Best Camping in Julian, CA | Tent & RV Campgrounds

With its mild climate and beautiful scenery, Southern California is a great place to camp all year round. 

Whether you’re looking for an organized campground with all the amenities and space for an RV, or a more rustic tent camping experience, you’ll find several great options throughout this guide for camping in Julian, CA.

Many of these campgrounds offer showers, restrooms, and picnic tables. Some even have swimming pools! If you’re looking for a more primitive camping experience, there are plenty of options for that too.

RV & Tent Camping Near Julian, CA

Cuyamaca Rancho State Park

Cuyamaca State Park

If you’re looking for one of the best camping experiences in Julian, look no further than Cuyamaca Rancho State Park. This beautiful state park offers plenty of great opportunities for hiking, biking, or horseback ridng with over 100 miles of trails. You can also fish in Laka Cuyamaca (pictured above) with a valid CA state fishing license.

The park is just a short drive south of Julian and there are two organized campgrounds to choose between, Pasa Pichacho Campground and Green Valley Campground, as well as primitive walk-in sites.

Reservations are available for the two organized campgrounds in Cuyamaca Rancho State Park throughout the spring and fall. More information can be found at the link above.

William Heise County Park

Sitting 4,200 feet above sea level, William Heise County Park in Julian is another excellent option for camping outside the San Diego area.

You’ll have access to almost 11 miles of hiking trails that wind through the beautiful scenery and may even catch some snow in the winter since this is only of the only parks in the area that receives snowfall each year.

There are designated picnic areas located throughout the park, making it the perfect place to enjoy a day out in nature even if you’re not looking to hike, and the park is just minutes from downtown Julian where you take a historic stroll if you’d like. 

READ MORE: Top 10 Irvine Trails | Ranked Easy to Difficult

Anza-Borrego Desert State Park

Anza-Borrego Desert State Park near Julian, CA

Anza-Borrego Desert State Park is the perfect place to get away and camp near Julian if you’re looking for a desert experience. With over 600 miles of trails and endless opportunities to explore on foot or by vehicle, this state park has something for everyone.

Whether you’re looking to camp in a developed campground with RV hookups or you’re wanting to rough it and camp in the backcountry, there are multiple choices available throughout the park.

You can reserve campgrounds online at the California State Park Website or simply stroll up anywhere and pitch a tent if you don’t need any amenities during your trip.

Banner Recreation Ranch

Banner Recreation Ranch is a popular campsite for through-hikers passing through Julian. Just 10-minutes outside downtown, the ranch offers beautiful scenery, plenty of wildlife, and hiking along the Pacific Crest Trail and California Ridging and Riding Trail.

You can pitch a tent at Banner Ranch and enjoy all it has to offer, or choose between several unique options like handcrafted covered wagons or gorgeous tiny houses that vary in price.

Mt Laguna and the Cleveland National Forest

Cleveland National Forest during the daytime

6,000 ft. above sea level, Mt. Laguna is a beautiful location for camping and hiking about 45-minutes east of Julian and one of the highest destinations nearby. There are multiple experiences to choose from here depending on what you are looking for out of your camping trip.

The Mt. Laguna Campground is a great option if you are looking for designated camping spots. It hosts four loops equipped with flush toilets and a coin-operated shower.

For a more rugged experience, dispersed camping along Pine Creek Road might be more your style. This primitive site is located in the Cleveland National Forest and offers no hookups or amenities, so make sure you pack plenty of water and a Jackery to keep everything charged if you have one.

Note: All dispersed camping in the Cleveland National Forest requires a permit that you can download from the US Forest Service and submit. Wood and charcoal fires are not allowed outside of organized campgrounds or picnic locations in the Cleveland National Forest 

KQ Ranch RV Resort

Looking exclusively for an RV Park? KQ Ranch RV Resort is one of the most popular RV campgrounds in Julian. The resort offers its guests full hookups for their RVs and several pull-through or back-in sites are available, making it easy to set up camp.

KQ Ranch RV Resort is pet-friendly and offers its guests a variety of activities, such as a fishing pond, tennis courts, gold mining, basketball, sand volleyball, and more.

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