Lower Pines Campground Yosemite National Park California
Lower Pines Overview
Lower Pines Campground is on the banks of the Merced River in Yosemite Valley and offers 73 single-family campsites for tents or motor homes up to 30 feet long. This is one of three campgrounds in the Valley. The other two are Upper Pines and North Pines.
Lower Pines Campground has paved roads, drinking water, flush toilets, trash collection and a dump station. Most campsites have nice shade from the large ponderosa pine trees and each site has a table, fire ring/grill and food storage locker. Up to 2 motor vehicles are allowed per campsite (trailers don’t count as a vehicle). There are also three double campsites at Lower Pines that can accommodate up to 12 people and 3 vehicles. Those are DBL1, DBL2 and DBL3.
All vehicles wheels must be on the paved parking surface. Overflow parking is also available near most campgrounds.
Curry Village is nearby where you can get a hot shower and dine at restaurants. Curry Village also has a grocery store, laundromat, bike and cross-country ski rentals, and Wifi access. Horse stables are also located nearby offering trail rides. And you can even rent a raft and float the Merced River.
Lower Pines – Yosemite National Park Area Recreation
World famous Yosemite National Park offers spectacular scenery and amazing wonders that boggle the imagination. Outdoor recreation includes hiking, backpacking, biking, kayaking, photography, climbing, rock climbing, horseback riding, fishing, nature exhibits, museums, camping and wildlife viewing. There are also many historic sites and museums to visit throughout the Park.
Other campgrounds in Yosemite National Park include Crane Flat, Wawona, Hodgdon Meadow and Tuolumne Meadows.
Make a Reservation for Lower Pines
Amenities
- BBQ Grills
- Campfire Center
- Campground Host
- Campsite Tables
- Cell Service Fair
- Drinking Water
- Dumpsters
- Equestrian trail
- Fire Pit
- Fire Rings
- Firewood Available
- Golden Age & Access Passports accepted
- Grills
- Nature Center
- Overflow Parking
- Pets OK
- Picnic Tables
- Recycling Center
- Restrooms (Flush Toilets)
- RV Dump Station
- Trash Collection
- Visitor Center
Activities
- Backpacking
- Biking
- Bird Watching
- Boating (non motorized)
- Canoeing
- Climbing
- Cross Country Skiing
- Fishing
- Hiking
- Historic Sites
- Horseback riding
- Interpretive Programs
- Kayaking
- Mountain Biking
- Nature Trails
- Photography
- Picnicking
- Rafting
- Rock Climbing
- Snowshoeing
- Stargazing
- Wilderness Area
- Wildlife Viewing
- Winter/Snow Sports
Yosemite National Park, California 95389
209 372-8502
Lat / Long:
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Lower Pines Availability Alerts
Lower Pines sold out? Get an alert when a campsite becomes available at Lower Pines!
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- Mountains
- National Forest
- National Forest Campgrounds
- Northern California
- River
- Sierra Nevada
- Yosemite National Park
Campsite Types
- ADA
- Camper Van
- Group
- Primitive
- RV
- Tent
- Trailer
# of Campsites:
73
Campsite Vehicle Size:
Up to 30 feet.
Season:
Mid March – October 31
Elevation:
4,000
Lower Pines Comments & Reviews
Visited Lower Pines Campground lately? We'd love to hear about your adventure. Did you find us useful? Did we forget something? Anything our community should know before heading out to Lower Pines?
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Is this campground (of any other in Yosemite) travel trailer friendly? I have a 34’ trailer, I wonder if we could get in anywhere here. If not, what other campgrounds are more suited?
Hi Marco,
Lower Pines, North Pines and Upper Pines campgrounds have sites that can fit trailers up to 30 feet. Lower Pines may have a few that will work for a little longer lengths. You can click no the ‘Make A Reservation’ button to check the size, price and availability.
Will CampAssist notify instantly when the “Unavailable” campsites suddenly become available?
HI Ken,
Yes – as soon as the campsite is placed back in inventory (available) by the reservation website (i.e. Rec.gov, ReserveCalifornia, ReserveAmerica), Campsite Assist will send you an availability alert (text & email). You can sign up for a Specific (Date) Scan – an alert will be sent only if a campsite becomes available for the specific arrival/departure date you selected; or you can use the Matrix Scan. The Matrix scan will send you an alert if a campsite becomes available for any dates within a 7-day range (1 night, 2 nights, 3 nights, etc.).
