It’s a good place to stay when you are in Yosemite because it’s central and close to popular hikes. But spots are small and sanitary are old and not very clean. Hosts are kind and helpful. It’s full all days and it’s a huge campground so there is a lot of people but still quite. Good enough but not the best campground!
This campground is one of my absolute favorites in the valley! It's centrally located near the Merced river, Mist Trail trailhead, and a short walk from Curry village if you need supplies and a fresh shower. HIGHLY RECOMMEND!! Book early :)
Just a small walk to Happy Isles, which is the start to many good hiking trails. The campground is huge and not a lot of privacy at each site. Bathrooms nearby and picnic tables at each site. Came here for a Geomorphology College Class Trip and collected research for a project about rockfall safety in the valley. From camp one can hear the sound of occasional rocks cascading down from the mountain face behind camp. Very crowded during spring and summer, book early! Such an incredible place that deserves to be kept pristine, do not forget to clean up after yourself so we may continue to share this experience with others after us.
Even tho you are practically on top of each other at this campground it’s totally worth it in my opinion just to sleep in Yosemite valley. I could have and wish we had spent a whole week here.
FYI, they are not joking about wildlife here, bear lockers are there for a reason and the animals are so comfortable and used to people they get close to camp. We were sitting at our picnic table around 9pm while there were plenty of other sites with people awake and outside and a coyote was right behind me, a few feet, searching for food. He was not threatening but it’s still worth noting their confidence.
Another note, when we road tripped thru California in October there were fire bans at every campground so bring your stoves!
It's almost impossible to get a spot at the campsites in Yosemite Valley these days, but if you do you are lucky. There are a ton of campsites here so it always seems overcrowded, but it does give off a good community vibes with lots of groups and families around. If you bring a bike you can easily get to anywhere in the Yosemite Valley in minutes without having to worry about walking a couple miles or parking your car. Several of the top hikes are within walking distance of the campsite
Close to Happy Isles and Mirror Lake/Meadow, this campground is convenient for day hikers. it's one of the better spots in Yosemite Valley, somewhat off the beaten path, so to speak. Access to the Merced river is also close-by, so you can cool off after a long day of hiking. It's no secret that this is a high-use high-traffic area, but braving the crowds is worth it to spend a few days and nights under the Yosemite sky.
Ggreat site tucked away on Northside. Can get busy.
This campground is great if you would like crowds and lots of bear activity. The views are gorgeous, the campgrounds are fairly clean and have access to many amenities such as small stores restaurants and call the touristy stuff that Yosemite Valley has to offer. This would be a great place to take your family if you are not big on roughing it. It is good for younger children and a good first exposure to the outdoors. Also, if you eat at the Hotel restaurant the squirrels get inside and run around :-).
Very busy campground in the heart of the valley. I came here after a long backpacking trip to do some light dayhiking. I was blown back by how many people were here.
Other than that it is a decent campground. It has nice bathrooms and a sink to do dishes (that was full of food and made me worried about bears). Bus stops are close by and so are several hiking trails.
Holy cow! Yosemite Valley is CROWDED. Believe everything you hear. I still recommend staying somewhere in the Valley just for the experience of it all at least once, but if you are interested in using any of the facilities, be prepared for crowds.
RV or Tent camping is the main thing here, sites are organized and packed close with a bathroom facility at the top of the loop. No showers (located at Half Dome village for $5). Close walk to the Mist Trail, The John Muir Trail, and the valley public transit system. I do not recommend driving in the Valley during the day unless you’re headed somewhere out of the valley.
Be prepared for your neighbors to have a lot of gear, with a lot going on. The City In The Woods is an apt description of the Valley floor peak season. In the end, if you’re willing to travel even just a mile beyond where the pavement ends, relative solitude can still be yours.
If you want to stay in a yurt, cabin, or other enclosed structure, look at one of the other campsites in the valley.
Book ahead for these sites, they fill up fast aspcecially during peak season. Expect to be in close quarters with others, but remember you’re in Yosemite.
Sites are moderate sized with bear locker, picnic table and fire pit. Campground has flushing toilets, sinks. Campground is close to curry village where showers, pool, market and pizza are available. Campground is near happy isles, where the trailheads for vernal falls, Nevada falls and half dome begin. Great camping spot to see Yosemite valley! Also is pet friendly.
