Camp Observer1 of 7 photos
Crystal Springs Campground (CA)
Overview
Crystal Springs campground is centrally located in Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks in central California's rugged Sierra Nevada range. This campground is at an elevation of 6,500 feet.
The 14 mid-size group sites are available for reservation on the Crystal Springs Campground Mid-Size Group Sites page .
Recreation
There are numerous recreation opportunities in the immediate area. From your campsite, you can hike to a Sequoia Grove that includes the General Grant Tree, the Nation's Christmas Tree and only living memorial to our military veterans. Hike to the beautiful Ella Falls, a 50 foot waterfall or to Panoramic Point for a breathtaking view of the high Sierras.
Facilities
There are 35 sites at Crystal Springs Campground. Each site contains a picnic table, a fire ring, and a food storage box. Flush toilets and potable water are available at the campground. Each site can accommodate 1-6 people. There are also 14 mid-size group sites available for reservation on the Crystal Springs Campground Mid-Size Group Sites page .
Crystal Springs campground is located nearby Grant Grove Village where you will find the Kings Canyon Visitor Center, a restaurant, gift store, Post Office and market. Nightly campfire programs are offered at the nearby amphitheater.
Natural Features
Crystal Springs campground is located in a mixed conifer forest of sugar pines, incense cedar, fir and sequoia trees. Summer days can be warm and dry with cool nights. Wildlife is abundant and includes black bear, mule deer, gray squirrel, golden-mantled ground squirrel, and a variety of resident birds, among many others. The dynamic landscape of the park evolves from geologic processes working over millennia to sculpt granite, marble and other forms of rock. Here in the parks are canyons carved by rivers and glaciers, towering rugged peaks and miles of underground caverns. Found throughout the park are thousands of lakes and ponds and miles of rivers and streams.
Contact Info
For facility specific information, please call (559) 565-4357.Nearby Attractions
Crystal Springs campground is within an hour's drive from the Giant Forest in Sequoia National Park, home of the biggest tree in the world, the General Sherman, and the Cedar Grove area of Kings Canyon National Park. Fishing is 30 minutes away at Hume Lake in Sequoia National Forest. The national forest also includes Converse Basin and Chicago Stump, where you can learn the history of logging in the area.
Charges & Cancellations
- Payment in full will be charged to your credit card upon completion of the reservation. A $10.00 service fee will apply if you change or cancel your reservation. Additional fees will apply for late cancellations
- All cancellations made between midnight on the day before arrival and check out time on the day after arrival are considered late cancellations and will incur a $10.00 cancellation fee and will also forfeit the first night’s use fee. Cancellations for a single night’s reservation will forfeit the entire use fee but no cancellation fee will apply.
- If your campsite remains vacant for 24 hours after your arrival date it will be cancelled and made available on rec.gov. You will be charged for the first night's campsite fee and a $10 cancellation fee, all other fees after that will be refunded. Recreation.gov policies apply to all reservations, cancellations, refunds and date changes. Call (559) 565-4357 if you will be arriving 24 hours after your arrival date so your site won't be cancelled.
Camp site features
Across 34 camp sites:
- Fire pit: all 34 sites
- Pets allowed: all 34 sites
- Longest rig: 41 ft
- Largest party: 6 people
- Equipment: Tent
Fees
* ENTRANCE FEES APPLY: Check Entrance Fees & Passes - Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks (U.S. National Park Service) for details.
* CAMPING FEES: $32 per night for Regular Camping and $16 per night for valid lifetime Access Pass, lifetime Senior Pass, and annual Senior Pass. No other passes receive reduced rates.
* **If your campsite remains vacant for 24 hours after your arrival date it will be cancelled and made available on rec.gov.** You will be charged for the first night's campsite fee and a $10 cancellation fee, all other fees after that will be refunded. Recreation.gov policies apply to all reservations, cancellations, refunds and date changes. Call (559) 565-4357 if you will be arriving 24 hours after your arrival date so your site won't be cancelled.
Directions
From Fresno, CA, take Highway 180 East for 1 1/2 hours. **Vehicles over 22
feet are not advised between Potwisha Campground and the Giant Forest Museum
when entering through Sequoia National Park. Vehicles over 22 feet should use
the Kings Canyon National Park Entrance.**
Stay Limit
Check in from 12 PM, check out by 12 PM.
