Nice place for campers. Beautiful location. Nice and quiet for the most part. Great neighbors. Fire pits, full hook ups, tents, showers, etc. Been here about 5 times in the last 8 years, never disappoints. They even sell firewood here. Everything you may need is close by. read more

San Clemente State Beach - Sunset - Beaches Near Me - San Clemente, California

I'm a little starstruck by the fact I got a reservation for a campsite at San Clemente State Beach on a whim. I checked out the town of San Clemente two weeks ago and last week decided I wanted to return immediately to explore the town and beaches more. Talk about "The Secret", I set my intention and lo and behold there was a single campsite available. If you are not from California and not familiar with California State Park campgrounds then you may not know this is IMPOSSIBLE. Yet here I am writing a Yelp review telling you it happened. Not sure I understand the poor reviews of the state beach for the public campgrounds. Hello... car camping means families with kids (noise in the morning) and partiers who don't have a backyard of their own (noise at night). It's something I relegated myself to long ago and simply pack ear plugs. If you want to have solitude then unfortunately you need to go back country, which precludes camping on U.S. beaches though you can always fly somwhere to camp remotely on a beach. Modernity has brought us many advantages but solitude in a public campground is not one of them. The beach is blow your mind fantastic. The campground is perched on sandstone cliffs above the beach and a precious railroad with the Amtrak Surfliner occasionally coming by. The waves were just about perfect for bodysurfing the weekend I was there. Fabulous! Plus San Clemente has so much to offer in town. The $35 nightly staty is way cheaper than the $300 you might spend to stay in a hotel on the same beach near the pier. read more

God I love camping. Don't get me wrong - gettin' a spray tan and rocking some scandalous outfits for a weekend in Vegas is fun, but there's something much more relaxing and stress-relieving about sitting around a fire pit, sipping on a beer and eating grilled steak and corn like a goddamned rabid hyena while your hair slowly morphs into one long salty knot. I just returned from a few days of kickin' back at San Clemente State Beach and it was just a joy. Each campsite has a covered picnic bench, a fire-pit and a grill with enough space for a few tents and a pop-up if you have it. If you're a surfer, SCSB is a must-see - you've got great surfing out front, and Trestles (the HOME of all-that-is-surf) is just a short drive away. $35 a night (although someone said it was "pricey") is nothin' when you take into consideration the 6 - 8 people you can fit on a campsite and the vicinity to one of the most beautiful beaches in the state. Next time we stay we'll definitely join the early-morning first-day booking rush (it was a couple months ago, I don't quite remember the exact date) to attempt to get a bluff site - one of the campsites with a view of the ocean. We were a couple spots back and spent our time at the campground with a spectacular view of the very loud, very large (both in number and weight) family camping in three separate spots surrounding our camp. I was pretty impressed, I gotta admit, at how many stories the dad could inject the phrase "how 'bout them apples" into. The walk down to the beach takes about 5 minutes, although coming back up was definitely a glute workout (the family next to us did it once and then pronounced it "definitely not worth it"), but I'm pretty sure I owed it to myself to do it everyday after how many s'mores I jammed in my pie-hole every night. Keep an eye out after dark for skunks (I almost kicked one on a bleary-eyed walk to the bathrooms one night), and seriously, CONTAIN YOUR FOOD WELL. The ant situation can get kiiiiinda out of hand. My biggest gripe of the weekend is the mandatory $15/day for additional cars. I get $15 for the week or $5 a day, but YIKES. That's as expensive as parking in downtown San Diego. Then again, that money goes to maintaining the beautiful campground as opposed to paying for the twelfth beach house of the orange-faced Jones family of Ace Parking. I can't wait for next summer to do it again. Let's hope this time we aren't subjected to arguments about whether SCRAMBLED EGGS ARE BETTER COOKED IN BACON FAT, LARRY, HOW MANY TIMES DO I HAVE TO TELL YOU read more

