About Prairie Flower Recreation Area
Number of accommodations: 153
Seasonal information
2026 Season availability
Campground Amenities
Most popular amenities
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
Julie T
VerifiedOctober 13, 2025 • Stayed at: C103, Loop: CONE
We love the large camping spots, cement pads and friendly hosts.
CHAD H
VerifiedOctober 13, 2025 • Stayed at: B69, Loop: BLAZ
Great place for the family! Playgrounds are awesome for the kids and bath houses are nice and clean!
Kevin W
VerifiedOctober 13, 2025 • Stayed at: C93, Loop: CONE
Very nice clean .
Scott T
VerifiedOctober 12, 2025 • Stayed at: A05, Loop: ASTE
Great campground! The camping spots are always clean and taken care of. The dump stations are nice and new. It has two different dumping stations and both have three lanes.
David L
VerifiedOctober 12, 2025 • Stayed at: C70, Loop: CONE
Shady spots, easy access and friendly volunteers! We will definately be back!
George N
VerifiedOctober 11, 2025 • Stayed at: D130, Loop: DOGB
Prairie Flower is a gem of a park! We have stayed there many times and have experienced all four of the loops, all of which are good. Our favorite is probably Dogbane, lots of shade, privacy and well spaced sites. Our most recent stay in September had some serious challenges: my husband became ill and was hospitalized in the Des Moines area. I needed assistance from the campground hosts, and they went above and beyond to help me out, thank you again! An awesome campground with awesome people, you can't beat that, we will be back:)
Erika V
VerifiedOctober 10, 2025 • Stayed at: A31, Loop: ASTE
Nice quiet campground
James W
VerifiedOctober 10, 2025 • Stayed at: B47, Loop: BLAZ
Nice clean campground and friendly staff
Craig K
VerifiedOctober 10, 2025 • Stayed at: C73, Loop: CONE
Nice campground hosts.
Clean restrooms.
Russell C
VerifiedOctober 9, 2025 • Stayed at: B55, Loop: BLAZ
We always enjoy our stay at Prairie Flower campground. The site reservation website/app makes it extremely easy to reserve and/or modify reservations. The grounds are well maintained and bath house kept clean.
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