Rancho Santa Ynez | Established Campground

November 24th, 2022 by lauracann1

we stayed here to break up the journey from San Quintin to Bahia de los Angeles. The wind really picked up on the way here so we opted for a room instead of camping (we have a rooftent) the room was 800 pesos and honestly pretty bad. There was no electricity and the restaurant was closed so we had to use our headtorches and gas stove inside the room to cook. chickens and dogs running into the room if we left the door open. The bedsheets didn't look like they'd been changed in a long time. Overall...not worth the money but saved us from a night out in the wind

November 6th, 2022 by abenteuer-vanlife.de

Staying here tonight. Friendly people and it’s 150$ per night for the van.
There is a restroom too but we haven’t had a look yet. Overall a good place if you want to stay near people. Next time I would probably move a few kilometres north to the free camps in between the cacti.

March 21st, 2022 by Saoirse_YVR

Good stop off between destinations. In accordance with previous posts. Did not take advantage of restaurant. Highlight was a visit by Ralph (88), a long time retiree from SoCal. Provided a history of the area. If you need repairs done he has the experience, tools and willingness to help. Could have used his help earlier this month.

March 21st, 2022 by soooozie

Wide expansive field, rough entry road, lots of horse excrement everywhere. Did not look at wc or shower. Adequate overnight stop as we head north toward home. Cave paintings north of here on other side of this bleak town are worth a view.

March 15th, 2021 by caritob

Quedamos en el rancho de Santa Inés.
Para ingresar son como 10min después de la carretera pero no nuecesitas 4x4. Vale la pena para más silencio.
Es un lugar súper tranquilo. Pueden hacer fogatas, tiene mucho espacio para hacer camping. El costo para el camping es de $150 MX por noche (para dos), si no, tienen habitaciones a $600 MX.
La comida del restaurante es muy deliciosa, en la noche cerraron a las 4pm porque ya no hay tantos turistas pero pedimos un poco de arroz que nos cobraron $20MX y lo unimos con verduras y perfecto.
En la mañana comimos un delicioso desayuno de huevos machaca con café por $140 Para las dos.
Tienen duchas de agua fría. Baños y WIFI.
Hermoso lugar con cactus, animales de granja y para visualizar las estrellas es PERFECTO..

March 15th, 2021 by /blogs/113924

Super Location, nicht weit von der Route 1 entfernt. Und trotzdem ruhig über Nacht. Für unseren Van und zwei Personen haben wir 150 MX die Nacht bezahlt. Sie bieten auch kleine Cabañas für 600 Pesos die Nacht an. Toilette funktioniert einwandfrei, Dusche vorhanden - kalt.
Wir haben uns über Nacht sehr sicher gefühlt und würden wieder hier bleiben.

Sehr nette ältere Damen, die uns morgens exzellente huevos machacas zubereitet haben.

February 22nd, 2021 by RogueWanderers

Camping area is large flat dirt area. Lots of room for a variety of sized RVs. Flush toilets and restaurant on site.

March 12th, 2020 by DPIERR

Simple mais tres agreable. Magnifique vue sur le chaparal et les montagnes. Seconde fois cette année

January 3rd, 2020 by Sean

I have noticed that the locals don't take the bumpy road that runs parallel to the runway. You can turn on to a dirt road right after the entrance, go up two small hills to get to the west end of the runway. Then you can "fly" down at speed on the north side of it. The exit is to the left most of the way down, follow the car tracks down the hill to the ranch. Wouldn't attempt in a large RV but worth it for smaller vehicles. Friendly cat this morning!

January 2nd, 2020 by Sean

Stayed one night on the way south. Ralph (86) is a local rancher down from New Mexico that loves to help folks fix stuff for free. He has a welder if needed. He comes through in the evening on his ATV with his dogs. Lady stopped by to pick up $150 for RV parking. Food at the "restaurant" was decent, $100 for 3 beef tacos with beans. Baja 1000 used to cut right through the parking lot, a dirt road cuts in half way down the north side.

May 1st, 2019 by markus.dreifuss

I have been staying there before, so I went back while passing through. I stay there mainly because it is a great place to watch the stars. (High altitude, very dry air and no lights anywhere). However, the price of 150 Pesos is way too much. The toilets are terrible and dirty. In addition had liked to have Dinner at restaurant. I asked the woman if it was open, and she said yes at 6pm, just to make sure I stay and pay. But the restaurant never opened! Also the access road is very bad. There are many nice hidden places just north of Catavinia with easier access for free. I will not stay in this place anymore.