I took my three little girl minions camping this past week by myself, and we had a blast. We had site 76, which had a pretty decent ocean view, super close to the bathrooms, and the path to the beach was right next to our site. We had a great first night, the second night was horrific because we had a motorhome full of dude-bros pull up and proceeded to be insanely loud and rude. Including puking in the bushes in my campsite at 4:30 am. I was not a happy camper then. Anywho, after the dude-bros skipped out, it was a great time. There were families everywhere, kids riding bikes and scooters everywhere. The path down to the beach is pretty steep, the path on the far side of the parking lot is longer, but less steep. My 3 year old was fine going up and down many times a day, so it's not too bad. It sucks when you're the momma schlepping the stuff back and forth many times a day... The beach itself was great, there are lifeguards patrolling pretty frequently. Surfers (eyecandy) were numerous, paddleboarders everywhere, and people were in the water. It's a shore break, like most in SoCal, maybe not the best for little little kiddos. My older girls were able to get past it with no problem, but they're pretty strong swimmers.They also loved running under the tunnel whenever a train came by. There's a little reef about 400 yards out in the water that is always covered by seals. You can hear them every once in a while. Reservation said up to 3 vehicles, but we had to pay $15 a day for our third vehicle. That was why I knocked off a star. Grrrrrrr. Bathrooms are ok, I have a bathroom phobia, so I'm not the best judge of them. bring sandals for the shower and hand sanitizer. Lots of hand sanitizer. Junior ranger program was a huge plus- my kiddos loved it. Sites 74-90 are the best- anywhere on that loop has the best views. The primo spots are 82, 83, and 88. Good luck getting them! As previous Yelpers said, there are ants. EVERYWHERE. I carry DE with me and sprinkle a perimeter around my camper tires and jacks, but they still found a way in. Probably has to do with my minions and their grubby ways. No biggie though, they don't hurt anything, and quick wipe with Simple Green and a paper towel took care of them. I had a pretty interesting run in (or run after, if you will) with a skunk on my way to the bathroom. In his defense, he only wanted the left over s'more that was smashed on the bottom of my shoe. While I was wearing it. read more

My family and I just got home from a week camping here. I was extremely pleased with how friendly the rangers were in accommodating us. The last day I took too long to move my trailer and vehicle to the day use parking lot and by the time I left our campsite the day use was full. I had nowhere to park and my family had already left for the beach. I went and asked the park rangers what my options were and Marie went above and beyond helping me find a solution. After a couple failed ideas she made a phone call and ended up letting me stay in a reserved campsite until that afternoon so we could enjoy one more day at the beach as a family. Her attitude was extremely positive and willing to help. I learned my lesson to get to the day use sooner and it made our whole trip a success being able to end on a positive note. Thanks Marie you are awesome! read more

This was supposed to be our first trip with our restored pop up trailer, well low and behold the trailer was not done and we had to do tent camping. I was a little worried because I saw they had a full dedicated RV camp area. These looked like mostly paved sites with full hook ups. I also saw a dump area if you need to dump your tanks after a weekend. First tip is getting there. After you exit the 5 you will head down a canyon. About 1/2 down on your left you will see a driveway, that is the entrance to the campsite. If you pass it you will end up at the beach parking. Quick U turn and you can hit the driveway. We arrived early (check-in at 2pm) and the ranger told us to check our site. If it was empty we could set up, if not we could park at overflow and wait. No worries as out site was empty. We got setup and decided to talk a walk to the beach. The path the the beach is not a long on, but it is steep!! We spent a little time at the beach and decided to head back because it was a bit overcast and cool. I really wish it was a nicer weekend as the beach look pretty nice to hang out at. The walk back up is short, but steep and sucked. If you have kids or a lot of gear be prepared for 5-10 minutes of suckville! Our site (73) was a bit busy with traffic, but overall it was not bad. Nice table and a fire pit. There is also a bbq grill, but we did not use it. Bathrooms where clean and well stocked. We are planning on another weekend trip here and it is pretty close and cheap enough to make it well worth the drive! read more

