creek runs along side the campground, and herds of sheep roam across the creek with friendly and protective sheep dogs. You can fish in the creek and in the pond located within the sheep field. We really enjoyed this spot.

We are a small family with dogs and camp primarily on weekends. The road to the campsite is full of potholes. Once there, the campsite was quiet and comfortable. No hiking nearby but nice views of the lake and a marina full of interesting houseboats; some boats in the morning are loud out on the lake. Not too many obvious long term people, neat campsites. Plenty of people fishing. We stayed in A68 but I think the sites at the end would be better so far as lake views. Bathrooms could be cleaner. Some fire ants but it’s Texas. Saw plenty of wildlife (raccoon, skunks, deer, toad, waterbirds). Short drive to Waco and the Mammoth National Monument (which has RV parking).

This park was extremely quiet when I was there. The spring which "never dries up" wad salt dry when I was there, the first time as far as anyone can remember. The bird activity was great, and the trails were well maintained and easy to follow. Very historic site, the first state park in Texas. Campground has level sites with full hook up.

It’s quite a small park which makes it nice and peaceful. The campsites are spacious, clean and very well maintained. Full hook-ups and very level. Clean bathrooms and facilities. Park staff and hosts were friendly and helpful. There is not a lot to do in the general area, but having a nice quiet getaway is often a welcome experience. Nice and easily traveled hiking trails along with a nice pond area for evening wildlife viewing. There is also an old Indian cave and wash pond. One of Texas’ first and nicest state parks.

There is nothing I like more than finding a nice place to retreat from a city which allows the comfort of the outdoors and relaxation with the convenience of the neighboring city amenities. It is the perfect blend of both worlds.

This can be a bit difficult for a tent camper however, so again I was able to find an ideal location for my RVing friends at this site. Normally that would instantly lower my rating because I cannot personally utilize the location at this time without a rig, however this site was so impressive I couldn't steer away!

Pulling up to the park the gate is grand. The park itself sits a short 5 minutes away from the city on a quiet road. The park is expansive and the accommodations rest several hundred yards away from the traffic of the small country road. It is so peaceful!!

Sites seemed to be spread nicely to have the sense of community but not being to close to form crowding. Each space is separated by a grassy area which accommodates a picnic table and has enough room for a little stretching room.

When I visited all of the units there seemed to be very well maintained and even though they do have both overnight and long term stay options, nothing seemed to have the "moved in" look (no underpinnings, no long sewage hoses typical of long term parks).

I was very excited to see the large area for walking your dogs, area which allowed space to play and roam, a pond to fish in or to enjoy, a fire pit for community use and very nice shower and laundry facilities.

The roads around the park were wide and well maintained, the green spaces were manicured well and as I visited people were all very friendly. It made me want an RV just so I could visit!

Tips:

• To stay at this park make sure you make reservations ahead of time. While there is plenty of space, they do fill up and reservations will ensure your stay especially during the more populated seasons.

• Take advantage of the free wifi when here, just pulling in I checked it out and noticed it was pretty decent from all areas of the park.

• Bring your fishing poles! This park has a variety of fish in the stocked pond perfect for a relaxing day at the park.

All the pads are concrete and are for the most part level (2x6 under tires or less). Sites are pretty good size and come with a picnic table and overhead cover for it. Deer are everywhere. Has two dump stations on either side of the park. Lots of trees in the Deer Park area. Lots of full timers in the the limited full hook up sites. It’s quiet and pretty clean. Rates are very reasonable. Could use some updating. There is no WiFi and cell service is very limited.

RV camper here. I rate campgrounds from the viewpoint of wanting a place for a brief family vacation. When we arrived here we made a reservation online (easy) so that was good. But the woman up front had trouble finding our reservation and was unpleasant (happily we had a screenshot). I think she’s one of the owners. It wasn’t a great way to feel welcomed especially with COVID where most parks have contactless check in anyway. Despite the customer service, the stay was otherwise uneventful. 

Good: The park has beautiful river access and was very quiet. Anyone in the area can get the same river access by parking to the side of the bridge over the river on 190 and walking down. Landscaping is beautiful and security is good. Almost every site is a pull through. 

Bad: The park is almost entirely full of full time residents with everything from FEMA trailers and 60s era camper vans to new Grand Designs. Lots of sites have permanent structures/trailers/patios and there’s bits of trash in high use areas like around the dumpsters and picnic area. The sites are also gravel and not concrete. Sites are close together. 

Neutral: There are some cool looking cabins by the dumpsters. We didn’t go in them though, of course. 

