Just went this past weekend with the wife for the first time. Her and I both agree that this was well worth the trip and we will be back again. TLDR; Great time, nice campsites, friendly staff, clean bathroom and showers Check in is at 3pm but we got caught up in some traffic on the way there and couldn't arrive until 6:45. Got an email and text message with a picture of where our envelope with our information would be that contained the gate code, campsite, and a map of the campground. Very nice. We pulled in and as I was grabbing the envelope a man named Scot who was working there greeted me and asked if I needed any help. Told him that it's our first time here and he offered to show us to our campsite and lead us in his golf cart. When we pulled into the campsite it was clean and the ground was even raked! Which was perfect for us to immediately start setting up our tent. Even the fire pit was raked and clean, there was shade galore which my wife with sensitive skin greatly appreciated. Full cell service with T-Mobile Noticed that the bench at our site could use some TLC, looked like someone put too hot of a pot on it and burned a pretty decent divot into it and it was leaning. Still useable and not a deal breaker for us. There were 2 water spouts to fill up the bucket we used to put out our fire and clean our dishes very close by our site with good pressure. The river was a stones throw away from our campsite which provided great white noise to fall asleep to. One of the rules is that Quiet time is at 10pm. I've been camping elsewhere with the same rule but never have I've seen it enforced unless you call and complain. Staff would drive by around 9:30 on the golf cart, I assume to see who is still playing music, and then again at 10. Which was great. They didn't announce the rule or even say anything as they drove by, but just making their presence known was very professional and reassuring. Since we didn't get to check in properly we had to go back up to the main office/ general store to submit a registration card, that was in the envelope I picked up, to finish checking in. The woman checking us in was nice, friendly, quick, and efficient. She suggested we stop by McNally's further up about 40min drive if we were looking for something to do or eat. 11/10 suggestion. It was all n all a great time. We will be back. Worth the money. read more

It was an amazing place to stay at Kern River was so awesome (check out Big Daddy, it's so beautiful). The customer service was okay. I personally felt that they were treating my group and I like we were stupid or something. We had a big wasp problem at our campsite and though they did help us by putting up a trap, they acted like it was completely up to us to fix their problem. That only happened one night but the wasps did resurface the next morning so we left as soon as possible. We also had a big skunk problem at our site. We couldn't relax at the campfire because the skunks would come up to us every couple of minutes and we would have to shoo them away. They would also rummage through our stuff which was covered and put away to our best extent. They thankfully didn't mess with the tent but they did spray a bit when we were trying to sleep. This was both nights. If you're someone who is willing to look past that and persevere definitely try this place it is so worth it. I would maybe come back, as long as I wouldn't have to deal with the wasps again lol. I will say the restrooms and showers were very clean so that does encourage me to not be shy on coming back. read more

Nice place to camp. Camped here twice. Lots of shade, clean bathrooms and showers. Looks like every spot has a fire pit and bench. If you forget anything or want to grab food, the town is five minutes outside of camp. read more

Amazing love the sensory and the fact that you never get bored there, you can get in the river or ride your bike! Definitely recommend! read more

Rivernook Campground - Campfire at the river - Campgrounds Near Me - Kernville, California

Used to be such a nice campground, but they hiked up prices like crazy and they don't maintain the campground or invest money back into the campground for improvements. They also advertise that they have free WiFi and they don't. They should have what they advertise, that's what people are expecting. They are also building a ton of new campsites but the same number of restrooms which are already packed. With the prices going up significantly over the years, the campground should reflect that price difference. read more

Beautiful camp ground! We loved it so much that we already have dates for next year booked. Free shower, nice clean restrooms. I recommend this camp ground. read more

Rivernook Campground - Entrance to camp site - Campgrounds Near Me - Kernville, California

LOVE this campground, we have such a good time here. We have stayed here a few times and just recently have they changed their check-in rules. When you book a camp site, it's for up to 8 people. When booking Nowhere does it say only two adults are free, and additional adults staying at site will be charged $6 per adult, per day. What?? I've been here many times and never had this happened. They charged us for each additional adult, the campsite says up to 8 people and nowhere does it mention additional fees. This new rule is stupid! We will camp somewhere else next time. read more

