Wawona Campground — Yosemite National Park

This campsite is highly recommended by me. With my family, I may come here and play games geometry dash lite. Both reserved and first-come, first-served campsites are available at the campground.

Not a fan of this place, had to pay 35$ upon entry to yosemite park and then another 28$ to stay at the only open camp ground?! Or $175 to stay at one of the hotels/cabins they had.

I really recommend this campground. I can come here and play online games with my family. The campground offers both reservable and first-come, first-served campsites. The sites are relatively spacious and provide a mix of shade and sun. Each campsite typically includes a fire ring, picnic table, and food storage locker. It provides basic amenities such as restrooms with flushing toilets and drinking water. However, it does not offer showers or hookups for RVs. There are no electrical or water connections at individual campsites. The campground's location provides access to various outdoor activities. Nearby attractions include the Mariposa Grove, where you can explore giant sequoias, and the Wawona Golf Course. Additionally, there are hiking trails, scenic drives, and opportunities for wildlife viewing in the area.

Our campsite was right in front of the river! We had a very large 10person tent that fit well, not sure if we could’ve fit a second tent in but it was all the space we needed. Separated from neighboring sites by trees and quite a distance. Short walk to the bathrooms and amphitheater. We brought some river tubes, walked upstream a bit to tube through the mini streams. We accidentally left our bear box open while down in the river and the ranger nicely let us know. Very quiet and peaceful. You wouldn’t really notice other people were there unless you looked around. Quite a drive to the valley so you do have a to plan a bit ahead, we went to the valley for half the day in the morning for a hike and stayed at the campsite for the rest of the afternoon. The river water felt extremely clean to take a dip in since there are no showers.

Having camped in several campgrounds in Yosemite, Wawona Campground is truly lovely. Looks can be deceiving - and when you drive past this campground it looks like it’s got very little shade and is right on the road. But wait! That is only A loop . . . try for a site in B or C loops (invisible to the road, which means lots less road noise, too) for Oak and Pine shaded campsites that have lovely views of the Merced River.

I had 53C and the site had a partial shade, flat grounds, and it was right by the river! I didn’t go swimming but the family next to my site seemed like they were enjoying the river, especially the little ones. At night, the river provided white noise and I had no problem falling asleep!

Somewhat close to the valley, as it took me around 40 minutes to Tunnel view. Had at&t and had absolutely no service. There are two general store close by.

Beautiful and clean campsite right in the Merced river. Perfect for swimming or fishing when it’s warm out and close to hiking trails and a store.

Reserved the site on-line and later discovered it would not acccommodate a trailer larger than 12'.  Upon arriving I discovered the site was not a back-in; but, was alongside the loop road bounded by boulders.  No problem with pulling my 19' trailer in towed by a large SUV. Whew.

The rangers were awesome with information and wanting to make our stay memorable.

This was a very quiet spot. During our 6 night stay we never had more than one other site used in the entire loop.  It was probably due to the restriction of "only self contained RV's" being allowed during the bathroom reconstructions this year.

A couple of notes:

There IS a dump station down the road in Wawona.  Take a left before the bridge.  Go to the end and it's hidden on the left side.

My Verizon hot spot worked great here - even for streaming

Booked Loop B site 36 - on-line said it wouldn't take a trailer larger than 12'.  1st - it isn't a 'back-in site.  You pull in along the roadside bounded by boulders for your site.  I pulled in with my 19' trailer, towed by a large SUV without a problem.

We were here six nights and never had more than one other trailer in the entire loop.

Yes - right now you have to be fully self contained because the rest rooms are under renovation.  That was no problem for us.

Although I haven't seen reviews specify a dump site, Wawona has one.  It's on the way to town - left turn before the bridge and head to the end of the short road hidden on the left.

Much to our surprise my Verizon hot spot worked fine - even for streaming.

Oh - the Rangers were MORE than helpful.

If this is your first time in Yosemite (as it was ours) the speed limit of 35mph is real.  Pulling a rig any faster on some of this curves would be crazy - and the number one cause of bear deaths in the park is the automobile......just sayin

Well if you want to pay $26 for a very weedy, sun only lot, crammed amongst many RV’s with no toilet and no water, here is your place to camp. First time to Yosemite. We were very overwhelmed with all the rules, all the people, and the limited information the Rangers gave you while entering the park. We have seen a lot of National Parks and although it is during times of COVID and the I side of the park is gorgeous, we will hesitate to come back. :(

Loved this campground.  At first, when booking, I was upset I wasn't able to get a site in the Valley area.  After arriving to Yosemite I couldn't be more thrilled to have stayed at Wawona.