This is a very busy campground in the Yosemite valley. It’s very close to many of the major hikes and visitor center but it is a bit cramped. It’s still incredibly beautiful and we loved every minute of it
Great location, close by many amazing hikes! Make sure to make a reservation in advance, we were lucky enough to get 2 nights but we took some of the last spots.
super big spots, with great coverage. Make sure to place everything in the bear box!
This was our first time at this campsite....loved it! It was extremely difficult to get a spot for 4 days but well worth it. Great access to the Half Dome village. There is a free shuttle to get around the valley but I recommend bringing or renting a bike to get around. Beautiful scenery and great hikes to choose from. There was a lot of wildlife to see every where. If you want to try to get an extra day, you can get on a waitlist in the village the morning of the day you need. I suggest you get there super early because people have been known to sleep in line to get a spot. No showers at the campground. Our RV easily fit into our spot and there were a lot of RVs of all sizes. The spots are pretty close to each other and there are a lot if sites at this campground. There is drinking water available at each of the restrooms. You can buy firewood and ice at the campground.
Standing at your campsite in Upper Pines at Yosemite, you can turn around and see probably 50 people, tents, cars and RVs around you at any given time. So while the sites are an okay size and there are trees everywhere, this is not a site to come for solitude or privacy. Rather, you come here for its amazing location in Yosemite Valley and to use it as a basecamp for hiking, biking, and generally exploring the area. If you want something outside of the valley with a bit more privacy, I highly recommend the Tuolumne Meadows campground instead (but again, you'll be missing out on the valley location).
Okay flush toilets and drinking water. Each site had a fire ring, bear box and picnic table and lots of s’mores going on each night. Generally a friendly vibe and decently quiet from around 11pm to 6am, which is about all you can hope for in a campground with over 200 sites. The lovely Merced river is a very short walk away and nice for a quick splash and there's a shuttle that runs frequently that stops at the camp (though walking is often quicker since the bus can fill up in the summer).
Tip: You can book Upper Pines about 5 months in advance (new blocks open up on the 15th of each month) and they often fill up within a minute or two. The official site says "within 20 minutes." So if you want to book a site for August you'll be calling first thing in the morning on March 15th.
Easy parking & plenty of space to spread out. Dog friendly! Bathrooms are clean. super close to the Half Dome and Vernal waterfall trailheads.
Amazing place worth visiting and checking off the bucket list. Cant wait to go back.
Great campsite in the middle of the valley. Great location, close to the shuttle, walking distance to hikes. Short drive to the main stores/restaurants.
We stayed here for a night after hiking Half Dome (stayed the previous 3 nights at Lower Pines and were lucky enough to get a spot here for a 4th night after our hike). Busy campground - don't expect privacy and solitude. Stay here for the location and use it as a base camp to explore the Valley; it doesn't get any easier to get around and still have a camping experience!
No showers, showers are available at nearby Half Dome Village. Convenient access to water. Bathrooms were clean. Sites were decent size and had fire pits and bear boxes for food (be sure to use them!). Open sites, little to no privacy, you will see and hear your neighbors. Expect and embrace that.
Easy access to trailheads for hiking and exploring. Rent or bring your bike if you are able - that is by far the best way to get around Yosemite Valley. I would stay here again, simply for the convenience of not having to drive/shuttle in to the Valley to hike, etc.
Tent camping in Yosemite Valley in winter is not for the faint of heart! We were actually one of just a handful of people in the whole campground crazy enough to be in a tent.
The result of the cold was that most people were in RVs. RVs unfortunately means lights and generators and the Rangers did not enforce the generator quiet hours at all.
The nice thing about visiting Yosemite Valley in the winter is that it’s relatively less crowded. It’s still Yosemite and there will be lines for parking and at the more popular places to visit and eat, but nothing like the summer. Roads, pathways, and trails can get very icy, so come prepared.
Considering it’s Yosemite Valley, the sites were actually reasonably far apart. Not so much side to side, but front to back there was a decent amount of space. Behind us was a pretty big open area between our loop and the next.
Upper Pines is close enough to the road and nearby trails that you can easily access the Valley Loop Trail, JMT/Mist Trail, and Mirror Lake Loop trail from the campground.
