Savage River Campground, near Healy, Alaska, is a fantastic spot for those looking to immerse themselves in the beauty of Denali National Park. With its picturesque setting alongside the river, it’s a prime location for camping, hiking, and wildlife watching.

This campground offers a mix of tent and RV sites, complete with picnic tables and fire pits for cozy evenings under the Alaskan sky. Visitors have noted the clean facilities, including flush toilets and drinking water, which make for a comfortable stay. As one camper mentioned, “The bathrooms were clean,” which is always a plus when you’re out in the wild.

For adventure seekers, the Savage River Campground serves as a great base for exploring the park. Many campers enjoyed hiking along the river and taking part in ranger-led talks in the evenings. Wildlife is abundant here; guests have spotted caribou, moose, and even a pair of grouse right at their campsites. The nearby Mountain Vista Trail offers stunning views and is just a short walk away.

While the campground can get busy, especially during peak season, the friendly atmosphere and breathtaking scenery make it a memorable place to camp. Whether you’re here for a quick getaway or a longer stay, Savage River Campground has plenty to offer for a true Alaskan experience.

Savage River Campground — Denali National Park

Some of the best camping in Alaska is found at Denali National Park and Preserve, where campers can pitch a tent or stay in a cabin with views of the tundra and Denali, the highest peak in North America with a summit at more than 20,000 feet. Near Denali National Park is Healy, AK. There, tent and RV campers can gather supplies and plan their trip to the extensive park. Summer campsites offer plenty of opportunities for hiking, backpacking, and biking along the trails. Adventurous hikers can tackle the high mountain trails. The campgrounds also offer many chances to see the native wildlife like moose, wolves, caribou, grizzly bears, and Dall sheep.

Denali National Park

The Best Camping Near Denali National Park, Alaska

site: spacious. private. quiet.
amenities: shed to store food. rustic/basic.
attractions: hiking. shuttle service. near river. lots of wildlife.
I just checked out the campground and camping here if I come to Denali again.


quiet

This was one of our all-time favorite campgrounds! The campsite was spacious and had lots of privacy, with a picnic table, fire ring and plenty of space for a large tent. Our site backed up to woods that were filled with spongy, mossy ground coverings and "evidence" of moose presence. Our family loved exploring this area! We walked to the savage river at the back of the campground and explored this area, attended a great ranger talk and had some fabulous mountain views. We also loved the location of the campground, as we could drive our car but were further away from the crowded front areas of the park. We absolutely loved our hike on the savage alpine trail, which we took the free shuttle to get to the start and ended outside of our campground. If you have kids, be sure to check out a discovery backpack filled with activities and science kits they can use. Our 9-year-old loved it so much she asked for a science kit for Christmas!

Gorgeous scenery and great park access

Large campground for car camping, RVs and tents. Open approximately May to September. If you're backpacking, you wouldn't really stay here. Get a permit and a bear canister and head out into the wilds away from the campground noise! Ranger programs per schedule.

In Denali National Park 

This was out second campsite of our 8 night Alaska trip. We were there for two nights. This campground has a family campground feel with all the RV's and family groups; not that that's a bad thing! The campground was probably 80% full, but still quiet and enough solitude. The campground is right on the Denali park road where all the shuttles and buses pass through the park. We reserved a spot to take us all the way to the Eielson Visitors Center which is a ~4 hour one-way trip from Savage River Campground. Anyone reading this and considering going to Denali - you WILL see wildlife. We saw a family of foxes, caribou, grizzly bears, a marmot, ground and red squirrels, moose, bald eagles, and a variety of other birds. There is a popular short hike from the campground down to Savage River, and the camp host told us that people see moose and bear a lot in the morning on that hike. Other things to note are: Denali Education Center (outside of the park) - we went to yoga here; Healy - check out 49th State Brewing ( they have the "Into the Wild" bus from the movie).

Always fun camping in a National Park

You can get out of tourists views if you just keep hiking past the regular trail for the savage loop. But it will take a long while. If you don’t want to travel far into the National Park and you don’t mind hanging around more people than this is the place to camp.

Close to tourists

This campsite is stunning. It’s easily accessible, the last campground in Denali National Park by motor vehicle (the others you need to take a bus from the station at the visitors center near the entrance.) Make sure you book your tours in advance, the earlier the better! You could spend a day hiking around the savage river which is located at the end of the camp site. The site is walkable, quiet, and clean.

Straight out of a fairytale 

This is one sweet campground, though we found it a little loud at times as some groups were staying there as well. Takes RVs and Tents. There's running water, flush toilets and a great evening program each night with a ranger. We stayed a few days would hop on the bus each day (there was a fee) to where we wanted to explore and then catch the bus back when were were done. Great experience.

Sweet campground with great amenities

Savage River is an amazing location in Denali National Park offering details of the river during the winter period.  The river does not completely freeze leaving cracks that provide a new perception to the pristine conditions. Drive across the bridge and take a photo opportunity with the jaw-dropping scene. 

Amazing Scenery 

Savage river is a nice campsite that you can drive to in Denali National Park. It is also possible to see Denali from here. Mixture of tents and RVs

Nice Campsite

My dad and I camped in B-20 for 2 nights. It’s was a great site, close walk to bathrooms, close to the water supply to refill water containers, the Mountain Vista Trailhead, and just perfectly placed. We camped in a tent under constant daylight and got down to 40s between 3-5am. You can pick up whatever wood you see on the ground but can’t cut fresh stuff. It was my first time staying in this campground.

Savagely Bright

This campsite was in the Savage River Campground in Denali National Park, just outside the bus station for the park transit and close to the bathrooms. We had a great tent site and firepit with a large picnic table. You can hear the river flowing and it can lull you to sleep despite the near constant daylight. This site was peaceful and the Mountain Vista Trail was a short walk away.

Denali in Summer

We spent 2 nights and used the Savage River Campground as a jumping off point to travel further into the park. We had a our best hikes from the campground. We enjoyed hiking along the river. We were lucky to have a grouse pair come into our campsite. We also took advantage of the ranger talk that was given in the evening. The bathrooms were clean.

Beautiful Campground Near Great Hikes

Drive through the site going into denali. As soon as we get there we spot caribou right at the river. It was very Smokey due to wildfires so we couldn’t really see much 

Photos of Savage River Campground — Denali National Park

Real photos from real campers