Mich. Launching New Campground Reservation System

LANSING, Mich. (AP) - The state Department of Natural Resources plans to launch a new reservation system for state park camping, lodging and harbors in November.

As part of the transition, the central reservation system opens Nov. 1 for state park lodging, including camper cabins, mini-cabins, rustic cabins, yurts and modern lodges, the DNR announced this week. Those sites typically have a one-year reservation window.

On Nov. 3, the system opens to facilities with a 6-month reservation window, including campsites at state parks and select state forest campgrounds and slips at state harbors. For stays with an arrival of Nov. 1 or 2, campsites will be available at parks on a first-come, first-served basis.

Several enhancements are planned, including the ability to search by region, check availability at more than one park at a time and view photos of each campsite prior to making a selection. Customers also won't need to navigate through as many screens before making a reservation.

"We've spent a great deal of time listening to the many suggestions offered by our customers on ways to make our reservation system more user-friendly and practical," Denise Gruben, DNR reservation system contact manager, said in a statement.

The DNR Parks and Recreation Division has contracted with Camis USA Inc., for the reservation system, which includes a call center in Ann Arbor and servers in the Detroit suburb of Southfield.

[Make Michigan state park reservations at this link].

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