Great! Some of the campsites in Lower are unavailable until the threat of flooding has passed. Then, without warning, they’ll be released for reservations. Camp Assist is pretty-much the only way to attempt to grab one of those when released.
We have booked site 071 at Lower Pines which states a maximum RV size of 27 feet. Our travel company has just informed us that the 25 foot RV we had booked is no longer available and we have to take a 29 foot RV. Are there any views on whether we will fit in the site? We were so excited to get a site in July that we really don’t want to give it up! Many thanks for any advice.
Hi Nicola,
Unfortunately the camp hosts/rangers are pretty strict regarding campsite size limitations at Lower Pines campground. With that said, there is a good amount of overhang out the back so your 29 foot RV may fit (with all wheels on the paved surface) . . . but I think it is still unlikely the host/ranger would allow it.
Many thanks for the response which is really helpful. Back to the travel company to try to get a smaller RV!
Hello, do you know if the fire pits have grill grates? I would like to grill over my campfire if possible. Thank you!!
Hi Olivia,
Yes, the Lower Pines campsite fire pits/rings have grill gates for you to grill over.
Hello. I am planning on bringing a group of 8-10 students this summer. Does this campsite have any group sites? If not, I guess I have to book two sites since 6 is the maximum allowed in a campsite. Also, are there any other campsites that have group sites. I look forward to your response. Thank you so much!
Hi Sumanth,
There are three double campsites at Lower Pines that can accommodate up to 12 people and 3 vehicles. Those are DBL1, DBL2 and DBL3. We have pictures of those double campsites. Best of luck trying to reserve! If you’re not able to get a reservation remember our Campsite Assist service will send you availability alerts (text and email) should a Lower Pines campsite become available.
Hi I am lucky to reserve a night at campsite #70 but later I realize it is a RV site. I don’t have a RV but only a tent. Can a tent still fit in there? The campsite looks spacious in the photo on your website. Thank you!
Way to go Susan! Good job scoring a campsite at Lower Pines. And yes, you can tent camp in site #70. Have a great time!
We are planning a camping trip to Yosemite June 17th – 22nd. 2 children, 9 & 7. Do you recommend Lower Pines or Upper Pines?
Hi Matt,
At Yosemite (unfortunately) you try and get what you can get because campsites are sold out within a minute of when reservations become available. With that said, I prefer Lower Pines because it has larger campsites that are spread out (not as close to neighbors – compared to Upper Pines). It’s also closer to the Merced River and has more of a peaceful vibe. Upper Pines has 3x the number of campsites (238) . . . but may be easier to reserve a campsite there because Lower Pines has fewer sites (73 total) and is more popular. Best of luck and hope you get a campsite this summer!
Finally scored an ADA site the end of July after getting shut out by covid 4 years ago. YAY! Growing up we camped in Lower River every single summer (miss that so much!). I was wondering if Lower Pines has any overflow parking? My brother & I are both bring big trucks & I worry about them fitting.
Way to go Victoria! Super excited you were able to get a campsite at Lower Pines. Additional parking is available near each campground (including Lower Pines) for no additional charge; for some campgrounds additional parking is very limited. You may also try the lot over by the Campground Reservation Office near Curry Village.
Victoria, I had camped many years in Lower River Campground. They used the 1997 flood as an excuse to rip out both campgrounds and not restore them. Instead the area now is overgrown with part of it used to store equipment. The flood was deemed as a 100 year flood. Please write the Yosemite superintendent and demand restoration of the campgrounds.
Hi Dan,
I think you might have this confused with another park/campground. Lower Pines Campground (and other Yosemite Valley campgrounds) are all operable and open for camping.
I am referring to the former River Campgrounds as did Victoria. They were named Lower and Upper River not to be confused with Lower and Upper Pines.
In addition, Lower Pines was cut in half again blaming the flood. Like the River Campgrounds, if you walk to the back of Lower Pines now where the volunteer campsites are sitting, you will be only half way through the campground’s original size. So not only the River Campgrounds were shut down but Lower Pines was reduced by some hundred sites. I would say half of what Lower Pines could be is inoperable.
I just scored site 057 at lower pines, is a tent allowed?
Awesome! Yes, tent camping is allowed at Lower Pines campsite #57. Have fun!