Yes, it is a bit of a drive to get to the valley but the drive is beautiful when it is not jammed packed with cars.

I booked site 34 located in loop B.  It's a small site and it is slopped but there is a nice level spot for a smaller tent.

Had decent trees to break up the space between campsites.  With 34 you only have one campsite next to you.  The river is in clear view and a very short walk to get to it.

If you have seen any of my other reviews you will see, I'm all about the fishing so most of my sites, if possible, will be along rivers/streams/creeks.

Each site had a bear box, picnic table and fire ring.  Flush toilets and running water to fill up your containers.  

Even though the campground was filled, you wouldn't have known it.  Very quiet and peaceful.  Some sites are closer to the road and I'm sure have road noise.  34 the only noise was the babbling river.

I like the place. Specially in the night. I like the way they have safety things.

We have stayed at Wawona a few times. We only stay there if we have not reserved a site in advance. You can visit the camp office and see if they have any openings the day of your arrival. It is close to the road so there is some noise from it. The river runs close to the campground. It is about one hour from Yosemite Valley.

It’s in Wawona where I discovered my love of the outdoors. It’s close enough to the valley for a day trip down there. There is so much to do in Wawona too though! It’s also really close to the Redwoods. It is a prime spot for a Yosemite trip.

Booking a site in Yosemite valley can be difficult because it’s so busy and popular. Wawona is a great way to stay in the park and get the Yosemite experience. We set up camp and then drove about 40 minutes to Glacier point for sunset. The drive is amazing so its no bother leaving the site for such a breath taking view.

Visited in May last year. Campground was very empty when we camped. Nice location along the Merced River. Campsites have tree cover but aren’t super private. Bathrooms are primitive, but in good condition. Provides good access to Yosemite Valley and Glacier Point. Use bear boxes, bears were active in the area while we visited.

The campsites are lovely with some privacy. The bathrooms are adequate. Everyone seems to stay up late and wake early to enjoy the park. Be prepared for some traffic and long drives to places within the park. The bear lockers are easy to use and convenient. Ultimately, it is stunning!

Wawona has been our yearly family vacation destination since I was a kid. We never grow tire of it! The river and swimming holes are close by and accessible to all, sites have ample space between each other, there are clean restrooms, and all sites have their own bear box. There's a local store nearby in case you need to pick up something. The road to the valley from Wawona is windy, I'd say about 45 minutes. It's a nice play to stay away from the Yosemite crowds and we'll keep coming back year-after-year.

This campground is a nice jumping off spot for lots of the fun stuff to do around Wawona. Jump in the creek for a swim or walk across the road and check out the covered bridge and barn around the pioneer history center. Swimming holes all up and down those creeks. In high tourist season it is worth stopping at Wawona hotel and having a drink and listening to the Piano player in the eve.

Yosemite is one of my very favorite places in The world, but I have yet to camp in Yosemite Valley. One, the valley campgrounds fill up IMMEDIATELY when registration opens in March of each year, and two, I do prefer to be in quieter campgrounds with more space in and between sites. Wawona is within the gates of Yosemite National Park, and is about 25 minutes away from the valley floor - it’s not too far of a drive, but it’s on the windy mountainous Highway 41 into Yosemite.

Wawona is located next to the Merced River, so I chose a riverside campsite. The river was by no means at the heels of the site, but it was less than 50 yards away at the time we were there, and we were there in drought conditions.

Wawona has nice clean bathrooms and we had our own bear bin in our campsite. Camping amongst the trees and next to the Merced was gorgeous and peaceful, and I recommend it it anyone who does not want to camp like sardines in the Yosemite Valley.

CAUTION: be extremely aware of bears while camping in Yosemite National Park! Each campsite in Wawona has a bear bin - USE YOUR BEAR BIN! Bears are known to break into cars to snack from coolers or any food or toiletries are left out. The bear bins are quite large, so coolers do fit inside - bears can still smell food in coolers inside of cars, and apparently recognize a cooler when they peak into your car windows. If you have to leave your cooler in the car, it is suggested that you cover it up with towels or gear to hide it from site. On the same note, do not leave any of your toiletries or snacks inside the tent with you. In general it seems that the rangers seem to have good control over the bears that have been tagged and are constantly monitored, but not all bears are tagged, and even the tagged bears will make their way into Yosemite campgrounds. Be smart and safe in bear country!

