Laughlin AFB FamCamp

We stayed at the Laughlin AFB Famcamp for a couple nights, sites were well marked and appeared well maintained. There was a cable hookup, but said "dead" so did not try it. No Bathhouse on site. We arrived on Monday and left on Wednesday. The office is closed Monday's and Tuesday's. Never saw the Camp Host. The do have a GREAT Laundry trailer with 6 large high efficiency washers and dryers that are FREE! Park was fairly quiet with flying in the daylight hours only. No diesel on base, had to go to Del Rio for some.

Super simple campground that has everything but showers. Very slanted yet long sites with perfect flat spaces in the middle. The air base’s cantonment area is very small. No real hospital only a “super” clinic for assigned personnel. BX/PX super small but had what we needed. Commissary was perfect. Nice place despite the virus.

Almost the only thing good about Laughlin Famcamp is that it’s a stopover. Others have commented about the large sites with privacy fences, but what good is that if there’s little else in the way of campground amenities? There’s no shower or laundry facility in the campground. If you do have laundry, you can go to “Laughlin Manor” lodging facility across the road and up a hill, where you pay $10.00 for the privilege whether you have one load to wash or ten. I said thank you to the staff there for allowing me to use a luggage cart to get my laundry into the building and onto the second floor. I took advantage of the 5 great washing machines and dryers and washed far more than $10.00+ of laundry. There was also literally no one else around and the machines look rarely used. But I’m just saying...do your laundry before you get here unless you want the hassle.

You might think that sitting out here in the middle of south Texas would be tranquil simply because you’re nearly 10 miles from any town. What you don’t realize until a Monday morning is that the training sorties go on and on and on and on throughout the day. At any moment, you can easily count 8-10 aircraft in the air at the same time. Don’t get me wrong. I’m an aviation nerd. But....when you can barely carry on a phone conversation it gets a bit frustrating. Noise fatigue is a thang.

I also discovered after the fact that only the sites where people are staying long term are permitted access to cable hookup despite all sites having the connectivity capability....yet all visitors pay the same $25/day. Doesn’t seem right given that that could be the single positive to enduring everything else that goes on here. This is the only Famcamp I’ve visited in nearly 10 years of RV travel that required I pay in full in advance.....only to arrive and find I’ve paid $25/day for what? I would recommend you not plan to stay here long. To avoid sounding like a Scrooge, I will say this: the cashiers in the BX (which the campground sits behind) were friendly. Staff in the office, however, whisper.... couldn’t get them to speak above a whisper, not just on the phone but in person. Nice enough, but grrrr frustrating.

A great stop-over spot on our way to Big Bend National Park. Large pull-through, privacy fence. Do not follow GPS, refer to the website to get proper directions to the Main Gate. The Liberty Street Gate is permanently closed. Del Rio is just 5 miles away.

G.T. left this review: On arrival we found the MAIN GATE CLOSED with no turnaround to be had on the 2 lane road. So we started our stay with an unhooking the toad and back/fill exercise. We found this was done for construction starting mid-Feb BUT neither of us saw any signs of this on 90 coming in from the east (a banner indicating closed across the exit sign comes to mind as something useful). So we could have missed something, BUT I had called outdoor rec to check site availability a couple of hours out and were told sure --- come ahead, with nothing said about the gate. Its supposed to be closed til mid April but you know how that goes - call first and ask specifically about the gate. In the meantime take 79 south to the first exit and head to the West Gate. Ok entering, concrete barriers in the exit lane are a bit tight for big rigs but doable. The individual I spoke to on the phone at outdoor rec wasn't there when we registered but I spoke to the manager. Unfortunately, I got the impression he didn't think my issue was of much significance. ICE time. Otherwise the FAMCAMP itself is as described previously - nice level concrete pads. Basic hookups. No amenities such as wifi or laundry. Limited dining and shopping options. Nice large fitness facility and library tho.

Stopped here for 2 nights. Personnel in MWR office inside BX mall for check-in. This is a very small base but has a nice commissary/BX. The camp is well located. Yes, there will be jet noise, it's a training base! But AF people love hearing them right? Right! Access off the highway is easy and straight back to the camp, nice partitions between sites and a lovely park next door. No laundry, bathrooms/showers are basic but very clean. Lots of TDY personnel here as it's a training base. No wifi and we used our Tailgater satellite system so cannot speak to TV reception. The dog loved the walking trails. Del Rio is interesting to explore, very old town with great architecture in the old parts, just be careful which bridges you cross if you don't want to end up in Mexico! ;-)

R.F. left this review using the Directory software: - A very good stop off point along US-90 / US-277 to avoid having to travel I-10 across west Texas. Clean, efficient. New cable TV being installed. Nice sound barriers between sites. Yes, the flight line/ runway is located less than a half-mile from the FamCamp. You can hear the planes, and the students are flying by 8 am and til 8 pm.

We were passing through and stayed here for one night. Pros: well groomed facility; layout was pretty simple and basic; sufficient pull-through sites with full hookups; within easy walking distance of the BX, a Subway, and Outdoor Rec where you pay. A little further up the road is the AF Inn which has a "business center" where one can check e-mails; great deal for $18 a night. Cons: no WiFi available at the campsite, no place to do laundry near the campsite.

If your goal is to be in West Texas, this is a great place to stay. Good value - $100 for a week. Check in and Outdoor Rec is in the PX. Close enough to Lake Amistad for day trip and the Visitors Center has lots of information and films to see. Not a lot to do in Del Rio but we had a recommendation from a local for Poncho's Restaurant - great Mexican food and very reasonable prices. Facilities on base are adequate but no restrooms,showers or laundry in the FamCamp area.

A.T. left this review using the Directory software: - Visited for 3 days. Everything is convenient except laundry. Quiet, easy to get to. FAMCAMP is run by outdoor recreation, personnel are helpful. Library is good for internet.

Stopped for an overnight stay. There were 5 empty sites. 10 on left are reservable, 10 on right are first come first serve. Did not see camphost, appears to maybe be some homesteaders, three or four, however sites are clean and not junked up. 4 sites with FEMA trailers as rentals, camphost on a site, and homesteaders. That leaves about 10 sites for RVers. We enjoyed the quaint atmosphere of the campground. Sites are fairly level some sloping but not bad, concrete pads, nicely spaced, and have privacy fence between sites. BX one block away, didn't go in. Did not use the restroom facilities located at the playground area not far from campground. The whole base appeared very clean and remodeled with mostly newer buildings. Nice place to stop and we would consider staying for a week or two just to relax. Price is now $18 a night, not sure of weekly rate.

Visited my wife who PCSd there in June. Easy to get to off the highway - just turn into the base and go straight. Being in this part of the country one expects barren land and spartan conditions. This FamCamp has more than most FamCamps or RV parks in the military and was a nice surprise considering the location (in the middle of no-where Texas)! It was clean, the camp host were pleasant and those who were there were very friendly. There are a few folks who stay at the FamCamp who are stationed there but not too many. Besides, sometimes with split families such as ours (one PCSd and the other at home) it is a nice and proper way to live. Wished my wife took the RV and lived there instead of paying 2 places to live. Those who complain about "long-termers" might need to reconsider their harsh comments. You get what you pay for and as far as I'm concerned, the military camps are the cheapest for the price with a good value. I have no problem with "long-termers" at the military campground as long as they are keeping the place clean and there are at least 50% of the spaces open for visitors. Hey, it's a money maker for MWR, just keep the spaces clean and not have any porches built with Pink Flamingos in the yard.