The Absolute Best Camping Near San Antonio

There are many reasons to visit the city of San Antonio, Texas. Whether you’re interested in taking in city sights or learning about the history of the Spanish colonial missions that took place in San Antonio, there is definitely something for you here.

However, perhaps one of the best-kept secrets of this city is that there are some amazing camping sites nearby. Keep reading to find out the locations of the absolute best camping near San Antonio!

Absolute Best Camping Near San Antonio:

1. Guadalupe River State Park

This park is extremely popular all through the year, particularly because of the gorgeous, clear, four-mile river flowing through it. You can go swimming, fishing, canoeing, or even tube the rapids.

If you enjoy hiking and biking, there are 13 miles of trails along each side of the river. People who want to visit the 2,293 acres of the Honey Creek State Natural Area can sign up for guided two-hour walks on Saturday mornings. 

If you want to see the amazing wildlife of the area, you can go hiking on the Painted Bunting trail. Some of the fauna of the area include coyotes, whitetail deer, skunks, gray foxes, possums, raccoons, armadillos, and bobcats. If you don’t know what camping gear to get, you can simply rent some from the park and set it up.

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2. Government Canyon State Natural Area

Here, you’ll have the chance to enjoy 12,000 acres of wilderness. You can take the Johnston Route to the 19th-century Zizelmann House. You can check out dinosaur tracks from the Sauroposeidon and Acrocanthosaurus that have been around for 110 million years. Local wildlife in this area include whitetail deer, bobcats, javelinas, cottontail rabbits, butterflies, snakes, coyotes, ringtails, and raccoons.

There is some very interesting landscaping in this park, with canyons of the Edwards Plateau, forest, and broad plains. This area is meant to protect the drinking water of San Antonio.

3. Blanco State Park

This park is located on the banks of the cool Blanco River, making it a great retreat for anyone looking to escape the Texas heat. Not only go camping, but also fishing, swimming, boating, and hiking. You can rent kayaks and tubes from the park store as well. If you’re interested in fishing, the waters are full of channel catfish, rainbow trout, sunfish, and bass.

There are also two trails where you can go on a brisk nature hike alongside the life-long stretch of river.

4. Garner State Park

Even if it is about an hour and a half from San Antonio, this is one of the most popular camping sites in Texas. There are over 16 miles of hiking trails that you can enjoy, in addition to the chance to swim and do all sorts of other fun water activities in the 2.9 miles of Frio River.

You can also go to the Briscoe-Gardner Museum during the daytime and join a Frio Bat Flight tour if you’re around in the summer, in order to see the nightly exodus of a Mexican free-tailed bat colony. There are also summer dances in the park’s concession building.

5. Palmetto State Park

This park is a nice getaway for anyone who doesn’t want to drive too far but wants to leave the city. You can enjoy the Oxbow Lake and San Marcos River, in addition to the five miles of hiking trails available for you to explore. You can look out at all of the swampland in the surroundings as well.

Because of the multiple sources of water here, there is an amazing variety of animals and plants. There are over 240 species of birds alone! In fact, you can even say this is a little bit like a tropical vacation right in Texas.

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