Sites

Water

20 Amp

30 Amp

50 Amp

Sewer

WiFi

Cable TV

Facilities

Club House

Laundry Room

Swimming Pool

Hot Tub

Fitness Center

Game Room

Rec Hall

Pavilion

Exercise Room

Restroom/Shower

Restroom Only

Shower Only

Restaurant

Groceries

RV Supplies

ATM Machine

Dog Park

Cocktail Lounge

Dog Washing Station

Pit Toilet

Snack Bar

Play Ground

Services

Escort to Site

Self-Service RV Wash

Metered LP Gas

Firewood

Fishing Supplies

Pet Supplies

Onsite Rentals

Worship Services

Golf Carts

Fishing Guides

Onsite RV Service

Staffed RV Wash

Fishing Licenses

Complimentary Breakfast

Policies

RV Age Restrictions

Pets Welcome

Pet Restrictions

Pet Restriction on Quantity

Pet Restriction on Breed

Pet Restriction on Size

No Pets

Tent Camping Allowed

Folding Tent Campers Allowed

No Tents

No Overnight Guests

Recreational activities in or near the park

Recreational Activities

Archery Range

ATV Riding

Biking

Boating

Body Of Water

Casino

Climbing

Dock

Driving Range

Fishing

Golf

Heated Pool

Hiking

Horseback Riding

Horseshoes

Kayaking

Lawn Bowling

Mini Golf

Paddle Boats

Pickle Ball

Putting Green

Ramp

Sauna

Shuffleboard

Snow Sports

Splash Pad

Swimming

Tennis

Wading Pool

Water Slide

Water Sports

Water Umbrella

Whitewater Rafting



The Buena Vista Aquatic Recreation Area (BVARA) is a popular destination for outdoor recreation in Bakersfield, California. Located on the Kern River, the area offers a variety of activities for visitors, including swimming, fishing, boating, camping, and picnicking. The area is also home to a variety of wildlife, including birds, mammals, reptiles, and amphibians. The park is open year-round and offers a variety of amenities, including restrooms, picnic tables, and a boat launch. Visitors can also enjoy a variety of trails, including the Kern River Trail, which offers stunning views of the river and surrounding area.

IMG-448351162750361.jpg

IMG-448351162897278.jpg

IMG-448351163042874.jpg

IMG-448351163183545.jpg

IMG-448351163322467.jpg

IMG-448351163455747.jpg

IMG-448351163587581.jpg

IMG-448351163724617.jpg

IMG-448351163857426.jpg

IMG-448351163997703.jpg

Buena Vista Aquatic Rec Area

we love this place...we come here yearly for a Medieval camping event with the Society for Creative Anachronism....we build a whole medieval village of tents...a merchant area, a food court, an arts /teaching area, with areas set aside for medieval war scenarios...and for about a week   we live in another time period. The park is a lovely backdrop for our event. Taft and Bakersfield are not far for those who dont like to camp.

Great campground right on the lake. Good fishing, nice and quiet, clean restrooms highly recommend.

great area to combine camping with water activities. lake is very shallow and the water is murky and dirty, but you can wakeboard/paddle-board/swim in it. just don’t get any of it in your sinuses. the campgrounds are large and the grass is nicely cut. some of the bathrooms are okay, while others are prison-style and offer zero privacy. i’m gland that this area exists, but improvements can be made.

This was our first and last time here.  We had hoped for a great experience of camping and fishing. First night was ok.  Then the weekend started. The camp behind us had the music playing very loud all the way past 1 am. After calling the sheriff office and getting the camp host. Which was parked right by these people.  They turned it down a little.  The sites are really in need of resurfacing.  They are pull in round.  You can’t tell where the edge of pavement is to the grass.  We did have our boat parked in the so called grass/ dirt.  The ranger came by very rudely and said it had to be on pavement. Hubby moved boat and truck to what we thought was on the pavement.  But oh no. The ranger came back and our driver wheel was 6 inches into this so called grass.  He wrote us a ticket for being on the grass.   The bathrooms and showers were all closed.  You had to walk to a porta potty. Luckily we have our own bathroom.  We left 3 days early and are going to fight the 40 ticket. Plus. We couldn’t sit outside because the flies are sooo bad.

Sewer hookup on site 15 does not work, causes your sewage to back up and spill out at connection. 15 is listed as water front, should be listed as weird buzzing utilities front, you can see the water off to the side I  front of the next site, but you are NOT parked in front of it. So that is not your view. Ground rodents that look like small prairie dogs scratched at the camper at night and the holes were everywhere. At 10:30am the showers were still not unlocked by the host who we never saw. The bathrooms were backed up and wouldn't flush also they were filthy!

Also this is a campground but google thinks it's a hotel. 🤷‍♀️

The rest rooms are limited, the doors doesn't lock,  there's bugs all over the lights,  and the showers are not open. The playground looks nice but missing swings,  and the black top near the slides are mutated and kids were tripping over them. Not what I expected.  Wish the showers are available. The sink is a button and bugs all over the place. Hard to do night time routine.  NO SWIMMING allowed in the lake! Music is was played well past midnight.

Rustic campground with huge spaces, whole area is flat so no problem leveling  but not the best rv gravel sites.

We stayed there in a tent and we were told that we were over our allowed days between there and Kern river campground.Emelda was so RUDE she told us the next day not only did we have to leave but they were going to keep the 119.00 we paid the day before and have only a few hours to leave! Needless to say, I immediately called the bank and thankfully they agreed that it was wrong to be charged for somewhere they are literally kicking you out of! We were quiet and kept to ourselves and any time we had a question and the same rude woman  would snap at us for even asking or bothering her! She shouldn't work with the public and treat people so poorly!  Horrible experience and 1st time there

We got a camping spot right on the lake which was really nice. The site (51) is one of the biggest sites we have had on our adventures. Plenty of room for our trailer and tow vehicle. It is also very conveniently located less than 5 miles off I-5 so it was a perfect spot to rest on the way to SoCal.

Knocking off one star because this is the only campground we have ever stayed at that did not have signs pointing the direction of the sites so we had to drive around the campground looking for our site. Of course we went the wrong way and had to loop around the campground and take a turn we missed. Also, there are tons of  flies! The problem is made worse because every site has a large garbage can an about every 4th can has a broken lid. These cans are swarming with flies. We lit candles which seemed to help.

Beautiful location if you can get over the flies.

This campground is terrible. I even wonder why people go there. Maybe it's because there isn't much water around here? The animals that look like little miniature marmots are very cute but there were so many holes in our camp site  that it was hard to know where to put our tent without getting stuck in the holes. The toilets and showers are really, really dirty. There are so many insects, it's rather unpleasant. There were so many groups of people who would have parties. The music came from all sides. Finally, maybe the locals enjoy  this location for moments with friends near a lake, but for us who arrived with a family currently on the road trip, it was definitely not for us.

We went there for a day trip with friends that were camping. $7 for day parking (not a bad price). We had a blast. The camping party had a boat, so we were able to go out tubing. You will definitely need water shoes if you plan on going in the lake. The first few feet are sharp pointy rocks so make sure you have them!! Personal note-In the summer, it is very hot, so make sure you bring more water then you think you will need, and apply sunscreen more often then you usually would. HAVE A GREAT TIME!!!!!

Reviews

Buena Vista Aquatic Rec Area

User Reviews