I don't think I'll be camping here again. My friend and I decided to go on an impromptu camping trip so we decided to head over to San Clemente State Beach. Going through the campground everything looked good so we picked our spot and set up camp. First off, we wanted firewood and we knew that the campgrounds sold bundles cheaper than the Ralphs down the road (which seems to be the only grocery store in the town). When we asked for a bundle the ranger said that they are all out. So now we have to get into the car and drive out of the campgrounds to go to Ralphs to get some wood for the fire. Now this doesn't have anything to do with the campgrounds but this Ralphs is tiny and very overpriced. So the first night there and everything is great so far. You can hear a lot of people still but it wasn't too bad. We had no neighbors so it was good. Around midnight the guy across from us in his trailer comes out and turns on his generator. Now this thing was a monster and he left it on the whole night. On top of that around 2 am (and we were still up by the fire) a huge RV comes through and is at the campsite diagonal from us. The thing is though, they keep their RV lights on which are shining directly at us. They were left on for over an hour and to which no one came by to tell them to shut them off or tell the guy across from us that his generator was too loud. Well so far everything has been neighbors and not really the campsite but in the morning we were woken up right when the sun came up. Why? Because there is noooo shade! There are no trees to cover your tent and no shade to hide behind. We were baked in our tent and couldn't go anywhere to get cool. The only think I really liked about the place was the awning for the picnic table and the view of the beach when you walked through the campgrounds. Other than that, with the neighbors keeping me up and the sun waking me up I was not a happy camper. read more

I personally don't like big crowded beaches. This beach it's a hidden jewel and is definitely not attracted to all the tourist. So if you like going to the beach but hate the chaotic traffic and looking for parking this is definitely the beach to go. This beach has a 2.5 Mile trail on solid ground along the train tracks. Perfect for running, walking the pet or simply walking to enjoy the view. The rail road tracks makes this beach very unique. Parking lot its significant big but it can get fill quickly on the weekends. The beach has restrooms with showers and a ice cream shop. We arrived at 12:30PM on a Sunday and we were able to find parking and there were a few other spots available. read more

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I love beach camping and this spot has it all! The campground is up on top of a bluff and the spot I stayed at was 157 across from the restrooms and showers (2tokens pr person to shower/warm)very spacious, 3 car parking, fire pit on site, table and benches with a wooden shade structure which was ideal for the hot days. Walk to the beach: Since I had a pregnant wife and toddler + all my surfing gear, toys, etc...I chose to grab my car for a short drive to the Day use parking area; I would leave my car there and take all my things from there to the beach which worked perfectly! There are bathrooms and showers next to the parking area too.. The way down to the beach: For me this is one of the highlights of this campground; going down the trail gives you the feeling that you're somewhere else. Beach: The beach, sand and water are clean..lifeguards on site are very friendly. Surf: If you want to surf point breaks then you can do a 15 mins walk south and Cottons, Uppers and Lower Trestles are right there or if you're okay surfing the beach breaks right in front gets good too... lefts & rights peaky kind, ramps for air attack. Best beach breaks seems to be in between La calafia beach parking and the campground. Night Visitors: Saw a few small skunks at night but they were harmless just looking for whatever food crumps were left behind by us humanoids. We enjoyed this spot and will def be coming back for more... Ocean view spots are hard to get, great demand for these: 82,83,85,88,89,90 read more

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PROS: Amazing spot to go camping IF you are a beach person! Cleaner and more family friendly then San Onofre Campground and still super close to perfect waves. My dad and I were blessed to hit up this campground right before the Labor Day crowd...so we had somewhat peaceful camping and epic red-flag waves! Awesome trip...clean beach style bathrooms and coin-operated showers. Bike path and hiking paths attach to campground and the beach is a short walk under Metro tracks to get to. CONS: Don't go on holiday weekends or you will be surrounded by noisy party crowds and tons of kids! Also, if you see chalk around campground place your stuff within chalked lines...(Chalk is to keep the hundreds of ants off your tent and stuff)..or you can do what we did and pour water over tables and around are stuff last night and spray ant killer in the morn, and you'll be golden. Last but not least, keep in mind that these beaches are near the military training camp so don't flip in your hear gun shots and explosions during the late night and early morning! OH and if they're spots available away from main road, book those...after listening to freeway traffic instead of ocean waves all night and morn,we learned the hard way.. And remember.. your at the beach.....Enjoy! Heehee read more

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The state park needs to train their rangers to treat people like customers, not criminals. We've been renting their amphitheater ($100 for the day) for several years now and they do not accommodate you with a place to park for load-in/out. The result is that a ranger will undoubtedly come and harass us for driving into the dirt parking area and power trip like he's just solved the crime of the century. Chill out guys, you work at a state park where people go to have a nice weekend. The state parks would do well to replace their rangers with a private security company that would be subject to customer reviews. The beach here is beautiful, with a few sandy canyons to explore and great waves when the swell is pumping. Or you can walk to Cottons for some nice lefts. read more

