Guide to Top Local Campgrounds

Growing Up Roseville Magazine’s staff has come up with an extensive list of their favorite family-friendly campgrounds in Northern California. We hope you enjoy them as much as we do!

1. MacKerricher State Park: Located in Fort Bragg, this park offers various beautiful habitats: beach, bluff, dune, forest, and wetland. Tide pools are along the shore, and there are seals on the rocks, off the park’s coastline.

2. Gualala River Redwood Park: Relax amidst the magnificent Redwoods on the Gualala River, just 1 mile to the beach. There is a general store, ping pong tables, horseshoes, and karaoke on Saturday evenings.

3. Big Basin Redwoods State Park: Located in Santa Cruz County, the park has many waterfalls, hiking trails, and a new interactive nature museum.

4. Manzanita Lake: Located in Lassen Volcanic National Park, camp near a general store and cafe with soft-serve ice cream, espresso, hot and cold sandwiches, and more. Kayak, canoe, and paddleboard rentals are also available.

5. Summit Lake Campground: Located in Lassen Volcanic National Park, the campground has a beautiful and quiet mountain lake.

6. Collins Lake Campground: Located between Marysville and Grass Valley, this campground has a boat ramp, sandy beach, children’s playground, beach volleyball, shady picnic area, and general store.

7. Lake Francis: Located in Dobbins, a little over an hour from Roseville, Lake Francis offers fishing, kayaking, basketball, soccer, volleyball, swimming, hiking, and more.

8. Yogi Bear’s Jellystone Park Camp-Resort: Tower Park is located in Lodi and offers pools, hot tub, jumping pillow, bumper boats, mini-golf, laser tag, gem mining, water sport rentals, and more.

9. Sly Park Campground: Located by Pollack Pines, some lake-front campsites, hiking trails, water skiing, wakeboarding, canoeing, kayaking, fishing, cruising, and sailing are allowed on the lake.

10. Donner Memorial State Park Campground: Located on the shore of Donner Lake, this campground is popular for boating, fishing, water skiing, pedal boats, canoes, kayaks, paddleboards. It also has a history museum and a nature trail.

11. Bodega Dunes: Located in Bodega Bay, Bodega Dunes has large campsites, easy access to the beach, and is close to town.

12. Ice House: Located in El Dorado County on a large reservoir, this area has hiking, biking, jet skiing, and fishing.

13. Scotts Flat: Located just outside Nevada City, it has a playground, camper store, fishing, and boating available.

14. Camp Richardson: Located in South Lake Tahoe, it offers a full-service marina with boat rentals, lakeside restaurant, general store, mountain sports center, and icecream parlor are all within a short walk.

15. Lake Siskiyou Camp Resort: The resort has an on-site restaurant, arcade, sandy beach, and an inflatable water park that offers slides and trampolines.

16. McArthur Burney Falls Memorial State Park: Located northeast of Redding, the campground is forested and within a short walk to Lake Britton, fun for boating and swimming. There is a cute store at the campground where you can purchase supplies.

17. Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park: Located just south of Carmel, the park has gorgeous backdrops and water hole access. Just be sure to watch out for the poison oak. 18. Sunset State Beach: This peaceful campground under the pines offers picnicking on the beach and unmatched Monterey Bay views.

19. Calaveras Big Trees State Park: The park is home to the world’s largest trees, the giant sequoias. You will also find the Stanislaus River, Beaver Creek, ancient volcanic formations, natural meadows, hiking, biking, and beautiful nature trails.

20. Safari West: Enjoy the 400-acre private wildlife preserve located 12 miles north of Santa Rosa in Sonoma County and home to over eighty species of animals with luxury tent cabins and safari tours.

21. Raft California: Enjoy whitewater rafting and camping adventure trips on several rivers throughout Northern California. Suitable for families with kids ages four and up! Non-swimmers welcome. One night to 4-night trips available. Find them online to view the many trips they have to offer.