Johnson's Beach

I loved that the beach was rocks instead of sand, it was nice to come home without sand in everything. There's a small dam right there, so the water is very still. Perfect for relaxing while floating in a tube and not drifting away. Food and restrooms available also.

Lovely and Peaceful! Brought my raft hung out in the water . Was a chill day. Rocky little beach need some thing to sit on. Was August 26, 2025 Soo nice out & maybe 20 people around. Mostly on rafts floating down river . Water was calm didn’t drift far from beach cooler loot all day long.

Such a beautiful and relaxing spot! Johnson’s Beach is a great place to spend the day, enjoy the river, and just unwind. The scenery is gorgeous, the atmosphere is peaceful, and it’s perfect for spending time with family and friends. We had such a great time and will definitely be back!

Great fun on a Saturday, pretty packed. Slow moving river that day, nice and cool on a hot day. Beer/wine and grill on site.

The facilities are okay, but need upgrades. Cabins and campsites away from the main office have weak or no internet access. The cabins only have mini fridges with no freezer. This year prices have gone up again, and service and maintenance has gone down. A simple hamburger (without cheese) is $11. With cheese is $12.

Great little spot on the river. A place to buy beer and a few snacks. Bring your own towels and chairs.

Great place perfect spot on the river very accommodating, helpful people. I highly recommend recommend this spot.

decent stretch of beach with attached campgrounds and what looks like a local kyack rental service from several providers including right on the rocky beach...yes rocks...no sand...bring a comfortable yoga mat or chair. Parking is 10 credit only

Definitely was fooled by the good branding with this place. We rented the beach lodge to celebrate a birthday and I felt shocked at how much we paid considering the condition of the cabin, even for California. Dirty carpet, old furniture, a bad smell among other signs of lack of maintenance, plus ants out the wazoo. The bedroom my kid stayed in smelled of weed at all times I assume from the unit below. Only one room had an AC unit, probably not an issue most of the year but good to know for summer travels, the fans provided were mostly tiny desk fans? Friends who rented a campsite said it was the worst campground experience they've had in a long time - so crammed together and they couldn't fit their car at their site, plus right next to the bridge where there were a lot of houseless folks roaming about. It's basically impossible not to have a good time in this area and we did, but definitely not because of the accommodations. Pros would be the location to town and the amount of space in the cabin, it was much larger than expected with high ceilings and wide hallways, with a little love it could be something really special. Maybe if you're cramming a lot of people in there the price wouldn't hurt so much? We had other friends who stayed in the tiny cabin and that was lovely! The beach was nice! Crowded but that's to be expected. People can't bring their own shade structures but they can blast their own radios? Nothing better than the sound of country music competing with reggaeton. On that note the property is right next to a banquet hall and one night there was music blasting from there til 10PM. Unlikely to return to this spot when visiting the area unless they give it some serious love or lower the prices.

I would NOT recommend staying at the Johnson’s Beach cabins for a sound sleep. You could hear everything!!! The person snoring in the next room, people walking outside and the details of their conversation….

We lived our afternoon here! First time to the area - stayed at an Airbnb a few miles away. We rented umbrellas and chairs. Water was shallow and calm - perfect for our 14 year old grandson at the edge and the adults to swim. You could rent kayaks/tubes but we did not. They also have a snack bar (we ate our own food). They have bathrooms as well. Beautiful area!

Very nice place. Friday night was great. Saturday night was a party night. The sound from the club was distant enough to not be a bother but the walls were very thin and I heard more conversation than I had ever heard in a hotel. If I was there to party it wouldn't have bothered me. But if you are thinking of a quiet cabin away, know that you are in the middle of town and others are there for fun times.

So sad the new owners have destroyed the tradition of this great spot . Stupid rules because they are greedy. Beach is Empty! We rented two umbrellas - wanted a little tot tent for the littles - and told we can’t have it up- seriously ? Need a little place for a napping toddler but they want another stupid $7 for a useless umbrella Parking lot EMPTY can’t park a little kayak trailer Not what It was - we are going to stop coming here

Want to go kayaking on the Russian River but, not sure how, what’s easiest, or wondering what’s involved? Shout-out to Scott at King's Sport & Tackle who knows ALL THE RUSSIAN RIVER THINGS. (We knew we didn’t want to do the six-hour, big group, lots of kids thing. We wanted to enjoy a peaceful paddle by ourselves.) Here are my tips: 1. Call King’s and reserve your kayaks. (We like single kayaks best.) Or, you just drop in and organize a quick trip but arrive early. 2. They will bring the kayaks and meet you at the river at Johnson Beach across the street from the shop and two blocks down. They provide kayaks, life vests, oars, and big “dry bags” which you need to keep your phones, car keys, wallet, and food dry. On the kayak, there is a space for a small cooler (it will be held by a bungee but it will get wet so plastic is best.) 3. You need water shoes, not flip-flops. Hat, waterproof sunscreen, and a cord to hold your sunglasses on just in case. Quick dry shorts and a rash-guard, UV protection shirt are smart. Also, bring water bottles and a picnic lunch. (Grab a sandwich from @bakedontheriver.) You stop 1/2 way to go around the dam and that’s a good place for lunch. 4. We wanted to paddle for 3+ hours so Scott told us where we should go and showed us pictures of landmarks. 5. When we got to Monte Rio Beach, we got out at the main beach and the guys who rent kayaks there called Kings and told them we were ready for pickup. 6. We kayaked around the corner to the small cement boat ramp and the guys from Kings picked us up and brought us back to Main Street to our car. EASY. 👌🏻 FUN. 🌲 👀 🛶 ON OUR OWN SCHEDULE. ⏰ We can’t wait to back. Check out the @kingssportandtackle website and plan your adventure!

Hired two single kayaks for the afternoon. Very reasonably priced. Informed staff showed us what to do, and places of interest. Had food and drink available from a cabin after the experience. Would recommend.

Awesome little getaway!! We stayed in one of the little cabins and had a very relaxing time.. FYI there is no TV in the cabins. Was not a problem for me, (the hubbs) well you know how that goes!! The river was awesome. You def need to rent an umbrella and you must wear your mask everywhere in the campground. The little food truck they had was ON POINT! The veggie burger did not disappoint.. We rode our bikes all through town. Not too many options for eating. There is a safeway very close so we were able to pick up some munchies. The pizza place downtown is GREAT! but its takeout only. The cabins are right in the middle of the campground so you def hear everything going on. We will def be back!! Our camp host Chris was awesome.

The Adventure Buddies went to Johnson’s Beach reserved a spot with an umbrella in advance since it was a busy weekend and paid for up front parking all on line and it was so easy to pull up and get to our spot and enjoy the afternoon of kayaking, swimming, floating with the ducks! We got subway sandwiches nearby and enjoyed our picnic beach lunch until they closed at sunset!

nice beach but crowded... great location with snack shack and beer. Lots of rentals, canoes and pedal boats

Made our annual trek. Things have changed over the years. Must pay $7 to park now. Bag check as we walked in - no outside alcohol permitted. We arrived after 4pm. Thinking we had til dust to kayak. Nope. Close at 6pm. In the past, when you rented, the hourly price got cheaper the later in the day. Not now. $20/hr. Even at 4:30pm. Lots of loud speaker announcements: we close in 15 minutes. Felt more like a business that a casual afternoon at the beach.