Camp 4 Yosemite Valley

Camped here in October 2024 and it was great. It’s a climbing historic campground and sites are relatively primitive and without much frills. Also you need to walk into the sites from Your car (no parking at site). Still it has all You need for a camping night of sleep in the park. And you get to be woken up by climbers heading out to take on big walls at 2 through 4 am. I loved that aspect of the camp ground but others might be annoyed so buyer beware.

Camp 4 was a good experience, we were close to everything, and the bathroom was well maintained. To me, it feels like sleeping in the belly of El Captain. Everything was in order. It's a shared campground with about 4 camping places, and you probably will share a fireplace. Check in and out at 12:00

Great campsite overall! Good location, decent bathrooms, and portable water. Each campsite has 4 subsections to it (i.e campsite 42A, 42B, 42C, 42D) One downside is that there is only 1 fire pit and table per campsite, so you have to share it with the other 3 subsections. Another downside is that showers are only open from 8am - 4:30pm, so if you're doing a hike that takes all day (like Half Dome) you could miss your window to shower

Yosemite is a beautiful park. Camp 4 is in a great part of the valley. I enjoyed my stay. However, the facilities left much to be desired. Half the toilets were clogged most of the time. Half the sinks didn’t work. The showers brought forth feelings of utter disgust and the doors didn’t lock. Not to mention the awkward shower times, they were only open 8:30am to 4:30p.

The reasons to camp here are (1) the beautiful location. You can look out your tent in the morning at the stone side of the mountains, looming right in front of you (2) you didn’t make a reservation in time to stay anywhere else, and (3) You want to save a lot of money. The bathrooms on the side of sites one to 36 do not have showers and during the few days I was there, one of the women’s bathroom was unavailable and the other one had no functioning light so I had to wear a headlamp at night. The bathrooms on the other side were fine. You have to wear flip-flops in the shower because there’s so much dirt everywhere but there is a substantial hook to hang your belongings on.

Very cheap way to camp in Yosemite. You are grouped up with about 2-3 other tents in each section, and so you’ll share the fire pit and the bear boxes are all next to each other in each section. The showers and restrooms were nice. Was able to spend almost a week here, and absolutely do it again.

One of the better places to experience camping in Yosemite. A bit crowded, regardless of the date. Campsites are shared with space for about 4 tents per site. You won't be stepping over your neighbors with some 20-30 ft between tent spots. Amazing views of Yosemite and the different falls. Easy access to the riverfront beaches and trails. 🏕

This place has the potential to be a 4 or 5 star campground but in it's current form, this is not it. Campsites are booked to capacity and if one party has a lot of people, it could get pretty packed. The parking lot filled up and I'm not sure where the overflow ended up parking. The campsite we had didn't have great options for the tent that weren't at a slant and was a long walk to the car. The bathrooms and showers need an upgrade and based on the amount of money these places have available to spend on projects, it is clearly neglected. The shower head was a metal spigot that I've never seen and the water flow was literally only a few inches from the disgusting wall with hair on it. All the hangars were broken so I had to hang my bag on the door hinge, clothes on the token box machine and soap on the floor. Out of four possible showers, one was completely broken and another was labelled handicap only, so ended up with a line of 10+ people. This campground has way too many people for two barely functioning showers. Please report this bathroom situation so it eventually gets repaired. The upside is the location and people were generally friendly and respectful, they definitely have space for more and better campgrounds like this.

I recently stayed at Camp 4, and it was a very interesting experience. Camp 4 is a tent only, walk in campground. There is a parking lot, but parking is never guaranteed. Even if you book one of the ADA sites, it's a good half mile walk from the car to the site. This campground is best for individuals, couples, or groups of three. If you have more than three people, it's cheaper to get a bigger campsite elsewhere. Camp 4 is kind of known as being the spot for seasoned travelers who already know Yosemite well. It is not known for being peaceful or serene. This campground is loud. Like, really loud, every night. Even though it's highly patrolled, there are certain people who just seem to know how to get around all the rules. My first few nights at Camp 4, some climbers who were filming a documentary shared my space. They didn't even show up to set up their camp until 2am. There are showers at Camp 4, technically. The water pressure is like, if you took the water pressure from a really weak hand faucet, and then forced it through an entire shower head. The spaces at Camp 4 are relatively large, because they are each meant to accommodate up to six tents. Each space has four bear boxes. Yosemite Falls is visible from the newer side of Camp 4, but this side is also closer to the road. Because this is a group campsite, the rates are charged per person rather than per space. It's currently $10/person/night. Reservations have to be made online. Overall, you get what you pay for. Camping here wasn't glamorous, but you can't beat the price.

Try to reserve online if possible! Great parking situation and super close to some popular trailheads. The new bathrooms (only on one side of the camp) have really clean showers which is nice. Docking a star because if you arrive at your campsite later at night, you have to do a mandatory check in when the ranger's booth reopens (at about 8:30am). This means that practically, if you drive from the bay area after work, for example, and arrive at your campsite after dinnertime, you still can't start your day early to beat the outside crowds until 9am or later once you've checked in and get your tag for your tent. This ended up wasting a whole morning for my group because we intended to get up at 5am for one of the hikes.

Had the amazing opportunity staying at camp 4 in Yosemite. Camping in national parks isn't easy, spots fill up FAST. Got to stay over Halloween weekend and it was a joy! Staying in the park is so convenient, and really great for getting up early and getting the most out of your day. There are multiple permits per each camp spot so we got to share a fire and meet people from literally all around the world which was great! Bathrooms are clean and well stocked which can almost never be expected camping, so that was nice. A couple complaints would be that online it says as long as you arrive before 4:30 you can check in with an employee. We arrived around 3:45 and all the employees were gone so that was a bummer. There's also not enough parking for all of the people staying. I'm sure people camp here without signing up, so I can understand why the parking gets overfilled but they should have someone to around and actualy check for parking permits because we didn't see anyone doing this and we had to find parking elsewhere and then carry out our gear in the morning which was a pain. And lastly, quiet hours are supposed to be after 9 or 10 but people were up all night yelling and playing instruments. Again, to be expected with camping but I do wish there was an on-site ranger to notice those things. Overall, if you get the chance to stay here, jump on it!! There's nothing else like waking up in Yosemite.

Looking for a lastminute day before reservation? Book Camp4 on recreation.gov because this was the cutest little campsite! Only downside is that the sites are near a road so there is some traffic throughout the night, but otherwise it's right next to a path to the waterfall. The amenities on the newer Camp 4 side (sites numbered above 38) include a restroom that is brand spanking new that has toilet cover seats, 5-6 flushable toilets including a giant accessible stall with a baby changing station, two sinks, A dyson hand dryer, and antibiotic lotion soap. Love me a good bathroom in the wild! We got site 58 which was sweet because we were more on the ends of the campsite and away from all the family dinner campfires. The noise was loud until bedtime due to kids and babies in the general area, but not unexpected for August peak time camping season in Yosemite. The night sky is beautiful here. We camped out before heading out on our backpacking trip in backcountry and let me tell you- you get a shower token per person on check-in so hallelujah. Checkin is due to by 8:30a the day following your arrival so it's perfect for folks who are looking to arrive at Yosemite at night and sleep before waking up to face the music... of the birds.

