Magnolia Beach, Texas – A Free Camping Hidden Gem

Here’s our experience of free camping at Magnolia Beach, Texas.

We had a fantastic time boondocking on Padre Island, but it was the most intense camping ever. The wind, sand, sun, and salt did a number on us and the rig. As we ventured north on the Texas coast, we hoped to find a more peaceful version of beach boondocking.

Magnolia Beach was just what we were looking for. The ground was more solid, the tides were less extreme, and the amenities rocked, too!

While changing tides should always be observed, the tides at Magnolia Beach were much less threatening than those at Padre Island.

Here’s a video of our stay at Magnolia Beach, Texas

Location: Magnolia Beach, Texas

GPS: 28.5599, -96.537

Date/Temp: We pulled into Magnolia Beach, Texas in early March, just as a cold front was moving through. The days were in the mid-70s with heavy wind, and the evenings were a mild 50.

Amenities: While this site offers no hook-ups, they have a great bathroom & shower facility. They are cleaned daily and well respected by fellow campers. We’ve yet to see a water spigot, but we haven’t looked too hard.

If you need to dump or fill your tanks, a few RV parks are within a one-mile radius. The site also offers many trash cans for easy household trash disposal.

Wifi/Cell: Cellular Internet connection was pretty good at Magnolia Beach, Texas. Our AT&T had a fast 4G connection throughout our stay; T-Mobile had fast 4G, but only a 70% uptime. During the evenings, the service would drop out.

Noise: This is peaceful beach camping with enough space for space and privacy. The sound of the waves is much more calming here than on Padre Island. However, the wind has been intense throughout our stay.

Grocery/Errands: Port Lavaca is the nearest town to shopping. There is a nice HEB and a Walmart. The city also has a few parts shops and gas stations. We’d recommend coming stocked with supplies, or shopping at the HEB. 

Dog Friendly: The beach is dog-friendly if your pup loves the water. We didn’t see any signage regarding leash rules and saw a 50/50 split of leashed & unleashed dogs. 

Entertainment: The primary source of entertainment at Magnolia Beach, Texas, is the beach. Many of the campers enjoyed the days fishing. We also saw kayakers and bird watchers. If you like to chill, this is a great stop.

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