Colorado's 5 Hands-Down Best Spots For RV Camping

Colorado is known for its majestic natural beauty. Almost the entire state is filled with gorgeous parks and green spaces, from the mountainous state park that boasts incredible recreation and diverse wildlife to the secret beach camping destination that thrives on a pair of side-by-side lakes. So, as you might imagine, one of the best ways to explore Colorado is by RVing, as you'll get to experience much of these natural areas up close.

In fact, the only major problem with RVing in the Centennial State is that there are almost too many options for where to stay overnight. With so many mountains, lakes, rivers, and plains available, how can you even know where to look? Well, we're going to try and help by providing our picks for the five hands-down best spots for RV camping in Colorado.

Curating such a list is a monumental task, so we picked our sites based on a few criteria. First, we looked at recommendations from RVers who have traveled through Colorado, like this Reddit thread. Second, we wanted to try to highlight different parts of the state, as well as unique landscapes. Finally, while online reviews weren't necessarily a deciding factor, they helped steer us in the right direction when searching for spots in a particular region of the state.

Technically, our first pick for RV camping spots is a twofer, as it straddles the border between Utah and Colorado. While Dinosaur National Monument is listed as part of Utah on Google Maps, much of the park is in Colorado, including several scenic RV campgrounds nestled neatly in the northwestern corner of the state.

Dinosaur National Monument also happens to be a "hidden gem of the National Park system," where you can raft, hike, and see dinosaur fossils. Anyone who appreciates paleontology will love exploring the park, hunting for both ancient bones and petroglyphs left by the indigenous people. Since the park covers over 210,000 acres, you could spend weeks combing the area and not cross the same spot twice.

As far as RV camping, the best option is Gates of Lodore at the northern edge, which has 19 RV-compatible sites. Alternatively, you can camp at Echo Park, but there are only five RV sites available, so they may fill up fast, depending on the season. Worth noting: this region is relatively remote, and none of these sites have electrical hookups, so boondocking is the only option. But that's the price of experiencing such transcendent beauty so far away from civilization.

Moving from the northwestern corner of the state to the northeastern side, we have Pawnee National Grassland. When looking at Colorado's topography, you'll notice the western half of the state is full of forests and mountains, while the eastern half is mostly flat land and prairie. If that sounds appealing, you won't find a much better place to experience wide open spaces. This area becomes even more stunning at night, since you have a clear view of the stars without much light pollution from nearby cities.

Overall, Pawnee National Grassland is the best RV camping spot for those who appreciate uncrowded vistas and stargazing. If you look through a telescope, you can get a sparkling and clear view of the Milky Way once the sun goes down. Another compelling reason to visit this site is that it's full of wildlife, including pronghorns, prairie dogs, coyotes, and over 300 species of birds. Birdwatching is a popular pastime at Pawnee, particularly near the Crow Valley Recreation Area.

As far as RV camping goes, Pawnee is ideal for those seeking a more rugged experience. While dispersed camping is allowed throughout the 47 campgrounds, the site that is most popular for RVing is Crow Valley. There are only 10 sites available, however, so keep that in mind when planning your trip. Water and electrical hookups are also nonexistent, so make sure to bring plenty of supplies for your stay. Also, according to the USDA website, the season at Crow Valley opens on May 1st and closes in early November, with reservations operating on a six-month rolling schedule. 

Since this is Colorado, after all, we have to showcase some of the best mountainous RV camping spots in the state. One is Ridgway State Park, which sits above the Million Dollar Highway that runs from Ouray to Silverton. We chose Ridgway because of its centralized location. From here, you can explore various small towns like Ridgway, Ouray, and Montrose, as well as the numerous peaks and climbs in the region. In fact, if you love mountain climbing and hiking, you could easily spend a month in this area and never hit the same trail twice.

That said, you don't have to venture outside of Ridgway State Park to experience nature. The park itself has over 15 miles of trails and spans just over 3,300 acres. Plus, since it has a lake, you can swim, fish, kayak, or just enjoy relaxing on a sandy beach. Another highlight of Ridgway is that it's open all year round, so you can plan your visit based on your favorite season. During the spring and summer, lakeside activities can help keep you cool. During the fall, you can marvel at the colorful landscape, and in the winter, you can hike snow-covered trails.

Unlike Dinosaur and Pawnee, Ridgway has plenty of amenities for RV camping. You can reserve your spot through the Colorado State Park reservation site, and there are over 280 RV-compatible sites available. Of those, 72 have full hookups, and 162 of them offer electrical outlets.

Our next pick is one of the most popular national parks in the country: Rocky Mountain National Park. Although Colorado has four national parks within its borders, we ultimately chose RMNP because of its stellar ratings. Despite being one of the most crowded parks, it has an average of 4.9 stars and over 27,000 reviews, making Rocky Mountain one of the best-reviewed spots we've ever seen. Evidently, a trip to this park is well worth any hassle, making it a solid choice for our top five list.

That said, because Rocky Mountain gets millions of visitors every year, you must be strategic about camping in your RV. There are three campgrounds within the park that are RV compatible, and the best way to make your reservation is through the Recreation.gov website. Because spots fill up fast, the park opens dates on a rolling basis, six months in advance. It's also a good idea to have multiple date options just in case your first choice is unavailable. Keep in mind that only one campground is open during the winter season (October to May), so you'll need to plan accordingly if your trip falls within those months.

Overall, according to visitors, the main reason to visit Rocky Mountain National Park is to admire the unmatched scenery. With over 300 miles of hiking trails and some of the best landscapes in the country, camping in RMNP is really a one-of-a-kind experience, no matter the time of year.

So far, we've explored the northern and central parts of Colorado, so our final pick takes us to the southern edge of the state. Trinidad Lake State Park is close to the New Mexico border, and it offers a mix of landscapes and wildlife, making it an ideal choice for RV camping. Plus, if you're looking to avoid crowds while still having hookups and amenities, this park is an excellent option.

Overall, the park spans almost 3,000 acres, and it has just over 10 miles of hiking trails. The titular lake is the main attraction, as you can go fishing, boating, swimming, and kayaking during your visit. Other popular water activities include jet skiing and water skiing, just in case you want to get your adrenaline pumping a bit more. There's also a self-service archery range if you have your own supplies and want to practice your aim.

As with all Colorado state parks, you can reserve your RV campsite through the Colorado Parks and Wildlife reservation page. There are 73 campsites available, seven of which have full hookups, and 54 that have electrical outlets. Since Trinidad Lake gets snow during the winter, the sites on the southern side of the lake are only open from April to October.

Because Colorado is such an outdoorsy state, trying to pick five of the best RV camping spots is challenging at best. So, for our purposes, we decided to choose these places primarily based on their location and scenery. That way, instead of recommending five campgrounds in the mountains, you can explore different regions of the state, depending on your preferences. So, from prairie grasslands to ancient fossil beds to alpine lakes, there's something for everyone on our list.

When looking at the different sections of Colorado, we then relied on social media recommendations, online reviews, and unique offerings to determine which particular sites made the cut. For example, Rocky Mountain National Park beat out other central Colorado locales because of its impressive ratings, while Ridgway State Park was chosen because it was mentioned multiple times on this Reddit thread (as well as being centrally located to various peaks and mountain towns).