Camp 4, previously called Sunnyside Walk-in Campground in the 1990's, is located at the base of Yosemite Falls trail. It is the only campsite where you can reserve a day before on recreation.gov for $10 a night (plus $35 to drive into Yosemite.) I like how you can walk across the street to the various stores at Yosemite Lodge including Base Camp Eatery, Yosemite Lodge Food Court, Mountain Room Steakhouse and gift shop without have to drive. This campsite is beautiful. When checking-in at the ranger station, you have the option to pick the "new" side or the old side. The old side is quieter and the new side is right on a trail that leads to Yosemite Falls. Each campsite is for up to six people. They will pair you up with random people. Just my luck, I had to camp with five other random people. There's only one fire pit to share. Luckily, I have my own stove. There are ants, crows and flies at this camp. Be sure put your food in zip lock bags for the ants, lock it up in the food locker for the crows and finally some sort of bug spray, repellent or bug zapper for the flies/mosquitos.

Camp 4 changed my life! I applied for the lottery to stay 3 nights and to my Irish luck, I won! So The next day I packed up my things and spontaneously drove to Yosemite Valley for my first solo camping trip. I should also mention that a couple days prior I've decided to practice a Silent Vow. When I first got there I did not know it was a shared camp site. This is going to be interesting I thought silently to myself. And to my surprise it was the most amazing 4 days/3 nights. I met the most amazing camp-mates during my stay who we all boned together and shared stories. Yes I shared, using a small white board paddle to write down stories/questions/comments. They were absolutely so cool, understanding and patient with me during my silent retreat. When we all departed we exchanged contact/Facebook info to keep in touch, in hopes for another planned trip back to Camp 4. The camp is very lively with multiple groups in each camp site. For $6 bucks a night it's the best bargain. They are very strict and make you read/sign a waiver to keep all your food inside the safe "Food box" to keep away from bears/animals. This also includes your car. DO NOT keep anything in your car and your tent. Keep it all in the safe box. You will get cited. From the parking lot you get a grand view of Half Dome. Check it out at sunset, it's absolutely gorgeous. Each camp site has 2 benches, 4 safe food boxes (for each group) and a camp fire to share. Bring your firewood. Plenty of space for all campers to share and lounge. Lucky for us site #19 is at the end of the camp where there is plenty of open space and less noisy. It's also happens to be the furthest site from the parking lot, so if you have a lot of things, use the wheel barrow to transport your stuff or request a closer site from the parking lot. The bathrooms are decent and you can fill up fresh drinking water. Showers are located at Yosemite Village Lodge. Camp 4 is the perfect location, right next to the swinging bridge where you can go swimming in the river and with a short walk cross over the bridge to the other side of the valley, close to the start of "4 mile trail" up to Glacier Point. During my solo/silent camping trip I shuttled around the valley, it's FREE and runs late (Summer only). I also hiked Lower Yosemite Falls, then over to the base of El Capitan (awesome place to watch rock climbers), I swam in the river everyday, and lastly, I chanced my luck again for the lottery to hike Half Dome and I WON AGAIN! So at 4am I started my journey and hiked up and down the most majestic-epic trail of Half Dome. I racked up 20 miles in 9 hours and 30 min (including the hour I stayed up on top and enjoyed the stunning views along the edge). Check out my photo journey through the windows of my soul. Pro-Tips: * Rent a bicycle up to 2 hours for FREE * Set up a Hammock at camp 4 and enjoy nature. Make sure to check in with the rangers to register it. Also, each Hamlisch must include padding around the tree. (I used cardboard). * The Grocery store/Lodge shop has everything in case you forgot something. I celebrated buy enjoying some delicious ice cold Ice cream after my long Half Dome hike. * Purchase your firewood at your local grocery/home improvement store. It's cheaper. * Lastly tip and most important one of all... substitute your jerseys Chocolate for Nutella instead. Thank me later

Will never stay here again. No enforcement of quiet hours. People shouting, singing, blasting music in the campground with no regard of others. People slamming shut the metal bear boxes at 11pm. People constantly walking through my campsite. One person literally kicked my tent. A 0/10 experience.

We stumbled upon this campground driving through Yosemite in early March. We were looking for a site to camp that day but didn't have a plan in place. Many sites are still closed during this time so we didn't know what to expect driving through the park. This campsite was perfectly nestled by the falls. It is in a great location near tons of hiking trails and it is right by the Yosemite Valley Lodge. Here, you can get all the things you need; they have food, camping stuff, firewood, and souvenirs. They also have a little history museum you can look in. Since it was still the winter months, the campsite was a self-registration basis. So all you have to do is find an open campsite, the numbers are on each food locker, fill out the envelope and put money in it. The sites are cheap at $6 per person. The bathrooms are clean and heated. Car parking is right there and you don't have to walk too far. This was a perfect campground!

Late August 2019 Enjoyable experience staying at this campground About the only time we have won the lottery!! Camp 4 lottery must not be hard to win LoL But the $6 per person per night prices in Yosemite is the best!! Lottery system is only from late May-early September, the rest of the year is first come first serve as before. First make an acct on their website then enter the lottery and you will get an email confirmation if you win, make sure all in your party have their names on it because when you arrive to register, rangers ask for IDs A lot of good things with the new system -Families can camp here -No more waiting in line in the am -$10 fee to enter the lottery on the website Each campsite has their own food locker. The sites are shared if your group is under 6 people. Everyone camping here were very chill and friendly. During the summer it does gets hot, there is the river where you can cool of at. The camp store is near by to get all you need and souvenirs. You are in Yosemite!! Enjoy!

My group and I camped at Camp 4 over labor day weekend (Friday-Sunday) and had a really positive experience. Camp 4 is a WALK-IN camp centrally located to a lot of the park's attractions, shuttles and conveniences (stores, dining halls, etc.) for those who are not down to 100% rough it. The campers that we encountered were all super friendly and respectful and the campground itself was pretty well managed. Highly recommend this campground, especially for rock climbers or people planning on hiking Half Dome. Amenities: - each camp individual site came with picnic tables, bear boxes and a fire pit - the campground bathrooms have flush toilets, mirror and sinks, and outlets for hair dryers, phone chargers, etc. Tips: **PERMITS/SPACE ARE ASSIGNED BY PERSON, NOT PER SITE (each site can have a max of 6 people)*** - arrive early (AKA in the middle of the night); my group arrive at Camp 4 around 2:30am the Friday of Labor Day weekend and were 20-ish in line out of 90+. The following night we saw people starting to line up at around 10pm... - MAKE SURE YOUR WHOLE GROUP IS PRESENT AT 7am; no going to the car or bathroom... they will not let you save spots or get an extra permit even if that person was with you the entire night - BRING CASH! The cost is $6/person/night. If you forgot to bring cash, there is an ATM at the lodge/visitor center across the street

