The app is easy to use and fairly intuitive. The map feature is great for selecting a site and for finding your site when you arrive. There are 2 things you should be aware of when making your reservation. First, pinch zoom on the map to see all of the campsites. Second, some campgrounds lock the gates at specific times, so make sure you arrive in time to get in. The app does not make his obvious. We have almost always found the campsite information to be correct. It’s filter functionality makes it easy to only see which sites suit your needs. Inputting discounts is easy and straightforward. This is one of our favorite camping apps and definitely our favorite for making reservations.
It’s so nice to have a site like this! 3 suggestions. When it comes to searching for dates there should be an option to select date flexibility. Along this same lines; when I put in certain dates it lists the available sites first (great!) then as I scroll down it’ll show sites that have different availabilities that aren’t a perfect match. When I click the button to “check availability” I want my dates to disappear and to only see their available dates. Or even if my dates stay, have them be a different color on the legend. Because I’d click away from my selected dates and sometimes only one or 2 dates would pop up and if I’d click on one of those dates, more dates would pop up. It must be a glitch. There should also be the option of saving sites that I’m interested in coming back to look at later. Not to reserve or hold the site, but if I’m doing a late night search I want an easy way to open up the app the next morning and find my favorite options. Hopefully these are helpful suggestions on improving the app.
I’m honestly not sure what’s worse, how poorly this app works or the runaround you’re forced to do trying to find someone, ANYONE, who is actually helpful. My husband and I tried to use this app for three days, on multiple devices, both Apple and Google, in the geofence, to enter a lottery. The app flat didn’t work. Also tried on a tablet, which apparently is no longer a mobile device? Physically went to several official offices in the area, called every number we could find and were given, scoured the website for technical help, nothing. The volunteers working in the offices, while kind and I’m thankful for, had no clue how to help. Nor was there an actual supervisor there who knew what to do. No paper applications or other ways to enter, other than the app that does not work. When we finally got a call back from the “help” center, they let the phone ring literally once then hung up on us, so we had to call back and start the waiting process all over again, several times. This is absolutely ridiculous and totally unacceptable.
I’ve been using this app for a couple years and overall I’m completely satisfied. The one consistent issue I have relates to the transition between the cart and payment screens. When I’m relying on a so-so cell signal (which is often the case on the road and I’m doing reservations) I get an error message telling me to check my internet connection. Other screens spin longer, but eventually populate. The move to the payment screen needs a longer work period before it times out. I end up either losing the site because I can’t get to the payment screen in the 15 minutes or if I’m lucky, one of my retries has enough signal to go through. This morning it was 14:30 worth of repeated attempts to get to the payment screen before I crested a hill out hiking and squeaked in. This was 3 bars of LTE on Verizon so it shouldn’t have been that hard.
DO NOT use this app if you are trying to book highly sought campsites. I put it in my calendar to book a campsite when it became available 6 months out and kept looking and being confused by the fact that they either weren’t available for reservation, were first come first served, or were available but when I tried to book was told it would come available at 10am. At 10am they were suddenly all fist come first serve again. All of that was wrong. I finally went to the website and all sites had already been reserved. The availability information shown was completely false and ruined a vacation I had been planning for a year. I was so excited when this app came out and now will go back to website only.
National Parks and all public lands must have public review and commentary before they are allowed to change their fee structure. But the for-profit company that runs this app is allowed to charge huge fees per transaction that don't benefit our public lands or public workers in any way, with no opportunity for the public to comment. For instance, we reserved a $12 campsite at a BLM site, but had to pay an $8 reservation fee for it!! I wouldn't at all mind if that $20 was actually going to help the Bureau of Land Management do their important work, but to have to pay a 67% fee to Booz Allen in order to get to camp on BLM land for one night is OUTRAGEOUS. If this app were actually run by the federal government, that would be awesome, but this private firm should be allowed to such this much pure profit out of our public lands system.
