Sweetwood Camp

Honestly... Not as many mosquito bites as I was expecting, the best place ever, best beach, best air smell, closest to the dunes, my fav! (I went on a overnight field trip wice with the same teacher in both 5th and 6th grade )

The campground is huge and great for group camping, amazing for sunset view. Recommend going during hot day , carry a portable heater if camping during the fall. Challenges: 1. To get the keys to the campground one has to travel to Francis beach parking entrance and pay a deposit of $10 in cash. Francis beach parking is about 3 to 4miles away. 2. Access road to the campsite is steep and car with low chassis will definitely have to be careful. 3. Restroom is not maintained well.

Service is a little slow at times but they make everything to order. There is a great selection of meat and fish. Lots of vegetarian options and every day they have new specials. One of my favorites for an early dinner and drink or a lunch with my parents. Highly recommend the fish tacos and the chicken wings.

It's a campground that looks good on paper but so many people walking by/through the campsite due to it being directly on the California coastal trail makes it not so great. And no direct access to the beach. Gotta walk down a bit to a steep, rocky no stairs access point with very little room on the beach itself. It's a meh for me.

It is a very big and level group campground with only 50 people and 12 vehicles capacity. Venice beach and dunes beach are close and nearby. It features a large area of meadow but it is drought season and the grass is yellow in the summer and fall. There is water spigot and we found the water color is a bit yellow, it should be OK to wash hands and dishes. Don't forget to bring your own potable water. The toilet is well maintained and locked while campground isn't in used. But after we came in and unlocked the toilet, someone hiking or riding bikes along the trial can come and use the toilet. During the daytime we have to lock the toilet and only unlock when our guest needs to use the toilet, which is a bit inconvenient. The host needs to goto Francis campground entrance ranger station to get the key to unlock the entrance gate and toilet. Other guests can go there directly. The campground entrance isn't easy to find and the traffic is usually busy there. It makes a bit tricky to get into the entrance. There are many people hiking or riding bike around the campground and sometimes do enter the campground. Be sure store your things safely and don't place valuable belongs when you go to the beach. The park visitors doesn't know it is a group campground and sometimes think the picnic tables are for day use.