The best waterside campgrounds near Chico, California

Volcanic buttes, the Sacramento River, the Sierra Nevada foothills—in Chico, scenic landscapes lie in every direction. Nestled in the fertile Sacramento Valley (the birthplace of craft breweries), it's a real California paradise. Paddling, hiking, SUP boarding, and horseback riding are never far away.

You can't miss Lake Oroville State Recreation Area—it's the second biggest reservoir in California, after all. Get ready for boating, kayaking, and world-class bass fishing. Plus, camping at Lake Oroville gives you some serious bragging rights. Imagine being rocked to sleep by the waves on a floating campsite.

Just past Orland, Black Butte Lake Recreation Area is a quieter spot to get out on the water. Here, you can enjoy fishing, water skiing, and lakeside camping beneath sweeping buttes.

Driving into the Sierra Nevada Mountains brings you to Plumas National Forest. The sprawling woods offer wilderness tent camping and cabins. You can even hike the Pacific Crest and other national trails. Want to camp by a 410-foot waterfall? Check out the forest service's Feather Falls Campground.

Believe it or not, you don't even have to venture outside Chico to find wilderness adventure. The city's Bidwell Park is one of the biggest municipal parks in the USA. Get stoked about hiking trails through canyons and bluffs, paved bike trails, and fishing on Horseshoe Lake.

Camping near Chico offers just as much variety as the landscapes that surround it. Hunker down in a foothills tent campground, relax at an RV park, or browse rolling farms where landowners invite you to pitch your tent.

Butte County is an adventurer's paradise year round. However, keep in mind the Sacramento Valley is famous for its toasty summers and cool, wet Winters. For the best camping weather, you can't beat fall or late spring.

95% (2.5K) • 40 campsites

Top-rated campgrounds near Chico

Lake Concow Campground

1. Lake Concow Campground

96%

(189)

17mi from Chico · 99 sites · Tents, RVs

Ancestors of Maidu people lived here long ago. European settlers arrived and took control of the area. In recent history, a multi-cultural group of community members formed the Konkow Partnership to attempt to hold, steward, and preserve the wilderness that survives here. We look forward to your post fire visit. Learn more about this land: Congratulations Campers!  The campground is reopened after the last couple of years of wild fires and tough winters. We are reopened even as repairs and upgrades are being made. Thank you to all visitors who love this place for your patience as we continue to improve the features of the Campground. Stay tuned for progress reports. We hope to see you real soon. Visit, fish, or camp in a rare jewel forest, hidden in the Sierra/Cascade foothills, less than an hour's drive to Chico, Oroville, or Paradise. Surviving forests of mature cedars, pines, oaks, and madrones provide shady camping, fishing along the lake shore, or picnicing along the banks of the creek that runs through a recovering creekside area. Stargaze or fly kites in our Great Meadow or admire copious wildflowers and other native plants on over 80 acres of wilderness. We provide a variety of recovering wilderness areas near water faucets, pit toilets and an RV dump station. Our site features mature forests, grassy meadows, a year-round creek in a fire recovery zone. The site also features lakefront shoreline access for bank fishing, a central fire pit and lots of space for group camping. Fires are permitted in the central pit when weather allows. The Lake Concow/Konkow Campground is a wilderness sanctuary and houses many variety of rare and endangered plants, animals, and insects. Please be aware of and give respectful space to all of the residents of the park. The list of year round residents may include poison oak, thorny berry vines, mosquitoes, ticks, spiders, deer, eagles, osprey, owls, squirrels, skunks, foxes, bears, mountain lions, snakes, bats, and more. Please be responsible for personal camp supplies and trash. The Campground is a Pack In/Pack Out location and garbage cans are supplied near the office house near the entrance. Good hiking shoes, protective clothing, and hats are recommended. All Campground faucets supply delicious, potable water tested regularly. The modern listings spell the name Concow, Ancestors spelled it Konkow. Both are correct, though may give different search results. There is plenty of room for parking large vehicles and for turning around. TOW VEHICLES MUST STAY THE DURATION OF THE CAMPING VISIT. Sorry, we DO NOT allow towed-in-and-dropped-off campers or 5th wheel trailers at this time. This may change as clean up work progresses through the year. Stay tuned for updates. Thank you.

