We stayed again at site 183. All the sites are great really. Saw the mama bear and her cubs again…read moreand had a visit at night. Definitely lock your car doors, put food in the bear box! We walked up to the waterfall and it was beautiful.

The campground itself is absolutely beautiful, but unfortunately the staff made our experience very…read moreunpleasant. The staff was extremely rude and, at times, had a very aggressive approach when addressing us. Their communication felt unnecessarily confrontational rather than helpful or professional. The website also does not accurately advertise what guests should expect during their stay, which was very frustrating. Throughout the day, we felt like we were constantly being bothered and watched by staff. What made the experience even worse was hearing staff talk about us afterward. That is extremely unprofessional and made us feel uncomfortable during our stay. It's a shame because the campground is beautiful and has so much potential, but the way guests are treated can really ruin the experience. After this experience, I honestly don't know if I'll ever come back. I hope management takes these concerns seriously and works on improving both customer service and the accuracy of the information provided on the website.

Our first time at Camp Shelly... it's cool bc you get to select the site! Reasonably priced per…read morenight $60 for non-residents of Livermore. Spaces were pretty large compared to other camps we've been too. Clean bathrooms & free showers! No coins needed. Yes, we encountered a bear almost every day... bc we are in their home... but the rangers were awesome! They made it seem like the bears were "friendly" and shoo'd them away with ease. Make sure to keep your food in the large bear containers. Thank you rangers Katelyn, Gilbert & Drew!

I don't understand why Bob gave two stars to Camp Shelly for the second point "lack of…read moreOregon-ness". :( That's like going to a great Italian restaurant and docking a star because it's not in Rome. I'm not sure what camping fees are in Oregon so I can't compare, but this is California and I think it's pretty fair compared to most other campgrounds. Though I'm fairly certain everything is more expensive in California than other states, so that could induce a breathtaking moment... and not just because you're around 6,000' elevation. ;O) Unless a place is truly awful, say if the bathrooms stunk to the high heaven's which he cited they did not or service is inexcusably horrible, then I would give as low as two stars. I know the Rangers at Camp Shelly are outstanding and though the restrooms are rustic for most, it's clean. I respectfully ask that Bob reconsider that missing third star since it's a great campground and I'm going to tell you why. :) This is a wonderful little campground in beautiful S. Lake Tahoe which is operated by the Livemore Parks Department. It's a clean campground and cozy. It's likely not for hard core campers, but it's also not geared toward RV camping either and I think it's for everyone! It is an institution for many families of Livermore. This is a place many pine for the whole year long (no pun intended as there are Jeffrey Pines all about), I am one of those people. The bathrooms are clean and if you're lucky enough to have indoor plumbing (ladies) the outside of the stalls are painted in a lovely mural which is in the photos section. The Rangers are awesome and each Saturday night there is an old fashioned ice cream making/social and most importantly EATING! Campground kids are encouraged to come over and give the ice cream machine a crank. It's a great time to meet other campers and let the kids burn off energy and get a taste of ice cream made the old fashioned way. On the weekends LARPD Rangers offer interactive programs such as Astronomy walks/talks and Wildflower walks/exploration. One thing I especially love is the lack of poison oak that one might find in lower elevations. There are mosquitoes so do bring protection or, if you're like me, DEET it up and wear three layers of clothes. I try to encase my body in the Fortress of Solitude. There is a horseshoe pit, basketball, ping pong table (that was being refurbed last summer, but I hear it's making a comeback for 2012!) and yes....oh yes, volleyball. If you're lucky and stay during the time when Camp Shelly competes with neighboring Camp Concord in a volleyball tourney for the Golden Toilet Seat... well, good times are had by all. The campground is very chill and small enough to where you can feel comfortable letting your kids wander around, dig in the dirt and build forts on the hillside by your camp. It feels like a mini community and is very family friendly. Oh, when I say "family" I'm also including your four-legged canine family. Camp Shelly is dog-friendly and our dog loves it up there. We go up 2-3 times in the season and sometimes see friends we know from school/community. Other times we find familiar faces we see regularly at the Farmer's Market, but may not know personally. It's a cool thing to go back each year and see some of the same faces and it's fun to see the kids grow from year to year. It's always great meeting folks from outside of our community those that come from other cities or other states. There are some great hikes and wonderful places to visit nearby. One of our family favorites is the hike up to Eagle Lake. Our dog LOVES the climb and the jump into a snow-fed Alpine lake. If you're lucky and go early in the season (and winter has been good) sometimes you can have a snowball fight with what little snow is left. Baldwin Beach is right down the main drive from Camp Shelly and Camp Richardson is a 5 minute drive. There is dog-friendly Kiva Beach just down the road in case your pup is a water hound like ours. Another of our favorites is the Camp Richardson Ice cream shop, but remember to ask for a KIDS scoop because the regular scoop is bigger than a toddler's head. The trip up to Angora Lakes is wonderful and our daughter enjoys kayaking or doing the paddle board. Camp Shelly is a place worth checking out. It's become a place of lasting lifetime memories for many people I know, including our own family. As soon as Labor Day passes and Camp Shelly closes we do a countdown to opening day. Even as I write this I can smell the faint vanilla-bark of the Jeffrey pines, hear the ocean like cadence of the breeze making it's way through millions of pine needles, the crackling of our hyptnotic campfire, the sound of crickets lulling me to sleep, kids playing and campers having real exchanges in a simple world. Camp Shelly is a fantastic place to enjoy "just being". I hope you come take a look for yourself and make some lasting memories of your own. :)

