Tamarisk Grove Campground — Hotel in San Diego Country Estates

This campground has a lot going for it, but also a few noteworthy downsides. The sites are clean and the bathrooms are both easily accessible and clean. There are coin operated showers, but we did not use them. The fire pits are in good shape. The location is good for exploring nearby hikes and the state park.

The downsides:

They're very nitpicky with noise. This is a constant battle at campgrounds and I understand why. It's always a good idea to be courteous to camping neighbors. We were a large group with lots of kids. The kids were running around playing, as kids are wont to do. A little after 9pm we had someone visit our site and ask us to keep the kids quiet. Quiet hours don't start until 10pm, so this was surprising. The noise was not excessive by any stretch. There did not seem to be many children at the other sites and cabins. Mostly couples and elderly folks. So if you have children that like to play, just be aware that you may get visits from campsite hosts even before quiet hours.

Parking. If you have more than 2 cars for your site, you'll have to park outside the campground. Not outside your site, but literally on the highway outside. There is plenty of space here and this seems totally unnecessary.

Road noise. The state highway is directly adjacent to the campsite and there are lots of trucks hauling trailers. This noise was much louder than anything our kids could create. If you're a light sleeper, this might be an issue. Bring earplugs.

Windy. The site is beautiful because it's in a tamarisk grove (hence the name) in a valley. But it is also a wind tunnel and it can get very gusty. You may want to avoid high profile tents and be sure to strap things...

Like all of Anza Borrego Desert State Park’s facilities, the bathrooms, campground, and individual campsites are clean and well maintained. Each campsite has a little shelter over the picnic table, and there are showers (operated via token).

HOWEVER, if you want to camp here, I would skip the cabins and use a tent or RV. The cabins are theoretically nice if you’re not in the mood to set up a tent and you want a bit of additional insulation from the wind, and if you’re prepared for the fact that they are literally just shelters with no water, electricity, beds (there are wooden platforms where you can set up a sleeping pad), etc. The only place for a double bed is kind of up in an attic area that can only be accessed via ladder.

Unfortunately, after the sun set we discovered that this little attic area was home to many, many crevice weaver spiders. These are mostly harmless, but there were a lot and we didn’t really want to bunk with them, so we ended up getting a hotel room in town. This is obviously something that is way out of the park’s control - a remote wood cabin is basically an Architectural Digest dream home for spiders, of course they all want to live there! But I wanted to provide a heads up for future campers. At minimum, bring a tent as a backup and check for spiders emerging early in the night so you have time and energy to set up the tent if needed.

Also, there is a bit of road noise and noise from wind blowing through the trees (amplified due to being in a valley).

Overall, the park has done what it can to make this a nice spot… just proceed with careful attention to your...

Very friendly staff! They were very informative of nearby things to see and do. They even helped us jump start our battery on our way out. When you check in you get a parking pass that gives you access to other day use trails and the like throughout Anza Borrego and a key to lock/unlock the cabin if your site has one.

The camp grounds themselves are very clean. There's dumpsters/recycling on site to toss your trash when you're done. Ideally we all pack in and pack out but in the event you might miss something, I saw rangers going around picking things up too. At night you can see the sky very clearly. Only complaint is the road is not far off so you will hear cars from time to time.

As for amenities, it's more than enough. Camp site has a partially covered picnic table. There's a fire pit at each site with a retractable grill piece. Some sites have small stand up grills. Non potable water access is available at various locations throughout the campsite. Bathrooms near the campsite entrance. They have dim lights on at night so you can see. Showers have hot water but it takes a bit to heat up if it's cold and hasn't been on (50 cents per two minutes of water). Cabin itself is pretty bare. If you don't set up a tent outside, you'll find three bunks in the cabin (just the wood frames so bring blankets, pillows, etc if you plan to utilize it). Two twin sized bunks and an attic space about the size of a king bed. There's a small table with two chairs and a few shelves for storage. You could probably fit 5-7 people comfortably in the cabin depending on how close y'all...