Vail Lake RV Resort

We had a great site, 175, in The Oaks. It backed up to the perfectly dusty hill for the kids to climb and slide down from. Not completely covered with trees so my husband was still able to get satellite TV. My sister’s site was not so grand. There was a huge oak tree in the middle of the site and they couldn’t extend their shade. If they moved to the other side of the tree they would have needed a ridiculously long sewer line and you would have needed to step over it every time you used your table. Their site was really big but unusable.
The one thing that was a huge negative is that people leave their belongings on the pool loungers overnight. So, if you show up to the pool at 1000 and are the first one there you still won’t get a sunshade or lounger because people have claimed them from the previous day. It seems to me that the resort management should clear all the belongings in the evening when the pool is closed and let the new day start fresh. We arrived at 1000, when the pool opened, and there were no ‘unclaimed’ loungers or chairs to be found. The people who had left their belongings from the day before had still not shown up at noon. The pools are LARGE and given the amt of people there that is a huge plus.
The store is spacious but has little on the shelves. Don’t go expecting to buy much. They have more candy and ice cream than anything else.

We just got back from a weekend at Vail and once again we loved it. Carmen was so sweet and helpful when we first arrived, it’s a great way to start off the weekend. Thank you Vail for always making our stay so great.

What a great, great family campground. It’s a fairly large campground that has several divided up camp spots. It has a spot for pretty much everyone’s desired camp style. If you look at their map online you will see the names of each section. When you first enter the park, you will see they have miniature golf for free. Not too shabby of a miniature golf course. They also have several horse shoe sites and two Basketball hoops. The village has a mini mart, a restaurant, ice cream parlor and a BAR. Go check out their yummy bloody Mary’s! Everyone was walking around with them. They were delicious. There is also a stage in the court yard with several nice tables and umbrellas. A DJ comes on the weekends and there was karaōke night when we were there. Our daughter got up and took turns singing songs. It was fun. Everyone was clapping and supporting the singers. There is also A ping pong table by the front of the mini mart. There is so much for kids to do here. Tons of bike & hiking trails. A few pools and get ally just lots of exploring.
Now the areas. If you look at the map it tells you nothing but the name. Be careful asking them for advice on spots,. If you say family then they will assume you will want to be in the «Oaks» area. Oooooh not us! Thankfully we weren’t there and we scoped everything out. Ok so here’s the run down for you. Go look at the map online for each description I’m going to give. Let’s start with Chardonnay Mesa. It’s closest to the village on the right side as you enter the campground. This area has views views views. Lots of grassy areas and did I say views? It’s up on a hill over looking the surrounding hills. Some spots have big spots and you are able to have quite a bit of elbow room.(Our next pick) it appears to be a quieter area.
THE OAKS :0 (yikes) now from what I gather from the girl on the phone a highly desirable area for families. (Why!??) highly congested. Yes families, tons of them. Right in the mix here. If you like action and chaos then this is for you. Lots of loud remote control cars in the streets, lots of families, lots of kids, lots of bike riding in the street from little little guys to teenagers. Tight spots. Loud area. No biggie. If you like all that then The Oaks is for you.
RINCON: farther down on the right side also up on a hill… it’s ok. It’s nice. It’s quiet. The sites itself is ok. LOWER MERLOT. This area is for people who don’t like being in the middle of chaos and action. It’s quiet. It’s it’s own area. It has several several nice spots that give you lots of space. Several back up to the hills and bike trails. I’ve already mapped out the spots I like. This overall is a great area.
MERLOT MESA. Again quiet away from action. Is down the road from Lower Merlot. I mean that literally. It’s down a hill and then it evens out to a few spots against the hill. Has a few nice spots. Only downfall I saw was that It does back up against a ditch. But it’s nice and it’s quiet.
ARROYO SECO
This is the farthest out from everything. I mean FAR!!! Not my favorite at all but you may like this area. It’s a little bit like the Oaks but just really far from everything but the pool. I believe some don’t have electricity. Call to confirm.
I think I covered everything. I hope this review helps. We will back for sure. Especially for the yummy bloody Mary’s ! ;)

We stayed here the weekend of April 15 – 17 2016. Stayed with friends in side by side sites, 88 and 87.
There is ZERO cell service here, unless you go over to the area where the bar and grocery store are. But if you’re camping you probably are happy to «turn off»…but if you go camping with teenagers, be ready to hear complaints. Best to put your phone in airplane mode to avoid sucking the battery dry, and post your pics to Unilocal and Instagram once you get home LOL
The bar was pretty fun, they have Happy Hour, every one was fun and friendly, the drinks are stiff. And not horribly expensive.
To get to the actual lake, you will need to drive. You can ride a bike, if you like riding up and down dusty hills… but how will you transport your cooler and towels? It’s far. Don’t bother trying if you have little kids with you. You need to drive.
You can fish the lake, if you have a fishing license. My BF has one, so he was good to go, the rest of us could have bought them for $ 10 from the rangers.
The sites we were in were relatively shaded, the place is nice overall, the public bathrooms were clean and well kept, we’d stay here again.

