Casini Ranch Family Campground

Mary Casavant

2024-02

Gone way downhill. Been staying here nearly 15 years. Around the COVID outbreak, when this was one of the few places you could camp in the area due to federal and state parks being closed, things changed at Casini Ranch. The prices really began to soar. My tent site was as much as a hotel room last 4th of July. Despite prices well over $100/night, the bathrooms were left very dirty. Also, most campsites are way too close in an effort to make as much money as possible.As a new, rowdier crowd began showing up around 2020, instead of the majority of regulars, the park began to crack down due to complaints. I feel much of the "Hey we're still open despite COVID" advertzing led to tons more campers, many of whom were perceived as NOT being as respectful to eachother. That's likely what led to ridiculous rules put in place and over-enforced by the campground.For the first time ever, I had a run-in with a rude group who were slowly walking repeatedly around campsites around 9:30pm and encouraging their very young child to play an super-loud whistle type musicali toy loudly. The group laughed and talked loudly, while sneering at anyone who shot them an annoyed look. They were quite menacing as a group of 5. .I had to go in search of someone to talk to but it was dark and the campsite is huge. It took forever to find someone, then I got lost on the way back to my camp so it kinda put a damper on our night.It seems to me that GREED led to this campground's undoing and I won't be back.

Tiffany Rivas

2023-11

If you like being harassed by staff this is your place. If you want to be stuck in your campsite at dark come here... my husband is a vet and can't get around well, so we got a golf cart to go from our site to friends sites....well apparently they recently changed their policy to no one out at dark ....staff broke their own 7mph rule to speed up next to us to be beyond rude and say that we are constantly breaking the rules(which was our first time leaving at dark) excuse us for not reading ALL the rules after we waited an hour to get into the parking lot and were rushed thru check in. Weve been coming for years and have read all the rules before would have been nice to get the heads up that hey theres no rules.Trick or treating is a stampede mess and a lawsuit waiting to happen. Won't be coming back all our friends are camping at the place across the way from now on

danielle baker

2023-09

***Update: I went back to Casini and while the 10pm rule is still enforced, their policy has changed on how they effectively handle communication with their guests. This new procedure is really welcoming and friendly and made my stay here very enjoyable. ***Check in was simple, and the staff is very friendly during check in. The site we stayed at was very private and felt like we were secluded even thought our neighbors are very close.Quiet time is 8am to 10pm. The 8am is not enforced but the 10pm is strongly enforced.If you are not in your camper or tent by 10pm, you get a warning. My husband and I were hanging out, enjoying the fire and talking softly and had two warnings by 10:10pm. The park attendant literally sat at the edge of our campsite waiting for us to talk before giving us our second warning, it was a unique moment.Due to the close proximity of each campsite I understand the need to be quiet, but this was a first time we had "the talk", and I have camped her many times before.The store is awesome, fully stocked and its nice to be on the river.

Melanie W

2023-08

We spent 1 night camping here as a trial. We were a bit worried about the negitive reviews but honestly we had a pretty great experience.1. The site we had (36) was very well maintained, it did have thorn bushes surrounding it (in the brush/tree line) so be aware if you have toddlers.2. The table and fire ring were in a good location. The fire ring looked like it had been cleaned prior to our arrival so setting up the fire was easy. We did bring a good amount of our own fire wood, but we ran out sooner than expected because we started a fire shortly after check in.4. The firewood wasn't too outrages in my opinion, 5 split logs (1 bundle) for $8. Unfortunately, you have to get it while the general store is open... so if you run out of wood at night, you can't get more until they open around 8am. This was a problem for us. We had to end our fire early (saved a bundle for morning) and we woke up much earlier than expected. It was cold and we only had about an hours worth of wood and 3 hours before the store opened. I wish the Night patrol could sell wood (even if it's cash only) after hours.5. As for Night patrol... they weren't that sticks with quiet hours. We had another group near our site who had young kids who we could here from our site after quiet hours. They weren't being bothersome to us (we have 2 kids so we get it). They didn't have someone come over and force then to bed as previous reviews had said.6. River access was perfect from our site and their was a Portapotty in walking distance even though the main bathrooms weren't. They do have a schedule for planned activities that aren't well advertised until check in, having this on the site would be nice so trips can be better planned.All and all, we would definitely recommend this place and will come back for a longer stay in the future so we can enjoy the other activities.Last remark, For a more private site be prepared to pay close to $140 so you can pay the $20 site holding fee.