Cool campground. Visitors center/ gift shop is nice with a very friendly and knowledgeable gentleman working there. But! LOTS of skunks at night! Be sure to put your trash away at night or they'll be inside it! read more

The good: Beautiful clean beach, safe swimming for children and we saw dolphins swimming by every morning .Bathrooms and showers are clean and have hot water. Beautiful views if you get a good spot. 87,88,89,90 are wonderful. Train that runs by is silent. Here is a website with pictures of all the camping spots http://www.campsitephotos.com/campground/San-Clemente-State-Beach. The Bad: (depending on who you are). If you like children great because they are everywhere and since I am a teacher kids and vacation don't mix. It's a great family camping spot. Not great for a romantic weekend, I love dogs but not everyone does and dogs are everywhere,RVs everywhere. Go for the relaxing beach not relaxing campsites. Loud party atmosphere. On top of your camping fee you must pay $15.00 for parking. Last when we arrived there was a ton of trash in our campsite which we had to clean up. It seems to be a party spot for may of the college kids in the area.We would go back with a group or if we had kids but not on our own. read more

What the heck happened to this place??!! Our family has been going here for years and after our last stay this April, I literally want to stab myself in the eye. I noticed the past couple of years they have closed down half the sites in the park. They say to underfunding but CA Stare parks had a surplus that they got in crap for. Tsk, tsk. Now, it's like a ghost town. Kids have no one to play with, no neighbors to chat up and the old hag at the entrance, that thinks she runs the place, should be fired. Oh, she was last summer's experience. No, we don't go there to party or expect it to be quiet but really at any point noise would be a 4 star recommendation...or even breathing. So instead of attracting family fun weekends we now have one night drop in of drunk retards. Awesome! I have a handicap pass and my daughter came to drop off my leg brace but there was a new rule made by the people who work at the park, not the State, that you can't just come on without paying a fee. Funny, other state parks don't do that but since it was practically scribbled in crayon, it must be true. Stupid me, I mentioned that they cant just make up rules only to be insulted about my disability. Nice one. No more San Clemente for us. Perhaps get rid of the State Park workers who have been there too long and hire young staff who want to be there and remember we are the customers or should I say families just looking to fill memories for our kids. God forbid we do that!! read more

Great campground! We camped here in October and had a great time. The campground was nice and clean, easy to get to and set up on. The facilities were in good repair and kept clean. The park rangers were great, super friendly and it seemed like they were always working on the place, emptying trash cans, sweeping up, clearing brush, etc. The actual beach access is down the hill from the camping area, not super walkable with small kids, but your camping decal lets you park for free in the beach lot, so no biggie. FYSA: Skunks, lots of them. They weren't really bothersome, but it was interesting/unnerving just watching them cruise around in their little herd, looking for scraps around the campsites. read more

Def a great place to go camping. Very affordable and if you get a certain spot you CAN BRING YOU DOG!!!!!!!!! Hell yeah, this ment the world to me. However, you cant bring them on the beach :( but its cool, some people don't know how to pick up after their pets and it affects all of us. Very beautiful location, try to get a spot like 86, that what we had and it was adjacent from the water which made it extra beautiful to wake up in the morning. Every campsite has a table, benches, and fire pit. You have to trek down this large hill to get to the water but its well worth it. The only bummer about the trip was the fact it was cold. ugh, but that's no ones fault, it was still nice mainly because I like over cast. Oh, but make sure you throw trash away and store food in a cooler or in your car because the SKUNKS come out to play at night! They ate my dogs bowl of food then tore open his bag of food and were fighting so loud it woke us up. Super scary cuz all we could do is watch in silence. How do you scare a skunk off without getting stunk? the world may never know.................. read more

We stayed in the RV part and it was way too close for comfort. We felt like we were on top of everyone next to us. Kids screaming all day, neighbors blasting religious sermons from their RV, TV's blaring. We had no idea that people camp like that. The beach is gorgeous and the day use picnic areas are clean and have amazing views. We ended up hanging out there and really never at our site. The plus side was that everyone quieted down at 10:00 and it was quiet until around 8:00 the next am. No one ran their generator too early nor too late and they had their kids settle down, so that was nice. But being sandwiched in between twenty people with absolutely zero privacy, fire rings on top of one another, and our picnic table right next to the other RV, not my kind of camping. read more