Reviews
Ratings (149)
5 stars
90
4 stars
34
3 stars
15
2 stars
5
1 stars
5
Roxanne S
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 35
Reviewed 3 days ago
Quiet, easy to find. Trees are amazing. Bear proof food locker was convenient. Clean site.
Elizabeth M
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 07
Reviewed 4 days ago
The post inline had said it was available to park a 30ft trailer, yet it wasn’t accommodating. We left that night out of the park, we tried to called to cancel since there was no signal it was hard to reach out.
Gabriella d
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 36
Reviewed 6 days ago
Site 36 was perfect. It hads mostly even terrain, is quiet, and had a little shortcut to get to the restrooms.
Donna B
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 34
Reviewed 6 days ago
Very nice experience. If the campground had been full it might have been a little noisy/busy but we had a great stay. Sites are very tricky when trying to find a level spot for a tent, but it worked out at our site.
Chenoa M
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 13
Reviewed 8 days ago
This is one of my favorite campsites I’ve ever visited.
It’s a great mix of not too busy but close to Grants Grove so you can get anything you might need. It’s also perfectly placed between the Lodge Pole area, Hume, and the Kings River area.
john L
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 23
Reviewed 11 days ago
Convenient campsite area, close to the Cedar Grove village and restaurant. A bit noisy until later into the evening, and many of the camp sites are uncomfortably sloped, but the area was clean, patrolled by the park ranger and has running water and flush toilets.
Da Hee L
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 18
Reviewed 14 days ago
no flies, nearby bathroom, enough place for three tents
Peter E
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 21
Reviewed 22 days ago
A little hilly. One bathroom. Plenty of water spigots. Please clean your camp begore you leave.
Akshat G
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 03
Reviewed 22 days ago
We loved the campground setup. Surrounded by tall trees yet not very far from your neighboring camps.
The bathrooms were clean and odorless.
Nearby visitor center was convenient enough to get firewood and essentials if needed.
Gabriel L
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 14
Reviewed a month ago
There is only one bathroom for non-group campsites, but it was kept very clean while we were there. The sites are on a slight slope but the convenience near Grant Grove Village is well worth it. We ended up not having time but the proximity to Hume Lake is also a huge bonus.
Avangelina R
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 33
Reviewed a month ago
Amazing views! Good sized space for my roof top tent to unfold. Wonderful temperatures for the summer.
Terrie L
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 33
Reviewed a month ago
The area was beautiful and well maintained.
Puneeth kumar H
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 03
Reviewed a month ago
Nice place and washroom all good. Accessible to everything. In center sequoia. Must place
Camilla C
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 05
Reviewed 2 months ago
Beautiful little spot. Very slight incline (6 deg) on parking spot, but completely usable for car camping. Quite close to the next campsite but there was no one camping there when we were there (midweek beg June). Lots of birds and wildlife…. Deer were making their way across the site as we arrived. A very short walk to the toilets.
brianna a
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 06
Reviewed 2 months ago
Beautiful campground,
Pretty private compared to other campgrounds. Restroom is a 2-3min walk…
Family and I reserved 6 & 4 and campsites were fairly close together, even made a walk path with solar lights. Water access on the campsite right in front of us.
Brent M
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 06
Reviewed 2 months ago
Great spot! Not as much traffic as the other nearby campgrounds. Loved it!!
Peter N
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 07
Reviewed 2 months ago
Great site that shares a flat area with site 5. The fire ring seems to encroach on site 5's space but site 7 definitely had the larger area of the 2. Flatter then most sites in the campground. A bit of a walk to the restrooms. Probably not too many sites better then 7 available. Campground centrally located.
Joseph D
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 25
Reviewed 2 months ago
Campsite 25 is pretty slanted, we were only able to find one flat spot for a 4 person tent and the other 4 person tent had to deal with it. Table also resulted in being slanted. Would be best for an RV (Pavement is flat).