Pets

Toilets

Campfires

from

$20

/ night

Plumas National Forest

2. Plumas National Forest

95%

(67)

National forest 44mi from Chico · 821 sites

Hike, cross-country ski, or even drive into the deep wilderness of this Sierra Nevada forest.

Pets

Toilets

Campfires

Lassen National Forest

3. Lassen National Forest

96%

(67)

National forest 70mi from Chico · 412 sites

Crossroads of California offers year-round recreation in volcanic, alpine, and wilderness terrain.

Pets

Toilets

Full hookups

Mendocino National Forest

4. Mendocino National Forest

91%

(34)

National forest 53mi from Chico · 463 sites

Minimal pavement and plenty of forest and wilderness ensure a rugged and wild outdoor experience.

Pets

Toilets

Campfires

Tahoe National Forest

5. Tahoe National Forest

93%

(255)

National forest 67mi from Chico · 1382 sites

Though the lake isn’t in the forest’s boundary, you can see it in panoramic views.

Pets

Toilets

Campfires

Lassen Volcanic National Park

6. Lassen Volcanic National Park

97%

(85)

National park 53mi from Chico · 336 sites

Find solitude and adventure in a surreal landscape of lakes, forests, and volcanic terrain.

Pets

Toilets

Campfires

Volcanic buttes, the Sacramento River, the Sierra Nevada foothills—in Chico, scenic landscapes lie in every direction. Nestled in the fertile Sacramento Valley (the birthplace of craft breweries), it's a real California paradise. Paddling, hiking, SUP boarding, and horseback riding are never far away.

You can't miss Lake Oroville State Recreation Area—it's the second biggest reservoir in California, after all. Get ready for boating, kayaking, and world-class bass fishing. Plus, camping at Lake Oroville gives you some serious bragging rights. Imagine being rocked to sleep by the waves on a floating campsite.

Just past Orland, Black Butte Lake Recreation Area is a quieter spot to get out on the water. Here, you can enjoy fishing, water skiing, and lakeside camping beneath sweeping buttes.

Driving into the Sierra Nevada Mountains brings you to Plumas National Forest. The sprawling woods offer wilderness tent camping and cabins. You can even hike the Pacific Crest and other national trails. Want to camp by a 410-foot waterfall? Check out the forest service's Feather Falls Campground.

Believe it or not, you don't even have to venture outside Chico to find wilderness adventure. The city's Bidwell Park is one of the biggest municipal parks in the USA. Get stoked about hiking trails through canyons and bluffs, paved bike trails, and fishing on Horseshoe Lake.

Camping near Chico offers just as much variety as the landscapes that surround it. Hunker down in a foothills tent campground, relax at an RV park, or browse rolling farms where landowners invite you to pitch your tent.

Butte County is an adventurer's paradise year round. However, keep in mind the Sacramento Valley is famous for its toasty summers and cool, wet Winters. For the best camping weather, you can't beat fall or late spring.

95% (2.5K) • 40 campsites

Top-rated campgrounds near Chico

Lake Concow Campground

1. Lake Concow Campground

96%

(189)