This place is not for everybody.... If you have a dog that likes the beach, this place is not for you. Dogs are not allowed on the beach at all. The walk to the beach is pretty far and a little steep so if you have mature campers it may not be good for them. Some of the RV sites are smaller than others so you may not be able to fit your trailer and truck if they are larger you cannot have your tires on the dirt otherwise you will get a ticket. You have to park your vehicle in the parking overflow which is no where near your site. I won't be going back here... But it is great if you don't mind the above. read more

San Clemente State Beach is a solid choice for beach camping in Southern California and is definitely the best beach camp I've been to thus far. The spaces are quite large and come with a fire ring, picnic table and a wooden structure over the table, which is quite handy for camping. We hung some twine and used it for drying towels and hanging lanterns. Very nice touch. The campsites in the 80s all have a direct view of the beach. We did not stay here but good idea to take note for future trips. It's a short walk to the beach and less than a mile walk to the very cute downtown San Clemente. So this campground is by no means out in the middle-of-nowhere, but it's nice to have options nearby like restaurants and convenience stores. Dogs are allowed on the campsite but not on the beach. There is a bike path but you have to walk your bike across the many foot bridges along the way. Not a 5 star campground in my opinion because it seems very family-oriented and less private than I would like. There were lots of little ones running around and bible youth groups camping. I prefer campsites that are a little more spread-out and isolated from the city. But SCSB is still a fun place to get away to without going too far out. read more

I would 100% recommend camping here. It's a great escape from the day to day and the views are incredible. I've never had a problem with the camp rangers or any neighbors. The campsites are fairly spaced and the views are incredible. I've been coming at least twice a year. This site has showers and flushable toilets!!!!!! I've been to campsites that have neither for the same price. Walking out to the cliffs at sunrise or sunset is an amazing expirience. The beach is extremely well maintained and it's never crowded like the surrounding state beaches. This campsite is suitable for friends, family, little ones, college students, etc. p.s. the skunks like to come out to play at night and have no problem with coming right up to your site looking for food. they are extremely adjusted to having people around, so make sure to put all your food in a sealed container or cooler! read more

Horrible, which means very unpleasant or bad, would probably be the word to describe my experience with the campsite, the rangers and the staff. DON'T GO TO THIS PLACE if you are looking to enjoy your stay and have a good time. Go here if you like to go to bed early, not do anything , be harassed by the park rangers, and sleep with the skunks. The Rangers/sheriff power trip like crazy and there is no say with them. They're not even real cops lol. They will most likely kick people out or threaten you with a misdemeanor. On another note, the kiosk in the front where you purchase your parking, enjoys frauding people for their money. They act like they can't do anything about giving your money back if you decide to leave or get dismissed. They don't have a heart and only listen to what the park rangers tell them. Don't waste your time here. PLEASE look to another campsite if you don't want to deal with what I mentioned above. There are multiple campsites around that are a lot better and more friendly. GO SOMEWHERE ELSE if you're looking to enjoy your stay. read more

This beach is accessible off of exit 73 on I-5. It has decent amount of parking, mostly metered. Expect to pay $20 for privilege to park for an entire day. There's a train line that runs parallel to the beach and you can enjoy watching the Pacific Surfliner go by every half an hour or so. The beach is clean but it is not very deep, however you have about a mile and a half of ocean front to enjoy. The sand quality is OK and closer to the breakers there are more pebbles than soft sand. Sea weeds are minimum as compared to some other beaches. A good surprise was the Dolphins that we saw playing right next to us on the 4th of July weekend. There are plenty of lifeguards on duty and patrol the beach diligently. Overall it's a nice beach to visit if you are in So. Cal. read more

This is not the campground to visit if you are interested in a real camping experience (you can hear the 5 fwy at night) It is smack dab in the middle of the surfer friendly town and some of the priciest real estate in SoCal, which makes the $35.00 per night fee a real bargain. The bluff sites are perfect for tents and trailers, as long as you don't mind "roughing it' without hook ups. They are pretty decent sized and have a fire pit, bbq grill, and semi covered picnic table. The only downside is that the sites really offer no privacy. Hopefully you'll have good neighbors. Usually there seems to be a good mix of Families, Surfers and Full timers. The campground is so close to restaurants, sometimes we just go out to eat instead of packing up the coleman stove, there are lots of options. The trails leading down to the beach are very steep and can present a challenge getting back up carrying a chair, umbrella ect.. but the beach is sandy and there is an excellent surf spot. Also, if you walk south on the beach, all the way down to the end at the point break, you can catch a glimpse of La Casa Pacifica, the former Western White House. While there is no wildlife to speak of, we have seen skunks prowling around at night and a couple of cats! read more

Beautiful views and easy beach access. Too close to the highway and you can't really hear the ocean.

