Watchman Campground

Given that you know ahead of time you’re camping in Zion, I’m not sure what all the hype is about. Yes, the views are nice, but that’s kind of expected. Other than the views, this campground was completely average. Our site butted up to the main parking lot for the park. Car alarms somehow went off multiple times a day, loud groups eating breakfast and lunch at the picnic tables, people leaving their trash behind, and some people cutting through our site. I was also disappointed at the lack of showers, although the dishwashing station was nice. Bathrooms were fine, i imagine it’s hard to keep up with not only campers using facilities but people from the parking lot using it as well. It was nice to not have to unhook the trailer, as everything you need is within walking distance. Only a five minute walk from our site to Zion Village (restaurants and market) as well as visitor center and shuttle service. If our site hadn’t been next to the parking lot, I may have left a better review. Avoid site A03 if you want more privacy!

Great location just inside the Springdale entrance to Zion. Convenient to get an early start on hikes within the park. We brought ebikes and were able to bike to the trailheads without having to deal with shuttle reservations. There is a paved path that goes part way into the canyon, then you're on the main road (restricted to shuttles at this point). The location is also good to walk across the bridge and into town for dinner, etc. Electric hookups, clean restrooms, and level sites, altho the sites were a little close together and not very private. We camped here in April.

This campground rocks! Very close to Zion NP with spectacular surrounding views. Our spot easily accommodated a pop up tent and annex-some spots can be rather close to the road, but there isn’t too much traffic to be a major concern. The campground atmosphere was also great-everyone was super friendly and it was very quiet during the night. Would definitely recommend staying here if you are visiting Zion-just make sure to book well in advance!

Stayed the night of Feb 9th 2021 (Wednesday). Very quiet and spots available even in the afternoon (though earlier afternoon is a safer bet). A mule deer camped just outside my tent, all night. It startled me awake but was very cool.

The sites and bathrooms are really well maintained. At each site there’s a picnic table, fire ring with a grill, and super flat ground. The front bathroom was closed (COVID stuff I think), but there’s another one halfway through the loop and it’s the cleanest public restroom I’ve ever seen.

I had good cell service for a second but it’s only reliable through the Springdale area.
Solo female camper and felt very safe. Super convenient too!

We stayed here during Thanksgiving week. The campground was full, but there were COVID restrictions in place. We stayed in the B-loop. I would recommend picking a campsite in the outer ring; the ones in the middle like ours had neighbors right in the back of the campsite. For us, that takes away the attraction of staying inside the National Park; we like the natural setting, at least in the back of our campsite. There was wildlife everywhere, lots of deer walking through the campground. The restrooms are nice and clean. All campsites have electricity, but no water. There is a spigot outside of the restroom area for filling water. Many people had water jerrycans that they were filling and carrying back to their RVs.
For activities, two hiking trails start near this campground, which is very convenient. One of them, Parus Trail, even allow dogs, so we took ours with us. It was a nice easy paved trail alongside the river. The other one is Watchman Trail, but it doesn't allow dogs. Most attractions are on the Canyon Scenic Route, and you need to take the shuttle for that. These days you need to get the shuttle tickets online in advance. One can also drive to Mt. Carmel Scenic route and go through the tunnel, which is an exciting experience. We did this drive on our way to Bryce Canyon NP; we made a day trip there.

Watchman is a nice park adjacent to the Zion Nation Park entrance. It's wonderful to leave the RV and take a shuttle to the various park features. Zion is an amazing park to visit and the shuttle service made it better since you're not stuck in traffic looking for a place to park at all the trail heads.

If you visit the park, Angels Landing hike is life changing. Take a lunch and enjoy. It's a challenging hike but in the top five on my life experiences. I did the hike with my 9 and 11 year old sons in tow. Checkerboard Mesa is also fine to hike on.