GEORGE M
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 05
Reviewed 7 months ago
The camp site was clean and quiet with a convenient water source. The campground was in a beautiful forest of pine and sequoia trees and a short walk to the general store, welcome center and giant redwoods.
Alex A
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 05
Reviewed 9 months ago
Love this campsite #5 was prefect for our tent, there’s no bathrooms unless you walk to the main store which is great because you get that feeling that you are alone up there very quiet and peaceful wildlife will walk through the campground and you might encounter deer beautiful sky’s in the evening and even the stars seem brighter than normal, just cross over the road and see the giant sequoias or head up the road and enjoy deep canyons and waterfalls sequoia is a must when camping
Jaye C
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 13
Reviewed 9 months ago
Clean sites and bathroom. Dumpster available for trash.
David C
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 22
Reviewed 10 months ago
Nice and quiet when we were there (Sunday night). Wish there were showers available.
Elvin F
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 22
Reviewed a year ago
It was a great campsite! Very spacious and really close to the bathrooms!! Store is very close by and hiking trails !!
Jesus R
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 24
Reviewed a year ago
Overall a great campground, be ready to deal with wasps .... We had them over in our site every time we had food.
Linda M
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 09
Reviewed a year ago
Gorgeous setting. Pretty close to the visitors center. It was beautiful. Wish I could post a pic.
Jonathan E
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 09
Reviewed a year ago
Campground is convenient to the store, restaurant, and Grant Grove hiking. Can get down into Kings Canyon or to the heart of Seqouia within an hour. Just the right elevation for summer - not too hot during the day or cold at night. Nice setting, not too many sites on the 4-12 loop so it was quiet most of the time. Site 8 has a slightly better view than site 9, but 8 is smaller. Looked like 6 might have a view and some privacy. Longer walk to restroom from this side of the campground. Cell service worked during the week but was overwhelmed on the weekend.
Alejandra F
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 05
Reviewed a year ago
We stayed in this campground & we loved it! Very quiet lots of shade & plenty of room. Bathrooms were kept up & although there is no showers they do have flushable toilets, so that was a plus. We loved that theirs lots of deer & chipmunks. Would definitely recommend staying here.
Walker S
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 12
Reviewed a year ago
The whole site is slanted and very hard to find a place to put a tent. People stayed up late playing music. Great location next to General Sherman Tree
Daniel M
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 06
Reviewed a year ago
Our campsite 6 was perfect. It was covered in trees so the sun didn't speak immediately in the morning and we were far away from our neighbors that nobody was disturbed. At first I was trying to book something near the bathroom, but I'm so glad I didn't. Walking to the bathroom at night, I realized how noisy it is. There's a wash station with a metal sink that would have drove me insane. In any case, it was a short little walk that didn't bother us at all. Bathrooms have no light so remember to always bring one. Our site had a nearby meadow where deer would casually walk through all the time. I'm talking sometimes 10 feet away, up close and unafraid. Lastly Crystal Springs is severely close to the market, shopping, visiter center, etc.
Dorothy T
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 05
Reviewed a year ago
Beautiful camp ground and well spaced out from neighbors.
Mario C
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 05
Reviewed a year ago
Crystal Springs Campground was very nice. We used site 5, had nice shade and we slept in RV. It was quiet and saw deer coming within 30 feet. Very good central location in Kings Canyon to go all the way on 180 until roads end and to also go down Generals Highway. The information center was very helpful and generals store employees very nice. Also the restaurant people. It was a very enjoyable 4 nights we spent there.
John B
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 24
Reviewed a year ago
Even though we showed up without having made a reservation we found a wonderful campsite with two available nights in the middle of the week to stay at. The proximity to Grant Village made our stay very enjoyable since they had Wi-Fi there and supplies we needed. The campground was clean and the campers while we stayed there were largely quiet and campsites spread far enough apart to give one a sense of privacy.
Fehrs V
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 19
Reviewed a year ago
It was a beautiful campground near the Giant Grove and hiking trails. Campsite and restroom very clean.
Fernanda d
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 34
Reviewed a year ago
The Spot was very good, the place was beautiful and we were able to walk to see some of them giant trees.