PSA: No longer 1st come 1st serve! Every year a group of 30+ friends and I plan an epic (usually 4day) camping adventure. This year was much different. camp 4, had been a first come first serve camp basis for the longest, up until this year they began a new lottery system where for $10 you submit a name & cross your fingers bc you don't find out until 24hrs prior to your requested date !? Wild. 6 tents per campsite. Coming up N from Los Angeles we took the scenic route. $35 National Park fee w/ the exception of NP Season Pass holders. Plentiful scenery, photo ops, check for gas stations in route ahead of time as there aren't any in Yosemite village area. Camp 4 is walking distance from the Lodge where there is a gift shop, Starbucks, and cafe w/ restrooms. The river is about a 5 min walk across from The campsite. Parking in the Camp 4 lot is permit parking only. Each tent in your site MUST be tagged or you will be fined, $6/day fee to camp separate from the $10 lottery fee. Also walking distance from Lower Yosemite Falls (15min) easy nature walk which has a ton of water this year. Beautiful amazing views. Camp rangers give you the rules and regulations, 10pm-6am is quiet time. We usually head to the river after 10pm to avoid a noise warning / complaint & not be fined a fee. Restrooms are available on premises 2 large private and 1 women's w/ multiple stalls 3 sinks & 1 men's Potable water available in between men/women restrooms. NO dishwashing there must wash at your site. New bear boxes. So be sure to pack everything in there. Plenty room per campsite. Nice areas shaded by trees.

Camp 4 is a walk-up, first-come first-serve camping area in Yosemite Valley. It is highly sought after, especially during peak season due to location, low fee cost and lack of ability to reserve spots. The line for permits starts early in the morning. We came just before peak season by a few weeks and they were 23 people ahead of us in line and we arrived at 6:30am. The pay station opens at 8:30am. Some people camp out the night before to ensure a spot. A lot of the people trying to get permits here are rock climbers, most of which are from out of the country, so if you are coming during peak season and want to stay here be ready to have an early morning waiting in line. Permits are given out on an individual basis. So if you have a group of ten, each person will have to pay for their own permit but you can pay all together in a group to try to get places at the same/nearby camp sites. YOU MUST HAVE CASH! When arriving to the station their is a number listed of how many permits will be available on the window. So if the line is long and you want to know if it's worth waiting check the number of available permits to see if it's worth waiting. For us, their were 64 available permits and we were 24 & 25th in line so we were fine, but I know some people didn't make the cut. Aside from the logistics or getting a site, the actually environment isn't my favorite. Yosemite is the Mecca for climbers, while I have done some climbing I'm more of a hiking, backpacking gal so we stuck out like a sore thumb. All the climbers hangout and talk together, they had no interest in talking or including us so it was kind of a lonely stay. The area we set up was nice, but it's right up against a main road. There are flush bathrooms and water, but the bathrooms smelled awful. We agreed this was a great learning experience but we would not come back. We like sitting around a campfire and making friends with your tent neighbors and that was not our experience here. I would not recommend this site to any of my family or friends, or anybody wanting to bring a family or group that's main goal isn't climbing.

Much love for Camp 4. My boyfriend and I came by on a Saturday in February. There were lots of open spots. None of which seemed less nice than another. We chose to stay near the parking lot. The campers by the bathroom were a little rowdy past the quiet time, but they were far enough to where their noise didn't keep us up at night. The bathrooms were heated and very clean. They had an outlet we were able to use to inflate our mattress. From our camping spot we had a beautiful view of Yosemite falls. Lots of day trippers walk by looking for the Upper Yosemite Falls trail or the Lower Yosemite Falls outlook area. My boyfriend and I had a great time and would love to come back and try for a spot.

Camped here Fri- Sun 4/10/15-4/12/2015 Group of 6 of us. After doing some research, we decided we were going to do a walk up campsite. It being off season, it seemed a lot of campsites were closed, with only Lower and Upper Pines open, but they are by RSVP only. Speaking with a man on the trail, he said he booked his campsite there 7 months in advance there.... I couldn't seem to find a detailed guide of obtaining a spot at Camp 4, I read multiple blogs and pieced everything together. So here is my personal guide of going about and getting a campsite at Camp 4: Thursday night: we drove from San Diego and stayed in Oakhurst that night. We booked the Comfort Inn Yosemite Area for $100.00 (2 queen beds). We had gotten in at 1 am and hit the road again at 5:30 am. Friday: we had another set of friends driving up from SD, but they chose to leave at midnight and drive straight to Camp 4. They beat us by 45 min. Leaving at 5:30, we didn't pull into Camp 4 till 7 am. By that time, there were about 12-14 ppl ahead of us in line. Yes it's true, ppl pull out their sleeping bags and climbing pads and sleep in front of the ranger kiosk until the ranger shows up at supposedly 8:30 am. Note, on Friday 4/10 the ranger didn't show up until around 10 am. (Rumor was someone went and complained at the visitor center and was advised a ranger didn't show up to their job so they had to send another ranger to open up) Steps to obtaining a campsite: 1) obtain an envelope (notate license plate number of your car) 2) find empty bear box 3) stick something inside of bear box like a book, blanket water bottle to claim it 4) notate campsite number on bear box 5) write down bear box number on envelope 6) go sign in everyone in your party and notate campsite on sign in sheet 7) put money ($6/per night) in envelope and drop it into the slot next to sign in sheet 8) attach tag from envelope onto tent 4 bear boxes to each campsite, 35-36 campsites. Bathrooms are decently clean. There is a faucet for water in between the restrooms, you can't do dishes there, so I would recommend bringing a bucket to lug water back to campsite. One fire pit per campsite, has a metal rack you can put a pot on to boil water and what not. No showers here, you have to go to Curry Village. A couple of dumpsters for trash and recycle. You can buy firewood from the store which is a mile away. we paid $8.50 for a box. We went through about 3+ bundles. Since there were 6 of us, and we had to share campsites with others, we set up 3 tents total on 2 campsites that were right next to each other, taking up 3 bear boxes. It didn't seem like the rangers were not strict on how many people per campsite, I think there might have been 7 people on our campsite. It's a popular campsite, so be ready to mingle with the other campers. We made friends with ours. I would say if you're looking for peaceful quiet nature, this camp is not for you or a family with kids. Our plan B if we hadn't gotten a campsite here was gonna be Hodgdon Meadow, but it's outer Yosemite 45 min away. Another great thing about this site is it's walking distance to the trail heads of Lower and Upper Yosemite Falls.