CAMPSITE SPECS

Fees: $26/night peak ($18/night non-peak)

Plumbed Toilets: Yes

Drinking Water: Yes

Showers: No

Picnic Table: Yes

Firepit: Yes

Cooking Grate: Yes

Shade: Yes

Cell Service: No

Animal Bins/Food lockers: Yes

Trash: Yes

Love this campground! Large, well kept campground that has the beautiful Merced river running along side of it. The campsites (particularly those in loop C) are pretty large, with adequate space between them so that you don’t feel crowded, unlike the campsites in the campgrounds in Yosemite Valley. Many of the campsites in loop C have river views. The campground is generally pretty quiet during sleeping hours, 10 p.m. - 7 a.m.

As with all the other other campgrounds in Yosemite, there are no showers. You have to go to housekeeping near Half Dome Village in the Valley for access to showers, or bring a solar shower with a water catch basin to stand in (no dirty/soapy water is allowed to seep into the ground or river). However, the bathrooms do have flush toilets. Each campsite allows parking for two cars and the campground has some free overflow parking spots as well if you have an extra car. Many of the sites are large enough accommodate several tents. The bear boxes are large enough for at least two full size coolers and some bags of food and toiletries. All food, drinks (except water) and toiletries must go in the bear box. So if you have more than a couple of people, you may want to coordinate and plan out the food that you bring to make sure it will all fit in the bear box.

About a mile away is a general store and gas station, which is great for stocking up on ice and snacks. Cell service is very limited at the campground, but if you can’t unplug for your entire trip, the Wawona library is about a mile away (turn right out of the campground, then turn left on Chilnualna Falls Rd. and it’s a good ways down the road) and it has free, unsecured Wi-Fi. Yosemite Valley also has decent cell service.

It is about a 40 minute scenic drive to Yosemite Valley, but the campground is close to the Giant Sequoias, so there are still nearby scenic hiking options. Plus, Glacier Point Road is on the way back (along highway 41) to the campground from the Valley, which is perfect for a trip up to Glacier Point for awesome sunset views of Half Dome and some waterfalls. Just be sure to get there at least an hour or more before sunset (especially on weekends) as there may be a line for parking.

Unlike the valley floor campgrounds, you can usually still get a campsite at this campground, even if you are not clicking reserve on the reservation website at exactly 7:00 a.m.

I really enjoy this campground and will definitely go back!

I spent the end of my summer here last year and it was my best memory of the whole summer. Yosemite is a total dream. All of the photos and videos you see of Yosemite don’t even compare to seeing it in person. It is heaven on earth. Though Yosemite is quite busy, it is still an incredible place.

We did half dome while there, one of the most famous hikes there is in the park. It did not disappoint. We started at 6am and finished at 5pm. It was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done but also one of the most rewarding. Yosemite has all the things you need as well. A grocery store, cabins, Ansel Adams’ gallery. The waterfalls are magnificent. It is also wheelchair acceable! We didn’t need this, but it warms my heart to know every human can experience such beauty of nature.

Go to Yosemite!!

We camped in mid-April and had both a bit of snow and springtime weather. The campground is spacious and pull through campsite clean, pretty level, and right along the river. Wawona has an interesting historical area and a not to miss waterfall that is a nice hike and just lovely. Because it is set back, there aren’t the crowds as in the village. Wawona is a nice drive away from the Village and other must visit sites.

Good restrooms nearby, no showers but there is a creek nearby. Great location away from crowded places. Bring bug repellent. Mosquitoes were having a feast. Drove to camp site.

This campground is awesome! Right by the river with bathrooms and water access. Lots of families come to this campground. RV accessible also! It’s about 10 miles from the park entrance and about 30 min from the valley. Book in advance to reserve your spot

we arrived late to campground, but they had a sign posted that told us everything we needed to know, so that we could check in in the morning. The park ranger that we met in the morning was super nice and gave us a map of the Yosemite Valley. We took advantage of that and ended up going to the Yosemite Valley Lodge and caught some awesome views and some nice hikes. My favorite part about the campground was the nice cold refreshing stream that flowed right through our campground. did offered a peaceful lullaby as we drifted to sleep. I highly recommend this Campground!

#37 awesome creekside. water spigot close. bathrooms slight walk. slight slant. bring bug spray!

Well-maintained, fire-pit at each site. Group camping available. Love that the site is by a stream for some white noise. One of the bathroom facilities was out of order during my visit, so there were porto-johns. The bathroom facility closest to my campsite was working, but did not have light ("solar-powered") at night. Not many trees for hammocking in Loop A. Location is out of the way since we didn't go to the valley but was headed to Tioga Road.

Beautiful Campground along the river. it's about 16 miles from Yosemite Valley and not as crowded as Yosemite Valley campgrounds.

We reserved this campground for the July 4 weekend and it was a wonderful place to stay. It was really warm, so we brought tubes and escaped to the river. Note that it's about a 50-min drive from the Valley, which isn't horrible.