Sunset Campground

We have a smallish trailer and had trouble finding a spot for the truck and trailer. There were a lot of empty spots when we arrived but mostly small. You can park your truck near the visitor center and ride the shuttle if absolutely necessary. Otherwise it’s a nice campground and fantastic park. It was first come first served at the time we came.

I arrived at Bryce canyon after lunch time so I decided to get to the visitors center. The store was busy. Instead of getting on the shuttle to site see I decided to check for a campsite at SunSet campground. I needed an ADA site after talking to the camp host he only had one RV site available and it was ADA. Generator hours are 8-10AM & 6-8PM. Not sure that's enough to charge my electric wheelchair but I'll find out. The shuttle thought the park stops near the entrance to the campground. Dump station is available at north campground water is available in each loop for filling jugs.

We loved this place so much we stayed extra nights. The sites and a little close together and honestly a far stretch from level, but we loved it all the same. It was great being able to walk everywhere in the amphitheater area, including to the ranger programs which were not to miss!! We also let great neighbors here as well and even brunched together.

We stayed in early spring (mid-April) and only one loop of 3 was open. Unclear why - to control population due to COVID, perhaps. Whatever the reason, it was Heavenly! From the location and easy access to the breath taking views and lodge, to the well-laid-out sites which give a sense of privacy and independence. Clean, quiet, simple. And we were on “First come First serve” basis - lucky to get a site! The campground was full by early afternoon. Arrive early if you have no reservation and *cross your fingers*. It’s a risk worth taking!

I've tent camped at Sunset Campground several times over the past five years. I have to agree with another of the reviewers, the sites could be better designed. Overall, the location of the campground is great, as you're a short drive from the best hikes in the park (don't skip the Fairyland Loop!). Sunset is also operated well by the National Park Service. The bathrooms are clean and have heat during the cold months. The grounds are free of trash and the NPS is diligent in keeping squatters out of reserved sites.

However, parking is stingy at many sites. During my stay in September 2020, I could barely fit a Subaru Outback in the allotted parking space for my tent site. I had to back up until the rear tires hit the concrete barrier just to keep the front of the vehicle out of the roadway. The site itself, while spacious, was so sloped that it was difficult to find a fairly level spot for a solo tent. I observed that many RV sites were small and crowded. That's poor campground design!

The positives are that I had decent cell service (text/calls/some internet) and Bryce Canyon is a wonderful park. I'd say the pros outweigh the cons, but select your site carefully.

We arrived here on the first day of the opening of the new and improved Sunset campground. All the sites are very short and narrow. Anything larger than 28 ft will have problems getting into a site. No room for trailers and tow vehicles in the same space. The park rangers were as stunned as we were to see what the engineers had done. One “RV” site was no more than 8 ft long. I kid you not! Fire rings and tables were set up on the wrong side of the site so that we had other campers cooking and dining right by our door. Bryce is awesome, but be aware that Sunset Campground is no longer friendly to large rigs. It was suggested to us by the rangers that we park our tow vehicle at the overflow lot a mile down the road.

We came on a Tuesday evening to scope out both this campground and the North campground, since we were hoping for one of the first-come first-serve sites - and my type-A planning personality was super nervous about this! We quickly found that the North campground was nicely located right by the visitor center and the entrance to the park, however, it held many spots that were reserved only and had many many spots on cliff edges. Since we travel with our 1.5 year old, this was not a good option for us.

Sunset Campground is only a bit further into the park, on the right side of the road. Hilly, but no cliffs - very child friendly campground - so this was for sure the best one for us. Loop A is for RV’s (although tents were allowed too when we were there), and has many spots. The camp hosts recommended coming in around 8 or 8:30am to find a spot - and said we would have no problems. They were right - and we snagged spot #216 which had a gorgeous view of the sunset each night over the meadow behind our site. The spots are thin - we were unable to fit our truck into our spot once we parked the trailer, which was a bummer, we had to move the truck to the campground parking lot - which was not very close to our spot (the parking lot is located near spot #245 in loop A), and not at all convenient. So if you’re a bigger rig like us, I suggest finding a spot initially near that parking lot so you don’t have to hike to your car each day. We noticed the campground didn’t fill up each day until about 11am or so - so we could have come later if we wanted to. There were plenty of spots, so come early - and you should be fine! Hope this brings some comfort to the other planners out there like myself! :)

The spots are spacious and nice - bring your hammock, as there are also lots of trees! Sites also come with a picnic table and fire pit (with a BBQing grate you can use to cook over). Also lots of animal sittings, we watched a few deer walk by our site one night, and plenty of chipmunks! It is also extremely dusty, as the roads and campsites are not paved. Every time the wind blows or a car drives by, you do get pelted by dirt and sand. Just be ready for that. :) The campsites are all dry spots, and the dump is located between the two campgrounds - so not easily accessible. The campground had a really nice bathroom and a place to wash dishes as well, no showers though. The map says there are coin showers somewhere else in the park. Garbage cans are also a bit of a hike away - at the very entrance of the campground (up a huge hill - hah - of course!). But, I’ll take them far away if that means the bears stay far away from us that way! =)

The campground is right across from the “multi use path” and has easy access to the free park shuttle - both of which we used MANY times. Bring your bikes!!! For example, we biked to Sunset Viewpoint, locked up our bikes (at the lodge, right outside of the giftshop - the nearest bike rack we could find), then walked the 3 mile loop down “Wall Street” then back up by Sunrise Viewpoint - AMAZING! Then we made the short bike ride back (OK, it really didn’t feel short after all that hiking LOL!) - all with our toddler in tow. Sure beats dealing with the traffic and parking! The shuttle also has bike racks, so one day we rode from our campground all the way down to the visitor center, then took the shuttle back up to our campground. Made for another fun day!

Here is a link to our video review of this campground. Please consider liking & subscribing if it helps you! :)
https://www.youtube.com/edit?o=U&video_id=DPmVLkTQEGA