Get out there, experience America, and bring home a story!
The Recreation.gov mobile app is your on-the-go solution for reserving thousands of incredible camping destinations. Return to your favorite spot or discover a new one by searching for the campsite that’s right for you.
The Recreation.gov app helps you find and book campsites and experiences, review location details for your trip, and quickly access information on existing reservations from almost anywhere.
Features:
• Search unique campgrounds and individual campsites across the country
• Discover personalized recommendations based on your location
• Filter search results by what’s important to you and your trip (price, amenities, site type, and more)
• View photos and maps of campgrounds and campsites
• Seamlessly switch between interactive maps and search results
• Check real-time availability and location information for individual sites
• Pay for select campsites and activities on the spot by scanning a QR code
• Learn about passes and tickets that get you into your favorite spots
• Review important details on activities, attractions, and experiences for your next trip
• Conveniently access your account information and all your reservations
• Find tickets, tours, and permits for amazing activities
• Access your digital tickets for a smooth check-in
Whether you’re booking a weekend getaway or planning your next cross-country road trip, federal recreation activities and outdoor adventures start with Recreation.gov.
Great app. Very easy to navigate and use. One thing to note that’s not stated obviously is that you can’t alter a reservation starting on the first date of the reservation, even if it hasn’t started yet (for example, when check in is in the afternoon). Would love to see this change so that reservation can be altered for any remaining time. For example, if you need to leave early or add people. Otherwise no complaints.
The app is so much better than it used to be. Still a few improvements to be made, mostly to getting campsite locations right on the campground maps, which tend to be inaccurate. And to showing Partially Available sites, which for some reason show no availability once you try to reserve (or modify dates). So, one star to grow. But otherwise a great app experience!
It could be better. The main issue is you can “Favorites” a place in the browser but, unless you tap on the “Map”, they won’t show in the favorites list in the app. Fortunately, all of your “Favorites” list names will show in both. I’ll change my review once this is fixed but I may forget, though.
It is a good and convenient application, but like all apps it has it’s kinks. My only issue keeping me from rating this app higher is the reservation of campsites. You find your park, pick your dates and then go to check out only to be redirect to the checkout page where you have to redo the picking of dates all over again. It’s very redundant and sometimes the dates you originally picked are suddenly not available or only partially available.
Update: thank you for following up and fixing the issue. It now works as great as it was before the issue. Black screen when clicking on sites. It has been like this for 2 weeks. This is on both mine and my husband’s android phones. The only way I can get onto a page that opens is if I go to contact us, scroll down to the recreation.gov link. Then it opens a page normally. If I have to leave the app for whatever reason, and go back in. I have to start all over. This app is usually excellent.
The good: the app looks nice and clean. There’s good information on the pages and it’s pretty organized. It’s pretty straightforward and intuitive to use. The bad: I needed to use this to get Zion shuttle tickets, which are notorious for selling out quickly. This app will show dates with avails but then as soon as you select the date, it’ll say unavailable. I know this isn’t a case of me just being too slow, because I double-checked on my computer and was able to get tickets there. Woof.
I used to use the website for campground research/reservations exclusively. I recently decided to search to see if there was an app for Recreation.gov, and it’s become my go-to. It’s too convenient to be able to make reservations, check availability, and look at pictures of sites on my phone anywhere, anytime. I’ve yet to run into any issues and find the interface user experience cleaner and more intuitive than the actual website. Here’s to many more camping reservations in the future!
The website is great for doing research – a one-stop shop across all sites. But, it can get glitchy every now and then. With this last update, when clicking on a campground I’d been researching, it kept pushing me to a neighboring campground. I tried a different campground that is associated with the other 2 sites, and *boop* back to the campground i didn’t want again. Every now and again, it will freeze. If you shut it down and bring it back up again, it will be fine. Overall, I enjoy it.
I had a really hard time using the app because it requires you to do way more manual work, that they could have just automated with the app. The experience should be that I tell the app which dates i want to camp, and it presents my options. But instead, I have to individually check specific dates and mix and match available campsites. So they kind of half did their job. Additionally, there is a reservation fee and cancellation fee. When we started camping in thr US we couldn’t understand why so many campsites were reserved, but no one showed up. Tons of empty sites at the peak of summertime. I suspect it’s because of the cancellation fee. Why would one cancel, when the fees to do so would just cost more? I lose money, just by trying to be a good person.
I love that I can make reservations for multiple states, private or state owned campgrounds in one app! I also love that there is a picture of the sites so I know if it will suit my needs. The only thing that stops me from giving 5 stars is that I wish the map and search mechanic was a little easier to use, it doesn’t necessarily let you search a specific campground name which is slightly frustrating but I enjoy this app regardless!!
