Mount Rainier National Park camping and RV campgrounds.

All 3 Mount Rainier campgrounds, compared.

The short version: book Cougar Rock if you want a reservation, a group site, or room for a bigger rig. It takes RVs to 35 feet and trailers to 27. Head to White River if you can't get a reservation and your rig is small, since it's first-come only and stops at 27-foot RVs and 18-foot trailers. Cougar Rock sits at 3,180 feet and White River at 4,400. Figures come from the NPS campgrounds page. NPS gives seasons in words: Cougar Rock's typical season is late May to early October, and White River's is late June to September. The chart's opening dates are our reading of those words, and the chart shows the 2026 season, not today's status. Cougar Rock's October 12 closing comes from its NPS campground record. White River's is a stand-in for "early October", the wording NPS uses instead of a date. Fees are per site, per night. For closures, fire restrictions and water problems, check the park's current conditions page.

How to get a site.

Reserve Cougar Rock's individual sites on Recreation.gov. For its first-come sites, pay at the campground office window. If you don't check in at the ranger station by noon the day after your arrival date, Recreation.gov cancels the reservation, charges a $10 service fee, and keeps the first night's fee. Groups of 12 or more are allowed only in group sites, and reserving several individual sites for a bigger gathering isn't allowed.

White River is first-come only. Find an empty site and set up camp, then scan the QR code at the campground kiosk with Scan and Pay in the Recreation.gov app, and pay when you're back in range. There's no cell service at White River, so download the app before you come. If you can't use the app, the "iron ranger" kiosks there take debit and credit cards. Mount Rainier is cashless for all fees.

Group sites. Cougar Rock has five group sites, for tents only: site 1 holds 30 people, site 2 holds 40, and sites 3 to 5 hold 25 each. Each has up to 5 parking spaces, and extra vehicles park in the picnic area. They're $60 a night and need a reservation, made through Recreation.gov's separate Cougar Rock Group Campground listing. That's why Recreation.gov shows five Mount Rainier campgrounds: it lists the Cougar Rock and Ohanapecosh group campgrounds on their own. Ohanapecosh's two group sites are closed with the campground in 2026.

Passes and entry. NPS says Senior and Access Passes may bring a camping discount. Recreation.gov's Cougar Rock listing says only the Lifetime Access, Lifetime Senior, and Annual Senior passes qualify, checked at the campground when you arrive. Camping fees don't include park entry, and the park's annual pass doesn't cover camping. There's no timed entry reservation anywhere in the park in 2026. See Mount Rainier fees for the entrance fee and Mount Rainier reservations for the entry rules.

RVs, trailers, and no dump station.

Cougar Rock takes RVs up to 35 feet and trailers up to 27 feet. Recreation.gov says bigger rigs aren't allowed to enter, because the loop roads have tight turns. If you've seen "RVs are not permitted" on its Recreation.gov page, that line is about the group sites, which are tents only. White River's limits are 27 feet for RVs and 18 feet for trailers, and Ohanapecosh's are 32 and 27. Each Cougar Rock site fits one RV and its tow vehicle, or two passenger vehicles, as long as they fit in the driveway.

There are no electric, water, or grey water hookups in any campground, and no utility connections of any kind. Don't plan on a dump station or an RV water fill inside the park either: Cougar Rock has the only ones, and they go out of service for long stretches, so check the NPS campgrounds page before you count on them. Empty RV sink drains into a container, then into a service sink or toilet. There are no public showers in the park, and the nearest laundry is in Ashford and Packwood.

Above White River, the road climbs to Sunrise. NPS advises RVs and vehicles with trailers longer than 25 feet not to drive past the White River Campground junction, because the road is steep, narrow, and winding. The whole road from SR 410 to White River and Sunrise closes for winter in mid-October, or earlier with the first heavy snow. Our Mount Rainier road closures page has the seasons.

Ohanapecosh is closed and not listed.

Camp rules that change your trip.

A site holds up to 6 people, or an immediate family, and two tents. Recreation.gov adds that many Cougar Rock sites fit four people or fewer, and most fit only one tent. Park only on your site's gravel or paved area. You can stay 14 consecutive days in a developed campground and 28 days a year in all, and checkout is at noon.

Quiet hours are 9 pm to 7 am. Generators can run only from 8 to 10 am, noon to 2 pm, and 5 to 7 pm, and never in Cougar Rock's Loop E.

Keep fires small and inside the grate, and never leave one unattended. Leave firewood from home at home: buy wood cut within 50 miles, sold at the Longmire General Store and at Cougar Rock and White River. Don't collect firewood, branches, twigs, or cones in the park. Pets must be on a leash no longer than 6 feet, and they're allowed only in parking lots and on roads open to vehicles, not on trails.

