Top 10 Oregon Campgrounds for Kids

This post may contain affiliate links where we earn from qualifying purchases. As an amazon associate, we earn from qualifying purchases. Find out more in our disclosure.

Oregon is filled with gloriously beautiful waterfalls and mountains that paint the landscape with their grandiose size and shape. If you want your family to fall madly in love with the outdoors, take a family camping trip to Oregon. In reality, almost everywhere in Oregon can be one of the best places to camp with kids. This list is here to help you narrow it down and choose the right one for your next trip out. 

oregon kid campgrounds

How do you choose a good family campsite?

A family campsite needs to have the right location, size, amenities, and accommodations for your specific crew. If you’ve got really young kids, you’ll want to find a small campground where it will be a little bit quieter, and you don’t have to worry about lots of cars driving through.  If you’re camping with older kids or teens, you may want to camp near some great adventure activities (we always look for hiking and mountain biking trails when camping with teens).  It should be around activities that your family loves to do. The best campsites for kids end up turning into a second home for many families. 

family backpacking with young kids
Our family on a recent backpacking trip

Best Oregon Campground Locations

Real estate is all about location. Camping is the same way. You want the camp camp spot with the best views, quietest neighbors, and access to town or other activities. There are two big ways to know what to expect when finding a campsite. That has to do with the campsite being in the frontcountry or the backcountry. 

Car Camping in Oregon (Frontcountry camping): These sites bridge the gap between cities and pure wilderness. There are tons of frontcountry sites that have great access to thick forests, but you won’t need to leave a ton of your gear behind. 

Backcountry camping in Oregon: These are the spots that you have to work to get to. You can expect a challenging or short hike into the site you’ll stay at. These aren’t the sites that you’ll bring a cast iron griddle to for morning pancakes, but where you’re backpacking in and want everything to be lightweight. It’s where you go to be more in tune with nature. Backcountry camping is best if you already have some camping experience, and if your kids are a little bit older.  

campsite in forest

Campground Amenities in Oregon

Some sites have a lot of different amenities that come along with your reserved site. This can range from a flushing toilet to wifi in your tent. Your family might want the option of running showers to clean up at the end of a long day. Maybe your family is the type that wants to rough it and have nothing but the trees. This is up to you. 

rv resort camping

Private vs Public Campgrounds in Oregon

Some Washington campgrounds on our list are public, run by the US government. Some of them are private and have much higher fees. The difference isn’t always just in price, it can be quality and available sites. You often get what you pay for when you decide to go with a private campsite. If you want to rough it, public may be better.   

Campground costs in Oregon can vary quite a bit.  Public campgrounds in Washington often can be found for as little as $20/night, but a private campground with lots of amenities can easily cost over $100/night.  

More Pacific Northwest Articles:

Do I Need Camping Reservations in Oregon?

I would always recommend grabbing a reservation ahead of time if there is a system in place. You can easily end up with a really bad campsite if you choose to just show up with your fingers crossed. Sometimes you get lucky. Other times, you’ll find things completely booked and find yourself searching for a new campsite well past dark.  If you’re going in the off-season, there’s a much better chance of finding a good Oregon campsite last-minute. 

The 10 Best Places to Camp with Kids in Oregon

Camp Dakota Kid-Friendly Camping

Closest City: Portland and Salem
Reservations: Reservations required
Best time of year to go: Year-round

MOntana zipline big sky

Do you want to give your kids the adventure of a lifetime? Let plan a family camping trip to Camp Dakota and sleep in yurts and teepees that are available to rent. In the daytime, they can run off and practice paintball and cruise down the zipline. Camp Dakota isn’t just a campground, it’s an adventure park made for kids.  This is a place that your kids will be begging to go back to, making it one of the best family campgrounds in Oregon, and the best campground to take teens to in Oregon.

READ: Tips For Camping With Teens and Loving It

Cape Lookout State Park

Closest City: Tillamook
Reservations: Reservations Required
Best time of year to go: Year-round

Located on a sand spit on the coast of Oregon is Cape Lookout State Park. This Oregon State park has miles and miles of coastline and hiking trails that give you a load of options for activities with the kids. You can have a long summer’s hike and end in the ocean to cool down. There are tent sites, RV sites, and even yurts and cabins for rent making it a very family friendly Oregon campground. Plus, Tillamook has the best ice cream and cheese ever made, so the whole family will be happy to sample some!

Silver Falls Campground Oregon

Closest City: Sublimity
Reservations: Reservations required
Best time of year to go: Year-round

silver falls oregon

This is the park that truly takes the cake for all of Oregon. It’s what puts Oregon up there on the list of must-visit places for camping with kids. There are plenty of reasons why this is perfect for you and your family, but you’re sure to love the waterfalls and hiking trails the most. There are 9,200 acres of forest to explore and each square foot is beautiful. There are sites for every type of camper and camping inside this state park gives you easy access to the great natural beauty of Silver Falls. 

