Thousand Trails - La Conner, WA Campground! Family & Pet Friendly, Close to Everything!

Disclosure: Petite Retreats hosted our stay so we could review it & share our experiences. All opinions are my own. See our disclosure policy for more details.

Thousand Trails – La Conner, WA Campground

If you are looking for a convenient, close to everything location for a cabin or campground, the Thousand Trails La Conner campground is such an amazing location for family fun & outdoor adventures in Skagit & Island counties in Washington. I used to live up in both Mt Vernon & Whidbey Island, so I love to visit & head to some of our favorite spots when we lived there over 20 years ago. But I had never checked out the La Conner campground and had no idea what a centrally located campground this was to so many sights!

We visited on a quiet weekend in March (when the daffodils were in bloom but before the famous Skagit Valley Tulip Festival had started) and found that this was such a beautiful spot to visit. And the best part – it’s less than 10 minutes outside of the darling town of La Conner, WA, located right on the beach on Fidalgo Island. This town is so cute with delicious restaurants & fun shops & art galleries.

So, whether you are headed to the Tulip Festival to see the gorgeous fields of brightly colored flowers or if you are wanting to visit the San Juans for a day trip or Deception Pass State Park on nearby Whidbey Island, the most popular state park in the state, this is so close to everything. Deception Pass State Park is just a quick 20 minute drive away from this campground – so close, but you are beating the crowds that will be staying at Deception Pass (& the difficulty in reserving campsites there as it fills up SO fast).

The Thousand Trails La Conner campground has 111 acres of camping space & a half mile of saltwater beachfront, so this makes it a very family-friendly destination for all sorts of beach fun. It’s mainly an RV campground (tents can stay here as well) but they had some great cabins located almost right on the beach as well as some cabins in the woods a bit, too. Kids will love exploring the beach filled with driftwood for hours & you’ll all want to head to the beach at sunset for those views of the sun setting on the beach with the islands in the background.

Thousand Trails La Conner Cabin Options:

Beach Cabins

There are 2 different options for beach cabins to choose from. There are several cabins at the far end of the park, which are just a very quick little walk to the Skagit Bay & beach area. These are my favorite cabins as they feel more secluded nestled in the woods next to the beach – they have quick paths to the beach which you can see from your cabin (if it’s situated facing the beach – ours was facing the opposite way).

The other beach cabins are over by the boat launch, on the south side of the park. It’s a bit more open here (less trees for privacy), but these will have great views & close proximity to the beach. This may be a busier area in the summer with the boat launch but there’s still plenty of grassy area to hang out & enjoy in front of the cabins.

Wooded Cabins

These cabins are close to the boat launch beach cabins but they are further up in the woods & have more privacy away from the campers more, so these are great options if you are wanting a quieter spot away from more of the campsites. This is still definitely close enough to walk to your cabin to use the restroom, grab lunch or snacks when you are at the beach, etc, so it’s a great location with a bit more privacy, but still easy access to the beach/water.

RV / Tent Camping Sites

This is a large campground with plenty of spaces to find a spot. There are a total of 316 sites at the La Conner campground – that includes the cabins, RV hook-up sites & tent camping sites. I’m sure it will get busy in the peak season (summer) as we were there in March & I’d say it was at least 60-70% full, so just be prepared to book earlier for this location since it’s such a prime location for convenience. And don’t forget, anyone can stay at a Thousand Trails campground, you do not need to be a member to stay in the cabins or the campground sites.

Beach Cabin Tour

These beach cabins really have all that you need as far as amenities. We stayed in one of the beach cabins on the north end, in a cabin that sleeps 6. There was a private bedroom with a double bed as well as a couch in the living area which folded out into a bed as well.

Upstairs was a loft with 2 twin mattresses on the floor. I will say that our teens did stay on the mattresses, but this may not be something all kids/teens would like – as they are thin mattresses on the floor, so just keep that in mind. We gave them the option of staying on the pull-out couch or the mattresses in the loft & they chose to sleep up in the loft.

This cabin was very cozy & felt more spacious than a lot of cabins that size we have been in. It had a full kitchen with full-size refrigerator, oven, microwave & cookware/utensils. There was also a wood stove which is perfect for winter or cool evenings any season. You’ll also have a flat-screen satellite TV & DVD player. There was a table that fit 4 to eat meals at, too.

Outside on the deck was a BBQ & tables to sit & look at the beach thru the trees. There was a fire pit along the side as well if you want to bring firewood to sit around the fire & roast s’mores.

