Cottonwood Campground

This is the only option for camping in the southern part of the park. We came in on a Sat. (dumb move) and all the other campgrounds were full. When we made it down to Cottonwood Campground we were pleasantly surprised to find it only about two thirds full and so we had plenty of sites to chose from. Cottonwood doesn't get the same amount of use as the other campgrounds because it's in the southernmost section of the park which in some ways does not have as many things to do or sights to see. For instance, you won't see any Joshua Trees near Cottonwood Campground nor find the big boulders so favored by rock climbers.

Still,this campground is not without its charms. The sites are spacious, well laid out, and have some degree of privacy and pretty desert views. Each site has a picnic table and fire pit. There are flush toilets and a dump station with potable water. A trail from the campground will take you to the pretty little Cottonwood Oasis and well as on to longer hikes. It's just a short trip to a nice little visitors center which on our visit was staffed with some of the friendliest rangers we've ever encountered.

All in all this is a nice option, especially if you find the other park campgrounds full,

Our rate reflects our Senior Access Pass rate. Regular fee is $20/night.

Most recent stay 4-28-16 [I’m late on writing my review] ~ We camp in a "Tear Drop” style RV only 15' long w/o toilet or shower and thus rely on condition of campgrounds facilities and this National Park Campground is w/o the amenities of other private or some state campgrounds ~ BUT they do have a water fill / dump station on site and restroom with flush toilets and sinks [no hot water no electricity] that being said we still loved the true “camping” experience. Ran on battery power and propane for cooking and frig.

Excellent large site with asphalt pad, sturdy picnic table, water spigot 50’ away and roomy site with green-way between and not close or tight against any of neighbor sites. Had plenty of room for our dinning fly shelter ~ could have added a tent even with our rv - campground is located at most southern end of park ~ 1st come 1st served and we had no problem selecting site ~ take 45 min to drive through park to reach other “attractions” and campgrounds of the most popular “northern” end. Lot’s of pull out and points of interest along the way, you won’t miss a thing.

About a 15 degree temp change difference between south and north – warmer on the south end. Best to camp during spring or fall – summertime it can get very hot. Pitch black at night – you’ll be amazed at how many stars you can see – absolutely a sight to behold. The peace the absolute quiet was incredible.

Lots of pictures taken by previous reviewer Evergreengirl sums it up - we added a couple extra of our own.

This is in the south end of Joshua Tree National Park. This is only 1 of 2 campgrounds inside the park that has water. There is also a dump station. The water spigots are located throughout the campground but we filled up at the dump station.

There are 2 loops, the motorhome sites are perimeter parallel road sites. Our driver side slides were next to the road, we are 32’ long and 12’ wide. It looked like the cars coming through were inches from our slides. We were told they had just repaved everything but nothing was level. When we arrived on Monday it was empty. We had concerns about our size with the road. The campground host told us we could drive around and see if there was another site more suitable since they weren’t full. We drove around for over an hour and couldn’t find any back-in site long enough or anywhere near level.

We finally decided on a deeper perimeter spot. There are nice flush toilet bathrooms but no showers. We enjoyed the sunsets each night. Then on Wednesday we were informed by the camp host we had to move back to our original site. They were booked up for the weekend.
He wasn’t kidding! It turned into the Daytona 500! We had people walking through our campsite, cars buzzing past our slides and kids playing right by our bedroom slide at 6am.

We had no hookups so we had to leave all of our windows open. The once peaceful campground was overrun. We found out that several families were together for a wedding and since our site was between all of them, they just used it as their travel path.

We left as early as we could on our last day, the campground host had put our site tag under our tow windshield wipers so we wouldn’t forget it was check-out day, as if!
There is BLM land right outside the south entrance with cell service. We headed there.

The rangers are however super nice and very helpful. Check-in is at the Cottonwood Visitor Center. We also very much enjoyed the park, it’s incredible.

We didn’t see the allure of this park. We are in a 41 ft DP Mh site reserved said it was over 50 ft long, NOT TRUE, yes we fit but barely. So unlevel it was terrible & we carry blocks of wood to help us level there is no way on earth to get that spot level. The spots are so close together. This was not our cup of tea. We only spent one night here as we were on our way to Pasadena for the Rose Bowl Parade, we WILL NOT be stopping here on our way back to quartzite I can guarantee. And all the really hiking is at the other end of the park, from recent rains there are washed out roads & campsites. Our opinion stay outside the park on FREE BLM land. There is NO cell phone service in the park at all.

Prior to pulling into JTNP we camped outside at the BLM south area and I should have stayed put. Sites here are extremely tight including the one way lane throughout the campground loops. Sites are NOT level. Several water spigots non operational. Some sites are right off the side of the road. And if you have rigs with slide outs-gosh good luck squeezing through.

Best for small trailers under 20ft.
No cell service or OTA channels

I would of rather camped outside the park for free with more space.
Just wasn’t a good fit for us.

This is a reservation only campground, and we lucked out to come across a family who was leaving early and vacating their spot, so we took over their reservation. Flush toilets are very clean - we saw someone clean them daily. There is a large table, fire pit with grill and large pad for parking at our site. I noticed some sites did not have a pad, and cars parked on the street. There were many water spigots through the campground. Our site was right next to the bathroom, which was not an issue for us, but might bother others. No lights (including bathrooms) or electricity in the campground, which made stargazing wonderful! This campground is located in the most southern part of the park - 90% of the activities and exhibits were in the northern part. Keep in mind it’s about a 40 minute drive to these locations, which worked out nice, because that meant there were fewer people in our area.

Beautiful mountain view and desert plants. Cactus were just beginning to bud. Camping spots are a little tight for larger RV's. There was a bit of city glow from Palm Springs so stargazing wasn't as good as we'd hoped. Had great hikes on the many paths. Drove through Joshua Tree National forest, through Cholla and Ocotilla gardens. Saw Skull rock and the fabulous gigantic rock formations. Had a bit of a time getting our 36 ft RV situated so we could extend our slides, and had to park our toad at the bathhouse (only a short distance away), but overall a great two day stay.

What a joke!
I couldn’t possibly fit into a spot they called a 45 Ft spot. Nothing more than a slightly wider spot than the road itself.

We had been boondocking for a while, so the amenities of this campground fit our specific needs. Having the dump station and potable water was a huge plus. There are several dumpsters and an area for recycling. Flush toilets and sinks in the bathroom. The sites and facilities are well maintained and clean. Great sunsets. We really enjoyed the view and privacy of site B29. The parking was cramped for our 34 ft Class A and fairly unlevel; our site was basically parallel parking directly off the main path, but we made it work. Class B or C most likely not have any issues. Just like everywhere inside Joshua Tree, there is no cell service. In addition to the site fee, you’ll pay a $30 park entry fee at the visitors center; we recommend getting the yearly interagency pass for $80. With that, you’ll get free entry into all national and some state parks. Even though the parking was cramped, we’d stay here again.