City of Rocks

Climbing through the rocks was great. Especially at night. Starry Starry Night! Bats were out hunting insects. Loved it!

City of Rocks is such a great park I can't imagine anyone disliking it. First, it's located in the most spectacular setting amid fabulous giant rock formations which can be explored to your heart's content. Secondly, whoever designed the layout of the park was really sensitive to its features. Although the hook-up sites (electric and water only but suitable for big rigs) are out in the open and lined up all in a row, the non-hookup sites are tucked into all the nooks and crannies of the rocks, offering plenty of opportunities for privacy and visual delight. The only downside to picking your site is that the access to it can be bumpy and confusing. A few more directional signs would be most welcome! Especially ones for the dead-end access roads. The non-hookup sites are especially great for those of us with smaller rigs or tent campers. Big rig owners will most likely prefer the hook-up sites.

Take your time and give the campground a thorough look-see if you can before you pick your spot. Most of the non-hookup sites are first come-first served. We arrived on a Sunday and were surprised to find most of the sites occupied. The strange thing was that we didn't see any tents or RVs at a lot of them. Turns out that many families come out for the day and by paying the day-use fee they can occupy a camp site. So if you don't find anything, ask the folks occupying a site if they're just there for the day. You may be able to park at the Visitors Center until they leave and you can have the site. Not sure if that's allowed or not, but it would be worth asking about at the Visitors Center.

There are clean vault toilets around the campground as well as water spigots. Flush toilets and showers are available up by the Visitors Center. There are several nice trails to hike as well as a little botanical garden to stroll through. The Visitors Center is staffed with friendly knowledgeable folks. The only thing this park lacks is a dump station so be prepared to dump your tanks somewhere else.

Oh, almost forgot. Most cell phones will have good reception, but for some reason AT&T users will be out of luck unless they drive or hike up to a view point on the south side of the park.

We camped here a couple of years ago in an electric site. We now have a generator and came back to try a dry camping site among the rocks. It was our first experience boondocking and it was awesome! The campsites among the rocks are so beautiful and secluded. The night skies are so dark so you can see so many stars. There are so many rocks to climb on and many hiking/biking trails. The staff is very nice and friendly. Verizon coverage actually worked here; I was surprised by that because it didn't work well when we went 2 years ago. It wasn't a strong signal, but usable. For our first dry camping experience, this place was perfect.

Nice hike/bike trail. On hook up sites, changed from a dry site. Dry sites are appealing in that they are spread among the rocks. However, it is 35 deg outside and my heater is on. Low key spot. Wouldn't stay more than a few nights. Private Hot Springs spot is just down the way. Friends are enjoying it there. Sounds like an option if you choose and they may have a dump station.

We dry camped here as a jumping off point for Silver City and Gila Cliff Dwellings. The Campground was fantastic and we should have allowed more time to investigate this place itself!

The dry camping sites are intermingled with the huge rocks. Some are small and best left for the tent campers. But many are large and accessible to large rigs -- ours is a 38' fifth wheel.

This was our first stop on a 3-week camping trip.

As others have indicated, there is a choice between hookups in a well maintained parking lot, or no hookups nestled among the large rocks. We chose the view over hookups, and it was a great choice. Even with our visit in early June, the temperatures were comfortable at night.

There was a beautiful vista. The only sounds at night were the crickets and the coyotes. I woke up in the middle of the night and stepped outside. I haven't seen a sky like that in a long time. Meanwhile, it was so remote that I could hold my hand out and not see it. It was breathtakingly dark and serene.

Our kids loved being able to climb the rocks, while my wife and I sat around the campfire below them. And there were well maintained gravel paths to take a nighttime hike with them as well.

There were immaculate bathrooms and showers by the offices. The vault toilets near our campsite were well maintained.

We stayed at 10 different campsites during our trip. This place rated in my top 2. And when we asked the kids where they would want to go back to, City of Rocks was their top choice. We will certainly stay again if we're close to the area.

The weather was really warm and we opted for one of the first come first served electric/water sites. Sometimes it’s nice to be able to run the AC.

Our site had a nice metal picnic table under a metal shade structure. It was a level gravel pull-thru with plenty of space for our trailer and truck. Vegetation is strategically placed between the sites to provide separation. Water and electricity but NO dump site on premises.

We spent hours exploring and hiking the large rocks. The visitor center offers a nice display that chronicles the birth of the Rocks is the area.

We went into Silver City for supplies on a Tuesday. Note most of the Artist Stores in the Historic Downtown ate closed on Tuesday.

We camped here last night, January 6th, 2018.

It's a nice place for photographers and has a few miles of walking trails too. It has an interesting Astrological bent to it, with a purpose built shed with a rolling roof which houses some telescopes. Each camp site is named for a galaxy or planet. Be forewarned that while the sites are amazingly well laid out for campers and tents, those who require electricity will be bunched up in a "less than spectacular" fashion.

A small visitor's center has some interpretive info, and clean rest rooms.

Site 18, "Andromeda" was perfect. I'd recommend any spot in "Pegasuses North" camp area.

I didn't see a dump station, but they did provide access to potable water.

This was probably the most unique and enjoyable place we’ve stayed. The kids (and us adults) loved exploring and climbing the rocks. The road in was great, staff was friendly, simple yet good facilities, and very quiet and peaceful. We stayed for 3 nights in January without hookups. The nights were cold but the daytime was beautiful. Amazing sunrises and sunsets, too! Very kid and dog-friendly.

We bought the annual camping pass and were in 2 different sites, one dry, one w/ electric & water ($4 per night after purchase of annual pass for e & w). It was a wonderful stay, we enjoyed the starry nights program, looked at planets thru some mighty powerful telescopes & learned alot from the presenter. Our dogs really loved climbing thru all the rocks and we also did a trail hike with a ranger that was quite interesting as well. The showers are clean and the water pressure good. City of Rocks is our most favorite of the New Mexico state parks we've visited. Love, love, love it!