Laguna de Alegria | Established Campground

El Salvador

Details

Verified:
about 1 month ago
Altitude:
0.0 masl
Website:
None
Phone:
None
Contributor:
fromatob.org

Amenities

Electricity:
No
Wifi:
No
Kitchen:
No
Restaurant:
No
Showers:
No
Water:
No
Toilets:
Pit Toilets
Big Rig Friendly:
Yes
Tent Friendly:
Yes
Pet Friendly:
Yes
Sanitation Dump Station:
No

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First place in weeeeeks (coming from the south), where we really could calm down! So nice and quiet and refreshing at night. Stayed 3 nights in this wonderful nature.

During the day a few locals. At weekends more locals, but totally fine.

The road up here was easily manageble for us with our Crafter (similar to a Sprinter). No problems at all.

5$pppn. Toilets are horrible, no water availeble, so it feels more like a wild spot. But for finding this calmness in Central America totally worth it in our opinion.

Attention: Like previous comments already said, don‘t drive to far in the middle. Stay where there is at least a bit of grass growing. There you should be fine. Otherwise you maybe will slowly sink down in the mud!

And be also a bit careful walking around the lake. Sometimes it looks like it would be hard ground, but suddenly your foot gets stuck (happend to us :D)

For ,bigger‘ rigs: A good and maybe a bit more quiet place than next to the coffee trailer f.e. is the flat and a bit grassier area in front of the school (I‘ll try to add a photo).

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Amazing location, last 2km to get here is ruff but not steep. Cool at night after 5 pm. Great camping spots it the pine trees, with cement tables. There are dogs roaming around but are very timid. Locals come here during the day and leave at night. We had no problem getting fair/slow cellular service (Claro). YouTube Chris & Tovah's Amazing Adventures https://youtube.com/@ChrisTovahsAmazingAdventures?si=RPavzqZsW6dYRFiP

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All as described. Uploading photos of the rig belonging to a poor couple I met who'd attempted to drive around the lakeshore when the water level was low, took them some hours and a towtruck to extricate - grateful I could learn from their lesson! Even walking around it is treacherous in places; it goes from solid to a think layer of clay instantly.. There are signs warning you not to drive around off-road, and also warning you against entering the lake, swimming is prohibited - though I did see some locals having a paddle. Apparently there's a siren inside who prevents those who enter from leaving. You have been warned!

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The road is bumpy and not enjoyable to drive, but not as bad as the previous note suggests. Just drive slow and make sure everything is stored well!

The spot itself is beautiful, we arrived around 2pm and found a little coffee trailer, helado sellers and a couple of food stalls dotted around the lake. It emptied out from local tourists in the early evening and only filled up the next day around 10am - this was boxing day so we were happily surprised it wasn't totally rammed with people!

There are baños dotted around the lake, basic but usable. We didn't go in the lake, not sure if it's a good idea. It got super cold at night which was really refreshing and nice, warm during the day. Good walks up to the view points marked on here already.

Loved our time here.

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The 2km supply deserves a red warning cross, especially for large cars. The street is reminiscent of the early castle construction, large stones crooked and crooked, deep cables and branches everywhere. And although the way, as one way seems, big chicken buses (?), Mini buses, pickups come towards you and nobody knows where to avoid (abyss). It doesn't matter what time. But not on the weekend. In the end there were 30 tents around us. Once at the bottom you pay 5USpP for a shadowless place. Constant pack dogs barks (especially at night) and powdered into quad dust. The lake itself smells of sulfur, the sun is 4pm away and it gets cool with 15 degrees.

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absolutely a must!
beautiful & calm
5pp

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Very quiet night in the crater of this volcano. Sweet awakening by the chirping of birds. You can park all around the lake. We paid US$5 per adult, children under 7 are free. I recommend the walk to the viewpoint over the lagoon. No 4G Tigo in the crater but as soon as you start the climb to the viewpoint you will have signal.

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Stated here a night. it is really a nice and tranquil place. Still cost $5/person per day to campout. Day charges are $1/day.
Try to go and hike the Antennas. please see trail starting point on ioverlander. Tge trail is marked pretty good. on rainy season the shrubs were overgrown 4 sure. views,are magical though.

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Had an amazing stay here, only ones camping! 5$pp. Wanted to update that there is a gate that is closed at 7pm. We showed up the first night after that and slept outside the gate. Be very careful where you drive near the lake in the rainy season, don’t ask us how we know… but it involved a winch and a lot of shovelling haha

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Great place, very pleasant temperatures and quiet at night.

