Best and Worst States for Overnighting

[ProfessorChaos]

I know that Colorado does not allow overnighting in rest areas or park&rides. You can overnight in some Walmarts here but one by one Walmarts are not allowing it here. Even ski resorts are cracking down on overnight parking.

What states are best and what states are worst for overnighting?

 

[Wabbit]

This info is from a site(link below). Sorry for formatting, on a tablet. Info is at link below.

Alabama
No overnight parking or camping.
Arizona
Overnight parking permitted; no camping.
Arkansas
Overnight parking for safety reasons only; no camping
California
There is an 8-hour stay limit. No overnight parking or camping.
Colorado
No overnight parking or camping.
Connecticut
No overnight parking or camping.
Delaware
There is a 4-hour stay limit. No overnight parking or camping.
Florida
There is a 3-hour stay limit. No overnight parking or camping.
Georgia
No overnight parking or camping.
Idaho
There is an 8-hour stay limit. Overnight parking permitted. No camping or sleeping outside of vehicle.
Illinois
There is a 3-hour stay limit. No overnight parking or camping.
Indiana
No overnight parking or camping.
Iowa
Overnight parking is limited to one night with extenuating circumstances; no camping or sleeping outside of vehicle.
Kansas
Overnight parking is limited to one night; no camping.
Kentucky
There is a 4-hour stay limit. No overnight parking or camping.
Louisiana
No overnight parking or camping.
Maine
No overnight parking or camping.
Maryland
There is a 3-hour stay limit. No overnight parking or camping.
Massachusetts
No overnight parking or camping.
Michigan
There is a 4-hour stay limit. No overnight parking or camping.
Minnesota
There is a 6-hour stay limit. No overnight parking or camping.
Mississippi
Overnight parking permitted; no camping.
Missouri
Overnight parking permitted. No camping or sleeping outside of vehicle.
Montana
Overnight parking permitted. No camping or sleeping outside of vehicle.
Nebraska
There is an 8-hour stay limit. No overnight parking or camping.
Nevada
There is a 24-hour stay limit. Overnight parking or camping permitted.
New Hampshire
There is a 4-hour stay limit unless emergency conditions exist. No overnight parking or camping.
New Jersey
Limited overnight parking; no camping.
New Mexico
There is a 24-hour stay limit. Overnight parking permitted. No camping or sleeping outside of vehicle.
New York
No overnight parking or camping.
North Carolina
There is a 4-hour stay limit. No overnight parking or camping.
North Dakota
No overnight parking or camping.
Ohio
There is a 3-hour stay limit. No overnight parking or camping. Overnight RV parking permitted in some areas on toll highway.
Oklahoma
Overnight parking permitted; no camping.
Oregon
There is a 12-hour stay limit. Overnight parking permitted; no camping.
Pennsylvania
There is a 2-hour stay limit unless otherwise posted. No overnight parking or camping.
Rhode Island
Overnight parking permitted; no camping.
South Carolina
No overnight parking or camping.
South Dakota
There is a 4-hour stay limit. No overnight parking or camping.
Tennessee
There is a 2-hour stay limit. No overnight parking or camping.
Texas
There is a 24-hour stay limit. Overnight parking permitted; no camping.
Utah
No overnight camping. Extended stays are permitted and are monitored by the on-site staff and the Highway Patrol.
Vermont
No overnight parking or camping.
Virginia
No overnight parking or camping.
Washington
There is an 8-hour stay limit. Overnight parking permitted. No camping or sleeping outside of vehicle.
West Virginia
No overnight parking or camping.
Wisconsin
No overnight parking or camping.
Wyoming
No overnight parking or camping.

https://www.interstaterestareas.com/overnight-parking-rules/

 

[maki2]

no camping means you can't set up a tent...it does not mean you can't be inside a van, trailer or truck camper.