Steven Yampolsky

2023-10

First went to Casini ranch in August with our two kids (3 and 5 y.o.) and another family with 2 kids (10 and 5 y.o.) - Had a blast. The mixture of kids’ activities, swimming, etc and recreation on-site fit our recreation needs perfectly.We had such a good time we decided to come back a month later (yesterday) with another family (also have a 5 and a 3 y.o.) to stay the weekendOne of our kids had a rough night on Friday - woke up once disoriented and took a few minutes to calm down and go back to sleep, then woke up again at ~5a after peeing through his diaper and needed a change (not a fun activity in the middle of the night when it’s ~40-50F outside, of course he cried for a few minutes).All four kids woke up early (just shy of 7a) - we scrambled to get them around a screen to keep them from playing too loudly - and you do what you can 🤷‍♂️.The folks staying on the site next to us were not shy about coming over and telling us they were going to call the sheriff and kick us out for ‘child neglect’ (at this point I haven’t even had coffee yet)An hour or two later staff came by to tell us they got a few texts from campers about the noise (whether they were from one camp using a few phones or not was not entirely obvious). Long and the short of it they kicked us out with a refund for one night.On one hand, I understand the decision - it’s a business, there’s quiet hours, guests come for an experience and kids crying isn’t quiet - nothing personal there. On the other hand, it’s place that advertises itself as being ‘Family Friendly,’ as long as your kids are 10+ maybe? One of the staff actually told us that it’s not a good place for kids that are that young…. 🤷‍♂️We planned to return here more times in the coming year, due to the place’s proximity to where we live and due to how much our kids (and their friends/families) love camping (even though every once in a blue moon, they don’t have a great night). Easily another $2k+/yr in revenue in the coming year from one customer, but might have to think about going elsewhere now.Refund for the 2nd night was swift tho!Noteworthy details: I would very much reconsider the the advertisement of this place being ‘kid friendly’

Kimberly Evje

2024-04

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Dan Prijic

2023-07

Stayed over a weekend into the week late spring; obviously a kid-friendly place! But quiet at night, staff busy with activities and camp store open 8-8-ish daily, so they're good with customer service, too. Close to the ocean coast (~5 miles) but a drive back to Santa Rosa if that's your thing. Enjoyed our stay and may well head back if we go in area again!

YILDIRIM MUTAF

2023-11

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David Scharper

2023-08

You wrote a review for Casini Ranch Family Campground A moment ago5.0 star rating 7/17/2023We love Casini! We visit every summer with a group of friends. There is so much to do for the kids, even teenagers. The store is well stocked with essentials and yummy treats. The weather is typically way cooler than where we live (Concord). We just got back yesterday after 3 nights and the last night we were there my Husky was sprayed by one of the presidential skunks lol. It happened after the store was closed but when my husband rode up there with the bike and saw the lights on, the kind ladies let him in and gave him one of the skunk kits (hydrogen peroxide, baking soda, dawn dish soap). It saved our night! We will be back next season, thank you for a wonderful stay! A couple of tips:-Book a year in advance BUT still check often, there are always cancellations.-Not many mosquitos, but you will see other bigger critters, trash pandas, deer, otters, and of course...skunks.-Bathrooms are always stocked and clean. There's a change machine and if you're just trying to get a nice rinse-down shower, a couple of dollars will do.-Store takes Apple Pay-They deliver firewood to your site.-Pitbull friendly (as long as friendly)-Bikes are recommended - lights on your bike are fun too!

iamc9

2023-07

Nice views and decent location. That’s the only nice things I can say about the campground. First really expensive, second the rules they have are awfully strict.Third the staff are very strict . My group stayed for 2 nights and the afternoon were going to leave we wanted to stay at the river for a little bit after packing up our stuff but we went to relax by the river and got a citation on our car telling us to “purchase a day pass or leave.” This was absurd because we already spent so much on the camping and what not. Then they get the nerve to call us and tell us we aren’t allowed to make reservations again. I hope others see this and decide not to go here. Also by the way I’m detoxing the camp ground.

