Holloman AFB FamCamp

Holloman is not a destination location. So with 35 FHU sites you would think there would be no problem getting a spot. Guess again. We were lucky to get one of 2 open spots upon arrival. Of the 35 sites we counted 30 occupied by full time active duty with a few retirees thrown in. We have watched this and many famcamps slowly morph into trailer parks, but this is the worse circumstance we have ever witnessed. No limit on stay. Some have been here "years". All ranks from A1C to LtCol. The camp host is an active duty family. I have no idea what they do other than occupy a spot at likely no cost. The grounds are one big weed patch with most of the trees and shrubs all but dead. There are no enforced standards here. Dogs run loosley and drop their waste with no pickup. Very young children are left unattended to play in the roads. Trailers are in disrepair and many appear as though they have been set up with steps and shade cloth to be a final home. It is a true trailer park with no standards to speak of. If they are going to allow it to be used as a permanent housing area, simply take the famcamp sign down, charge full housing allowance for those living here and drawing Quarters. Unfortunately this is becoming the new famcamp model for services throughout the AF. Shameful and Sad....

WORST CAMPING EXPERIENCE EVER! DO YOU LIKE TO CAMP ON A SANDLOT? THEN THIS IF FOR YOU! NO bushes, trees, flowers or native plants...just dirt. DO YOU LIKE HIGHWAY NOISE? THEN THIS IS FOR YOU! The 5'brick wall did nothing to dampen traffic sounds. YOU DON'T CARE ABOUT RESTROOMS? THEN THIS IS FOR YOU! The toilets are still broken...made "the Commander" really mad! Yes, Active Duty and long-term campers have the few "nice" spots: concrete pad, a shrub, and a covered table. SKIP THIS PLACE! SAVE MONEY - head east across the valley to OLIVER LEE MEMORIAL STATE PARK. Quiet; beautiful native landscape; hiking trails; water& electric for only$15/night! 

Recommend utilizing the Commercial gate if possible. I believe it is open 0600-1800 M-F Signage from this gate to the Fam Camp is non-existent. The Fam-camp is to your right so head East and try to keep the highway in sight and you will find it. The serpentine at the main gate is very tight with our 43' 5th Wheel and the bollards at the guard shack is very tight with a dually. The condition of the Fam Camp was acceptable for a desert environment. We were able to get into one of the concrete pads with a cover over the table. The cable TV was inoperative but the Wifi had just been brought back on line. Our neighbor reported it was working pretty well. We have our own hotspot. I was surprised at the appearance of the base. It seems they don't have a lot of pride of ownership. Weeds have taken over the entire base. I have never seen a military facility look so shabby. There is lots of stuff to do and see here. We were here for the trip out to Ground Zero at the Trinity Site which was a happy coincidence. The Trinity site (where they tested the first Atomic Bomb in 1945) is only open twice a year. The first Saturday in April, and the first Saturday in October. We stopped at the White Sands National Park and the Space Museum. We also took a day trip up to Cloudcroft up in the Sacramento Mountains and then on to Roswell to the Alien Museum. A 275 mile trip but it sure was fun. Our stay was enjoyable and would stay here again.

We came in on a Saturday, planning to stay three nights. Our experience at the main gate initiated the frustration. As noted in the description above, using the main gate is tricky, very tricky. We have a 36' motorhome, pulling a small SUV toad. I am pleased to report that using our mirrors and taking it slow, we were able to make it through the "S" curves and narrowness of this gate without jumping a curb or hitting the concrete supports at the awning. We made it to the FamCamp, greeted with a sign to check in with the Camp Host at site #___ (10, I believe) before selecting a site. I walked to the Camp Host site only to find a sign directing me to another Camp Host site. When I walked to that site, I was greeted with another sign telling me to self-check in at the laundry room. The laundry facilities seemed well kept. We didn't use the facilities but others were using them and seemed to have no problem. We selected our site, which was one of the newest ones with no covered picnic area (sites with covered picnic areas are the first two rows of spots; we took a space on the third row), and proceeded to hook everything up. We had a cable box and connection, but the cable did not work. We wanted to ask the Camp Host about the cable and a couple other items but I could never catch them at their site. I tried both hosts three different times over the course of several hours that afternoon. Because of all this, we decided to shorten our trip from three nights to one. We left out the next morning. A block wall is the only thing separating you from the Interstate. However, the noise from the highway was surprisingly not that bad. There is no dog park in the FamCamp and the spaces to walk the dogs were not well kept, all dirt and rocks with trash mixed in. There was really no grass to find (my dogs really like grass)! One star on Cleanliness/Hospitality was specifically due to Camp Hosts not being available. The camp, overall, is clean. A FHU site, $20 is a good deal. WiFi was not strong at our site, which was on the back row. The location is great, though! You are a short distance from the White Sands Monument and the missile testing areas. We will consider staying here again and hope future reviews are more positive than the experience we had on this one particular day. 

Major improvements. WiFi and cable both working fine. But, maybe most appreciated for those who have wandered through post to get here - Mesquite (the road that goes in front of the FamCamp) has been put through to the road that the commercial gate is on. Now you just come through the commercial gate, take the first right and go til you get to the FamCamp. I don't think it shows on google maps yet you can see it on the satellite view.

Stayed last week while traveling through. Two nights. It is as close as you can get to White Sands National Monument about 7-8 miles away. That in itself made the boring camp worthwhile. Wifi was strong when near the laundry facility -very nice amenity to have to catch up with email. The laundry facility was helpful, but could use some work inside with perhaps installation maps and other pamphlets for tourists. The impression is that the camp is very low priority for this installation. If you venture out to the base, they have a really great library, golf course, running areas and base exchange, commissary. I'll stay here again if in the area - enjoyed the view of the mountains with sunrise and the close proximity to highways to travel to my next destination.

Our trip down from Buckley AFB in Denver and compared to Holloman is apples and oranges. Being on Military Installations, you would think of finding uniformity and familiarity from one place to another, for example, most of the sites on Holloman are gravel and the hard pads are rare to get for they are utilized by active duty personnel waiting for housing or other reasons, Buckley has hard concrete pads. Wifi is another example, virtually non-existant at Holloman unless you bring your own or have it installed, Buckley has a Verizon jet pack system you rent monthly for a refundable 50 dollars and is unlimited data. The camp hosts on both are present, willing to work with you and do a good job of accommodating travelers but it is advisable to contact the outdoor rec at both installations for availability. Holloman is quiet except for the highway noise and daily training of the pilots overhead. Lots of interesting places to see in the area, Trinity test site (open 2x year) lava beds north of the test range, space museum, observatory and white sands national park. I was paying 300 a month and was informed to the increase to 500 which in my mind doesn't warrant the increase unless they hard pad and use a jet pack wifi system.