Booking a campsite at a California state park comes with stricter cancellation and no-show rules in 2026. California State Parks changed its reservation policies for stays beginning July 1, introducing new refund deadlines, penalties for repeated no-shows, limits on reservation modifications, and updated early-departure rules. The changes matter whether you are planning a beach campground weekend, a redwood escape, a Sierra trip, or an overnight stay near one of California’s desert parks. Popular campgrounds can fill months in advance, so travelers often reserve before they know exactly what their schedules will look like. Under the new rules, holding a campsite

Planning a Yosemite National Park trip is a little simpler in 2026. Visitors do not need a timed entrance reservation simply to drive into Yosemite this year, a major change from reservation systems used during several recent high-demand seasons. That does not mean visitors can arrive without planning. Yosemite remains one of California’s busiest outdoor destinations, and the difference between an entrance reservation, campground reservation, lodging booking, wilderness permit, and Half Dome permit can easily create confusion. The simplest way to think about the 2026 system is this: ordinary park entry does not require an advance reservation, but many specific