Definitely one of the better campgrounds in San Diego, especially if Crystal Cove is too far of a drive for the rest of the San Diego crowd. Pretty easy to get a reservation compared to the North County spots and the beaches don't get too crowded. The sites were spacious and there was a good mix of family and low level partying going on while we were there. The rangers and camp hosts were very friendly and the walk down to the beach is paved, but a little steep. My only complaint is that our fire ring was about 75% full of ash and right under a tree, so we were a little sketchy about lighting it with the recent fires. They probably need to empty them a bit more often. read more

I've been camping here two times. I am an absolute fan. The campsites are pretty spacious. Only one thing that bothers me are the berry trees. They attract alot of flies and bees. This past camping trip we unfortunetly got a campsite which had lots of these trees, but not all the campsites had these trees. The toilete and shower facilities were kept clean. The campground offered a movie night at the outdoor auditorium section, which the kids enjoyed. The campground has a 1.5 mile hiking trail that leads you to the beach, but we decided to take our cars and park by the pier. The beach is really nice at the pier but if you want to stay away from the crowd stay away from the pier. I highly recommend this campsite.....for those who love camping by the ocean. read more

The reviews here are misleading. Or they're rating everything besides the sand and the water, which is what makes a beach for me. Bottom line, the sand here has a SERIOUS, and I do mean serious, tar issue. You will regret walking on it without shoes. And be sure it's a pair of crap shoes, cuz if you thought tar was a tough stain to remove from skin, it's even harder to get off shoes! FYI, baby oil does the trick. read more

Cool camp spot. Great ocean views. Clean. My dog and I had fun and met some nice surfers and dogs from the spot next to us. The tent sites have no shade so be prepared. I took a star off bc the campsite is dog friendly but the beach is super anti-dog. So while it's a sweet beach camp spot, if you have a dog you can't bring it down to the beach with you to beat the heat. You can hike the trails with the dog tho. Oh and watch out for skunks! Had a few close calls. Looks like having an RV would be better here. Full hook ups and they get spots with even better views of the ocean. Overall fun weekend. read more

San Clemente State Beach - Beaches Near Me - San Clemente, California

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It is an ok campground but the fact they charge $15 a day for an extra car that you are parking in your own spot that you already paid for is a bit much, and the shower you have to pay for I've never seen that . But the worst was the ants I didn't see any outside but they manage to find their way in everyone's RVs that was a big bummer! read more

Fantastic place to take in sandy beach, not always an easy thing to do around the rocky beaches of South Orange county. The Cliffs have facilities for cooking and the camping facilities are well worth reserving in advance, which is what you're going to have to do for the high outdoor activity holidays...4th of July weekend, etc... I've steered a lot of out of town friends to this beach and they usually rave about having been turned on to this hidden gem in the Southern part of San Clemente. read more

Narrow and full of drift wood- it's so bad I don't even wanna step barefoot here. No where to play games. Right on the train tracks- you have to step over them to get onto the sand. Not as pretty as some other beaches. Parking is $15. read more

Tent camped this weekend. Had a pretty good time. Only gave 2 stars because of their lack of Patrol in the campgrounds. There were homeless people roaming around the bathrooms at night. Not sure if they were scoping the area. We stayed in spot 155. Decent spot. Unfortunately, there was a group of College kids next to us who had zero respect for their neighbors and were partying loud until 1 am. No Patrol, no nothing. They need to do a better job of making sure that everyone who pays their money should at least, get a good nights sleep. This place doesn't seem to care once you go through the gates. Hell I'd be ok with the partying until 11 pm, but 1-2 am?? Come on, get your act together. On a plus side, at least the Bathrooms were clean. read more