Becky Sanchez

2023-08

This would be a great place to camp but the rules are ridiculous. If you are outside after 10 just talking quietly they still come into your camp and and tell you it’s quiet time. You can’t ride bikes after 7 pm even though it doesn’t get dark until close to 9. And so many other dumb rules. Will not be coming back to this place anytime soon.

Addi Murray

2023-09

How sad to watch what this place has become. Over-priced campsites, packed too close together. Bathroom facilities that went over 72 hours during our stay, without being cleaned while being used by 100s of campers (I saw the same hairs, toilet paper peices, and feces go uncleaned for days). The wi-fi was excellent last year but is now very unreliable- i couldnt get one reliable call without sitting in front of the campground store. Rule pushing, cowboy-hat-wearing, Karens, that expect you to obey their every whim- Handing out new rules every night. Over-priced emenitities; like $8 "bundles" of wood, with 5 sticks (the definition of bundle even states a bundle is 7-12 peices). It is sad to see our yearly tradition come to an end but, it's no longer a family friendly campground. Our kids were subject to being singled out about made-up rules, while other children ran around the campground all night. What a shame.

Stephen Smith

2023-07

We were excited to go camping here on the coast. Got our trailer and truck loaded up. Did one final walk around before we left.Boom! Our water tank was lying on the ground. Our trailer wasn't going anywhere.Called casini ranch hoping for a refund due to an unforseen emergency.Nope!Best they would do is see if any of our slots get rented out over tge next few days. If they do they'll compliment us a night for every night rented out during our now canceled trip. If no one rents out a day we don't get any refund.I get it, they're a business, trying to make $.But an emergency situation that we couldn't help. Come on man!I'm sure it's a fun place to camp. But their refund policy is terrible!

Mandy Irvine

2023-05

So this place is great for those that are looking for camping that is very structured and commercialized. People with kids seem to love this place for all the activities they have planned all weekend. I won't yuck anyone's yum, but will say that it's not my cup of tea. I found the sites here to be very small, close together and the property to be very overcrowded. I also found the sites to be super overpriced, and they use every opportunity to charge you extra. (Like paying per person staying at a site.) I will say that they do a great job of hiring friendly staff and keep the place very clean. Everything from the riverfront, bathrooms and sites are kept super clean which I appreciate.My biggest complaint is the excessively strict quiet hours. This is not the place to go if you plan to stay up after 10 pm. They are extremely strict with their quiet hours to the point of it becoming a detriment to your experience. I understand that they don't want people being loud after 10, but they were constantly monitoring our site even when we were just sitting quietly around the fire. It seems that they don't want anyone to even be up because even if you are being quiet they will come by to lecture you about their rules. At one point the staff member even told us that we were being disrespectful to Mr. Casini. It was so weird...

Eric Rager

2023-05

My son and I booked a last minute "camping" trip to Casini Ranch. We usually camp in Forest Service or BLM lands, but decided a trip near the coast was prudent due to the fires/dry forest conditions. I will say this trip was kind of expensive and the campground was a little corny, but in a good way. Lots of activities for my son and the campground felt very safe. Everyone we met was nice and it was great to see such a diverse crowd hanging out and just having fun with their families and friends. This spot won't take the place from our more regular wilderness adventures, but it was a great alternative for just relaxing.

Jennifer Bardales

2023-05

My husband and I booked last minute (night before) and got a mini group tent site where the reservation was cancelled. From our arrival, check in person was very friendly. We were even able to order a bundle of wood from her and they delivered it! The site was nicely shaded and tucked away from the road for a good privacy. Close to bathrooms, beach and grass area and store. Bathrooms are clean. Store has everything you need. Beach has kayak, canoe, etc. rentals for affordable prices. Lastly, our car battery died and I found a nice staff member driving around in a golf cart who set out to find out about getting our battery charged. Ultimately another friendly staff member came to our site to jump it with his truck (typically you can borrow a battery charger from the store). Definitely have plans to come back with the whole family and maximize our next stay.

Veronica

2023-06

We love camping here. However they just upgraded their Wi-Fi service but they turn it off at night until 8am and it goes off at 10. We pay a lot of money for premium sites to not have Wi-Fi on all the time! Why upgrade then. The park was not even close to being full. Also, the cable sucks! My lower channels were all fuzzy until I got to the higher channels. When I asked about the Wi-Fi it went back on.

