Anchor Bay Campgrounds

Wow! I don’t understand all the bad reviews. I camped up and down the northern California coast in other campgrounds, and by far this is my favorite place to camp. My niece brought her in-​laws here after our first family outings; and now it is her in-​laws favorite place to camp as well. The beach access and view is fantastic! Kids can really explore the area and there are even tide pools where we saw live ocean animals like starfishes, jelly fish that were caught, and small fishes. The setting is intimate. Yes, it is cramped quarters but no more than you would find at Bodega Dunes, Dolan Beach, or Wright’s Beach but by far better amenities — hot showers, small store, even large area you can reserve for free for large family BBQs. Tess, the camp host, is great and very helpful. We were on a waiting list for ocean front sites, and she called right away when those sites became available. From day one, she has been professional and friendly.
One poster mentioned about all the rules in place — duh — that’s why it is such a great place to camp! It’s quiet and family friendly. No wild parties allowed, and that’s okay by me. If you enjoy huge bonfires on the beach, great day at the beach with low waves for the kids to play in, great hiking area, and even better quick access to stores, restaurants, and coffee barista! then Anchor Bay is the place for you.
And, no, I am not affiliated with the campground. Just a very happy camper!

So there are pros and cons…
Pros:
Close to a very nice beach. Super easy access to sandy beach that’s good for launching small craft.
Clean restrooms, including showers and places to wash off wetsuits
Well stocked store if you need forgotten incidentals (like cooking oil)
Cons:
The smell. The whole campground area is down wind from the large dumpster that smells terrible.
Cramped quarters. You are essentially parking on the road through the campground and there is a log that separates you from your neighbor. No space between sites.
All in all, I’d send my husband and his friends there to go fishing and have a guy’s weekend, but I wouldn’t go back if we were going for a family trip.

I never made it to this campground and wish I would have read these reviews before ever calling. I ended up reserving two campgrounds right next to a main road. I realized my error and called back within ten minutes and they refused to refund my deposit. Disappointing for sure. I decided to cancel because I didn’t want to take a chance that my experience while there would be the same as it had been booking the site. It was worth the small loss as I know my family and they would not have considered this camping with the road next to our site. Make sure you are looking at the map when you are making the reservation. I would read all of the reviews so that what you get is what you expect.

This property is 40 or so owners with RVs and 30 or so rentals. Be very careful if you drive a car as there at least 10 speed bumps. Lots of signs everywhere advising of rules to obey. Very unfriendly place.
On positive side, the bathrooms are very clean. And the beach is beautiful.
The little town above has a great grocery store, a good coffee shop and two restaurants — Thai and Mexican.

I now understand why such a beautiful place, has a 2.5.I’d give it a 4 for looks, 0 for service!
While waiting in anchor bay to pick up food I noticed a short trail leading down to this campground –Big mistake!
My father had stayed, so I thought id check it out to kill a few minutes.
The trail sign read «You MUST check in with the office!»
It was 4:30pm, February, midweek, as expected the office was closed. No one to be seen anywhere. No brochure, so I snapped a quick pic of the price board, walked 50 yds down to beach, now thinking of this place as a ideal location for a 50^th bday weekend for my father with 10+ sights.
Literally on my way out a woman with dark hair marches up & ‘greets’ me with «Excuse me what are you doing? This is private property!» –as if I was some thief for spending 5 min there!
«Private property?» I questioned. «Don’t you do rentals? I was just checking it out, I’ve only been here a minute & the office was closed.»
She admitted they do rentals but charge $ 2 for day use & said «You’re very lucky. I’ll let it slide this time.»
WOW! I mean, I understand a day use for someone actually spending it there, but really? HORRIBLE BUSINESS ETHICS!
Because of her bad attitude & pathetic greed, there wont be a next time & I told her so– to which she acted even more hostile stating she didn’t want «people like me» staying there anyway. People like… what? Nice, smiling, & obvious potential customers? Or was it the pink hair that made her treat me like a criminal?
ANYWAY from my experience ALL campgrounds & even many lodges let you have a look around & certainly without being barked at for pocket change!
I suggest staying elsewhere, I know I will! There are many other campgrounds nearby that are cheaper, friendlier & more spacious. Gualala regional, Ocean Cove, Salt Point, or Stillwater being a few to name. You’ll notice those places all have 4 stars or better too. hmm wonder why!