17mi from Chico · 99 sites · Tents, RVs

Ancestors of Maidu people lived here long ago. European settlers arrived and took control of the area. In recent history, a multi-cultural group of community members formed the Konkow Partnership to attempt to hold, steward, and preserve the wilderness that survives here. We look forward to your post fire visit. Learn more about this land: Congratulations Campers!  The campground is reopened after the last couple of years of wild fires and tough winters. We are reopened even as repairs and upgrades are being made. Thank you to all visitors who love this place for your patience as we continue to improve the features of the Campground. Stay tuned for progress reports. We hope to see you real soon. Visit, fish, or camp in a rare jewel forest, hidden in the Sierra/Cascade foothills, less than an hour's drive to Chico, Oroville, or Paradise. Surviving forests of mature cedars, pines, oaks, and madrones provide shady camping, fishing along the lake shore, or picnicing along the banks of the creek that runs through a recovering creekside area. Stargaze or fly kites in our Great Meadow or admire copious wildflowers and other native plants on over 80 acres of wilderness. We provide a variety of recovering wilderness areas near water faucets, pit toilets and an RV dump station. Our site features mature forests, grassy meadows, a year-round creek in a fire recovery zone. The site also features lakefront shoreline access for bank fishing, a central fire pit and lots of space for group camping. Fires are permitted in the central pit when weather allows. The Lake Concow/Konkow Campground is a wilderness sanctuary and houses many variety of rare and endangered plants, animals, and insects. Please be aware of and give respectful space to all of the residents of the park. The list of year round residents may include poison oak, thorny berry vines, mosquitoes, ticks, spiders, deer, eagles, osprey, owls, squirrels, skunks, foxes, bears, mountain lions, snakes, bats, and more. Please be responsible for personal camp supplies and trash. The Campground is a Pack In/Pack Out location and garbage cans are supplied near the office house near the entrance. Good hiking shoes, protective clothing, and hats are recommended. All Campground faucets supply delicious, potable water tested regularly. The modern listings spell the name Concow, Ancestors spelled it Konkow. Both are correct, though may give different search results. There is plenty of room for parking large vehicles and for turning around. TOW VEHICLES MUST STAY THE DURATION OF THE CAMPING VISIT. Sorry, we DO NOT allow towed-in-and-dropped-off campers or 5th wheel trailers at this time. This may change as clean up work progresses through the year. Stay tuned for updates. Thank you.

Pets

Toilets

Campfires

from

$20

/ night

Plumas National Forest

2. Plumas National Forest

95%

(67)

National forest 44mi from Chico · 821 sites

Hike, cross-country ski, or even drive into the deep wilderness of this Sierra Nevada forest.

Pets

Toilets

Campfires

Lassen National Forest

3. Lassen National Forest

96%

(67)

National forest 70mi from Chico · 412 sites

Crossroads of California offers year-round recreation in volcanic, alpine, and wilderness terrain.

Pets

Toilets

Full hookups

Mendocino National Forest

4. Mendocino National Forest

91%

(34)

National forest 53mi from Chico · 463 sites

Minimal pavement and plenty of forest and wilderness ensure a rugged and wild outdoor experience.

Pets

Toilets

Campfires

Tahoe National Forest

5. Tahoe National Forest

93%

(255)

National forest 67mi from Chico · 1382 sites

Though the lake isn’t in the forest’s boundary, you can see it in panoramic views.

Pets

Toilets

Campfires

Lassen Volcanic National Park

6. Lassen Volcanic National Park

97%

(85)

National park 53mi from Chico · 336 sites

Find solitude and adventure in a surreal landscape of lakes, forests, and volcanic terrain.

Pets

Toilets

Campfires

Recent reviews from the Hipcamp community

A

Alan

October 2025

Tent

With pets

1 night at Lake Concow Campground

Beautiful location tough to find at night. It’s right across from the fire station but without any lights.

C

Creek

October 2025

16 ft car

1 night at Lake Concow Campground

Super Duper camp spot, clean, fun, safe, nice bathrooms and incredibly nice hosts. Super cool camp fire ring too!

View of the reservoir from our campsite on the lake front. Note: No swimming allowed, but it makes for a beautiful site. You can also drive down the road not too far to Lake Oroville if you want to swim for the day.

N

Nathen

September 2025

Tent

1 night at Lake Concow Campground

Great site, plenty of room for tents and a car. Lake was amazing and plenty of wildlife. For sure would camp there again

M

Mark

August 2025

16 ft car

Weekend Trip to Lake Concow Campground

Lovely campground and safe. Beautiful lake, so relaxing. Tabitha the caretaker of the campground was very helpful. We will be going back.

D

Dorian

August 2025

22 ft Class B

With pets

1 night at Lake Concow Campground

Charming and peaceful spot. Friendly staff. Highly recommend!

D

Den

August 2025

16 ft car

Weekend Trip to Lake Concow Campground

Coming back for sure, before finalizing the reservations, i kept in touch with Aindrea, communications is superb, thank you, and by the time we reach the campground, Tam welcomes us with all the informations needed and whatever communications I had with Aindrea, Thank you guys … you guys are very helpful We enjoyed our stay! Will definitely come back

C

Cristy

July 2025

Tent

Weekend Trip to Lake Concow Campground

It was fun . I love the nature and wild animal. We might come back and camping again .

