Aubrey M.
Traveler
TravelerFR27 Landing
Open space, clearing for star link access, fits about 4 rigs, 3 firings
No water or amenities - close to road but quiet minimal traffic
Camping near Auburn, WA
278 campgrounds · Check availability for any dates.
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SUMMARY PRESENTED BY
Camping options around Auburn, Washington range from established state parks to wilderness campgrounds within a short drive of the city. Game Farm Wilderness Campground, located within Auburn city limits, provides 18 campsites with water and electricity hookups for tents and RVs. Dash Point State Park Campground in nearby Federal Way offers year-round camping with both tent and RV sites, while Lake Sawyer Resort in Black Diamond features cabin accommodations. Kanaskat-Palmer State Park, approximately 30 minutes east of Auburn, provides a more natural setting with tent sites, RV hookups, and cabin options along the Green River.
Many campgrounds in the region require reservations, particularly during summer months when sites fill quickly. Discover Passes are needed for day use at Washington State Parks, with annual passes available for $30. A camper noted, "Game Farm Wilderness Campground, open year-round, offers a unique opportunity to experience nature within the Auburn city limits." Most campgrounds provide basic amenities like picnic tables, fire rings, and access to toilets, though amenities vary significantly between primitive and developed sites. Cell phone coverage can be limited at campgrounds farther from urban areas, particularly those in the foothills of the Cascade Mountains east of Auburn.
Public lands surrounding Auburn feature diverse camping experiences from urban-adjacent parks to more remote forest settings. Campers frequently mention the convenience of having natural camping areas so close to city amenities. As described in feedback on The Dyrt, "The campground is in 500+ acre Tolt-McDonald Park, far enough away from any busy road so that there is no traffic noise, just the sound of the Tolt River rapids." While some campgrounds like Dash Point offer wooded sites with privacy between campers, others such as Dean's Campground provide more basic accommodations with fewer amenities. Waterfront camping areas are particularly popular, with several campgrounds offering access to rivers, lakes, or Puget Sound beaches, providing opportunities for swimming, fishing, and paddling during warmer months.
Best Campgrounds near Auburn (278)
1. Dash Point State Park Campground
"Firstly, I just have to say what a positive and amazing experience I had at this campground. The volunteers were friendly, kind and absolutely awesome to interact with."
"The campground itself is tucked into a beautiful, forested area with plenty of trees and privacy between sites. Ours had a tent pad, fire ring, and picnic table."
from $31 - $91 / night
Check Availability2. Kanaskat-Palmer State Park
"There is good system of trails, tons of picnic tables along the river, and good river access to the Green rivers. Campground is well maintained, clean bathrooms and showers available."
"It's close proximity to our house allows us to hook up the trailer after work and include a Friday night in our camping weekend!"
from $31 - $254 / night
Check Availability3. Saltwater State Park Campground
"My family stayed here for a night when we went out to Washington a few months ago. It was a nice little place."
"Pay showers ($1 for 3 minutes) and clean restroom with air dryer, pet friendly, lots of trails to hike and a beautiful beach area with a playground, seasonal/weekend snack shop, outdoor shower by the beach"
from $31 - $43 / night
Check Availability4. Netties Mountain View Retreat
"Convenient drive to Mt Rainier and Summit lake trail as well. Definitely worth every penny! "
"Convenient location near Mt. Rainier."
from $40 - $60 / night
Check Availability5. Game Farm Wilderness Campground
from $40 / night
Check Availability6. Sun Outdoors Gig Harbor
"Close by stores, trails, parks, harbor. Tacoma across bridge (10 minutes - $6.25 toll)."
"Costco, Home Depot, Albertsons and other shopping close by."
from $57 - $104 / night
Check Availability7. Lake Sawyer Resort
"If you can look past the rundown bathrooms and strict rules about dogs and everything else you’re doing then you can appreciate the beauty of Lake Sawyer every morning."
8. Enumclaw Expo Center RV Park
"There are several dump stations nearby. Very quiet and low key. It is situated next to a H.S. stadium so the game nights get a little bit loud but really not that bad. Showers are available too."
"All with picnic tables but you will be sitting right next to your neighbors if you choose the sites in middle section of park. No view of Rainier but views r very nearby."
from $35 - $50 / night
Check Availability9. Holiday Park Military - Lewis McChord Base
"Excellent location for those with military access to the base - active duty, retired or family. 30/50 amp hookups. Beautiful views of American Lake. Pet friendly."
"It is in the wilderness, on the lake, but it is also fairly close to stores and gas stations. Long term max is 28 days per spot."
10. Dean's Campground
from $24 - $46 / night
Check Availability
Drive Time
- 27 min from Seattle, WA
- 38 min from Olympia, WA
- 39 min from Bremerton, WA
- 1 hr 18 min from Mount Vernon, WA
Recent Camping Photos near Auburn, WA
504 Photos of 278 Auburn Campgrounds
Halsey M.
Seattle/Tacoma KOA - PERMANENTLY CLOSED
Sarah R.
