Campground Availability

A month-by-month almanac of when campgrounds open, fill and ease off

Campground availability, month by month

Page revised
Dates checked against park sources on

The year at a glance

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Algonquin Campgrounds operating Campgrounds operating Campgrounds operating Campgrounds operating Every campground operating Every campground operating Every campground operating Every campground operating Every campground operating Most campgrounds operating Campgrounds operating Campgrounds operating
Banff Campgrounds operating Campgrounds operating Campgrounds operating Campgrounds operating Most campgrounds operating Every campground operating Every campground operating Every campground operating Every campground operating Campgrounds operating Campgrounds operating Campgrounds operating
Big Sur
Joshua Tree
Yosemite Campgrounds operating Campgrounds operating Campgrounds operating Campgrounds operating Most campgrounds operating Most campgrounds operating Every campground operating Every campground operating Most campgrounds operating Most campgrounds operating Campgrounds operating Campgrounds operating
Zion Campgrounds operating Campgrounds operating Most campgrounds operating Most campgrounds operating Every campground operating Every campground operating Every campground operating Every campground operating Every campground operating Most campgrounds operating Campgrounds operating Campgrounds operating

What the shading means

  • No campground operating
  • Campgrounds operating
  • Most campgrounds operating
  • Every campground operating

A campground is not equally available all year. Some are shut under snow until July. Some close for the hottest months. Some are open every day of the year, and one park reports its campgrounds full almost every night from mid-March to late November. This almanac lays out that yearly shape for six destinations, one month at a time, so you can pick a place and a season together.

Three calendars for every campground

Each destination page tracks the same three things.

The operating calendar. The dates a campground is physically open. Yosemite's high-country campgrounds and Banff's Two Jack Main ran for three months or less in 2026. Others never close.

The on-sale calendar. The date your arrival month becomes bookable. This differs by park: Yosemite sells a month at a time on the 15th, Banff opens a whole season on a single winter morning, and Big Sur adds one new day every morning. Each page states the one rule that applies there and nothing more.

The busy calendar. Where a park agency says in writing when its campgrounds fill, we quote it with the months attached. Where the agency says nothing, we say nothing. There are no estimated fill percentages anywhere on this site.

The six destinations

Destination Shape of the year Calendar
Yosemite National Park, California Four campgrounds stay open all year; nine more open between late April and early July, and all nine are closed again by late October Yosemite
Zion National Park, Utah Watchman never closes; South runs early March to the end of October; the park says campgrounds are full almost every night from mid-March through late November Zion
Joshua Tree National Park, California The year runs backwards: busy from October to May, with summer closures at several campgrounds Joshua Tree
Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park, California One large campground in the redwoods, selling one new arrival date each morning six months ahead; reopened in October 2026 after a fire closure Big Sur
Algonquin Provincial Park, Ontario One campground open in winter; ten more open between late April and mid-May and close through September and October Algonquin
Banff National Park, Alberta Two campgrounds open all winter; twelve more open in waves from early May to mid-June, and the first of them close in early September Banff

If you know your month but not your destination, start with the by-month index. It reads across all six at once.

How to use a calendar page

Find the month you want to travel. The first column tells you which campgrounds are open then. The second tells you when that month's dates went, or will go, on sale. If the on-sale date is still ahead of you, put it in your own calendar with the time zone. If it has passed and the campground shows no space, the month has not closed to you. Reservations are cancelled and changed all year, and a returned site goes back on the official calendar for whoever sees it first.

That last part is where a watching service helps. OpenCampsite, which publishes this almanac, checks supported campgrounds for the dates you choose and sends a text or email when a check finds a matching site. You then book it yourself on the park's own reservation site. An alert does not hold anything.

About the dates

Operating dates on this site are the most recent ones each agency has published. On November 9, 2026, that meant 2026 season dates for every destination here. Agencies set new dates each year, and snow, fire and construction move them. Yosemite closed one campground more than three weeks early in 2026 after a lightning strike. Pfeiffer Big Sur was shut for an extended period by a wildfire. Treat the dates as the pattern of a normal year, then confirm the current season on the source linked at the foot of each page.

Each page shows the day its dates were last checked.

Watch a full campground with OpenCampsite

Where these dates come from