I'm finally reading the reviews halfway through our stay, and I'm glad I didn't read them before as I would not have booked here. At first glance the campground is confusing but after a day I had our spot figured out and I appreciate that everyone isn't lined up like a parking lot. Everyone I have dealt with here has been friendly, even the ground crew took a minute to say hello to my little dogs when we were in a walk. While in town I checked out the other places to stay just to compare, and I am 100% happy with our choice. Just a caveat for anyone traveling to Kernville in the summer, they have energy black outs due to high winds and fire risk. We had almost an entire day without electricity but our spot was shady and the dogs stayed cool inside. read more

Rivernook Campground - Taking the pups to the river to play. - Campgrounds Near Me - Kernville, California

We've been taking a yearly 1 week vacation at Rivernook since our 27 year old was a baby. Kern has always been a special place for me, as I used to camp next door at "Camp James" with my grandparents. Rivernook has really invested in the facilities for visitors. Restrooms are always clean, you have free showers to use and the camp grounds are immaculate. The last few years the improvements just keep on coming. We are grateful to have a safe environment to now spend with our children and grand children. read more

Rivernook Campground - Campgrounds Near Me - Kernville, California

3 night stay (2 separate campsites side by side) The campsites are very large and spacious, can easily fit 2 vehicles. I'm not sure about every site but both of ours came complete with picnic bench and fire pit. I also like how the sites were on level ground. Check-in is @ 3:00PM and we arrived around 4ish. (Must check in before 9:30PM) Being the 1st day we took it slow and just hung out and set up. Unfortunately upon check-in the staffed failed to mention that the showers close daily @ 8:00PM Not a big deal (now that we know) but be informed. Showers open @ 7AM and what a relief. Not only was it a relief to take a shower the following morning, but the showers are fantastic! I couldn't believe it, I've literally stayed at hotels with worse showers. Very clean, spacious and free hot water. The shower-head was also nice. The mid-day atmosphere was like any other campsite (family friendly activities of bicycles, walking, etc) Our campsites were also very close to a large multipurpose area where we were throwing a football and frisbee. The river is also within a very close walking distance. At night it was also like any other campsite, laughing and enjoying the outdoors under the beautiful stars and night sky. The bathrooms are open 24 hours and were also very clean and well maintained. Several portable bathrooms were also set up within a close walking distance. Overall we had a lot of fun and would love to return in the future. Checkout is @ 11AM. I only have one complaint...The camp store has a small inventory of various items as well as firewood and ice that can be purchased. We stopped by early evening to load up more ice and firewood, and we were well within the hours of operation, only to find that the store was closed. No note, brb, nothing Fortunately a gas station is nearby, no big deal. My only issue is that if you expect visitors to be cognizant and respectful of your check in time, check out time, quiet time, etc. then you should show the same respect when you post that you will be open within a specific timeframe. Tsk tsk... read more

Rivernook Campground - Close @ 6PM daily, or whenever they feel like ‍ I really don't know either. - Campgrounds Near Me - Kernville, California

See all

What a great campground. Staff was super nice too. Great spot right on the water. I will be back for sure. read more

See all

Review from someone who doesn't enjoy camping as much: I liked that it's right by the calm side of the Kern River, so our kids could swim without worrying about getting swept away. I didn't swim though, because on our first day the power went out. I guess when that happens, not only do they close the showers and bathrooms but they also shut the water off. I wasn't about to use a porta potty and then jump in the river to clean up. They fixed it later that day, but honestly it stuck in my mind the whole trip. Also, the campsites don't really have any privacy, it's more of a spot for groups who want to party. And the two ladies working there weren't very friendly or helpful." read more

