Camp California Guide
California Assoc. of RV Parks & Campgrounds
Packed with travel planning information and consumer reviews, Camp-California.com is the mobile-device friendly counterpart to “Camp California! The Camper’s Guide to California,” which received the 2014 State Directory of the Year Award from the National Association of RV Parks & Campgrounds
Dardenelle Resort is paradise for many families across California and the West who happen to discover it. The remote park, located in at the 6,000 foot level on the road to Sonora Pass, has no Wi-Fi or cellphone service, which makes it possible for husbands to reconnect with their wives and parents to reconnect with their children without having to compete with Facebook, Instagram and other online distractions.
“It’s a wonderful place,” said Cindy Ferguson, whose family has camped at the resort every year for the past 19 years. “You can go hiking, fishing, horseback riding. They have campfires and other activities. We have met so many people up there.”
Dardanelle Resort is just one of more than nearly 300 resorts that are featured on Camp-California.com, the statewide travel planning website for camping enthusiasts.
“Camp-California.com is the most comprehensive camping resource available for people who are looking to discover California’s hidden camping treasures,” said Debbie Sipe, executive director of the California Association of RV Parks & Campgrounds, which hosts Camp-California.com.
Indeed, Camp-California.com is the online counterpart to “Camp-California! The Camper’s Guide to California,” which won the 2014 State Directory of the Year Award from the National Association of RV Parks & Campgrounds, which is also available online in digital format.
In addition to providing a searchable database of campgrounds, Camp-California.com posts letter grades from A to F for each campground that has received consumer reviews through GuestRated.com, the nation’s most thorough campground rating service.
Camp-California.com also gives consumers the ability to search for campgrounds that are pet friendly, big rig friendly, kid friendly or adults only. You can also use the website to search for campgrounds that offer specific amenities, like Wi-Fi or hot tubs or golf courses or tennis courts or even stables for your horses.
The travel planning website also offers press releases that highlight camping itineraries for many regions of the state as well as ideas for themed vacations, such as lighthouse tours or road trips to see California’s historic Spanish missions, while using campgrounds as base camps along the way.
Other Camp-California.com press releases highlight weekend getaways in conjunction with food, wine and music festivals, county fairs and sporting events — as well as campgrounds that are expanding or are adding new rental accommodations, amenities, activities or entertainment.
“The reality is that camping is much different today than it was 20 or 30 years ago,” Sipe said. “In the old days, campgrounds were places where you simply parked your RV or pitched a tent. Today, campgrounds often provide organized family activities and entertainment. Most privately owned and operated campgrounds also now provide furnished park model cabins, yurts, teepees and other unique rental accommodations.”
With Camp-California, you can find one-of-a-kind campgrounds like Rancho Oso Guest Ranch (http://www.rvonthego.com/california/rancho-oso-rv-camping-resort/), which is located in the coastal mountains between Santa Barbara and Solvang. In addition to offering bull riding demonstrations every Saturday morning, the park has some of the most unique rental accommodations in California: covered wagons arranged in circles around campfire pits.
Camp-California also enables consumers to discover award winning campgrounds like The Springs at Borrego RV Resort in Borrego Springs (www.springsatborrego.com), which has an onsite spa and wellness center where guests can have individual or couples massages.
Other unique getaway retreats featured on Camp-California.com include Santee Lakes Recreation Preserve in Santee. Operated by Padre Dam Municipal Water District, the Preserve has over 190 acres of stocked lakes and parkland as well as a 300-site campground with RV and tent sites as well as 10 fully furnished park model cabins with kitchens and bathroom facilities. Seven of the cabins are right on the water’s edge, while three of cabins are actually floating on the water. The cabins come equipped with air conditioning and heating as well as wireless Internet service and barbecues. Other campground amenities include swimming pools and a Jacuzzi, a water sprayground and regular playground facilities as well as a camp store that offers food and fishing tackle as well as canoe, rowboat and kayak rentals. Bicycle rentals are also available.
Camp-California.com also has an extensive database of music and food festivals and other special regional events, which makes it possible to find information and weblinks on a diverse range of activities ranging from the Motherlode Century Bike Ride on May 9 in Coloma to the Tequila & Taco Music Festival, which takes place July 18-19 at Riverpark in Oxnard.
For more information on fun things to see and do throughout California while camping or to order a copy of the print version of “Camp-California! The Camper’s Guide to California,” please visit Camp-California.com.