Lake O'Hara Campground
Yoho National Park, British Columbia · backcountry campground
How the Lake O'Hara campground books: 30 sites, a 3-night limit, the winter launch day, and the 3:30pm day-before cutoff that brings cancellations back.
Availability on 24 Oct 2026
- 0 open nights
- 0 of the next 180 nights fully booked (0%)
- Next open night: none
How booking works here
- Each park opens its season on its own launch day in January or February, usually at 8am local time.
- Most bookings are refunded in full (minus a fee) until 3 days before arrival, so cancellations bunch up just before that.
- West Coast Trail fees are only fully refundable 21 or more days before the start date. Lake O'Hara camping and bus bookings can be changed until 3:30pm the day before.
- Bookings are made on Parks Canada; we never book, hold or resell sites.
Official booking page
About
Lake O'Hara sits high in Yoho National Park, ringed by peaks and hanging valleys, and reached by an 11 km access road that's closed to private vehicles. Parks Canada limits access to protect the area, which is exactly why a night at the campground is one of the hardest bookings in the Rockies. Camping here puts you in the middle of the trail network for a few days, rather than squeezing it into a bus-to-bus day trip.
The campground and the bus both run on the same short summer season. In 2026 that was June 19 to October 4.
The sites
Parks Canada lists 30 sites at Lake O'Hara, reserved for overnight guests only. The rules that matter when you plan:
- Maximum of 3 consecutive nights
- Maximum of two Lake O'Hara campground reservations per household, per season
- Maximum of 2 reservations per transaction
- You need a tent: Parks Canada says reservation holders who arrive without one will be turned away
Source: Plan a trip to Lake O'Hara (Parks Canada).
How booking works
Sites are booked through the Parks Canada Reservation Service at reservation.pc.gc.ca or by phone at 1-877-737-3783. Unlike most Parks Canada campgrounds, Lake O'Hara has its own launch day, separate from the Banff, Kootenay and Yoho backcountry launch.
- 2026: Tuesday, February 10 at 8:00am MT. It was originally set for January 22 and postponed after the reservation system's January technical problems.
- 2027: not announced yet. Expect a January or February launch, based on 2026.
Parks Canada uses a virtual queue on launch days, so arriving early doesn't put you at the front.
Last checked: October 2026.
When it sells out
With 30 sites, a short summer and a whole season's demand landing on one launch morning, the summer weekends go fast. The two-reservations-per-household limit spreads the sites around a little, but it doesn't add any. Expect July and August, and any long weekend, to be the hardest nights. Shoulder nights in late June and late September are usually easier, though snow can linger early and arrive early at this elevation.
How to get a cancellation
Plans change after launch day, and Parks Canada's rules shape when cancelled sites come back. From the Parks Canada reservation policies:
- Cancel 3 or more days before arrival: full refund, less the non-refundable reservation fee (C$11.50 online) and the cancellation fee (C$11.50 online).
- Cancel later than that, but before 3:30pm the day before arrival: the same, minus the first night's fee as well.
- After 3:30pm the day before, changes and cancellations close.
So you'll see two small waves: people clearing out before the 3-day mark to keep the full refund, and last-minute drop-outs on the afternoon before each night.
Refreshing the site by hand works, but it's tedious. Watch Lake O'Hara Campground on Canada Camp Alerts and we'll email you when a night you picked goes from booked out to bookable. A night counts as open when any site on it is free, and each night is judged on its own, so for a 3-night trip check the dates around yours too. We don't match the same site across nights, your party size or your gear, and we don't hold or book anything.
The free plan covers one watch, with email alerts 15 minutes after we spot the opening. The season pass (C$25 once, 12 months, no auto-renew) gives up to 10 watches with instant alerts by email, Telegram or web push.
Tips
- Book the nights, then plan the trip. With a 3-night cap and only 30 sites, take the nights you can get.
- Watch the afternoon before. The 3:30pm cutoff means the hours just before it are a natural time for someone to let a site go.
- Have your Parks Canada account ready. Saved party and payment details make the difference when a cancelled site appears.
- Know the walk-in option. If you only get a day, the 11 km road is open to walkers (22 km return), though camping still needs a reservation.
Nearby alternatives
Questions
When do Lake O'Hara campground reservations open for 2027?
Parks Canada hasn't announced 2027 yet. In 2026 the campground launched on Tuesday, February 10 at 8am MT (it was first set for January 22 and postponed). Expect a January or February launch again, based on 2026.
Can I book a day trip through the campground reservation service?
No. Parks Canada says day trips can't be booked through the campground reservation service. Day visitors use the Lake O'Hara bus, which has its own random draw, or walk the 11 km access road.
How late can people cancel?
Changes and cancellations at Lake O'Hara campground close at 3:30pm the day before arrival, so the afternoon before each night is when last-minute openings tend to appear.
Will Canada Camp Alerts book the site for me?
No. We email (or, with the season pass, push) an alert when a night opens. You book it yourself on reservation.pc.gc.ca or by phone.
Nearby places we watch
- Elizabeth Parker Hut — Yoho National Park, British Columbia · 68 open, 18 of 180 nights booked out
- Kicking Horse — Yoho National Park, British Columbia · 0 open, 0 of 180 nights booked out
- Lake O'Hara Bus — Yoho National Park, British Columbia
- Monarch — Yoho National Park, British Columbia · 0 open, 0 of 180 nights booked out
- Scott Duncan Hut — Yoho National Park, British Columbia · 86 open, 0 of 180 nights booked out
- Stanley Mitchell Hut — Yoho National Park, British Columbia · 86 open, 0 of 180 nights booked out
Set a watch on Lake O'Hara Campground
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