About Prairie Flower Recreation Area
Number of accommodations: 153
Seasonal information
2026 Season availability
Campground Amenities
Most popular amenities
Playground
RV Utilities and Hookups
- Dump station on site
Water and Hygiene
- Potable Water
On Site Services
- Playground
Water Access
- Beach Access
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Rates, Sites & Availability
153 Sites Available
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Site Details
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153 Sites Available
No available sites
All sites are booked for your selected dates. Try showing all sites to see booked options, create an alert to be notified when something opens up, or adjust your dates.
Reviews (618)
What Guests Are Saying
Prairie Flower Recreation Area is a well-maintained campground featuring spacious, clean sites with large concrete pads and excellent facilities, including spotless restrooms and friendly staff. Many visitors appreciate the quiet atmosphere and proximity to recreational activities in nearby Ames, Ankeny, and Des Moines. Some suggestions for improvement include adding more paved sites and addressing overgrown grass and weeds, but overall, guests express a strong desire to return for future visits.
What Guests Are Saying
Prairie Flower Recreation Area is a well-maintained campground featuring spacious, clean sites with large concrete pads and excellent facilities, including spotless restrooms and friendly staff. Many visitors appreciate the quiet atmosphere and proximity to recreational activities in nearby Ames, Ankeny, and Des Moines. Some suggestions for improvement include adding more paved sites and addressing overgrown grass and weeds, but overall, guests express a strong desire to return for future visits.
Review Summary
Joe F
VerifiedAugust 20, 2022 • Stayed at: B48, Loop: BLAZ
This is one of my favorite campgrounds! Most ACoE campgrounds are great and this one is right at the top. Always clean & orderly, lots of walking & biking trails, close enough to Ankeny for restaurants & stores. We stay here every time we go through the area.
Erin M
VerifiedAugust 18, 2022 • Stayed at: H177, Loop: HONE
So many songbirds greet your ears on a walk around these camping spots! With a major trail going through it, the options are many. There are modern bathrooms and showers, too, if you need more than your camper provides. Such nice people at check-in, too! Safe campground, mowed and clean, too! Highly recommend!
Debra D
VerifiedAugust 16, 2022 • Stayed at: C90, Loop: CONE
Prairie Flower is one of our favorite campsites.
Cari K
VerifiedAugust 15, 2022 • Stayed at: A01, Loop: ASTE
Wonderfully spread out campsites, awesome playground in each loop, site A01 was easy to locate/back into, great playground access right behind camper, and an awesome shade tree in the afternoon!
Robert B
VerifiedAugust 11, 2022 • Stayed at: C76, Loop: CONE
We love camping at Prairie Flower campgrounds. It is very clean and a nice quiet place to meet some really neat people.
Cindy D
VerifiedAugust 10, 2022 • Stayed at: C85, Loop: CONE
We love camping at Prairie Flower Rec area. The cement pads are the best...level and rock free. The sites on the west side overlooking Saylorville Lake are great, but most are not shady. The bathrooms and showers are ALWAYS clean! We love the cycling trails and the wonderful selection of restaurants in Ankeny.
Paul N
VerifiedAugust 9, 2022 • Stayed at: C89, Loop: CONE
Prairie flower area is the best in Iowa.
The view and amenities are top notch
mary b
VerifiedAugust 7, 2022 • Stayed at: O251, Loop: OX-E
I like that we are far away enough from other camper we don’t disturb each other and kids can play with out worrying about traffic
DAVE H
VerifiedAugust 5, 2022 • Stayed at: D127, Loop: DOGB
Great campground with paved sites,, clean restrooms with showers.. All at a very reasonable price.
Todd L
VerifiedAugust 4, 2022 • Stayed at: C89, Loop: CONE
1st time camper at Prairie Flower. Great camping sites, extremely clean and grounds are well maintained. Will go there again (and again).
Location Prairie Flower Recreation Area
Address:
Saylorville Lake Administration Office, 5600 Nw 78 Th Avenue
Johnston, IA, 50131-1941
United States
From I-35, take exit 90 to Ankeny/Oralabor Road and go west for 4.8 miles. The road turns into Highway 415, continue and follow signs to the campground.
Prairie Flower Recreation Area is accessible via Iowa State Highway 415, which is approximately 5 miles to the east. Interstate 80 is about 20 miles to the north.
Latitude & Longitude: 41.7483 / -93.6875
Elevation: 286 feet
Policies & Rules
Arrival & departure
Check in time
2PM
Check out time
12PM
General
- Click here for more information
- Click here for a virtual tour of the Saylorville Lake area.
- Quiet Hours: From 10:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. Campgrounds are restricted to registered campers during these hours. Visitors must leave by 10:00 p.m. Gates remain open 24/7.
Nearby Campgrounds
Last updated: June 3, 2026