If you drive further down the road, past the football field, you will find a road toward the laguna. There is a large patch of grass surrounded by bushes and small trees. It provides a lot of privacy while at the same time leaving the sky open for the solar panels and Starlink. In the trees you can hang a hammock.

About 5-6 stray dogs who roam around - all friendly but interested in your food.

Even on week days there are locals walking around, curios to see and interact.

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Stayed here 4 nights, Thursday to Monday. $5/pp per night. The guy at the entrance is nice but very particular about the money you use to pay. Wouldn’t accept a large bill or a $20 with a slight tear on it. He didn’t try to charge an extra $1 a day.

This place is really special. I was expecting it to be much more crowded during the weekend, but it wasn’t bad. Only noisy day was Sunday because of people blowing horns for hours. Everyone we talked to was super nice. One guy said it was okay to swim, just high sulfur content, but we never saw anyone get in. We didn’t risk it.

Each day, the place dies down at 6pm. We were the only ones camping all weekend. Absolute bliss at night and PERFECT temperature. Morning coffees with a view. Thunderstorms every night. Best sleep in a while.

We have a high roof ford transit van, and going around the perimeter of the lake (the road is one way) to leave wasn’t tricky, but we destroyed some branches and scratched up our roof rack pretty good. If you have a tall rig, consider leaving through the entrance. Just honk your horn and send it. We saw loads of transport busses doing it.

*starlink works amazingly here

Enjoy!

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Very nice spot to rest for few days and to escape the heat on the coast. Had 3 quiet nights. Nice mornings with many birds. 5$ PP per night.

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As soon as you arrive at the lagoon on the left there is a blue building, if you like to sleep in the morning stay far from there.
It’s a school and from 7 am kids are coming, they are curious and loud.
Paid $5 entry/camping, I’m traveling solo.
Nice and quiet

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Just wanted to update what we paid:
$5 camping/person
$1 entry fee for next day since we wanted to stay after 8:00am
Total was $12 for 2 people for camping plus leaving after 8:00am the next morning.

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Claro doesnt have service here, the rest is good
(There is no option to take a shower and toitlets should be better)

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Nice place With good views, cold Atlas night and really quite, I stayed only 1 night in weekdays and I was alone. $5
Toilets should be better
No water

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Nice place, was the weekend so it was busy but to be expected. It got quiet at dark.
Spent two nights and Saturday night had some local campers. We stayed for two nights and on the far end of the Laguna as we thought the sites were nicer there, one really nice one.
On the second night there was no real breeze and so being in that end of Laguna you could get heavy smell of sulphur. No the end of the world as that is what makes up the area but the heavy wafts weren’t great either.
Basic pit toilets but the place is cheap and I have definitely seen worse.
Many many friendly people.
The hike to radio tower was also nice

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Price now 5$pp to camp. As described before, beautiful place and cool at night. Perfect after the heat coming from Honduras

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Price update: 5$ pp for camping. All other earlier comments may be confirmed. Very nice scenery, perfectly quiet and fresh air at night. When coming from the hot lower areas, we loved this spot.
For us the best camp spot in El Salvador so far 👍

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I paid $2.50 for entry and camping. Beautiful spot to camp. Road up was fine on a heavy loaded big motorcycle, a few sharp steep turns with the cobblestone were a little tricky but those were closer to the beginning and it evens out at the end. Lots of space to set up camp around the lake. There’s a small tienda before you head down near where you Pat the entry that sells water and snacks etc…

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Hermoso lugar para pasar unos días, el camino está feo en partes, pero despacio se llega... No hay señal de Claro

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Very nice place to stay the cost is $3.00 per night. Very secure and the weather it’s very nice! Camp ground where you can park even very large vehicle.

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beautifull spot!! But beware, the roundtrip up to the antenna took us 3 hours (1 hour is impossible) it is 12 km and about 400 m uphill. We had to walk in the dark because we thought it was only 1 hour

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The price has increased a tiny bit to $1.25 for the entry (new sign at the entrance) and we had to pay for two days as we stayed overnight. Very worth it! Did the hike to the antenna too, beautiful viewpoint and friendly military.

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We paid $8 for the three of us. Everything described as before. We just want to add that on the left of the lake there is a primary school. We were camped right outside but that’s ok because our little one got to spend the morning there. Lovely teachers, students and location.

