Reviews

Xplor Fitness

The campground is very clean. Someone left extra wood so that was nice. There was a huge trash bin nearby. Bathrooms were clean. The only thing was noise. I heard the train go by and some pack of wolves or coyotes howling. And wasn’t sure but I heard sirens go on every time the howling started.

Judy Jakubic

The Staff at Houston/Mesa Campground in Payson: Ryan (Host), Dylan, Heather, and Jenn ( Forest Service Team) are amazing and ensure the grounds are well-maintained, restrooms are clean and equipped with running water. We have referred many family, friends, and coworkers to enjoy the quiet and peaceful serenity at Houston/Mesa Campground.

Meghan Lippner

We will definitely be coming back to this spot to camp. We went hiking at tonto national bridge, went on adventures around the campsite, did scavenger hunts, climbed trees! We ended up going here because you can have a fire during the arizona fire ban season (May - Sept). Made great memories, its def our new go to spot to escape the city! No complaints

Dogwoodangel

It's nice campground located on the north side of payson. Nice shaded spots with picnic tables and fire pits. Friendly yet non intrusive staff. It would get five stars if their showers still worked.But the forest service decided it was too expensive to repair them. 37 was my site. Potable water & restrooms 100 steps away. An elk was standing by the camp hosts trailer so still that I thought she was a statue until I drove by it!

Oleksandr Koroliuk

I don’t understand why people pay $29 a night to stay at this campground. The showers don’t work. The water fountains don’t work. There’s no soap in the restrooms. The outlets don’t work either. So you’re basically paying $29 just for a patch of ground to pitch your tent? There’s BLM land right across the road where you can camp for free. That’s exactly what I did. I just crossed the road and camped in the forest. Same “amenities”. No shower, no soap, no water, no outlets. The only difference is I paid $0.

ariel Strubel Iram

Nice bathrooms and good water. The showers were closed but id attribute that to the government shutdown and wouldn’t ding the campground for that!

Laura Berkoff

There was a lot of ants at campground 70 and also the showers weren’t working. The only reason I paid to be at this camp or even wanted to be at this camp was because of the shower. Do not go here. It’s a normal camp you’re gonna pay $60 Elyse don’t go here just cause you think there’s a shower. There’s no shower. It was an OK campground I did like the bathroomsbut yeah there was ants and no shower so they really should be updating that and they really shouldn’t be charging extra for your shower. I don’t know at least take down the shower information.

Kim Banks

I drove all the way to Payson to stay here as I had 5 years ago.. they might as well close the whole campground!! $29 a night to park your rig..showers closed, no lights, no trash bins, no soap in the bathroom, the locks on the bathroom doors don't even lock!! I don't know who collects the $29 but that's just called robbery! I pulled into the handicap #18 spot..and woke up in the blistering sun.. that campground used to be awesome..now it's a dark parking lot.. no wonder the host works there..they don't have to do ANYTHING! Don't waste your time or gas!!! Super disappointed!!

Christina Logan

Nice wooded campsites, well maintained with showers and very close to town. Fee $29, but I paid $14.50 with my senior America the Beautiful pass. Good spot for passing through. Close to Flowing springs Day use area. Very peaceful and yes I can hear the traffic, but I definitely can't see it!

Fatima Antell

Stayed there twice and was attacked by spider mites both times. Will not return for that reason. Tried two different sites to see if it was just that site but mites were there too. The park in itself in nice, the sites are fine, location is great, but these creatures were too much. Stay at your own risk. Wished someone would have warned me!

Alizabeth Shaw

Location was beautiful. There was some road noise but not to bad. Elk wondered thru the camp ground. Now the bad: bathrooms where absolutely disgusting(seems all they did was put toilet paper in there never cleaned them up) doors hanging off the hinges, no water pressure. The showers are out of order. Some of the doors have no locks on them. Then people just randomly walk thru your camp site and stand and stare at you. Dogs run around on with out leashes on. Our camp site was covered in trash when we checked in and dog poop all over. The second night we where there a massive tree fell less then 5 feet from our tent(that was a interesting night) and bees galore as well as yellow jackets. Camp host were nice, but never really seen.

K D

Site 75 on the mountain lion loop. It was a very short walk to a restroom with running water, flush toilets, no soap. Showers were out of order and apparently have been for quite some time. An elk and her baby walked right past me through my site in the morning, which was the highlight of my visit. YES, there is road noise. That’s because this campground is tucked between two highways. It seemed to get very quiet in the night. I camped on a weeknight and was not bothered by noise from other campers, although they were quite near to my site. The camp host stopped by to check on me, and it’s clear that he cares about his job, and the conditions of the campground. My site had some trash such as water bottle caps, but I don’t blame the host for that in the least. It’s a shame that some campers are so disrespectful that they leave their trash for others. Perfect cell service with Verizon.

Q

Wonderful campground. Very well maintained and managed. Beautiful area with shade trees and 20 degrees cooler than Tucson & Phoenix! Friendly staff and I especially enjoyed my conversations with fellow campers. 🙂

Jessica Kasten

We had a two night stay and had to leave early because a large group of other tent campers did not follow the rules. Stayed up past 1AM being very loud. I am not exaggerating when saying they were YELLING throughout the night. Quiet hours are 10pm-6am. Especially in the tent only section, it's VERY hard to block out screaming. The next night I told the camp host (who was very sweet and did her best) about the situation. To her credit, she apologized and said she'd immediately go talk to them. The next day, they started at it around 7am -- it was past quiet hours, so OK. Then by 9AM they were playing music VERY loud. Every tent site in the camp could hear. Unfortunately, the Camp Host is way at the front of the campground, so she didn't know. I walked up there and told her about the situation. She again apologized and said she'd go talk to them right away. They turned the music off for about 15 minutes and then started up again. It's my understanding that the hosts make very little / are volunteers, so I didn't want to bother her again. It's just SO disappointing to drive all that day to spend time in nature only to have it be ruined by some inconsiderate yahoos. Two stars for the efforts of the Camp Host and the fact that when we walked around the park, the non-tent exclusive areas seemed very quiet / people who were minding the rules. Maybe if we try it again, we'll just stay on that side.

Lea Barrymire

A very well maintained campground. There are a few camper-ready loops with numerous sites. Some are pull through, some are back in. There's also a loop of tent only sites. Only complaint is the closeness to the highway, but it quiets right down at night.