Jenny Schall-Nevarez

2023-05

Had an amazing time! Lots of activities for the kids. Very clean campground and restrooms. Anthony who works there was very friendly and nice. They also deliver firewood to your campsite after you buy it at the camp store.

Jason Brown

2023-05

Casini Ranch was everything we hoped for and more!!! The campground is 100% family oriented and super clean. We enjoyed the Russian River just steps from where we camped and quite frankly my daughter really enjoyed feeding the ducks. RV/Trailer areas are fantastic and the entire team at Casini Ranch provided excellent customer service. I would definitely recommend Casini Ranch Family Campground.

Josh Long

2023-05

Tried to cancel a booking within their cancellation policy time frame. They didn’t respond to my voicemail until after the time period in their cancellation policy had passed and they wouldn’t refund me. Reason for cancellation: TOXIC BLUE ALGAE in the water. Our friends went there a week prior and had to take their dog to the vet and spend thousands. They didn’t have a warning posted anywhere on the waterfront. When I finally spoke with them in person after no response from my previous voicemail; they said they can’t refund me it’s not a good enough of a reason. They said, “you can still swim in the river just don’t splash or get the water in your mouth.” How do my dog and young kids play in a river and not splash? Who would suggest risking exposure to something that could make children and animals violently ill? Obviously they are not the family friendly place they portray themselves to be. But rather a greedy business that wants to charge people for services they never used.

JDUB

2023-05

We absolutely love coming here. We have been camping about 10 times over the last 4 years and we keep coming back.Kids feel safe here. There is a store with almost everything you need and they provide numerous services for campers. Right on the Russian River close to the ocean and trails. What else can you ask for. There are 2 parks for the kids rescued horses and ducks to feed. Busy busy time. Especially for Halloween it's extra fun with lots of activities and a bon fire

Chris Burke

2022-05

Nice family campground!This place is family oriented and perfect for kids.For Halloween they made a big wood witch that they burnt and told scary stories by the fire pretty awesome.A little muddy because of the rain but that was okay.Everyone there said people don't catch fish in that river and I caught two. Even if it wasn't the biggest fish in the world it was still fun.Man it feels good to be country again! 🤠I will definitely be going back.Would like to check it out in the summertime I'm sure it's amazing swimming, fishing tubing and some really quality family time.Can't wait to go back.Most of the campsites are pretty roomy which is also nice.Great Halloween weekend!

Sara Triest

2023-05

We have been coming to this campsite for many years. As we were sitting around the campfire we were approached at nine o'clock at night by a staff member in a cart. The staff member was arrogant and rude explaining to us we had too many cars parked at our site. I was told three cars were OK to park at the campsite when I called to make the reservation. Clearly a misunderstanding. I had received the wrong information via the phone.We moved the car the next morning. Not a problem. All of this information could have been delivered in a more friendly manner and tone by the staff member.I completely forgot (not intentional) to mention our dog was coming when I made the reservation. An over site on my part. Fifteen minutes after the staff member left I received a call from I believe the same staff member who again rudely explained about the cars and told me I would be charged for the dog immediately. I had no issue paying for the dog. It was an over site on my part.Basically this arrogant condescending tone by the staff member felt invasive and uncalled for. Especially the phone call so late at night.The cost of everything is very confusing. We paid much more than we had intended too. We had two visitors who were told they owed $15 for a day pass then $7 then $14. Well one paid $7 and the other $14.I seriously believe we may not come back.The cost too sleep on some dirt and enjoy ourselves seems to be out of balance. It would have been appreciated if the car issue was acknowledged simply as being given the wrong information instead of an assumption we were breaking the rules.

Ben Murcia

2022-05

I took my family here for the first time and we all had a blast. The environment was safe lots of other kids running around so I felt my kids were safe too. They have a full store with lots of things at a reasonable price. They had family activities Saturday night. The place was clean and well kept and we didn’t have a problem with mosquitoes or flies. They have trails, basketball court, parks, beach river area. I’m going to try and do this each year now. Thanks Casini Ranch you guys are doing good things