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Awesome place! We only paid 1 USD per person and 1 USD per car for camping, so in total 3 USD. Maybe it's because we arrived rather late in the day (about 4:30). Feels safe, they close the gate in the night, there are garbage bins and toilets, no Claro cell service.

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We stayed for 2 nights and 1 full day. We paid 18$ for family of 5 and RV. The hike to the antenna was great, takes approx 1 hour to the antenna and for the whole crater tour 4 hours. Very quiet at night. We were alone. During the day a few more people on a Sunday but nothing crazy. We enjoyed the landscape and the breeze after the heat of the pacific. Nice for cooling down. No amenities.

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Very welcome change of scenery after the heat of the beaches and a quick lunch stop at nearby Berlin. Special place, I've never camped in a volcano crater!! Lots of locals around during the day. The last 2ish km from the main road is a steep and bumpy cobble stone street. We are 3m tall and it was no issue but sure you'd scrape some branches when much taller...

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the last 2km is a very steep and bumpy cobblestone road, but totally worth it. it's a very popular location for the locals to snap a picture of and drive around. there were only a couple of vendors selling stuff on the weekend only. papusas for 50 cents and shaved ice for a dollar. they hang out on the right side of the beach, where everyone usually parks. I recommend parking on the left so you aren't in anyone's way. the vault toilets are only located on the other side of the lake, and are horrible, so be self contained here. this time of year the water is very low, but people did wade into it. check out the hike up to the antenna near here. it's a moderate hike but worth the scramble. we paid 6 dollars per night for our first 2 nights, but when we asked for another night they only charged 3. I'm not sure why. up where you pay there is a small tienda that has snacks and beers, but not much else. it can get VERY windy down in here, especially at night.

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Very unique place, the water is maybe not the best to swim but the feeling of this place is really special
Very quiet at night on a Friday night, we were alone after 6pm
6 dollars for 2 people and a van, we didn't bargain as it ease really nice and fair for the population here

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We stayed here for two nigths with our tent. The place is very nice, but it was very windy. We payed 5$ for the first night, nobody would money for the second night. Don't forget to bring enough trinking water.
weitradler.wordpress.com

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The nicest place to camp. Beautiful and nice climate, but very strong winds depending on the season the locals said. On weekend lots of people, but they are all very friendly and respect your privacy. We enjoyed it immensely and stayed three days.

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Saturday morning, after a quiet night, a couple build a pupusa and fired-up their huge grill almost under our awning. Later on, a few more food stalls were going up. Truckloads of visitors were arriving soon after.
So, on weekends, avoid the grassy spots at the right, if you choose to camp with your motorhome at the largest beach of the laguna.
If you are lucky, you might experience dramatic weather chances - fog falling speedily down from the crater rim, sunshine a few minutes later, followed by 3min tropical rain showers - amazing. We stayed 3 nights, recommended.

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Everything continues the same. Spent the night alone even on Saturday. During the day there were locals but not noisy. Felt safe. Gate closes and opens again at 8am.

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Just wanted to add that if maps.me sends you off the CA-2 over San Agustin and Berlin, it’s a beautiful road but very dusty in some stretches.. you’ll see how the people live in the mountains.. very interesting

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Very quiet at night. Lots of stars and the night we parked here the wind blew ferociously!! $1pp and $1 for the car to stay overnight.. beautiful spot. Lots of room. Cobblestone road from Algeria to the camp spot. Small store close to where you pay the entrance. Very safe

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Very nice, beautiful and quiet place!
No issues to go to the laguna with our big RV (27 feet long and 12 feet/3,7 meters high).
Cool temperatures in the night, we appreciated!

Très bel endroit, agréable, et calme!
Aucun problème pour y accéder avec notre camping-car de 27 pieds de long (8,40m) et 12 pieds de haut (3,7m).
Nuit fraîche, agréable dans cette région!

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Very unique place to camp in the crater of a volcano. Would absolutely recommend, while traveling through El Salvador! The laguna is beautiful and we guess usually it's very quiet at night, unless there is a towtruck trying to rescue a stuck car half of the night as in our case. So, be careful as it can be very muddy close to the water. We didn't swim in the laguna, because we read that the pH of the water is 2,5😅. Price is still 1 USD p.p. + 1 USD per car.

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Great place to camp. Unfortunately decided to go on a Sunday. The road was difficult to navigate with my huge rig and oncoming traffic. Absolutely no one on the Monday. Made it up the 2km of cobble road at a snail's pace. Fantastic views and everyone else cleared out for the night. Must be the time of year as the winds were terrible. I had no height issues as I made the first left to the water after the gate. Only low height vehicles can go around to the other side of the Laguna. There was lots of space and fairly level. Great view and down to 60° overnight. Parked here with a 25' Class C.