Historic climbing site | Cool camping spot | Kiosk help sucks $ I used to camp here all the time with my parents and friends. Now, it's always super crowded and guaranteed tough to get a spot. People line up the night before waiting for a spot to open the next morning... it's that bad. (First-come first-serve basis. no reservations) CHEAP to stay here, unless they recently raised their prices. $5 per person per night Parking lot was expanded a bit to accommodate more people. LOTS of bouldering in the campground area. Some trailheads nearby to go to upper Yosemite falls. Sites have bear lockers. No pets allowed. Fire pits. Flush toilets. I was just over here for Halloween and my husband was bouldering on one of the classic routes -- Midnight Lightning (V8). It's located right in the heart of the campground area next to the bathroom. He fell and hurt his ankle (most likely a sprain), but when we went to seek help at the kiosk, the woman's response was: "if it's that bad, call 911." Didn't say any other suggestions. We went back a few minutes later to ask her where we could get an x-ray and what our other options were but she LEFT!!!! Wow. We found out the closest hospital is in Mariposa. Either you drive awhile out to the nearest hospital or you call 911 and have an entourage of paramedics and helicopters coming in to get you. Ridiculous. ---------------- UPDATE 1/19/16: So, I just got a message from a d-head of a climber saying that there is a clinic in the park that provides radiology services and 'who asks for assistance with rescue for an ankle from Midnight Lightning'? Well, that's what we were hoping we'd find out from the lady at the kiosk, but she failed to tell us this. And, if any of you haven't jumped on Midnight Lightning, the general consensus is that the foot holds are greasy and the pocket crimp hold is tough to stick. Certainly a fun and classic route even for us climbers that have been climbing for 8 years. And besides, no matter what type of climbing you're doing or the difficulty of the grade, if someone is injured, there shouldn't be judgement passed on trying to find informative options.

Went to Yosemite and successfully stayed at Camp 4. Note that during the winter season Camp 4 is self check-in. At the kiosk you grab a golden envelope from the wooden box on the right side, fill it out, and you keep half to display on your tent. The other half you handover and pay $6 per person a night. My experience: we arrived around 1am on Friday night and we were able to find an open spot! It was pitch black but easy to find a spot since we scoped the site for an open bear box. I imagine doing walk-ins like this are relatively easy, otherwise your best bet is to wait for ppl to check-out (noon) and swoop in. The campsite: includes a bear box, fire pit and table. The bathrooms are pretty clean (looks like theyre cleaned daily), and the bathrooms are heated!! Note: although there isn't someone checking ppl in @8am, there is a ranger that comes by around that time to check tents.

This campground is a good place to go for last minute plans... (i say that with experience) My friends and I decided to take a very short getaway trip to Yosemite about 2 weeks before we went. Being the so called "mom" of the group, I began planning the trip and researching for campgrounds, park fees, hike trails, etc. you know all that jazz that is good to know before going and not knowing what the hell you're doing. This was pretty much the only place located inside of Yosemite valley that did not operate on reservations but rather first come first serve. So after my research, I made plans for a few of us to head down to Yosemite superrrr early in order to arrive at 3-4 and get in line. We arrived at about 3:45 am thinking we would be at least in the first 20 there. But when we got there, there was like already 35 people just sleeping in line! (Well there was a family just before us that had 24 people, holy cow) But luckily there was 105 spots available the next day so we were pretty much good. It is $6/person per night. They are quite strict about keeping food or anything with an odor stored in the food lockers provided because they do checks at night and around 4 pm every day to make sure you don't have anything out. And believe me, if you leave even just one empty bottle of gatorade out, they WILL bang on your tent at 12:30 am and yell at you to go put it away. So to avoid being abruptly woken up, store all your stuff. They even look in your cars. Bathrooms were decent. Overall good place to camp if its last minute, just make sure you get there pretty early to ensure a spot the next day. There normally isn't many spots available in the summer and the line forms pretty early. We just got lucky that day.

Really really nice campsite and the best option for a last minute trip to Yosemite. You have to get there early!!! We stayed from 6/13-6/15 (Monday through Wednesday) and got in line at 5:30am and were the last people to get a spot. The ranger comes around 8:30 so just bring something to bundle up in because it gets cold. It's super close to the shuttle and food which is convenient. You do share the campsite with other people, but it stays pretty quiet and everyone is friendly.

Wonderful campsite. Went here for the first time over this past weekend 8-7-15 to 8-9-15. Truth be told, all the reviews I read about the wait and limited capacity scared me off. Arrived to the campsite around 4am and two people were already up in line snuggled in two sleeping bags. Around 430, 2 more cars drove into the lot, which drove me and my friend to go out to wait behind the first two people. By 5am there were about 30 people in line more or less. By 630, about 80 and by 8am, well over 100. After taking a short little nap, i woke up to the first two people out of line! 83 people got spots that day and the process was very easy. If only I had noticed the sign in front of the rangers kiosk earlier, I'd have waited in the car longer (as the sign will tell you how many spots will be available the following morning). I did get rained on during the wait, but ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ not too much of a big deal. All in all, a friendly community. The weather was perfect, no bugs! (Perhaps because it's late summer) the campsite holds the trailheads to both upper and lower yosemite. Camp 4 is a perfect one mile walk to the Four Mile Trail TH. And there are shuttles that stop right in front.

This is one of four campgrounds remaining in Yosemite Valley. The other three are roughly the same: reservations fill up many months in advance, hidden in the pines, RV friendly, small sites crammed together, horrible loud neighbors, always a few yahoos who leave food out for the bears. Long ago, I said that I would never stay in these camps, and I've kept my word. But Camp 4 is unique. Tents only, located far from the man-made action in the valley, $5/person/night, 6 people per site whether you know them or not, park your car in the large dirt parking lot and walk to your site. For me, it was ideal, and I'd give it more stars except that the setup just won't work for most visitors. No trailers or RVs allowed, so that knocks out a lot of people, especially retirees. Not good for kids, so that knocks out the families. No easy access to showers, so that knocks out the princesses who find themselves in - ew - this dirty place, OMG. I'm the type who likes to drive off the paved road for a mile and throw up a tent. No place like that in Yosemite NP, but this is one of a few campgrounds that come close. When I hiked Half Dome, this looked to be the best place for to camp. And it was. The other campers were far better than the reputation of the other three camps. This camp caters to the athletic outdoorsy types. They don't mess with your stuff, you don't mess with their stuff, early to bed and early to rise. A lot of campers tackle El Capitan or the Yosemite Falls trail, as these are within easy walking distance of the camp. Basically, if you read the above paragraph and say 'perfect!", then it's 5 stars for you (and me). Otherwise, you'd be better off somewhere else.

