Frequently Asked Questions
Questions Answered (for Adults)
General Questions
Camp Galilee is located on 8 acres on the eastern shore of Lake Tahoe. We’re in the tiny town of Glenbrook, Nevada, about fifteen minutes north of South Lake Tahoe, twenty minutes south of Incline Village, and twenty minutes from Carson City. More detailed directions can be found here.
Yes, online registration is available here.
Historically, Galilee has sponsored, or subsidized in part, each summer camp program to keep the fees as low as possible. In 2025, the cost for most camp sessions is $945; the first session is $845, and the LIGHT Program is $945. Full payment is due by May 31st, unless arrangements have been made with Galilee. If desired, you can spread the cost out over several months by taking advantage of one of our interest-free payment plans. Take a look at the different fee choices for each session. Prior to May 31, Camperships may be requested during the online registration process or by contacting the Camp Registrar.
Yes! Galilee strives to never turn any child away from camp for financial reasons. Interest-free payment plans are also available to help spread out the cost over several months. In addition, you may apply for a campership during the online registration process before May 31 to cover part or nearly all of the remaining cost of camp.
There are a few things you can do next:
Please fill out medical and release forms for each child registered, which you were emailed after the online registration process. These forms are also found here. If you mailed in your registration form, you will be mailed the medical and release forms to fill out and return.
Final payment is due by May 31st for all summer camp sessions. For winter, spring, and fall programs, payment is due on the starting date of the program. If you registered online, pay by credit card (American Express not accepted). Otherwise, please mail a check made out to Camp Galilee (P.O. Box 236, Glenbrook, NV 89413) for the remaining balance, or call our office (775-749-5546) and provide a credit card number.
Check out the suggested packing list – please label all your child’s personal items. We advise that your child not have long nails or acrylic nails because it’s unsafe for rock climbing.
Once we’ve received all the completed forms and payment, all there is to do is get your child excited about a week at Camp Galilee!
Questions about Safety Practices
Registration opens at 3pm on the first day of camp, and campers are encouraged to arrive no later than 4:30.
Please pick up your camper at between 9:00 and 9:30am on the last day of camp.
Our staff members are interviewed and thoroughly screened before hiring. We look for young people who are passionate about working with children in the outdoors, and living in an intentional community. Each staff member participates in a staff training program focused on developing skills for leadership in groups, conflict resolution, and giving and receiving feedback. As this dynamic group of young people not only work, but also live together all summer long, staff training is also focused on developing a close-knit community, a tenet of our leadership model.
Counselors apply, give references and are interviewed before being admitted to Counselor Training, an intensive 8-day leadership training course. This course focuses on fostering skills in group development, including positive interaction in groups, conflict resolution, effective listening, and techniques for dealing with disruptive or homesick children. At the end of Counselor Training, the participants who have demonstrated mastery of these skills and the necessary maturity and excitement are invited to become counselors at Camp Galilee.
Your child will be placed in an Adventure Group, with leadership provided by a triad composed of two cabin counselors and one resident staff member. All Adventure Group time is supervised by this triad, and the cabin counselors and resident staff live in the cabin with the campers, including overnight. The cabin counselors and resident staff members are supported by two resident directors, as well as an ordained chaplain and a certified health practitioner.
Yes, we run background checks on all counselors and staff; those aged 18 and over are also fingerprinted. We interview all employees and check references.
Campers will be assigned to a cabin of a gender that they have indicated on their registration materials: male or female.
Yes, campers can choose to be with up to two friends/family members if all families request the children to be together, in writing. There is a place in the online registration materials to make this request.
All of our resident staff members are First Aid and CPR certified. Our lifeguards are all waterfront certified lifeguards, and trained in the administration of epi-pens. They are always equipped with a hand-held radio that can be used in case of emergency to contact the on-site certified medical provider. Paramedics are based directly across the highway from Camp Galilee at the Tahoe Douglas Fire Protection District Station, and the nearest advanced care centers include Barton Urgent Care, 15 minutes away in Stateline, NV, and Barton Memorial Hospital in South Lake Tahoe, CA, a 25-minute drive.
Questions about the Camper Experience
Camp Galilee is owned by the Episcopal Diocese of Nevada.
