America’s Camping Report Card
Michigan
#9 of 43 for camping
Better than 81% of graded states · overall grade B+ — campers like it.
Graded on 11,965 written reviews from Michigan - 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 campground93
- beautiful place76
- great location70
- beautiful lake66
- beautiful scenery58
What campers warned about
- no lake view3
- extreme weather changes2
- no good lake views2
- afternoon sun, little shade1
- beach and sunset views1
- Praised by
- 55.5%
- Warned by
- 1.1%
- Rank
- Top-ranked among graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment +0.544 (±0.009, 95% CI) from 11,965 written reviews, 53% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- spacious sites101
- large sites88
- nice sites46
- private sites37
- rustic campground37
What campers warned about
- sites too close together16
- sites close together14
- small sites7
- sites very close together6
- very small sites5
- Praised by
- 45.0%
- Warned by
- 7.5%
- Rank
- Better than 98% of graded states
- Confidence
- Moderate confidence
Net sentiment +0.375 (±0.011, 95% CI) from 11,965 written reviews, 53% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- good fishing26
- beach access22
- fishing20
- great fishing14
- great trails14
What campers warned about
- poor fishing7
- lake not good for swimming3
- astrophotography affected by smoke2
- fishing access at site2
- fishing not great2
- Praised by
- 33.2%
- Warned by
- 1.7%
- Rank
- Better than 83% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment +0.316 (±0.009, 95% CI) from 11,965 written reviews, 53% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- clean158
- very clean139
- well maintained136
- clean bathrooms105
- clean campground69
What campers warned about
- overflowing dumpster4
- trash left behind4
- dirty bathrooms3
- disgusting bathrooms3
- litter left behind3
- Praised by
- 28.6%
- Warned by
- 6.2%
- Rank
- Better than 24% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment +0.224 (±0.010, 95% CI) from 11,965 written reviews, 53% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- friendly staff70
- friendly and helpful hosts25
- very friendly staff21
- friendly hosts17
- friendly rangers16
What campers warned about
- no camp host3
- no campground host3
- no ranger presence3
- rude host3
- camp host scolded us2
- Praised by
- 15.9%
- Warned by
- 3.0%
- Rank
- Better than 5% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment +0.129 (±0.007, 95% CI) from 11,965 written reviews, 53% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- quiet235
- quiet campground131
- very quiet125
- quiet atmosphere77
- quiet and peaceful49
What campers warned about
- road noise16
- sites very close together11
- sites close together10
- highway noise9
- generator noise8
- Praised by
- 19.7%
- Warned by
- 10.8%
- Rank
- Better than 64% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment +0.089 (±0.010, 95% CI) from 11,965 written reviews, 53% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- vault toilets31
- bathrooms and showers26
- bathrooms18
- restrooms and showers16
- pit toilets15
What campers warned about
- no showers35
- no cell service16
- no electricity15
- no potable water13
- no water available13
- Praised by
- 18.7%
- Warned by
- 10.7%
- Rank
- Better than 19% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment +0.080 (±0.009, 95% CI) from 11,965 written reviews, 53% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- family friendly18
- friendly people7
- dog friendly6
- friendly neighbors5
- family oriented4
What campers warned about
- disrespect for fellow campers2
- anti-gay comments1
- claiming equal rights1
- did not feel welcomed1
- didn't feel comfortable1
- Praised by
- 2.3%
- Warned by
- 0.4%
- Rank
- Better than 21% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment +0.019 (±0.003, 95% CI) from 11,965 written reviews, 53% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- free camping15
- $15 per night9
- free9
- worth it9
- affordable7
What campers warned about
- not worth the money5
- not worth it4
- overpriced3
- $80 fee, partial refund2
- firewood overpriced2
- Praised by
- 3.3%
- Warned by
- 2.5%
- Rank
- Better than 36% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment +0.007 (±0.004, 95% CI) from 11,965 written reviews, 53% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- easy to find18
- easy access14
- close to town12
- easy to get to12
- easy beach access11
What campers warned about
- off the beaten path5
- close to highway3
- deep potholes on road3
- entrance road potholes3
- no cell service3
- Praised by
- 10.2%
- Warned by
- 10.2%
- Rank
- Better than 45% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment -0.000 (±0.008, 95% CI) from 11,965 written reviews, 53% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- safe9
- felt safe3
- felt very safe2
- kept safe2
- rangers handled camper issues professionally2
What campers warned about
- no cell service5
- almost no cell service2
- not patrolled2
- theft of camp gear2
- a little dark1
- Praised by
- 0.9%
- Warned by
- 1.9%
- Rank
- Better than 43% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment -0.011 (±0.003, 95% CI) from 11,965 written reviews, 53% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- easy check-in5
- last-minute availability5
- able to get reservations2
- easy check-in process2
- easy online reservation2
What campers warned about
- hard to get a site8
- hard to reserve4
- hard to get a reservation3
- hard to get a spot3
- no-show cancellations3
- Praised by
- 1.8%
- Warned by
- 3.9%
- Rank
- Better than 36% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment -0.020 (±0.004, 95% CI) from 11,965 written reviews, 53% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- dog friendly12
- pet friendly7
- no generators allowed3
- hosts keep quiet2
- leashed pets allowed2
What campers warned about
- quiet hours not enforced15
- quiet time not enforced3
- too many rules3
- better signage needed2
- campers breaking rules2
- Praised by
- 0.9%
- Warned by
- 3.7%
- Rank
- Better than 74% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment -0.027 (±0.004, 95% CI) from 11,965 written reviews, 53% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- no bugs15
- bugs not too bad6
- few mosquitoes6
- bugs not bad5
- few bugs4
What campers warned about
- mosquitoes27
- poison ivy everywhere27
- biting flies13
- heavy mosquitoes11
- poison ivy11
- Praised by
- 1.8%
- Warned by
- 9.8%
- Rank
- Better than 7% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment -0.080 (±0.006, 95% CI) from 11,965 written reviews, 53% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
We read every written review of a campground in Michigan 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 (Michigan 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.