How to Camp in Walmart Parking Lots
People are superb creatures when it comes to finding ways to save money. While traveling on a budget, sleeping in the car may be the cheapest way of all to pitch up for the night. A safer place than the side of the road or a truck-stop rest area, Walmart offers its parking lot (and bathrooms!) to travelers and RVs in select locations. There is a list that can be seen here (Walmart No-Park List) that includes every Walmart location that does not allow overnight car-sleepers and RVs.
In my experience, the best way to camp out at Walmart is to park near the back of the lot with the other RVs. This way, you will not be close to the entrance or interfere with Walmart shoppers. Park close to the parking lot light posts stationed around the parking lots because there are security cameras attached to most of them, just to be cautious.
If you do not have tinted windows in your vehicle, there are several ways to cover the windows in the car. We used a car window shade for the front windshield and back windshield, which we bought at Walmart for less than $5.00 that can be seen here (Walmart Car Window Shade).
We used our beach towels and black garbage bags to cover the remaining for windows of the vehicle. Another helpful purchase for camping at Walmart is an air mattress that fits the back seat of most cars. The air mattress can be purchased on Amazon here (Car Air Mattress) and comes in different colors and sizes. Two people can fit on the mattress, mind you there will be some arm bumping and uncomfortable positions, it is still a place to rest! Another option would be for both travelers to sleep in the front seats by reclining them.
The whole process of moving your supplies and clothes from the back seat to the front to make room for the air mattress, as well as covering the windows, only takes about 10 minutes with two people. Leave the sun roof cracked if possible unless the weather calls for rain, or it can get stuffy and hot in the vehicle. In addition, keep the keys, mace, and cell phone close to you while you sleep in case of emergency.
Make sure you check the hours of the Walmart that you stay at because not all locations are 24 hours. Plan to leave early in the morning before the heavy traffic of Walmart shoppers starts to fill the lot and make noise.
In my experience, we had no problems at any location while staying at Walmart.
Here is a list of the Walmart locations in chronological order that we parked at for the night:
1. Fulton, Missouri
Walmart Supercenter, 1701 N Bluff St, Fulton, MO 65251
2. Aurora, Colorado
Walmart Supercenter, 6101 S Aurora Pkwy, Aurora, CO 80016
3. Grand Junction, Colorado
Walmart Supercenter, 2881 North Ave, Grand Junction, CO 81501
4. Prescott, Arizona
Walmart Supercenter, 3050 E State Route 69, Prescott, AZ 86301
5. Merced, California
Walmart, 3055 Loughborough Dr, Merced, CA 95348
6. Bozeman, Montana
Walmart Supercenter, 1500 N 7th Ave, Bozeman, MT 59715
7. Sioux Falls, South Dakota
Walmart Supercenter, 3209 S Louise Ave, Sioux Falls, SD 57106
***Picture of a map with all Planet Fitness and Walmart locations coming soon!
In my experience, the best way to camp out at Walmart is to park near the back of the lot with the other RVs. This way, you will not be close to the entrance or interfere with Walmart shoppers. Park close to the parking lot light posts stationed around the parking lots because there are security cameras attached to most of them, just to be cautious.
If you do not have tinted windows in your vehicle, there are several ways to cover the windows in the car. We used a car window shade for the front windshield and back windshield, which we bought at Walmart for less than $5.00 that can be seen here (Walmart Car Window Shade).
We used our beach towels and black garbage bags to cover the remaining for windows of the vehicle. Another helpful purchase for camping at Walmart is an air mattress that fits the back seat of most cars. The air mattress can be purchased on Amazon here (Car Air Mattress) and comes in different colors and sizes. Two people can fit on the mattress, mind you there will be some arm bumping and uncomfortable positions, it is still a place to rest! Another option would be for both travelers to sleep in the front seats by reclining them.
The whole process of moving your supplies and clothes from the back seat to the front to make room for the air mattress, as well as covering the windows, only takes about 10 minutes with two people. Leave the sun roof cracked if possible unless the weather calls for rain, or it can get stuffy and hot in the vehicle. In addition, keep the keys, mace, and cell phone close to you while you sleep in case of emergency.
Make sure you check the hours of the Walmart that you stay at because not all locations are 24 hours. Plan to leave early in the morning before the heavy traffic of Walmart shoppers starts to fill the lot and make noise.
In my experience, we had no problems at any location while staying at Walmart.
Here is a list of the Walmart locations in chronological order that we parked at for the night:
1. Fulton, Missouri
Walmart Supercenter, 1701 N Bluff St, Fulton, MO 65251
2. Aurora, Colorado
Walmart Supercenter, 6101 S Aurora Pkwy, Aurora, CO 80016
3. Grand Junction, Colorado
Walmart Supercenter, 2881 North Ave, Grand Junction, CO 81501
4. Prescott, Arizona
Walmart Supercenter, 3050 E State Route 69, Prescott, AZ 86301
5. Merced, California
Walmart, 3055 Loughborough Dr, Merced, CA 95348
6. Bozeman, Montana
Walmart Supercenter, 1500 N 7th Ave, Bozeman, MT 59715
7. Sioux Falls, South Dakota
Walmart Supercenter, 3209 S Louise Ave, Sioux Falls, SD 57106
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| Our exact route of 3.5 weeks travel highlighted in orange. |
***Picture of a map with all Planet Fitness and Walmart locations coming soon!
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