Places to stay
Cameron County Parks & Recreation
Cameron County Parks & Recreation is the county department responsible for coastal parks including Isla Blanca and Andy Bowie on South Padre Island, as well as park reservations and inland county parks.
Plan your visit
- Location
- 33248 State Park Rd. 100, South Padre Island, TX, 78597
- Phone
- (956) 761-5494
- Business Type
- ⭐ Local & Independent
What to know before you go
Details checked . Confirm prices, schedules and policies with the business when planning your visit.
Schedules 2 details
Entrance gate hours differ by park: Isla Blanca's gate runs longer hours than its office, Andy Bowie's gate matches office hours, and Adolph Thomae Jr. Park (inland, on the Arroyo Colorado, not on the island) has the longest gate hours of the three.
Isla Blanca and Andy Bowie park offices keep longer hours in peak season than the rest of the year.
Policies 11 details
A trash-bag program runs March through Labor Day at Beach Access 5 & 6 only: visitors pay a $2 fee (on top of the day-use fee, $1 for veterans) and get that money refunded at day's end if they turn in the trash bag full.
Boat ramp use is limited to registered park guests; loading or unloading at the ramp is capped at 5 minutes, and fishing from the boat ramp or courtesy docks is not allowed.
Camping deposits: a utility deposit of $100 is required at check-in for monthly RV stays and $15 for weekly stays across all three parks; cabana reservations need a separate $50 deposit.
Check-in for camping starts at 2:00pm; check-out is strictly before 11:00am, and checking out late adds a full extra day's fee plus a late fee.
Generators are not permitted except during a power outage; solar-powered generators are allowed at any time. Quiet hours run 11:00pm to 8:00am.
Maximum stay in any one camping space is six continuous months; spaces cannot be subleased or assigned to a third party.
Pets are allowed in the RV/camping areas but must be leashed or restrained at all times, never left outside unattended, and cleaned up after; campers with pets sign a separate detailed pet policy at check-in.
RV/camping cancellations must be made more than 3 days (the site also states 72 hours) before arrival to get any refund; cancelling late forfeits the deposit (except for a mandatory evacuation), and even a timely cancellation is charged one night's fee.
Swimming pools, waterslides, bouncers, or similar inflatable/water structures of any size are banned in the camping areas, no exceptions.
U.S. military veterans get 50% off day-use and pass entrance fees (day use $5, 30-day $12.50, annual $50) with valid ID, limited to one discounted pass per veteran per month or year; the veteran discount does not extend to camping or RV space fees.
Wi-Fi in the RV parks is arranged and paid for by the camper through an outside provider, not furnished free by the park; courtesy cable TV is included only for sites inside the gated entrance at Isla Blanca.
Prices 1 detail
Day-use beach/park entrance is charged per vehicle: $12 at Isla Blanca and Andy Bowie, $10 at Adolph Thomae; passes are also sold for 30 days ($30) or a full year ($100), and buses pay $30.
Rates 3 details
Adolph Thomae Jr. Park (inland on the Arroyo Colorado, sites C1-C35) is the cheapest of the three: $30/night or $450/month for a full hookup without cable, $20/night for a tent site.
Andy Bowie Park has one RV site tier (standard) priced $40-$60/night by season, $550-$625/month.
Isla Blanca RV/camping spaces are priced by three seasons and vary by site type; a standard inside-the-gate site runs $40-$60/night depending on season, and a premium site $50-$70/night.
Payment 1 detail
A stray/inoperable electrical meter at a camper's site is billed at a flat $3/day plus metered usage at the going rate; reservations carry a $5 booking fee (through the FireFly reservation system) plus $5/month for long-term stays, and monthly move-in requires an RV/vehicle AVI windshield tag at $5 each (max 2 per site).
Capacity 1 detail
Each camping/RV space is limited to one RV plus two vehicles (including trailers/golf carts), two vehicle passes per daily space, and tent sites are capped at a 12x12 footprint with no more than 4 people per tent.
A place to stay covers your nights, not a time of day