South Campground

South Campground is a 124-site developed campground about half a mile from Zion’s South Entrance, between Zion Canyon Visitor Center and Zion Nature Center. Its big advantage is location: the Pa’rus Trail links camp to the Visitor Center and its shuttle, so you can leave the car and walk toward the canyon. Every site requires a reservation; booking opens up to 14 days ahead, and peak dates can be hard to get. The campground usually operates from mid-March through October, though exact dates vary by year.

Each site has a parking space, picnic table, fire ring and food-storage box, with a flat gravel pad on grass. Sites accommodate tents or RVs; 18 are tent-only walk-in sites. Site and parking-pad sizes vary, so check the selected site before booking. Sites can feel close together, and shade is limited. Flush toilets are available year-round, but there are no showers or electric hookups. Potable water and the dump station are seasonal. There’s no camp store; Springdale services are about half a mile away.

The paved Pa’rus Trail follows the Virgin River and connects camp to Zion Canyon Visitor Center. The campground has nine accessible sites and paved connections to accessible restrooms, with elevated grills and extended picnic tables. Wheelchair users may need assistance on the Pa’rus Trail, so check the route against your needs.

One of Zion’s first Mission 66 comfort stations was built here in 1956. The postwar NPS program modernized park facilities as car travel and visitation climbed. The restrooms are still useful camp facilities, and the building gives the campground a small, tangible link to that mid-century change.