Rio Grande Village Campground

Hoorah for RV hookups (air conditioning!) in the 105+ Fahrenheit temperatures.

Bring your own food! Limited selection at the camp store. Note that there is a generator-free area of the campground, spots 21-27 odd, 40, 41-49 odd, 94-100 even.

Close to river. Service station close by for supplies (ice, food and bev, laundry, shower). Restrooms nice. Neighbors are pretty close, in sight. Far from Main entrance (1.5 hrs!), but close to border crossing (must have passport!). Covered table area allows hammocks to be easily strung. Nice bear proof storage.

$16 to stay, even though there are no hookups. There are a couple of restrooms, and water spigots. Close access to several trails, including the Hot Springs Trail. General Store nearby with wifi connection (no service in the campground). Close to port-of-entry to Boquillas, Mexico. Worth the trip across the river ($5 row boat).

Took horses for a week of camping and riding. Saw a different area of the park each day.

Honestly this campground is about a 45 minute drive to many of the iconic hikes and sights at Big Bend so if camping here it's important to account for the travel time when planning out hikes. All of the campsites are very close together and sound carries so it's important not to get too rowdy (as our neighbors did and kept us up most of the night on multiple occasions). The sites are located in a basin and so the sunsets and rises are very attractive and the chance to see jack rabbits is at peak. Reserving sites can be tricky as this is a very large park without a lot of camping areas so if you want to camp there you need to reserve months in advance.

We recently stayed at the Rio Grande campground because the Chisos Campground was closed due to a fire. The campsites were a bit closer to each other than we prefer, but thankfully we had quiet neighbors. It can be close to 50 degrees hotter here than in the Chisos, so be sure to get a site with tons of shade. Make sure you hit up the hot springs just down the road!

Be sure to pay at the very beginning as you are entering the camp. It's easy to miss on your way in.

Rio Grande Village has the most openings and largest sites if you drop in to Big Bend National Park without a reservation. Less busy than Chisos Basin sites. We were planning on backcountry camping--which is first-come, first-serve--but were not able to get passes the first two nights. Winter is their busy season (the desert gets hot!), so go to Rio Grande Village first to nab a spot. It is by Boquillos Canyon (where you can cross the border to the small town), with the Sierra del Carmen range as a backdrop at the camp sites. Boquillos Hot Springs (a must after-hike soak) only a quarter-mile hike from a mile unpaved, but low-clearance drive off the main road. Expect to find handmade Mexican gifts there and petroglyphs.