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Chisos Basin Campground
Big Bend National Park
Write a Review Chisos Basin Rd. Big Bend National Park, TX 79834 432-477-2251 Reservations: 877-444-6777 Official WebsiteGPS: 29.2753, -103.3011
Overview of Chisos Basin Campground
Reservations required. Open year-round. Trailers over 20 feet and RVs over 24 feet are not recommended due to the narrow, winding road to the Basin and small campsites at this campground.
Wood and ground fires are prohibited. All food items must be stored inside a vehicle or animal-proof food storage locker.
Last Price Paid: $16
Reported by NC Traveler on 4/12/2022
Longest RV Reported: 34 feet (Travel Trailer)
Reported by Gman on 7/13/2021
Number of Sites 56
Pad Type asphalt
Reservations yes
Elevation 5,118 ft / 1,559 m
Max Stay 14
Max Length 20 ft
Tent Camping Yes







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Q&A - Ask the Community about Chisos Basin Campground
To ask questions of the owner or manager please contact the campground directly. 432-477-2251
TSchenk asked on 1/30/2022
Does anyone have an opinion on the best sites to choose at Chisos Basin Campground? Thanks!
Lolita asked on 8/16/2020
Could we maneuver a 22’ trailer pulled by a truck into sites at Chisos Basin Campground?
Reviews of Chisos Basin Campground 17 people have reviewed this location.
“Great experience and fantastic view”
Reviewed 4/12/2022
Nightly rate: | $16 |
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Days stayed: | 4 |
Site Number: | 042 |
I camped out of my Rav 4 Prime for 4 nights in January, 2022. A quiet campground in the Chisos Basin with a fantastic view of surrounding mountains. Site was clean as was the bear box. Restrooms were clean (no showers) and heated, which for the time of year I was there was nice. Small sink area in the bath house for washing cook ge... more
I camped out of my Rav 4 Prime for 4 nights in January, 2022. A quiet campground in the Chisos Basin with a fantastic view of surrounding mountains. Site was clean as was the bear box. Restrooms were clean (no showers) and heated, which for the time of year I was there was nice. Small sink area in the bath house for washing cook gear. Beware of windy nights, at least in the winter - was glad I was sleeping in my car!
Great cell coverage! The proximity to the Chisos Lodge made for excellent Verizon service. Some of the best in the park.
NC Traveler would stay here again
This review is the opinion of a Campendium member and not of Campendium.com
“Great Base Camp for Big Bend”
Reviewed 12/4/2021
Nightly rate: | $16 |
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Days stayed: | 3 |
Site Number: | 30 |
Site 30 in Chisos Basin is the deluxe premier penthouse suite of the entire campground. This spot opened up due to cancellation and I managed to grab 3 nights in December 2020. Not knowing what to expect, I was just feeling lucky to land a spot in Chisos Basin, as these spots are really hard to get during that season. Most of the spots... more
Site 30 in Chisos Basin is the deluxe premier penthouse suite of the entire campground. This spot opened up due to cancellation and I managed to grab 3 nights in December 2020. Not knowing what to expect, I was just feeling lucky to land a spot in Chisos Basin, as these spots are really hard to get during that season. Most of the spots in this campground are right on top of each other and have very little to no privacy at all. That being said, all of the spots have great views, as you are right down in the middle of the scenic basin. Site 30 is completely different from most of the other sites. It is set off the road, down a set of steps and inside a tree canopied clearing. Because of how it is offset from the road and surrounded by trees, it is very private and isolated from the other camps. Also, our winnebago served as a privacy wall at the entrance, which made the camp feel even more separated. There were some other good private sites that I saw in the group camping section, but that entire section was closed due to 2020.
If you're into hiking, Chisos Basin is an ideal place for your base camp. There are some amazing trail heads right from the campground and staying here gives you an early start to beat the crowds. There was absolutely no cell service, but you can get internet if you stop off outside the lodge up the hill. There's no electricity but plenty of sun and our solar panels easily got us through 3 days here.