Nice campsite along the kern river on the south side of sequoia. Everything is kept really clean. Campsites are clean, bathrooms and showers are some of the cleanest ive seen. The river is close by within walking distance of even the farthest camp sites. Lots of RV sites and hookups. People are friendly and feels really safe. Store has most general supplies and is fairly priced. One complaint about the campsite is that the ground is really hard and full of rocks. Getting stakes into the ground can be really frustrating and will make you want to give up. That wouldn't really be too much of an issue if the wind didn't occassionally whip up and threaten to blow things over. Aside from that the sites are fairly level and decently sized for larger tents. One strange thing is that there are no bear boxes at the sites. Not sure how they keep the bears away but we didn't see any. We did see deer though! No problems with noisy neighbors but the campground was mostly empty when we were there which was strange because it was supposedly completely booked up. The temperature was in the low 100s so maybe people changed their minds? Be aware that there are a good number of mosquitoes, especially by the water so be prepared with spray. Also, there are yellow jackets that love meat so bring some of those water activated traps. The river is obviously the main attraction so bring shade to spend the day there and chairs if you like to sit in the river. Also, floaties if you want to ride the river down. There are some rapids but people were going down solo multiple times - obviously the water level varies with the time of year so check before you go. read more

See all

We went camping for 5 days. Never stayed close to a river. Had the best time with the kids and wife. Had to reschedule this trip due to weather issues and a flooding. Overall. Place is clean. Staff is friendly and just a great place to relax and just disconnect from city life. read more

See all

Rude front staff. Shady rest of staff. We we're here for 4 days. Had a nice river set up for 2 days then on the third day we went to our campsite after a day at the river and the crew very aggressively tore our river set up down breaking things and "misplacing" numerous other things. We have video. They said they went around and told everyone to take their set ups down. I assure you they did not tell us. Then closed the office door in my face while we picked up our popped floaters and broken canopies... read more

Love this place! We booked a spot next to the river, water and electric hookups and onsite dumping. Nice large site. The restrooms are super clean and the showers are nice and hot. They have staff driving around making sure everyone is following the rules. The Kern River is very dangerous so unfortunately no swimming. Cute little town right down the street with nice restaurants and a grocery store. Bring what u need because the grocery store is very expensive. We will be back again. read more

The Rivernook Campground offers both tent camping and RV sites, with full and partial hook-ups available. Some campsites provide beach access, while others are nestled in the woods with a short walk to the river. When we bring our little grandchildren with us, we usually request the wooded campsites. The Rivernook is both family and dog-friendly. However, I did not give them a 5-star rating because they need to post signs indicating where dogs are permitted to go potty and remind owners to pick up after their pets, including providing bags. This was the only thing that I found disturbing during my stay. The campground has a small store that sells camping and RV supplies as well as the essentials, such as bait for fishing, sodas, beer, chocolate, Graham crackers, marshmallows for s'mores, other snacks and etc. The bathrooms and showers at Rivernook are up-to-date and kept clean on a regular schedule. We plan to visit again soon. read more

Rivernook Campground - Short walk through the woods to the river. - Campgrounds Near Me - Kernville, California

The campground was great. Nice location, great sites, the creek is fun. Bathrooms/showers clean. The camp hosts are out of control with their constant checking to make sure your parking is posted, they come by almost every 20 minutes and when you're busy unpacking they don't care. The front desk beyond rude. Be cautious with questions they will make you feel like an idiot - we asked about fishing and rules and where we can go and you would've thought I told her aliens were landing. Seriously rude in the office. If you can get past that the campsite is great but also there are a million campgrounds around the Same area read more

