How To Find Free Parking & Camping Spots While Traveling The U.S. In A Van Or Motorhome
The harsh reality of Covid-19 keeping people indoors, cooped up, and disrupting the flow of many lives urged my partner and I to cancel our 2020 travel plans to South America. Instead, we decided to wonder the U.S. in our van while staying close to nature. The transition of going from our mud home to budget traveling in a van wasn’t a huge shock to us, considering that I have already traveled a large portion of the U.S. on an extreme budget, and lived in my van on and off during different seasons. We already live cheaply and alternatively, while also trying our best to reduce our imprint on the Earth, and were ready to see how we could convert our lifestyle to #VanLiving.
Click here to learn exactly how much we spent on our 9 week van trip across the USA.
When Walmart Parking Lots Get Old
I’ve noticed that one element of travel always seems to find a way to be outrageously expensive: lodging. And yes, it can even drain your bank account even if you’re just parking a van, car, camper, RV, or motor home! How, you ask? If you’re not familiar with BLM land and don’t want to take the risks associated with stealth camping in public places, you’ll soon learn that many businesses do their best to prevent travelers from parking in their parking lots, even if the whole lot sits empty overnight.
Sure, there are some mega businesses like Walmart that allow people to park for free overnight, and large trucking gas stations are always a parking option. But parking in noisy spaces under artificial lighting for a long stretch of time can be tiring and can leave you feeling disconnected. This post was written to share some incredibly helpful resources that we found and used during our two month van trip.
Our Favorite Resources For Finding Free Camping & Parking:
1. Park4Night App
Park4Night is a website and app that allows you to find close campsites near you on an interactive map. I really appreciated the app because with the tap of a button you can search for places “Around Me” or “Around a Place”. This is helpful for finding camp spots at last minute or planning ahead for future travels. The campsites listed on Park4Night are created by real human travelers who have experienced each spot. The app allows users to create new camp spots, leave reviews, and add pictures and descriptions to each site.
The app divides and categorizes places into the following labels: Free motorhome area, Paying motorhome area, Private car park for campers, Homestay accommodation, service area without parking, Picnic area, Rest area, Camping, Surrounded by nature, Parking lot day/night, Daily parking lot only, Off road (4×4) and Extra services. Each of the spot descriptions tell you if the place is free or how much it costs to stay overnight.
Many of the spots are free, and all of my favorite camping spots came up under the “Surrounded by nature” catagory. My partner and I created numerous new camp spots on the app while crossing the country, and were able to come back to our favorite spots easily after adding them to our “Favorites” collection. I am so thankful to everyone on the app who has taken the time to add their own hidden camping gems. Be sure to add your own findings as you go across the country!
2. FreeCampSites.net
Freecampsites.net is similar to Park4Night in the sense that they both show free camping spots that were created and rated by users. Freecampsites.net also allows you to view photos of campsites and boondocking locations, rate them, and leave additional comments and information. Freecampsites.net has camping spots that Park4Night does not list, and vice versa. It is is a little less user friendly, but seems to have been around longer because the places that it lists usually have more reviews that have accumulated over the years. Freecampsites.net categorizes spots under “Free”, “Pay”, and “Permit” camping.
Their website says: “The main focus of the site will be public lands. We especially like camping on Forest Service land, BLM (Bureau of Land Management) areas, WMA’s (Wildlife Management Areas) and county or city parks.” They also state that “All campsites on this website should be free or $12/night or less for everyone. We also list campsites that require a long term, inexpensive pass, ie. $25 for up to 14 days. No camping location listed here should require you to be of a certain age, occupation, or a member of a group.”
3. BLM Land
While traveling from NC to CA and then back again, my partner and I only stayed in a hotel room 3 nights out of 60+ days on the road. For the rest of the time, we did our best to search for free and desirable campsites using the resources listed above. We especially loved coming across BLM land, and used their website a few times to find campsites.
The BLM website says: “BLM-managed lands offer numerous opportunities for camping under the stars ranging from staying in an RV at a highly developed campground to simply throwing a sleeping bag on the ground in the backcountry. No matter what type of experience you are looking for, you can find it on BLM-managed public lands.”
We stayed on completely free BLM land in rural parts of various states across the southwest. BLM land offers the unique experience of being close to nature while also presenting the possibility to host you near other campers, drifters, travelers, and #VanLifers.
Other Ideas
During our trip across the country, my partner and I would often wait until day-of to find our parking spot for the night. We would search on the three resources mentioned above and usually would be able to find something decently close or on route to our next adventure. For the times that our campsite searches were unsuccessful, we would end up parking at rest stops, in mega business parking lots, and at large gas stations for truckers. On previous trips I’ve also parked in hotel parking lots at night and enjoyed a free plant-based breakfast in the morning!
If you’re visiting national parks and are looking for free camping, be sure to call the park during business hours and speak to a ranger. We found that they have extremely valuable information on free camping and BLM land that often would be 30 minutes or less outside of the park.
