Matagorda Beach Jetty Park | Informal Campsite

January 4th, 2024 by stupidreward04

Very nice place to camp for the night. I just camped in my minivan at Jetty Park rather than attempting driving on the beach in a 2wd. Restrooms are still shut down for renovations, but they do have Porta John's available. Beach was full of plastic at high tide line, but I doubt there are any beaches around the world these days that don't have the same problem. I was the only one camping in the Jetty Park parking lot, so it was very quiet all night. At least one truck down by the water camping, but never heard a peep out of them. A few cars drove through the parking lot early in the night, but they drove slow and quiet. Locals are friendly. Enjoyed a gorgeous sunrise over the pier from the parking next morning. Lots of birds for birding enthusiasts to see.

October 17th, 2023 by fast.tri

Mid October and the mosquitoes were awful, we made a mistake and went for a hike without insect repellent, it seemed that there was enough wind that the mosquitoes wouldn't be attacking us, but after a while they got bad! The restrooms and showers were closed for renovations. Aside from that, this was a very nice place to stay and had a gorgeous sunset.

September 27th, 2023 by wild-goose.ch

Lovely spot, quiet. Got welcomed by a local guy who told us we were on the best place on earth 😊. The pier is closed, the beach has a fishi smell and swimming is prohibited. But we met interesting fisher men who showed us their catch. The bathroom is closed as well but there are several portapotties and one outdoor shower is working. End of September and still crazy hot so choose your time to visit wisely.

April 26th, 2023 by puppypower57

very nice for an overnighter. paved lot, trash, bthrms., covered picnic tables. you can drive onto the beach but not sure about camping overnight there. there's a nature center here, n next to it is their rv park

March 2nd, 2023 by dkruis27

I checked with the staff at the welcome center & you are permitted to stay in the paved lot for a max of 24 hours. I stayed on a Thursday night. It was great waking up & taking a long walk along the beach at low tide. Sand is very deep & soft when it's not low tide, I saw a truck get stuck by the pier. Pier itself is closed because of damage. Around 1am a group of people showed up playing loud music, they stayed in the lot for maybe an hour then left. They didn't bother me, just kept me awake.

June 20th, 2022 by assistancerd

Really a very nice and quiet place. It's worth it. I got there around 5:00 p.m. on a Sunday. There were a lot of people but at this late hour families are starting to leave. So I settled directly on the beach on the channel with my Westfalia 2x4. At this location, the sand is compact enough for a 2WD. The large beach on the gulf is definitely inaccessible to 2 wheel drive.

March 11th, 2022 by after4adventures

Stayed one night in our camper van. Nice place to stop. Very weak Verizon signal- 1 bar or so. Was 35° and howling wind so we just hunkered down for the night. Walked on the beach next morning, definitely would have been impassable for a 2wd Transit, at least the beach between the jetty and pier. Didn’t check the other section of beach off Dunes rd.

February 15th, 2022 by Cubby Van Life

Great 2 nights in a parking area near the nature park. We are the only van here and it is dark and quiet. Amazing sunset and a long walking pier out to the water. Walk the beach, do a little fishing, listen to birds and waves. One can park on the beach with a $10 permit but the sand is soft and we saw a car stuck in the sand as the sun set so we stayed in the lot. Super clean flush toilets, picnic tables, cool pavilions, and a few grills. Excellent overnighter! Met OurSimpleLife, Craig and Su. The bathrooms are cleaned and sprayed down every morning.

July 4th, 2021 by johnnblueiii

Incorrect Altitude listed at -82’, the correct altitude is approximately altitude is approximately 10’-20’ and correct coordinates are Coordinates: 28.5947877,-95.979953

December 29th, 2020 by EcoNeato.org

Up to 3, maybe more nights. Nice level paved parking lot. Nearby RV park is $40+.
Day use: Use boardwalk only or else mosquitoes which can be bad anywhere suddenly so always wear long pants and shirt. Otherwise main beach trail to left of boardwalk, not right. Spotty Verion on beach. Lots of small shells. Dirty water and dangerous currents: No swimming.
Permit required to drive or camp on beach: https://matagordabeach.org/matagorda-beach-vehicle-permits/
Park general info:
https://matagordabeach.org/matagorda-bay-kayak-paddling-trails/jetty-park/

December 6th, 2020 by jdi125

Parked in the parking lot close to the toilets. Locals very friendly, nice play to stay 👍

February 13th, 2020 by lwadventures

We purchased the beach parking permit for $10 from the science center and took the public access road to the beach. The beach was wide but the sand was pretty soft and loose so we had to go a few miles west before we found a place we could park safely in our motorhome. We spent the entire day on the beach and watched the tide. Around 8PM a local stopped and warned us not to camp on the beach because of the tide. Apparently it is pretty common for RVs to get stuck and the tow trucks charge extra if they have to go out to the beach. We heeded their advice and spent the night in the jetty parking lot. It was quiet and we were the only campers.

January 12th, 2020 by Make Like An Apeman

Free camping at Jetty Park. Big parking lot with bathrooms, outdoor rinse showers, picnic area, pier, and plastic and aluminum recycling.

Sign at entrance says you can camp here 24 hours but the website indicated that you can park here for 72.

There is also free camping on the beach for 72 hours - although you need a $10 permit to drive on the beach. The sand is very soft in some places so 4x4 is probably needed.

It was very quiet. Beautiful walk down the pier. Cell/data service was week but usable.