Watchman Campground

We stayed at Watchman Campground this past weekend (Aug 12-13).
It's the campsite inside the actual National Park. I was worried that it was going to be really crowded, but it wasn't too bad, and the sign said the campground was full. It was very clean, the bathrooms were clean, the sites were reasonably spaced apart, which was nice. We stayed at LoopC-17 and it was right next to the bathroom. I wanted convenience, but I didn't realize how close it was. So just keep that in mind when booking. I loved how we just walked from our site directly to the Zion Center, and to the Zion Canyon strip with stores. I felt it was very convenient. We showered at Zion Outfitters, very clean showers. The night photo I posted, is right from our campsite. Beautiful.

Watchman Campground is located on a bench above North Fork Virgin River .4 miles north of Springdale and just south of the South Campground. Watchman Campground's 170 campsites include fire pits, picnic tables, and water, as well as central bathrooms with flush toilets and a central dump station. The campground is partly shaded and provides great views into Zion National Park. Laundry, groceries, and gas are all available within one mile of the campground. Watchman campground is closed from November through March. There are no RV hookups.Please enjoy the campsite photos of Watchman campground.  We will continue to add more campsite photos of the campground if some are not available.

Awesome location for camping! We showed up at the last minute to camp with our pop-up after being turned away from a commercial location outside the park. We are so happy to have stayed here instead, it's a beautiful location right under the mountains in Zion. The only drawback is there are no showers, which was okay for us as we were only here for one night. It should also be noted that we were there in March and the place was packed, so make reservations if you can!

What a gorgeous campground! We were lucky to snap up a cancellation and reserved spot B-060 for four nights in mid-November. It’s convenient to walk to the visitor center where you can catch the shuttle to most of the trailheads. You can also easily walk into town or catch the Springdale bus. So convenient!

Love this campground, and the park as a whole! The campground sits just off the main entrance to the park. Set at the main mouth of Zion Canyon, you have amazing views from your site, and even better ones to be had via a shuttle bus ride that's included with your admission.
The CG itself rates higher in my book than most in the National Park system. Sites are well-spaced, adequate pad length, with some tree coverage, and electric hookups are provided in A and B loops. I wish more NPs had electric, it's nice to not have to deal with generator noise (including my own) in the background (not to mention the ability to run the air conditioner all day/night, needed in the summer heat here)
Frequent shuttle busses take you up and down the canyon, what a joy to not have to fight for parking. Other shuttles are available to take you into town, where there are a number of eateries and brewpubs to be had. If taking the town shuttle, be sure to have your park admission receipt or applicable Federal Land Pass with you, as you can otherwise be charged again for admission.
If coming from/departing to the east, the Mt Carmel tunnel has limited hours, height restrictions and a toll if you're pulling/driving a typically sized RV. My recommendation would be to route through Hurricane and avoid the tunnel with your rig if it is big enough to have the restrictions apply. However, the tunnel is well worth a drive-through with your tow vehicle/toad in the evening.
One other note of advice...STAY HYDRATED. The dry air here will evaporate your sweat so quickly that you may not realize you're drying up before you get in serious trouble, especially on any kind of hike. No need to have it frighten you away, just be mindful of it and be drinking alot of water.
Price reflects 50% Access Pass discount

The sites here are fairly close together and there isn't a lot of vegetation between them, so you're going to have to be cozy with your neighbors. The good news is that there are so many great hikes in Zion that you probably won't be in your campsite very much!

We had a site with electric near the river and it was semi-secluded because of the angle (#56).

Zion National Park is one of the most wonderful places on Earth, the scenery is world class and the hiking is magnificent. The Watchman Campground is at the entrance to the park, which means (for most of the year) you can jump on a shuttle bus and see all the sites that this side of the park has to offer.

There is also a shuttle into the town of Springdale, which ahs good places to eat and have a beer (Utah strength - don't get too excited). The town is actually close enough to walk, but if you have tired legs from lots of hiking, the shuttle might be a welcome respite. he location of this campground is so perfect, we did not get in our car for 5 days. We walked or took the bus to everywhere we wanted to go.

The monolithic scenery at Zion is so dominant, that you don't even need to leave your site to appreciate it. You are surrounded by it.

I was a little worried about the campground as several reviews described it as cramped, but I thought it was actually just fine. We had a decent sized site, and yes we had neighbors all the time in this busy park, but we didn't experience noise at all. We were in a electric hook-up loop which means no-generators so maybe that was a benefit.

It's a very popular National Park, so we expected getting a site at short notice to be quite difficult. We were lucky and snagged this site with just a few days notice for 5 nights, I assume someone just canceled as there was nothing else available for more than a night.

I have been to some NP campgrounds with better views, but Watchman is the whole package. Yes sites could be farther apart, and yes it would be great to have water at the sites (they do have electric) but everything else was just about perfect.

EXCEPT they have a crazy squirrel problem. These things were not afraid of you at all. I threw my shoe at one and actually hit it because it didn't move.

So unless you have squirrel-phobia this is a great campsite. Just make sure you get a reservation!

We got lucky on a Friday night in August!! The blinking signs said CAMPGROUND FULL, but I generally go in anyway. As luck would have it there was a cancelation for one night ( which was all we needed) and we got a great spot!!! Electric for A/C and it was hot! The spot was pretty big although the "front yard" was facing others - but who cares, were were hiking!

It was relatively close to the ampitheatre and to the trails.

In teh morning we left and parked the rig in the RV parking lot and spent the day in the park. This lot tends to fill up during the busy season so we dumped and filled with water by 9 am.

I love this campground, especially in the off season. The first of November is beautiful and the fall colors are just coming out. Zion National Park is spectacular, and the campground provides easy access to the park shuttle that runs until mid November.

All camp sites have electric, which is great as it gets chilly at night (you will want electric for the AC in the hot summer).

Reservations are a good idea, even in the off season, critical in the summer.

The first week of November is the annual Zion National Park Plein Air Art Invitational. Twenty five artist are invited to paint all week. There are many events, including several wet paint sales. Proceeds benefit the Youth and Art Programs in the park.