Adam Nelms

2022-05

We have been to this campground twice now (both since Covid). Over all it is very nice. There was some miscommunication about how many vehicles and trailers were allowed at the group site we stayed at. Make sure to read all the fine print or get it in writing. Communication is lacking a bit between staff. Gets VERY full on the weekends and our camping neighbors were very loud this past time with music past 10 every night. Would love to go back again during a weekday when it is much less crowded. Nice to be on the River. Kids love the extras (some are extra $$$)

george lang

2023-05

OK here goes my daughter had camp there previously and for my birthday this year she brought her tent we brought our airstream interstate 19 shared a beautiful spot and had an amazing couple of days. Been to a number of RV parks throughout California I was impressed by the high standards of which they operate and yes that means they have rules which also means people seem to be very good at following them making your experience a heck of a lot better :-) other guests were amazing felt like they were from central casting. Many many return campers who seem to really get this place! Lots of amenities well thought out do you want firewood? They deliver to your side do you need a pump out for some of the sites that don’t have sewer hook up nice little truck will show up every day if you want. Showers and restrooms are kept up very well the staff are all extremely thoughtful kind friendly. When you hang around some of the folks that have come here for up to 20 years you hear all the fun stories they’ve tested out most of the campsites and have stories for each the shades better here the suns better there there might be ants and this one at Christmas time :-) my reservation was taken by very kind patient folks who sit on the property in a little office did actually sits at the entrance of the resort. Again very kind extremely knowledgeable and flexible if you prefer another spot upon arrival that is available. Yes some of the prices can be high for primo spots but if you kind and polite you might get inside information from the folks who work there as to what some of the primo standard priced Sites are. All standard amenities that come with your reservation are top notch. As an any RV resort there are extras that you can pay for. We were very happy to do so as they offer great adventures for kids that include renting golf cards bicycles cards a great bouncy system that’s actually monitored with an employee there. I forgot to mention the river which I believe is a highlight for being there and yes they offer amenities a use in the water as well :-) lots of people come just for the day to play on the water. To be able to be there and spend the nights is very special precious . This is the kind of place you make memories at. I know my grandkids will never forget it and I know I will never forget it one of the best birthdays I’ve ever had. People can be nitpicky about this that and the other thing but you’re in nature and you’re being supported by a resort who is making it easy for you to enjoy it. Yes I needed some quarters to take a shower if I chose to :-) but the cleanliness and quality of their facilities made it well worth it. Beautifully maintained and it’s close to 1950s and 60s river camping as you could ever find plus all of one’s current amenities. Thank you guys for such a wonderful experience.PS killer fast Wi-Fi it’s even faster than mine at home!

Cindee Yandow

2023-05

We went camping with our family and another family. Between the 2 families we had 7 kids ranging from 2.5-17 years old. All the kids had fun. The weekend activies are awesome. The river still has water to play in. The whole campground is probably the the cleanest we have been to. Bathroom and showers included. The site map is pretty accurate with site sizes, ect. We walked around and made notes for the future on sites we would like. The views and area are so pretty. We stayed Friday-Monday. We will be going again!

Morgan Sandusky

2022-05

A great campground with spots right on the beach of the river! There’s also some more forested spots as well. We stayed in site 46B and there was little tree coverage but a nice view of the river “canyon.” The general store is super convenient and they carry way more than you’d expect! They also take covid seriously and clean the bathrooms frequently. Plus the staff was super friendly! We went August 23rd, Monday through Wednesday, and the campground was fairly empty and quiet. Just one thing, I wouldn’t want to stay in the standard RV area, the sites are super close together and it’s all gravel with no trees.

Randy Haynes

2023-08

It was not a good camp they got a lady that work there that was racist he name is Bre she treated my kids terrible because they show up after we did. She tried to say the tried to sneak in when they paid she harassed us every day saying they had to leave when we all paid. Made my kids leave a day early when we all was there as a family and when they left she gave me kids the middle finger they told me when they left passing by the office we will not be back here we did not go through this at a different camp site last year so next year we will be going back to our old camp site we had a real bad experience and Bre was really racist it’s was 1 of 2 black family’s there and the other black family had experience her being racist too because they camp over and told us and a white family next to us didn’t like what she was doing too and said they will not be back too

Tina Joshua

2023-05

We have been coming for so many yrs I've lost track. It's a yearly adventure with our friends and our kids that are all now 16, 18 and 20. We all enjoy it very much. Such a safe, friendly, clean, well maintained camp. Love that it's a skip away from the beach and therefore not crazy hot 85° at most, with morning fog and chill as well as evening, sweats is more than enough. Lots of good family people with no riff raff. See yall next year.