Chisos Basin Campground (Big Bend, Tx) — Big Bend National Park

My husband and I loved this place and would come back in a second BUT….it’s not for everyone. 16$ a night and needs to be booked on Recreation.gov The campground is tucked in a basin of the mountains. The road to get here is steep and windy but paved and beautiful! The sites are small, often unique and not level. So…if you are camping with a bigger rig. This is not for you. You will likely not fit in the sites and/or will be VERY unlevel. The sites are ideal for small vans/tents/campers. Some sites are honestly even unmanageable for any camper situation other than a tent. Most sites had a sun shade/gazebo with a table and a bear/javelina box. Some of the sites have a parking area on one side of the campground road and the actual site on the other side. Look closely on the website before booking to be sure the site will work for you! We had site 15, 17 and 41 for the days we were there and all worked for our Chevy van with the use of blocks for leveling. 43 and 47 also looked particularly nice to us. Site 16 is one where your actual site is across the street from your parking area. Also no generator use so beware of that. They don’t even like you to have your car idling for long so plan accordingly if you need power from a generator or your car. Otherwise this campground has all the things you’ll need other than electrical hookups and showers. Potable water, trash and flush toilets. Visitor center is close by and most trails are easily accessible from the campground. Don’t miss the sunsets from the window view trail! Amazing.

Getting to Big Bend National Park is part of the adventure, it is nowhere near anything other than itself, but for those who go, it’s so worth the effort. If you are going to camp in Big Bend National Park, make sure you spend a couple of nights in Chisos Basin. It is the quintessential National Park Campground – full stop. Neither the approach, climbing 2,000ft of winding switch back nor the campsites themselves are optimal(nor recommended) for any trailer longer than 20 feet. Our site (#22) just barely accommodated our tiny 15-foot trailer. So, take the size limitations on the website at their word. 

Fortunately, the camp host was completely on the ball, and moved us to a larger site that became available for 2 nights of our stay. When we first arrived in Big Bend back in 2013, we were able to get a campsite without a reservation, but those days are gone. Most of these campsites are reserved 6 months out, so plan ahead.  We snagged what had to have been a cancellation, just a few days ahead of time.  The campsites all have burly shade structures over the picnic tables, which are perfect for hammocking, as well as bear food containers. There’s not a lot of privacy between the sites, so you just have to go with the flow and get in to the communal vibe of the place. If you do, you’ll enjoy yourself all the more. 

Curmudgeons can go and rent one of the beautiful stone cottages available at the Chisos Mountain Lodge. The campground lies in the basin of the Chisos Mountains. Everywhere you look is worthy of a picture, and it’s difficult to know where to stop taking them, but they won’t do it justice. 

The hiking, right from the campground, is among the finest in the park. We highly recommend the strenuous, all-day, South Rim loop – an epic day well spent and views worth all the trouble it takes to get there. 

There is a visitor’s center a short walk away from the campground where you can get all the park information and necessary permits. In addition, there’s a small grocery store with ice, beer and wine as well as a few other necessary essentials. Gas can be found near Panther Junction, the main Visitor’s Center in the park. Otherwise, the town of Study Butte, some 25 miles away offers more opportunities for groceries, gas and supplies.

If you haven’t made any reservations yet because everything is full up, check out the nearby Texas State Park, of Big Bend Ranch. There are many campsites which lies along the Rio Grande river, just off of a well-maintained paved road that goes between Terlingua and Presidio, TX. The visitor’s center, where you get your camping permits, is located on the Terlingua side of the park, you can’t get permits in Presidio, so plan ahead!

We did a road trip from CA to TX and decided to camp at Big Bend NP on the way to Austin. Since we were traveling during their less busy season (first week of October 2019) we were able to find a site on first come first serve basis. It was a little warmer than used to, but it was not that bad honestly. Especially once night fall hit, it was chilly and comfy. Something I wasn’t a big fan of was that no camp fires were allowed, which I understand with the climate and all. But it was just so dark and I’m used to having a fire for light and hanging around having beers. The camp host was so kind! He gave us a lot of information on the area and let us know that there is a bear (aged at almost teen) who likes to roam the campground. He’s just a curious little guy and leaves. I was kind of excited to see him but didn’t end up seeing the guy. We hiked the window trail since we only had one day/night to explore the area unfortunately. But that was such a worthy hike! I had never seen anything like it. Campground overall very clean and beautiful with restrooms right nearby, showers are a drive up hill to the visitors center, and a camp host ready to help on site!