Lost out on sites because it said it was adding to cart, then would error out, click add to cart again and it wouldn’t be available, and it wasn’t in my cart. Because time was of the essence and booking for a group, would add to cart (had to add twice because it would error the first time, every time) go back grab the next site. When I had all of the sites in the cart, I went to modify and it would error out. Ended up having to remove from cart, which would error out, then add back in and add the details, then move on to the next site in my cart and do the same thing. Once I FINALLY was able to complete my reservations, it asks for feedback. I tried to enter my feedback, and guess what, it through another error. This time it didn’t matter how much I tried, it would not go through. So, here we are. Unfortunately, the website won’t let you book more than one site at a time, so you need this App.
I can’t tell you how helpful this App has been for a guy like me who gets confused easy, is inpatient, likes to keep keep paperwork in order, doesn’t like waiting on hold and wants to know something right now. This app is extremely efficient & effective at giving information out about a certain place, availability and location on a map. The ease of typing in a town or location you want to camp, pressing search & the app coming up with a list of places you can then look on a map in the same app is amazing & is what I love. There might be other apps that do this or that better but this app is overall extremely easy to use. My wife and I use this app for all the National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Pass for camping reservations along with my Disabled Veterans Access Pass. Once you make a profile and input all your info it will automatically fill it in when your ready to reserve a spot. I find this app as my go to for all my National Park needs.
It’s rather an annoying website (and by extension, app). It isn’t user friendly, and there are no directions. It is hard to figure out which campsites are or aren’t available on certain dates. Also, I don’t understand what certain codes, like “partially available” mean. If you reserve something, even without paying, you can’t modify the dates for at least 15 minutes. I think it would be really helpful if there were clear directions, both on the website, and in the app. I would also love to know which sites were first come first served. I guess those aren’t available currently, bc of COVID? I wish there was a way to see all the campsites at one time in a chart, along with available dates, but I couldn’t find an option to display in that way.
While the app might function in the most basic sense, you’re probably better off just sticking with the web site. The app is loaded with goofy bugs and usability issues in the most basic features. I’m a retired software developer, so bugs like this, discovered within minutes, are very annoying because there is little excuse for it. Here are a couple that I discovered within minutes of attempting to use the app. - The filter page doesn’t actually filter. It lets you pick criteria and shows how many sites match the filter, but the button/affordance to actually see the filter results doesn’t do anything. And, it’s a small point, but the “X” to close the filter dialog is in a different, goofy serif font. - Reading reviews is an exercise in frustration. The “Read More” affordances for each review work about 10% of the time, as does the “See More Reviews” affordance. It almost seems like you get to use either “Read More”, or “See More Reviews”, because once you’ve done one, the other seems not to work. Oh, and the “See More Reviews” affordance is black on gray. Bad choice. Like obviously bad choice, people. Lowest-bidder contracting seldom provides quality solutions.
There can be a few glitches, but the fact that I can have my permits for multiple federal agencies in one place instead of hunting for them across multiple websites is great. One facet for improvement is that the BWCA permits were not open through the app. Those are very competitive, and 2024 was the first year that I was traveling for permit day. I just assumed that I could use the app, and it required a computer or going through the website for that particular permit. I still don’t understand why since the permit shows up in the app after obtaining it. Maybe they can’t handle the volume on permit day when seconds matter (I still got my second choice).
Navigating through this app is easy and overall it works fine but the calendars need improvement. For example, when a campground shows it is partially available for the dates I’ve searched for and I open that campground, it doesn’t show me the dates for which the site is partially available. Instead, it asks me to choose a check-in date, but then it also doesn’t let me do that either because it won’t show any available dates even though it already showed up as partially available. For this reason, I tend to book online. There, the partial dates are shown and I can then modify my dates to accommodate the availability.
