Best Camping on the West Coast: 15 Campgrounds Worth Every Reservation Battle
The West Coast has some of the best camping in the world. That’s not hyperbole — it’s ancient redwood forest campgrounds where you fall asleep to an owl in a 2,000-year-old tree. It’s waking up at a Pacific beach camp to waves 50 feet from your tent. It’s high alpine lakes in the Cascades, volcanic desert under a billion stars in Eastern Oregon, and old-growth rainforest that drips moss and smells like nothing else on Earth.
The hard part isn’t finding good camping. It’s picking which one — and beating everyone else to the reservation.
Here’s our breakdown of the best camping on the West Coast, region by region, with honest info on what makes each one worth it and how to actually get a spot.
Table of Contents
Washington
1. Kalaloch Campground — Olympic National Park
Kalaloch sits on a bluff directly above the Pacific Ocean — 194 sites, most with nothing between you and the open ocean but a strip of grass. Fall asleep to waves, wake up to foggy Pacific mornings with bald eagles cruising the beach below. It’s one of the only campgrounds in the country where you’re literally sleeping above the ocean.
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The beach access is extraordinary — driftwood, tide pools, occasional whale sightings, and the famous Kalaloch Tree of Life clinging to an eroding bluff just north of camp. This is peak Olympic Peninsula coastal camping.
Reservations: recreation.gov. Books out months in advance for summer. Set a reservation alert for cancellations — they pop up regularly.
Olympic NP pass required ($30/7-day vehicle).
2. Hoh Campground — Hoh Rain Forest, Olympic National Park
The Hoh Rain Forest is one of the most otherworldly places in the United States — temperate rainforest averaging 140+ inches of rain per year, with ancient Sitka spruce and bigleaf maple draped in curtains of club moss so thick they muffle every sound. Camping here feels like sleeping inside a living cathedral.
The Hoh campground sits right in the heart of it, with the Hall of Mosses trail starting a short walk from camp. Elk wander through in the morning. The Hoh River sounds like white noise all night. It’s one of the great camping experiences on the West Coast.
Reservations: recreation.gov for some sites, first-come first-served for others. Go mid-week or off-season for walk-up sites. Ranger programs run summer evenings.
3. Deception Pass State Park — Whidbey Island
Deception Pass is Washington’s most visited state park for a reason — dramatic bridge, tidal gorge, multiple beaches, and over 38 miles of trails all within one spectacular park on Whidbey Island. The campgrounds here are excellent, with forested sites close to the beach and easy access to everything the park offers.
Sunset from West Beach with the San Juan Islands visible to the west is one of the great PNW camping evenings. Morning low tides reveal incredible tide pools along the rocky shores.
Reservations: Washington State Parks (parks.wa.gov). Up to 9 months in advance for peak summer dates.
4. Salmon La Sac — Cle Elum, Cascades
For a more rugged Cascade experience, the Salmon La Sac area in Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest puts you right at the edge of the Alpine Lakes Wilderness — between the Cle Elum and Cooper Rivers, with immediate trail access into one of the most spectacular wilderness areas in Washington.
The Cooper River Swimming Hole is a short walk from camp. Multiple trailheads fan out from the area into the wilderness. And the drive up from Roslyn through the Cascade foothills is gorgeous in its own right.
Reservations: recreation.gov. Free dispersed camping available just past the main campground — first-come first-served.
Oregon
5. Cape Lookout State Park — Three Capes Area
Cape Lookout occupies one of the best positions of any campground on the Oregon Coast — on a sand spit between the Pacific Ocean and Netarts Bay, with the forested headland of Cape Lookout rising behind. The Three Capes Scenic Route is right there, and the 5-mile Cape Trail through Sitka spruce to a headland viewpoint is one of the best coastal hikes in Oregon.
Important heads-up: Cape Lookout closes July 2026 for major renovations (electrical, water, foredune reinforcement). Check current status at Oregon State Parks before booking.
Reservations: reserveamerica.com. Up to 6 months in advance.
6. Harris Beach State Park — Brookings
Harris Beach sits at the very southern end of the Oregon Coast near Brookings, overlooking dramatic offshore rocks and sea stacks that catch extraordinary sunset light. One of the most scenically positioned campgrounds on the coast, with multiple loops, yurts, and easy beach access.
The Samuel H. Boardman Scenic Corridor just north of camp is some of the most dramatic coastal scenery in the state — natural arches, sea stacks, and headland hikes within 15 minutes of your site.
Reservations: reserveamerica.com. Year-round camping. Books fast for summer.
7. Beverly Beach State Park — Newport Area
Beverly Beach sits just north of Newport and is one of the most complete camping experiences on the Oregon Coast — full facilities, a tunnel under Highway 101 that takes you directly to the beach, close to Newport’s aquarium and tide pools, and the Yaquina Head lighthouse viewpoint nearby.
It’s less scenically dramatic than Cape Lookout or Harris Beach, but the facilities are excellent and the location — central coast, near a real town with restaurants and services — makes it one of the most practical bases for an Oregon Coast camping trip.
Reservations: reserveamerica.com. Year-round. Popular but more available than the southern parks.
8. Tumalo State Park — Bend
Tumalo State Park sits right on the Deschutes River just outside Bend — which means you have a river swimming hole at camp and easy access to one of the best outdoor adventure towns in the Pacific Northwest. Smith Rock, the Cascade Lakes, the Deschutes River Trail, and Bend’s world-class brewery scene are all within 30 minutes.
