RV Rentals Near Fort Collins, CO

Fort Collins sits at the northern end of the Front Range, about an hour north of downtown Denver on I-25. For an RV trip it offers something most Colorado cities can't: a full-hookup reservoir campground on the edge of town and a river canyon with national forest campgrounds less than an hour away. You can spend a morning in Old Town and be parked beside the Cache la Poudre River by mid-afternoon.

It also sits inside the area where RVRents delivers RVs listed with us and marked Delivery available, so a Fort Collins trip can start close to home for anyone living in northern Colorado.

Camping at Horsetooth Reservoir, west of town

Horsetooth Reservoir is a Larimer County park just west of Fort Collins, at about 5,420 feet. It is open year round and requires both an entrance permit and a camping permit. Two campgrounds take RVs.

• South Bay Campground is the larger of the two. The county lists more than 150 sites, including full-hookup and electric-only sites, plus restrooms, hot showers, a dump station and access to the swim beach and boat ramps.
• Inlet Bay Campground has waterfront and water-view loops with full hookups that the county says fit RVs up to 60 feet. It has vault toilets and potable water, with flush toilets and coin showers at the nearby boat inspection station.

Reservations go through the county's booking site, larimercamping.com. The reservoir also has boat-in sites along the west shore, which are not reachable by RV.

From the reservoir, Horsetooth Mountain Open Space is a short drive farther along County Road 38E. Its 29 miles of trail connect to Lory State Park and the Blue Sky Trail. The county notes that the trailhead lot fills on weekends and holidays and recommends arriving before 9 a.m. or after 3 p.m. in summer. Camping is not allowed in that lot, and a big rig will have an easier time leaving the RV at the campsite and driving a smaller vehicle to the trailhead if you have one.

National forest campgrounds in the Poudre Canyon

Colorado Highway 14 follows the Cache la Poudre River west through the Roosevelt National Forest. The Poudre is Colorado's only nationally designated Wild and Scenic River, and the canyon has a string of Forest Service campgrounds along the water.

Two worth knowing by name:

• Ansel Watrous Campground sits beside the river at about 5,800 feet. To get there, drive about 11 miles north of Fort Collins on US-287, turn west on Highway 14 and continue roughly 13 miles. The upper loop is open year round and has parking spurs from 25 to 45 feet. The lower loop has a tight entrance, does not take trailers and limits RVs to 30 feet.
• Mountain Park Campground is farther up the canyon at about 6,500 feet, roughly 23 miles up Highway 14. Sites 1 through 32 have electric hookups, and the Forest Service lists parking spurs of 35 to 45 feet.

Both book through Recreation.gov. At both, your RV has to fit on the parking spur, since parking off the road is not permitted.

Driving an RV in and around Fort Collins

From Denver, the drive is a straight run north on I-25, about an hour without traffic. Getting to Horsetooth is easy: the county's directions follow Harmony Road and Taft Hill Road to County Road 38E, which climbs west to the reservoir.

Highway 14 is a different kind of drive. It is a two-lane canyon road with curves and river on one side, and it gets busy on summer weekends with rafters and anglers. Take it slowly and use pullouts to let traffic pass. The road continues west over Cameron Pass toward Walden, and conditions there can change quickly in spring and fall. Check COtrip.org before you go, especially outside summer.

In Old Town, parking a motorhome on the street is tight. The historic district around Linden and Walnut Streets is best visited on foot after you have parked the RV at camp.

What to do from a Fort Collins base

• Walk Old Town, a National Register historic district with restored buildings such as the Linden Hotel, the Northern Hotel and the Avery Block.
• Paddle, swim or fish at Horsetooth Reservoir. Boats must pass an aquatic nuisance species inspection, which limits launching to set hours.
• Hike Horsetooth Mountain Open Space or the trails at Lory State Park, which sits next to the reservoir and has 28.1 miles of trail.
• Spend a day in the Poudre Canyon fishing, rafting with a licensed outfitter or picnicking by the river.

Worth knowing: Horsetooth's South Shore boat ramp lot can fill on summer weekends and holidays, and the county stops launches when it does. If you are bringing a kayak or paddleboard, plan to be on the water early, or camp at South Bay so you are already inside the park.

Seasons, permits and how RVRents fits in

Summer is the busy season at both the reservoir and the canyon, so book campsites early. Horsetooth stays open year round, and the upper loop at Ansel Watrous is open all year, which makes Fort Collins one of the better Front Range bases for a shoulder-season trip. Spring and fall nights can drop below freezing, so ask about how an RV handles cold weather before you book a trip outside summer.

Larimer County requires entrance and camping permits at its parks. Watch for posted fire restrictions, which change through the season.

There are two ways to rent an RV for this trip, and they work differently. RVs from owners on Outdoorsy are booked and paid for on Outdoorsy and picked up from the owner. They do not include RVRents delivery, setup or other services. RVs booked directly with RVRents can add services à la carte through vetted local providers: groceries, cleaning or activities, plus delivery and setup at your campsite near Fort Collins on RVs marked Delivery available. Some RVs require delivery and setup, and the listing says so.

To book direct, send a trip request. Each service is a request until a provider confirms and you approve the price, and we check the campground's rules before any delivery is scheduled.

If, then

• If you have young kids, book South Bay for showers and the swim beach.
• If you are driving a motorhome over 30 feet, skip the lower loop at Ansel Watrous and look at the upper loop or Inlet Bay.
• If you want electric hookups in the forest, look at Mountain Park.
• If your trip is in fall or winter, check COtrip.org before heading up Highway 14.