Tolsona Wilderness Campground

L

My family has camped at Tolsona Wilderness Campground several times over the years and always have an amazing time. I felt compelled to write a review in defense of the campground after reading some of the more recent reviews, and I am not affilitated in any way with the campground or owners. This campground is very obviously a labor of love. The campground and property itself is massive. They have walking trails, yurts, tent sites, and RV hookup sites. And it’s all run by one family with young children who do everything themselves and do not live on site year round. They bought an aging campground and have turned it around into something that doesn’t really exist anywhere else in Alaska - It’s a destination. There really is not much in the surrounding area in terms of entertainment, shopping, lodging, ect. This family has essentially created a community for the locals as well as those who visit the campground. They run a small coffee/snack shop on site, as well as a gift shop, and every single weekend has a theme with free activities and treats and a daily schedule that gives a lot of options for families. It’s not explicitly for families with children, but I do want to say that if you don’t have kids or maybe don’t like kids this may not be your place. But the canpground is huge, so the owners may be able to recommend spots that mostly avoid that. Because it has a “contained” feel, there are often groups of kids that play freely throughout the entire campground and in the creek. The creek is great for tubing and they have a path that leads to a good tube launch area. Tubes are available for rental and they have lots of life jackets. We recently visited on a weekend where the theme was Halloween. It is clearly a cherished local event - they invite the local families for trick or treating around the campground and many sites went all out with decorations and inflatables, huge fake spiderwebs in the trees and most of the kids came with costumes at the ready. We had about 40 kids come through our camp spot and it was a really fun time. In advance of the trick or treating, they had a wooden pumpkin painting craft that could be added to your campsite decorations, and had candy bar bingo and a pumpkin scavenger hunt throughout the campground. They gave popsicles to every kid who participated and the winners got campground t-shirts! They’re going above and beyond to entertain their guests. The campground has a large playground area next to some volleyball nets and a pavilion, as well as a separate large fenced dog park. If you’re looking for a perfectly Instagramable spot with every building having a fresh coat of paint, manicured grounds or anything fancy - this is not your place. This is a WILDERNESS campground. It is rustic and it’s not perfect, but what they’re doing there is awesome. It’s a truly Alaskan family experience. They’re created a whole brand. It’s clear that they have even bigger visions and plans for the place, and we’ve really enjoyed seeing their success despite major obstacles and setbacks over the years. I do not personally have experience with the yurts, but there are quite a few of them!

Rosario Falconer

This is a beautiful campground. Definitely worth the stop. It has a restroom and a shower and a laundry room available. It has a neat lil stream and you can rent a tube to float the river! For sure family friendly! Has a park and a dog park too!

Uli Lehmann

We read all the older comments - here is what we think: First, look up the name: It is a wilderness campground. Sure you have to drive a 1,5 mile rough road to reach the campground. What kind of people complain about that ? Do they expect a 4-lane-highway??? Next: all campsites do have, what you expect in the wilderness: A table and a firepit, they are all at the creek - and most of the campsites have a good distance to the neighbor. You get water and electricity at your site and free dump. Showers and watertoilets are close to the office. Sure, they show some age, more cleaning is in need. We had our RV and got along well. They have a laundry 2,-$ a load and 1,-$ for the dryer is pretty fair. We stayed two nights at site 6 - and even got the wlan to our RV. We paid 45,- $/night, by midweek in July 2025 the campground had plenty of sites left. The owners are nice folks and they love children. So, book with confidence and keep in mind you are out in the wilderness.

Bill Backal

Booked this campground months before our 90 day road-trip from So Cal to Alaska. Drove up to check in and was immediately struck by the unkempt grounds. After viewing our site, we decided to forgo our prepayment and hit the road to Valdez. Sorry to say, but this campground it seems, is poorly run and neglected. Hope they can take this review as constructive criticism. The property has lots of potential.

EMILY PEREIRA

Spacious and private campground among the spruce trees. Every spot is on the river which was huge highlight for my kids. They adored playing in the creek. We enjoyed our hiked to the mud volcano (yes you will get wet but it’s cool thing to experience). Caught some grayling and small trout. Enough to keep it fun! They have a great playground for the kids to enjoy and best of all… hot showers and flushing toilets. Now I’m usually a rough it kind of camper but this place is a treat. 10/10 can’t wait to return.