If you’re only just starting to think about summer camp, take a breath — you haven’t missed your window. While some of the most popular New Brunswick camps fill up by late winter, plenty of solid options across Fredericton, Saint John, and Greater Moncton are still taking registrations, and a few don’t even open their lists until closer to summer. Here’s where to look, organized by region, with the kind of details (ages, themes, how registration works) that actually help you book something this week instead of next month.
Fredericton
UNB runs one of the broadest camp lineups in the province, spread across its Fredericton and Saint John campuses, with options ranging from arts to sports to engineering and science. On the Fredericton side, Worlds UNBound offers hands-on science and engineering camps all summer with themes like Aerospace, Be an Engineer, and Wireless World, plus a girls-only stream called Girls UNBound. There are also Design Works camps in art, cooking, theatre, and photography/movie-making for kids 6 to 12, computer science camps, and music camps through the UNB Music Camp program. The 2026 season runs June 22 through August 14, with programs Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. (drop-off from 8, pickup by 5). Families need to provide transportation and lunch.
BGC Greater Fredericton is another good bet if you want something more affordable and community-based, with payment plans available so you’re only charged for the weeks you book.
Saint John
The Network of Moms summer camp directory is worth a look if you’re in the Saint John area and still hunting, since it pulls together smaller, often overlooked options. Two worth flagging directly: the CAM Institute of Design is running a creative camp for ages 12 and up, with limited spots remaining, and The Studio Dance School in Rothesay has seven weeks of dance camp for ages 5 and up, with both full-day and half-day formats.
If you’re up for something further out, Caton’s Island Camp runs fourteen different camps over the summer for a range of ages, with an outdoor, faith-based focus and overnight stays starting around age-appropriate sessions. Camps there do fill up, so if it’s on your list, don’t wait too long once you’ve decided.
Moncton, Riverview, and Dieppe
The YMCA of Greater Moncton runs day camp out of its North End location, with kids dropped off as early as 7:30 a.m. and picked up by 5:30. Registration opened in February on a first-come, first-served basis, so popular weeks may already be gone, but it’s worth checking directly for openings since cancellations do happen.
Camp Centennial, just outside Moncton, offers a more traditional outdoors-and-canoeing camp experience, including specialty options like a Voyageur out-trip program and a tennis camp run in partnership with the Moncton Tennis Club.
Magnetic Hill Zoo also runs a popular summer camp that opened registration in February, and BGC Riverview has been encouraging families to book soon as spots are filling. If neither of those has space left, it’s worth calling — clubs like BGC often maintain waitlists and reshuffle spots as the summer approaches.
For French-language options, Université de Moncton runs summer day camps across its Edmundston, Moncton, and Shippagan campuses, covering science, art, sports, and technology.
A few tips for last-minute camp hunting
Call before you assume a camp is full. Many organizations, especially YMCAs and community clubs, keep waitlists and will reach out as spots open from cancellations.
Check for single-week registration. Several camps, including UNB’s programs and many YMCA camps, let you book individual weeks rather than committing to the whole summer, which makes it easier to patch together a schedule even if your first-choice camp doesn’t have full availability.
Ask about financial assistance. Programs like St. John’s Camp and several YMCA locations offer scholarships or payment plans, and it’s worth asking directly even if it isn’t advertised prominently.
Don’t rule out late August. A handful of camps, including UNB’s lineup, run sessions into mid-August, which tends to have more openings than the June and July weeks everyone books first.
If you strike out everywhere on this list, your municipal recreation department is worth a call directly — many smaller NB towns run modest day camps that don’t show up in broader searches but still have room.
