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7 Scenic Idaho State Parks For RV Camping

This post was updated on March 15th, 2024

There are 27 state parks in the state of Idaho but not all offer RV-friendly campgrounds. Below is a list of seven of the most popular state parks for RV camping.

From parks with all the amenities to some offering a more secluded, primitive experience, each of these has something unique to offer.

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Heyburn State Park. Photo by Robert Ashworth, courtesy of Flickr Creative Commons

Northern Idaho

1. Priest Lake State Park

Located on 755 acres in Coolin, Idaho, Priest Lake State Park has 151 campsites, some of which are open year-round (at the Indian Creek campground). The other two campgrounds, Lionhead and Dickensheet, are weather dependent and water is turned off in the fall.

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The campground amenities include showers, flush toilets, a dump station, and a full-service park store with gasoline. Enjoy year-round activities from boating to mountain biking, volleyball, Nordic, snowshoeing and snowmobiling. 

2. Farragut State Park

Open year-round, the Farragut State Park in Athol provides 4,000 acres of scenery and recreational activities like disc golf, radio-controlled airplane field, fishing, hiking, biking, and equestrian facilities.

The park was once a WWII naval training station and has a Museum at the Brig to provide historical information to visitors.  For overnight campers, there are 61 standard, 156 W/E serviced, 48 W/E/S serviced, 7 ADA, 10 cabins, 6 equestrian, and 6 group sites.

Flush toilets, a dump station, and electricity are available while showers are only available Memorial Day to Labor Day. Enjoy nearby Silverwood Theme Park and the Visitor Center Store for horseshoes for rent, gifts, souvenirs, and disc golf supplies.

3. Heyburn State Park

Heyburn State Park in Plummer, Idaho is the oldest park in the Pacific Northwest with its founding in 1903. The 8,076-acre beautiful park is home to towering ponderosa pines, flower-filled meadows, and placid waters.

The Civilian Conservation Corps built many of the still-standing buildings in the 1930s. Of its total acreage, 2,332 acres of the park is water, making it a great spot for boating, kayaking, canoeing or stand-up paddleboarding.

One of the most popular biking trails in the U.S., the Trail of the Coeur d’Alenes, runs directly through the park. Day use is available year-round while camping is only seasonal at Benewah Campground and Hawley’s Landing.

South-Central Idaho

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Bruneau Dunes State Park. Photo by Charles Peterson, courtesy of Flickr Creative Commons

4. Ponderosa State Park

Ponderosa State Park is one of Idaho’s most popular year-round destinations. Located in McCall, the shoreline of the North Beach Unit of the park is made up of beautiful Payette Lake.

Hike and bike on your own or with guides, listen to a park naturalist at the amphitheater, canoe or kayak on the North Fork of the Payette River, Nordic ski or snowshoe on trails, or enjoy the quaint nearby town of McCall. 163 serviced campsites are open during spring and summer and have flush toilets, showers, a dump station, electricity, sewer, and water. 

5. Bruneau Dunes State Park

The Bruneau Dunes State Park, located in Bruneau, Idaho has one of the longest camping seasons in the Idaho Parks system. This park has the tallest single-structured sand dune in North America with a peak of 470 feet.

Campers will enjoy exploring dunes on foot or renting a sandboard from the Visitor’s Center (off-road vehicles are only permitted on the main road). Fishing, hiking, horseback riding, or visiting the Bruneau Dunes observatory are all other fun opportunities.

These 4,800 acres have 82 serviced campgrounds (as well as 35 standard) with amenities including showers, flush toilets, dump stations, an equestrian campground, and trails. Electricity is available in the campgrounds year-round, but water is turned off late fall to early spring depending on weather conditions.

Eastern Idaho

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The Snake River. Photo by Charles Peterson, courtesy of Flickr Creative Commons

6. Bear Lake State Park

This park on the border of Utah and Idaho is home to 15,000 visitors annually and is referred to as the “Caribbean of the Rockies” for its role as a water lover’s paradise. Bear Lake is 20 miles long and eight miles wide and full of gorgeous, turquoise-colored water.

Winter is a time for ice fishing for Bonneville cisco, a fish found nowhere else on earth. Campsites are available in the park for groups as large as 50. 42 serviced campsites are available with vault toilets, a dump station, electricity, and water. A Visitor’s Center and Nature Store sells souvenirs.

7. Massacre Rocks State Park

Open year-round with a bounty of activities to do and wildlife to see, Massacre Rocks is also full of history.

Located on the Snake River in American Falls, Idaho, this 990-acre park has miles of hiking trails, geologic wonders, and climbing routes for rock climbers.

Check out a bit of history at Register Rock located two miles from the park, which is home to a huge boulder of signatures from Oregon Trail emigrants who stopped here before continuing their journeys. The park is also home to a world-class disc golf course. 42 campsites are available with showers, flush toilets, and a dump station.

You may also like: 15 Scenic State Parks Along The Oregon Coast