Lake Sawyer Resort
jeremy G.
Dash Point State Park Campground
Debbie H.
Big Backyard
Paul Y.
Grove Getaways
mary F.
Enumclaw Expo Center RV Park
Wayne T.
WildHare Retreat
Shay F.
Kanaskat-Palmer State Park
John K.
Sun Outdoors Gig Harbor
Amy H.
Vasa Park Resort
Robert K.
Camp Murray Beach
Sue G.
Tall Chief Campground
Recent Reviews near Auburn, WA
1481 Reviews of 278 Auburn Campgrounds
Lee D.
LegendSun Outdoors Gig Harbor
An OK Sun Outddoors
General: 132-site RV park in beautiful Gig Harbor. The site layout is a bit wonky. Some are pull-through, some are back-in, some on concrete pads, and others (small tent sites) are just in a grassy area. Some have trees or foliage separating them while others have zero separation.
Site Quality: Varies. We had an electric and water site, located in a cul-de-sac near the tent sites. Our pad was shared by two sites. Fortunately, the site next to us was vacant. Completing the site is a picnic table. IMO the two best sites are 65 and 51.
Bath/Shower: Three stalls and three showers, and although they were clean, it was obvious they were not attended to during our two-night stay (I'm assuming there is a cleaning schedule, but it was not posted). Showers were a bit tight, but the water was warm.
Activities/Amenities: IMO, the nicest amenity this park offers is a small but nicely equipped exercise room. Other amenities include: a pet area (and dog wash), a well-equipped laundry room with an ironing board (but you do need to buy a special card), and a dump station (for an extra fee).
We appreciated a courtesy call the day of our arrival to let us know what to do if we arrived after the office was closed.
While not the fault of the RV park, it was located near the Gig Harbor Sportsman Club, and shots echoed throughout the park from the time we arrived at 5 pm until 8 pm, but fortunately only the first night. This was both annoying and disconcerting.
We opted not to pay the $35 “site-lock” fee. To me, this is a very annoying fee (and the reason for deducting a star), but fortunately we got the site we reserved. RV parks like this are expensive, and while they offer various amenities, they are not our favorite type of place to stay. Given the nature of our travels this summer, we will be staying in quite a few of them.
Darron S.
GuideRock Candy Mountain Trailhead
Great spot, Rock Candy trailhead
Bathroom, Internet, no water. Quiet. Legal. Safe. Beautiful.
- Darron S.Guide
Rock Candy Mountain Trailhead
Rock Candy dispersed 🏕️near Olympia NP
Anytime a notes dispersed Camp spot is for real, and has Internet I give an inmediate great review. There are several pull-out spots to park a car, van, or Camp. An RV could park here, as well. It is beautiful here, a raíz Forest. 1.5 miles to a gas station. 8.6 miles to a Safeway grocery store. No water.
Kimberlee H.
ScoutRainbow RV Resort
What?
First they said they had available spaces then they said they didn't.We drove 50 miles to come out here and they didn't have a space all of a sudden!
- jjeanne A.Guide
Glen Ayr Resort
Nice resort with lots of amenities
This is a nice campground, but I just needed a place to sleep so $60 was a little steep for me. There is also a motel here.
Sabriena E.TravelerTinkham Campground
Beautiful and secluded, but noisy
We had a great time and really enjoyed how secluded and spaced out many of the spots are. Having gone mid week, there were very few other campers, and it was lovely walking around the campground and strolling along a short 1 mile long trail to a mossy and wooded swamp. The temperature was great, had easy access to the river, and had plenty of shade and space at our site.
I will not that being so close to the highway does of course mean non-stop road noise, but I found it easy to tune out if I imagined the noise as a close by waterfall :)
Additionally the “potable water” consisted of one hand cranked pump that took quite a bit of work to get any water out of. Not to mention any water that did come what was rust stained and smelled of iron. That is truly my biggest grievance with this site. If I go again, I will be bringing extra fresh water. I should also note that the bathrooms were very dark, even during the day, and smelled pretty bad, but that’s to be expected from an out house.
Overall I would go again! It was gorgeous and any noise was easily made up for by the trees and moss and isolated sites ❤️
- LLindsay C.Traveler
Dash Point State Park Campground
Perfect for those new to camping
We took our 5 & 6 year olds on their first camping trip. We spent 4 days, 3 nights and all had a great time. We were in a tent site. The only reason I didn’t give it 5 stars is that some of the sites are quite small or very close to the neighboring spots. Our site was wonderful. We loved that it’s so close to the beach and trails for hiking. Best of both worlds.
Lyz F.GuideFR74 dispersed
This could be a perfect camping spot
You park your car at an upper level and then there’s a small trail that takes you down to a quiet and private river. The lower level hang out spot is right next to the river and would be way cooler if people stopped putting their toilet paper and used up poo powder in the fire circle. I would’ve liked to be able to use the fire circle on the upper level instead, but there was a mound of trash in there as well.
There is a small memorial right next to the upper fire circle that had some offerings left at the base.
