Our Favorite Family Campground: Why We Keep Comparing Every KOA to San Diego

Two years ago, we decided to take our very first family camping trip.

Our boys were 5 and 3, it was late November, and none of us really knew what we were doing.

We went with another family whose 5-year-old was friends with our boys. They were also completely new to camping, which in hindsight was probably not the smartest arrangement. 😂 There wasn't a single experienced camper among us.

We had tents. We had some very basic cookware. We had food.

And... that was about it.

Luckily, our first camping trip happened to be at the San Diego Metro KOA in Chula Vista.

And apparently, that's about all you really need there.

Camping... But Make It Easy

Calling KOA San Diego a "campground" almost feels misleading.

Yes, you can pitch a tent and sleep outside. There are campfires and RVs and picnic tables and all the usual camping things.

But there's also a swimming pool, jacuzzi, playgrounds, basketball court, Gaga ball pit, big open grassy areas, jumping pillow, and a Kids Club that hosts activities throughout the day.

There's a camper's kitchen. Clean bathrooms and showers. A laundry room. And even a pretty good-sized camp store for all those things you inevitably realize you forgot to pack once you've already set up your tent. And hey, if you don't feel like cooking in the morning? They got you covered at the cafe in the front, serving breakfast burritos and sandwiches. 

They have tons of RV sites, cabins and glamping options too, so sleeping in a tent isn't even required.

We booked one of their individual family tent sites with a sand tent pad, which can accommodate up to 12 people. And one detail that I didn't fully appreciate until we started camping at other places: we had electricity AND water right at our campsite.

For first-time campers with 3 little kids, this made everything so much easier.

We grilled pork belly and shrimp, made pasta for lunch, and ate more cup noodles than I'd probably like to admit. 

It wasn't exactly wilderness survival.

And that was precisely why we loved it.

Then We Met Our Neighbors

As much as we loved the campground itself, though, one of my favorite memories from that first trip was actually our neighbors.

While we looked like people who had wandered into a campground with a tent and absolutely no idea what came next, these people were professional campers.

At least that's what they looked like to us.

They had a huge canopy. Multiple tables. One table was basically a full outdoor kitchen. They had an entire set of cookware, a coffee machine, tons of chairs, and a tent that looked more like a small house.

And then there was the projector.

With a screen.

Meanwhile, I'm pretty sure we were still trying to figure out where to put our frying pan. 😂

But what I remember most wasn't all their gear. It was how incredibly nice they were.

They could clearly see that we had no idea what we were doing, and instead of just watching the newbies struggle next door, they kept offering to help.

In the morning, they offered us freshly brewed coffee.

In the evening, they invited us over to watch a movie on their projector.

I'm not sure if this is normal camping-neighbor behavior or if we just hit the camping-neighbor jackpot, but they definitely became part of what made that first trip so memorable.

And yes, after watching their setup for 3 days, our future camping shopping list got considerably longer.

Actually, "considerably longer" might be an understatement.

That trip basically started a camping-gear shopping spree that is, somehow, still going 2 years later. 😂

There's Almost Too Much for the Kids to Do

I knew there were activities at the campground before we arrived.

I didn't realize just how many.

Over our 2-night, 3-day stay, we joined a family kickball game, played Gaga ball, did a flashlight lollipop hunt, entered a Lego contest, decorated bikes and scooters for a parade around the campground, and made magnets and friendship bracelets.

Some activities we did together as a family.

For others, like friendship bracelets and Lego contest, the kids just went over to the Kids Club themselves.

And that became one of my favorite things about staying there.

We didn't have to entertain them every minute.

There was always somewhere to go or something happening, and sometimes they'd just take off on their own little adventure.

The Walkie-Talkies Were Apparently the Highlight

During the day, the 3 kids would grab their scooters, hang walkie-talkies around their necks and head off around the campground.

KOA San Diego is mostly paved and relatively flat, which makes it perfect for bikes and scooters. The campground feels contained, and the property is gated in the evening as well. Oh and did I mention that they have bikes for rental too? 

So instead of constantly hovering over them, we could actually sit down.

They'd scooter away. Explore. Come back. Radio us on the walkie-talkies. Head off again.

