Idyllwild RV Resort & Campground

If I lived in the LA area I might appreciate this place more, given its closeness (2’ish hours w/o traffic, but it took us over 5, so your time could be anywhere in that range). It also can offer cooler temps at 6000 feet. It’s close to the cute mountain town of Idyllwild. the sites are first come/first served and vary greatly in quality. The 600 section, to which management directed us in response to a question as to the best section, was a big dirt area where some spots had trees and others none. Some sites were small, others looked quite uneven. The bathrooms were dated, poorly lit and not well maintained. We also rented a cabin and had a family reunion. The hot water and toilet in the cabin didn’t work well. We reported it and were told the proper person Wasn’t working saturday, so that was that. The hose at the dump station had a tear in it and no waste basket. Our site had some trash in it on arrival. I doubt they maintain sites on departure. Att was barely one bar; it is better elsewhere in the park. Despite the fact that they know cell coverage varies so much and charge top dollar, they charge additionally for WiFi.

Lots of people come to this big park, perhaps as part of a thousand trail membership. Perhaps they should spend as much time maintaining and upgrading this facility to justify top dollar costs as they do selling memberships.

We knew it was going to start to snow the day we arrived and the forecasters didn't disappoint. All told, over the course of ten days, I'd say we got a total of three feet of snow. The staff here worked constantly to keep the roads clear and keeping everything functioning. All the amenities were closed due to COVID, so I can't comment on them other than to say the fishing pond looks inviting and the amphitheater is a nice touch.

The drive in needs to be mentioned. It's just over twenty miles from the time you get off I-10 to the park. The road is a two-lane highway with no shoulders, few guardrails, tons of blind corners, protruding rocks, and climbs up one mountain, down a little, then up again, all told it's around a six thousand foot climb. I can definitely notice that the air's thinner up here, just walking my dog a thousand feet leaves me winded.

The town of Idyllwild is charming and is full of small shops and resturaunts. We were particularly fond of the great food at Idyllwild Pizza.

Navigating around the campground isn't easy due to narrow winding roads with one area having a warning sign saying rigs over 30' shouldn't even go down that road. There are very few full hook-up sites and even less with 50 amp service. Our site was 30 amp but had EWS. Getting into and out of sites could be easier, but I managed my 36' TT fairly easily into this site, though I passed up several others that were empty because I didn't think I could get in them without muss fuss. And as everyone else had mentioned, don't expect the sites to be level.

10/10 will stay here again, especially in the summer when I have to be in the area and don't want to die in 120 F heat in Desert Hot Springs.

Excellent cell coverage with the cell tower being right near the guard post.

https://imgur.com/gallery/Nu63CSd

Beautiful place at 7000 ft. Very idyllic and quiet, surrounded by mountains. Cooler temperatures to escape the heat near LA.
Not easy to get in a site and nearly impossible to get the RV leveled without leveling blocks. Dirty and outdated restrooms and showers that need need attention. Beautiful pool area. Unfortunately only a few sites with sewer connection. Nice hikin

This campsite is lovely and just outside Idylwild. I cannot speak for the cleanliness as COVID has shut down mist the amenities here. There are a lot of fun activities including horseback riding. We will definitely have to return.
The one thing to mention is that these sites are all dirt and in now way flat. They allow you to drive around and choose your site which is great but quite a few are tricky to get into.... they definitely are far from the pull through sites. However, in return, most often you get a little more space.
It’s delightful here. We’ll definitely come back to explore.
The honey pot is available for those who need it and don’t have one of the very few full hookups.

First trip here was late May 2019. Had a great time! Not very crowded got a great spot. Neighbors were ok...Actually snowed! The park is laid out on a mountain side with narrow roads weaving through. Some very tight! Be careful! My Airstream seemed to barely clear some of the more narrow sections in search of prime real estate! Staff was wonderful and very helpful!

Second trip a bit different. Started with gate being staffed by ONE guy. He was responsible for everything from filling propane tanks to check in and any other issues. I was the first in line and it took ~45 minutes for check in. Once checked in you pick the spot and THE only 50 amp spot was surrounded but a rough crowd that was already buzzing by 1PM. There must have been 25 people milling about 5 adjacent lots! As I attempted to pull in I got some attitude so split in search of another which there were none. Other sites were not laid out well. Confusing to see if I could get in and out. Went back to gate to speak with the one staff and he was on lunch for an hour... So I left... Made some phone calls that where never answered and emails never returned...I'm a 1000 Trail member so I burned 3 weeks of access due to the poor management of the campground. That cost me ~$1000 for other similar camping in the vicinity...

I'd give first trip 5 stars and second 1 star as the place was out of control and looked to be 20 somethings party central! One camper confirmed it had gotten a little crazy the night before....

We had not planned to be here but moved from another camp that had no cell service to this one on the recommendation of Thousand Trails. This is now one of our favorites. We had 70 degrees every day. They do get snow sometimes in November so we may have lucked out on timing. The park was very quiet and we found a great spot in site 109 for our large fifth wheel. Had trouble in other spots since many are not level or have loose dirt or the trees were too difficult to navigate. This might be a challenge if the park was full but we had many to choose from. Cell service was great in the lower section but not as good toward the top. I was able to get 30 mbps download with both AT&T and T-Mobile.

Idyllwild is a cute town just down the hill and has several good restaurant choices. Several hiking opportunities in the area with nice views of the valley. Staff was very friendly. The road to the park and the park itself are tight, windy, and steep in places but we still were able to get our 43' fifth wheel in and out with no problems. Just plan on taking your time and use the pull-outs. There are many on the climb up to 7000'.

We also captured some Coyotes on our security camera behind our RV just about every other night. They appear to visit the fishing pond regularly. Also saw one in the middle of the day. Be careful of your small pets.

Idyllwild is one of our favorite local getaway spots and the Thousand Trails in Idyllwild is great! The campground is about 15 min drive from town and is clean, well maintained, with friendly staff. Some spots are better than others, and like other TT campgrounds, the have mostly water and electric hookups without sewer, but there is a dump at the entrance at the park. Wifi is also great in some spots (the 100's, 300's, & 400's are our favorite for wifi) and not so great in others. There is hiking within the park and trails in the park that lead to other great hiking spots outside the park. I gave this 3 stars for noise as that depends on the time of year you go (Summer is busier than other months) and the spot you stay but overall, it's a very quite experience.

When you think about getting out to the mountains this is the place you have in mind. Gorgeous mountain views and endless hiking trails. The campground itself is very clean and well maintained. I stayed in the middle of the summer, which I thought would be peak season yet it was very peaceful.

The biggest downside is driving in and out can be a real chore. The drive up the mountains and through the campground is tight and tedious in some areas so if you have a really big rig (> 40ft) you might want to think twice. If you don't plan on leaving the confines of this little mountain town, dining and shopping seem fairly adequate. But if you're like me and tend to spend 2-3 weeks at any given location inevitably you're going to want to venture out to a bigger town for your other needs. So be prepared to drive at least an hour each way to get to the next town. I had to go out to town several times during my stay and it got old fast.