RV & Tent camping at McDowell Regional Park in Fountain Hills Arizona Review

Good afternoon beauties! Thinking about spending your winter in Arizona? A lot of snow birds come here to keep warm during the colder months. I guess we are one of those now! McDowell Regional Park was an awesome experience in the winter, We personally experienced a little snow and rain during our stay. Crazy! We have stayed here multiple times throughout our three month stay in Arizona, At the end of this blog post I will be rating McDowell Regional Park 1-10 to give you a better idea of what this campground is all about and see if you ever want to visit! So stay tuned for that at the end!

This park is located in Fountain Hills, about 40 minutes to Phoenix AZ. The town is very quiet but has a fun atmosphere. During the pandemic we did not visit all the shops and restaurants as much as we hoped for. But they do have a giant fountain that goes off every hour for 15 minutes near downtown, that is really fun to see. Tt has a walking trail all the way around it and a fun playground for the kids too. The campground is near a few grocery stores, propane and local shops and restaurants.

The campground has 76 individual sites for RV or tent camping. There are developed sites that offer water and electricity and semi-developed sites for dry camping. There is also a group campground for dry camping too. So bring all of the families or friends! Inside the campground they provide clean showers, bathrooms for the public and dumpsters throughout the sites. There is a dump station at the entrance of the campground too.

In the image above we grabbed a pull through site which is so much easier than backing in with our monster travel trailer. McDowell can accommodate big rigs up to 45' long. Let's talk about the campsites, there are a few loops but each have big sites to back in or pull through. We had plenty of space to pull out all three of our slides with nothing in the way. Watch for bushes and cactus, at the Usery Regional Park we had a massive cactus super close to the site and thought we were going to hit it. The roads are clean and big enough to pass others, which is great when we have a big camper. Along with water and electricity there is a picnic table and a fire ring pit, sometimes there is a grill on it too. Most of the time they have fire restrictions, just check out that info when it gets closer to your reservation date.

Speaking of reservations, it is super easy to reserve a spot online or you can call. The maximum stay is 14 nights for $30 a night. A lot more inexpensive than in town RV resorts around Arizona. We have jumped a few sites during our stay due to the sites filling up fast. The winter months it gets so busy here! All the snow birds come to Arizona to keep warm ( like us). It is highly recommended to reserve as soon as possible to be able to go where you want to go, when you want to go. Canceling is always an option by calling them. Check out their website here for more information.

The campground is about 2 miles from the entrance of the park, so there might be a little trouble with internet connection. Depending on the setup you have. We use Verizon Hotspot for our internet needs and it was shoty most of our trip. We ended up downloading movies from Prime Video and Disney+ when we were in town and would watch them later.

This Regional park is bike country for sure! Wicked bike trails and tracks for all bikers, equestrian and joggers. Check out more information about biking here. There is also a playground for kids that is pretty fun. They have a giant slide that looks like a snake! Other activities to enjoy is the small visitor center, it is really cool to see and learn about all the animals living in the desert.

Safety is always a factor before reserving any campsites we go to. I would recommend this place being very safe and comfortable to camp. There are on duty RV hosts 24/7, it gives me peace of mind that there is someone that can help us if we need anything during our stay. At the front entrance to the park, there is a check in station and a gate that closes each night. During check in they will give you a passcode for the gate which changes frequently, but I know I can get back to camp even when they close. Brings more security as well being so far from the main road too.

The atmosphere camping here is fantastic! The views are beautiful, we are spaced out from our neighbors pretty well, with a peaceful feeling being out in nature. Being a family with small children, we did not see as many kids around as we had hoped for, but during a pandemic it makes sense there are not as many people out camping or wanting to play with other kids. It's hard being a kid right now! If you decide to campout here, you have to get outside and stargaze. It is incredible to see so many bright stars and formations all around you. It truly feels magical.

I want to rate this campground a 8/10. The internet connection was not great and there were no designated areas for dogs to run around and play. It is a beautiful campground and great for outdoor activities. I hope the information I provided gives you a better idea of what it is like camping at McDowell Regional Park. Have a fantastic day!

Travel Long, Travel happy!

McDowell Mountain Regional Park Website

Written by Shelby Long

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If you have any questions, please comment below or email me at longsaturdays@gmail.com