Pros: Managed to find a FCFS spot at 8pm on a summer night…read more Cons: -sites are pretty stacked on top of each other. -It was advertised online as $42 but upon arrival learned there was an additional $10 fee (lucky for them was in a pinch). - they advertise showers but these are coin operated and an additional fee (feels like you get nickel and dimed wherever they can) - close proximity to road/main strip leads to residual noise overnight (bring earplugs)

Love the campsites, spacious. The two office people are very nice and helpful. Just not happy no…read moreelectrical or water hook ups. Have been going there for over 20 plus years.

The Tahoe Valley Campground deserves a five-star rating due to the exceptional customer service…read moreprovided by the TVC Team. The campground itself seems to be in a constant state of change upgrading utilities, roads, signage, and general aesthetic improvements. A big shoutout to the grounds person who is constantly planting flowers, cleaning up entry and area flowerbeds etc... it makes a difference and improves the looks of the campground. The campground is walking distance to stores, pubs, music venues and bike/pedestrian trails. They have activities for children, a swimming pool and play area. The coffee vendor (Tahoe Mountain Grind) on site with pastries and delicious drinks is a plus too. They even have neighborhood bears that visit contributing to the camping experience. We enjoy our stays and camping experiences at Tahoe Valley Campground and will be returning. Mike & Donna Botto

Last year we stayed here and it was amazing so much fun great coffee in the am. We've been married…read morenow for quite some time and it was actually our first time camping alone by ourselves with some other family members and it was just so easy. The restrooms were so close the fact that they have a pool there you know just so many things about this campground that I could rave and go on and on about they have everything you would need in that convenience store if you forget something. So many places are close by food department stores anything that you'd want which is kind of different you're not used to going somewhere I'm feeling like you're out of touch with everything but then so close. It's really available to you. We love this place so much that we are going again this year and I actually thought I already had reviewed this place have to come back and review it again, but I just wanted to get on and say when I called the Call center I spoke to a young lady that was absolutely phenomenal. She was just so pleasant to talk to very helpful. Very patient made sure that I was gonna be able to be close to my church family, which is really awesome to me.. Xiomara was a pleasant employee! I would definitely hire her for one of my businesses Tent site is up 6 people a dog or two and they Rv sites cabins etc I added a site and they changed my site with no call no nothing

I love Tahoe but for some reason I don't go very often…read more Last few times I've gone we have tried to do a few new things besides our normal gambling and drinking-they have varied from boating, hiking, and this time we decided to have a lake day. So when we looked for a spot that was pretty close to the casinos, we chose Camp Richardson as the spot to spend a day hanging ou at the lake. Parking for Camp Richardson is onsite and it's a daily pay rate....Im not 100% sure what the rate is because I found parking on the main street and parked for free and just walked in. Once inside, it's an open beach and you pretty much just have to find a spot and claim it with your beach towels and beach stuff. Once you got your spot,we ran towards the water and started to cool off a bit with all the swimmers and others playing in the water. On this particular Saturday it was crazy busy though,it was like we had to scratch and claw to find an open spot for our stuff-not sure if it's always like that during summer weekends. There are public bathrooms centrally located near the entrance-they are gender neutral and I think I saw 6 of them. Now we brought both food and drinks to Camp Richardson for our beach day but for those that don't there is also the very popular "The Grove" located at the heart of Camp Richardson for those who want to enjoy a sit down meal or maybe a drink at the bar or maybe just listen to some live tunes at the beach. Overall we spent maybe three hours at Camp Richardson before heading back to our cars and to our hotel to continue our Tahoe adventure but I would definitely say the time spent there were incredibly awesome and I cannot wait to do the same thing again next time I am in Tahoe for a beach day. Camp Richardson is a really fun place. P.S. For those interested, there are cabins for rent on site at Camp Richardson for overnight stays.