Anchor Bay is a destination campground. Meaning, it isn’t about the actual campsite as much as it is the amazing campground only accessible beach. If you want a large campsite with a fantastic beach view, make your reservations early and secure one of the four beach wall sites — they are amazing. My family has been coming to Anchor Bay for over 10 years annually. Several of our friends/​families (most RV, some tents) also camp the same weekend each year and this trip is by far our favorite of the year. We were quite shocked to see all the negative reviews here on Unilocal.Yes, most of the sites are on top of each other without a clear ocean view. Yes, it is tight quarters and if you aren’t a pro at maneuvering your rig, this may not be the campground for you. But once you are in, a great experience awaits. Most years we see whales coming in to scrub on the rocks. The tide pools are fantastic and plentiful. The abalone divers seem to do well and we have been fortunate to score an abalone most years from friendly divers. The little town of Anchor Bay at the top of the trail has a great little market, coffee shop, laundry mat and other quaint little shops and restaurants. The bathrooms are nicer than most campgrounds, the showers nice and hot. A stream runs behind the non electric sites and feeds onto the beach, creating a large freshwater pool for the young kids to play in. Driftwood is plentiful for huge beach bonfires. There is comfort and security in allowing the older kids some freedom to explore as the beach has clear confines on both sides and the only beach access is through the campground and one or two clifftop residences. This also keeps the beach from getting too crowded unlike many other destination beaches. This is a fantastic campground to bring your family, allow your kids to play and explore and enjoy what I like to call a little ‘beach therapy.’ We drive over 4 hours past a number of the ‘better campgrounds’ with ‘cheaper rates’ other reviewers have described, which we also camp at on occasion. But we will keep coming back to Anchor Bay, year after year, because there really is something truly special about this place.

If could give this thing zero stars I would. It’s a dirt parking lot the size of a pee wee football field, and some how they cram 100+ RV’s in here. The woman that runs it is dark haired and extremely rude — not the type of person that should be managing a beachfront campground. Also there are only two campsites that actually can see the ocean, the rest are all blocked by the trailer next to you. If you are looking for a nice, open, friendly campsite head 15 miles south to Ocean Cove Campground. It’s first come first serve but there’s always availability. That’s exactly what we did.

The newer lady thats works at the office is absolutely horrible. She is so unfriendly, belittling, and rude! Most everyone I talk to has had similar experiences. It’s very bad for business. Anchor Bay Beach, do yourself a favor, Fire her!!!

after all the fees its about 50 bucks a nite!!! For a parking lot??? And a day use fee is ridiculous! They nickle and dime you for every little thing! This used to be a family friendly campground now its just full of drunks. They used to have a cart for lauching you boat for free but of course they took it away! Crooks! Beware!

I wish it was possible to give negative stars for this ridiculous parking lot. Horrible customer service, especially for just driving in to check it out… and $ 45 to literally sleep in a parking lot? You’ve got to be kidding!
Go to Gualala Point Park down the road, don’t even think twice!

The best part about his place is the beach and the stunning views. But rest assured, this campground is not the only one around with those kinds of features.
The experience was great the first time… in a tent, albeit crowded and rugged. For that I’ve given it a slightly higher rating than a 1. But again, you can find that many other places.
The problem here is the lack of reaponsibility and acknowledgement of their primary customers. This is an RV park. It’s not made for tent camping. Yet half of the RV sites don’t have hookups and they’ve restricted the operating hours for generators and such that unless you have hookups you might as well be prepared to sleep in a really expensive metal tent with a built in outhouse. Had I known that before I wasted my gas to get here I would not have driven my RV. And I also would have a picked a more private and better equipped campground for my tent.
This place needs to listen to their customers. If they don’t want the sound of generators humming over the ocean waves (and neither do I) then they should make sure thee customers are equipped with electricity at the very least in all the sites… not just those who own their spots year round. Move on to the next campground. This one isn’t worth it in my opinion, not until they make some changes instead of copping excuses and pushing the responsibility of their failures in business onto their paying customers.

Three and a half stars. I would rate higher if the parking situation was better. Been coming here for the past three years. Its a great spot to relax and let the dogs run on the beach. parking is tight when the grounds are full. so having nice neighbors to help guide you in or move their car temporarily to allow you to manuever easier is definetely a place. We will continue to return here. Bathroom are clean and showers are hot. Dress warm it gets cold at night.

I loved this place. It is not perfect – read the other reviews – but such a great friendly setting with people walking around and kids playing, surrounded by redwoods and a short walk to a love beach. I only stayed for one night and would have stayed for a week however their wifi was not working (there was a guy coming to fix it) and we got zero cell phone coverage on all three of different service phones.
We have a 41′ RV and we lucked out and got a site because not many of their sites would fit us, and it is hard to maneuver in this small area and a bit hard to get out of (we scrapped our hitch on the way out.
I would recommend it highly and doubly so if you have kids. I can’t imagine a more magical place to spend a week as a kid.

