Campsite #4 at Cottonwood Campground, Big Bend National Park, TX

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Campsite #4

24 reviews
Drive-In 8 people
31 ft Back-In
2 weak
4
2/17
3/25
Campsite #4 Features: Drive-In access, Back-In parking, 31-foot driveway, Food Storage Locker, Picnic Table, RV Site, Tent Site, Trailer Site, Pets Allowed

Campsite Reviews (25)

5.0 out of 5

5 star
80%
4 star
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@MattD1154148 · Camped on Jan 31, 2026 at Campsite #4
Great place to camp for exploring Big Bend
@MichaelT862538 · Camped on Jan 20, 2026 at Campsite #4
Everything was fine until my second night when campers across from me continued being loud after 8pm quiet hours and I had to ask them to other the facilities and toilets were emmaculate clean thanks very much!
@TimothyFA1B47B · Camped on Dec 3, 2025 at Campsite #4
The camping area was nice. The people were very friendly.
@MichaelD829846 · Camped on Dec 16, 2024 at Campsite #4
Super clean and quiet campsite thats close to the Saint Elena trail. Makes for a quick place to decompress after being in the park all day and catching the sunset at Saint Elena!
@JulieY2014211 · Camped on Nov 20, 2024 at Campsite #4
Great campground. Quiet and dark due to no generators-- thank you!
@ChuckB9454908 · Camped on Apr 28, 2024 at Campsite #4
A lovely, well-maintained campground.
@LisaN8400495 · Camped on Jan 9, 2024 at Campsite #4
Beautiful park! Great for bird watching. We were fortunate to see two large owls hanging out in the large cottonwood trees. Clean and very nice park attendant. Will definitely plan to stay here again!
@LEESBD5BCC0581 · Camped on Dec 9, 2023 at Campsite #4
Lovely, quiet, peaceful campground. All sites were level, and all the other campers were respectful and quiet too. We spoke to one guy who said he camps here for 2 weeks every year and it is his favorite campground. We were only here one night, but I can understand why he likes it- much less activity, much more relaxing. Bird activity was good too, with Red-tail Hawk, Kestrel, Grt Horned Owl (heard at night), plus numerous passerines for birders like me. I'd love to spend more time at Cottonwood in the future.
@CarolM9915509 · Camped on Nov 26, 2023 at Campsite #4
Quiet campground in a beautiful location.
@RogerS2467741 · Camped on Nov 8, 2023 at Campsite #4
Good but primitive. Restrooms and potable water could be better. Park staff was very helpful.
@JulieO4836491 · Camped on Jan 6, 2023 at Campsite #4
We had a limited time in the park so for this visit we stayed pretty close to the scenic drive and enjoyed lots of the hikes off of it. We loved camped at Cottonwood. It was quiet and peaceful down there and everyone was so friendly! We enjoyed the wildlife ranger led talk right across from our campsite and even had a campsite neighbor show us planets, constellations and the moon on his telescope. We will definitely choose this location again for a future visit to the park.
@TomK1282453 · Camped on Dec 15, 2022 at Campsite #4
Plenty of room, nice table, new bathrooms close bu
@BrianB7534319 · Camped on Dec 11, 2022 at Campsite #4
Great campground. Very clean and accessible.
@BrittanieCCA12 · Camped on Nov 5, 2022 at Campsite #4
Well maintained, plenty of space between campsites, vehicle parking at site. There were two great horned owls there while we were and it was very enjoyable watching and listening to them.
@MichaelN518707 · Camped on Feb 2, 2022 at Campsite #4
Met Bonnie, delightful volunteer. Great photo of resident owl. Quiet, peaceful.
@lauram1165586 · Camped on Jan 26, 2022 at Campsite #4
Loved the views.very quiet and spacious lots. Camp hosts knowledgeable about nearby hikes
@FrankW9092730 · Camped on Jan 14, 2022 at Campsite #4
Nice basic campground. Helpful volunteer staff.
@FrankW266 · Camped on Jan 14, 2022 at Campsite #4
Nice basic campground. Helpful volunteer staff.
@KendraC900 · Camped on Jan 5, 2022 at Campsite #4
This campground was great for our two days in Big Bend. It's a great spot to camp if you want to do activities like Santa Elena Canyon, Mule Ears, Chimney's Hike and the Ross Maxwell Scenic Drive. We stayed in Terlingua the night before and it only took us about 45 minutes to get to the campground. The only downside is that if you wish to shower you have to drive to Rio Grande village on the other side of the park (they do have standard pit toilets on this camprougnd and water spigots for potable and non potable water). We just ended our day two in the Rio Grande village and had a lovely sunset drive (about an hour/hour and a half) all the way back to to Cottonwood. Enjoy Big Bend!!
@KendraC7EE4B13 · Camped on Jan 5, 2022 at Campsite #4
This campground was great for our two days in Big Bend. It's a great spot to camp if you want to do activities like Santa Elena Canyon, Mule Ears, Chimney's Hike and the Ross Maxwell Scenic Drive. We stayed in Terlingua the night before and it only took us about 45 minutes to get to the campground. The only downside is that if you wish to shower you have to drive to Rio Grande village on the other side of the park (they do have standard pit toilets on this camprougnd and water spigots for potable and non potable water). We just ended our day two in the Rio Grande village and had a lovely sunset drive (about an hour/hour and a half) all the way back to to Cottonwood. Enjoy Big Bend!!
@MarkS8760847 · Camped on Dec 17, 2021 at Campsite #4
I would like to see some trails open to mountain biking.
@MarkS425 · Camped on Dec 17, 2021 at Campsite #4
I would like to see some trails open to mountain biking.
@ClaytonE474 · Camped on Nov 12, 2021 at Campsite #4
Lovely quiet and peaceful campground, great for wildlife viewing. We got to admire a couple great horned owls up close perched on a tree right next to our site! Grassy areas make for easy tent pitching. The park rangers were very welcoming and helpful.
@ClaytonEACF8C4 · Camped on Nov 12, 2021 at Campsite #4
Lovely quiet and peaceful campground, great for wildlife viewing. We got to admire a couple great horned owls up close perched on a tree right next to our site! Grassy areas make for easy tent pitching. The park rangers were very welcoming and helpful.
@AndreR8223698 · Camped on Apr 22, 2021 at Campsite #4
Our trip to Big Bend was long anticipated. Although the Cottonwood campground was literally on the Mexican border, we felt safe. It was also very quiet. Our fellow campers were considerate and the bathrooms were clean. We are not used to such a limited camping experience; however, not having showers, not being able to do wood fires or setup our hammock slightly dinged our experience but overall we enjoyed the park but may consider a different campground in the future.

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