Sam's Family Spa

We stayed here for two nights and wish we could have longer. At first glance it doesn’t look like much and the slight septic smell was off putting. Once you enter the pool area that all goes away. My partner and I are a sucker for 70s nostalgia and this checked all the boxes. We loved the natural mineral pools and learned that Sam’s is a local hot spot for all the right reasons.

One thing I’m always looking for in reviews is a comment on WiFi, their wife was weak but we got by with our phones.

If you have the opportunity stay for a couple days and take advantage of those mineral pools!

Came with a group of 6 RVs. We were all together in the 300 section , the spaces are a bit narrow but it was not hard to get backed in with a bit of help.
Enjoyed Soaking in the hot Spring pools.
Park is clean and tidy but power pedestal was worn and I had to put side pressure to maintain ground
WiFi actually works Out in that area
VZW has a tower right out front
AT&t was 2-3 bars
Tv Antenna signal was great lots of Channels

The sites are extremely narrow. I couldn’t even get my bin open to get to my water hookup. And I saw several RVs that were parked up against or within inches of posts/electrical boxes. The pool area seemed lovely, but I didn’t even get that far. I left after the second site I pulled into (and kind of fit) didn’t have ground electric. For $55/night this tight park isn’t worth it when you can go to others down the road for $45/night.

We were supposed to stay at Joshua Tree, but on the day we were meant to check in, the government shut down. As we couldn't find a concrete answer as to whether or not the campgrounds would be open, we made a last-minute decision to call Sam's instead of risk driving all the way into the park and risk having to turn around.

The interesting thing about Sam's is they let you drive around, pick an open spot, get settled in, and then come to the office to pay. This is great because their spots are no joke -- very hard to back into due to narrowness -- which was tough because this was only our second time backing our Airstream into a spot. Half the sites are permanent mobile homes and the other half are varying-sized, non-reservable spots for both RVs and tents. After a lot of driving around and much debate as to whether we should stay, we ended up finding an end spot that we could back straight into due to it's position at the end of a street. We ended up next to a guy who said that he drives truck for a living and even he had difficulty getting into a spot (they had a 30' Airstream) and finally settled on their spot after attempts at two other sites. After being there a few days, we did notice that there are some sites that are essentially pull throughs if sites around them are empty, such as 312, 302 and 301.

Anyways, level sites with full hookups and cable. Coin laundry, clean restrooms with showers, dog run, playground, store, and BBQ area. There's also an "exercise room", but the free weights max out at 10lbs, so not very effective. But their claim to fame are the naturally-heated hot spring pools. There are four small hot pools, a larger warm swimming pool, and a small wading pool. The property is nice and relaxing.

It's a 45-minute drive to the Joshua Tree Visitor's Center and 25 minutes into Palm Springs.

We have a WeBoost, so I can't comment on cell coverage except to say ours was great with both AT&T and Verizon.

We had to find a place to stay when we were told we'd have to leave Black Rock Canyon Campground in Joshua Tree National Park on a Friday morning as it was all booked up for the weekend. We looked around a bit online and found Sam's. We had no idea what to expect as we arrived, the reviews were good, but on the drive over we almost decided to head somewhere else. So, glad we didn't. What a hidden gem. We were so impressed on arrival that we decided to stay for a month. :) Great hot pools, and swimming pool. They even offer free yoga and water aerobics. The pool area is amazing. The staff was awesome too, very friendly and helpful. There are some great hiking trails nearby to which we loved. Very quiet during the week buy could get a bit noisy and busy on the weekends.

We really enjoyed our stay at Sam's. They had a large campground with a motel, mobile homes, and plenty of RV spots. The spots were decently sized, but difficult to back into if your a large rig (truck+41' fifth wheel). It took us a couple turns to get in, but with the help of some neighbors we made it!

The hot springs were very nice. They are not chlorinated and refilled a couple times a day. They have several pools for everyone to enjoy that range in various temps. The lower ones are kid friendly :)

The sunsets here (we're all about sunsets lol) are awesome with the mountain back drop.

Bathrooms: didn't use
Hookups: full hookups
Site size: good, but can be difficult to back into
Site type: dirt lot with concrete patio
Dog Park: yes
Kid Friendly: yes! lots of space for bike riding, pool, playground, pond with birds, and hot springs
Laundry: lots of machines and very clean

We don't stay in many campgrounds, in large part because I don't do rules, also I'm cheap. I really enjoyed the laid back atmosphere here, you simply pull in, pick a site and setup camp, even for a monthly rental there are no reservations or anyone telling you where to camp. They didn't bitch about my dog's breed or when I washed the truck in the street. For $550/mo. including access to the spa area, this place is a great deal and a nice change of pace to spend a month here for someone who otherwise boondocks full time.

They have wifi available for a reasonable charge but Verizon was ridiculously fast here.