Just got home from a two night stay at Vail Lake RV Resort. We stayed in the lower Merlot area and had the whole area to ourselves. It was awesome, very private and quiet. We will definitely be back, next time with Friends. We didn’t have time to check out the amenities, but the store was nice and had what we needed, mainly firewood!

We stayed here over President’s Day weekend and got a full hook up spot close to the clubhouse etc. we found the spots to be very level hard packed dirt, spacious, well laid out, and in good working order. We loved the feel of the campground. It is large yet thoughtfully laid out so it does not feel that big nor does it feel at all like a parking lot. Tones of families with kids having a great time. Seemed like we did not hear any out of control partiers late at night and even saw security driving around keeping a watchful eye.
Cool place definitely will go back!
Sorry I don’t have any pictures to share of this trip. It was a camera free weekend. Ooops

Vail lake is really great! It’s clean, beautiful and the staff are really friendly. Great mountain bike riding too!

My hubby and l and two other couples that are friends of ours spentt this Valentines Weekend here and i must say we all had a fantastic time. There is so much to do, golf n stuff, bocce ball, frisbee throw, horse shoes, swimming pools, karaōke and so much more. The grounds were well kept. The feel you get is truly that of being away deep in the mountains when in reality you are not far from the beautiful city of temecula, ca. where you can venture off the campgrounds to some of the wineries and restraunts while camping. You will absolutely enjoy the scenery in this picturesque rv park. They have so many diffetent sections to choose from; from up high views to down low views where the trees line the pathways and i must say the spaces here are quite large with lots of room for large groups and gatherings. If you try this RV resort, you are garanteed to love it. We will definitely return!!! Space 125 and 126 are huge spaces!!!

2^nd year camping here. (My families 3^rd year)
Fun place. It’s kept up nice.
Only thing that kinda made me mad is that the water to almost every trailer was leaking! Umm we are in a drought.
My sons rode their bikes all day long.
Seems like everyone around us loved the place too and have been coming for years.

Great campground. Used to be able to use the OHVs but not anymore. You can still hot lap around the park in diesel trucks, jeeps and anything else «street legal».
The surrounding trails are now closed to motorized vehicles.
Still a fan though…

Love Vail lake! Beautiful time celebrating Thanksgiving!
Tim, Gary and Jimmy were so helpful and kind. The resort looks beautiful! We have to say our favorite place to come.
See you at Easter!

First time in over 12 years attempting to give mountain biking a chance. It is has a great hiker and mountain biking trail. I had a really good time although scared going downhill. A lot of medium hills near the lower part or start of the trail for the stunt biker. I look forward in visiting each time when in Temecula.

Normally I would be giving a 4 star rating but after last weekend they get one! On Sunday (checkout) we got up to wait in line to buy RV tickets for next years Halloween event. Got there a 7am… gates open at 8:30am and that’s fine but once they opened it took until 10:40am to buy spots! and… there were on 60 people in front of us. The biggest issue was not waiting but the fact that people were buying way more then one space! A lady in front of me was buying 12! Another lady came out way before us with a BANK bag (obviously buying way more then one space!)
Vail Lake… what you don’t realize when you allow one person to buy huge blocks of camping spots is that it ruins the experience for everyone else that has been going for years because, even when we think we have a great spot in line… we end up with shit camping spaces or none at all! People that have a big group need to all get their butts in line and wait to buy their spaces just like everyone else!
TWO SPACE PURCHASE LIMIT PER PERSON!!! get in line!

I can’t believe this resort is less than 2 hours from Los Angeles, which is nice for those short weekend getaways!
The property is huge and offers so many activities, including swimming pools, tennis courts, basketball courts, miniature golf, a community center (with a bar), water slide (not open at this time), and a lake for fishing and boating.
The bridge that leads to the lake is located near the pool and is closed after 6:30pm. The road to the lake is a dirt road that takes you deeper into the canyon. It took us about 10 – 15 minutes on our razors to reach it. The view is absolutely beautiful!
I believe there are 3 camp sections. Although they are walking distance from eachother, they are quite a ways apart. Plan on driving or bike riding between them if you’re in a hurry. Razors and sandrails are permitted inside the resort, which makes getting around a lot more quicker. Also, there are free showers available in the bathrooms!!!
I’m giving this place 4 stars, because they do not have electrical hook-up’s available for the RV’s. Don’t forget your generators. Also, expect a limited cell phone signal. I believe only Verizon users are able to get a signal.

This was our maiden voyage in our trailer. We had a great time. Off season so not many kids. That was the down side. Wish they had times To Get the kids together so they can meet and go off and play. Once my kids finally met some others they were sold. Like a miniature golf contest or ping pong tournament. But we will be back.

