Looking for an adventure where you can explore Monticello and then fall asleep in your tent? Find the best information on tent campgrounds near Monticello, including sites, reviews, and tips. You're sure to find the perfect tent campsite for your Utah camping adventure.
11 Miles south of Moab, free dispersed sites along Yellow Circle Road. BLM signage designates the area within which you can camp. Many RVs and tent sites. Good for 2wd.
$30 / night
A scenic expanse of desert grasses and shrubs surrounded by sandstone spires.
Mountain bikers and four-wheel drivers must stay on designated roads and camp in designated sites.
Backpackers in heavily traveled areas, primarily at The Needles, stay in designated campsites. Most backpackers at Island in the Sky or The Maze stay in at-large zones and may choose their own campsites.
Where are the sites and zones?
Each district of the park has its own map of roads and trails which shows campsites and zones.
$36 / night
$30 / night
Backpacking at The Needles
The Needles is the most popular backpacking destination in the park. You can access most trailheads with a two-wheel-drive vehicle. You may find water seasonally in many of the canyons east of Chesler Park.
Permits are required for all overnight trips into the backcountry. During the spring and fall, demand for permits is very high. If you plan to visit Canyonlands during peak season—especially during spring break (March)—you may have to make a reservation four months in advance.
Most backpackers stay at designated campsites in The Needles. All of these campsites require campers to carry out all solid human waste in a commercial human waste disposal bag. In areas where there are no established campsites, backpackers can reserve a permit for an at-large zone. Campsites in the Salt Creek area require the use of approved hard-sided food storage containers (e.g. bear canisters).
Ranger
Sand Flats Recreation Area near Moab, Utah, is a playground for outdoor enthusiasts, offering unmatched access to world-class trails like the famous Slickrock Bike Trail and stunning desert scenery. The campsites are well-spaced and boast incredible views of red rock formations, making it a great spot for those seeking adventure and rugged beauty.
The campground’s location is unbeatable if you’re here to bike, hike, or off-road, with trails starting right from your campsite. The simple facilities, including vault toilets and picnic tables, are well-maintained. However, this is true desert camping, so don’t expect shade or luxuries like water hookups—you’ll need to come prepared.
One downside is the summer heat. Even at night, the temperatures remain uncomfortably warm, making it difficult to cool down or sleep well during peak summer months. A portable fan or extra water for cooling off is highly recommended if you visit in the heat of the season.
That said, the experience of camping under the stars in such an iconic landscape is hard to beat. If you can plan your trip during the cooler months, Sand Flats Recreation Area is an unforgettable destination for outdoor exploration.
Scout
Spending the night on the rim of canyonlands national park— Definitely one of the most magical experiences of my life setting our tents up during sunset and waking up during sunrise overlooking the vast canyon!
Scout
This campsite was easy to access. Had an amazing view and clean facilities. We would stay there again if we’re in the area.
Guide
Off hwy 191 and very quiet. Level pads with room to stretch. Wi fi was ok and good cellular signal. Bathrooms are heated with nice showers with plenty of hot water. During our stay, we noticed dirt on the shower dressing area. I'm not sure if it from people tracking it in or the cleaner not mopping properly. It was a minor problem. Host was friendly and helpful. Yes there are many full-time campers, but the rigs are in good shape, and the folks are quiet. Price is good for Moab and we would stay again.
Traveler
Easy spot to get to, paved road most of the way. Watch out for deer if you’re driving in the evening, we saw lots of them. The pull in spot had one other truck and trailer when we arrived and we had room to turn our rig and towed vehicle around to get the mountainside view. Little muddy in spots. Very quiet.
Scout
Check in after hours is great. Nice bathrooms. Fast WiFi.
TravelerStayed one night in early Oct 24 before making my way into Canyonlands NP on a Sunday night. Absolutely stunning campground. Probably one of the most gorgeous sites I've stayed at. It wasn't too hard to get into or anything on the road and seemed to have tons of sites.
The big BUT is that there was a lot of toiletry waste around the area tho and when it became nighttime tons of people started coming in and that place echos. Please leave no trace, it's such a gorgeous place.
Traveler
We stayed here during hunting season, noticeable amount of noise in the very early hours of the morning due to this. On a clear night you can see an amazing amount of stars!
