Glamping at “Mendocino Grove” in California

Glamping is simply glamour + camping, if you are new to it. Basically, all the hassle is removed for you and you can enjoy already pitched tents, restrooms, bath houses, fire pits, barbecues and even gas grills, all in the midst of nature!

Mendocino Grove

Mendocino Grove is a beautiful property in the coastal town of Mendocino, California. This glamping location is an absolute treasure for nature lovers who love to camp.

With comfortably roomy tents surrounded by quiet woods overlooking the majestic ocean, this place is truly the best of both worlds.

Disclosure: My stay was graciously sponsored by Mendocino Grove. All opinions and photographs are my own as usual!

I recently stayed at one of the fantastic family tents at Mendocino Grove with my two little ones and loved it. Even people who are hesitant about camping because of the ground realities would appreciate this glamping location wholeheartedly.

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Camping Grounds

Mendocino Grove is off the scenic Pacific Coast Highway, CA1. When you drive from Sonoma County, you will see it on the left side of CA1, right off the highway. When you enter the property, take the left fork to go on to the camping grounds.

Check-in

There is a check-in tent once you go uphill to the camping grounds. You can check-in there up to 9 pm. If you are late, you can also self check-in and turn in the paperwork the next morning. Don’t forget to take a map of the grounds.

They provide an option at the registration desk to purchase local firewood. You can also rent a few other camping necessities like an ice chest and cooking/dining essentials if you reserve that beforehand.

Sections

The camping area has around 60 tents and is split into 8 sections named after the surrounding scenic towns namely Albion, Little River, Navarro, Point Arena, Comptche, Westport, Elk and Meadow.

Each section has different accommodation capacities and different views around. The Meadow has communal barbecue, campfire, a few hammocks, sports area and it is also the place where a light breakfast is served every morning.

You can park your car right at your section’s parking lot. Wagons are provided to easily transfer your luggage from your car to your tent.

Now that you know the basics about this peaceful camping site, let me tell you about all the highlights of this glamorous spot.

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Comfortable tents

We stayed in a roomy family tent that can comfortably accommodate six members in Albion section. It had a queen size bed with a fluffy mattress, blankets and even warm down comforters along with two bunk beds that had sleeping bags in them!

My daughter, a fan of the cartoon character Peppa Pig, loved sleeping on the bunk bed 🙂 What a fun camping experience!

What’s more, each bed is provided with hot water bottle! There was a basket of white fluffy towels, a mirror, two chests of drawers to store your food and other things, a hard wood bench that had two solar lanterns on it.

There were two desk lamps which had USB charger slots in them (very useful). Two camp chairs were included too.

As though all this is not enough, there are more chairs on the patio and benches to relax just outside the tent. There is a personal fire pit for each tent and log-seats to sit around and enjoy the fire.

Glamorous Bathhouse

The bathhouse is located centrally and is easily accessible from all sections. It has hot showers and restrooms that are sparkling clean. I especially loved the beautiful flowers placed inside the bathhouse. The shower area is well stocked with pleasant soap and shampoo.

There are more restrooms all around the property. The maintenance is really commendable. Mendocino Grove is pet-friendly. The pets get their own cleaning area too.

Barbecue

There are many gas barbecues next to the tents and are shared with other glampers. The barbecues are clean and easy to use. Of course, we should clean it up after we finish using it as a basic courtesy to other users.

We were surprised to see that even gas stoves were available. Just open the flap next to any barbecue grill and you will see the stove.

Fun

The Meadow has a volley ball court where you can play badminton too. Bocce ball is another activity you can enjoy on the Meadow. I loved lying on the hammock and reading my book. The kids enjoyed swinging on the hammocks too.

If the night skies are not cloudy, you would love seeing the myriad of stars peeking in onto you from between the trees.

There is an in-house naturalist available on weekends. You can go on a guided tour around the trail loop on Saturday and Sunday at 9 am with the naturalist.

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If you are inclined to exercise, you can join the Yoga sessions in morning from 9: 30 am to 10:30 am.

We loved walking around the camping grounds in the woods and enjoying the views of the ocean.

WiFi is also available, but we did not catch the signal from our tent. They mentioned that the signal is strong around the office. Anyway, this helped us to get totally disconnected from the online world and enjoy our stay in the nature.

Teresa is a gracious host, she was very understanding of our needs with kids. She was always going around the grounds looking into things, making everything perfect. In fact, all the Mendocino Grove staff were respectful and kind. We really enjoyed the weekend here, it was simply magical!

Activities around Mendocino Grove

Catch-a-canoe is a short walk away. If you want to drive  around, there are plenty of beaches and state parks within a short distance from the property. You could look for a cool vehicle to rent like limofind oildale party bus rental and enjoy the travel.

Check out Mendocino Headlands, Glass Beach in Fort Bragg, Van Damme State Park, Hendy Woods State Park, Jug Handle State Nature Preserve, Point Cabrillo Light Station, Pomo Bluffs Park, Point Arena Lighthouse, B Bryan Preserve (needs prior reservations), Bowling balls beach, Mackerricher State Park, Russian Gulch State Park.

For a detailed list of activities, check out this post things to do in and around Mendocino Grove.

Also read: Things to do in and around Mendocino Grove with kids

Glamping at its best

There is so much to do in and around Mendocino Grove, but we did not want to go anywhere at all. The location was so peaceful, we wanted to stay on the grounds forever. We are definitely going back. Honeymooners would think this is a spot in heaven!

Have you booked your glamping stay yet? Tents on this glamorous camping property can be directly booked from their website, Mendocino Grove.

It is also listed on Glamping Hub and AirBnb. Just keep in mind that this accommodation is open from May to October only. For exact dates, please check their website.

Happy travels!

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