Also, if you are into remote boon-docking, you absolutely must try and find a spot in the back country area of Big Bend. It is amazing and we enjoyed that even more than Chisos Basin. All in all, Big Bend has been one of our most memorable and favorite trips we have ever done.
jaysee would stay here again
This review is the opinion of a Campendium member and not of Campendium.com
“An All-Timer 🧡”
Reviewed 11/22/2021
Nightly rate: | $16 |
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Days stayed: | 3 |
Site Number: | 6, 47, 54 |
We absolutely loved this place. It’s magical. The restrooms are pretty dark, even during the day. And the cell service isn’t great. But it doesn’t matter because you’re surrounded by beauty. The camp hosts were friendly. Recreation.gov makes it easy to select a site based on your needs, whether it’s a longer parking pad or a space for ... more
We absolutely loved this place. It’s magical. The restrooms are pretty dark, even during the day. And the cell service isn’t great. But it doesn’t matter because you’re surrounded by beauty. The camp hosts were friendly. Recreation.gov makes it easy to select a site based on your needs, whether it’s a longer parking pad or a space for a tent. We will definitely be coming back here!
Taubs would stay here again
This review is the opinion of a Campendium member and not of Campendium.com
“Sardines in a can ”
Reviewed 10/3/2021
Nightly rate: | $16 |
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Days stayed: | 1 |
We stayed here one night and wouldn’t stay here again or recommend it to anyone. The sites are literally on top of one another, with no privacy. Some sites have a roof over the picnic bench, most don’t. Parking spots aren’t level, if your site even has a parking spot (problematic for van lifers). Half of the sites also don’t have a sui... more
We stayed here one night and wouldn’t stay here again or recommend it to anyone. The sites are literally on top of one another, with no privacy. Some sites have a roof over the picnic bench, most don’t. Parking spots aren’t level, if your site even has a parking spot (problematic for van lifers). Half of the sites also don’t have a suitable spot for a tent. Hosts weren’t helpful.
Not worth the $16.
This review is the opinion of a Campendium member and not of Campendium.com
“Small but worth it”
Reviewed 7/13/2021
Nightly rate: | $16 |
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Days stayed: | 0 |
Site Number: | 0 |
I am reviewing even thought i did not spend the night, i did drive into the campground with my 2500 pickup truck and found it difficult to make some of the tight turns within the campground. Location is perfect for hiking and exploring the surrounding area. The road to the campground and visitors center has some very tight U-shape tur... more
I am reviewing even thought i did not spend the night, i did drive into the campground with my 2500 pickup truck and found it difficult to make some of the tight turns within the campground. Location is perfect for hiking and exploring the surrounding area. The road to the campground and visitors center has some very tight U-shape turns at the edge of the mountain. I would not dare take any RV longer then 22ft up & down that road. A tent or Casita style trailer is ideal. It's $30 (7 day pass) to enter the park even if your visiting just for the day. Some of the dirt road to other primitive campgrounds in the area are washboard and tuff to drive up and down them. I decided to stay just outside the park at Paisano RV Park with full hookups and drove to the areas i wanted to visit.
Gman would stay here again
This review is the opinion of a Campendium member and not of Campendium.com
“Nice camp”
Reviewed 6/3/2021
Nightly rate: | $16 |
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Days stayed: | 4 |
Site Number: | 021 |
Campground is very clean. Walking distance to the store. Great hiking trail starts right from the camp. Host is so helpful. The only thing was the road construction and we had to plan our day around that (May 2021).
