While staying in the San Antonio, TX area in March, 2008, we made a special trip to visit Brooks City-Base FamCamp. The last I knew, this was Brooks AFB. What's with the "City-Base" title? It seems the USAF closed Brooks AFB and now leases back a portion of the old AFB. Hence, this leased portion is called Brooks City-Base. Although leased, the USAF still mantains the facilities. Seems strange to me, but it's not the first time the military has done something that seems strange. Gate security is EXTREMELY light. However, it appears a vehicle pass (of some type) is required to gain access to the base. Regardless of earlier reports, the FamCamp IS NOT open to the public.
This famcamp had a very low rating. Reading the previous reviews, I expected to find a dump in the middle of an overgrown field. Since the last review was over a year ago, there's been GREAT improvements at this FamCamp. The campground was NOTHING like I expected! Although there's still a few minor issues (mentioned below), this FamCamp is at least average compared to many others.
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| Typical FHU RV Site |
Finding the campground wasn't difficult, but we started to get concerned. There's many turns and you start heading away from the base facilities. But the streets are well marked and the directions listed here were perfect. The FamCamp is located on the backside of Brooks City-Base, away from traffic noise. It seemed to be a quiet and peaceful location. Although there's only 15 RV sites, the are VERY LARGE sites arranged in a large horseshoe. The laundry/restroom/shower building is in the middle of the horseshoe. There's even a small catch and release fishing pond at the campground.
The large RV Sites are gravel with a large open grassy space between them. The grass had recently been mowed before our visit. The streets are paved. Each site has a BBQ and picnic table. I keep stressing that there's plenty of space between sites. A typical campground would fit 3 - 5 RV sites into the same space that only 1 site occupies here.
The campground is a little old and does show it's age in a few places. While the restrooms/showers and laundry were clean (as best as they could), the building is old and run-down. Because the campground is located in a quiet, remote portion of the base, there's no Internet available. There's plenty of open space for tent campging, and for RV overflow. Although there was one RV site open during our visit, the biggest negative for this campground is the lack of a stay policy. I brought this concern to the campground manager's attention, but having guests stay as long as they want os the only way they can make a profit here. None of the sites looked trashy or full of junk. There wasn't any obvious indication of "homesteading", so there is some enforcement of how the sites look. Although not a big negative to us, there is a lack of facilities on base. However, shopping and restaurants is as close as the base gate.
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| The RV Parktd> | Restrooms/Shower/Laundry |
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| The Tent Area | The Fishing Pond |
While we're always looking for military campgrounds with a fair rate, we're not willing to compromise quality for price. Perhaps a year ago this may have been one of those campground's deserving a low rating, it's not anymore. Brooks City-Base FamCamp delivers a no frills, comfortable and quiet campground at the rates we expect for military benefit. The fishing pond is a bonus. While not as fancy as the other military RV Parks located in the San Antonio area, we'll make the effort to stay here. It's a little bit if a gamble, since there's no reservations and the campground may be full when we arrive, but we think it's worth going a little out of our way to try and stay here.
