Sites & Rates
Average nightly rates15 total sites
RV Sites
15 sites
About Fern Basin
Number of accommodations: 15
Activities & Attractions
Nearby
Hiking
Year-round
Hiking
Seasonal information
2026 Season availability
Campground Amenities
Most popular amenities
Picnic Table
Restrooms
Fire Pit
Water and Hygiene
- Potable Water
- Restrooms
Cooking and Fire
- Picnic Table
- BBQ
- Fire Pit
On Site Services
- Fish Cleaning Station
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Rates, Sites & Availability
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Site Details
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15 Sites Available
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Reviews (173)
What Guests Are Saying
Fern Basin is a lovely, quiet campground located close to town, ideal for those seeking a peaceful retreat in a beautiful area with ample shade and large, secluded sites. While some facilities, such as running water and campfires, were lacking, the well-maintained vault toilets and friendly park rangers contributed to a positive experience. Visitors appreciated the clean environment and proximity to hiking trails, though they noted issues like mosquitoes and tight roads that may require caution while driving.
What Guests Are Saying
Fern Basin is a lovely, quiet campground located close to town, ideal for those seeking a peaceful retreat in a beautiful area with ample shade and large, secluded sites. While some facilities, such as running water and campfires, were lacking, the well-maintained vault toilets and friendly park rangers contributed to a positive experience. Visitors appreciated the clean environment and proximity to hiking trails, though they noted issues like mosquitoes and tight roads that may require caution while driving.
Review Summary
Holly M
VerifiedAugust 16, 2026 • Stayed at: 010, Loop: FERN
Close to the town.
Quiet camping.
No running water even though there are spigots by the camp sights.
No hiking trails at camp sight.
Haili B
VerifiedAugust 11, 2026 • Stayed at: 008, Loop: FERN
Very lovely area! lots of shade, huge lot and secluded compared to most. You will absolutely have no reception at this area no matter what rec gov says. The map given to this area isn’t correct you need to keep driving down the road and you’ll eventually get where you’re going on the left. The road is also very tight and full of brush so if you’re not comfortable driving in that I definitely don’t recommend driving at night. My one and only thing about this site is getting to the bathrooms, the bathrooms are basically like glorified portajohns and felt like I had to walk or hike 10 minutes to get to them. It’s that or walk through peoples campsites. And my group was pretty bummed about the no campfires but that part is totally understandable.
michael m
VerifiedAugust 11, 2026 • Stayed at: 015, Loop: FERN
water pumps were not working- fortunately I brought enough with me, but on the website it says that potable water is available. location is nice and easy to access
Chris B
VerifiedJuly 29, 2026 • Stayed at: 016, Loop: FERN
Very peaceful and beautiful. Vault toilets were maintained well. Very large camp sites
Claudia M
VerifiedJuly 14, 2026 • Stayed at: 015, Loop: FERN
Need to fixed the water line so the camp can have water.
Helena F
VerifiedJuly 12, 2026 • Stayed at: 008, Loop: FERN
Beautiful campground with tall Ponderosa trees and boulders. Site 18 was the best one in my opinion. No campfire allowed when we went in July. The main downfall was the insane amount of mosquitoes
fredrick F
VerifiedJune 30, 2026 • Stayed at: 014, Loop: FERN
Very beautiful Campground, two downfalls ,campfires were not allowed ,and the mosquitoes will drive you nuts! Will probably not camp there again unless campfires are allowed!
Kelli Y
VerifiedJune 18, 2026 • Stayed at: 010, Loop: FERN
The campsite was very clean, and the vault bathrooms were within sight of our campsite. The water spigot did not work at the time of our stay. We chose to hike San Jacinto during our stay, so walking to the Marion Mountain trailhead from our campsite was super convenient. There are no showers, and the Idyllwild Campsite close to town only allows their own campers to use their coin showers. Therefore, if you stay here multiple days like us, we recommend taking body wipes, plenty of water, hand sanitizer, and your own toilet paper because the ones here are like 0.01 ply and don't roll on the metal bar! The fire pit had a metal grill, which was convenient for putting our skillets on. Most sites only have space for one or two cars with spillover going into extra small parking lots that filled up entirely during our stay. If you are bringing extra cars, know that it may be difficult to find parking close to your campsite.
The grocery stores and restaurants in town were stocked with everything we needed and when we were tired from a day of hiking, it was nice to indulge with some local eats. Highly recommend Fern Basin if you just need a place to crash and don't want to pay extra for luxuries.
Brandon S
VerifiedJune 14, 2026 • Stayed at: 018, Loop: FERN
We stayed in site 18, and so had no one behind us which is nice. However, we shared a parking spot with site 19 meaning our parking spot was across the road and about 200 feet away. This made getting our gear to the site a bit tricky. For us it was not too much of an issue, but for less prepared/organized families this might be an issue. Also, we only saw the ranger come around once. The people in site 19 were loud and playing music until midnight. Had the ranger been there they might have addressed the issue.
We would definitely camp here again, nevertheless. It’s an easy drive to downtown Idyllwild.
Claudia M
VerifiedJune 4, 2026 • Stayed at: 019, Loop: FERN
Love it everything went well.
Location Fern Basin
Address:
P.O. Box 518
Idyllwild, CA, 92549
United States
From Idyllwild, travel north on State Route 243 about 4 miles. Turn right at the campground sign and continue to Forest Service Road 4S02. Turn left and proceed less than a mile to an intersection. Continue straight on the Forest Service Road and turn left into the campground.
Elevation: 1906 feet
7.1 mi drive to downtown Idyllwild (about 15 min)
Policies & Rules
Cancellation policy
- Reservation fees are non-refundable. For campsites, cabins, lookouts, yurts, group sites, and similar stays, we charge a reservation service fee of $8.
- Standard cancellations usually have a $10 cancellation fee. Customers can generally cancel before the check-in date online.
- Late cancellation rules differ by stay type.
- Individual campsites: cancelling after 12:00am local time the day before arrival usually means a $10 cancellation fee plus forfeiting the first night's fee.
- Cabins, lookouts, and yurts: cancelling less than 14 days before arrival usually means a $10 cancellation fee plus forfeiting the first night's fee.
- One-night reservations: a late cancellation usually forfeits the full amount paid, up to the total original reservation cost.
- Modifications are allowed before the cut-off window, but fees depend on the change. Changing to dates completely outside the original reservation dates may trigger a $10 change fee. Extending or shortening a stay that still includes original dates usually has no change fee, though refunds may depend on timing and facility rules. Switching to the same type of campsite for the same dates usually has no change fee, but price differences are charged or refunded.
- Early departures may or may not be refunded. At certain facilities, partial refunds may be possible if staff can mark the site available for other visitors. No refund is given for a night if the early departure is requested after that day's check-out time.
- Security deposits are separate. Security deposits may be refunded to the original payment method if the facility is left in acceptable condition, as determined by the property.
Nearby Campgrounds
Nearby destinations
Last updated: September 2, 2026