We stayed at Chisos in early March and loved it! March is apparently the busiest month in Big Bend NP so we made sure to get to the campground first thing in the morning to get a site— all the reservable sites were LONG gone by the time we planned our trip! There were a couple to pick from when we got there and more opened up over the course of the morning, though all 3 campgrounds in Big Bend were full every night we were there. The site we got was PERFECT! It was on the edge of the camp ground and tucked around a corner. Some of the other sites did look a little close to each other which was why I gave 4 stars and not 5. Most (if not all??) of the sites had a little their own picnic table, bear/javelina-safe food storage and a little canopy-like shelter for some shade.

The host was very nice and helpful when we arrived and the campground was very quiet.

Bathroom facilities were pretty standard— not super nice/fancy but had the essentials!

It was chilly in the mornings and at night without the sun to warm you up— long pants and a light jacket were perfect. It warmed up to shorts and T-shirt/tank top weather in the afternoons with the sun.

The lodge and campground are right in the basin of the mountains so you have 360° mountain views! The sunrise and sunset on the mountains was especially pretty!

Chisos was a great spot as it was close to a lot of hikes and central so we could adventure in both the western and eastern parts of the park with Chisos as our home base— so perfect! Many of the trail heads were at the Chisos Lodge (right up the road from the campground) and one of the trails actually had an entrance at the campground —very convenient.

Wildlife: we didn’t see too much!! A bunch of Mexican Jays, bunnies and hares, a coyote and a fox was about it!

Hikes: South Rim trail —our “long hike” —about 12 miles (trail head at the lodge)— it was AMAZING!! Definitely would recommend if you’re looking for a longer hike with rewarding views... definitely worth it. Even though it was spring break season and very busy in the park we didn’t see too many people on this trail and only saw other people every now and then.

Window View trail — “our short mountain hike” —5 and some change miles round-trip out and back. Trail head in the Lodge parking lot but also has a trail head in the campground!! (Just cuts off some milage!) Easier hike to a SUPER cool view through a “window” -like chasm where a waterfall flows when it’s rainier. The last mile or so felt a little steeper on the way back once we were more tired. We brought lunch with us and stopped along the way. This was a perfect hike to pair with another mid distance one in the afternoon.

Chimneys Trail — our “desert hike” this was a 4.8-mile round-trip out and back. The trail head is on Ross Maxwell Scenic Drive and is flat flat flat desert hiking— this was a new type of hiking for us and it was so neat because you can see SO far in the distance as you walk. The end of the trail is the “chimneys” which you can see in the distance when you start the hike. The trail leads right up to them so you can walk part way up one and walk around it looking at the old markings left behind! Super cool. We did this trail in the later afternoon so we were walking back as the sun started to set— very pretty!

We also drove to both the Rio Grande Village Campground and did the short nature trail there around sunset (best time to go I’d say!) and the Cottonwood Campground just to check them out.

The views here will change your life. Personally stayed at the Chiso Mountains campground think it’s the most scenic of the two campgrounds they have. The other campground has the store and I believe showers.

Best time to go is when the season just starts in my opinion which is fall early winter. Especially if you stay in the mountains campground. It’s cool/cold at night and hit during the day.

The hot spring is a must. The road to the trail is quite scary if you have anything bigger than a standard car. Your up against a wall on one side and a drop off of 20 feet on the other.

If you really want to test your endurance, the lost mine trail goes up a mountain. Well worth the treck. Take your time and you will get to the top.

If your over camping in tents and RVs, they also have a lodge in the Chiso Mountains, about a two minute drive from the campground. It has a restaurant as well as a gift shop.

There is only one gas station there so expect high prices.

Terlingua is the closest town and my group had dinner, and checked out the ghost town.

Please not, skunks are not afraid of you and they will check out your campsite whether you like it or not.

This review is specific to the Chisos Basin Group Campsites. I actually prefer the Chisos Basin Group Campsites over the regular Chisos Basin Campsites. The group sites require a minimum of 9 people and a maximum of 20 people. The group campsites are located on a separate loop with only 7 campsites. The regular campsites are located in a cluster with about 60 campsites side by side - there is little privacy. I've found the group campsites have a similar view of the Chisos Mountains and the valley. There is one restroom for the group sites which has sinks and toilets, but no showers. There are no showers in the Chisos Basin except at the Lodge. 

Three of the group campsites have sun shades (sites P, Q and R) and the remainder are exposed. If you can reserve a campsite with a sun shade it will be worth it. The sun and the wind can be very intense throughout the year. It is highly recommended that you secure your tent with extra guy lines and tent spikes. 

The Window Trail trailhead starts from one corner of the group campsites. It's a short and moderate difficulty trail with a scenic view of the valley and sunset. If you hike the Window Trail to see the sunset, be sure to bring a flashlight because it can be difficult to find your way back once the sun goes down. Other highly recommended trails include the Emory Peak Trail, Lost Mine Trail and the Santa Elena Trail.