We always look for availability while traveling because we are wandering, spontaneous adventurers (retired), who enjoy trying new campgrounds. This summer we are being forced to dedicate too much planning with very little information about the campground, and even less about the site. This afternoon we found two “Available” sites, drove 20 miles off our route to read that we had to drive back to the turnoff because the campground was without cell coverage, and thus unable to reserve. And when we drove back to cell service, the spots were shown as unavailable. The prices for the sites have increased, a new fee is tacked on, and then if cancelling, another higher fee is imposed. The First Come First Serve is unclear and requires driving to check for vacancies. This confusing, unreliable, incomplete new system makes for UNHAPPY campers.
The service associated with this app is a hot mess. Yes, you can search and book sites on your phone——-BUT, pray there are no complications whatsoever. If you get a muddled availability, cancellation, or any other reason to contact support, buckle your seat belts for a bumpy ride. I had my reservation cancelled by the site, and trying to resolve the issue was one of the most frustrating dealing-with-a-business experiences I’ve ever had. They seem to think they are only responsible for taking payments, not issuing refundsor dealing with problems that arise. The rep actually suggested that I drive two hours, into a camp area closed for extreme weather, to ask for a refund. Brilliant! I’m thinking that’ll be the first time I need to pack snow shoes and bear spray to get a refund. Hopefully, the app and support service get their act together.
We have used this app and our Golden Age pass multiple times this year. It has paid for itself many times over. We were able to use the pass at seven National Parks this last April. We just pulled up to the park entrance handed the card and ID and off we went, so quick compared to those paying for day passes. We have been able to book campgrounds using this app while pulling over when we have been an hour from the campgrounds. So easy and simple to use with the added bonus of the discount of campsites.
I was introduced to this app by a gentleman that I was attending a school with. Being new to the Oklahoma area it was difficult for us to find campgrounds that would be outside of our general area. This application has given us the ability to find multiple exceptional campgrounds, as well as see exactly where our campsite would be located within an area, and allows us to pick the site with the view that we would prefer to have. So far we have enjoyed camping at big Bend Campground in Canton Oklahoma, and will soon be enjoying a new campsite at Juniper Point.
We were able to identify open sites and reserve them easily at Great Sand Dunes National Park for one night. Then we realized we had our dates mixed up for that park for reservations we had made a month ago. We then were able to identify open RV sites at Zapata recreation area close by and then cancel our reservation at GSDNP easily online so others could use it. They make it as easy as possible to cancel reservations online so others can use the spots if plans change or reservation dates get messed up.
Fantastic app, but needs more detailed pictures of sites
This app is very user-friendly and responsive, and quicker than using the website. There are usually pictures of sites within campgrounds, which is helpful, but one improvement I would love to see is for each campsite to have its own pictures associated with its listing. The old website had these, and when the website was redone, they disappeared. We found those pictures to be extra helpful for us, since our tent doesn’t just fit anywhere, and I can imagine others would appreciate that as well in trying to find a spot that will fit their equipment.
The app and website are completely useless. I tried booking a campsite at Joshua tree and it said all campsites were first come first serve but when I got there they were all reservation only. I also tried booking your tickets for mesa verde and it said they were not available for purchase online, so I went to the visitor center and they said they only book tour tickets online. Tried to book a ticket for an area and picked an available date then it said there were no time slots available. These are just three examples. I travel full time and experience and experience these issues constantly. Completely useless app and now all the parks are relying on it for booking. What a disaster. If you want something done wrong with the utmost incompetence just leave it to the government.
Like the title says its no different from the website which says a lot. Sometimes apps are missing things you can only do from your computer but this one is spot on. I like the map view but gave the app 4 stars because I wish there was a legend telling you which campsites were available, first come or not available so you could just look at the map and not have to click on site to see its status. I’m mainly referring to available to reserve vs first come first serve campsites.
I use this app multiple times a week as I plan a cross country trip. It’s generally easy to use and extremely helpful. One complaint - I wish you could view campsites similar to how you can view they on the desktop website. I like being able to look at the entire campsite and see what spots are booked when. Helps with planning, especially when booking at a busy spot, to know what sites will be available the next morning. It would also be nice to set reminders to book lotteries and popular campsites! It’s so hard to keep track of important dates!
