Lake Skinner Recreation Area, located just outside Temecula, CA, is owned and operated by the County of Riverside as a campground for fishing and hiking, with three lots for RV campers.
Sash and I stayed there for two weeks in February 2018.
Overall Opinion
Awesome place to stay when visiting the Temecula, CA area. It’s located right next to the Temecula Wine Country. You’re just minutes away from dozens of wineries, and at $40.00 a night, it’s way cheaper than any of the local hotels.
They accept Passport America for 50% off the daily rate, but they do not accept this discount when booking online. You can only redeem it by showing up to the gate as a walk-in. They do, however, offer discounted rates if staying per week. So, it actually ends up about the same price if you’re going to stay an entire week, or entire two weeks, and at that point you can book online.
TIP: Stay in Lot C, which has larger sites, intended for larger RVs, but offers more space between rigs.
Is It Crowded?
On the weekend, yes. Starting Friday, local campers and fishermen start filing in and by that evening it’s gets quite crowded. But by Sunday night, it lightens up, and by Monday morning, the campground is nearly empty.
It’s mostly families who stay here on the weekends, so expect quite a few kids.
Cellphone Coverage and Wi-Fi
Verizon 4G came in weak. We’d get two bars at best, but were able to make it work with our WeBoost RV. The campground has Wi-Fi, but it’s very weak. You’d want to camp at the end spaces of each lot where their Wi-Fi transmitters are located.
Amenities
There are restrooms, vending machines, and trash receptacles. Each lot in the campground has 30 amp electrical, water, and sewer. There is a store and cafe that sells all the basics, including firewood and propane. There is even a fuel station at the store, but gasoline is expensive ($6.00 a gallon when we were there), and is dispensed only for boats and gasoline cans.
Each campsite comes with a picnic table and fire ring.
What We Loved About Lake Skinner Regional Park
The coyotes howling at night. Sometimes they come up pretty close. Keep watch on your dogs at night.
Good hiking trails throughout the park
What We Did Not Like
Poor Verizon 4G signal, though still usable with a cellphone signal booster.
Gates locked at sunset. They chain the gates into the campground once the sun goes down, but give you the combination to the padlock. It’s nice to keep the riff-raff out, but it gets to be a pain after awhile.
Crowded with families and kids on the weekends.
For more information
Visit online: http://www.rivcoparks.org/lake-skinner-recreation-area/
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