March 19th, 2019 by nikkilayton1

Took our 26 foot RV in here, it was perfect for an overnight. Lots of room and a super chill location. had a nice walk in the Arroyo in the morning with our dog. We didn't use any of the facilities so I can't comment on them.

January 31st, 2019 by dubldee

We found this spot after reading about it via the Baja camping book by the Churches. After traveling from Cataviña area and traversing over gorgeous cactus terrain, we were eager to settle in for the night. We had read this was a spacious spot to camp, large enough for caravans with a decent-ish restaurant. But when we got there, although there were parked cars next up a now-closed restaurant/eatery, there wasn’t a soul in sight. We pulled up under trees and decided to sleep here for one night. After a brief walk through the white sandy arroyo, we met an American rancher named Ralph who lived nearby. He was around 85-years-old and full of life. He had his dog, a rescue named Kika (sp?) with him. We listened to his stories of living in Mexico and felt safe to be around him. There’s a reason this guy has lived this long; he loves helping people and avoids excessive TV and alcohol, and loves to move around! We happily cooked dinner here and felt safe sleeping a night here in our RV. In the early evening, a young mother and her six-year-old son came by to collect 150 pesos from us. I even went for a 30 minute run in the morning before we took off. Ralph came by in his ATV to check on us another time. Beautiful desert environment and fresh air. Bathroom wasn’t the best, but we used our RV for the most part. No hook ups.

December 2nd, 2018 by trailmagic.de

breakfast was 120M$ and not worth it. Pour-in coffee, tortillas, beans, scrambled eggs. Don't try it if you don't have to.

December 2nd, 2018 by trailmagic.de

nice place. was 150 pesos for the van. there are nice boulders in hikeable distance.

April 30th, 2017 by Rouler sa vie

As described, 120 pesos for the night. Quiet and hiking possible around.

January 19th, 2017 by Escape 21

The toilet in the men's bano didn't work. The toilet in the women's side did. Both water taps didn't work. $140m per night.

January 17th, 2017 by highfish

Asked for 180 Pesos. Didn't stay.
Around 5km north direction, there are many small roads. It's easy to find a nice hidden spot there.

May 22nd, 2016 by rolf_bettina

Good place for a stopover. Paid 100 pesos per car. Felt safe and was quite. The restroom is a bit gross... When you walk north west you will find a small path which leads into the desert. Breathtaking area with many rocks and cactus to discover. Good for a walk with your dog just watch out for the nasty spines!

March 26th, 2016 by The Next Big Adventure

Friendly ranch with lots of space to park under trees for shade. $7 with toilets. Didn't eat at the restaurant. Nice rancher next door (Ralph) comes around twice a day in winter to check and make sure everything is good. Gorgeous hikes and great desert life but watch out! I got pretty cut up getting a cactus in my foot. Horses came through camp in the morning.

March 4th, 2016 by adventure-continued.com

a large lot with a few trees for shade. no established parking area. flush toilets, very dirty. $120 mx. too expensive for what is offered. could handle 7f Spanish was better?

January 24th, 2016 by sunny

This was a perfect place for a middle way stop when it's getting too close to dusk. Not too close to highway, not too far away from it. Not much more than a large gravel parking lot with a working, relatively clean, bathroom but because it has such a large area, there were a few caravans that came in so we felt comfortable. The "restaurant" wasn't much to talk about but we got a warm meal. It was 8.00 to camp for the night and a cool desert area to walk around at sunset or in the morning. A pack of horses visited the camp around midnight! We felt safe with other campers but I don't think we would have if we had been alone.

October 7th, 2015 by uyarak.ch

Strange place, only restrooms, no showers, too expansive ($120).

May 21st, 2015 by bdfourney

About 100 miles from the nearest services in any direction, so make sure you have plenty of gas going through here, or pay the huge markup for questionable gas pumped from a barrel. This place is only 1km or so from the main highway so make sure you've got a set of earplugs so you're not subjected to the occasional trucker engine braking at 4am. Nice shaded campsites are a welcome relief from the desert sun. There's bathrooms, but I just used the amazing bathrooms at the hotel in catavina. Cold showers available at the ranch house, but it was just basically a pipe in the wall. $100 MXN per night, but I didn't try to negotiate or anything.