America’s Camping Report Card
Utah
#29 of 43 for camping
Better than 33% of graded states · overall grade B+ — campers like it.
Graded on 26,260 written reviews from Utah - 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 campground315
- beautiful scenery262
- beautiful area236
- beautiful place211
- beautiful views176
What campers warned about
- no shade13
- windy conditions13
- little shade12
- rainy weather6
- not much shade5
- Praised by
- 51.9%
- Warned by
- 2.1%
- Rank
- Better than 83% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment +0.498 (±0.006, 95% CI) from 26,260 written reviews, 61% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- great fishing45
- good fishing44
- fishing34
- camping and fishing22
- nearby hikes22
What campers warned about
- fishing was slow6
- nothing to do4
- fishing not great3
- no hiking trails3
- poor fishing3
- Praised by
- 26.4%
- Warned by
- 1.2%
- Rank
- Better than 43% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment +0.252 (±0.005, 95% CI) from 26,260 written reviews, 61% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- spacious sites139
- great campsite94
- spacious site70
- well spaced sites66
- nice campsite51
What campers warned about
- sites close together32
- sites very close together28
- sites too close together24
- no shade13
- limited shade12
- Praised by
- 36.5%
- Warned by
- 12.3%
- Rank
- Better than 14% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment +0.241 (±0.008, 95% CI) from 26,260 written reviews, 61% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- clean bathrooms449
- clean354
- very clean300
- well maintained297
- clean restrooms168
What campers warned about
- bathrooms not very clean10
- dirty bathrooms10
- dirty restrooms8
- bathrooms not cleaned7
- overflowing dumpsters6
- Praised by
- 31.0%
- Warned by
- 7.8%
- Rank
- Better than 38% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment +0.232 (±0.007, 95% CI) from 26,260 written reviews, 61% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- friendly staff91
- friendly and helpful hosts77
- friendly camp hosts71
- friendly hosts70
- friendly host58
What campers warned about
- no camp host25
- no camp host present20
- no campground host18
- no host present12
- rude camp host9
- Praised by
- 24.5%
- Warned by
- 5.1%
- Rank
- Better than 33% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment +0.194 (±0.006, 95% CI) from 26,260 written reviews, 61% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- bathrooms85
- clean bathrooms77
- flush toilets77
- restrooms66
- clean restrooms44
What campers warned about
- no water available109
- no showers66
- no running water64
- no water39
- no cell service34
- Praised by
- 23.2%
- Warned by
- 13.9%
- Rank
- Better than 38% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment +0.093 (±0.007, 95% CI) from 26,260 written reviews, 61% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- quiet444
- very quiet196
- quiet campground184
- quiet atmosphere135
- quiet and peaceful74
What campers warned about
- road noise35
- sites very close together25
- sites close together24
- highway traffic noise19
- highway noise18
- Praised by
- 15.2%
- Warned by
- 11.6%
- Rank
- Better than 12% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment +0.036 (±0.006, 95% CI) from 26,260 written reviews, 61% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- easy to find51
- close to town45
- easy access45
- easy to get to39
- convenient location32
What campers warned about
- no cell service23
- close to the road7
- rough road in7
- dirt road access4
- rough road4
- Praised by
- 11.8%
- Warned by
- 8.3%
- Rank
- Better than 86% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment +0.034 (±0.005, 95% CI) from 26,260 written reviews, 61% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- dog friendly10
- family friendly10
- friendly people9
- family-friendly atmosphere8
- dog-friendly6
What campers warned about
- felt unwelcome2
- access for disabled son blocked1
- accusations of racism1
- ada concerns ignored1
- ada needs not accommodated1
- Praised by
- 1.9%
- Warned by
- 0.4%
- Rank
- Better than 10% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment +0.016 (±0.002, 95% CI) from 26,260 written reviews, 61% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- $20 per night19
- affordable17
- $15 per night15
- free camping15
- reasonably priced13
What campers warned about
- not worth the money8
- a little expensive5
- not worth the price5
- expensive4
- firewood overpriced4
- Praised by
- 3.4%
- Warned by
- 4.1%
- Rank
- Better than 2% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment -0.007 (±0.003, 95% CI) from 26,260 written reviews, 61% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- felt safe13
- safe12
- felt very safe5
- bear boxes2
- felt completely safe2
What campers warned about
- no cell service4
- dangerous for children2
- dangerous for young kids2
- dark at night2
- felt creepy at night2
- Praised by
- 1.0%
- Warned by
- 2.4%
- Rank
- Better than 24% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment -0.014 (±0.002, 95% CI) from 26,260 written reviews, 61% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- easy to book6
- easy check-in4
- easy online reservation4
- easy reservations4
- last-minute availability4
What campers warned about
- hard to get a spot15
- reserved site occupied7
- hard to get a reservation6
- hard to get reservations6
- double-booked site4
- Praised by
- 2.3%
- Warned by
- 5.0%
- Rank
- Better than 12% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment -0.027 (±0.003, 95% CI) from 26,260 written reviews, 61% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- dog friendly15
- pet friendly4
- quiet hours respected4
- rules enforced4
- dogs allowed3
What campers warned about
- quiet hours not enforced22
- quiet time not enforced7
- dogs off leash5
- no hammocks allowed5
- generator hours4
- Praised by
- 1.0%
- Warned by
- 4.7%
- Rank
- Better than 21% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment -0.037 (±0.003, 95% CI) from 26,260 written reviews, 61% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- no bugs16
- no mosquitoes8
- lots of wildlife6
- very few bugs5
- abundant wildlife4
What campers warned about
- windy conditions22
- lots of flies18
- mosquitoes17
- lots of bugs11
- lots of mosquitoes11
- Praised by
- 1.0%
- Warned by
- 6.8%
- Rank
- Better than 33% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment -0.059 (±0.003, 95% CI) from 26,260 written reviews, 61% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
We read every written review of a campground in Utah 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 (Utah 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.