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Amazing! Turquoise blue water in crater! 1$ per person entre fee and camping available but didnt ask the price! Totally worth the cobblestone rd up!!

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One of the best spots in El Salvador. Don't miss it. No problems with the hight. 3.30m.

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Wonderful camp spot! Very friendly man at the entrance, still three dollars for two people in one van. Definitely worth the cobblestone road up, and our van is 3.4 m and we just barely got past the lowest hanging branch. Definitely go into the town and visit the Central Plaza market marked here on the app, totally worth it! All in all probably my most favorite experience in central America yet!

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We stayed one night in this beautiful place, and had a peaceful and cool night and the next morning went to visit the school and knew more about this country and their beautiful people. The way up to here is step by a rocky road but can be done with a big rig.

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WOW! Salvador‘s hidden gem!
Prices still the same.
We were all by ourselves, made a bonfire, enjoyed the silence, the fresh air, and felt very safe!

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One of our favorite places in El Salvador. We came back second time and stayed 3 days. Quiet, beautiful, hot during the day, cool during the night. Friendly people. $3 for two people in a car for a night. Lots of camping options around the lake. Water is deep for swimming on the far end, knee deep closer to the entrance. Mineral mud is supposed to be good for your skin. Only time it was busy was Sunday, but nobody stayed for the night. Hours are 8:00-18:00. There is lots of good food in the Alegria village on the weekend. Up near the lake is just small tienda and restaurant that we never tried.

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1$ par personne pour entrer dans le parc + 1$ pour camper (pour chaque nuit). Super spot au milieu d’un cratère face au lac d’eau soufrée. Très tranquille la nuit, température idéale pour dormir. Vous pouvez vous baigner sans problème et même vous enduire de boue si vous le souhaitez.
Parfait pour ceux qui aiment le camping sauvage.

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LOVED IT! How amazing is this green gem! Totally serene and quiet, with fireflies at night and clouds moving in at noon.. magic!
We wanted to swim but when we visited the water was not deep enough to swim, however still pretty cool to just go in until your knees.
The trail does NOT lead through the coffeeplantation. Head up after the tienda (keep left, the right is the park’s exit), and just over the hill there is a little fence on the right you have to hop over. You’ll see a whiteyellow sign at the next fence, which is the coffee plantation’s. But dont go in, just descend to the left following the fence and you’ll see the trail. From there you just follow it up. Amazing views over the lake and Alegria. Totally a must go!

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pasamos 4 días increibles en este lugar. Sale 1 dolar por perosna y 1 dolar por el vehiculo por dia. En el ingreso hay una pequeña proveduria. Uno de los dias subimos caminando hasta las antenas que tienen una vista increible a la laguna, fueron 4 horas en total, duro pero lindo.

We spent 4 amazing days in this place. 1 dollar for perosna and 1 dollar for the vehicle per day. At the entrance there is a small supplyuria. One of the days we walked up to the antennas that have an incredible view of the lagoon, were 4 hours in total, hard but cute.

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Nice & relax place. Cool at night so it’s a nice break from the heat of the coast. We enjoyed it :)

1$ pp
1$ per vehicle

Enjoy ✌🏼

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1$pp + 1$ le véhicule.
Très calme et très tranquille, un chouette spot!
Toilettes sèches.

Julie & Julien

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Beautiful place to camp. Take your time on the 2 km of cobblestones! $ 6 per night for 2 persons + rv. Difficult for the real big rigs!

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All previous comments still accurate. Amazing spot. Nice and cold and quiet. $3 for two people plus 1 car. We did a nice hike up the crater rim for beautiful views. About an hour round trip. The trailhead is tough to find - walk past the tienda, uphill, and look out for orange and white paint markings on the right, before the road descends. That's the start of the trailhead. You'll have to hop a low barb wire fence. Walk up through a coffee plantation and then cross another barb wire fence on the left. From there it's easy to follow the trail. See the attached screen shot for a topo map of the route.

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best overnightspot in el salvador, directly at the green vulcanolake, in the middle of the krater
1$pp - 1$p car
secured at night
great view
pit toiletts available

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Incredibly peaceful and serene place to visit and stay.
The cost of $1 pp and $1 for the vehicle are well worth it.
The pit toilets arent that bad we just cleaned the nearest one to us.
The lake is beautiful the stars at night are amazing and the peace and quiet after dark promotes a great nights sleep - especially after the nights spent on the coast.
Loved this tranquil spot.