Guide to Auburn
Camping opportunities near Auburn, Washington range from state park campgrounds to military facilities within a 30-minute drive. The region sits at the edge of the Cascade foothills with elevations from 80 feet in the Green River Valley to over 1,500 feet in the eastern areas. Most campgrounds remain accessible year-round, though winter camping requires preparation for average temperatures that can drop to 35°F with frequent rainfall between November and March.
What to do
Beachcombing and swimming: At Dash Point State Park Campground, campers can access both Puget Sound beaches and freshwater areas. "The beach is a short walk from camp, just long enough to make you feel like you earned your sunset view, but not so long that you regret your life choices. It's more of a rocky, muddy beach than a sandy one, but it's still great for exploring, skipping rocks," notes Saraj B.
Trail exploration: Forested paths provide hiking opportunities throughout the region. "The facilities were good and trails around are fun and easy enough for me and 2 kids. The beach and its tides are why we came," writes Ingrid M. about Dash Point State Park's trail system.
Mountain views: Camping locations east of Auburn offer mountain vistas. At Netties Mountain View Retreat, "We drive up nearly dark. The lights were magical. It wasn't until morning that our surprise was revealed by the mountain range and Mt. Rainier. The grounds were quite, the town quaint, and the host hospitable & kind," shares Marci W.
What campers like
Privacy between sites: Many campers value separation between camping spaces. "This campground is remarkable in the privacy between each of the camping spots, the bird life, the wild and deep forest vibes, and the walking trails," reports Brittany D. about Dash Point.
Access to water features: Kanaskat-Palmer State Park offers river access for various activities. "Short hike to river spots that are perfect for wading or fishing. 10 minute drive from Deep Lake which is beautiful and great for swimming and paddle boarding," writes Ashlie M.
Clean facilities: Well-maintained bathrooms and shower facilities receive consistent praise. "The washroom and shower is kept clean, as is the rest of the campground," notes Brittany D. about Dash Point State Park, while Kelly P. mentions Kanaskat-Palmer has "6 very clean individual (one person) bathrooms with a shower in each."
What you should know
Reservation requirements: Most campgrounds in the Auburn area require advance booking. At Game Farm Wilderness Campground, a reviewer advises: "Book early—reservations open January 1st!"
Security considerations: Park rangers actively patrol some campgrounds. "This campground is heavily patrolled by the park rangers. I usually have contact with them in my campsite at least twice a day... if you are a large group, like to stay up late and listen to music and/or party it might not be the campground for you," explains Kelly P. about Kanaskat-Palmer State Park.
Noise factors: Some camping areas experience regular noise disruptions. Jonathan H. notes about Saltwater State Park: "No joke- ALL day and night the planes felt like they were in our tent/heads. Every 3-30 seconds it was LOUD."
Tips for camping with families
Bathroom accessibility: Enumclaw Expo Center RV Park provides facilities for families needing reliable restrooms. "Clean and quiet" with "basic amenities," according to Mary F., making it suitable for families who need consistent access to restrooms.
Alternative swimming options: When river access seems unsafe, nearby lakes offer family-friendly alternatives. Kelly P. notes about Kanaskat-Palmer: "The riverfront accessed from the campground tends to be a bit too raging for my taste with children. We usually take the kids to the lake at Nolte state park (approx. 3 miles away) for water play."
Community kitchen access: Some campgrounds provide shared cooking spaces. Karen V. highlights a unique feature at Netties Mountain View Retreat: "The coolest thing is the host has a barn with a kitchen area for your to use at your convenience! It has a refrigerator, a table, and lots of cooking utensils and stoves etc."
Tips from RVers
Site selection matters: At Holiday Park Military - Lewis McChord Base, RVers note the importance of campsite location. "Full hookups, sites are a bit close, but the campground loop makes it feel spacious," explains Paul B.
Cell service limitations: Mobile connectivity varies significantly across Auburn-area campgrounds. Terry W. reports at Holiday Park Military campground: "Cell signal is very weak for t-mobile and trees prevent starlink from working well."
Leveling challenges: Some campgrounds require additional equipment for comfortable RV parking. Cody F. shares about Kanaskat-Palmer: "I only took away a star because it was advertised as ok for a Motorhome but the gravel pull through was so not level the jacks pushed the front tires 6 inches off the ground."
Frequently Asked Questions
What camping is available near Auburn, WA?
What camping is available near Auburn, WA?
According to TheDyrt.com, Auburn, WA offers a wide range of camping options, with 278 campgrounds and RV parks near Auburn, WA and 42 free dispersed camping spots.
Which is the most popular campground near Auburn, WA?
Which is the most popular campground near Auburn, WA?
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular campground near Auburn, WA is Dash Point State Park Campground with a 3.9-star rating from 75 reviews.
Where can I find free dispersed camping near Auburn, WA?
Where can I find free dispersed camping near Auburn, WA?
According to TheDyrt.com, there are 42 free dispersed camping spots near Auburn, WA.
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