Stayed here with a group of friends, before the summer season began. Which was very nice, not busy at all. Due to the storms of 2022/2023, there was damage to a connecting bridge that gets to you to the bathrooms a lot faster. So my group had to walk around this long route to reach the bathrooms. Oh and there was a sign, no pets allowed inside. I had to rope the dog to the bike area, hoping he'd still be there when I got out. He was. The property is located next to the river. That's cool, if you can get a location near there. Seemed only RV's and trailers were allowed in the primo area. Us tent people had to stay further away. This is a gated property, you'll need the code to enter. The public bathrooms were clean, I think there were around 6 stalls? And the same for the hot showers. There isn't any grass in the area, very dusty, but that's okay. Bring a small dust pan. No food lockers. My issue was, the day we left, the power went down at 9 a.m., closing up the bathrooms. The power runs the water pumps. This for me is not cool, so I left my group and just started to make my journey back home. I'm thankful that I woke up early and took my shower and did my business. But if you woke up late, uhhhhh yeah, no bueno. The staff told us we could drive into town and use the bathroom at the local grocery store. They would eventually bring in porto-a-potties. That is my last impression of this campground. Kind of sad. We stayed at sites 117 & 118 read more

The Rivernook Campground has excellent facilities, the bathrooms and showers are very clean and conveniently located. The campground is next to the river and beautiful. However, it is quite noisy at night. I camp to enjoy the peace and quiet of nature. Unfortunately when we visited there was a loud group well into 2AM. Sounded like a drunk group with a loud lady. Campground staff routinely drive around but don't enforce quiet hours after 10. Instead of crickets and leaves rustling it was a loud unrestful night well after midnight. read more

Best campground in Kern river. We took a ride on the Harley up to the redwood. We played in the water all weekend Met some wonderful people read more

We took our kids there camping there 25 years ago and had such a wonderful time. This year, we went with our grown kids and grandchildren. The campground has changed quite a bit. Now, there is a whole residential area, and most of the tenant's homes are not in great condition. The restrooms and showers were clean. The stream that is safe for little ones to play needs cleaning up. Lots of overgrown reeds and yuck. I'm sure it's a great habitat for frogs. If you need wifi, forget it. It only works near the office. I think if it is listed as an amenity, it should work for everyone. The workers were friendly, and the spaces were clean. Ten o'clock quiet time is not enforced and there is no way to contact management after the office is closed. read more

My family and I went here for a weekend getaway. Arrived early Friday morning and was surprised at how good the WiFi was. I was able to work and take calls without the connection dropping. That was definitely a plus as there nearest Starbucks was inside on a Vons. Aside for the great WiFi, this campsite has hot water for showers and the campsite itself was very clean and well kept. My only downside to this location and not really a fault to the campsite but the campers in the site next to us were fighting at 5:30 in the morning and the police and paramedics had to be called. We had a hard time sleeping that night due to this reason. I wish that there was an employee on-site to call for situations like this. Aside for this, everything else was great and we enjoyed the rest of our stay after the family left. read more

See all

The best campground I've ever stayed at! I had a group of about 10 adults and 2 kids and we fit comfortably in 2 tent campsites. It was amazing being right by the River and hearing it roar at night. Bonus about the campsite are the hot showers!!!! Perfect for after a swim in the cold river The office staff was extremely efficient in the check-in and check out times. Lexi was the best at helping me out with parking for extra vehicles and was attentive to my whole group. read more

Rivernook Campground - Kern river - Campgrounds Near Me - Kernville, California

See all

It's a very clearn place and safety ! River amazing! Don't have bear ! Camp have a shower and very clean toilets read more

Rivernook Campground - Campgrounds Near Me - Kernville, California

See all

Love this place. Been coming here for over a decade. Place never ceases to amaze me. Showers are clean and hot water works good. Did some fishing on Labor Day weekend and caught some really nice size trout. Everyone is cool and friendly. read more

See all

Just got back from a 5 day stay at Rivernook camp, my experience was great overall here are some recommendations and tips I would have liked to know ! The bathrooms were very well kept, although everyone seems to use the bathrooms to shower before they close at 7:45pm so be prepared to wait a 45 minute line, we book a reservation for 4 people tent camping and we got the last site available which was the only site (site 184) without shade, thank god we brought 3 canopies. We had some loud neighbours but didn't bother us too much, if you're looking for a place to enjoy the quiet at night it's probably not the best option for you. Current River is extremely dangerous for kids in my opinion, I would recommend wearing life vest no matter if you're a great swimmer, it's not worth hitting your head against a huge rock and passing out then drowning !! Our site had water drain available to wash our dirty plates and ect. Which i appreciated very much! Each site had a good amount of space to set up everything we needed. Front desk was friendly. Only got bit by mosquitoes twice during our stay but watch out for other bugs ! Overall can't complain too much had an awesome time with the family ! read more