Isaac B
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 28
Reviewed a year ago
Nice campground but no showers and bathrooms are a nightmare! No soap or anything to dry hands with. Not even a hand dryer! The sites are nice but I dont think any of the tent sites are level. I dont strongly recommend but the feeling there is great, temp was perfect! Also a quiet campground which is a plus!
Ann W
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 23
Reviewed a year ago
We loved our campsite. Beautiful. What we didn't love is that there is only one bathroom for the entire campground. There was one campsite that had 4 HUGE double tents, with 4 people in each tent, so 16 people on that site. Sites are supposed to be limited to 6 people. So every time we tried to use the bathroom, this group had packed their people into it - kids, teenagers, families. This group partied until midnight. Also, one RV decided to run its generator from 6:30 a.m. to 8:30 a.m., waking up the whole campground. A beautiful site with disrespectful selfish campers. No rangers or hosts to help.
Jason B
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 04
Reviewed a year ago
WOW! NPS site said this cg was full.... I had 1 of 60+ sites to myself! No other campers on the entire loop! CG was fairly clean and easily accessible.
While I enjoyed the solitude, it's obvious this NP -Rec site is not user friendly and only adds to the frustration of visiting our National Park System and trying to navigate "how to" and "where to stay."
Catherine A
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 30
Reviewed a year ago
Beautiful campground. Clean toilets and convenient wash basin sink for dishes at bathroom area. Showers are a 1-hour drive south in the park.
Joshua P
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 25
Reviewed a year ago
Quiet and easy access to bathrooms. Perfect space for camping!
Sean K
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 19
Reviewed a year ago
Campgrounds were nice and peaceful with lots of big trees all around and a hill on the back. The only con for this site was that there isn't a good flat area to set up the tent.
Sam J
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 18
Reviewed a year ago
Quiet campground but this site, as well as many others were very uneven. It was difficult to find a level spot for our tent. Spots were pretty small and close together.
Camryn F
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 08
Reviewed a year ago
Campsite #8 has to be one of the best, it's the most secluded and is right next to a beautiful meadow full of corn lilies! Most of the campsites along the edge of the campground had decent privacy, but the inner campsites are all almost on top of one another (look on the NPS website for a PDF map of the campground). The bathroom was clean, with running water and a dish room — also not that far away at all, despite what other reviews have said. Literally a 2-minute walk along the road. Also very close to Grant Grove, I walked less than a mile to get there (took some random trails that went by the horse corral and trail).
Michael G
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 32
Reviewed a year ago
Loved it. Kings canyon has become my favorite national Park, and yet, no one talks about it. We found trails near the camp site that no one used! There's a general store a block away. Camp site pictures were accurate, I loved our site and it came with a firepit with a grill as well as a park bench. Our site was a bit slanted and the bathrooms didn't have soap or showers but very minor gripes and still 5 stars for me. I will make sure to bring my own soap next time. I would definitely stay here again, looking forward to it actually.
Taylor F
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 36
Reviewed a year ago
Great spot! Deer were everywhere when I arrived. It's just around the corner from the Visitor Center. Highly recommend
Silvestre G
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 09
Reviewed a year ago
Sequoia was amazing! It was our second time Camping at Sequoia but for time in crystal Springs. It was very spacious, flat and lots of shade which was important for us to have. We got to see a family of Deer grazing. Bathrooms Were mostly clean and They flush that was a plus.
Lake Hume is 20 minutes away while Moro Rock was 45.
Lilian M
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 12
Reviewed a year ago
Site is NOT level and in very close proximity to other sites. I had the unfortunate luck that a large group had reserved several sites on the same loop and parties every night till about 2am. The rangers only came by during the day twice and reminded the group of the rules which they obviously ignored. I wish groups like this would be made to leave after 3 strikes and banned for a certain period of time of being able to make any reservations. Besides that, site was clean, toilet were tiny and ok, water is heavily chlorinated.
Daisy K
Loop:Crystal Springs
Site:Site: 28
Reviewed 2 years ago
Lovely campsite, seemed so well located in-between king and sequoia. Some loud neighbours with an rv, which was a shame
Popularity
Very busy · 92%
Busiest in July, when about 92% of sites are booked. Based on 3 years of reservations.
