Update: Natrona County camping fees to increase with tax collection, per state statute; operating fee waived for now

A campground in the Bighorn National Forest. (Dan Cepeda, Oil City)

Natrona County Parks and Recreation Department Assistant Director Michael Brown told Oil City Tuesday that the county commission has decided not to implement a $5 reservation fee on camping sites in the county for the time being.

CASPER, Wyo. — Natrona County Parks and Recreation announced that the county will collect a 7% lodging tax on overnight camping plus a 5% sales tax on overnight camping, shelter, and dock rentals in order to comply with state law (39-15-101 and 39-15-201).

Wyoming statute (39-15-10) defines “lodging service” as “the provision of sleeping accommodations to transient guests and shall include the providing of sites for the placement of tents, campers, trailers, mobile homes or other mobile sleeping accommodations for transient guests..”

In Natrona County, this will include the state 4% sales tax, the local 1% tax, the local lodging tax currently in place (4%) and the portion of the 5% statewide lodging tax set aside for local governments (2%).

According to Assistant Parks Director Michael Brown, the cost per night for first-come, first-served sites will be rounded up from a $10 base rate to a total of $12. These include campsites at Pathfinder Reservoir and much of Alcova. Black Beach, ordinarily a reservation site, will also be first-come, first-serve this year only due to construction impacts on Kortes Road.

Okie Beach, all of Casper Mountain, and other campsites that are currently under the online reservation system will rise to $16.80 for the first night. (Subsequent nights are $10 per night.) This includes a one-time $5.00 reservation fee (regardless of the number of nights booked consecutively) to cover operational costs for use of the third-party online reservation system, Brown said. It also includes a 3% credit card processing fee and a 30-cent “minimal credit card charge.” 

Full hook-up sites at Alcova are $35 for the first night, plus the $5 operating fee and 12% in total taxes. Subsequent nights are $10 per night plus the 12% in-state and local taxes.

Brown said these new rates are still competitive compared to rates on many state parks lands like Boysen and Glendo reservoirs. Brown said Boysen’s fees are $18.25 for one night, including a $10 base fee, $5 day use fee, 7.35% sales and lodging tax fee, and $4 non-refundable fee.