Shenandoah National Park camping and RV campgrounds.

The four Shenandoah campgrounds, compared.

The short version: pick Big Meadows if you want a site locked in before you drive, plus showers and laundry, near Dark Hollow Falls and Byrd Visitor Center. Pick Lewis Mountain, the smallest, if you'd rather show up and self-register, but it has no dump station. Pick Mathews Arm if you're coming in from Front Royal, and Loft Mountain for the south end, near the Big Run Wilderness trails. Every figure below comes from the NPS campground pages and NPS campground records, checked September 10, 2026. NPS published 2026 opening dates for all four, and closing dates for Big Meadows and Lewis Mountain. It hasn't published closing dates for Mathews Arm and Loft Mountain, so the November 30 shown for those two is our estimate, matched to the other two. Fees are per night.

How each campground books.

Reservable sites at Mathews Arm, Big Meadows, and Loft Mountain go on sale on Recreation.gov in three waves: 50 percent six months before your arrival date, 25 percent two weeks before, and the last 25 percent four days before. NPS gives a Memorial Day example: once the first wave for May 27 at Big Meadows sold out, 30 more sites opened on May 13 at 10 a.m. and 21 more on May 23. Mathews Arm takes no reservations within 48 hours of your date, while Big Meadows can be booked online at any time. NPS says reservations are highly recommended on weekends and holidays.

Big Meadows is reservation only. Rangers can make a few reservations on site, paid by debit or credit card, but there's no guarantee. If you arrive after hours without a reservation, NPS says to go somewhere with cell service or Wi-Fi and book one. No-shows with more than one night reserved are contacted by 1 p.m. and may lose the reservation.

First-come sites. NPS records count 47 first-come, first-served sites at Mathews Arm (plus 112 reservable) and 50 at Loft Mountain (plus 141 reservable). All 30 at Lewis Mountain are first-come, and you self-register when you arrive. You have to be at the campground to claim one, and fees are due within one hour of taking a site. In fall these campgrounds generally fill on Thursdays or early Fridays for the weekend. Text SHENCAMP to 888777 for twice-daily availability updates on weekends.

Camping fees are separate from the entrance pass, and the park is cashless for both. Senior and Access pass holders get 50 percent off camping; enter the pass when you book on Recreation.gov, and bring it with a photo ID. Prices are on Shenandoah fees, and Shenandoah reservations has the park's other bookings. Group sites cost $75: NPS records list them at Mathews Arm and Big Meadows, while the campgrounds page names Loft Mountain and Big Meadows for group camping, so check Recreation.gov.

RVs on Skyline Drive.

NPS publishes no RV length limit for any Shenandoah campground. It says Mathews Arm and Big Meadows have pull-through and deep back-in sites, Loft Mountain has deep back-in sites, and Lewis Mountain has 3 pull-through and 27 back-in sites, all able to handle most RVs and a tow vehicle. Some sites are tent only (51 at Big Meadows and 50 at Loft Mountain), so check how each site is marked before you book. A standard site holds one RV.

Before you drive the length of the park, check your height. Marys Rock Tunnel, at mile 32.2 between Mathews Arm and Big Meadows, has a maximum clearance of 12 feet 8 inches.

No campground has electric or water hookups. Mathews Arm, Big Meadows, and Loft Mountain have potable water and dump stations. Lewis Mountain has water but no dump station, so empty your tanks at Big Meadows, about 7 miles north. Coin-operated showers and laundry are at Big Meadows, Lewis Mountain, and Loft Mountain, and Mathews Arm has neither. Generators can run 8 to 10 a.m. and 4 to 7 p.m., extended to 9 p.m. for heat from opening until April 14 and from October 15 to the end of the season, but never at generator-free or group sites.

Camp rules that change your trip.

Stays are limited to 30 days, and checkout is noon. A standard site holds six people, or one immediate family, and one RV. Quiet hours run 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. Clip your camping pass to the site post so others know it's taken.

Food and bears. Bears, deer, raccoons, and skunks live in the park all year. Keep food, garbage, cooking gear, and scented items in a locked vehicle or a food storage locker whenever you're not using them. A cooler alone doesn't count. With no locker or trunk, hang a bear bag at least 12 feet up and 6 feet from the trunk and branches. Food and coolers left out can bring a citation. The NPS food storage page has the details.