Wow! Three stars! Now that I've got your attention, I want to say that Camp 4 is probably a great camp worth 5 stars (especially for its proximity to valley attractions), but be warned: SPOTS GO QUICK. ***TRYING TO GET A CAMPSITE ON A FRIDAY MORNING*** I read Scott L's review and expected ~40 spots to open up the morning of July 17th, but only 20 spots (space for 20 people, not 20 campsites) opened up at 8 AM. Yep, that's right; arriving at 6 AM (sharp), we were about 25th in line. I've attached a photo to show how the waiting spot is, and how long the line was at 6 AM. Shortly after we arrived, the line doubled in the span of half an hour. It's really a crazy rush; had we arrived twenty minutes later, we would've been #35 or 40. At 7, there's about 50 people waiting. Now I'm not sure what your inclination for risk is, but unless you're there as the first 20, I'd use the reception available at Camp 4 to wisely search for a backup. The ranger who eventually came at 8:40-ish told us to go to Tioga Road, as campsites there might still have spots; my original backup was White Wolf, but we decided to go further into Tioga Rd. in case White Wolf was already taken. We ended up camping for the weekend at Porcupine Flats. It's a great spot, and quite a large one, at that (convenient if you're planning on going to lakes, albeit a little further from the valley attractions). So my advice: arrive early - REALLY early, just in case - and have backup campsites. Not just one, but two or three - and make sure you know where they are, and how to get over to Tioga Road. Or just skip Camp 4 and head over to White Wolf. The drive is long, from one part of Yosemite to another, but if you're spending a weekend here, it's worth it to explore the area. GENERAL YOSEMITE ADVICE: this is for first-timers. Those who are experienced probably know this already, but there's two general parts of Yosemite and it's the valley and everything down Tioga Road. Tioga Road doesn't open up during the winter; the valley is where the most typical attractions are. Reservations are paramount, and if you want to stay in the valley, I'd heavily recommend getting a reservation if possible. It's a little easier to get the first-come first-served campsites outside of the valley, but you would then need to drive over to the valley every time you want to visit or skip the valley attractions altogether (as my group did). If you choose the latter, the valley justifies another visit sometime in the future.

I loved Camp 4! It's a first-come, first-serve walk-in campground across from the Yosemite Lodge. At $5 per person per night, you just can't beat the value! I mean, all I really needed was a place to set my tent. This place ups the ante by providing picnic tables, a fire grill, and some toilets. Of course, no camp site in Yosemite would be complete without bear lockers. There are five lockers per site and each site allows up to six people, so there is plenty of room for your food and anything that might smell like food. There is a dedicated parking lot for Camp 4 residents. It's a "walk-in" campground because you can't park your car right next to your tent like some other places. You have to schlep your gear to your site, which can be a little haul, depending on where you decide to reside. Of course, you may not have a choice. My Yosemite trip was in February, so there were plenty of spots. If you plan on going in the summer months, though, you'd better show up extremely early to guarantee a spot. Oh and another awesome thing? Camp 4 is right at the trailhead for the Upper Yosemite Falls. It's also a fairly short hike to the Yosemite Village. Camp 4 really makes a great base camp for your Yosemite adventures.

I arrived there at 4:30 we could of been there earlier but we got pretty lost. DO NOT just rely on Google maps! Just look for the sign that says park exit and it's right before it. Anyways, there were 52 spots available for a Thursday. There were already 30 ppl in line. It's 6 dlls per person per day. If you don't end up staying as long as you had reserved you get a refund which is super cool! We got a spot luckily! Very important that everyone that is in your group is in line. I was there with my 6 and 3 yr old so anyone can do it! (No excuses)We requested 2 bear boxes which I'm glad we did! Camping there was pretty chill I had my two kids with me and we all had a great time. The Yosemite falls is super close you can hear the waterfall all day from camp. Bathrooms were well kept. No showers are available. The bus stops are also very close to there which allow you to get to the trails very easily and they're completely free. It's super difficult to get a reservation at the valley camps so this is totally a great way to go. The gift shop and food court is walking distance which is nice. You can buy your firewood there. Things to make sure to take: Bucket to wash dishes in and soap Lots of water we took our 5 gallon tank and I'm super glad we did! Have fun!

So a group of friends and I (10 people total) decided to visit Yosemite July 21-23. We couldn't get reservation even months in advance so we decided to go with the first-come first-serve option. Honestly, doing it this way was an awesome experience! 6 of us drove up from San Diego leaving at 9pm on Thursday to make it to Yosemite at around 0430. 4 of the others came from SF so they waited in line before SD people. At the camp kiosk there was a sign that said it was going to allow for 57 people in. By the time we arrived at the campsite there was already 25-30 people in line. Technically, since we arrived later than the SF people, we weren't allow to cut or they weren't allowed to save spots in line. Fortunately, the other people in line didn't mind. Since we arrived at 0400 we had to wait 4 hours till the rangers came to open the camp at 0830. The check-in process was super quick & easy. All 10 of us were accommodated in 2 campsites right next to each other. (Campsites 11&12) Campsites are large with a fire pit, food lockers and wood picnic tables. The only thing that bothered me was that the women's bathrooms didn't have baskets for pads or tampons.

5 Stars because you're camping in Yosemite. If you have a horrible time here maybe change your attitude!!!! I do say that it does get super crowded during thurs-sun if you're trying to get a site. But hey, I recommend friending up some people in line and getting a site together because who really wants to drive 3,4,5,6 hours for a first come first served campground and get turned away right?? Let's all get along. Anyways, most people here have one thing in common, camp and enjoy nature so most people here are very respectful as I've come across. This will always be my number one option as far as staying overnight or for a couple of nights in Yosemite. Bathrooms available, no showers (Curry Village or maybe Yosemite Lodge for showers). Village store is a brisk 15 minute walk east, Yosemite Lodge is just across the street and 5 mins away for extra snacks etc.

We camped here in March so it was busy but not completely full. There was no one working at the camp entrance so we just chose a site, filled out the paperwork and attached the ticket to our tent. The food bins were pretty packed, I find it hard to believe that during the summer there is enough room for everyone's food to be locked up. $5 per person is pretty good for right in the valley and you don't need reservations months in advance like some of the other valley campgrounds. We were just happy to be staying in the valley to avoid the 45 min drive from some outlying campgrounds. We even saw a bobcat right at the campgrounds entrance!

I love that there is an option for a walk-in campsite in Yosemite Valley, camp 4 has been my love. But the last couple of years has gotten more crowded and the people a little more rude. We checked in on Wednesday, and like everyone else during the summer we arrive at 4:30am to get in line in order to get a campsite, there was already 16 people ahead of us. Well we got a site, and the park ranger specifically says to not hover over people who are still camped in at their site. They have till noon to check out. Well we went over to scope out the site real quick to see if we were lucky enough to have the site cleared early. But the occupants were still sleeping. Our group was courteous enough to come back at 11am to check to see their eta. Well the occupants were still there and nothing packed yet. We went to our car to take a nap. Then 12:10pm rolls around, and they were barely breaking down. We told them its passed noon and we are going to bring our items in to start setting up. Fine we understand some people just have a hard time getting going during the day. The worst part is when it was time for us to leave Friday, there were three groups of people come up to us and just stared. I said we have till noon to check out, but the rest of my group was being nice which gave them the impression to start bringing their stuff over. We ended rushing to pack up as they bombarded us by setting up camp before we even finished packing our items away. As one of our guys finished with the last of the things all of them were standing around him at the table rushing him off the campsite. It was only 11:30am. We were quite irritated about this incident. Turns out another member of our group accidentally left her hiking boots by a tree close to where her tent was. Our last guys did a sweep of the site to make sure we didn't leave anything. But since the group coming in decided to drop all their camping gear around her shoes, he overlooked them. Warning to all who camp at camp 4. Be firm about your time at your camp site. You endured waiting in line in the early morning hours to get a site. Don't let anyone bully you out of it, be firm that you have till noon to check out, and that they will have to wait, or let them know they can leave stuff in an empty area so you can finish up packing. Don't let them hover and stare you down, its disrespectful. Please be courteous and respectful to others. We are all trying to have an enjoyable experience out at such a wonderful place.

