Elk Meadows IN Estes Park Co.

hawkhill wrote:
Of all of them, Elk Meadows would be our choice. Good selection of pull thru and back in. The sites were not huge, but bigger than other campground selections. Roads could be dusty and some of the sites a little unlevel, but nothing that could not be handled. Bathrooms clean. The location was good. Close to the park entrance and not far from town.

I agree. It's my choice too simply because the others weren't better and in some cases much worse.

Moraine Park is by far the best campground in the area.

Miles

Lived in Estes 8 years and back 3 times since. I would say Spruce Lake and Elk Meadows are the best there. That being said, I think they are all way overpriced even with it being a tourist town. Elk Meadow has gone to Hxxx over the last few years; lack up upkeep and all.

We will no longer stay there. Stay in Loveland and drive up.

We just came back from Estes Park. We found all the parks in Estes overpriced. It is a tourist town with a short season. While there we checked out all the parks, KOA, Elk Meadows, Manor Park, Spruce Lake, Yogi Bear, Paradise on the River and Mary's Lake. Paradise on the River was nice, but sites too small for our rig - all back in sites max length 34'. The trend on the other parks was the same - expensive and very small sites. RMNP sites were a little too tight and primitive for our taste. Of all of them, Elk Meadows would be our choice. Good selection of pull thru and back in. The sites were not huge, but bigger than other campground selections. Roads could be dusty and some of the sites a little unlevel, but nothing that could not be handled. Bathrooms clean. The location was good. Close to the park entrance and not far from town.

blkdodge wrote:
Thoughts on this park +/-. Sure looks like a beautiful area and park.
For summer time.

Beautiful views from the park. But...

First and foremost, they are overpriced for what you get. If you check rvparkreviews.com it's a mixed bag for reviews. We usually stay there once per season, usually early in the season, since they open before some of the other areas. I've posted a detailed review at rvparkreviews.com:

We've stayed at this park several times, usually one of the first to open for the season in Estes Park. Convenient to downtown as well as the Beaver Meadows entrance to RMNP. First and foremost, it's overpriced. The fee we paid was with a discount for full hookups. The most recent visit here, we discovered (along with their maintenance person) an anomaly with their electrical system. Initially, we didn't have electricity and tripping the breaker on the post didn't resolve it. What maintenance discovered was that, the sites are tied together with EVERY OTHER SITE, not the one next to it, that would be logical. Had to trip the breaker on a site 2 sites up! Once that was resolved, there were no additional problems with utilities. Sites are somewhat level...but not consistently throughout the park. We usually stay in the area more on the southern side of the park, and the sites there require a bit more leveling then some of the others closer to the highway. The access roads need some attention, in places it's asphalt that is breaking up, other places it's more gravel. Restrooms have always been clean every time we've visited. There's a bathhouse in the central part of the park that's more communal. Then there are restrooms at the upper end by the tenting area, that are 4 individual restrooms, that give more of a sense of privacy. Both cases, they are clean with plenty of hot water. Staff has always been friendly each time I've been there. I've read complaints about unfriendly staff, but have never experienced that myself and we've been going there for several years. Normally we don't use the group facilities such as the pool and hot tub area, so can't comment on them. The company that owns this park also owns Spruce Lake. Their pricing structure seems to be the same, but of the two, I prefer Elk Meadow, as the sites are not quite as tight as Spruce Lake, and there are pull thru sites, which Spruce Lake doesn't offer. If you're willing to spend the money, Elk Meadow is an acceptable park. But like all the parks in Estes Park, there seems to have been a decline in quality, while prices have increased. Unfortunately, there's just not many alternatives; USFS campgrounds aren't close by, and the campgrounds inside RMNP fill up rapidly during the camping season. We camped here in a Travel Trailer.

ETA: Would I recommend them? Yes, but with a caveat. If ~$60/night, with discount, is what you're willing to pay for FHU sites, then you may like this park. If you use some of the amenities, such as the pool/hot tub, or the restrooms, you may like this park. If you're willing to spend some time getting your rig leveled, then you may like this park. If you want outstanding views, then you'll definitely like this park. There are alternatives, though. Check out the other parks at rvparkreviews.com and even consider Riverview in Loveland.