Oregon Camping at Emigrant Lake

Closest City: Ashland
Reservations: Reservations Recommended
Best time of year to go: Year-round for RV, Summer and fall for tent camping

Emigrant Lake is a massive hub for beautiful campgrounds in Jackson County, Oregon. The lake is perfect for all kinds of watersports and there are loads of hiking trails around it, making it a really family friendly campground. You can visit the sports park with the kids to enjoy a bit of some more modern camping activities. The RV park here is open year-round, but tent sites are only available in the warmer months. 

Mazama Village Family Campground

Closest City: Crater Lake
Reservations: First come, first served in June, July-September reservations are required
Best time of year to go: June-September

crater lake camping

This family friendly campground is only open during the summer, but you will get those few months to truly enjoy Crater Lake National Park in a way few ever do. The kids get to stay right in the middle of the park and enjoy calling it their backyard for a short time. It is in an old-growth forest located at 6,000 feet. It’s a unique opportunity to give your kids, and they’ll remember exploring those forests for years to come.  This is the best family campground in Crater Lake.

Beverly Beach Family Camping

Closest City: Newport
Reservations: Reservations Required
Best time of year to go: Year-round

Nestled in between the ocean and the forest is Beverly Beach State Park. The family friendly campground is creekside and only a minute’s walk from the ocean. If you want time with the water, you can’t get much closer. This is a great place to let the kids simply explore. You can bring your RV or rent out one of the yurts. 

PRO TIP: If planning on a beach picnic, make sure to take camping chairs for kids and a baby camping highchair to prevent sand from blowing in your food – trust me, it makes camping with a baby and kids so much easier if you can keep them clean!

Kid Friendly Camping at Loon Lake Resort

Closest City: Reedsport
Reservations: Reservations Required
Best time of year to go: Summer

Loon Lake Resort brings the best amenities into the outdoors. This kid friendly campground sits on the lake and they rent out boats to explore it with or you can relax and play beach volleyball on the courts. Take out a jetski with the kids before heading back to your cabin or yurt. If you have an RV, there are plenty of spaces for you there. With easy access to Dunes National Recreation Area, you’ll never run out of fun things to do with your family at this campground. 

Wallowa State Park Campground

Closest City: LaGrande
Reservations: Reservation Required
Best time of year to go: Winter, year-round

On the south end of a glacial lake near the Wallowa mountains, you’ll find this glorious Oregon state park for families. The park is home to a huge network of hiking trails as well as a marina store where you can rent all types of watercraft. They also have fishing licenses for sale if you are hoping to start your children off with learning how to fish. You can go either direction from your RV site, tent, or one of the two yurts, and hit pristine wilderness. This is an Oregon family campground with some of the best 

LaPine State Park for Family Camping

Closest City: Bend
Reservations: Reservations Required
Best time of year to go: Year-round

The Deschutes river runs through the high desert near Bend, Oregon. Along it you will find LaPine State Park, a beautifully well-hidden treasure that’s perfect for camping with kids in Oregon. In the summer you can enjoy the network of trails on foot or bike. When winter hits, you can bring out the snowshoes and stay in one of the 10 available cabins. It’s the perfect home base to take your kids to the Deschutes, Lava River Cave, or Newberry Crater. 

Oxbow Regional Park Camping Sites

Closest City: Troutdale
Reservations: Reservations Required
Best time of year to go: Year-round

The Sandy River Gorge is a beautiful space to go sailing, kayaking, or just floating. At Oxbow Regional Park, you will have the unique opportunity to watch the salmon spawn and teach your kids about their life cycles on your family camping trip. There are twelve miles of trails to be enjoyed before ending at the lake, but you never really even need to leave the campsite. There are also free hot showers and RV accessible sites at this Oregon campground.

These 10 family campgrounds in Oregon offer the perfect mix of nature and great activities nearby.  These are easily some of the most beautiful family-friendly campgrounds in the United States.  All of them are in stunning locations with great access to nature that will make your family camping trip to Oregon even more memorable.  If you’ve stayed at any other kid-friendly Oregon campgrounds, please comment below and tell us why you loved camping there.

About Jessica Averett

Hi, I’m Jessica, a mom of 5 kids and married to my favorite adventure partner. I love to bike, ski, camp and hike. We've visited over 40 countries with our kids, but are equally happy on the road as we are exploring our home state of Utah.

Leave a Comment


7 × one =

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.