Yosemite, in general, is a majestic place. I have never been anywhere that comes close to its beauty. We have been here a few times already and we never get tired of it. On May 2nd of 2014 we had stayed a week at Curry Village but we still hadn't had enough of Yosemite and we were not ready to leave. We had made a plan to wake up in the wee hours of tha morn in order to get a campsite at camp 4. Well, there was a bear that kept me up at night. (My wife said the bear that was keeping us up was actually me snorring, I dont believe I snore tho, I've never heard myself snore) We got up at 8! Heck we were so late we jumped out of bed and left, I didnt even brush my teeth! We got there before 8:20. I was surprised that there was only about 7 people in line. The ranger was super nice, she got there about 8:40. I couldn't believe that it was only 5 bucks a person! You get what you pay for. Im not dissatisfied with the campsite. Ive been to many campsites and this one is still nice. Cons: *You dont actually have a campsite, its more like sharing one with 3 or 4 other groups. Yes you also share the fire pit. *the haul from your car to your camp spot can be very long and there is no way to pull your car up close to it. *bathrooms get very very crowded in the mornings. Hey at least there is bathrooms and you dont have to dig and poop. * noisy annoying campers. Its a party site. *in the date we came I was attacked by mosquitoes. Might be different in other times of the year. I didnt mind these things. I took off a star because I nicely asked the ranger to wash my clothes and she completely refused. I thought that was mean. She gets a one star for that. However I would much rather camp in upper or lower pines but this is also a ok option. If this was my only choice I would still come.

Just came back from this campsite. Stayed from Friday 09/18 till Sunday 09/20 and it was a Great campsite ! Listen to everyone that says to get there early because spots do fill up quickly! My party and I arrived Friday morning at 5am and we were 3rd in line . Good thing is that there's a sign on the front of the window that tells you how many spots will be available the next day so you can get a good idea of whether or not You're gonna get a spot. Close range to some hiking trails and the view all around you is breath taking (as I'm sure most of Yosemite is). Hike up to Taft point, the fissures, and the dome for lots of GREAT views! Hike is pretty laid back not too intense, some uphill climbs but the view and experience of all the nature around you is so worth it! It's about a 4-6 mile loop depending on how many stops you make and which directions you choose. I would love to come back to this campsite everything was absolutely perfect! Oh and PS the village cafe down the street is not so great, I would take as much of my own food as possible because prices are outrageous and food is basically high school cafeteria food LOL. But besides that, great experience at camp 4!

OBTAINING A SPOT DURING HOLIDAY WEEKENDS. Because of the harsh restrictions regarding the amount of time one can stay in Yosemite Valley - and the fact that Camp 4 is the only "walk-in" campground in the Valley - spots can be exceedingly difficult to obtain during major holidays, such as around the Memorial Day Weekend. Below is a list of the number of available slots each day during and immediately after the 2013 Memorial Day Weekend as of 8:30am (i.e., immediately before the ranger arrived and distributed numbered cards to those on line confirming who could obtain a space and who could not); a further notation is made of the number of people who were present and waiting to be checked-in at the time noted. - Fri, 24 May - 68 Available Spots - 22 People present & on-line at 5:15am - Sat, 25 May - 27 Available Spots - 15 People present & on-line at 3:15am - Sun, 26 May - 43 Available Spots - Mon, 27 May - 107 Available Spots - Tue, 28 May - 63 Available Spots - Wed, 29 May - 65 Available Spots - Thu, 30 May - 75 Available Spots - Fri, 31 May - 78 Available Spots

I am giving 4 stars because of how unaccommodating and rudely the system they have at Yosemite treats those who arrive late and are waiting in line at the kiosk. They tell you you can't sleep all night but have to sit up awake or else get a ticket for illegal camping! Most of these travelers are international so they should be more understanding. Other than that camp 4 is totally awesome!

It's the place to go if you don't have a reservation in the valley. For $6 per day, it's a great deal. However, you can forget about privacy and solitude. This place gets annoyingly loud if there are only a handful inconsiderate people. Bathroom can get quite dirty by the end of the day, and people keep washing dishes at the water fountain even though there's a sign telling them not to. During summer season, prepare to start waiting in line as early as 4 if forecast is good. Grab a chair and blanket or something to kill time with.

I love love love camp 4. I just got back from a 5 day camping trip here and I can't stop thinking about how much I enjoyed myself. First come first served, walk in sites like the other reviews have said. I personally do not enjoy planning my trips 12 months in advance so this campground was my only option because yosemite valley books up so quickly. And at only $5 per person per night it was the best option financially. I arrived around 7:30 am on a Thursday in mid-may and I was the third person in line waiting to be assigned a spot. The sites are 6 person max, but if you do not have that many people in your group, more people will be assigned to fill the camp site to it's capacity. I was a little worried i'd be stuck with weirdos but I ended up having the best neighbors. In fact, the other campers were the best part of this campground. There were very few families, and the ones that were there seemed very out of place. Everyone seemed to be in their mid 20's to mid 30's and were either rock climbers or hikers. My personal favorite was a group of extremely well toned shirtless dudes with dreads playing soccer and frisbee in the mornings. (thanks guys, I loved waking up to that beautiful sight). Everyone was respectful of the quite hours, and everyone seemed to keep their sites quite clean and trash free. Plenty of bear containers, clean bathrooms with flush toilets and running water! Heck yeah. Bring your bike! Yosemite valley is much easier to navigate on bike than on foot or by car and the camp 4 parking lot is always overflowing, so if you get a spot don't give it up! I will definitely be camping here again, and hopefully so will my soccer player neighbors.