Yosemite Valley is one of the most spectacular places I have had the pleasure of seeing on this planet and thankfully that’s the case because otherwise the throngs of people would not be worth the trip. Everyone should visit Yosemite Valley at least once in their lifetimes and camping at Upper Pines is a good way to enjoy the valley.
We brought our little Cricket trailer here in August, and I'd say that you stay here just for the location. So centrally located, you can get to basically everything quickly. But it is SO crowded, the bathrooms are sorta meh, and the squirrels are INSANE. Seriously, they're like aggressive ninjas. They WILL steal your stuff.
You go here to enjoy the stuff in Yosemite, you don't go here for the ambiance.
probably the most crowded campgrounds i've ever been to. felt more like an refugee camp as i could literally hear full on conversations from my neighbors. only upside is you are in yosemite valley. bring a bike, you can thank me later.
With Yosemite being one of the BUSIEST campgrounds in California it took over a year and a half to reserve a campground where we could reserve 4 consecutive sites for 4 RVs to camp together. It was absolutely wonderful and worth it. This is a great location if you are interested in the river as well as the numerous hiking trails within the park. Though anywhere you camp if you have your vehicle with you, you can always drive and find parking within the park itself to camp in. It is VERY EXPENSIVE to camp here as well. You have a fee just to get in as the park as well as fees for the campsite and additional vehicles as well. After being fee-ed to death we had a wonderful camping experience! You really have hundreds of options for things to do, places to hike, things to see and experience or you can just chill at your campsite and enjoy what you can with nature. I personally prefer less crowds however I do recommend people camp in any of the Yosemite campgrounds at least once in their lifetime. The stores can get kinda pricy and it takes a bit to truck things in I get that. I loved the end of summer camping however some of the smaller rivers and streams are snowmelt fed so they can get pretty dry. It gets pretty cold... no matter the time of year so please plan accordingly.
Yosemite Falls access and rafting on the Merced are the two big draws to this campground. This is one of the most popular parks in the world, so expect lots of people. It's hard to make a reservation; so you'll have to work pretty hard to get a spot. Go to www.recreation.gov and search for Upper Pines for more info. The campground is well-equipped and close to lots of great Yosemite attractions, and there is bus service throughout the park so you can visit the museum and the largest tree, etc.
If you are lucky enough to snag a reservation ahead of time, then this campground is a great way to enjoy Yosemite. Walking/biking distance to Half Dome Village (formerly Curry Village). Easy access to bathrooms, dumpster, recycling from all campsites. The downsides of this campground is its popularity, but that's the same for any of the camping in Yosemite. The individual sites are all pretty close to each other. Once it hits 7-8 am, your many neighbors will make it hard to sleep any later. You do need to take the animal-protective food regulations seriously, throughout Yosemite. Upper Pines food storage boxes are plenty late, so use them! Both times I've stayed here there were bears that wandered through on one of the nights
Upper Pines Campground in the Yosemite Valley is my home away from home for one week every year.
Pros: Nice shady campgrounds Proximity to Curry Village Close to tons of great hikes Flushable toilets that are pretty clean Overall beautiful campground
Cons: Extremely difficult to get a reservation even if you go on the day it opens Has become more and more crowded every year
Regardless Upper Pines will always be a favorite campground in one of the kost beautiful places in CA.
Upper Pines is very relaxing and has a great family vibe to it. I would recommend this to any camper, whether an avid camper or a first timer. I love how the campground is so close to all of the major trails in the valley.
This is my third time here and wont be my last. This campground is one of the popular one and I recommend making reservations for you or your group weeks ahead. the site here is 26 dollars a night which is on the more expensive side but is totally worth it. The sites here are back to back so you are very close to your neighbors. Each site comes with a fire ring table and a bear box. At night it is a must you put your scented items in there. Most people don't know but toothbrush, toothpaste, deodorant and water bottles can attract bears so you should put it in there. The restroom is fairly clean but some times it runs out of toilet paper like I experienced my first time here. Some people stay here for weeks at a time so they can explore the entire Park. This site is a must come if you have never been to Yosemite before.
I guess that's the trade in when you go somewhere so established as one of the most beautiful places in the U.S. They have everything you need, firepit, table, food storage bit we were basically camping with two other families because they were so close. The hiking I'm the park is incredible bit do your research as we didn't know that some of the trails require permits. We did the Upper Yosemite Falls trail it was very difficult but extremely rewarding.
