America’s Camping Report Card
North Carolina
#20 of 43 for camping
Better than 55% of graded states · overall grade B+ — campers like it.
Graded on 16,030 written reviews from North Carolina - 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 campground176
- great location115
- beautiful area107
- beautiful place103
- beautiful scenery77
What campers warned about
- no shade7
- rainy weather6
- little shade3
- beaches replaced by cliffs2
- cold and windy weather2
- Praised by
- 44.7%
- Warned by
- 1.2%
- Rank
- Better than 43% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment +0.435 (±0.008, 95% CI) from 16,030 written reviews, 74% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- hiking trails52
- great trails35
- hiking trails nearby27
- nice trails25
- trails22
What campers warned about
- beach closed9
- beach access closed5
- beach still closed3
- beach access trails disrupted2
- beach unusable2
- Praised by
- 31.9%
- Warned by
- 1.8%
- Rank
- Better than 71% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment +0.301 (±0.008, 95% CI) from 16,030 written reviews, 74% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- spacious sites117
- nice sites51
- large sites44
- great campsite40
- great sites37
What campers warned about
- sites too close together33
- sites close together31
- sites very close together22
- small sites13
- no shade7
- Praised by
- 37.7%
- Warned by
- 10.8%
- Rank
- Better than 43% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment +0.268 (±0.010, 95% CI) from 16,030 written reviews, 74% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- clean bathrooms282
- clean233
- well maintained228
- very clean193
- clean facilities125
What campers warned about
- bathrooms not clean10
- bathrooms not cleaned9
- bathrooms could be cleaner6
- bathrooms not very clean5
- dirty bathrooms5
- Praised by
- 34.2%
- Warned by
- 8.1%
- Rank
- Better than 50% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment +0.261 (±0.009, 95% CI) from 16,030 written reviews, 74% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- friendly staff227
- friendly and helpful staff102
- very friendly staff65
- great staff52
- friendly and helpful42
What campers warned about
- no camp host9
- no host present7
- no camp host present3
- no campground host3
- no one to check in3
- Praised by
- 28.1%
- Warned by
- 4.4%
- Rank
- Better than 62% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment +0.237 (±0.008, 95% CI) from 16,030 written reviews, 74% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- bathrooms and showers100
- hot showers79
- bathrooms54
- restrooms and showers49
- nice facilities43
What campers warned about
- no showers64
- cold showers27
- no cell service18
- no hookups18
- no electricity12
- Praised by
- 25.5%
- Warned by
- 15.9%
- Rank
- Better than 43% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment +0.096 (±0.009, 95% CI) from 16,030 written reviews, 74% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- quiet298
- quiet campground188
- very quiet145
- quiet atmosphere110
- quiet and peaceful81
What campers warned about
- sites close together22
- sites very close together21
- generator noise12
- sites too close together10
- road noise5
- Praised by
- 17.4%
- Warned by
- 8.7%
- Rank
- Better than 55% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment +0.087 (±0.008, 95% CI) from 16,030 written reviews, 74% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- close to town43
- easy access35
- close to asheville26
- convenient location24
- easy to get to19
What campers warned about
- no cell service14
- long walk to beach10
- narrow roads3
- no beach access3
- weak cell signal3
- Praised by
- 11.7%
- Warned by
- 7.5%
- Rank
- Better than 93% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment +0.041 (±0.007, 95% CI) from 16,030 written reviews, 74% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- family friendly27
- friendly neighbors16
- friendly people16
- friendly campers15
- dog friendly10
What campers warned about
- felt unwelcome2
- made campers feel unwelcome2
- access barrier for tech-limited campers1
- anti-family, hostile to guests1
- attitude of segregation; unwelcome1
- Praised by
- 3.2%
- Warned by
- 0.4%
- Rank
- Better than 60% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment +0.027 (±0.003, 95% CI) from 16,030 written reviews, 74% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- affordable17
- great price16
- very affordable8
- price is right7
- $20 per night6
What campers warned about
- firewood overpriced4
- $10 for small bundle of firewood2
- $120 per day2
- expensive for what offered2
- firewood pricey2
- Praised by
- 3.6%
- Warned by
- 1.9%
- Rank
- Better than 76% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment +0.017 (±0.004, 95% CI) from 16,030 written reviews, 74% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- felt safe20
- felt very safe11
- safe10
- safe campground4
- safe environment4
What campers warned about
- no cell service4
- bear precautions2
- bench for convenience and safety2
- camping alone felt uncomfortable2
- carabiners stolen from hammocks2
- Praised by
- 1.9%
- Warned by
- 2.6%
- Rank
- Better than 79% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment -0.007 (±0.003, 95% CI) from 16,030 written reviews, 74% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- easy check-in14
- will book again5
- easy check-in process4
- already booked next trip3
- already booked next year3
What campers warned about
- hard to get reservations7
- reserved site occupied5
- hard to get a site3
- no clear check-in3
- tent sites not reservable3
- Praised by
- 2.4%
- Warned by
- 3.4%
- Rank
- Better than 91% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment -0.010 (±0.004, 95% CI) from 16,030 written reviews, 74% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- pet friendly10
- dog friendly6
- dog-friendliness6
- hammocks allowed3
- quiet hours observed3
What campers warned about
- quiet hours not enforced18
- quiet time not enforced6
- rules not enforced6
- check-in instructions unclear3
- dogs off leash3
- Praised by
- 0.8%
- Warned by
- 4.5%
- Rank
- Better than 24% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment -0.036 (±0.004, 95% CI) from 16,030 written reviews, 74% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- no bugs7
- few bugs5
- bugs not bad4
- no mosquitoes4
- few mosquitoes3
What campers warned about
- mosquitoes18
- lots of bugs6
- sand spurs6
- bug spray needed5
- poison ivy present5
- Praised by
- 0.9%
- Warned by
- 5.7%
- Rank
- Better than 57% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment -0.048 (±0.004, 95% CI) from 16,030 written reviews, 74% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
We read every written review of a campground in North Carolina 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 (North Carolina 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.