Which State has the Most Expensive (and Least) Camping?

17:12 Steampunk 0 Comments

We wondered: Where, in the United States, does it cost you, the common�man and woman, the most money to go camping and reconnect to nature?

So we started digging. But what’s a fair measuring stick of the cost of a campsite in a state? Utah has tons of BLM land where those in the know camp for free, but a place like Iowa has hardly any public land where one can find (legal) free camping. Every state has a state park system, though, so we figured out the average cost of a state park campsite, according to the data currently available.

Our criteria was the least expensive campsite in each park in which a person can pitch a tent on a Friday or Saturday night during the summer. Some states have a flat rate for tent camping in their state parks (like Hawaii, $12 for state residents), and others have widely varying prices. In the case of the latter, we resorted to math. This list is the average cost of the least expensive campsite in a state park, by state.

Here it is, from most expensive to least expensive:

1. Delaware: $33.20
2. California: $30.49
3. New Hampshire: $27.75
4. Georgia: $26.07
5. Maryland: $23.83
6. Florida: $23.00
7. West Virginia: $22.32
8. Ohio: $21.89
9. Michigan: $21.56
10. Virginia: $21.23
11. Minnesota: $20.68
12. Arizona: $20.47
13. New Jersey: $20.00
14. North Carolina: $19.53
15. Vermont: $19.21
16. Pennsylvania: $19.00
17. Kentucky: $18.75
18. Oregon: $18.35
19. Montana: $18.00
20. Washington: $18.00
21. Connecticut: $17.83
22. Utah: $17.42
23. Alabama: $17.02
24. Colorado: $16.61
25. Nevada: $16.33
26. Massachusetts: $15.81
27. North Dakota: $15.79
28. Arkansas: $15.69
29. New York: $15.62
30. Alaska: $14.26
31. Maine: $14.17
32. Texas: $14.16
33. Louisiana: $14.00
34. Rhode Island: $14.00
35. South Carolina: $14.00
36. South Dakota: $13.82
37. Tennessee: $13.13
38. Missouri: $13.10
39. Idaho: $13.06
40. Mississippi: $13.00
41. Wisconsin: $13.00
42. Hawaii: $12.00
43. Indiana: $12.00
44. Oklahoma: $12.00
45. Wyoming: $10.00
46. Nebraska: $9.39
47. New Mexico: $9.13
48. Iowa: $9.00
49. Illinois: $8.00
50. Kansas: $8.00

Photo by slworking2

Camp Notes is a big high five to the fun of sleeping outdoors and all that comes along with it. You know, camping and stuff.