Cougar Rock is one of the spots along the Nisqually River with geohazard warning sirens. If you hear one, NPS says to head uphill, away from the river. Its accessible sites are C2, C7, C20, and R5, with paved parking, accessible picnic tables, fire rings, and firm gravel tent pads that have a 2 to 10 inch ledge.

Camping and the crowd calendar.

Mount Rainier's camping season is short, and it lines up with the park's busiest months. May averages 20% of July's visits, and Cougar Rock's typical season starts in late May. June runs 53%, and White River's typical season starts in late June. July is the peak, and August runs 95%. September drops to 56% and October to 32%, when White River closes in early October and Cougar Rock in mid-October. Our pick is mid- to late September at Cougar Rock: visits are 56% of July's, the campground is usually still open, and it has first-come sites as well as reservable ones.

Month-by-month tradeoffs are on the best time to visit Mount Rainier page.

Beyond the three campgrounds.

Mowich Lake. The 13 walk-in tent pads at Mowich Lake, in the northwest, are a primitive campground that needs a wilderness permit. There's no potable water, a vault toilet, and no fires, and some larger tents may not fit the pads. The area is generally open mid-July to mid-October, and you reach it on a gravel road from SR 165 outside the park. It's also reachable on foot from the Wonderland Trail.

Backcountry camping. Every overnight stay in the backcountry needs a wilderness permit, all year. A reservation costs $6 plus $12 per person per night, for up to 13 nights, and walk-up permits cost the same. Remaining reservable permits go on sale April 25 for trips from June 1 to October 10. Trails and backcountry camps close for fire, snow and washouts, so check the park's current conditions page before you pick a route.

Camping is allowed only in designated campsites, and sleeping in your vehicle outside a campground isn't permitted. NPS links an older list of Forest Service campgrounds near Mount Rainier from its campgrounds page, but we don't track their seasons or prices.

Common questions.

Can you camp anywhere on Mount Rainier?

No. NPS allows camping only in designated campsites, and sleeping in your vehicle outside a campground isn't permitted. The drive-in options are Cougar Rock, White River and Ohanapecosh. Anything else, including the Mowich Lake walk-in sites and backcountry camps, needs a wilderness permit.

How much does it cost to camp at Mount Rainier?

$20 a night at every campground, and $60 a night for a group site at Cougar Rock. Senior and Access Pass holders may get a discount. Camping fees don't include park entry. Backcountry permits cost $6 plus $12 per person per night.

Is Ohanapecosh Campground open?

No. NPS has it closed for a rehabilitation project, and its two group sites are closed with it. Check the NPS campgrounds page for reopening.

When is White River Campground open?

Its typical season is late June to September, and NPS says it stays open until early October, weather permitting, without setting a date. It's first-come, first-served only, and there's no cell service. Check the park's current conditions page before you drive up.

Can you take an RV to Cougar Rock Campground?

Yes, up to 35 feet, or a trailer up to 27 feet. Recreation.gov's line that RVs aren't permitted applies to Cougar Rock's group sites, which are tents only. There are no hookups, and you shouldn't count on the dump station.

Why does Recreation.gov list five Mount Rainier campgrounds?

It lists the Cougar Rock and Ohanapecosh group sites as two separate group campgrounds, next to Cougar Rock, Ohanapecosh, and White River. NPS counts three auto campgrounds.

Where these facts come from

Elevations, site counts, fees, typical seasons, RV and trailer limits, water, toilets, dump stations, reservation and payment methods, group sites, the Forest Service list, and the rules (occupancy, stay limits, checkout, fires, firewood, pets, quiet hours, generators, sanitation, showers) come from the NPS Mount Rainier campgrounds page. Cougar Rock's closing date, White River's September 21 record date, and campground coordinates come from the NPS API campground records. Current closures and restrictions are on NPS current conditions, which we don't copy here. Cougar Rock's rig limits, late check-in rule, tent, vehicle, and occupancy notes, pass rules, and group campground listing come from Recreation.gov's Cougar Rock page; the five-campground count from Recreation.gov's Mount Rainier page. Wilderness permit prices come from the NPS wilderness permit page; the no-timed-entry rule and annual pass from the NPS fees page; Sunrise Road's RV advice and winter closure from the NPS road status and directions pages; the Mowich Lake season from the NPS Carbon River and Mowich page; accessible sites from the NPS Longmire accessibility page; geohazard sirens from the NPS geohazards page. Visit shares are five-year monthly means (2021 to 2025) of recreation visits from NPS Visitor Use Statistics, as a percentage of July, the park's busiest month. Crowd numbers are five-year monthly means (2021 to 2025) of recreation visits from the NPS Visitor Use Statistics Data Package on NPS IRMA Stats. Independent site, not affiliated with the National Park Service.