This review is the opinion of a Campendium member and not of Campendium.com
“Full LTE Cell Service at Visitor Center”
Reviewed 1/24/2021
Nothing to add to other reviews aside from The fact that the park must’ve recently upgraded their connectivity infrastructure, because both AT&T and Verizon have full LTE signal at the Chisos Basin visitor Center, which is incredible considering you have almost no service anywhere else in the park, those places that do are only 1 or 2 ... more
Nothing to add to other reviews aside from The fact that the park must’ve recently upgraded their connectivity infrastructure, because both AT&T and Verizon have full LTE signal at the Chisos Basin visitor Center, which is incredible considering you have almost no service anywhere else in the park, those places that do are only 1 or 2 bars of 3G. Seeing about 10mbps down and 8mbps up on AT&T with iPhone X.
This review is the opinion of a Campendium member and not of Campendium.com
www.NationalParkAdventureGuide.com
Long Beach, CA“Great experience, awesome views and hikes! Primitive camping”
Reviewed 1/20/2021
Nightly rate: | $16 |
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Days stayed: | 5 |
Site Number: | 35 |
We loved Chisos Basin campground! The campground is in a perfect location to access the best hikes for your average hikers, and even some challenging hikes for more experienced hikers. The road getting into the campground is very steep, but doable for most all vehicles, but if you’re towing a trailer, make sure your vehicle can ... more
We loved Chisos Basin campground!
The campground is in a perfect location to access the best hikes for your average hikers, and even some challenging hikes for more experienced hikers.
The road getting into the campground is very steep, but doable for most all vehicles, but if you’re towing a trailer, make sure your vehicle can handle steep hills.
The campground itself is simple and perfect to feel like you are truly in nature. You’re surrounded by big mountains all around with unique rock formations, and the star visibility at night is unreal!
The sites are primitive, no electric or water at your site, with a few clean drinking/filling water spouts shared among campers, clean toilets with hot water sinks, and spots 1-18 allow generators, all other spots do not. Generally speaking, it looked like camping trailers were in spots 1-18, and mostly tents or small trailers/vans used the other spots.
1/11/21-1/16/21 We stayed in spot #35 with a popup camper by the restroom and water spout, and loved it so much we booked more nights in spot #34.
The Chisos Basin visitor center is a few minute drive from the campground and is a great starting point for many hikes and views. There is also a convenience store for ice and snacks by the visitor center.
We enjoyed the “window trail”, “window view trail”, “laguna meadows trail”, and the “lost mine trail”. (*you can check out our AllTrails hiking account to see the exact foot steps we took with photos, on our home page of our website at the bottom of this review).
The camp host “Mark” was so friendly and helpful with informing campers about bears and mountain lions to make you feel safe, and shared pictures with us of a mama bear and her two cubs that visited the campground while we were on a hike.
If you enjoy Camping and Hiking Adventures, and want to see even more details about Big Bend and other National Parks, check out our travel blog website to 43 National Parks in 1yr :)
www.NationalParkAdventureGuide.com
www.NationalParkAdventureGuide.com would stay here again
This review is the opinion of a Campendium member and not of Campendium.com
“Epic location ”
Reviewed 12/20/2020
Days stayed: | 5 |
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Site Number: | 13 |
Incredible location in the heart of Big Bend with an abundance of vistas and hiking trails. We saw a meteor shower too. We loved it but left after 5 days as we’d exhausted all family suitable hiking and driving and the showers were closed as well as the cafe.
CTG would stay here again
This review is the opinion of a Campendium member and not of Campendium.com
“Awesome”
Reviewed 2/15/2020
Nightly rate: | $8 |
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Days stayed: | 3 |
Site Number: | 8 |
Gorgeous setting with great sites. Super hosts. Only showers in park are coin operated, warn at best and located in the big Rv village.
Susan would stay here again
This review is the opinion of a Campendium member and not of Campendium.com
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Amenities
Hookups
- dry camping
Recreation
- picnic area
- recreation trail
Site Amenities
- fire ring
- picnic table
Facilities
- dump station
- group sites
- recycle
- restrooms: flush
- trash
- water available
Pets
- pets
Nearby
Government Springs (GH1) Primitive Roadside Campsite
Incredible dispersed camping site! 360 degree views of the park
- Hitched to Bex
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