Great for anyone who wants developed camping (hookups, hot showers) with immediate access to serious outdoor adventure.
Reservations: reserveamerica.com. Up to 6 months in advance. Very popular in summer.
9. Alvord Desert — Eastern Oregon
Free, remote, absolutely wild. Camping on the Alvord Desert playa in Eastern Oregon is a genuinely unique experience — a dry lake bed so vast and flat you can see the curvature of the Earth, with Steens Mountain rising 5,000 feet directly to the west. The stargazing is world-class. The silence is total.
No facilities. No cell service. No fee. BLM land — you just drive out onto the playa and set up wherever feels right. Bring everything you need including extra water, and pack everything out.
Reservations: None needed. Self-sufficient camping only.
Northern California
10. Jedediah Smith Campground — Redwood National & State Parks
Jedediah Smith is one of the great campgrounds in the United States — 86 sites tucked right into an old-growth coastal redwood forest on the banks of the pristine Smith River. Trees that were ancient when Rome fell tower directly over your tent. The river runs clear and cold enough for swimming in summer. The Stout Grove loop trail starts right from camp.
This is part of a World Heritage Site. You feel that when you’re there.
Reservations: Reserve California (reservecalifornia.com) May through October. First-come first-served November through April. Book 6 months out for summer.
11. Kirk Creek Campground — Big Sur
Kirk Creek sits on a coastal bluff in Big Sur with direct ocean views from most sites — you fall asleep to the Pacific crashing on the rocks below and wake up to sea otters in the kelp. Sites are basic (no hookups, pit toilets) but the setting is about as good as it gets on the California coast.
Big Sur is right there — McWay Falls, Pfeiffer Beach, Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park, the whole incredible stretch of Highway 1.
Reservations: recreation.gov. Books out the day reservations open (6 months ahead). Set a cancellation alert — genuinely the best strategy for Big Sur.
Check road conditions: Highway 1 can close for slides. Caltrans QuickMap before you drive.
12. Kirby Cove — Marin Headlands
Kirby Cove is one of the most coveted camping spots in the Bay Area — four tent sites on a secluded beach below the Marin Headlands with a direct view of the Golden Gate Bridge from camp. You hike 1 mile down to the cove, set up your tent on the sand, and spend the evening watching the bridge glow against the San Francisco skyline.
It books out on the first available reservation date every single time. Set a calendar alert.
Reservations: recreation.gov. Opens 3 months in advance to the day — set a reminder. This is the one where you need to be clicking at exactly 7:00am Pacific.
13. Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park — Big Sur
Pfeiffer Big Sur is the developed anchor campground in Big Sur — 189 sites in a redwood canyon next to the Big Sur River, with hot showers, a camp store, and easy access to the park’s trails including the Pfeiffer Falls hike.
It doesn’t have ocean views like Kirk Creek but the canyon setting is beautiful and the facilities make it a great base for families or anyone wanting real amenities while exploring Big Sur.
Reservations: reservecalifornia.com. 6 months out. Sells out immediately for summer weekends.
14. Emerald Bay State Park — Lake Tahoe
Emerald Bay is the most photographed spot on Lake Tahoe — a stunning glacially carved bay with a small island and an old stone teahouse. Eagle Point Campground sits on the bluff above the bay with views directly down into the emerald water, the island, and the surrounding granite peaks.
The hike down to Vikingsholm (a Scandinavian-style mansion built in 1929) is right from camp. The Rubicon Trail connecting Emerald Bay to D.L. Bliss State Park is one of the best lake-level hikes in the Sierra.
Reservations: reservecalifornia.com. High demand — book at 6 months exactly.
15. Inyo National Forest — Eastern Sierra, Dispersed
The Eastern Sierra along Highway 395 has some of the best free dispersed camping in the United States. Inyo National Forest covers a massive swath of terrain from the Nevada border to the Alabama Hills, and dispersed camping is allowed throughout at no cost.
Wake up in a high-desert forest with Mono Lake nearby. Soak in Hilltop Hot Springs near Mammoth after a trail day. Camp under the Alabama Hills with Mount Whitney’s shadow on your tent. This is one of the great camping regions in the West — and most of it is free.
Reservations: None for dispersed camping (14-day limit). Download Inyo National Forest maps at fs.usda.gov/inyo before you go — no cell service in most areas.
How to Actually Get a Reservation
The brutal truth: the best West Coast campgrounds book out fast — sometimes within minutes of reservation windows opening. Here’s how to improve your odds:
Know when windows open. National parks and national forests typically open reservations 6 months in advance on recreation.gov. California state parks open on reservecalifornia.com. Oregon opens on reserveamerica.com. Washington opens on parks.wa.gov. Set calendar reminders for exactly 6 months before your target dates.
Go mid-week. Monday–Thursday nights are dramatically easier to book than weekends, and the campgrounds are genuinely quieter.
Check for cancellations. Sites get cancelled every day. The Dyrt Pro and Campnab both monitor for cancellation alerts at specific campgrounds — worth the small fee for highly competitive spots like Kirby Cove and Kirk Creek.
Have a backup plan. For every coveted developed campground, there’s free dispersed camping in the national forest nearby that’s usually just as scenic with less company.
Go shoulder season. May–June and September–October deliver great weather, stunning scenery, and a fraction of the reservation competition of July–August.
More West Coast Adventures
For more on exploring the best of the West Coast, check out our van life & road trip guide, the Oregon Coast road trip itinerary, and the best hikes in the PNW to plan the full trip around your campsite.
Happy camping, friend!
