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Yosemite National Park
Camping Without a Reservation

Camping without a Reservation

If you plan to camp in Yosemite during summer without a reservation, you are limited to the following campgrounds.

View a list of all campgrounds with this year's estimated opening and closing dates and other information.

October through April (approximately)
From fall through early spring, you may be able to find a campsite at one of the reservation campgrounds or at Wawona and Hodgdon Meadow Campgrounds, which operate on a first-come, first-served basis from October through April. You can also double-check the reservations website to check for any last-minute availability.

May through September (approximately)
Note that very few first-come, first-served campsites are available in May and June (until additional first-come, first-served campgrounds open).

In order to have a reasonable chance of finding a campsite from spring through fall, you should arrive by noon on weekdays and midmorning on weekends. (Camp 4 usually fills by 9 am; Tuolumne Meadows Campground may fill by 8:30 am on Fridays and Saturdays.)

Once you get a campsite, you can register for more than one night. In May and June, you're very unlikely to find a first-come, first-served campsite (until later in June, when additional campgrounds open).

If all else fails, try to find a campsite outside of Yosemite National Park.

Within Yosemite National Park, you may not sleep in your car or RV except in a campsite that you're registered to stay in (except at Camp 4, where sleeping in cars is not allowed because it's a walk-in campground).

American Indians use traditional ignition methods on a prescribed fire project  

Did You Know?
The indigenous people of Yosemite Valley have used fire as a tool for thousands of years. Fire was used to encourage the growth of plants used for basket making and to promote the growth of the black oak--a sun loving species--and a staple food source for American Indians from this region.

Last Updated: July 15, 2008 at 21:42 EST