I like this site because it is easy to use. It seems like a few new tools have been added recently too. There is now a “partially available” noted if your reservation dates just need to be tweaked by a day or two and that eliminates the guessing game that you often have to play when using other sites. Campground site maps could be a little more informative, and it would be great if more pictures were added, but I guess the adventure is out there and sometimes should be left unknown. :-)
The campground maps are complete garbage and there’s no excuse for it when you look at other sites like reserveamerica and how they do their maps. I have to go onto the forest service website to get an accurate map of the campground I’m trying to book so I know where the sites actually are in the campground. When I enter dates and it comes back with which sites are available and partially available, it doesn’t tell me which of my dates the site is available. I have to clear out the dates entirely and then go back in to see which dates it’s available. The programmers could’ve done a much better job with this website and app.
If possible, it would be helpful to model the app version identical to the computer version of the timed entry site. The app version does not show any timed entries available from 6am to 1pm. The computer version is unclear about whether timed entries are available from 6 to 1, as it only lightly gray’s out the calendar times, but lists a # of 28 in each time block. I suspect the # of 28 is what might be available for the next day, when calling in after 5pm to check availability for next day a.m. timed entry. If that’s not feasible, maybe X thru the unavailable 6 -1 timed entry blocks on the calendar to draw a more distinct clarification to those time slots not being available. The note on the website about calling in after 5pm is helpful enough information to maybe enabling someone to get an early timed entry for next day a.m. Other than that, great work on helping to make the National Park experience more enjoyable!!
I set my alarm for 6:45 AM to book one of the coveted tickets to Yosemite coming up in 2 days. I had my phone and my computer set up for when they go live. Within seconds, all the tickets are gone. Fine. I get it. There’s way better ways to do this but I’m not here to criticize that. BUT...have you ever thought about pushing the time back a few hours? Why make everyone wake up at the crack of dawn for tickets they can’t use for 2 more days? How about a reasonable 9:00 AM! Now I’m up early and could’ve really used that sleep on our trip. Just a thought. I could try again tomorrow but I doubt my luck would be any better. (And I don’t think I want to wake up this early again.)
I have noticed that some people make reservations and then do not show up. the last trip I made to Horseshoe Bend there was a site across the road from me that was reserved that remained empty the four nights I was there. I think if someone doesn’t show up within 24 hours of the reservation beginning the site should be made available to the next person that wants to camp and the ones who did not show up should have to forfeit there campsite.
We use this to help us find our next destination often. Easy to navigate and most parks have pictures of the spots to give you an idea of what you will have waiting for you. With our access discount we usually end up spending more time in each location. Great way to find the smaller and less well known parks that are usually less crowded and still just as beautiful as the better know ones!
I completely agree with, and understand the need for limited numbers of people to come into our precious and fragile wilderness areas. And I am thrilled that I finally come after two weeks of trying, got the permit for the trail I have wanted to hike for many years! Still, it is a nerve-racking process! I didn’t enjoy it but I’m all for it now that I have won, this prize! Thank you for protecting our beautiful backcountry wilderness areas!
I want to love this app but it’s pretty frustrating. The filter options could use a ton of improvement for starters, it’s hard to find what you actually need without it taking 2 hours. Sadly the internet experience on mobile is better because I can see the available spots and available dates all at the same time, whereas with the app, I have to pick a date first and then see what’s available. Frustrating.
Happy to reconnect with nature and recently discovered this app, makes it easier to search for nearby nature attractions and to be able to book in advance so you don’t have to worry about getting a camp site is a big plus! The reviews on the camp sites from past campers helps to decide which one would work for the type of visit, eg. family or friends trip, etc. These nature trips made the travel restrictions during covid an easy alternative. Thank you!