Super long review ahead. Tl;dr: great place to camp if you know what to expect, but filled with wildlife that are used to humans. Timeframe: Early August, Friday to Sunday. Getting the site: We got to Yosemite at 2 in the morning on Friday, knowing spots were going to be limited. The sign posted at the kiosk stated there would be 70 spots available for that night and we were 26th to 32nd in line. Set up our sleeping bags and chairs and napped until 5am when more people started showing up. They were able to put all 7 of us onto one site because we were all going to sleep in the same tent, I think we would have had to split us otherwise. During check in they ask for everyone's ID, the license plates of all the cars in your party, and all of the gear that will be sitting outside at night (mostly tents and hammocks) so they can tag it. You get a choice from available sites, and then you're all set! Remember that the previous occupants have until 12pm to vacate the site, please don't rush them to leave. They went through the same process of waiting for a site and are tired from the adventures. Site rules: no food, drinks, cleaning supplies, toothpaste, anything that has a scent outside the bear lockers when not in use. Bears aren't the only things you have to watch out for, there are a ton of squirrels, raccoons, and even foxes that will rummage through your stuff if you don't pay attention. These animals are used to humans, probably even get fed by some. They are persistent, watch your stuff! Quiet hours start at 10, usually well followed because everyone's exhausted. The rangers will come around to make sure you didn't leave anything out that will attract the wildlife. They'll even open tents to check for toothpaste or soap. Amenities: decent bathroom in the middle of the campground. No soap is available due to bears, so bring your own. There's a place to fill your pot with water, bathroom stalls on one side and two accessible bathrooms (private) on the other side. Kept pretty clean but people can be disgusting when they throw their trash on the floor instead of carrying it out with them. Location: best you can get for walk in camping. Free shuttle across the street, although it can get crowded and off schedule. Easy to get to all the trails and "villages" in the park.

On our visit to Yosemite we just happened to notice that this camp was located right at the base of the Upper Falls hiking trail, the one trail that we felt we needed to hike. As we walked in with our very low-fi, bare bones camping equipment and lack of typical outdoorsy clothing, we began to get a lot of looks from fellow campers. A LOT of weird, almost nasty looks. Our camp-mates would later tell us that Camp 4 is the mecca for rock climbers, which explained why we looked extremely out of place. I don't now much about rock climbing as a sport, but back in the fifties and sixties some of the original climbers began their ascent up El Capitan using old pipes from furnaces and other crazy materials to create their routes up the monolith. Camp 4 also has numerous boulder "problems," one of which is the apparently world famous Midnight Lightning boulder. Entire books have been written about the history and the significance of this camp and we had absolutely no idea about what we stumbled upon. While we enjoyed the stay there, we remained to be unimpressed by the camp itself. The lack of amenities was fine, but it would have been nice to have more than a trickle of running water in the bathrooms. Each site also had plenty of storage for food; however, the effort to put away all of your food seems wasted when the campsite next to you drinks til one in the morning and leaves empty alcohol and food containers around their campsite. Sure, bears are pretty sweet and I'm all for debauchery, but in a situation like this it seems irresponsible and inconsiderate.

It is great for a last minute opportunity to find a campsite within Yosemite Valley. When we got to the ranger station outside of the park and were informed that all campsites were full, including Camp 4, I still drive in and hoped to find a spot at Camp 4, which I did. Basically, Camp 4 is a first-come first-serve campsite. You pay $6 per person, per night. Payment is placed inside an envelope and slid into a paybox. You detach a flag associated with the envelope and attach it to your tent. You also write down your vehicle license plate. Check out is noon daily, so we arrived at 11:45 AM and just sought a vacated spot. You will be sharing a campsite with up to 6 others, but it beats not being able to camp, at all. Amenities include fire ring, bear lockers (there were 4 at our site), toilets, and sinks. No showers here. Yosemite shuttle is across the street at stop 7.

Yosemite National Park is a pretty amazing place to go see. The downside on this park is the campgrounds. So, we get to the park around 5 in the morning and stood in the freezing cold weather for two hours hoping that we get a spot to camp for a couple of nights. When they opened around 8am, they came out and give out tickets to about 5 people. Luckily we were the last people to get a ticket. So, we get to the campground and our camping site was about 10x10 space with a little fire pit and was right next to the bathrooms. Our neighbors that we had kept looking at us almost the whole time, it was really weird. But we make do and had a great time exploring the park for a couple of days. My favorite thing was the tunnel view and the El Capitan Mountain. Yosemite National Park is one of the seven wonders of the whole. It is definitely worth coming to. So, if you are ever visiting San Francisco, you should head over to Yosemite National Park for a day.

Camp 4 is amazing. The history behind it is great, the location is ideal, and all the coolest people stay there. Get up early (really early) to get your spot, or better yet come in April when the Valley is not packed. I'm sorry, were you looking for luxury? No. there is no luxury here, except for the luxury of awesome company and the ease (necessity?) of making new friends from all over the world while staying here. The bathrooms are spartan, the registration process is archaic, the neighbors are the fun kind of noisy, and I wouldn't have it any other way.

This campground is intense. We had to be in line at 5 am to assure ourselves of a spot, then had to share a firepit with another family. The demographic of this campground was mostly younger people which is fine if you're looking to party a bit, but not the best for a quiet family retreat. Other than sharing a site, it was mostly fine, however I probably will not return. It's not a bad place to get out and see Yosemite if you're looking to camp on a whim though.

We got there at 6am to get a spot for 2 people. There were more than 20 people in front of us already. I think that day 50 people were able to register. Ranger came at 8:30am. By the time we finished registering it was 9:30am, and our numbers were 24 and 25. I did not like this camp ground much because there is no private space since 6 people are sharing one site, and too many people in this camp ground.

Plan on spending some quality time in line for a spot in Camp 4, bring your camp chair, coffee, breakfast, and a book to read. We got to the ranger kiosk around 6:40 am on a Thursday morning in early August...there were already approximately 20 people ahead of us in the line, many of whom had been there since 5 am. We thought, "OK, not too bad, we should get a spot if there are 210 spots total, and we have seen at least 20 people packing their stuff out". The kiosk doesn't open until 8:30 am, so we spent some good time bonding with our fellow travelers, playing cards, sharing our breakfast, and drinking coffee. You have to physically be present in order to get a spot, so around 8 am, the line of 20 had grown to over 40 from people holding spots for their friends. We then saw at least 40 behind us too. "Oh boy, this isn't looking so good now...". At 8:30 sharp, the park ranger announced that she had 78 spots open, and then handed out the numbers, we ended up getting 48 and 49, so many of the folks behind us didn't get a spot. Once you secure a number, plan on waiting in the line for 1-2 more hours to get registered. A traveler who had stayed at Camp 4 many times said it was the largest line he had ever seen there. We had a great time, met many new camping friends, and will definitely stay at Camp 4 again.

Love this place. Camp 4 is the most epic and brilliant camp site. Everyone is friendly and enjoys relaxing and enjoying nature. Stay in camp 4 period. You'll have an epic time.

This is a review for the time I spent there 40 years ago. 'Nuff said!

Just came back from camp 4 for two nights, Tues-Thurs in June 2015 and wanted to provide some updated information. You can't beat this campground -- right in the valley, friendly vibe, close to trailheads. Arrived at 5:56am and was #14 in line. The day I arrived (Tuesday) there were spots for 72 people that opened up, and everyone in line got a spot, though you had to wait longer if you were toward the back since the registration process takes a while. The ranger started the process at 8:20am, and I was on my way on a hike by 10:30am. No need to claim a bear box, as the previous poster mentioned -- now they're assigned. If you're coming up from far away, it might be a good idea to stay at a cheap place 1-2h out from the park the night before and then drive in. Crane Flat also had campsites available at the time I was researching campgrounds, so you could also stay there the night before, though I guess then you have to tear down early and then drive over. Things I wish I knew before going: -- bring a bucket or a basin in which to wash your dishes -- there's no dishwashing at the sink they have there -- bring kindling or smaller pieces of wood in addition to normal firewood if you're going to start a campfire -- you can't gather wood from the ground Have fun!

