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Stacy
Trip Date 10/16/2018 Posted On 01/17/2019 17:14:47 |
Camping | New Mexico | Cedar Crest | Albuquerque | Where to Stay in RV for Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta | RV Camping in New Mexico | RV Sites near Albuquerque | Camping near Albuquerque
One of the "must do's" for our fall westbound RV trip was attending the 2018 Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta. Since we didn't plan our trip long enough in advance to secure reservations on the fiesta grounds, we searched the nearby area and came upon Turquoise Trail Campground and RV Park.
If you are in search of a location to camp in Albuquerque, New Mexico take a look at this post for a review of our three night stay just 15 minutes from away. We'll provide an overview of both campground and campsite amenities at the park plus a few pictures of both sites and amenities.
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Campground Amenities at Turquoise Trail Campground and RV Park
Located in the city of Cedar Crest, Turquoise Trail Campground and RV Park has a total of 56 RV sites plus some cabins as well as additional sites designated for tent camping. The campground including all facilities which we had an opportunity to see was very clean during our stay. Both trash dumpsters and recycling bins were available for guests just across from the office/museum at the campground entrance.Both coded restrooms as well as a small laundry room are available for guests of the campground. As we were traveling with "RV There Yet?", we didn't think to ask for the restroom codes so that we could step inside to confirm their "clean bathrooms/showers" claim. We did, however, have the opportunity to visit the laundry facility which was clean during our visit. At $6.25 per load, the washing machines are priced to discourage use due to limits on the water supply to the campground. The dryers are bargain priced at only five cents per timed increment.
Turquoise Trail Campground is located on the Turquoise Trail National Scenic Byway in central New Mexico which links the cities of Albuquerque and Santa Fe. In addition to being an easy drive to these two popular cities, the campground is situated in a meadow below Sandia Peak (one of New Mexico's ski areas) and is surrounded by historic mining towns. Visitors to the area have access to arts and crafts, theater, music, restaurants, museums and more. The campground office even shares a building with what appears to be the former Museum of Archaeology & Material Culture. There are some limited items on display which can be viewed while staying at the park.
If you plan to travel to Turquoise Trail from the cities of Cochiti Lake or Pena Blanca or surrounding areas, we recommend avoiding NM-301 / County Road 52A. Much of this route is gravel and not easy driving - especially with an RV (we know from experience!).
The cost for our three night stay in a 50-amp site totaled $143.43 including all taxes.
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Campsite Amenities at Turquoise Trail Campground and RV Park
Information regarding availability or to make reservations for RV or tent sites and cabins at Turquoise Trail Campground and RV Park can be found by:- calling (505) 281-2005 or
- sending an email to turquoisetrailrv@gmail.com.
- 50-amp full-service sites;
- 30-amp full-service sites; or
- water and electric only sites (with access to central dump station).
In addition to utilities, the RV sites were clean and each had an uncovered wooden picnic table and a charcoal grill. Sites are relatively level with packed gravel parking areas. A limited number of sites have shade trees and all have at least a small grassy area.
During popular times of the year (such as the hot air balloon festival), reservations fill up early. (We called over three months in advance and all RV sites were booked for most of the event. The only available RV site was for the evening before the final day of the festival - so we reserved that night plus the next two!)
We were assigned site 31 at check-in, and after paying our remaining balance we followed the park host on her golf cart to our site. The pull-through parking at our assigned site was very easy and we had all utilities as expected. The site was plenty wide for our slides on both sides and also plenty long for parking both our 33 foot RV and our Expedition. We had only one very small tree, so hanging our hammocks was out of the question - but, since we awoke to a light dusting of snow, we had no plans to relax in the freezing temperatures anyway!
Although we had absolutely no broadcast television stations available, our phone and data service through both Verizon and T-Mobile was good. Additionally, the campground offered free password protected wi-fi, however the speed was mediocre.
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Favorite Campsites at Turquoise Trail Campground and RV Park
The RV park has a combination of 30- and/or 50-amp electric connections and back-in or pull-through spaces. We always prefer 50-amp electric unless the price difference is significant. (With 50-amps we can run both of our air conditioning units and we also don't have to worry about using our 30-amp adapter.) With this is mind, our favorite sites at Turquoise Trail are (in order of preference):- in hot temperatures, 50-amp full hook-up pull through site 26 or 30-/50-amp full-hook-up pull-through sites 29 - 35;
- in hot temperatures, back-in 50-amp electric and water only sites 37, 38 or 39; or
- in cool or more moderate temperatures, pull-through full hook-up 30-amp sites 1-8, 21-25 or 27.
Cochiti Recreation Area
If no sites at Turquoise Trail Campground and RV Park are available for your preferred dates, check out our post titled Review: Cochiti Recreation Area. Located about an hour away, day trips to both Albuquerque and Santa Fe are not difficult - even late at night or early in the morning (if the Balloon Fiesta is on your agenda)! In addition to photos of some of the campsites, we'll let you know what amenities to expect at the park and also provide you with the numbers of our favorite campsites.
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Acoma Pueblo
Stop back in the coming weeks to read about our visit to the nearby Acoma Pueblo including both the Sky City Cultural Center and Haak'u Museum. In just a few hours we learned so much about the history, customs and business enterprises of the Pueblo people during our tour of Sky City.Tent or RV Camping for Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta
In your opinion, where is the best place to camp in either a tent or RV during the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta ... and when do you recommend making reservations in order to guarantee availability?
Weather:48F Mostly Cloudy
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