My wife and sons have camped here four times in the past ten years, and are very experienced campers (both tent and trailer). We love it BUT its not «camping» and its more of an inexpensive way to be ON THE beach with some reasonable ammenities (clean shower and bathrooms) without paying for a Sea Cliff rental.
You should not go to Anchor Bay thinking you are going «camping» at Lake Tahoe, Big Sur or some other coastal state park with rangers all around and some campground host riding around smiling from a golf cart selling fire wood:). Anchor Bay is like a snapshot out of 1965… or from a TV show like «Twin Peaks» or «Northern Exposure»…from the filled in pool that is now a combined «fish cleaning station, picnic area and volleball court» to the little manager hut that has coffee in the morning, ice cream bars in the afternoon, and fishing supplies… the place is indescribable. The quirky managers don’t smile a lot, but really are helpful and interesting in a Twin Peaks sort of way. Just get them talking about their past lives.
The campsites are very small and if pitching a tent, bring a hammer and very thick metal stakes since the ground is like concrete due to all the compaction from those large motorhomes. But if you reseverve well in advance, you can get one of the prime sites next to the sea wall where you can set up a chair and look over the beach at the ocean waves… You may be next to an RV… but nothing between you and the ocean. Be prepared for wind too. A small tent trailer or other small trailer with a canopy is ideal.
I went once with my son and just slept in our van rather than pitch a tent and we made fire pits on the beach (not far from our campsite on the sea wall) and roasted hot dogs and marshmellows and watched the sunset… a real blast.
The beach/​cove is awesome and amazingly beautful. Access is really limited to the campgroung, local residents and those willing to risk the treachourous sea cliff stairs.
I don’t fish much but supposedly the fishing is very good for surf fishing.
From the campgroung, you can walk up some stairs (scenic through the trees) to the very small town of Anchor Bay and eat Mexican Food (decent), have a good breakfast, grab a lattee and pastry, or go into the very local grocery store for supplies.
I’d give Anchor Bay 4 stars for what it is… not for what you might think it should be (some five star campground with 1000 square foot campsites with \…because it ain’t). But I love it anyway.

My husband and I are seasoned campers and fell in love with this place. That being said it isn’t perfect but what it does have makes up for what it doesn’t. Pros: It’s steps to the beach that’s absolutely beautiful and more than enough room for nice walks, beautiful surroundings with the redwoods, electricity and water hook ups on some sites (if your into that), clean bathrooms, and clean campground, the campground is in a small ravine and makes for a cozy area that feels closed off from the rest of the world, the front sites fit tents and trailers up to mid size, there’s no bus size RV sites near the beach. Cons: Sites close together, only one bathroom at the center of the park, campground workers are only semi friendly and not very attentive to the campers, the back part of the campground that’s in the redwoods is for permanent residents with only a few camp site that are right off Highway 1.
This place is very popular and you have to book way in advance but if you love the beach you’ll love this place it’s a smaller campground and seems to create an atmosphere where everyone talks to each other. I had my best birthday ever camping here and will be going back next year.

I used to camp here when I was a little girl. So, I though we’d go up to Anchor Bay to relive the past and make some new memories with the hubby and kidletts. Not much has changed over the last 25 years except now the camp sites are filled with «yearly» owner’s mobile homes and trailers. There are very few camp sites available these days… BUT, this camp ground is in the Redwoods and is on a beach! We reserved 2 sites which were located at the entrance. Hwy 1 is a little loud at night, but the trees and ocean are awesome. The bathrooms have quarter operated showers and they’re clean. There’s also a little store where you can purchase fire wood and other items.
Truly the best thing about this place is the beach. Tons of tide pools and a big sandy area to explore. We really enjoyed camping here and will come back to relive old memories and to make new ones.

The positive part about this place is that it’s really on a beautiful little cove that does manage to be sunny and warm when the rest of this part of the coast is socked in and cold. The only sites I would choose here are # 36 — 39, since these are right on the sea wall, just above the beach with glorious unimpeded views of the ocean, so that you can set up your tent facing away from the RVs crammed into virtually every other site. This really is an RV park (and clearly some residents live there year-​round). Nothing, I mean nothing, ruins camping for me like electricity! Seems good for people with kids, since they can play all day on the beach, but we won’t go back.

Oh HELL no.
Why on earth would anyone want to drive for nearly 3 hours, through remote, wildly beautiful Northern California, and then set up camp here — in a glorified parking lot crammed with RVs?! It’s like a cramped little city. The bad neighborhood in a cramped little city.
I swear to you, campsite #6 (depicted on their web site as a tree-​shrouded getaway) is a joke. It is right next to a big metal wall, and exactly underneath Highway One, so you can hear the roar of traffic going over your head. The campsites are all crowded together and it’s a complete hellhole.
We paid something like $ 45 to reserve one night here, and when we got here my husband said, «Are you KIDDING? We would be happier setting up our tent in East Oakland.»
Thank god the Gualala River Redwood Park a couple of miles down the road had an open space. We HAPPILY forfeited our one-​night deposit to get the hell away from this place.