No boondocking. NPS prohibits boondocking in an RV or any other vehicle. Overnight stays in a vehicle must be in one of the campgrounds, and when they close for the season, car and RV campers have to find sites outside the park.

Backcountry camping. Dispersed backcountry camping is allowed with a permit. It costs $9 per person plus a $6 permit reservation fee, so two campers pay $24. Shenandoah used to charge nothing for backcountry camping, so older guides that call it free are out of date. See the NPS backcountry regulations.

Every campground has accessible sites: 4 at Mathews Arm, 7 at Big Meadows, 2 at Lewis Mountain, and 2 at Loft Mountain. Accessible showers and laundry are at Big Meadows, Lewis Mountain, and Loft Mountain. Our Shenandoah accessibility page has more.

Camping and the crowd calendar.

Shenandoah's camping season runs from late March into late fall, and October is by far the busiest month. March averages 23% of October's visits, with Big Meadows opening March 25 and Lewis Mountain March 26. April runs 40%, and Mathews Arm and Loft Mountain open April 29. May through August run between 50% and 59%, and September dips to 48%. October roughly doubles that, and NPS says first-come sites generally fill on Thursdays or early Fridays for fall weekends. November falls back to 48%, and Big Meadows and Lewis Mountain close after November 30. Our pick is a September weekday: all four campgrounds are open, visits are about half of October's, and nights average 52°F.

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

When the campgrounds are full or closed.

When the campgrounds are full or closed for the season, NPS says car and RV campers must find campsites outside the park. We don't track private campgrounds. Our Shenandoah in winter page covers visiting after the campgrounds close.

Common questions.

Can you camp in Shenandoah for free?

No. Campground sites cost $30 a night, or $75 for a group site, and backcountry camping now needs a permit at $9 per person plus a $6 reservation fee. Boondocking in an RV or any other vehicle is prohibited, so a night in a vehicle has to be in a campground.

Do you have to reserve a campsite at Shenandoah National Park?

Only at Big Meadows, which is reservation only. Lewis Mountain takes no reservations, and Mathews Arm and Loft Mountain have both reservable and first-come, first-served sites. NPS says reservations are highly recommended on weekends and holidays, and first-come sites generally fill by Thursday or early Friday on fall weekends.

How much does it cost to camp in Shenandoah?

$30 a night for a standard site at all four campgrounds, and $75 for a group site. Senior and Access pass holders get 50 percent off camping. The park entrance fee is separate, and campground fees are cashless.

Does Shenandoah have campgrounds with electric hookups?

No. None of the campgrounds has electric or water hookups. Mathews Arm, Big Meadows, and Loft Mountain have potable water and dump stations, and generators are allowed from 8 to 10 a.m. and 4 to 7 p.m., except at generator-free and group sites.

What is Dundo Campground?

NPS's campgrounds page counts Dundo as one of five campgrounds and says it has no group camping. That's all NPS publishes. Dundo has no campground page, no NPS campground record, and no dates, and Recreation.gov lists only four Shenandoah campgrounds. Check with the park before planning around it.

Where these facts come from

The five-campground count, Dundo, booking models, the SHENCAMP alerts, group camping, and the weekend advice come from the NPS Shenandoah campgrounds page. The three-wave release, the Memorial Day example, the Mathews Arm cutoff, Big Meadows' on-site and after-hours rules, no-shows, site markings, and the fall fill pattern come from the NPS campground reservations page. The boondocking ban and dispersed camping come from the NPS camping page; food storage from the NPS food storage page; the backcountry fee from the NPS backcountry regulations; the discount and cashless payments from the NPS fees page. Mile markers, 2026 opening dates, winter closures, site counts and types, reservable and first-come counts, RV site descriptions, hookups, dump stations, showers, fees, stay limits, occupancy, quiet and generator hours, accessible sites, and campground coordinates come from the NPS API campground records. Accessible showers come from the NPS accessibility page; Marys Rock Tunnel from the NPS Skyline Drive page; the four-campground listing from Recreation.gov's park page. Visit shares are five-year monthly means (2021 to 2025) of recreation visits from NPS Visitor Use Statistics, as a percentage of October, the park's busiest month. Temperatures are NOAA 1991 to 2020 climate normals at Big Meadows (USC00440720), a preview station. 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.