ScoutA very nicely designed and maintained campground right in Moab. They have a North & a South site—we stayed in the South camp. The facilities/comfort stations are clean, have been updated over time, and everything works well. The showers were hot and stayed hot for a proper hot shower after a long day. Electrical outlets at every sink for the more domesticated campers. The sites varied in size, so be sure to ask about “fit” for your rig or tent. The several tent sites are located along the back side. There is a Carwash just over a creek/ravine behind that side and you can hear it working all day, but it stops around dinner time. There is also a highway nearby and the traffic is a bit noisy, but traffic pretty much stops around 9-10pm and doesn’t get noisy again until around 8 am. The campground is close to everything in Moab, so you can hardly get a more convenient location. Arches is just out of town to the North, so travel there is a breeze.
Traveler
A meticulously maintained park with lots of room, some shady trees, and level sites. Views of the beautiful red cliffs.
Guide
Flat space, but crowded (already a bunch of RVs, vans and even a semi). Unfortunately, when we found a spot the fire pit was filled with glass beer bottles and trash and the whole area smelled gross. Also, pretty shady and not ideal for solar. We didn’t stay
Guide
Rough road, 2WD is fine. Flatter spaces, good for RVs, are farther back. Only stayed one night because organizers of some Mad Moose race kicked us out to prep (we drove in the dark and missed any signs). Seems like a popular event space, so probably a good idea to check for happenings in advance (and plan ample time for prep!)
Traveler
Cute clean little park out of the way of the Moab crowds. Great stop over in that long stretch of 191.
Guide
Just stayed one night but the site/roads had been recently repaved and park was being updated. Tall pines, good hiking and quiet surroundings made for a good overnight stay.
Guide
Spent (2) wonderful nights under the moon and stars. One of my favorite campgrounds within the NP system. I stayed in Site 20 Loop B. Trash and Vault toilet nearby. Deep sink for drinking water and dishwashing a few minutes away.
No cell service. Wifi at Visitor Center (8 min. drive from Loop B). Friendly staff and volunteer rangers. Fire pit/grille and picnic table. Looking forward to the next stay.
Ranger
Stayed night of 4/21, all single sites FCFS but we found a space arriving around 1230 on a Friday (space 4, $20). Clean restrooms and followed well kept dirt road to Needles Overlook and took a few walks. You can also drive even further to Hatch Point Campground (we did not stay there but it looks well kept, clean, exposed, QUIET, & definitely isolated at Hatch with views similar to Dead Horse SP north of Moab). At Windwhistle it was mostly RVs but very quiet, no one using generators excessively. Was hoping for a clear sky but mostly overcast. Low around 38. Beautiful sky.
Other stuff in area includes Newspaper Rock and Natural Bridges, Grand Gulch.…not to mention Moab, La Sal mountains, etc.
We have never had WiFi nor cell service there.
Food aside: Made quesadillas with green chile tortillas, cheese, and some jerky.
Ranger
Stayed in site 52 which had a lovely view to the east and LaSals. Most sites on this side of Wingate campground are pretty good. Flush toilets are very good but has to be brought in by truck. Temps were in the 20s (we think) and it was quite cold, even with the electric plugged in and heater set at upper 50s. Beautiful sky views. Nice trail around the rim of Dead Horse Point (looks a bit like Grand Canyon)
Food aside: Had freeze-dried Asian noodles, added beef jerky and was spicy HOT & had high FQ (fart quotient). Also ate freeze-dried bone broth rice with added turkey jerky, and beef noodles meal and both were quite good.
Kayenta campground is also nice with trees and the shelters have cabinets and overhead lights. Also seem like vegetation is plentiful, offering privacy between sites. Checked out the campgrounds in Canyonlands- FC/FS and the sites appear level. There are 12 sitesv(one is handicap only) and 2 vault toilets. Also looked at Cowboy Campground, 7 sites that are mostly level, a vault toilet, FC/FS but appears pretty nice, easy access from road and good views. Also looked at Horsethief which has 50+ FC/FS sites that are mostly level. Plenty of vault toilets. Road in is dirt and was fairly rutted but passable with van.
Traveler
Long dirt road with tons of large pull offs. Many group site areas near the bottom were full. I drove a bit further up and pulled into a small dirt cul de sac and set up my tent. Made it up in my 2WD sedan, but it was bone dry. Lots of exposed rocks in the road, so drove slowly. Good spot near Moab after hiking in Arches!
