This summer, we car/tent camped at the Mather Campground while visiting the Grand Canyon. It was very inexpensive. We were allowed to bring our dog, as long as he was leashed. The spots were SUPER close to each other, so if you have quiet neighbors, it is fine but you are right on top of each other. The park was very quiet at night. The trees were beautiful and it was a wonderful place to stay. The ravens tried to grab anything they could from our campsite, so I recommend keeping a close eye on your food, etc. We had reservations and I would highly recommend them in the summer as we saw a lot of people turned away. I would stay here again and would highly recommend it.

We booked online (recreation.gov) and check-in was quick and easy, and friendly. We stayed three nights here, in a tent pitch which was clean, shady and not too far from the loos. Tents are mixed in with RVs, generators can be noisy, but everyone near us respected the evening curfew. Each pitch had a picnic table and fire pit. The site was quiet, bug-free, and dark at night - good for star-gazing. The toilets and dishwashing sinks were clean, although cleaned at 8am, which seemed a bit mad since it was comparatively busy then!

There was a shower block by the reception office, but it was a long, long way from our pitch and you had to pay, so we didn't use it - we also heard there were queues every morning.

The campground is on the free shuttle bus route which will get you most places along the canyon rim (although our pitch was a bit of a hike from the bus stop - it's a big site). It is also close to the Market Plaza, where there is a supermarket and a diner (called the Yavapai, I think). The diner has slow-medium free wifi. We ate dinner there every evening, and breakfast on the last morning - prices were very reasonable and food was tasty and filling. Recommend the chilli! There were other choices in the park, but the food looked similar everywhere, unless you paid a lot more and reserved a table.

A good choice for camping in the park, for just $18 per night.

To improve your chances of enjoying Grand Canyon and Mather Campground, do yourself the favor of expecting crowds and arriving early. These are very big, busy places.

I stayed the maximum of 7 nights in a tent and enjoyed almost all of that time. It's unfortunate that, in these times, a site like Mather is used as an overnight stop by many especially foreign visitors (California rentals), so driving can be bad sometimes, and late arrivals setting up noisely after dark are frequent.

Clean hot showers at a reasonable price (but only 1 basin for shaving/brushing?).

I don't cook in camp very much, so the handy, frequent shuttle buses to Maswik Lodge cafeteria (decent food) was a plus; Canyon Cafe in Market Plaza is within walking distance also.

You can pretty much park your car for the entire stay--a vacation in itself.

We rented an RV from Cruise America and the Grand Canyon was our first stop. We stayed at Mather Campground for 2 nights.

The campground is primitive in nature; that is to say there are no hookups, water, etc. if you have an RV. However, there are showers, restrooms and dishwashing stations, all of which were exceptionally clean and well maintained.

Each campsite comes with it's own little fire pit and picnic bench. It was somewhat cold when we visited in September and we ended up using the fire pit both nights. The campsites are very clean, another plus.

Proximity to the market and main attractions at the Grand Canyon made our camping experience here even more enjoyable. Additionally because the campground is owned and operated by the park, the cost per night was very reasonable at $18 per night. However be warned, reservations should be made as the campground does fill up regularly.

Overall, we would definitely stay here again next time we camp the Southwest!