Unsure if one person can but 5 tickets or if each Unsure if one person can but 5 tickets or if each person has to buy their own. It asked how many tickets and I was prompted for five names but under each name I could select multiple tickets. Would have been nice to enter only one name, email, license and buy 5 tickets has to buy their own. It asked how many tickets and I was prompted for five names but under each name I could select multiple tickets. Would have been nice to enter only one name, email, license and buy 5 tickets
I spent the lockdown year browsing through this website each night and visiting all sorts of wonderful campsites virtually through out this gorgeous big country. I love how easy it is to use and the maps with satellite viewing as well as the photos of the sites. Booking a site is super easy and now I am tent camping and Loving it - fulfilling my dreams that were created when I discovered this website! Thank you America!
While our government may not always be of, by, or for the people, these government trust public lands are our heritage and one of the most precious possessions we have as Americans. The app is very wel designed; reservations are incredibly easy to make, and more importantly, modify or cancel after the fact. You can easily enter the National Park lottos and stack reservations for fire towers here in Northern Idaho & Montana. Support your lands and our government trusts in some of the most beautiful places on the planet.🌎
We love to travel the national parks. And this makes it so easy. We were just recently in Sequoia and you can download the art of line map and things to do in that park. Which is greatly helpful when you don’t have cell reception in the parks. This app was so easy then to use. The only other app that make visiting the parks enjoyable is an app called just ahead. I highly recommend the two in combination they are perfect!
The app is easy to use and fun to explore. We had a problem with our reservation and after being disconnected and sent to the back of the line twice, the customer service person said they couldn’t help me because my reservation was already booked and ended the chat before I could ask a question. Not helpful at all and extremely frustrating. If there was another way to book our favorite campground next year I would be trying that just to see if it was any better. But, no other sites book the campground so I guess we will be back.
I have lived in Oregon for most of my life. Have only been using this App for the last couple years. I cannot express enough how much this app has helped me and my family explore and see more of this beautiful state! We are so lucky to have a App like this one! And so lucky that people are out there keeping the forest clean and green. The possibilities of where this App will take are literally endless. Every Ranger and employee that I have dealt with has been an absolute delight and can be a treasure trove of information. Be nice to them, and they may clue you in to a really cool look out or water hole. Can’t wait to get out there and explore more!! Thanks guys! And thank you Oregon and Mother Earth for being so beautiful in this part of the world! We all must do our part to keep our earth clean and healthy!
Filter feature doesn’t work. On iPhone as soon as you enter any filter the “Show Results” goes dim, with no results, even if the only filter is standard site. On iPad entering a filter parameter results in the button reflecting “Show ## results”, but at that point the app locks up and the only way to go back is to clear the alerts. The latest app is installed and the latest IOS versions are installed. Is there a secret to make filters work, they work fine if I use the website. Makes one wonder if the designer has ever actually used the app.
I have a hard time getting round in it to see campsites that are available on certain dates Just hit and miss to find a campground map or satellite view. I loved the old website of a year or too ago. When I look at owls reservations I can’t click on it to make a new reservation at same site or campground. I find it hard to navigate around and I don’t usually have that problem with website or apps. A 2 is generous.
Downloaded this app, again, in hopes that I’d be able to make a reservation at a highly sought after campground. The morning the campground site became available I signed in, no problems, chose the dates, no problems, but when the time came to reserve the site, it immediately kicked me out because “too many people….” , site unavailable. Would not recommend this app to reserve sites, too sketchy and unreliable. Use a computer, where I had no issues last in the past. It’s “ok” at best to look at sites and campgrounds but that’s about all it’s worth.
After three years of camping been wanting this sight 44 . A hard one to get. Well so excited to actually find it open. And so we get there and 😢 power box was not working 30 amp and 50 amp was not working. Had to run on 1/10 all weekend . ☹️☹️☹️No at the gate , did get in touch wil someone finally and the say it going to Monday before they can get to it 😖 not happy with the price i paid for this sighting.