P

Pamela

July 2025

31 ft Class C

With pets

Weekend Trip to Lake Concow Campground

Lake Concow Campground is a lovely, tranquil place and we appreciated the laid-back, informal atmosphere. Tamara helped us pick a great spot for our 31-foot RV that was close to the lake. The toilets and showers were clean and a welcome way to conserve on the water we carried in our RV. It was also nice to have potable water just steps away from our site.

b

brittaney

July 2025

22 ft travel trailer

3 nights at Lake Concow Campground

It was a beautiful campground!!! Very peaceful and clean! Kinda wish they had more people there but thats ok.. maybe it's a hidden gem. Unfortunately we came thinking they had a dump station for our rv but found out other campers had put bottles down it and broke it.. so that was disappointing seeing we didn't want to drive to paradise for a dump station. I hope they can come up with the funds to fix it ...Thank God they have toilets. Showers were big and roomy but only cold water. We would definitely recommend this to others!!

P

Piper

June 2025

Tent

With pets

2 nights at Lake Concow Campground

Beautiful property, song birds singing, nice walking/hiking trails...

D

Donald

June 2025

30 ft Class A

With pets

3 nights at Lake Concow Campground

Awesome experience! Beautiful spot, quiet, peaceful and the staff is very friendly. Excellent spot for one person or the whole family.

View from car of campsite, picnic table, and lake

D

Dharma

June 2025

Tent

1 night at Lake Concow Campground

Very cute campground on the lake! Lots of wildlife, big trees, and great energy. Host was very sweet and welcoming! Would definitely stay here again! :)

R

Robert

June 2025

Tent

1 night at Lake Concow Campground

Very distant to others, the water was very nice and fishing was amazing. The lady at the front is super friendly too, even let us borrow a bbq and gas to cook up our food.

Kelly

June 2025

16 ft campervan

1 night at Lake Concow Campground

Aindrea was very responsive and welcoming. The lake looks beautiful and this is a very special space. Unfortunately I was not able to make the trip but I hope to visit another time

D

Dan

May 2025

Tent

1 night at Lake Concow Campground

This camp is beautiful and well maintained. I visited Lake Concow Campground at the tail end of the Memorial Day Holiday weekend. I was greeted by Tabitha, the caretaker, who explained amenities available exactly as indicated on the camp overview literature on the Hipcamp site. There’s a lot of people by the lake so I setup tent uphill instead. I didn’t mind it because it was remote and I had a gorgeous view of mountains, mature trees and lush vegetation. There’s no assigned camping spaces so I had the option of settling anywhere I chose except for some areas that were clearly marked for construction or growing specific plants. The out houses were clean, appear newly constructed and within walking distance from where you might decide to camp. There’s hot showers and also free firewood. I couldn’t have asked for better weather and accommodations. However, around 10 pm, there was group of folks by the lake that started playing guitar, sang together, and created other loud noises including turning on the generator. I hope that they’d eventually stop because the camp rules said quiet time is observed from 10:00 pm until 8:00 am. But they didn’t which led me to conclude that those folks must be illiterate. Around 10:30 pm, I messaged Aindrea, the camp host. Within 10 mins, her caretaker came and all illegitimate merry making ceased. I was surprised and relieved at how quickly Aindrea and her team responded and took action. I shall return.

L

Luzelena

May 2025

Tent

Weekend Trip to Lake Concow Campground

We completely loved our first time camping here!! We will definitely be back.

J

Justin

May 2025

Tent

Weekend Trip to Lake Concow Campground

Awesome campground, can get right up to the shore of the lake if you want. Low enough light pollution to allow a great view of the stars, and I got to fall asleep to the sound of frogs.

S

Shane

May 2025

Tent

2 nights at Lake Concow Campground

Had such an amazing time! Tamatha was awesome, showed me around and helped pick a site. The serenity of this place was fantastic! Didn’t catch any fish this time.