The best part of our cabin was its proximity to the beach. We got one of the pet-friendly cabins, so we brought our dog Tiki. And there is nothing she loves more than the beach, so we just had a few trees to walk thru & then we were on the beach – practically out our back deck! {We loved that it was so pet friendly & they even set out special towels for wiping paws & dog dishes, too.}

This beach was heaven for our pup and for my girls who loved exploring on the beach! We loved running down to the beach anytime to look at the views and it would be beautiful for sunset, too (we were at Deception Pass for sunset, otherwise, we definitely would have been on the beach). For summertime, this location is perfect as you don’t have more than a short little walk to carry all of our beach gear & can head back to the cabin for restrooms easily & quickly. {And in the distance, you can see one of our. favorite new places to visit – Kukutali Preserve – just 2 minutes away, that island/tombolo in the distance. So close!}

Amenities Available at the Thousand Trails La Conner

This campground in La Conner is definitely a popular one – we were there on an off-season weekend in March & although it wasn’t full, there were definitely quite a few campsites filled with RV’s. So, I’m sure when summer hits, this is going to be filled every weekend, so just keep that in mind. They have a lot of space & a lot of beach access, though, so I think there would still be plenty of room, but it is a large campground.

The main highlight of this campground is definitely the beach as we’ve shared. It is on the west facing side of Fidalgo Island and has views of Whidbey Island, Hope Island & the other part of Fidalgo Island looking west. We were not here for sunset (as we were at Deception Pass state park) but I’m sure the sunset views are incredible from this beach.

This beach would be a great launching area if you want to try sea kayaking, just beware that further out in the channel it can be rough, depending on the time of year (it was quite windy & rough when were there in March) but I think the summertime it might be quieter. The beach is filled with driftwood, too, so I can see kids spending hours here building forts on the beach!

There is an activity center / lodge right near the main beach & there is an outdoor hot tub here. Plus, you’ll find an exercise room, foosball table, shuffleboard, horseshoes & more. I’m sure they do a lot of activities in & around the lodge in the summer. It looks like a great place to hang out, especially teens who want to visit. There’s also a playground on site at the campground, too. It does say there is a mini golf course (which we did not see), tennis courts & other activities, too.

There is a store on site, although this may only be open in the summer (peak months) as it was not open when we were there, but that’s a nice option to not have to leave the campground if you forgot any necessities.

Things to Do in the Area

Skagit Valley Tulip Festival – One of the big draws for Skagit Valley is their popular Skagit Valley Tulip Festival held every April. They now have 3 farms offering tulip field visits, display gardens, gift shops & much more to enjoy the tulips. There are so many beautiful fields of tulips in every color blooming all month long & there lots of activities throughout the whole family to enjoy the many farms in the valley, shopping in La Conner & Mt Vernon & much more. If you visit in March, you can see the daffodils in many fields around the valley (& head to Roozengarde where you can get out & walk among the daffodil fields at no cost, too).

Kukutali Preserve – This is a joint Swinomish tribal park and Washington state park land on Fidalgo Island (a Washington state park Discover pass is needed) that is less than 5 minutes away, just at the other end of the beach from the campground. It is a beautiful little 2 mile hike/walk to the end of Kiket Island (this is actually a tombolo, so it’s attached by a small stretch of land, but at high tide, it can get covered over (so make sure to check the tide charts before visiting). No dogs are allowed & they have clear signage about where you are allowed to visit on this land, but it’s such a peaceful, quiet hike thru forest & offering gorgeous views of the beaches & islands nearby.

Visit La Conner – This is a darling town filled with Victorian homes, charming shops & art galleries, delicious restaurants on the channel and a central location right in the heart of the Skagit Valley. La Conner is such a peaceful, quaint town to visit & relax as you meander the streets window-shopping or enjoy fresh seafood with outside dining in one of the many restaurants lining the channel. It just a quick 10-15 minute drive out into the Skagit Valley to see the daffodils & tulip fields in the springtime too.

Deception Pass State Park – This is Washington state’s most visited state park & it is just a short 15-20 minute drive to Deception Pass state park on Fidalgo & Whidbey Islands. This is a huge bonus to staying at this campground as Deception Pass state park campground fills up VERY fast, often as soon as it opens for reservations for the summer months. But you can stay just 15-20 minutes away at this campground just across the water & still be able to enjoy all the amazing hiking trails, beaches, sunset & more from Deception Pass state park. We spent the afternoon/evening at Deception Pass & definitely it’s one of the best places for seeing the sunset!

Washington Park (Anacortes) – Another amazing place for island views & sunsets is Washington Park in Anacortes. This park sits on the west end of Fidalgo Island (another short 20 minute drive from the campground) on a peninsula & it has a 2 mile loop that you can walk thru forests & meadows to give you scenic views of the San Juan Islands and Olympic mountains.

San Juan Islands – If you have been wanting to visit the San Juan Islands, but want to stay on the mainland, this is one of the best frugal options and close options to the ferry terminal in Anacortes. It’s only about 25 minutes to the ferry terminal in Anacortes & you could do a day trip to Friday Harbor to get the beautiful views from the ferry & enjoy the restaurants & shops in town, all while walking on the ferry (to save on the pricey ferry costs for vehicles). You’d have to time it right & make sure to get reservations ahead of time (although walk-on is easier, but it can still get crowded in the summer) to ride the ferry as a walk-on passenger, but it would be a fun day trip idea from this La Conner campground to give you a taste of the San Juans.