The Best Campgrounds Outside Bryce Canyon

Sometimes the hardest part of visiting a National Park adventure is finding a place to lay your head at night. These incredible destinations are more popular than ever, making campsites inside the parks crowded and expensive. Fortunately, just outside of many National Parks lie miles and miles of National Forests and BLM land, as well as private campgrounds and RV sites. Although these sites are a little farther from the park’s main sights, they usually make up the difference with more luxurious amenities, lower prices, or decreased crowds. With that in mind, we’ve collected the best campgrounds just outside of Bryce Canyon National Park:

Ruby’s Inn RV Park and Campground

from $32/night

Of all the campgrounds outside Bryce Canyon National Park, this one is the closest. Just 3 miles from the entrance to the park, Ruby’s Inn is an excellent jumping off point for any Bryce Canyon adventure. Amenities include full electrical hook-ups, a dump station, running water, a pool and hot tub, and a well-stocked general store.

Bryce Canyon Pines

from $29/night

About 10 minutes from the park entrance, Bryce Canyon Pines has beautiful, nicely spaced-out campsites perfect for a quiet campfire dinner (or head across the street to the top-rated restaurant). With showers, laundry, and a pool and hot tub on site, you could do a lot worse for a Bryce Canyon National Park launchpad.

Kodachrome Basin

$25/night

A beautiful park in its own right, Kodachrome Basin would be well worth a visit even if it weren’t within striking distance of Bryce Canyon. So with three campground options all within 40 minutes of the National Park entrance, the basin is an excellent option. This is especially true in spring and fall when the relatively low elevation makes for warmer nighttime temperatures. Of the three campgrounds, only Basin has full hook-ups, so plan accordingly

King Creek

$19/night

Some of the best campgrounds outside Bryce Canyon can be found right next to the park in Dixie National Forest. Dispersed camping is free (more below), but those looking for well-appointed campsites should check out King Creek campground. This is the lowest cost of any campground in the area and offers quiet, remote sites perfect for immersing yourself in the wild. Still, all sites are first-come first-served, so arrive early if possible.

Free Dispersed Camping

Dixie National Forest

If you’re looking to keep costs down, or just to get off the beaten track and fully immerse yourself in nature, you can’t beat Dixie National Forest. In fact, national resource land makes up the majority of the area West of the national park, with several areas perfect for parking a Moterra van for the night (or a week). Check out East Fork Road or Dave’s Hollow for the sites closest to the park entrance, or head out a bit further to Tom’s Best Spring Road and some of the most beautiful wilderness sites anywhere in the area.

If you’re like us, when you go to a beautiful place you want to spend your time exploring it, not reading and researching it on your phone. This post is part of our local recommendations series, designed to save you some screen time and point you in the right directions, so you can leave the stress of decision making to us and lose yourself in places of wild scenic beauty. Because we’re keeping it simple, we had to leave out some truly incredible places and experiences and stick to the best of the best. If you are looking for something specific a little farther off the beaten path, contact our itineraries department for a custom trip designed just for you.