America’s Camping Report Card
Maryland
#25 of 43 for camping
Better than 43% of graded states · overall grade B+ — campers like it.
Graded on 3,833 written reviews from Maryland - no star ratings, just what people wrote.
The breakdown
Letter grades reflect how campers actually felt about each topic - A means they loved it, not that it beat other states.
What campers praised
- beautiful place29
- beautiful park26
- beautiful scenery17
- beautiful area16
- beautiful campground16
What campers warned about
- a bit inland from the river’s edge1
- campground under power lines1
- canal-side location1
- casino floodlights1
- cold overnight fall weather1
- Praised by
- 48.2%
- Warned by
- 1.0%
- Rank
- Better than 71% of graded states
- Confidence
- Moderate confidence
Net sentiment +0.472 (±0.016, 95% CI) from 3,833 written reviews, 53% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- nice trails14
- beach access6
- great hiking5
- great trails5
- hiking trails nearby5
What campers warned about
- trails closed4
- not much to do2
- trails closed due to storm damage2
- amphitheater shows unavailable1
- bay trail closed1
- Praised by
- 33.6%
- Warned by
- 1.6%
- Rank
- Better than 81% of graded states
- Confidence
- Moderate confidence
Net sentiment +0.319 (±0.016, 95% CI) from 3,833 written reviews, 53% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- nice campsite14
- spacious sites13
- great campsite10
- nice campsites9
- spacious site9
What campers warned about
- sites too close together8
- sites very close together7
- bumpy ground2
- high fire ring2
- little privacy between sites2
- Praised by
- 39.7%
- Warned by
- 10.5%
- Rank
- Better than 64% of graded states
- Confidence
- Moderate confidence
Net sentiment +0.291 (±0.020, 95% CI) from 3,833 written reviews, 53% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- clean bathrooms52
- clean49
- well maintained42
- very clean32
- clean facilities18
What campers warned about
- bathrooms need cleaning4
- dirty bathrooms4
- bathrooms poorly cleaned3
- bathrooms in disrepair2
- bathrooms not cleaned2
- Praised by
- 27.3%
- Warned by
- 8.7%
- Rank
- Better than 2% of graded states
- Confidence
- Moderate confidence
Net sentiment +0.186 (±0.018, 95% CI) from 3,833 written reviews, 53% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- friendly staff33
- friendly and helpful staff17
- helpful staff11
- great staff9
- helpful rangers8
What campers warned about
- abrasive, argumentative office staff1
- atc volunteers unaware of campsite1
- attitude at check-in1
- attitude when addressing issue1
- booking failed to warn1
- Praised by
- 18.2%
- Warned by
- 2.6%
- Rank
- Better than 21% of graded states
- Confidence
- Moderate confidence
Net sentiment +0.156 (±0.014, 95% CI) from 3,833 written reviews, 53% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- hot showers16
- firewood available10
- bathrooms9
- restrooms and showers8
- clean bathrooms7
What campers warned about
- water pump not working7
- bathrooms and showers6
- cold showers6
- no cell service6
- no running water6
- Praised by
- 27.2%
- Warned by
- 14.2%
- Rank
- Better than 76% of graded states
- Confidence
- Moderate confidence
Net sentiment +0.130 (±0.019, 95% CI) from 3,833 written reviews, 53% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- quiet52
- very quiet29
- quiet atmosphere22
- quiet and peaceful13
- quiet campground13
What campers warned about
- train noise4
- road and train noise3
- road noise3
- train and road noise3
- train noise at night3
- Praised by
- 15.8%
- Warned by
- 11.8%
- Rank
- Better than 19% of graded states
- Confidence
- Moderate confidence
Net sentiment +0.040 (±0.017, 95% CI) from 3,833 written reviews, 53% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- free camping7
- $20 per night5
- reasonable prices5
- free firewood4
- great price4
What campers warned about
- $10 per day change fee1
- $125 citation1
- $16 nightly plus fee1
- $20 fee felt steep1
- $20 fee seen as excessive1
- Praised by
- 5.4%
- Warned by
- 1.7%
- Rank
- Better than 98% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment +0.037 (±0.008, 95% CI) from 3,833 written reviews, 53% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- close to dc10