See all

In my opinion, this campground is good for families with kids. Plenty of room for bike riding, running around and other outdoor activities. The downfalls to the campground out way that one positive. Firstly, you cannot reschedule, or get a refund for your camp site unless you're 30 days out. I get it's a policy but life happens, inclement weather happens, etc. We could not reschedule our stay because we were within the 30 days. So if this doesn't bother you fine, but you can stay next door at Camp James and reschedule( take note rivernook if you're reading) Secondly, the rules they have here are NOT enforced. During our stay there are several spots with travel trailers that have multiple tents and cab over camping shells in the same spot. I'm not saying this was a problem for me, but don't have a rule if you aren't going to enforce it. There is also a hard quiet time of 10PM.....Bullshit!!! 3 of the four days I was here I had headlights of cars coming through my windows at 1 AM for people who apparently just decided to show up and start establishing there campsite. You have limited options when camping with an rv at the kern river. Do your homework before booking something. read more

Pretty decent campground for those who haven't camped before and wanted to dip their toes into the outdoors. They have everything you need to make you feel at home: Hot showers, clean bathrooms and even WIFI. Although they have all these amenities, the campsites are very close to each other and even though our neighbors were dope they were quite loud. A short walk to the river and we were able to swim and was shocked to see how low the kern was. It was chest to knee height which is very unfortunate. read more

See all

BE CAREFUL! This place is HORRIBLE! I made a mistake in my reservation dates, I informed them of this before that date and said I was coming next week, a person confirmed I could change it and then the day I was supposed to arrive they said they would not change it and wanted to charge me for the stay twice! read more

This place was AMAZING!!!! It's a gated camp ground. One site store that sell goodies. They offer rental for the river!!! They have showers. With warm water!!!! Bathrooms are super clean!!! They have security driving around. Camp group is super clean Dog friendly Child friendly Family friendly By far one of the beat camp ground! read more

We rented a spot here yesterday evening & an employee approached us to kick us out because we made a fire with wood instead of charcoal (we did not know that wasn't okay), we then said we can put it out & she proceeded to threaten to call the police on us & was acting hysterical even as we offered to put it out & explained we weren't aware i think this place should show their employees how to treat their clientele, this was a calm situation, imagine an actual serious one? insane read more

Really nice campground right off the upper Kern river! Weather was gorgeous and so was the river!!! The creek that they advertise was all but dried up. The bathrooms were freshly remodeled and super clean!!! Great water pressure for the showers and toilets We had full hookups and free wifi!!! Netflix after fire is awesome rv sites were Pull-thru, no backing up drama really nice fish cleaning station with motion sensor lights for after hours fishing or taking a walk through the campground. DOGS ARE FREE!!!! We brought our 3 pit bulls, and they had the best time ever!!! Other campers were totally cool, and I didn't have a problem with anyone letting their dogs off leash (very irritating, when others can't follow a rule). Campsites were a good size but oddly positioned (fire pit was 5 feet from our truck?) Very quiet!!! We could hear the river and nature sounds nonstop! About 10pm was quiet time for the park. They didn't have much fishing equipment for sale at the little store but 1/2 mile hike and you can get everything at the bait and tackle store Overall great camping experience, would love to go back read more

See all

I LOVE this campground! It has it all! Beautiful river front sites, & serene woodsy sites w/in walking distance to the river. The bathrooms are clean and free to use. Nice little hiking trails too. The town is only 1/2 mi. away which made it convenient to go shopping. I brought my bike which was nice for added exercise. The ladies in the office were super helpful & professional. I love a company like Rivernook Campground that actually helps you book over the phone as opposed to online! I already booked my return trip back! read more