This app is very easy to use. The app is fun to explore different parks and facilities, and it has pictures so you can see each space before you admit to the site. The only thing that we would LOVE for the site to change is if you could add a FAVORITE list of sites when you are signed in to your acct. It would be so much quicker and easier to hopefully be able to return to your favorite space site, if available.
No problems making reservations but then I’m not fighting for permits or reservations at overused and overcrowded places. There are many, many campgrounds that do not turn up in a search (even though they are listed on the individual pages for a specific forest and are currently open,) and no apparent way to add information-even the name, location and pics- for a “missing” place. Disappointing.
Poorly written app. Very confusing to use especially if you already have a pass like lifetime senior pass. For instance the full fee option is shown which you first click on and then you have to click on “Select Pass” to apply your pass and then when you check out the pass is applied to the final price. Also it first shows that the pass is only good for 60 minutes from the reservation time and you aren’t even given the option to select the entry time!!! It’s actually good remainder of day!
Updated the app. Now when I search a state on the app it says no results. Before I could look at a state and see all parks. Now all I see is a map of the entire world and when I zoom in it doesn’t show any campgrounds. I am using a android phone. Very disappointed. Worked great a few weeks ago. Thank you for fixing the app. The search area or by state is working again.
Visually spectacular and great in theory, but in practice the app is so buggy that it is unusable. It is incredibly slow, freezes often, and force shuts. If the bugs are fixed, the app will be a top notch and convenient way to find cheap public campgrounds that are almost all on beautiful public lands. Until then, the app is a disaster and embarrassment.
You check the box to save your payment info, but still have to enter all of it every time. You save your discount card info in your account, but still have to enter it every time. I see no benefit to the app over the website, and the app just takes up storage room on my phone. It could be a very helpful app with a bit more development, but as it is, it’s not that useful.
Updated yesterday now it goes black and freezes. Not the first time an update has failed. Really tired of it! Two weeks later and at least 3 updates installed, Still Doesn’t Work! This Developer is really amazing!! One year later, now the App says I have no reservations and won’t let me log in to my account. Website login works fine and all my reservations show up. Worst App I’ve ever tried to use.
Needs lots of work. We have had 3 reservations removed. After the first time, we take pics of the app and email confirmations. We were allowed to make reservations at a park that was closed and another at site that was not available. We have discounts available we would like to save to our profile so we don’t have to pay regular rates up front and then get a refund, if we find an attendant. Not all bad experiences, hence the 3 rating. We are fulltime and have many wonderful experiences.
Absolutely the worst application I’ve ever used. It doesn’t matter though because it’s the only option for mandatory reservations at national parks. I’ve used for multiple parks and getting to check out is extremely buggy and one has to figure out lengthy work arounds and edits simply to pay. My recommendation is to start a new app from scratch, make sure it works and replace this garbage asap.
Surprisingly good app to reserve campgrounds. I have the lowest expectations for government programs, but as we travel the country and stay at many private and corporate RV parks, I’ve gotta say Recreaction.gov is my favorite app. I’ve had zero issues and always hope I can find a place to stay as we travel here, because it’s that much cheaper and easier to use.
Extremely poor user experience. Not sure how Booz won the contract to develop this app, but I’m very disappointed. I keep getting a JWT token expired error message. I’ve tried logging out, but the my account page will not load. It’s a blank screen. Secondly, the way in which they display availability is confusing and difficult to use. When a site is partially available, they don’t display which night is not available. You have to click around on the dates to discover which night it is.
I used to be able to select tickets and tours and see a whole list starting close to my location and moving across the U.S. Now it uses my location and only shows local places unless I request a city/state/ park, which is another step from before. I used tochoose my travel destinations from the ticket and tours list. Without seeing that list I have to search each state separately instead if scrolling through the list and then seeing the location which was much easier and less time consuming.
App is a little confusing at first and sometimes freezes up. Once you figure it out and it all works right it’s fine. I would suggest an account, may have to have one I’m not sure. Make sure you are still at the correct park and site before submitting payment. Read through everything and make sure it’s filled out or you have to redo over and over. Good luck and happy camping!
Site is excellent except for one issue I run in to a couple of times a year- the “modify reservation” does not work as it should. Because I am usually trying to extend my stay, you would presume it would just allow you to add a day or two but instead I have to start over and make a separate reservation for the additional time. Not horrible, just annoying.