Summary: This may be a peaceful option for long term residents but I wouldn’t vacation here if I was looking for a weekend getaway. Average rating.

Amazing resort. Great monthly rate. They go above and beyond with their amenities providing an indoor play room, full kitchen, business center, etc. Very family friendly resort with plenty of activities planned. Lots of full time families staying here long term which makes for a fun time. The one downside was that we didn’t get the sites that we had put a deposit down for. There seems to be a lot of turnover in the office so when we checked in it wasn’t the same lady who had helped us pick out our sites and reserve them. We travel with my parents and always try to stay next to them but they were unwilling to accommodate that even though they originally told us they would. All in all I do recommend this park for the amazing ambiance and amenities.

Interesting and enjoyable safari park with a good variety of animals. No self-driving through the park as in others we have been to. This one requires tickets, and a ride in a "side-by-side" Gator or similar vehicle with a very knowledgeable and friendly guide.  RV park is simply a gravel parking lot with hookups poorly placed completely at the rear of the site. 50a electric hookup only, so bring an adapter if you need 20a or 30a, and there is no breaker at post. Sewer is behind the power pole, so you need enough sewer hose to reach the rear of the site, and then around the post ... my 15' hose barely made it.  Much or the original park that opened 6-8 months ago is now taken up with equipment, and the individual who checked us in said they were "phasing out" the RV parking ... that is just as well I think.  What we were told is the recommended access route includes a very old looking one-lane 10 ton bridge. We came in further north and my passengers told me later that we crossed a (much nicer looking) 7 ton bridge on that route. Ours is a 7 ton rig, so we took the 10 ton bridge when leaving, and lightly drug the rear of our RV getting onto the bridge.  Sure glad we were not in our former 20 ton rig!!  I believe there is another route from US 84 that would avoid either of these bridges.  We paid $100 per night for this experience,

Unfulfilled obligations, improperly maintained grounds, lazy, unproductive, not motivated, inappropriate behavior with park females and just plain rude are all signs that San Gabriel River RV Park have bad park managers. Ms.On-Site Manager has said to more than one resident“if you don’t like it here, just leave.Your home is on wheels”. Below is a list of documented requests made thru the proper channels. Drainage ditch dug and left open for approximately 3 months creating unhygienic and unsanitary conditions breeding places for flies, mosquitoes, and other disease-causing organisms. Sewer leaks on the ground at the park owned septic tube, took 6 weeks to repair. The Texas Commission Environmental Quality has been contacted, and proper paperwork documented. Weeds growing 2 feet high, orange caution cones on side of street indicating danger; however, the cone is not visible because grass is covering the cone, large trees hanging on RVs, sewer leaks. Management does not read the electrical meters monthly resulting in incorrect reading and a guesstimate of voltage numbers thus overcharging residents. Allowing people to move back into the park that were kicked out in the past that did not follow the rules. Permitting a Beekeeper to retain beehives next to his RV, putting other residents at the park in danger of being stung or injured by the bees. Allowing residents to stay in the park that have not paid rent for several months. Using residents at the park to perform their responsibility and not paying them. If you are reading this feedback, you might think, oh, these people are just disgruntled x-residents. Why would you stay at the park? Management sent an eviction letter with reason stating“you are not happy” which was correct. We parked our Newmar at San Gabriel River RV Park about 10 days a month and wanted our site to look nice. When we would request maintenance, their response was always,“We’ll get to it”... And they never did. Taking into consideration all the above park maintenance issues and the eviction notice, we will move forward to another property where management listens, provides customer service, in a professional manner, maintains the grounds, and acts upon the requests of the residents with respect.

Decent little RV Park by Lake Waco. We stayed here during 20-degree weather in December, and it was½ vacant. It seems like it would be a happening lake party spot in the summer since it’s close to the marina with a bunch of docked house boats. Our indoor cats loved the birds and the deer that walked by our back window. You must use the gate code to both enter and leave the property. We had low water pressure during the freeze, and it came back normal after the temperatures came back up. We had a consistent issue with our electricity having high and low voltage. Our Watchdog surge protector was reading as high as 132 during the evening and drop below 110 during the day. The sign on the bathroom building says you can’t come and go after 11pm. That’s something that would be important for us to know since we travel for work and some of our contacts are night shifts.

My family camped out here for memorial weekend. We ended up near the entrance with full hookups for our Trailer. The spot are decent didn’t mind the area we were at. My only thing is the area could be better maintained. Playground had weeds and tall grass growing within the play area. Trees around the spots could use a pruning. The lake beach area wasn’t open for swimming due to a Lifeguard shortage. Overall though we had a great time for our first outing in our trailer though. The area is quiet.