Unfortunately, this was one of the worst lodging experiences we have ever had…read more My fiancé planned a birthday surprise for me, and we traveled all the way from Chicago to Lake Tahoe. After a long and exhausting drive, we were looking forward to relaxing and enjoying the trip. Instead, we were completely shocked when we arrived. The room shown in the Booking.com photos was completely different from what we actually received. The pictures showed a clean, bright room with white bedding. In reality, the property looked like an old wooden shack that had been forgotten in the 1990s. The windows were damaged, and the overall condition of the room was extremely disappointing and did not match the photos or description at all. The location was also extremely noisy. Our windows faced the restaurant, and after 9 PM the noise was very loud. We contacted the administration, but were simply told that it was the restaurant and that they could not do anything about it. We were under the impression that the restaurant was supposed to close at 9 PM, but the noise continued. Another major issue was the spa. Booking.com listed a spa as an available facility, which was one of the reasons we expected to be able to relax there. When we arrived, the spa was completely closed and not operating at all. We were not informed about this beforehand. The bedding itself was technically white and appeared clean, but it was covered with a dark burgundy/red blanket that made the room feel extremely uncomfortable and, honestly, almost like a funeral room. We had booked two nights because that was the minimum stay available. After seeing the actual conditions, we were so shocked and disappointed that we could not relax or enjoy our stay at all. What was supposed to be a special birthday surprise turned into an extremely stressful experience. We contacted management and requested a refund because the room did not match the advertised photos and an advertised facility (the spa) was not available. Unfortunately, our request was refused. For us, this was a complete mismatch between what was advertised and what we actually received. We would absolutely not recommend this property and would not stay here again. 0/10.

Aww this place says it's closed but they reopen this year. They've been closed for 4 years…read more Apparently they've been cleaning it up. We tent camp this past weekend July 22-23. The cool thing is we were able to get a last minute reservation as we booked it two days prior. But it's very expensive for a tent site. $140. Yikes. We never pay that much but when you're looking for something on a weekend quickly this worked. This was probably one of the more expensive KOA campgrounds. And the tent sites are right near the river. So you really couldn't hear the road all you can hear was the river. Most of them are kind of small although 161 and 162 are decent size and river access. Ours was 160 but it worked for 2 people 1 car. Definitely couldn't get anymore on our site. They definitely have lots of RV spots but check for what size will fit before booking. The roads around the campground are pretty narrow. There's absolutely no fires right now. El Dorado county has put a strict ban on them since we had Caldor fire that ripped through here 2 years ago. Propane only no charcoal either. This campground was saved. Although they're fixing things up around there. The bathroom next to the office was pretty clean and free hot showers. I think they need to bring in an extra garbage can and recycle bin. It literally was overflowing Sunday morning. Also they need to bring bear bins for each campsite as this is beer country! Now that it's open, they will be back on the hunt. Apparently the lady that checked us in, said they had a couple cubs there just the other night. Also at check in, she said they're going to be bringing in airstreams next season to rent as well. Oh, the swimming pool is in construction so not available right now. This is a really good location too for hiking, biking, boating, rock climbing. If they're open in the winter which I'm not sure, they'll be snowshoeing at the state park across the way from there. Enjoy!

Wouldn't even rate a one star! We stopped by this KOA because we were considering staying there in…read morea few weeks and wanted to look at the camping sites. We drove around 2 hours to get here specifically for that reason. It was our first time there, and we were following the map the young woman in the office had given us. As we were driving through, a silver truck aggressively started following closely behind. We pulled over to let them pass, and the truck pulled up, stopped abruptly and blocked us. The woman in the passenger seat asked what we were doing in a not so friendly manner. We explained that we were looking for campsites and lifted up the map to show her that we were given at the office. Instead of offering assistance, she was extremely rude and told us we needed to follow the road. When we explained that we were following the map, she responded, "No, you weren't. You wouldn't have gone that way." We understand that we may have misunderstood the directions, especially being first-time visitors, but there was no reason to treat us that way. A simple, "You're going the wrong way, let me show you where to go," would have been completely different. Unfortunately, the interaction left such a bad impression that we decided to leave. If this is an example of how KOA treats its customers, we will not be staying at a KOA. Customer service matters, especially when you're trying to decide whether to spend your money at a campground.

We had a fantastic experience on a 1 day trip on the South Fork American River. We had three 11…read moreyear old kids in our boat and the guide (Parker) was so patient and friendly to them! The trip was just the right balance of excitement and feeling safe. Our guide was awesome and clearly an expert at navigating the river. Also highly recommend the campsite - nice flat sites and clean showers/bathrooms.

To be honest, they had me at "teachers raft free"! Cherry on top of a great summer break adventure…read more We were camping down the road at Hipcamp. (Highly recommend) and did the half day trip. We all loved it. Our guide was fantastic, navigated like a pro. The lunch at the end was nice, but just a cold beer would have been better! Highly recommend this outfit.