- close to metro station7
- easy access7
- easy to get to6
- easy beach access5
What campers warned about
- limited parking2
- steep hill to campsite2
- water point far from lower sites2
- 1 mile hike-in1
- 1 mile walk from parking1
- Praised by
- 11.8%
- Warned by
- 8.7%
- Rank
- Better than 81% of graded states
- Confidence
- Moderate confidence
Net sentiment +0.032 (±0.014, 95% CI) from 3,833 written reviews, 53% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- friendly campers3
- dog friendly2
- family friendly2
- family-friendly atmosphere2
- friendly neighbors2
What campers warned about
- better access for people with disabilities1
- campsite infringement by others1
- disrespectful campers; inconsiderate people1
- families and couples; kids roaming others' sites1
- felt targeted as hispanics1
- Praised by
- 3.2%
- Warned by
- 0.4%
- Rank
- Better than 69% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment +0.029 (±0.006, 95% CI) from 3,833 written reviews, 53% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- felt safe6
- felt very safe5
- safe3
- always feel safe1
- avoiding drinking and driving1
What campers warned about
- no lifeguards2
- afraid to scare horses off1
- aggressive drivers1
- animals chewing tent holes1
- anxious stay1
- Praised by
- 2.0%
- Warned by
- 3.3%
- Rank
- Better than 29% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment -0.013 (±0.007, 95% CI) from 3,833 written reviews, 53% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- easy check-in4
- last-minute booking2
- 3 weeks booked for 20251
- accepted reservation changed1
- already booked next stay1
What campers warned about
- hard to get a reservation2
- should notify reserved campers2
- 7-day advance reservation required1
- advance reservation; status not disclosed1
- almost booked up on weekends1
- Praised by
- 2.2%
- Warned by
- 3.5%
- Rank
- Better than 71% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment -0.013 (±0.007, 95% CI) from 3,833 written reviews, 53% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- dog friendly3
- pet friendly3
- dog-friendliness2
- dog-friendly2
- 10pm quiet hours1
What campers warned about
- quiet hours ignored3
- no alcohol allowed2
- no enforcement of rules2
- quiet time ignored2
- 1 car per site rule not enforced1
- Praised by
- 1.6%
- Warned by
- 3.7%
- Rank
- Better than 93% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment -0.022 (±0.007, 95% CI) from 3,833 written reviews, 53% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- no bugs7
- no mosquitoes2
- no mosquitos2
- not buggy in mid-july2
- abundant wildlife1
What campers warned about
- mosquitoes8
- bug spray needed5
- lots of mosquitoes5
- mosquitos4
- flies and mosquitos3
- Praised by
- 2.1%
- Warned by
- 10.6%
- Rank
- Better than 5% of graded states
- Confidence
- Moderate confidence
Net sentiment -0.086 (±0.011, 95% CI) from 3,833 written reviews, 53% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
We read every written review of a campground in Maryland and used AI to label what each camper praised or complained about, across 14 topics. A topic’s score is the share who praised it minus the share who complained, and the letter is absolute: A means campers loved it, F means they were frustrated — on a fixed scale, not a curve. So a topic isn’t marked down just because another state scored higher. Switch to Raw numbers to see the share who praised vs. warned behind every grade.
The rank (Maryland vs. other states) is shown separately, because most states are genuinely good overall — the ranking is what tells them apart. The overall grade is the average of the topic grades, weighted by how often campers raise each one.
Only states with at least 2,000 reviews are graded, and every topic carries a 95% confidence interval from its sample size.
Topic weights
- Scenery15%
- Campsites15%
- Cleanliness13%
- Facilities12%
- Staff & hosts10%
- Things to do9%
- Crowds & noise8%
- Getting there6%
- Bugs & weather3%
- Booking2%
- Value2%
- Rules & policies2%
- Safety2%
- Welcoming1%
Methodology v3-absolute-grade-plus-rank | 43 states graded | updated June 2026.