Carpinteria State Beach — Hotel in Carpinteria

Growing up, my family camped at Carpinteria State Beach once a year and I have been so anxious to go back. We finally made that happen last weekend! It was even more beautiful than I remembered! The views on the beach are so pretty with Catalina Island on one side and the mountains in the background on the other side. I love camping here because the beach is just steps away from the campsites and you fall asleep to the sound of the ocean waves. We have only camped in the Santa Cruz campground but there are others to choose from.

📍205 Palm Ave, Carpinteria, CA 93013 🚙2 vehicles can park at your campsite as long as they fit on your paved parking spot. Max of 35 ft camper. 💰Price varies based on the day of the week and the campsite chosen but average about $45/night. 🗓Reservations open 6 months in advance you you MUST book early or you won’t get a site! The minute those reservations open, you need to be online booking! They go fast! 🎠There is an adorable playground nearby. See next post for more info. 🚽2 buildings with 4 restrooms each. They provide toilet paper and are cleaned once daily. 🚿2 buildings with 4 indoor hot showers each. You must use California State Park tokens for these showers. 1 token costs 50 cents and gets you 2 minutes of hot water. Tokens can be retrieved at the campground host station. There are also outdoor cold showers for a quick rinse after playing at the beach. 🧺At least 1 wooden picnic table at each camp site. There are also picnic tables on the beach 🔥1 fire pit at each campsite 🐿Be aware there is a bit of a gofer problem at the campgrounds and they WILL steal your food if you leave it unattended! We had sealed bags that they ripped open and got into 🤦🏻‍♀️ 🥾Dirt hiking trails nearby including a hike to see the seals 🚲So many people bring scooters and bikes to ride around the campgrounds and on the trails. 🚂Train nearby and it is loud. The last train usually goes by around 10pm

The Tomol Interpretive Play Area nearby is so cute and was the perfect place to take kids while camping at Carpinteria. It’s only a short distance from the Santa Cruz campground so we walked over here one morning before spending the rest of the day on the sand at the beach. The roller slide reminded me of my Discovery Zone days when I was a kid 😆

📍Linden Ave, Carpinteria, CA 93013 🚙Free parking on street or pay for parking in the lot 💰This park is free 🎠The play structure has a rubber ground surface, no swings 🚽Restrooms on the other side of the lawn closer to the beach and the pay lot. 🪑Park benches at playground 🏖Playground is near the beach 🌅Scenic ocean views 🖼Lawn 🌟Clean grounds 🥾Short dirt walking trail. You can continue through the Carpinteria campgrounds on the paved paths via 4th street and the dirt trail will continue to the Tar Pits and the Seal Sanctuary and beyond. If you only want to do the trail to see the seals and the tar pits, park at the Carpinteria Bluffs Trailhead and head NW. 🚲Some kids were riding their bikes along the dirt trail and on the sidewalks nearby 🚂Perfect views...

The woman at the front gate greeting was very pleasant and helpful. All guests respected quiet hours. The sound of the waves is nice. My neighbors were very friendly. Everything else was extremely frustrating and disappointing. The online rate was $53 for a basic campsite and it was awful (the website showed it as the last one available). Absolutely nowhere even remotely ideal to put my tent (in the dirt no grass no shade) because it was so bumpy with large holes everywhere. The safe area to put my tent on the pavement (which we are not allowed to do but it was my only other possible option at that space) had leakage from an RV toilet and a white powdery chemical substance. The front desk ranger ignored me and was silent when I communicated these significant issues. I was offered another site by a woman ranger checking people in for an additional $15 but I did not want to pay almost $70 to tent camp for 1 night at such a dumpy campground (santa cruz section). I was offered another site which was great (beach side with a very small patch of sand large enough for my 2 person tent) - I was so relieved thinking now I could hopefully enjoy this stay - to get back in line for a third time to let her know I would switch and was told it was $15 additional - (she had made a mistake even though I had asked twice if it was the same price and stated I did not want to pay extra with such a poor experience). No apology, no accountability, no taking responsibility on her part, not even a “I am sorry I made a mistake” in a genuine tone, etc. Her tone/demeanor towards me was as if being treated like I was doing something wrong when I was doing all the work. So I had to go back a third time to look at another site so that I wouldn’t be spending almost $70 for a campsite at this seriously mediocre campground at best of mostly dirt and almost no shade to absolutely no shade. Finally I got a campsite that was OK. I spent a significant amount of time in line 4 times - I asked if I had to stand in line again (each time - per the campgrounds poor customer service, errors and disgusting campsite) and the front desk ranger was snarky when I asked about this, saying in a passive aggressive tone “Yep! I have to check you in!” This whole process took almost 2 hours out of my day. The shower I used had no hot water and there were issues with two of the toilets. I asked the two women at the front check in if the water was potable and they were guessing if it was or not - one did not even know what potable meant. I was told to “google it” to find the answer which I could not find. Finally a volunteer at 8:30pm let me know it was potable water - A VOLUNTEER. I will never stay here again and I will let anyone know who inquires about it how awful my...

This is definitely one of our favorite spots to RV at, but be aware of how each camping loop can affect your experience. We have a 30’ Class A rig. San Miguel and Santa Rosa loops are VERY tight and the back rows in each resemble an upgraded homeless encampment. Best for smaller trailers and vans. Both basically parking lots. Some hookups.

Santa Cruz loop is more ample and where the bigger Class As and 5th wheels are stacked up. Not bad if you can get in, but the RV sites looked pretty close to one another. This loop is fairly busy.

Anacapa loop is about 75 yards from the beach separated by a day use and overflow parking lot, but an easy walk from the campground. This, I believe, is the best and most ample area for campers if you can support dry camp ops and not be right on the beach. We were fine in early June ‘21 with solar & a 30 gal tote to ferry our waste water to the nearby dump station. There are “non-threaded” potable water spigots within this loop. Have a plan to fill your rig if needed without breaking camp. I.E., Water Bandit attachment with cinching clamps (for spigots) & 75’ of hose to reach a nearby spigot location or drill pump setup with 5 gal jugs...we used both.

Just be aware that during our stay, the Anacapa shower & restroom facility building had construction going on so only porta-potties available. So you’ll be going to the Santa Cruz loop to use showers unless you have one on board. Believe they’ll be done Fall ‘21. Anacapa is also bordered by a huge recreation field and the closest loop to Linden Ave which has all the DT eateries within walking distance.

The cons are as follows: (1) ground squirrels galore and most areas look like dirt Swiss cheese. Lock your stuff up & check your engine compartments. (2) the upkeep has deteriorated over the years. 15-20 yrs ago this campground was pristine, now it’s starting to look a bit like a dirt swap meet in places. (3) Park rangers mostly cool, but one possessed Hispanic guy making sure all 4 tires of tow on site pavement & not on any dry grassed/dirt areas. Really? It’s barren dirt, not manicured lawn. He should be lecturing the ground squirrels & landscapers for abuse & neglect, not campers. (4) next to active train tracks so be prepared for that (5) no dogs on the beach (6) little or no park ranger activity after dark. Never saw one after dark (guess Gavin cut that out of the budget) (7) early morning construction at a few places so bring earplugs - yes, they were jack hammering at 0700 hrs until the Ranger was called...but it continued later in the AM.

Overall, a good campsite depending on your expectations. Be aware that it’s not in the best shape like in years past, but the weather, beach, and nearby town will be...