When planning a camping trip, it’s important to pay attention to how long you can stay in each campsite.
Most public land agencies limit camping to 14 days in any one site. Private campgrounds set their own rules. While some private parks limit stays to a few weeks, others allow campers to rent seasonal or annual sites which may come with additional restrictions and rights as tenants.
While most campground stays are limited to 14 days, there are exceptions. Here is what you need to know:
How Long You Can Stay in Your Campsite
Exactly how long you can stay in a campsite varies depending on who owns the campground. Most public campgrounds limit campers to a short stay, usually 14 or 30 days. There are several reasons that campsites limit your stay.
Most people are camping as a vacation or to spend time in nature, and limiting your stay allows campgrounds to serve more people. Public land agencies limit the time you can spend in one place to help reduce wear-and-tear on their sites and keep people from squatting on public land. Finally, and perhaps most importantly, campgrounds limit how long you can stay to prevent you from becoming a resident of your site.
Being a resident can come with a whole number of laws, complications, and privileges that most campgrounds aren’t interested in handling. For example, campgrounds don’t have to formally evict campers who break the rules or stay too long. However, once a person is considered a resident, they have to be legally evicted in order to force them to leave.
| Agency | Length of Stay | When can I return? | Additional Information |
| National Park Service | 14 days (typically) | Each park has its own regulations. | There are over 400 NPS sites, camping isn’t limited to National Parks alone. |
| National Forest | 14 days (typically) | Districts have their own regulations on how soon you can return. | Many national forests have designated campgrounds but also allow dispersed camping. |
| Bureau of Land Management | 14 days (typically) | 14 days in a 30-day period. Usually, you must move a specified distance away. | Both designated campgrounds and dispersed camping are allowed. |
| Army Corp of Engineers | 14 days | 14 days in a 30-day period. | Each state has its own regulations and requirements. |
| State Parks | Varies. Often 14 days | Each state has their own regulations and requirements. | Many offer amenities like boating, rentals, and cabins. |
| Bureau of Reclamation | 14 days | Limited to 14 days within a 30-day period. | Campgrounds are typically located near reservoirs. |
National Park Campgrounds
Most US national park campsites are limited to 14 days. While this is the maximum time you can stay in a national park, many people will find it difficult to stay for this long because it’s hard to get reservations. Many national parks are incredibly popular and available spots fill up early- sometimes even on the day they become available.
However, many national parks also have a few sites or loops set aside for people without reservations. These sites are designated as first-come-first-served, and once you claim one of these sites, you can stay in it until you decide to leave or your 14 days are up.
National Forest and BLM camping
Like national parks, National Forest and BLM camping is usually limited to 2 weeks at a time. This applies both to designated campgrounds and dispersed camping. (There may be exceptions: for example, some BLM areas in Quartzite, AZ allow seasonal camping for up to 7 months during the winter.) Whether or not campers are allowed to camp outside of campgrounds depends on the agency and specific locations. Here is the best resource I have seen on the regulations of specific National Forest areas.
Army Corp of Engineers and Bureau of Reclamation Camping
Most campgrounds operated by the Army Corps of Engineers and the Bureau of Reclamation allow camping for 14 days at a time. These campgrounds are usually located near reservoirs or dams, as both of these organizations are responsible for building and managing many of the water reservoirs owned by the government. While these campgrounds tend to be well-maintained and well-built, they often don’t offer many amenities. Bathrooms or showers are usually available.
Gunter Hill Campground, Alabama.
State Park Campgrounds
While each state has its own regulations for its state parks, many are modeled after federal public land regulations and limit campers to 14-day stays. State park regulations and amenities are widely variable depending on the state and individual park you’re considering.
State park campgrounds come in all sizes and levels of camping, from primitive wilderness camping to amenity-packed attractions. There are even state parks that have golf courses and resorts!
Private Campgrounds
Private campgrounds all have their own rules, but generally, they are much more open to longer-term camping than public land campgrounds. Many private campgrounds allow campers to rent seasonal or long-term sites, and some allow people to live in their campgrounds full-time. These longer stays usually involve more extensive paperwork and give campers rights that are more like tenant rights compared with those of short-term campers.
Whether or not a specific campground will allow long-term camping usually depends on the owner’s preferences and local ordinances. Many campgrounds limit camping duration based on how long a person can stay before legally becoming a resident. Others allow campers to become residents, allowing them to use the campground as their legal address and receive mail there. This isn’t permitted in all cities and counties, so if you are looking for long-term campsites, you will have to research your specific area.
Why Are Most Campsites Limited to 14 Days?
Have you ever wondered why public land campsites are usually restricted to 14 days? There are several main reasons it makes sense to restrict how long someone can camp.
- To prevent squatters or residential campers: You aren’t allowed to live on public land, and the 14-day limit prevents you from staying too long. In addition, most agencies also require that you leave the management area completely after 14 days, which prevents you from just moving your camp a few feet and starting your 14-day limit over again (yes, people did that.)
- To protect nature: Most public lands are set aside to protect natural areas, and having long-term campers makes that hard. While it’s always possible that a new family will move in as soon as a current camper leaves, it’s more likely that dispersed and back-country campsites will remain empty for a few days or weeks between campers.
- To allow more families access to the area: Some parks and areas are very popular, and enforcing a limit on how long you can stay allows more people to visit and be served throughout the season.
What to Do if You Need to Camp for Longer than 14 Days
If you want to camp for longer than 14 days, there are several options you can consider. You could consider staying in a private campground that offers long-term or seasonal sites. You could also move to another nearby campground after 14 days. Finally, you could consider becoming a work camper if you have to be in one area for a while.
Private Campground Option
You can consider finding a private campground if you need to stay for longer than 14 days. Private campgrounds tend to have more amenities and be located closer to towns or cities. They are also more expensive and typically have less of a wilderness feel and more of a high-class trailer park feel. When we were living in an RV, we enjoyed interspersing our wilderness stays with a few days or weeks in a private campground to enjoy the amenities.
Move Every 14 Days
You can also move your camp every 14 days to stay without the regulations of a specific agency. However, be aware that you can’t typically move to another site in the same campground. You will have to go somewhere else, and in some cases, you will have to go a certain distance or to a different public land agency in order to follow the rules. For example, if you stayed for 14 days in a BLM dispersed site, you will have to move at least 30 miles away or move into another agency, such as the National Forest.
Before you move back to your original campground, check the agency’s rules. Many require you to be out for an additional 14 days, while others only permit you to camp for 14 days within any 30-day period.
Work Camping
Finally, if it’s important for you to stay in one campground for more than 14 days, you could consider work camping. This is a program that allows campers to stay for free or reduced fees in exchange for being the campground host or helping in other ways. Hosts and other workers typically perform services like signing in campers, selling firewood, and cleaning bathrooms. Most work camp programs require campers to work a certain number of hours each week, and some require you to be in the campground for specific hours of the day to sign in and out guests. Websites such as Workamper News and the sites of public land agencies provide information on these programs.
Learn More About Choosing Your Campsite:
Family Tent Camping: The Ultimate Guide to Choosing Your Site