Don’t Use This App! I booked a campsite and found, within 10 minutes, that it was way off the path I had planned. It costed $30 to book the campsite and they wanted to charge an additional $12 to cancel, or $10 to change the date. In 10 minutes, the fee to cancel, or change was almost 50% of the original cost to book! This App is a rip-off. Don’t waste your time, or money booking through this App. Seriously disappointed… especially in a .Gov App. Apparently .Gov=.Disappointment :o(
The app is slower then the web page. I opened the tab a day in advance, waited until 8am, kept it open without refreshing, and just tried and tried to add to cart but kept getting a message that the site was experiencing heavy traffic, although there were still plenty of tickets left. I tried the app as well, it couldnt keep up at all. I’m a Native Montanan and find this ticketing entry in addition to passes pretty repulsive. High traffic or not, this isn’t the solution. Fix it please.
As a climber, I’ve been primarily using this app to book my reservation in the Red Rock loop in advance of going climbing. I have the park pass, but with Covid, you also need to reserve a time slot to enter the park. This makes it pretty easy. Could the UX be improved? Sure. But it does the job, and it’s relatively easy to use.
Enjoy being able to book camping trips via the app. If only it didn’t have so many programming errors. The filters don’t work when trying to search sites. Even trying to use their “contact us” feature has problems and automatically refreshes losing everything entered so far.
Amazing app! Super user friendly with no issues for the many times that I’ve used it. If you love the outdoors it’s a highly recommended by me. Usually if you want to visit somewhere beautiful you’ll find national parks on the top of lists. This has a bunch of thing you can reserve like tours, reservations and best of all beautiful cheap campgrounds. I’ve used this app for all the things listed above. Overall it’s greatly developed and informative application you should have on your phone🤙🌎🤟
So frustrating!! The app is great for research. But when trying to make a reservation at a spot that’s difficult to get reservations, the app told me it could not book because I already had reservations in flight, but I had none & missed my dream spot that was actually available for me to book if the app didn’t error. Not the 1st time either.
I want this to not suck but it does. Its super janky and not user friendly at all. I cannot find site maps on the app but can on the actual website. This could be really great but its just so so tedious to use. Absolutely need site maps instead of whatever potato quality images they use. The lottery feature is very cool though but i want reminders that a new lottery is open for certain sites. It does allow you to book online, i guess thats the whole point of the app. That part works fine.
Great tool for planning trips! It is very easy to reserve and pay for campsites. Option to view sites on list or map is very useful – can search by state and see everything at once. Like the campground maps too, but wish they all showed the bathhouse/restroom locations. Particularly like how much info is provided in the Details section for each location. Wish there was a way to store Interagency Pass Number info in personal profile.
I love the app but it didn’t work correctly. I thought it had timed out on one site I was trying to pay for, because the payment wasn’t going through. I presumed it had gotten filled. So I reserved another one, but then it turns out it had saved the previous one. Then it wanted to charge me a big cancellation fee, which I’m trying to work out with the reservation site by phone. Otherwise it’s a very well-constructed, and user-friendly app.
Nice app. Would be nice to have more map based features. Kind of annoying how it zooms back out when you select a location and would be nice to have satellite view. Also, a little surprised their isn’t a feature to just find/show all the actual parks/monuments/etc in the area on the map view.
This site is easy to use to help find campsites. It even works well in low signal areas, which is extremely helpful. It shows pictures and maps of campsites to help you choose the best option for your needs. It also has an option to open the location in Google Maps and the location is usually specific to the campground so if you arrive late you aren’t stuck at an entrance to a park wondering where to go to get to your campsite.
I remember when you had to call to find out availability, but campsites were first come first served. I am SO IMPRESSED with all the new improvements. The app is beyond easy with lots of good info on choosing which site you’d like, when it’s available, and reserving and paying for it at the same time! No more waiting on hold for an hour to get to someone. It’s amazing and I’m thrilled!!! There will be a lot more camping in our future!
Update: Latest version works again! Yay! >As others have posted, I get a completely black page after clicking on a campground. It used to work fine. Not sure if it’s a flaw in the latest update or because I upgraded to Android 11. Either way, a useful app is now unusable.<
It would be nice if it also listed all the free camping sites as well. I like this app though because I knew nothing about camping when I first started. it was extremely difficult for me to find a website or app that listed every campsite in the US and have up-to-date and accurate info.
Easy way to save your favorite sites for camping and payment process is smooth. The map is not that accurate, but if you know what spots are good the the Callender is a great toll to keep checking availability on that spot.
To be able to modify reservations during your stay is great! After one night I noticed a nicer campsite, I checked its calendar on this app from my reservations page, modified by entering site number, it verified the move and confirms the change. Super handy if you’d like to extend but your site is already booked…simple! Use modification for this scenario as well. Add new site number and move upon checkout or sooner. An early check in is a huge perk and your favorite list grows!