THE EARNEST TRAVELER
The road reopened as far as mile marker 45 on September 2, but the campgrounds did not come with it. Every campground on this coast is still closed — by the state park closures, by Los Padres National Forest Order 05-07-51-26-10, or by the remaining Highway 1 closure below Kirk Creek. The rates below are what you will pay when they reopen.
Big Sur punishes people who show up without a plan. Camping is the difference between a $60 night and a $900 night, and the good sites go six months out.
Day-use fees
California State Parks charges $10 per vehicle at Pfeiffer Big Sur, Julia Pfeiffer Burns, Andrew Molera, Limekiln and Point Lobos. The single most useful thing to know about that $10: the receipt transfers. It "allows access to other California State Parks until closing on the day of purchase," so one payment covers three Big Sur parks in one day.
Garrapata State Park is free. Limekiln takes cash only. Pfeiffer Beach is federal, $15 per vehicle, and the state receipt does not work there.
Discounts apply everywhere: seniors 62+ pay $1 less, the Disabled Pass is $5, and the Distinguished Veterans and Golden Bear passes are free.
State park campgrounds
| Campground | Sites | Nightly | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pfeiffer Big Sur | 189 | $50 standard $60 riverfront $75 cabin | $5 hike/bike · $10 second vehicle · firewood $12/bundle. Group Camp closed until further notice. |
| Andrew Molera walk-in | 22 + 2 hike/bike | $30 | Quarter-mile walk from the lot. No showers. No first-come sites. |
| Limekiln | 29 | $50 | $10 extra vehicle. No dogs in the park. |
| Julia Pfeiffer Burns environmental camp | Not published | $30 | Walk-in, no vehicle access. |
Booking window: ReserveCalifornia opens six months ahead on a rolling basis, releasing inventory daily at 8 a.m. Pacific, and closes two days before arrival. Cancellations cost $8.25. Pfeiffer Big Sur's own park page says reservations "fill up six months in advance, even in the winter" — treat that as literal.
Stay limits at Pfeiffer Big Sur: seven consecutive nights maximum in peak season, then a 48-hour mandatory absence, and 30 nights per calendar year.
National forest campgrounds
| Campground | Sites | Nightly | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kirk Creek | 40 (2 first-come) | $45 | No water. Vault toilets. No cell service. Heavy poison oak. |
| Plaskett Creek | 44 (42 reservable) | $45 | $10 extra vehicle · $5 per person walk-in. No potable water, portable toilets only. |
| Ponderosa | 21 (2 first-come) | $35 | $10 extra vehicle. Access via Nacimiento-Fergusson Road. |
Watch this one. The Forest Service's own recreation pages for Kirk Creek and Plaskett Creek still say "Open," and Recreation.gov still shows bookable sites. Both are closed by Forest Order 05-07-51-26-10, signed August 29, 2026, which runs until the Timber and Plaskett fires are declared out. The closure order governs. Do not book off those pages.
Private campgrounds
Fernwood Resort is the only private campground on the coast publishing a rate card: tent sites $70–$145 per night for two people and one vehicle, with 27 tent sites. Extras are $5 per additional person, $5 per dog, $10 per extra vehicle, and $20 for the dump station. Maximum six people and two vehicles per site.
Big Sur Campground & Cabins, Riverside, Ventana Campground and Treebones all use dynamic pricing and publish no fixed rates. Big Sur Campground & Cabins takes RVs and trailers to 40 feet, requires a one-night deposit, and charges $25 to cancel a tent or RV site and $50 for a cabin.
The two costs people forget
Gas. Gorda By The Sea was charging $9.99 a gallon for premium in April 2026, when the California average was $5.89 and the national average was $4. Owner Leo Flores explained it plainly: the place runs on generators. Fill up in Carmel or Cambria, not on the coast.
Cash. Limekiln's day-use fee is cash only and Pfeiffer Beach prefers cash. Cell service is, in State Parks' own words, "extremely limited" — card readers do not always work.
Cold nights, hard fog, no cell service. Basics that earn their space.