Point Reyes National Seashore offers year-round backcountry camping along Drakes Bay and amongst the hills and valleys of the Phillip Burton Wilderness, and boat-in camping on the west shore of Tomales Bay. Because of its location near the Metropolitan San Francisco Bay Area, the campsites at Point Reyes are in great demand. Reservations are strongly suggested.

All campsites are accessible only by hiking, biking or horseback for the backcountry sites, and only by kayak or boat for the Tomales Bay sites. There is no car or RV camping available in the park. There are, however, many nearby campgrounds, located outside of Point Reyes National Seashore, that do have car and RV camping.

Camping is by permit only. Camping permits must be obtained from the Bear Valley Visitor Center before starting your trip. When you arrive to pick up your permit, please be prepared to provide a description (color, make, model and license plate number) of any vehicles that you will be leaving overnight in the park. There is no afterhours self-registration for camping available. You must have made a reservation in advance to camp within Point Reyes National Seashore. If you have made a reservation and are arriving after 5 p.m., a permit will be left for you in a small wooden box on the back side of the information board outside of the Bear Valley Visitor Center. Retrieve your permit from the box, fill in the highlighted sections, sign the permit, remove the carbon copies and put the carbon copies back in the box. Attach the original permit to your backpack as you hike, then attach it to the outside of your tent once you’ve set up camp.

Hike-in camping is allowed only in one of the four established campgrounds at the numbered site specified on the permit. Boat-in camping is allowed on national park beaches on the west side of Tomales Bay north of Tomales Bay State Park's Indian Beach. Our Campgrounds page has descriptions of the various campgrounds. Our Kayaking page has more information about overnight kayaking and boating on Tomales Bay. Camping rules & regulations as stated below must be observed. Please visit our Leave No Trace page to learn how you can help leave the backcountry in a better condition than you found it.

Campsites may be reserved up to three months (to the day) in advance. To obtain a reservation, call (415) 663-8054 between the hours of 9:00 am and 2:00 pm, Monday through Friday. Reservations by phone are not accepted at any other time. You may make reservations in person 7 days a week at the Bear Valley Visitor Center. You may also fax your reservation using our fax form and fax number: (415) 464-5149. Weekends and holidays fill up quickly, especially group sites, so reservations are strongly suggested.

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Camping fees
As of January 1, 2005, the fees increased to:

• $15/site/night for "individual" sites of up to 6 people
• $30/site/night for small group site for 7-14 people
• $40/site/night for large group sites for 15-25 people

A credit card payment is required for phone reservations. The non-refundable payment is due at the time the reservation is made. There are no refunds given for weather, illness, etc. Even though a campsite is guaranteed for your stay once the payment is made, you must still obtain the permit at the Bear Valley Visitor Center before your trip. When you arrive to check-in, please have vehicle descriptions (color, make, model, license plate number) for all vehicles in your party.

If you arrive after 5:00 pm, your permit will be in a small wooden box on the back side of the information board in front of the Visitor Center. You will need to fill in the highlighted sections of the permit, remove the carbon copies and place the carbon copies (with your list of vehicles attached) back in the wooden box. Attach the original permit to your backpack as you travel to your campsite and then attach the permit to a tent so that park personnel checking for compliance can easily find your permit.

Fee waivers are not available for recreational use user fees such as camping. However, Interagency Senior, Interagency Access, Golden Age, and Golden Access passes may apply to these fees. Holders of these passes should request information at the time of purchasing reservations.

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Rules & Regulations
Permits are required. Campers without a valid backcountry permit may be cited.

Camping is restricted to the four backpack campgrounds at numbered sites or to National Park beaches on the west side of Tomales Bay.

Camping is limited to four nights per visit, with a maximum of 30 nights per year. We do not allow groups of more than 6 people to split up into individual sites. Groups are restricted to group sites only.

No dogs or other pets are permitted in any campground or on park trails.

Wood fires are prohibited in the hike-in campgrounds. Only gas stoves, charcoal or canned heat may be used for cooking. Downed wood may not be gathered and burned. Driftwood fires are permitted on sandy beaches (below the high tide line, if possible). Permits are required for beach fires in the park and can be picked up with your camping permit at the Bear Valley Visitor Center. Put fires out with water, not sand.

No firearms (including air guns), fireworks or other potential weapons allowed.

Store your food and other scented items properly in the food storage lockers provided at the campsite. While the lockers prevent larger animals from properly stored food, mice can gain access into the lockers through small drain holes. Campers may wish to use steel wool to plug these holes during their stay. Please remove the steel wool upon departure. Do not leave any food unattended or stored in your tent. Raccoons, foxes and skunks are plentiful and aggressive. Do not feed wild animals.

Quiet hours are from sundown to sunrise. Respect your neighbor, the wilderness and natural quiet.

Campsites should be left clean. Pack out all trash.

Campers must vacate their campsite by noon on their day of departure, but are welcome to continue hiking and exploring the park after noon.

Boaters must remove human waste. Disposing of human waste in the bay or onto park beaches is prohibited, so campers must bring portable toilets or limit camping to Marshall Beach and Tomales Beach, where vault toilets and portable toilets, respectively, are available.

Maximum number of horses or pack animals in any campground is eight. Horses are not allowed at Glen Camp. Pack animals and horses must be tied to hitch rails.

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