West Yellowstone | Informal Campsite

October 1st, 2023 by battleak

As close as you can get to Yellowstone for free. The highway is noisy and truckers come and go at all hours but if you want free more than quiet, this is the spot! Pulled in around 5PM with only one other camper but by 8PM it was filling up. We're in a 33' RV so we did park in one of the truck spots (thought the edges were for through traffic and we didn't want to block). If we were smaller we definitely would have preferred the edge next to the woods so it would be easier to walk the dogs. Great trail into town on the south side.

August 29th, 2023 by kgrizzle02

Stayed for 2 nights and a full day with no issues! Great spot for getting into Yellowstone quickly. There was a mix of rvs, vans, and tractor trailers and we felt safe. Ran our generator and parked on the edge of the lot so we could put out our slide without being in the way. 10/10

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fulltime rvers traveling the country and documenting it all, follow our travels on Instagram @vanlife_365_

July 23rd, 2023 by anarkiah.com

pro-tip: Northbound side has longer shade in the mornings!

July 23rd, 2023 by powerplay8780

Pretty noisy but as expected as it is litteraly a parkin on the side of the hwy. felt safe and some more campers on both sides of the hwy

July 22nd, 2023 by hollysheffield22

Good place to park overnight right next to Yellowstone. Lots of other trucks & vans around. No issues.

July 4th, 2023 by OnTheRoadAgain

Lots of road noise, but fairly flat. A couple other vans parked after we did & a couple of semi’s came in throughout the night. Slept well with no issues despite the noise.

June 29th, 2023 by hypermotogasm

called the local police to double check that we can car camp here, since it clearly says "no camping". they said we are okay to sleep in a vehicle but not okay to pitch a tent or have a campfire. YES you are allowed to car camp here according to the people who would be enforcing it. it's just outside of town and just into the national forest.

June 26th, 2023 by natze.p.1994

We slept here with many other vans and cars on a weekend. We had no problems at all. Seems that they tolerate “overnight parking”. Please park on the sides, so that the trucks have their space.

June 11th, 2023 by NextTripAhead

sign says no camping. not permitted anymore

June 6th, 2023 by jesussalcinesdiaz

Nice place to sleep, convenient close to the town and its amenities. Came late left early just in case

April 28th, 2023 by pj.metzger

sweet boondock find. we are here just days before campsites open for the season so no other options. be respectful and don't loiter or set up the whole kit. great restful place. called West Yellowstone police dept. to verify it was ok, they said this is where they prefer people to stay but absolutly no tents or tent trailers.

September 19th, 2022 by Headrest

Both sides, north and south bound are good. The middle belongs to the truckers, don't use those spots. Park around the edges and you'll be fine. Arrived Monday night 8PM, first ones there north side. By 9PM almost filled. Would recommend.

September 15th, 2022 by samshere

Camps were full so no other choice, we arrived late around 10:30pm and absolutely full to the brim! Cars and campers everywhere along the sides, trucks in their bays in the middle. We managed to squeeze in. Have never seen a rest area/truck stop so busy! Not sure if there was something happening in town that made it this way but it was a good spot otherwise

August 19th, 2022 by lawrence.hamilton

This location is Northbound. Across the highway is a Southbound rest area, but no facilities.

August 11th, 2022 by Jen Huband

second night here and leaving the area in the morning. Thus far no one has bothered me. Felt pretty safe, high anxiety about wildlife, but I'm an anxious person.

5-6 other campers here. line up along the back to give truckers their space since I'm almost certain this is meant for them.

noisy, to be expected, it's on the highway. light sleeper would likely have issues.

August 9th, 2022 by kaymicpete

we were street parked in town and got the knock from a cop at 3am who told us to come here so it's legit. lot was almost completely full when we pulled in but we found two spots for us. couldn't see if the other side was or not

July 15th, 2022 by craftsandtravels

Right next to the road so don’t expect complete quiet. Trucker rest stop so get the occasional truck that pulls in. Many other campers. There are No Camping signs but we were undisturbed. Overall good spot close to park.

June 8th, 2022 by beachouse81

Easy spot for a night while exploring Yellowstone. Just outside West Yellowstone, Montana. Lots of rigs, camper vans, travel trailers, etc on both sides of the street. Plenty of space for multiple rigs. There’s also a hiking trail through the woods.

