Olympic National Park Camping: The Best Campgrounds, Area by Area

Olympic National Park packs three parks into one: a wild Pacific coast, temperate rain forests in the western valleys, and glaciated mountains in the middle, all around a core with no roads across it. Its 14 campgrounds sit on the edges, reached from Highway 101 as it loops the peninsula. Six book on Recreation.gov in season and Log Cabin Resort books by phone; the rest are first come, first served, and most stay open all year. Here's every one, area by area, and which to pick.

Olympic National Park campgrounds at a glance

These are the park's 2026 dates; check the NPS camping page for next season's before you book. Campgrounds can close on short notice for storms or unsafe conditions; call (360) 565-3131 for the current status.

The best campgrounds in Olympic National Park

• For the ocean: Kalaloch, the park's biggest campground, with some sites on a bluff over the Pacific.
• For the rain forest: Hoh, in the moss-hung forest by the Hoh River. See our Hoh Rainforest camping guide.
• For a lake: Fairholme on Lake Crescent, with lakeside sites and a boat launch.
• For hookups: Log Cabin Resort (full hookups) or the Sol Duc RV park (water and electric).
• For mountains and stars: Deer Park at 5,400 feet, tents only, in summer.
• For a winter trip without a reservation: Heart O' the Hills, Hoh, Kalaloch and Mora, all open year-round and first come in the off-season.

Olympic campground reservations: how booking works

• Reservations are made on Recreation.gov (or 877-444-6777) and are required in each campground's reservation season (dates above). Depending on the site, you can book up to 6 months, 2 weeks or 4 days ahead. Sol Duc's sites go up to 6 months ahead.
• During the reservation season, any unreserved site at Hoh, Mora, Fairholme and Staircase can be taken in person for one night only, at the campground's registration board.
• Outside the reservation season, and at the first-come campgrounds all year, self-register at the campground.
• Entrance fee: $30 per vehicle, $25 per motorcycle, $15 per person on foot or bike, good for 7 days; an America the Beautiful pass ($80 a year for US residents, $250 for non-residents) covers it, as do the senior pass and the park's own $55 annual pass. The park doesn't take cash.

Campground rules

• 8 people per site; keep vehicle wheels on the pavement where there is pavement.
• 14 consecutive days of camping in the park per year; 7 days at Kalaloch, Mora and Hoh during their reservation seasons.
• Quiet hours 10 p.m. to 6 a.m.; check-out 11 a.m.
• Vehicle camping only in campgrounds.
• Food, scented items and trash must be stored away from wildlife whenever you aren't using them.
• Pets on a 6-foot leash in campgrounds, picnic areas and parking lots, and on Rialto Beach (half a mile to Ellen Creek), the Kalaloch beaches, and the Peabody Creek, Madison Falls and Spruce Railroad trails. No pets on other trails or in the wilderness.
• No fireworks.

The coast

Kalaloch

Best for: camping above the Pacific. The park's largest campground, 170 sites, some on a bluff overlooking the ocean, with flush toilets, water and a $10 dump station. $24 a night. Sites fit 21 feet, a few 35. Reservations are required May 15 to September 20, with a 7-night limit then; the rest of the year it's first come. The Kalaloch beaches allow leashed dogs. The beach access trails aren't wheelchair accessible.

Kalaloch also has group sites, booked by phone only at (360) 962-2271: 10 to 30 people, up to 7 nights, $40 a night for up to 10 people and $2 for each additional person.

South Beach

55 sites on a bluff just south of Kalaloch, with panoramic ocean views and beach access, flush toilets but no drinking water. $20 a night, first come, May 19 to October 10. Sites fit 21 feet, a few 35.

Mora

94 sites in coastal forest, some looking over the Quillayute River, 2 miles from Rialto Beach. $24 a night, flush toilets, water and a $10 dump station. Reservations May 15 to September 20 (7-night limit), first come the rest of the year.

Ozette

15 sites by Lake Ozette. $20 a night, first come, year-round; pit toilets and potable water, primitive in winter and often closed then by flooding; check WSDOT for SR 112 closures before you drive. Sites fit 21 feet.

The rain forests

Hoh

78 sites in the Hoh Rain Forest, some along the river, $24 a night, flush toilets and water, no dump station. Reservations June 12 to September 6 (7-night limit); first come the rest of the year. Summer lines at the entrance station can reach 2 hours; the park suggests arriving before 8 a.m. or after 5 p.m. Full details, plus the free DNR campgrounds just outside the park, are in our Hoh Rainforest camping guide.

Queets

20 sites in a secluded spot by the Queets River, $15 a night, first come, year-round; pit toilets, no running water. It's reachable only from the Upper Queets Road because of a past mudslide. RVs and trailers aren't recommended.

Graves Creek and North Fork (Quinault)

In the Quinault Rain Forest, at the head of the Quinault valley:

• Graves Creek: 30 sites by a stream, $20 a night, first come, year-round, pit toilets and no running water. No RVs or trailers because of the road. In winter, reach it by South Shore Road (the temporary bridge from North Shore Road is removed for the season). The East Fork Quinault River and Enchanted Valley beyond it have been a backpacking quota area on a trial basis since 2024.
• North Fork: 9 sites, small and remote, $20 a night, first come, year-round, pit toilets and no running water. The road is narrow, winding gravel, not recommended for RVs or trailers.

