We just moved here from PA and are looking for a family oriented campground with both fishing and either a swimming pool or swimming area. We live in the Phoenix area and figure we are willing to drive up to 3 1/2 hours to get there.
I haven't done any RVing in the area but when we lived in Phoenix we took some nice drives. I bet you can find some nice parks in the Verde area or of course Sedona, even Flaggstaff is within that driving time. What about the White Mountains - some of the nation's largest stands of pine are in that region. Do some searching on the web and you'll probably find quiet a few. Hopefully there will be someone here that has actually camped in those areas. Baby Sister
Some of the State Park sites may work well for you. Dead horse State park near Cottonwood and Fools Hollow in the White Mountains come to mind. Both have lakes with fishing and hiking. Sites are nice, with electric and water. Dump site near the exit.
Family RV parks in Arizona? A lot depends on what sort of family facilities you want. If you are looking for a place that has sufficient facilities to keep three children amused by themselves for hours, the pickings will be slim anywhere. If what you need is an RV park that *allows* children, and has at least a playground, there's a lot available. If you are looking for a park that allows children, to use as a base camp for day trips, hiking, and so on, there's even more. Arizona has a disproportinately large number of "55-adult" RV parks that cater to retired people and winter visitors, also known as snowbirds." A lot of them are located in the Phoenix area (especially the east side), Tucson, and Casa Grande. Some smaller towns have similar RV parks, such as Ajo, Quartzsite, Wenden, Brenda, Yuma, and so on. Other RV parks don't exactly prohibit children , but they discourage them through lack of facilities. Once you get outside of the Phoenix area, the situation improves. That's especially true in the Verde Valley (Camp Verde and Cottonwood), Flagstaff, and to some degree, Prescott. (There are others I'm not personally familiar with in the White Mountains.) One place to look at is Thousand Trails in Verde Valley. It's a membership park, but you should be able to make arrangements to try it out fairly inexpensively. We have a very limited membership, good only at three parks for short durantions. The Verde Valley TT is very secluded and well kept. When our daughter was small, we'd stay near the "family lodge" and she could play all day with no problems, and with children from other families. It's also a good base for day trips. There are several other parks in the vicinity, which also look like they'd be family friendly. The KOA in Black Canyon City is small, with small spaces, but it's definitely family friendly, and it's good for a short weekend getaway. Arizona has a lot to offer families, but sometimes it takes some sleuthing.
We agree with the above post about lack of family campgrounds in the area of Mesa which is sad for traveling families. Probably searching on line will be a good bet as well as contacting Arizonas tourism bureau may be of help. Some of the many 55+ parks seem to act like it's a crime to have youngsters even visit. Good luck and be sure to post your opinion of any parks you are able to visit
3 1/2 hours will get you anywhere in the state and open up lots of vacation posibilities for families. Right in the Phoenix area you'll want to take advantage of the Maricopa County parks that rim the city. No swimming pools but real nice paved setups for any kind of rv's. W/E with dump for $18 a night. You can probably fish at Lake Pleasant park as well as have an rv site. If you want to explore the area near Tombstone, there is a nice rv park in Benson called Cochise Terrace that does have a nice pool. Families are welcome though during the winter it is primarily traveling retirees. I understand many folks go to Flagstaff in the summer to escape the heat. Woody Mountain campground is a rustic family park with a small pool. Then there is Lake Powell on the Az./ Utah border north of Flagstaff. The national park has a concessionaire operated rv park, Wahweap, with full hookups and a stunning view of the surrounding red rock formations and blue lake. In addition as a camper you may use any of the facilities of the lodge which include a beautiful swimming pool.
