Tag Archives: best

Where is your favorite place to camp?

tent camping

This is one of those silly questions that has no real definitive answer from DanaMite. If you have camped California at all, you know it can be awe inspiring around every corner, especially the Sierra Nevada & the Coastline.

Most California transplants get so wrapped up with city life, college & new careers, that they rarely venture past the county park, much less the county line.

When they finally do break away, they are often misled to crowded campgrounds with steep reservation fees and too many RVs, walking distance to a mini mart. Often they assume camping in California is not what they thought it was going to be. Not like the photos they once saw, not the dream-like places of wildness, not the privacy they had envisioned. They may even give up on the whole ‘camping experience’ all together.

It does not have to be like this. Information is power. This web site Total Escape was made for YOU, the avid Escaper, who desires the best camping options available. One who will respect the land & care; Those that will teach their children to clean up litter & respect our precious public lands.

The California deserts are just as magnificent as the alpine meadows; The mountain peaks, the hot springs, coastal cliffs to the forests, and the river canyons!

It’s all good.

There cannot be one favorite camp spot, when you find yourself camping every month. Each site is a new destination, a place to explore, with usually a reason to return. Each season your favorite spot will change & be more desirable some months over others. From aspen trees changing color in the Eastern Sierra to wildflower meadows of the High Sierra, every place has its own unique flavor.

Drive further for less people and more nature!

National Forest Service

California National Forests are a great place to start.

Highland Wildflowers

Collections of California Camping Lists

sierra camps

Specific Places to Camp in California

Sierra Nevada Campground

Yosemite Lakes

yosemite camping lake
Lakes in & around Yosemite

These are picnic lakes, hiking lakes and camping lakes that are located inside Yosemite National Park or the surrounding areas bordering the granite wonderland.

Tioga
Tioga Tent Camping

California Romantic Resorts

Ahwahnee Yosemite Valley
The Ahwahnee, Yosemite Valley

Favorite romantic places in California. Stay overnight, have dinner nearby & make a night of it, or perhaps a whole weekend. Certain places may require a 2-night minimum stay, especially on weekends or any holiday weeks. A wide variety of destinations are listed below, from rustic mountain cabins, to palm oasis hot springs, to historic lodges located in a spectacular scenic setting.

Neighboring lodges or nearby small towns could have equally as nice accommodations, perhaps still affordable, quaint, uncrowded, and “undiscovered” by the masses. Call the innkeeper and ask questions. They should be thrilled to hear from you.

SnowMo CaliforniaWINTER NOTE: Some of these remote locations may not be open year-round, due to snowy weather, so please confirm by phone before you make the drive. Tioga Pass Resort may require a snow-mobile to access.

romantic holiday vacations

mid-winter escapes

valentine romance ideas

California Romance (starts here)

desert California

Hotel Del Coronado near San Diego

Julian Historic Hotel, Julian CA

Beachcomber Motel, San Clemente, CA

Benton Hot Springs, N of Bishop, CA

Blue Lantern Inn in Dana Point Marina

Cambria, on Moonstone Beach, Central Coast

Camp Nelson Lodge, Giant Sequoia NM

Carmel-by-the-Sea, Monterey Bay California

Downieville River Inn, N Yuba River, Downieville CA

Furnace Creek Inn, historic Death Valley NP

La Fonda Hotel, Baja California

Laguna Beach – all of it, pretty much

Lantern Inn, hiking trails, Paradise, California

Lido Palms Resort Spa, Desert Hot Springs, CA

Lucia Lodge, Cottages on cliffs, North Big Sur

cottages miranda

Miranda Gardens, Redwood Cottages, NorCal

Panamint Springs Resort, Death Valley, CA

Rainbow Lodge, granite/river near Donner Pass

Sardine Lake Resort & Cabins, North Sierra

Tioga Pass Resort, Eastside Yosemite

Treebones Resort, Yurt Camping in Big Sur

Wine Country Towns $$$ – Napa Co / Sonoma Co

sardineresort

see also –

California Lighthouses

Lodge Resorts

NFS Rental Cabins & Fire Lookouts

Redwood Hotels

This new California Lodge List will grow as DanaMite finds more ideal places, deep in wilds of California.

Sierra Nevada Lakes