At least it’s consistent (no bugs and glitches), works well on a phone and gets you to what you need eventually. Eventually is the key word. Seems like the selection process could be a little smoother and less clunky w/ a couple of unnecessary clicks. You might make a couple of errors as you figure it out. Once you do, it gets the job done so you can get outdoors.
I love the app! Very easy to use. Was able to tee up my national parks favorite sites and just press Book Now for getting 4 of 5 campsites this summer! A few changes would make it perfect. 1. remember my agency pass 2. Explain with better graphics what is available. For example not all FF sites are clear that they are NOT reservable. 3. If a site is partially available, show those dates rather than make me guess. (If there’s a button to do this it’s not clear). Thanks for a great site!
A bit frustrating when booking for a weekend of a site we have used for several years and book a year in advance, we have to pay two service fees in order to get the full weekend. That is something we have had to do for several years, and for separate sites. I would love to talk to someone regarding this. We have spent lots of $$$ that is not necessary. But, love this place.
I like the general layout if this app, and the fact that I can see my existing reservations. But making reservations is an altogether different thing. For starters, it’s impossible to enter dates when the calendar opens since it’s off screen and you can’t scroll to it. And since the date needs to be entered before going to the next step, that’s where the process ended for me and I went to the website. So, it’s a nice app for many things, but it would be great if the bugs are resolved.
Looking at Red Rock Canyon it says you have to put in your annual pass number at checkout, but then you don’t...you just select the type of pass you have and present it at the window. This was a hassle for me because the park pass is in the car. I’m in the hotel room trying to plan my visit. The hotel has valet parking. So I had to decide if I should just pay the $15 (which I shouldn’t have to b/c I’m a pass-holder)...or if I should go get the car out of valet, which would also cost a few bucks. So I do all of that and then in the end I didn’t even NEED the number like it said I would! Update your copy to prepare the user for what info they’ll actually need at checkout. So simple.
I can’t really tell if it even deserves one star & can’t really provide a review of the app itself as it required I log in to my Reserve America site. Which makes sense, but even though I know my login was correct, it locked me out & now I can’t reserve any sites even directly from the Reserve America website. I keep getting sent in circles, even though I received a “Magic” login link. I don’t get taken to a page where I can actually reset my password. Kind of a problem since I’m already in the road & had planned in using Reserve America a lot. Frustrated & angry doesn’t even begin to cover it.
It’s as if these site designers are paranoid ( govt beauracracy ?) The security is tweaked higher than a banks. And then just when you are getting frustrated getting onto the site using a phone it sends a message that you need to wait 30 minutes before trying again. When traveling it is not always possible to use a laptop which I am guessing is much easier ? And then the thing about “ nicknaming “ a review.
With a world filled with increasingly questionable apps, this one is surprisingly well designed. I’ve used it to reserve trips in the wilderness and campsites at national Parks and it always worked flawlessly. There was one occasion where I just couldn’t get the website to work but the mobile app allowed me to complete the transaction.I’m feeling like this is a required app if you like camping and hiking.
I had 2 phones and tablet poised at 5 to make reservation for Rocky Mountain National Park, as I attempted to reserve time, it pushed me to a different time frame, while desperately trying to beat the time for my shopping cart it refused 3 credit cards on all 3 devices, finally with an act of God, finally allowed me to scan card. We had to extend the time limit numerous times. Finally after 20 minutes of pure terror my card went through. We flew from east coast, rented car and booked hotel and it came down to an app that does not WORK efficiently. This is worst experience we have ever had trying to visit a national park. I will warn others. Terrible.
Could be a great app if it would work in landscape mode on iPad
Obviously, this is an iPhone app. Even though, it runs on the iPad, it does so only in portrait mode. Big PITA and I will not use it. I call this symptom lazy programming on the part of the developer. They forget or do not care about people wanting the full screen landscape experience, which would make it so easy to use and enjoy the app and its content. Too bad.
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.