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Beautiful, unique camping inside a crater next to the sulfuric lake. Serene spot with phenomenal star gazing. Many friendly visitors stop by during the day, especially on the weekend, but very quiet after closing (6pm). You can hike to the mirador from the restaurant, the view of the crater from above is worth it; also supposed to be a rum hike but we didn't do it. Cool temps at night, warm in the sunny afternoon, swimming in the lake was refreshing. Price still $1 per person plus $1 for vehicle per night. Last 2km of road is cobblestone, but easily managed, lots of minivans and compact cars visited during the day.

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Amazing spot, still USD 1 per person plus USD 1 per vehicle. Dead quiet after closing time (18h). Lots of camp spots around crater lake, sun and shade. No water. Slight smell of sulphur. Restaurant serves unexciting lunches on weekends.
Supposedly there have been no security problems yet, but you're pretty much on your own.
Altitude is 1270m.
The last 2km of access road are very unlevel cobble stones, wouldn’t do it for just one night. Stayed for a week, no problems. Highly recommended.

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Nice place to camp besides the little crater, fun to go walking aroud the place. Relaxing in beautiful nature for 1$ pp

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We paid $3 to enter and camp. Were advised to not go too close to lake so as not to get stuck. Cooler temps up here. Claro was weak and hardly showed up at all most times. Lots of okay outhouses, with no TP and sometimes no seat.

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Quiet, safe and beautiful place to stay a night, or more. $1 per person entry, $1 for the car overnight. Beautiful and spectacular when fog is moving in. And thunderstorm. Just one question, where is the "mirador de las cien grados" lonely planet is talking about? ;)

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Nice and quiet place in the nature.the gate is closed from 5pm to 8am

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Great, quiet spot to camp. (We stayed two nights and were alone for both) $1 per person and $1 for the car. Bathrooms aren't so bad - at least there's an actual seat! Felt really safe.

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Quiet camping spot in a volcano crater with a small turquoise/emerald color lake. The forest around the steep walls of the crater make for a nice setting. Cooler temperatures at an elevation of about 1,440 meters. Gated park. We felt comfortable and safe. You can camp anywhere around or near the lake. Park entrance/camping fee is $1 (usd) per person plus $1 per vehicle (per day).

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this is a great unique spot! the sulphur smell isn't too bad and you can just park further back from the laguna if it bothers you. we parked right on the banks of the laguna. very nice and cool temperatures and decent stars at night too. we have a big rig and had no issue getting in. we are 3.5 meters tall. the road up is steep at times but it's cobblestoned so no big deal. was $1 per person and $1 to camp. gates locked at night and very chill.

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Highly recommend this place. When do you ever camp in a crater? And ofcourse you smell some sulfur then... The lake is more like an emerald little pond, at least when we were there in dry season. It was one of the nicest, most quiet nights in El Salvador and very very relieving to escape the hot humid temperatures in the rest of the country. Paid 3 dollar for a night camping for 2 people. Oh and the outhouses are not much more grim than a lot we have seen in national parks in Canada or the USA 😉 we camped on the open plain of the lake shore, but you can also venture on the road around the lake to find a more secluded spot.. Alegria itself is also very nice, especially in the weekends with a small version of the feria de gastronomica on their plaza.

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We really enjoyed this place, although the outhouse are not the nicest ones, but they're OK: because of the cool temperatures, and the quiet nights, even on a weekend because nobody else camped there, no music from a nearby village, nothing. The lake is not the most beautiful one but special though and nice.

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Dry season makes a very small, green and very sulphuric pool. Curious school children. Very grim outhouses. $1/per person, $1 for camping.

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1usd per person plus 1usd for camper. Went there with a 24 feet camper (plus 3feet for bikes). There wasn't much water in the laguna - so it looked a little bit unappealing. And the sulfur odor was strong. To sleep into a crater, though, is special. There is a big soccer field (fenced) and a lot of local people come here. The best road is by Santiago de Maria (junctiin at El Triunfo on Pan-Am).

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$2 entry fee. Outhouses around lake but they are pretty grim. Camping near entrance on lake shore for a large vehicle– Many spots around lake for smaller vehicles. Height issues due to low hanging trees for vehicles over 3 metres. Locked overnight.

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