This campground is awesome for families. We stayed here over the weekend and were very impressed with the amenities that Vail Lake Campground offers. Our site had plenty of trees to keep us shaded from the blistering sun. In just a short walk we were able to relax and swim in not one but three pools. In the evenings they have entertainment for both children and adults to enjoy. Friday night was karaōke and Saturday night was a great cover band. They also had a full bar there that opens up at 5pm. The kids really enjoyed there miniature golf course as well. If you’re looking for a fun weekend away with the family I would recommend this spot. So much Fun!

Been camping here for 30+ years. Have seen park go thru various ownerships. New ownership has put more restrictions on park than ever before. Favorite part of park was the freedom to explore park and lake without security guards and restrictions to off road trails. Always felt lake should have more swimming/​boating options/​be more accessible to campers. For $ 50/​night still a good value because most weekends entertainment provided, could do without karaōke nights. I

My family and I just stayed the weekend at Vail Lake Resort (my husband myself an my 2 daughters) Loved our experience very pretty grounds, very well kept, @ $ 55 /​night not too bad of a price. The camp does not currently offer tent camping but there are plenty of places tents could go so I’m not sure why they do that. We love how clean the bathrooms are with the only exception being not ALL of the bathrooms are… there not as bad as other camping grounds we’ve been too but in some of the bathrooms there is room for improvement like having a curtain that doesn’t fall and fixing the knobs, finding «hot» was awful plus I could barely turn the stupid thing. And they could spray for spiders in the bathrooms, because showering with spiders is not cool. The off road trails should be opened at the drivers own risk.. There’s so much potential there for the off road’n folks.
All in all the experience was great an a great escape from the city for a few days… wonderful R&R
Would be 5 stars with the changes of bathrooms an off road trails. and spider’s

We went to vail campground for Halloween,. The camp spot we stayed in was lovely and private!
The haunted house was really good, and we would go again.
FYI– I was going to bring my dog through the haunted house and the guide said that it might not be a hood idea!
I’m so glad we didn’t bring her. I thought that was pretty amazing of them to be aware of my pup.
Sharyn

We’ve been coming here for a number of years now. (See «Vail Lake Village Resort» review).
We were here again this past weekend so I thought it best to update my prior review based on our most recent experience (s)… So this is more geared toward this particular stay and the associated «Terror in the Oaks at Vail Lake Resort».
There has supposedly been yet another «change in ownership» within the last two months or so. My understanding is that the Rancho California Water District has since purchased the campground and surrounding property via bankruptcy sale. Whether or not that works out in favor of campers is yet to be seen. Based on our most recent experience, my hopes are not too high…
We generally stay here about 4 times a year, as it is close to local casinos, Temecula wine country and old town Temecula, but this visit was our first since January of this year. In that short time, we’ve noticed some changes, not all necessarily for the better. Generally speaking, it is, and always has been, a «pricey» campground so nothing there has changed. That, I can deal with.
What we have seen over the years is that the Halloween event is now booked to the limits, which makes for long lines for the festivities. Top that off with unsupervised kids running amok, recklessly riding scooters /​power wheels or even driving golf carts around the campgrounds /​campsites like headless little chickens.
The park «rangers», (i.e., security), while nice enough, leave little to be desired when it comes to «enforcement». Some fools that take residence up in the campgrounds at this time of year seem to think they and their rigs are mobile DJ booths, and that of course, you just happen to like the same music that they do!!! Don’t get me wrong… I love my tunes. Black Sabbath, oldies, funk, even some country, you name it, but I also have respect for others. I don’t blast my $hit at decible levels akin to standing behind a Boeing 747 during take-​off at Maho Beach in St. Maarten ALL FREAKIN’ NIGHT LONG!!! And I sure as hell don’t wake up at 4:00am on Saturday morning to do the same effin’ thing. Believe it or not fools, some people have babies, (or even grandbabies)!!! And even after politely asking them to lower the noise level AND having security speak with them, no go. I understand it’s camping and yes in some instances, you are in close proximity to your neighbors /​fellow campers, but when you can’t hold a decent conversation with members of your own group without yelling at the top of your lungs because your neighbor’s 4 sites away are blaring Luke Bryan from studio monitors, something is wrong… Some people…
Being a «full hook-​up» campground, one would think that means, water, sewer, electrical… On more than one occasion, campers, (ourselves included), have been left without one or more of these utilities that are part of the price of site rental. In the past, Vail management has refused to offer credit or refunds to customers when one or more of these vital services is either not available or is disrupted for a day or more… Supposedly, the new management will be offering those of us who were left without electricity this past weekend a one day credit… Time will tell.
One thing I do know… Vampire Vail Lake, or «Terror in the Oaks at Vail Lake Resort», as it was called this year… You’re fired!!!
We’ll stick to the «non-​event» dates…