Camping in Rhode Island: Best Months, Booking and Fire Rules
Across Rhode Island's 2 NOAA reference stations, camping weather is mild from May to October, with average highs of 63 to 82 F and lows of 46 to 65 F. Nights at or below freezing show up from October to April, most often in January, when they average 25.3 a month. State park sites are booked through Rhode Island State Parks camping reservations (Reserve America).
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The best months for camping in Rhode Island
By NOAA's 1991 to 2020 normals, camping weather in Rhode Island is mild May to October. Pick the station nearest your campground below; high ground runs colder than any station.
- Jan38° / 23°Freezing nights
- Feb41° / 25°Freezing nights
- Mar47° / 31°Freezing nights
- Apr58° / 40°Freezing nights
- May67° / 49°Mild
- Jun76° / 59°Mild
- Jul82° / 65°Mild
- Aug81° / 64°Mild
- Sep74° / 57°Mild
- Oct63° / 46°Freezing nights
- Nov53° / 37°Freezing nights
- Dec44° / 29°Freezing nights
Each month shows the average high and low across the state’s reference stations, in F. Mild means an average high of 60 to 85 F with lows of 40 F or more. Freezing nights means the stations average one or more nights a month at or below 32 F.
Newportelevation 172 ft
| Month | Average high | Average low | Nights at or below 32 F |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 38 F | 24 F | 24.4 |
| February | 40 F | 25 F | 22.5 |
| March | 46 F | 31 F | 18.2 |
| April | 56 F | 39 F | 3.9 |
| May (mild) | 65 F | 49 F | 0 |
| June (mild) | 74 F | 58 F | 0 |
| July (mild) | 80 F | 64 F | 0 |
| August (mild) | 79 F | 64 F | 0 |
| September (mild) | 72 F | 57 F | 0 |
| October (mild) | 62 F | 47 F | 0.6 |
| November | 53 F | 38 F | 8.5 |
| December | 44 F | 30 F | 20.2 |
Providenceelevation 60 ft
| Month | Average high | Average low | Nights at or below 32 F |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 38 F | 22 F | 26.2 |
| February | 41 F | 24 F | 24 |
| March | 48 F | 30 F | 19.2 |
| April | 59 F | 40 F | 4.1 |
| May (mild) | 69 F | 49 F | 0 |
| June (mild) | 78 F | 59 F | 0 |
| July (mild) | 84 F | 65 F | 0 |
| August (mild) | 82 F | 64 F | 0 |
| September (mild) | 75 F | 57 F | 0 |
| October (mild) | 64 F | 45 F | 1.4 |
| November | 53 F | 36 F | 11.3 |
| December | 43 F | 28 F | 22.8 |
How to book a state park campsite in Rhode Island
Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management, Division of Parks and Recreation takes reservations through Rhode Island State Parks camping reservations (Reserve America).
First come, first served sites
Customers that wish to reserve a campsite on the day of arrival after 12:00 PM must reserve the campsite directly at the campground on a first come, first serve basis.RI DEM Division of Parks and Recreation, read October 18, 2026. Read it at the source
Quoted from Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management, Division of Parks and Recreation pages read October 18, 2026. Windows and fees change, so confirm on the booking site.
Campfires when you camp in Rhode Island
Campfires in state parks and forests
Fires, including charcoal fires, are only allowed in designated areas or with written permission.RI DEM Division of Parks and Recreation, read October 18, 2026. Read it at the source
Where fire restrictions are posted
Certain campgrounds have fire restrictions.RI DEM Division of Parks and Recreation, read October 18, 2026. Read it at the source
Current restrictions: Rhode Island DEM.
Rhode Island camping questions
Camping in other states
Where this page’s facts come from
- State park, forestry and federal land pages (read October 18, 2026). Booking windows, reservation systems, campfire rules, fire restriction sources and rules for camping outside a campground, each quoted word for word with a link to the page it came from.
- NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991 to 2020 (read October 18, 2026). Average monthly high, low and nights at or below 32 F at 150 reference stations, the same stations the heat season and heating season pages use.
- National Weather Service alerts (live, read in your browser when the page loads). Red Flag Warnings, Fire Weather Watches, Fire Warnings, Freeze Warnings and High Wind Warnings, read live from api.weather.gov.
- National Weather Service 7 day forecast (live, read in your browser when the page loads). The weekend forecast for the ZIP code a visitor enters, read live from api.weather.gov.
Climate figures are NOAA 1991 to 2020 normals at 2 reference stations in Rhode Island. Rules are quoted from agency pages and can change.