 

[Seminole Wind]

the big list posted above is just "rest areas" it is also "general" i can post plenty of pictures of signage in oregon rest areas that are much more restrictive than the 12 hours indicated.

in states that restrict the parking time to less then what CDL drivers are required to do. there will be more truck stops with overnight parking

if you are traveling and just in need of a place to sleep so you can continue driving safely there are lots more safe options. if you are looking to live in some parking area by moving in and out based on the posted hours then that really reduces your options. but why would anyone chose to live like that.

maki2, "camping" is not universally defined. in some areas the cops will run you out of "no camping" even when just sleeping in you car. while others you can park a motor home and picnic all day and then sleep over as long as you put everything back inside and are "ready" to drive away. rules on "no camping" vary tremendously

to the OP, as for the best state. i would have to say it depends on what your style is. are you trying to overnight in big cities or overnight on some country road. out in our western states, there is a lot more public land and that makes it easy to find camping, real spots you can park, kick back enjoy yourself and spend the night. back east of the ol' Miss it can be a little harder but i have never had issue. of course i dot try and camp in the cities. i do my best to stay off the interstates and keep to the country highways. i have never been where i was more than a day from some spot i could camp. if i was traveling a couple days to a specific destination on the state highways and county road systems i just drive till i am ready to call it for the night then look for a side road or a big pull off to park for the night. never have i had to look for more than an hour.

i pick where i go based on what i want to do or see, never even enters my mind about finding a place to sleep over if/when i need to stop for the night. of course i prefer to be out in the country. if you need to be in the cities, well your mileage might differ...

 

[RVTravel]

See stealth camping threads

 

[txmnjim]

i hate these "no camping and sleeping in vehicles rules" that many places are adopting.
they are criminalizing the homeless...which i may be one day

 

[Seminole Wind]

i hate these "no camping and sleeping in vehicles rules" that many places are adopting.
they are criminalizing the homeless...which i may be one day

as more and more people do it, there will invariably be more doing it poorly with no respect. that is what brings about many of the draconian rules. i have seen so many places i used to car camp over the years become poluted with the worst of the riffraft "van dwellers" that are loud, trashy and disrespectful. they are the ones the locals see, notice, remember and then ultimately legislate against

 

[cyndi]

"no camping means you can't set up a tent...it does not mean you can't be inside a van,  trailer or truck camper."


Not necessarily

 

[ProfessorChaos]

Thank you to everyone who responded. On doing more research it seems Nebraska is the best for overnighting and California is the worst.

 

[Seminole Wind]

Thank you to everyone who responded. On doing more research it seems Nebraska is the best for overnighting and California is the worst.

california might be bad if you try to overnight in big cities. but out on the highways there are tons of rest areas, never had a problem getting a nights sleep there while traveling. then the big cities are but a fraction of california. get out in the country, to the mountains or the deserts. take a back road. tons of national forest and blm, if you cant find an easy place to over night in california, it aint californias fault.

 

[highdesertranger]

I have slept at the rest stops in California on numerous occasions. but some I wouldn't want to sleep in like the one on I-10 at Whitewater but I won't even stop at that one, because of all the illegal activity going on there, it's scary. so it's knda on a case by case basis for rest stops.

Park and Rides are a no go in California. this is from first hand experience.

but like Seminole wind said outside of the big cities there are plenty of places. well not counting the coast,

highdesertranger

 

[Seminole Wind]

i have had good luck on the coast north of the bay area. right on the 101, not camping, but plenty of spots to pull over for the night.

ya, i can only imagine the hell in some of the rest areas near "humanity"

i spent the night years ago in a truckstop in or near fontana. wont do that again.

but that said, the closest call i ever had was way out in the sticks at a wildlife preserve of some sort in iowa, muskrat slough.

 

[lenny flank]

as more and more people do it, there will invariably be more doing it poorly with no respect. that is what brings about many of the draconian rules. 

Yep. Every time someone bans overnighting, they always give the reasons why--and it's always the same reasons: people who park in one spot and stay for a year, people who dump their shit (literally) all over the place, and people who panhandle everyone in sight.

As always, it's just a handful of people who cause all the problems for the rest of us.

 

[Kaylee]

the closest call i ever had was way out in the sticks at a wildlife preserve of some sort in iowa, muskrat slough.

Story Time, please.

As one of the resident fans of critters whose coats are kinda a brownish color, I am, of course, pro-muskrat.

 

[Seminole Wind]

Story Time, please.

As one of the resident fans of critters whose coats are kinda a brownish color, I am, of course, pro-muskrat.

unfortunately it had nothing to do with muskrat love...  more like some redneck patrol thought i "might" be cooking meth or something??. fortunately no shots fired, but it was close for a min...

 

[txmnjim]

this was a cute video about a couple's issues with Cali laws...

 

[txmnjim]

and another example...
https://www.kusi.com/homeless-rally...MQ_EIbzJeBrtotewO6zuzx6dxMLpiuXsi96EahnJ4FtG8

Mod Edit: above is an article about people living in cars urging the San Diego city council not to make it illegal. come on we need more of a description, "another example" doesn't cut it.