America’s Camping Report Card
Virginia
#7 of 43 for camping
Better than 86% of graded states · overall grade B+ — campers like it.
Graded on 10,426 written reviews from Virginia - 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 campground91
- beautiful park79
- beautiful place68
- beautiful lake59
- beautiful setting57
What campers warned about
- limited water view3
- bad weather2
- lake view blocked by trees2
- lake water level low2
- not close to lake2
- Praised by
- 41.1%
- Warned by
- 1.1%
- Rank
- Better than 26% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment +0.399 (±0.010, 95% CI) from 10,426 written reviews, 74% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- spacious sites80
- large sites43
- nice campsites36
- nice sites31
- great campsite29
What campers warned about
- sites close together15
- sites very close together9
- sites not level8
- sites too close together5
- very small sites4
- Praised by
- 41.7%
- Warned by
- 10.8%
- Rank
- Better than 74% of graded states
- Confidence
- Moderate confidence
Net sentiment +0.308 (±0.012, 95% CI) from 10,426 written reviews, 74% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- hiking trails nearby25
- hiking trails23
- great trails19
- great hiking18
- lots of trails15
What campers warned about
- fishing pier closed2
- fishing was better2
- lake stocking2
- missing walking trails2
- no hiking trails or ranger talks2
- Praised by
- 31.3%
- Warned by
- 1.3%
- Rank
- Better than 69% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment +0.300 (±0.009, 95% CI) from 10,426 written reviews, 74% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- clean bathrooms163
- well maintained158
- clean153
- very clean144
- clean facilities96
What campers warned about
- bathrooms not clean5
- bathrooms need cleaning3
- not well maintained3
- ammonia smell, droppings, urine, nests2
- bath houses nasty2
- Praised by
- 36.1%
- Warned by
- 6.6%
- Rank
- Better than 81% of graded states
- Confidence
- Moderate confidence
Net sentiment +0.296 (±0.011, 95% CI) from 10,426 written reviews, 74% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- friendly staff170
- friendly and helpful staff61
- helpful staff43
- very friendly staff40
- friendly people34
What campers warned about
- no camp host3
- hosts not around2
- no camp host present2
- no check-in or greeting2
- no host available2
- Praised by
- 29.3%
- Warned by
- 3.2%
- Rank
- Better than 79% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment +0.260 (±0.010, 95% CI) from 10,426 written reviews, 74% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- bathrooms and showers50
- restrooms and showers32
- clean facilities31
- bathrooms29
- clean bathrooms28
What campers warned about
- no showers10
- no cell service9
- no hookups6
- bath houses closed5
- firewood availability5
- Praised by
- 29.3%
- Warned by
- 12.7%
- Rank
- Better than 98% of graded states
- Confidence
- Moderate confidence
Net sentiment +0.166 (±0.011, 95% CI) from 10,426 written reviews, 74% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- quiet212
- quiet campground105
- very quiet88
- quiet atmosphere63
- quiet and peaceful45
What campers warned about
- sites close together10
- sites very close together8
- sites too close together6
- road noise5
- generator noise4
- Praised by
- 17.8%
- Warned by
- 8.6%
- Rank
- Better than 69% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment +0.092 (±0.010, 95% CI) from 10,426 written reviews, 74% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- family friendly19
- friendly campers15
- friendly other campers15
- family oriented11
- dog friendly9
What campers warned about
- accessible swing for disabled children1
- age-based discrimination1
- backward attitudes toward solo woman1
- day-pass visitors lacked respect1
- discriminates against veterans1
- Praised by
- 4.1%
- Warned by
- 0.2%
- Rank
- Better than 93% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment +0.039 (±0.004, 95% CI) from 10,426 written reviews, 74% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- easy access22
- easy to find12
- convenient location10
- easy to navigate9
- close to town8
What campers warned about
- no cell service9
- no cell signal3
- bad roads in2
- call ahead for long trailers2
- climb from damascus2
- Praised by
- 8.8%
- Warned by
- 6.8%
- Rank
- Better than 74% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment +0.020 (±0.007, 95% CI) from 10,426 written reviews, 74% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- reasonable prices8
- reasonably priced8
- great price7
- very affordable7
- affordable6
What campers warned about
- showers cost $5 for 10 minutes5
- $5 for 10 minutes4
- $5 for 10-minute shower3
- $5 for 10-minute showers3
- $5 for 10 minutes shower2
- Praised by
- 3.9%
- Warned by
- 3.3%
- Rank
- Better than 33% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment +0.007 (±0.005, 95% CI) from 10,426 written reviews, 74% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- felt safe9
- felt very safe6
- safe6
- feels safe5
- bear box at site4
What campers warned about
- no cell service3
- bear in campground2
- camera surveillance at site2
- dangerous hoverboards, child injuries2
- falling trees nearby2
- Praised by
- 2.2%
- Warned by
- 2.4%
- Rank
- Better than 95% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment -0.002 (±0.004, 95% CI) from 10,426 written reviews, 74% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- easy check-in22
- easy check-in/out4
- after-hours check-in3
- already booked next trip3
- ample sites to choose from2
What campers warned about
- hard to get reservations5
- hard to get a site4
- hard to get a spot3
- book early2
- can’t get a week-long spot2
- Praised by
- 2.5%
- Warned by
- 3.5%
- Rank
- Better than 86% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment -0.010 (±0.005, 95% CI) from 10,426 written reviews, 74% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- dog friendly11
- pet friendly8
- dogs allowed3
- dog-friendliness2
- dogs welcome2
What campers warned about
- quiet hours not enforced5
- dogs not leashed3
- firewood restriction3
- quiet hours enforcement3
- quiet hours not followed3
- Praised by
- 1.1%
- Warned by
- 3.7%
- Rank
- Better than 81% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment -0.026 (±0.004, 95% CI) from 10,426 written reviews, 74% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
What campers praised
- bunnies and deer nearby2
- chipmunks everywhere2
- few mosquitoes2
- no bears; mosquitoes manageable2
- no bugs2
What campers warned about
- bugs3
- firewood hard to find3
- mouse problem3
- poison ivy3
- poison ivy everywhere3
- Praised by
- 0.6%
- Warned by
- 3.6%
- Rank
- Better than 95% of graded states
- Confidence
- High confidence
Net sentiment -0.030 (±0.004, 95% CI) from 10,426 written reviews, 74% from federal campgrounds. Graded vs. every other graded state.
We read every written review of a campground in Virginia 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 (Virginia 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.