Rancho Topanga Campgrounds — Hotel in Manuel Benavides

I knew I’d fall in love with this place! Camping here made our first time to the area such a treat. Campsites are set up very nicely. Running water, picnic table and fire pit made things so easy. Bathhouses we’re kept clean and signs are all over the place to minimize any confusion. Friendly people too! We had campsites 7&8 and came during Halloween weekend. Temps were perfect at night time this year but we made sure to find some stuff to do during the heat of the day like a shaded hike or explore the backroads for a packed picnic. Sunscreen is a must while setting up camp though! I can’t wait to come back with friends and family. For those who are allergic to bees there’s a few of them but they don’t really mess with you. Skies are immaculate and views are beautiful too. Our sites had both amazing sunrises and sunsets.

UPDATED REVIEW We just returned home from our 2nd trip to Rancho. Thanksgiving week at the small group site. Once again, we were very pleased with the grounds and views! This time we brought my dad along and a couple friends and our adventure pup! They all loved this place too and plan to return. We did have a random wind storm one day that nearly took our tents. This was our first camping experience with high winds… and the owner of the grounds saw us struggling and was so generous to help us out and lend some durable stakes. We are so grateful we didn’t have to spend our thanksgiving flying away. Aside from that, bathrooms were still clean and warmed with heaters. And stars were absolutely...

By far one of my favorite places I've camped in the area. I've camped in the Big Bend National Park basin campground, on a friend's property on Terlingua Ranch, and the Maverick Ranch RV park. I came her for the Big Bend Ultras in January. I stayed at Maverick last year, and while it had all the amenities, I didn't need them all. I just needed a cheap place to camp (either car or tent) because there was no way I was paying for a room at the resort. I'm old, but I can still sleep in a sleeping bag. ||I'll upload pictures later - but you would have to see this place to believe it. Gorgeous views, clear skies, level campsites with tent pads (so you aren't banging your tent stakes into rock), amazingly friendly and helpful hosts, showers with warm water, and of course, toilets! ||As some other reviewers have said, it can get windy, so be prepared. I've never had tent poles snap, but I can see how it would happen. When we stayed last year, we kept a cooler inside the tent to keep it from blowing away, just in case. :)||When we went, it looked like they were also building some sort of camp store closer to the sites on the back 40 (where the bathhouses are) and maybe even a cabin? Guess I'll find out next January!||Just a few miles away from Lajitas, and about 15 minutes...

Stayed here two nights. Campsites were spectacularly spacious. We fit three tents in one camping spot (one single, one two sleeper, one five sleeper) and still had room to fit three more if we needed. There was fresh running water at our site which was oh so lovely. We also had a fire pit and two huge personal trashcans. There wasn't much shade offered at the spot so you would definitely want to bring a canopy if you're going to be at your spot during the day. Luckily we were just camping for the nights while we adventured Big Bend during the day. At night you could see all the stars in the glorious Heavens. It did get really windy the first night, definitely make sure you plant your tent on the lower part of the campsite. We unfortunately placed ours at the top of the site and were almost blown away the first night. Mother nature is wild!!! The showers and toilets were clean and accessible 24/7. They also offered wifi at their checkin house.

Note: The land is really rocky, make sure to bring sleeping pads and strong tent stakes to drive into the ground, the regular ones that come with the tent won't stand a chance being driven into the...