May 3rd, 2022 by naima.guell

we actually bumped into the sheriff and asked him where we could sleep since all campgrounds are still closed. he said this is an ok spot for a night or two and the "no camping" sign is more so people don't stay here for days.

it's just a truck stop nothing fancy, you better have earplugs if you are a light sleeper.
it worked for us as we arrived around 6 and will be leaving first thing tomorrow morning to get to the park.

April 23rd, 2022 by teefani

A terrible place if you wanna sleep. Somebody with a semi pulled up and stayed running all night long. There were three other campers and 4 semis in the northbound pull off.

September 11th, 2021 by marsrolon

Arrived late at night at this place and glad theres a spot for us. So far sleep good and quite. Busy time starts at 6

July 23rd, 2021 by Agentcassie

Pulled in around 11 pm. There were about 10 other cars and rigs in the lot already. We were undisturbed.

July 3rd, 2021 by heisenberg

Tons of “no camping” signs everywhere so I went down the street to the established campground and it was full, but the camp host told me despite the signs it’s OK to park for one night. He said several trucks and RVs usually pull in late at night and it’s totally fine. It’s just a giant pull-off on both sides of the Highway. Not very private and lots of Highway noise but giving it a try!
Update: woke up at 6am to a full lot! Definitely ok to park overnight.

October 14th, 2020 by zed

Good spot for the night. Was recommended here by a NPS ranger when he was telling me I couldn’t sleep in the park.

September 24th, 2020 by grg0687

Works well for what it is. Highway noise is not bad at all after 10pm.

June 18th, 2020 by maik

This is a day use area only. No overnight. No camping.
LTE signal with AT&T.

June 16th, 2020 by victorvando

Perfect place to rest for a couple of nights. Showers at the laundromat for $3. Walking distance. Other rigs in the area. A little noisy bu fine.

August 11th, 2019 by info

Stayed one night there. Please try to not block a whole parking line with a small rig. The big trucks need this parking.
It is absolutely quiet in the night (if there is no truck idling next to you the whole night)

July 2nd, 2019 by rosalieterry24

Parked here for one night, big RV car park on the side of a main road. Good location taking considering its so close to the park!

May 22nd, 2019 by manuel.aebischer89

Still a good spot for overnight befor entering in Yellowstone NP.

October 28th, 2018 by dgrolfe

We parked at the other place in town for two nights...but police knocked on our door the second night and said we couldn’t sleep there and pointed us to here...RV with generator running, trucks passing all night...not very good but looks like it’s the only free option close to town...

August 8th, 2018 by globusgo

Good enough for a place to sleep when you come in late and leave early.

August 6th, 2018 by wrlgt

Slept here for 2 nights without any issues as all campgrounds in Yellowstone were jam packed. Fairly quiet considering it’s a parking lot next to the highway. Plenty of space for big rigs and trailers but no amenities.

July 28th, 2018 by mercier20annie

Great spot 4min from park. Lots of rvs and cars.

June 21st, 2018 by westwardgo.blogspot.com

Pull out on both sides of the highway as a truck rest stop. Traffic noise and no restrooms but great if you need somewhere to sleep for one night near west Yellowstone.

June 2nd, 2018 by myriamgirod

Huge parkings on each side of the road.
Very near to the West Entrance of Yellowstone

May 25th, 2018 by Bill

As described, it is a place for trucks to spend the night. I have been traveling and didn't realize it was a Friday, let alone Friday night of Memorial day weekend. So all the campgrounds were full. It was fine for one night but I would not plan on staying here.

October 10th, 2017 by Martin and Amy (@eltruckito)

great place to sleep

October 8th, 2017 by Ugly Duck Tales

Free parking, no problem with overnight stay. Super close to west yellowstone, some trucks may park there.
There's laundry & showers(hot) on the way back to west yellowstone, look on the right side.

August 22nd, 2017 by jvanmill

This is overnight parking Lot for truckers, RV's, and I've seen a couple cars. It's about 5 minutes outside of West Entrance to Yellow stone. Is very close to the road and has 6 spots on each side of the road.

August 5th, 2017 by floornagler

Perfect spot for a night. There is a lot of space, many trucks and rv's here.

July 2nd, 2017 by morofamilytour.com

Parking gratuit autorisé pour la nuit, c'est un Ranger qui nous la conseillé.