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Good place to hang out during summer and almost all year around. Good parking space available. People who do not want to walk or cannot walk have the golf cart facility at 2 dollars one way. Worth it when you are coming back because it is up hill and with a lot of stuff to carry it is a pretty good deal. Huge place, nice park if you do not want to go in the sand. Great view. Overall pretty good experience. Visited August 2012 read more

Of all of the California State Parks beaches I've visited so far, this one is the most RV friendly. The campground has two distinct sites--one with about 100 pull through RV sites with complete hookups and the other side is dry sites. Unfortunately, we could only get a dry site, but everyone on the RV side looked like they were having a great time... The beach, however, is a considerable distance from the campground down a very steep paved road. Not for the faint of heart. The beach itself is ok--not as rocky as San Elijo or So. Carlsbad. I would love to try this campground again on the RV side. read more

Beautiful clean beach so nice to come and relax. We had dinner at The Fishermans on the pier it was excellent and what a view it was! Spectacular sunset. read more

San Clemente State Beach - Beaches Near Me - San Clemente, California

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I took my family of 4 camping, along with my brother-in-law's family of 5, here over Spring Break and we had a great time. Weather was perfect! We rented 2 spaces, which were really close to each other. Bathrooms were some of the cleanest I've seen at a campground. This was basically the selling point for my wife! We stayed near the back of the camp, so we could for sure here the freeway. However, it seemed to help drown out the sounds of the other campers, so it turned out fine. The spots up front by the ocean, have the most amazing views. Will for sure try to get one up there next time. The walk down the beach is easy, but back up is a pretty steep hill. (you cant bring your dog on the beach which was a bummer) However, we found out we can drive down to the day use lot and not have to pay for a parking space, as our camping sticker let us park for free! So we did that the next few days; much easier, especially with little ones. Overall, we had a great time and will definitely come back. Pros: Super clean bathrooms, great sunsets, pergolas for shade at each site, clean grounds, good weather Cons: a little noisy, sites are right on top of each other. read more

Gets 2.5 stars overall!!! Love the location because it is sooo close to the beach! Horrible, disgusting bathrooms and showers! We were just at Mather Campground in the Grand Canyon last month and the bathrooms were 5star hotel, immaculate/sparkling clean in comparison to these! Also, the tent sites are very close to one another! Sardine camping!!! No privacy! We only stayed one night so no big deal! I wouldn't stay more than a night... Unless it was Campsite #82,#83 which overlooks the state beach! read more

San Clemente State Beach - Beaches Near Me - San Clemente, California

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We returned from our weekend camping trip today and we really enjoyed San Clemente! It's a cute city with boutique stores, cafes, and they had an arts & craft fair today where they sold jewelry, art, planters, vintage items, etc. The campground was much better than Carpinteria in terms of tent space, parking space, clean bathroom, proximity to activities, and the gorgoues ocean view. There were dogs everywhere so it's definitely a dog-friendly campground; however, they are not allowed on the beach. The beautiful pathway to the beach is very steep - be ready to work your legs on your way back! The pier is only 5 minutes away by car so we went fishing. Although we were only able to catch herring, it was a lot of fun! The only complaint about the campground was the loud neighbors. On our right was a group of 6 guys and gals who brought 3 dogs, two of which kept barking throughout the night. Someone walked over early morning and asked to keep the dogs quiet. Our neighbors denied that it's their dogs. Interesting personalities. Then on our left was a group of 10+ drunk, rowdy guys who were pumping extremely loud music from their car until 11pm then drank into the wee hours. If we weren't exhausted from the day's activities, we wouldn't have gotten a wink of sleep! We will be back once we book one of the oceanview sites. read more

Went here with a few girlfriends and we had such a great time. Quiet campsite, some people said its loud and busy here but I disagree, it's family friendly and there are kids everywhere. They have hookups for water and electricity. 5 minute walk to the beach, the bluffs are fun to walk through and it's a beautiful place altogether. Not to expensive, reasonably priced. Wish they had a close camp store though, overall a good experience and I would come back anyday. read more

San Clemente State Beach - Beautiful place to camp! I will be coming back soon. - Beaches Near Me - San Clemente, California

I love this campground! My family and I have been coming here for 30+ years. Such a unique and wonderful place to hang with your friends and family. read more