Nothing beats $6/person & night here at Camp 4. Also, this campground is in the middle of everything near Yosemite Village. People do camp out for a spot so I highly recommend you arriving at this location by at least 4AM-5AM or else you won't get a spot at all. There are restrooms, food storage for you there

I got on yelp before my trip and learned some helpful things, but not EVERYTHING I wish I could have known. So this review is that. First of all, the line. Will you get in? We stayed at the Yosemite Valley Inn in El Portal 15 minutes outside of Yosemite Valley so that we could get in the valley early to get in line. We were 2nd in line on Tuesday, August 6th and we got there at 6 am, which is when people are allowed to start lining up. There's also a sign in the kiosk that says how many spaces will be open the next day. The parking lot requires a permit (comes with camp registration) and has plenty of space for everyone. The people in your spot have until 12 noon to leave, so plan on something to do while you wait. EVERYONE must have ID to register! The ranger let one in our group register without one, but I had to assume responsibility for her. The camp is great. I read reviews complaining about the kind of people there, but really there are all kinds from families to hard core hikers. It's like any other campground, so plan on a little bit of noise (ear plugs if you need them). Campfires are allowed only between 6pm-10pm. You can light charcoal fires anytime. The camp ranger shows up at 8 am in the morning to deal with the line, and then the line starts moving at 8:30pm so bring something to pass the time (cards). At around 9:30am, the ranger comes around to inspect the camp, sooo if you have your fire out by then you should be fine. A word about the shuttle. Don't. It's great they're trying to reduce the use of cars by providing a free shuttle, but it's a pain to have to circumnavigate the entire park before you get to where you want to go. Use the car. To go to Yosemite Village/Visitor's center, don't follow the signs to the parking lot, you'll end up parking a 10 minute walk away and nobody wants to do that after hours of driving. Instead of turning right to enter the parking lot at the stop sign, turn left, head up the street to the end, and park in the village store parking lot on the left, walk through the store and up to the right is the visitor's center. Might I add that there's actually more than one shuttle line, which the maps don't show. The El Capitan shuttle is NOT the shuttle you want that's shown on the map. If you are going to take the bus from camp 4, you have to cross the street from the parking lot via the crosswalk, and you'll see it straight ahead just down the street, it's NOT the El Capitan bus stop right in front of the camp. No, there are no showers in camp 4. They're in Housekeeping Camp and Curry Village (both basically right next to eachother). Again, drive there, don't take the shuttle. We used the housekeeping camp. The parking lot is permit free. Park right next to the "Do not enter" traffic sign and walk down that road. The showers will be to the right. My first shower was in the evening at around 5 pm. And I got in free without knowing we had to pay. My second time was 7:30 am and the said I had to pay $5 to use the shower, but they provide soap, shampoo, and a towel. Reasonable. Recommendations: -Sentinel Dome for sunset- park at glacier point. a moderate hike, not bad at all. prepare for the most spectacular display of color you've ever seen. doesn't matter what time of year, bring a jacket/pants!! -Inflatable raft on the Merced river at Sentinel beach- put on some sunscreen and sunglasses, lay back, and drift with mountain giants as your view, ridiculously relaxing. -Star gazing on the hood of your car. Park on Northside Dr. at Cook's meadow for a tree free view of the milky way clouds. I've never seen the stars more beautiful. So, 4 stars for no showers, but it definitely hits the mark for a non-reservation stay in Yosemite.

my boyfriend and i stayed here from may 27 - 29. for us this is as good as it gets but we're very simple travelers. we arrived around 5:45am and waited in our sleeping bags along with the 19 individuals in front of us and at least 10 behind. the ranger arrives between 8-8:30 each morning and it's first come, first serve. you can't hold a spot in line for anyone either, each person needs to be there at time of check-in. it's $5 per night, per person, which is unbelievably cheap! you must store all of your food and toiletries in a food storage container. literally nothing can be left in your car or out or away from you more than an arms reach. they say to use your food storage container like you would a fridge and only open it to grab something and then close it. we set up our hammock between two trees on our site and were good to go. there are 6 people allowed at each site and i believe they limit the number of tents as well. the bathrooms are in the middle of the campground. they were pretty clean for what they were. the sinks are a bit tricky and be sure to bring your own hand soap. there is a larger sink in the middle that you can gather drinking water from and rinse your dishes. we saw a mountain lion and deers but no bears, unfortunately. the shuttle is free all around yosemite and there's a stop #7, i believe right across the road from where camp 4 is. once you leave camp 4 it's like another world. there's a couple of restaurants, the mountain room was really nice but pricey. there's a grocery store, EMS/REI type store among others. there are also showers located at the housekeeping camp and one other place too but i can't remember. watch out for the bears and mountain lions but the views are absolutely amazing! have a ball!

We just got back from staying at camp 4. We stayed from Thursday until Sunday morning. There are definitely pros and cons to this camp. We arrived Thursday morning at around 7:00am and were probably the 15th people in line. We waited about an hour and a half before the park ranger arrived.( Thursday morning ranger not as nice as the rest we encountered) We got our site assignment (shout out to spot 22) and had to wait until about noon (check out time) before the occupants packed up and left. Lots of stuff to do to kill time while we waited. So we get all our things set up and took off to explore. Also there are a bunch of slacklines set up just behind spot #22 which we really enjoyed. We brought ours and set it up but realized there was no need for ours and took it back down. There is a little store across the street from camp 4 for ice and what nots! You cannot light a camp fire until after 5 and it is supposed to be out by 10 but they give a little leniency on the weekends. This camp does get rowdy at night but is relatively quiet after 11. Some people take it a bit far and get slammed on the ground and arrested at like 2 am (shout out to Brett Dude). There Is a bigger store and outdoor sports shopping area at Yosemite village that you can take a shuttle to. This is also where you get your fishing and back packing licenses. There are so many striking views everywhere you look, and every time we left our camp we had a new shock and awww moment. We really like swimming in the water holes and cliff jumping, I don't want everyone to know about these places, so reach out to me if you want to know some of these great spots. Just do yourself a favor and go to Yosemite!!

A first come, first serve walk-in camp in Yosemite Valley, this is the cheap way to stay in the Cathedral of the Sierras. Be sure to show up early in the morning, in the peak season people are waiting in line well before the office opens in the morning, and based on the 1st come aspect, if you snooze, you lose. The camp is also a hotbed for rock climbers who clamber and climb over the abundant nearby boulders. Close location to the Yosemite Falls trailhead makes for a great base of operations in the Valley. Store your food in the provided bear boxes and be willing to walk all your gear to your campsite, cars stay in the parking lot.