See all

Great experience from the moment of check in! The woman in the office was very welcoming and took very good care of us. She was very pleasant and professional. I've been here twice before but never seen the entire space until this recent visit. Previously, I didn't think the place was too special since I'd only ever seen the section near the front. I absolutely love the river front RV section! There are also clean restrooms and showers close by. Can't wait to come back! read more

Rivernook campground is our go to choice for our annual family camping trip! We love the river front sites when they are available. A great time to go would be early June. Jim is very helpful! read more

Stayed here over the weekend. It was our 2nd time camping here. We had a much better experience back in 2021 than we did this time. The Woman at the check-in desk was not friendly at all, and the younger woman was busy on her phone. That said, nobody in this town is overly friendly. The bartender at the nearby Sportsman's Inn has the personality of cardboard, but was attentive and quick. Employees at the Market all look like they hate their jobs, and life in general. Simply not a friendly town. (The employees at the Brewery were nice, though.) On to the Campground: We arrived Thursday night and had reserved a spot along the river (VERY low right now, BTW). We were literally the only one's there. We walked around and found an empty spot on the end, which was very close to rushing water. I called the office to see if we could switch to that spot (hoping nobody had reserved it yet), but they refused. They have a "no site-swapping" rule, (which should read "site-CHANGING", not swapping) which makes ZERO sense if the spot has not been reserved yet. The woman at the desk needs a serious course in Customer Service. No "I'm sorry, unfortunately we can't, as it's already been reserved.", all I got was a frustrated lady on the other line who didn't want to be bothered going above and beyond for paying customers. I said "So there's no way to switch sites?" Her answer was just "No." Absolutely no definition as to WHY we couldn't switch, just a "No". Low and behold, the site (and the one next to it) remained empty through Monday. They were never reserved, so Rivernook refusing to allow a site-change is completely ludacris. The office closes at 5:00 everyday, just a heads up. Bathrooms were clean (again, very few campers were there all weekend, so that helps) and the grounds in general are clean. Winter brings dead trees, so not a lot of shade. Dead trees, weeds and dirt make for an unpleasant view....probably just a "winter" thing. The river is really close and it's nice to hear as you sit around the fire. I wish it was full like our first visit, but hey, that's how it goes when we don't get rain. Will we return? Yes, but not until we get some rain and that river fills up. That's the best part of this place. Hopefully they'll hire some new employees.... read more

If you enjoy ear bleeding karaoke for hours in the woods at dinner time, dogs barking 24/7, the constant smell of menthol cigarettes, adults getting wasted and dropping f-Bombs in front of your children all day long, zero enforcement of quite hours and being kept awake until 1:30am this is the place for you and your family! The staff was rude, completely unhelpful and undisciplined when I asked for help. What a tent ghetto! read more

Rivernook Campground - Campgrounds Near Me - Kernville, California

I have years and years of memories going to Rivernook Campground's. My family would always go every August and enjoy the river. They were always very caring and accommodating. The showers were clean and the bathrooms most of the time. You can't expect it to be 100% perfect all of the time when people are constantly using them but I was very happy at the campgrounds were very well-maintained. Fishing at the campground was OK. The river is stocked weekly however, it was much better fishing way upstream where there was not as many people that's what a good day hike is for amazing staff. John read more

First camping trip after covid lock down Cons- The campsite itself is okay. The pictures aren't really what they have. We also found out they charge 6 dollars per night per extra person. Which just seems like so much not like other campsites who just charge for extra car. They offer "wifi" but doesn't work unless you are literally next to the office. They are also always driving around and seeing what you're doing or noise you are making. Showers close down by 7 pm and it was full to capacity soo it was hard. They have a senior housing living there soo its not just a "camp ground" Pros- River is beautiful Stores near by Birdies wake you up in the morning Fun times spent with family Weekend get away Overall I'm not sure that we would return to this specific campground. read more