Desert Trails 40+ RV Park

Site rate increased 32% from last year. (Monthly last year was $360. Monthly this year $475.) Quality decreased. Lots of noise from San Joaquin Road and nearby shooting range. Asked about a 30 amp site. Told none were available. More than a dozen are empty. Website gives one set of information, office another. Main attraction are the people I met last year who have returned this year.

Desert Trails RV Park was sold recently to an Investment Company. Those of us who had signed contracts for dry camping now and full service camping in the upcoming winter have had our contracts discarded and not honoured. Dry camping on site has increase 500%. Full service camping has increased ~ 20%. Many who have agreements to leave their units on site with no service during the slow season, saw increases from $80 to $350 with a choice to pay or move to dry storage. Refunds on cancelled dry camping are not returned. Construction projects are in progress right now with equipment and dirt piles with no work being done. Long time Regulars at this Park are angry and upset with the New Owners and looking else where for the winter season. We are doubtful whether the available staff can maintain the RVPark in the upcoming Winter to the same standard as the past. And it seems doubtful that the wonderful vibes we all enjoyed in the past will continue.

I give this place all the stars plus more. The couple who runs it are just so darn friendly. The amenities are mind blowing. And then you factor in the cost for what you’re getting and it makes it all the better.

Everyone is so nice! They have a library (like a real one - not the one shelf devoted to lost books in the laundry mat at most places), they have ironing boards, card-reading washers/dryers, ICE, heated pool, a gym (!!!), the best showers I’ve seen, walking trails, dog parks (including one for small breeds), and gorgeous sunsets. 20 minutes outside West Saguaro.

I’m not wearing rose-colored glasses; we had some issues while we were there, but the pros certainly outweighed them. For the sake of transparency, the wifi is non existent. It exists, but doesn’t work. Some of the sites that are available don’t have water, so check before you back in. There was a plumbing issue while we were there, but the staff resolved it within 24 hrs, no problem. And we had an Amazon package get lost. Apparently, they sometimes confuse the address with another RV park next door. We went there but no luck.

I say all that to give you the full experience, but trust me when I say, we wished we had booked more time here and definitely plan to return.

This RV Park is all about the community. They are taking co-vid very seriously! There are signs in every building to Wear a Mask or Leave the Park. People are friendly. The sites are very close together. They have food trucks that come in 4 times a week. They have nice laundry facilites spread throughout the park. There is a wood shop, a craft area, communtity games (bocce and bean bag baseball), Bible study, book clubs, bike groups, dog runs etc... The owners are on-site in the office and very helpful. We were here for three days, put our rig in storage for a week while we stayed in an air bnb with family and then came back and were there for a month. There are hiking trails right from the park. It is close to Saguaro National Park and the Desert Museum. It is located quite a ways out of Tuscon so count on it being at least 20 minutes to get to anywhere.

We stayed here based on excellent reviews provided by others. We prefer more privacy and choose state park instead but we needed a place to stay for few nights in between reservations. Surprisingly great park with local knowledge of the trail system near by. We were able to bike from our camper, which was fantastic. Highly recommended place with clean facilities and great staff. Meeting long term resident and local bike legend Mr. Mike was a bonus as well.

I just reread all the reviews posted since 2015 (about 10 total) - the remarkable thing is the consistency among them and with my experience. Yes, sites are not large (if you want a linear park with large lots next door is a better bet) but this is a social park - everyone waves and says hi all the time. Even with social distancing, there were still activities and food trucks. The food trucks along with filtered water at $0.25/gallon meant there wasn't as much need to go out for provisions. The trucks were quite varied in terms of cuisine, and all quite good. Entrees averaged $8-$12 but the portions were substantial, providing for me at least, more than one meal.

The other big selling point is the trails, literally right from the back (north end) of the park. This BML land has great trails, well marked with painted rocks. A detailed map is provided at check-in. Some of the trails continue north directly into the west side of Tucson Mountain Park with even more (and more challenging) trails for mountain biking and hiking. These trails connect to Gilbert Ray Campground, Browns Mountain and beyond. An organized group of MTB go out Tuesday mornings at 9 AM - this was included on the monthly schedule of activities also provided at check-in.

There are many dumpsters located around the park including several dedicated to recycling, which are serviced regularly. If you are on the east side of the park (sites E-1 and beyond starting by the pool) just be aware there is a neighborhood just beyond there with an occasional crowing rooster and barking dogs. These sites are 30 amp for smaller rigs though. There is also a trap & skeet club within 2 miles - it was usually active in the morning hours, sometimes longer on the weekends. There weren't many fly-overs by military aircraft and usually, with the early sunsets, the entire place is dead silent after 7 PM.

The other perks are nice dog runs (one large, one small), a dog wash station, great laundry facilities, excellent daily mail and delivery service, and of course, the very pleasant and helpful office and grounds staff. Everyone seemed to enjoy their time here.

As noted by others, the WiFi here, while there are a dozen connection points, is not usable for anything but basic 1MBPS use. Both my T-Mobile cell and AT&T hotspot typically clocked in between 20-30 down and 2-10 up, just depending. OTA channels were available but not all networks and not all the time. Many campers were hooked up to satellite. Finally, my rate reflects the monthly rate of just under $600 for 30 amp with FHU. Can't beat that. Oh, and most importantly, no wasps, but quite a few birds and bunnies. Scat in the desert would indicate there are larger things roaming out there but I never sited anything.

12/4-8/2020
We chose this RV park because of the reviews about the nice clean laundry facility. We had been traveling & camping for 3 weeks & needed to wash clothes. Great experience-clean laundry room open 24/7.
We were staying at a County campground in the Tucson Mountain Park just a view miles away so drove over to check the park out. The office was closed but there was a listing on the board of vacant sites. We booked 3 nights & paid by credit card. First day we used that clean laundry room-credit card operated machines.
The park is a senior community with a lot of snow birds staying long term. The park previously was a water park made into a cactus garden so it has a walk way up to the hilltop view. Lots of little cactus gardens in the park-. I enjoyed the painted rocks. We stayed during Covid so masks were mandatory inside buildings & people were walking out side with them on. There were signs everywhere that said “Wear a mask or leave the park”. There are full hook ups & picnic table at each site. Lots of amenities: heated pool, rec Hall, library, pool hall, gym, woodworking Shop, nature trail, sewing & craft room.... We enjoyed our evening sunset walks & after dark Holiday lights. One afternoon we went to Saguaro National Park. This is a 40+ adult only park so no kids allowed, but lots of dogs.