RVers who enjoy America's national parks know that most government campgrounds weren't designed to accommodate today's recreational vehicles. However, some exceptions exist, especially in the vast open lands west of the Mississippi. Here are five great national park campgrounds for RVs in California, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, and Wyoming.

California: Death Valley National Park

Sunset Campground is the best RV base in Death Valley National Park/Rene Agredano

Sunset Campground

With just one tank of fuel from Las Vegas, you can transport yourself deep into the heart of nature's wildest extremes in in topography, climate and wildlife, by camping at Death Valley National Park.

But before you go sightseeing, unhitch your RV at one of the park's many campgrounds. Most secondary park roads are too tough for RVs, and parking at landmarks is challenging. Other than a large pullout at Badwater Basin (the lowest elevation in North America), you'll find it easiest to explore in a passenger vehicle.

The Furnace Creek area has three RV-friendly campgrounds, some with more services than others. Sunset Campground is rustic, but it's the best because of its proximity to popular features like Artists Drive and Harmony Borax Works. This bare-bones dry camping facility is just a gravel parking area with central water spigots and a dump station, but you'll have reliable cell service and situated within walking distance of the Furnace Creek Visitor Center, the area's only gas station, and the Ranch at Furnace Creek, where you can sip cold beverages on the patio after an afternoon baking in the sun.  If you come in winter, check out the Furnace Creek Inn, which is only open from mid-October through mid-May. 

South Dakota: Badlands National Park

Prairie views abound at the Cedar Pass Campground in Badlands National Park/Rene Agredano

Cedar Pass Campground

It's a long haul for many campers, but the drive to Badlands National Park is worth it. Only at this spot in America can you camp at the edge of a vast open prairie while surrounded by 244,000 acres of bewildering buttes, spires, and pinnacles, whipped and battered by ancient winds over the course of 69 million years. The park's famous Badlands Loop Road is the main attraction for most visitors, since it's the best way to get acquainted with the park's otherworldly geologic features. Multiple turnouts on this gently meandering road feature RV-accessible parking areas and trail heads.

Cedar Pass Campground is a year-round, RV-friendly location that makes a great base camp for experiencing the Badlands. Located just off Highway 377, the campground has a dump station and wide, paved interior roads that can accommodate any size rig. You'll find 96 level, satellite-friendly campsites in two loops that cost $30-$42 (2023 summer rates) per night and feature shade structures and electricity hookups. A campground amphitheater serves as headquarters for the park's summer astronomy festival and you can also walk to the park's educational Ben Reifel Visitor Center. 

Texas: Big Bend National Park

Practicality comes into play at Big Bend's Rio Grande Village Campground/Rene Agredano

Rio Grande Village

Nobody expects to see dramatic mountain peaks and cool alpine forests when driving through Texas, but that's exactly what you'll get when you commit to an epic RV journey to Big Bend National Park. The park's main U-shaped thoroughfare is RV-friendly, but because of the vast distance between landmarks like the Ross Maxwell Scenic Drive and Boquillas Border Crossing, it's best to park your RV in a campground, then head out, preferably with a high-clearance passenger vehicle.

The park's Rio Grande Village Campground is the most practical for RVers. A handful of reservable campsites for RVs up to 40' long have full hookups and a separate area allows generators. In addition, you'll have access to the park's only dump station and potable RV water station. Tall cottonwoods provide shade relief (but hinder satellite service in many campsites), there's a riverside nature trail and you can hike right from your campsite to the park's famous Hot Springs Historic District. The only downsides? No cell connectivity and much of the shady, generator-free camping zone is too tight to accommodate RVs. 

Utah: Capitol Reef National Park

Setting sun ignites the redrock framing the Fruita Campground at Capitol Reef/Kurt Repanshek

Fruita Campground

Capitol Reef National Park is famous for its unusual geologic feature '“ the Waterpocket Fold, a 100-mile long wrinkle on the earth, but the park's crown jewel is the Fruita Campground. This site of an early Mormon settlement today allows camping in a cool, shady, riverside oasis that includes U-pick orchards of apples, peaches, cherries, pears, and even apricots, and living history opportunities.

This $25-per night (2023 rates), year-round facility has 71 campsites, but not all are RV-friendly so arrive early for your best choices. Fresh water and a dump station are available, and although you won't have RV hookups, generators are allowed. This campground is an opportunity to get back to nature, so don't expect cell service, satellite-friendly sites, or other modern conveniences. You probably won't miss them anyways, since you'll be busy exploring the 8-mile long Scenic Drive, which is RV-friendly and an effective way to tour many of the park's best geologic features. For the most in-depth access, however, leave your RV at the campground so you can explore cliffs and canyons via high-clearance roads to landmarks such as the Cathedral Valley District.

Wyoming: Grand Teton National Park

Grand Teton's Gros Ventre Campground turns golden in fall/Rene Agredano

Gros Ventre Campground

Situated at the base of one of America's most stunning mountain ranges, Grand Teton National Park is great for a summer vacation, but it's even better for leaf-peeping in the fall. Not only is the park's main Teton Park Road highly scenice, but it's RV-friendly with many large turnouts featuring all-day wildlife watching. Narrower side roads like Signal Mountain Summit and Jenny Lake Drive are best experienced with passenger vehicles. 

Campers have a choice of six campgrounds in the park; Gros Ventre Campground is the best spot to watch groves of aspen trees turning color almost by the hour, along with abundant wildlife viewing at nearby Gros Ventre River. With more than 300 first-come, first-served campsites and many that can fit RVs up to 45' long, this location is just nine miles to the rustic frontier town of Jackson. Campground facilities vary; some spots have electricity, some allow generator use and some don't, but each has a picnic table and fire pits. 

All national parks offer unforgettable experiences for RVers, so don't hesitate to explore your options. Before you go, always go online and call visitor centers to learn about current camping and road conditions.