Yosemite Camping: The Complete 2026 Guide

Yosemite camping means sleeping under some of the most famous granite on Earth — Half Dome, El Capitan, and the waterfalls that pour off the valley walls in spring. Yosemite National Park sits in California's central Sierra Nevada, about four hours from San Francisco and six from Los Angeles, and its campgrounds are among the most sought-after in the country. This guide covers where to camp, how the reservation system really works, when to go, and what to pack.

Why Camp in Yosemite?

You can visit Yosemite Valley on a day trip, but you'll spend half of it in traffic and shuttle lines. Camping changes the trip completely. Stay overnight and you get the valley at dawn before the tour buses arrive, alpenglow on the granite at sunset, and a night sky that — up in the high country — is as dark as anywhere in California.

The park is huge and splits into a few very different camping zones: the crowded, iconic valley floor, the giant sequoias and quieter forest around Wawona to the south, and the alpine meadows and granite domes along Tioga Road near Tuolumne Meadows, thousands of feet higher and open only in summer.

The Valley Campgrounds (The Main Event)

Yosemite Valley is where most people want to be, and it has the fewest sites relative to demand:

• Upper, Lower, and North Pines — the three reservation campgrounds on the valley floor, walking or shuttle distance to Half Dome views, the Merced River, and the trailheads. These are the hardest reservations in the park.
• Camp 4 — the historic walk-in climbers' camp near El Capitan, a designated World Heritage-listed site. It runs on a reservation lottery in the busy season and is first-come in the quiet months.
• Amenities — flush toilets, drinking water, and food lockers at every site. There are showers and a store nearby at Curry Village, but not in the campgrounds themselves.

Every valley site comes with a metal bear locker, and using it is not optional (more on that below).

Beyond the Valley

If the valley is booked — and it often is — the rest of the park is worth targeting:

• Wawona — near the Mariposa Grove of giant sequoias, warmer and lower, a good base for the southern park.
• Tuolumne Meadows — the largest campground in the park, up at 8,600 feet along Tioga Road. Cool nights, wide-open granite country, and the classic High Sierra trailheads. Open summer only.
• Hodgdon Meadow, Crane Flat, White Wolf — forested mid-elevation campgrounds near the park's west and north entrances, easier to book than the valley.

Outside the boundary, the Sierra National Forest and Stanislaus National Forest have campgrounds and dispersed sites when the park itself is full.

Reservations and Timing

Yosemite's campgrounds book through Recreation.gov, and the popular ones release on a rolling monthly window — a block of dates opens on a set day, weeks ahead. Valley summer weekends sell out in minutes. Log in early, know your dates, and have a backup campground and backup weekend ready before the window opens.

The camping season runs roughly April through October, though the valley campgrounds stay open longer than the high country. Tioga Road and Tuolumne Meadows are closed by snow from around November until late May or June — never assume the high country is open without checking. Late spring brings the waterfalls at full roar. Fall brings thinner crowds and cold, clear nights. Summer is peak everything: peak scenery, peak heat in the valley, and peak crowds.

What First-Time Yosemite Campers Should Know

1. This is serious bear country. Yosemite's black bears are smart and food-motivated. Every scented item — food, toothpaste, sunscreen, trash — goes in the bear locker, never in your car or tent. Rangers ticket for violations. Our bear-safe food storage guide walks through the routine.
2. A day-use reservation may be required to enter. In peak periods Yosemite has run a timed entry-reservation system for vehicles. Check the current rules before you drive up — a campground booking usually covers entry, but confirm it.
3. Elevation swings are huge. The valley is around 4,000 feet; Tuolumne is over 8,000. Nights are cold at both, and altitude in the high country is real — take it easy the first day.
4. Fires and smoke. Fire restrictions are common in late summer, and wildfire smoke can roll in. Check current conditions and never move firewood into the park.
5. Book Half Dome permits separately. The cables route to the summit needs its own lottery permit — that's not part of your campground reservation.

Give our camping safety tips a read before you go, and pack out everything you bring in.

Recommended Gear for Yosemite Camping

Cold Sierra nights, no lighting away from the restrooms, and long days on granite — this core kit covers a Yosemite trip:

• Coleman Sundome Camping Tent — a freestanding dome that pitches in about 10 minutes and handles the valley's dry heat and the high country's wind. New to it? Our tent setup guide gets you fast.
• Teton Celsius Sleeping Bag — Sierra nights drop into the 30s and 40s even in summer, and colder at Tuolumne. A bag rated to 20°F keeps you warm through it.
• Black Diamond Spot 400-R Rechargeable Headlamp — the campgrounds are dark, the bear locker run happens after dinner, and pre-dawn trailhead starts are the norm here. Rechargeable means no dead-battery scramble.

Add a sleeping pad — the sites are packed granite and root, and our guide on whether you need a sleeping pad makes the case — then run our camping checklist.

Final Tips

Book the moment your reservation window opens, keep a backup campground ready, put everything scented in the bear locker, and pack far warmer than the valley's afternoon high suggests. Do that and Yosemite rewards you with mornings under Half Dome and nights under a Sierra sky that no day trip can touch. Chasing more Western granite and giant trees? Our Sequoia National Park camping guide covers the park just to the south.