The Forest Service's Falls Creek campground on the south shore of Lake Quinault has 21 sites plus 10 walk-in tent sites, $25 a night, reservable on Recreation.gov, with RVs limited to 16 feet (see Olympic National Forest, below).

Lake Crescent and the Sol Duc Valley

Fairholme

Best for: Lake Crescent. 88 sites, some lakeside, near a boat launch. $24 a night, flush toilets, water and a $10 dump station. Sites fit 21 feet, some up to 35. Open April 25 to September 29 in 2026, reservations required from May 15.

Log Cabin Resort

A concessioner on Lake Crescent with 38 sites: full-hookup RV sites (up to 35 feet), group tent pads, bike-in tent sites and accessible tent sites, plus restrooms with showers and a laundry. May to October; reserve by phone at 866-405-2950.

Sol Duc Hot Springs RV Park and Campground

Riverside camping in old-growth forest, run by Sol Duc Hot Springs Resort:

• Campground: 82 sites (21 feet, a few 35), flush toilets, water and a dump station.
• RV park: 17 back-in sites with water and electric hookups in a gravel lot, for rigs 26 to 36 feet.
• Reservations are required March 20 to November 1 on Recreation.gov, up to 6 months ahead; unreserved sites are sold at the resort. After November 1, Loop A stays open for primitive, first-come camping until the road closes for winter.

Sol Duc also has a group site for organized groups (up to 24 people, 8 stock), reserved on Recreation.gov.

Hurricane Ridge and the mountains

Heart O' the Hills

Best for: a base for Hurricane Ridge. 97 sites in old-growth forest in the Hurricane Ridge area, $24 a night, first come, year-round (walk-in only in heavy snow). Flush toilets and water, no dump station; sites fit 21 feet, a few 35. Summer ranger programs. Hurricane Ridge Road itself closes when it snows.

Deer Park

14 tent-only sites at 5,400 feet, with mountain views and dark skies, $15 a night, first come, June to mid-October depending on snow. Pit toilets, no water and no trash cans. The steep, winding gravel road isn't suitable for RVs.

Staircase and the southeast

49 sites by the Skokomish River in old-growth forest, on the park's southeast corner near Lake Cushman. $24 a night; reservations July 8 to September 29, first come otherwise; flush toilets and water in summer only. Sites fit 21 feet, a few 35. After a wildfire, the Staircase developed area is open but the surrounding wilderness trails are still closed, except the Staircase Rapids Loop; use caution in burned areas.

Backpacking and wilderness camping

About 95% of the park is designated wilderness, and every overnight trip needs a backpacking permit, all year:

• Book on Recreation.gov, by phone at the Port Angeles Wilderness Information Center (360-565-3100), or in person. There are no self-registration permits at trailheads.
• $6 reservation fee per permit plus $8 per person per night for ages 16 and up (15 and under free), on top of the entrance fee. Groups are capped at 12, and at 6 in many areas.
• Summer permits (May 15 to October 15) open on April 15 at 7 a.m. Pacific. Quota areas, including the Ozette coast, Royal Basin, Lake Constance, Upper Lena Lake, the Sol Duc / Seven Lakes Basin, Grand Valley and the East Fork Quinault / Enchanted Valley, are released in bulk and don't open more space later.
• Bear canisters are required; the park lends a limited number to permit holders, first come.
• No campfires above 3,500 feet and in a few named areas, including the coast from Wedding Rocks to just north of Yellow Banks, and nowhere in the wilderness during a fire ban.
• On the wilderness coast, check a tide chart: some headlands can't be passed at high tide.

Olympic National Forest and state land nearby

The national forest wraps around the park, with smaller and often cheaper campgrounds, mostly first come, from May to September or October:

• Falls Creek (Lake Quinault): 21 sites and 10 walk-in tent sites, $25, reservable.
• Coho (Wynoochee Lake): concessioner-run, summer only, with 3 yurts that sleep up to 6, with heat and lights; book on Recreation.gov.
• Big Creek (near Lake Cushman and Staircase): 64 sites, $20, RVs to 36 feet, May to October.
• Collins (Duckabush River, $14), Falls View (above the Big Quilcene River, $10) and Brown Creek (South Fork Skokomish, $14), each first come.
• Campbell Tree Grove (West Fork Humptulips, rain forest old growth): free, RVs to 16 feet.

On the national forest you can stay 14 consecutive days in one developed site and 21 days a year in all. Interagency Senior and Access passes take 50% off most site fees.

Outside the park's west side, Washington DNR runs first-come campgrounds with no nightly fee beyond a Discover Pass, including four along the Hoh River; Bear Creek and Lyre River are closed until April 15, 2027. For free and dispersed options across the peninsula, see Washington dispersed camping.

Before you go

• Expect rain on the west side in any month, and snow on Hurricane Ridge and Deer Park roads from fall to spring.
• Check the conditions page before you drive: storms close the coast campgrounds and roads like Sol Duc and Rialto at short notice.
• Watch the tides on the coast, where fall's higher high tides can cover some beach routes completely and move beach logs.

For the rest of the state, see our Washington camping guide.