ScoutFirst time camping here! Rolled up during the day and it was quiet with breath taking views of the canyon. Set up camp and once night fall came so did all the off roaders (who seemed young) rolling up to our campsite trying to find a place to camp. This went on until almost 12am. This must be a really popular and well visited disperse camping. Great place to camp if you don’t mind people camping on top of you.
Guide
We loved staying here. Very remote but just minutes to Canyonlands Needles Visitor Center. Other people around but quiet and well kept. Views are anazing. The owners are really nice and I had a great milkshake. Highly recommend this campground.
TravelerVery nice RV park. They have done alot of improvements so everything is clean and new. All pull through sites, level sites, a new bath house with large showers and laundry facilities. The only complaint is that there is not much shade, but they have planted trees, so are trying. The manager/caretaker is busy everyday working on keeping the property nice & in good working condition. Very nice and accommodating. We would definitely stay again.
GuideQuiet spot. Plenty of spots on a Saturday afternoon. Metal picnic tables, fire pits, paved parking spots.
Traveler
Very well maintained campground. Stayed in tent. Bathroom and shower new and very clean. Excellent views.
Traveler
We were unable to find any open spots at Comb Wash Campground on the south side of the road. And the spot we found on the north side was full of sticker weeds. Yuck. Ain't nobody got time for that. So we headed up the road toward blanding until we saw a camping sign and drove a short ways up the road and found a turn out.
This is basically a convergence of several old roads. It was rather dusty/sandy. But grasses rather than sticker weeds. Cottonwood trees are in the wash below the spot. It was big enough that several vehicles could easily share this spot. A larger RV *might* do OK pulling in here.
I've checked and it is BLM land, part of the Bear's Ears National Monument. Their general rule is to allow dispersed camping off of any existing road within the monument area. Additional spots are definitely available off this road or its shoot-offs.
This is a great, secluded spot. The only reason for the 4 stars is that it isn't really a room with a view sort of location.
GuideThe area for camping is surrounded by hills & mountains so its actually pretty quiet even though its not terribly far off the road. You also cant see the road because of the hills. There were a few other people there but not too busy, close to Moab which was great as it allowed us to get to arches in the morning before the 7AM cutoff for timed entry.
Guide
Hovenweep is a national monument with small but modern quiet campgrounds. The dark skies for amazing stars are spectacular. While they do not have showers, their bathrooms were clean and convenient to the loop of campsites. It was quiet and the rangers were friendly and warm. The Hovenweep monument archeological treasures are well worth scheduling a few hours to hike and visit. There are several ancient structures on the site (a small canyon) and the hikes are short and sooooo worth doing.
Traveler
We went to Buckeye with six families and somewhere between 10 and 12 kids(The oldest being Nine years old) to celebrate one of the kiddo's 7th birthday. We camped at the group site, which was a big enough place for all of us. We had a mix of camp setups- including a Class B RV, a pop, a hybrid travel trailer, and three or four tents. There was a large common area with plenty of built-in picnic tables and a very large fire pit. All for only$50 a night! The lake was beautiful, and we fished, Sup’d, and swam in the refreshingly cold water.
There are some monster Rainbow Trout in the lake, and we had fun catching a few with the kids on fly rods, but there were a lot of other campers having good luck with spinner rods. The area also has a good mountain bike trail that us adults enjoyed. The Mtn bike ride starts and ends from the campground, taking you across the border into Utah and then swings back towards CO on a ridge that offers an incredible panorama of the lake and red rock cliffs. The trail is primarily double-track, and we bumped into a few ATVs along the way.
Overall, if you’re going with a large group, you 100% should book the group site, which is also separated from all the other single campsites.
We’ll be back! Buckeye is about a 2.5-hour drive from Telluride, where our group lives, and a 1.5-hour drive from Moab, UT.
Lastly, if you're looking to stay connected, there is no cell service or wifi(I have Verizon), although when we rode our bikes to the top of the ridge, I got two bars. You can also drive to the top of the hill in an offroad-capable vehicle if you need to make a call.
Tent camping near Monticello, Utah, offers a unique blend of stunning landscapes and outdoor adventures, perfect for nature enthusiasts looking to escape the hustle and bustle of everyday life.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is the most popular tent campsite near Monticello, UT?
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular tent campground near Monticello, UT is Yellow Circle Road Dispersed Camping Area with a 4.4-star rating from 28 reviews.
What is the best site to find tent camping near Monticello, UT?
TheDyrt.com has all 38 tent camping locations near Monticello, UT, with real photos and reviews from campers.