For 3 kids who were only 3 and 5 years old, this apparently felt like the ultimate independence.

At the end of our trip, we asked them what their favorite part of camping had been.

The activities? The Playground? Sleeping in a tent?

Nope.

Being able to go around by themselves with their walkie-talkies. 😂

Honestly, I think that's when I understood why I liked this kind of camping so much too.

They got freedom.

We got to sit down.

Everybody won.

One Thing I'd Definitely Pack for November

San Diego in late November sounds pretty mild - and during the day, it was.

Temperatures climbed into the mid-70s, and we actually saw quite a few families swimming.

We didn't use the pool on that particular trip because the pool isn't heated, but on later camping trips between March and October, we've almost always gone swimming with the kids. Even in October, the days can get warm enough that the pool is enjoyable. There's a jacuzzi too, which is always a plus.

But November evenings were a different story.

Once the sun went down, it got cold.

Thankfully, one thing we had thought to bring was an electric heated blanket.

And thank goodness we did.

This is where having electricity right at the tent site became especially useful. If you're camping here during the colder months, an electric blanket would be very high on my packing list.

This Is Not "Camping in the Wild"

Let me make one thing very clear.

If your definition of camping is pitching a tent deep in nature, waking up surrounded by nothing but trees, hiking all day and completely disconnecting from civilization...

This probably isn't the campground for you.

And that's completely fine.

Because that's not really what we're looking for either.

We had 2 very small kids. We wanted a quick getaway where we could sleep outside, cook outside, sit around together and let our kids spend most of their day outdoors.

I didn't need wilderness.

I needed clean bathrooms. 😁

I wanted a shower. Somewhere to wash dishes. Electricity. Running water.

For our stage of life, this was exactly the kind of camping we needed.

The kids could get dirty, ride scooters, play outside, make friends and feel like they were off having their own adventures.

The adults could grill meat, drink coffee, sit around the campsite and actually relax a little.

It felt less like "surviving the outdoors" and more like temporarily moving our family life outside.

And I loved that.

The Campground That Spoiled Us

We came home from that first trip so impressed that we started looking at other KOA campgrounds.

Since then, we've tried KOA Ventura, KOA Temecula, KOA Santa Margarita and KOA Palm Springs/Joshua Tree.

And we've discovered that KOA campgrounds in general can be really great for families.

Ventura has become our second favorite, and every campground has had something different that we liked. I'll save those comparisons for another post because I think they deserve one of their own.

But so far?

We still haven't found one that beats San Diego.

Maybe part of it is nostalgia because it was our first family camping trip.

Maybe it was those amazingly kind neighbors and their morning coffee.

Maybe it was watching our 3- and 5-year-olds proudly disappear down the road on scooters with walkie-talkies around their necks.

Or maybe KOA San Diego really is just that good.

I think it's probably a little bit of everything.

Would I Recommend KOA San Diego for First-Time Camping Families?

Absolutely - especially if the idea of taking little kids camping sounds fun in theory but exhausting in reality.

You don't need to be an experienced camper.

You don't need an elaborate camping setup.

And you definitely don't need to know what you're doing.

We certainly didn't.

Bring your tent. Bring some food. Bring something warm for the evenings.

And definitely bring scooters and walkie-talkies.

Apparently, those are the most important part.😂

For us, camping isn't necessarily about getting as far away from civilization as possible.

It's about eating outside. Sleeping somewhere different. Letting the kids get dirty. Sitting around together without anywhere we need to be. And giving them just a little more freedom than they get in everyday life.

Our first 2-night camping trip at KOA San Diego gave us exactly that.

It also turned us into a family that owns significantly more camping equipment than we ever intended to.

Of course, San Diego isn't the only KOA we've tried. Since that first trip, we've camped at 4 other KOAs around Southern California -- and each one turned out to be surprisingly different. If you're trying to decide which one might work best for your family, I put all 5 side by side in our Southern California KOA campground comparison, including the campsites, hookups, pools, activities, shade, privacy, and the things we liked (and didn't like) about each one.

And 2 year and several KOAs later, we're still trying to find a campground we like better.