We offer healthy meals three times a day, and Chef Chadwick makes almost all the food from scratch! We use local produce whenever possible. We also provide snacks in the afternoon and encourage campers to drink lots of water. If your camper has a food allergy please let us know on the medical form and we will prepare food for them accordingly.
No problem! We welcome campers from all faiths and backgrounds. You’re invited to learn more about how the Episcopal Church welcomes you to Galilee.
Our staff is trained in many techniques to handle missing home and maximize a camper’s ability to cope with emotional challenges. We are supportive and respectful of all of our campers’ needs.
Questions about our Gender Inclusive Practices
No one is required to share pronouns during the camp session. Campers and staff are given the opportunity to share their name and pronouns during cabin and large group introductions, as well as any point in time during their camp experience as they feel called to. Campers and staff do not have to share their pronouns if they do not want to. We recognize that many young campers may not be aware that some individuals are expressing their authentic self by using they/them pronouns. Galilee does hire the best people to be staff and counselors and some may use they/them pronouns. We encourage families to have conversations with their campers regarding this prior to camp. For additional information, please see these resources provided by the Episcopal Church.
During staff training prior to camp, counselors and staff take part in a training session on creating safe(r) spaces for children, youth and adults who are trans*, non-binary and/or queer. Staff will then have the opportunity to engage in discussion and reflection on the specific gender inclusive practices and policies at Camp Galilee.
During staff training prior to camp, counselors and staff take part in a training session on creating safe(r) spaces for children, youth and adults who are trans*, non-binary and/or queer. Staff will then have the opportunity to engage in discussion and reflection on the specific gender inclusive practices and policies at Camp Galilee, as led by the Program Director.
At Camp Galilee, we have cabins that include single-use bathrooms so all campers can have privacy while changing. Counselors are trained on privacy measures like: speaking to campers who may need extra support away from the larger group, sharing with all campers important privacy information and making it known that privacy measures are for all campers not just campers with “exceptional requirements”, and setting out rules on respecting privacy.
There are no medical or psychological studies that support this claim. Most campers will not even notice most gender inclusive practices as being specifically ‘gender inclusive’. Many campers regardless of gender want a private place to change, all campers deserve safety, privacy, respect for their body and belongings and a place to sleep at night where they feel safe and respected. Campers are so focused on their own camp experience that they likely will not even notice these small changes.
We are happy to speak to you in whichever way you feel most comfortable. If your camper has a question during camp they can ask their counselor, the Chaplain, or even one of the Directors. We are happy to answer questions about how we make these practices work, to clarify misunderstandings, and even to share why this is important to us. In all our conversations we operate with the understanding that trans*, non-binary and queer campers are loved and valuable and that we will do our best at Camp Galilee to ensure that they know this to be true.
There are two assumptions at play here that are both very understandable: one, that this is a lot of work and two, that it is for a very small number of people.
Camp Galilee thankfully does not need to change too many policies to put these things into action. We already supervise our campers closely; privacy, consent and respect for other people and belongings are already part of our cabin rules. Campers of gender minorities already come to camp, and we do our best to create spaces that are safe(r) for them.
These changes will benefit everyone at camp. Campers want privacy for changing. Campers want to feel safe at camp. Campers want to know that if they run out of things like clean underwear or menstrual products that these things can be dealt with in a discreet and timely manner. Gender inclusive practices make the lives of all our campers better.
Learn about The Episcopal Church’s stance on gender, sexuality and sexual orientation here.
Questions about Packing
Clothes that can get dirty and plenty of sunscreen! A complete suggested packing list is available here. Even in the summer, it can get quite chilly at night, so make sure your child brings some warm layers for when they go on their overnight camping trip. Please do not send food, electronics, or other valuables with your camper. If any of these items make their way to camp, they will be confiscated and returned at check-out.
No. There is no camp store. For campers riding in the van home to Las Vegas, packed food is sent with them. All activities and souvenirs are included in the registration fee, so please do not send any money with your camper. Additional t-shirts, sweatshirts, hats and other Galilee merchandise are only available for purchase at check-out on the last day. You may purchase these items when you pick up your camper. Cash, check, and credit card are all accepted.
Yes! Mail can be sent to:
Camper Name, c/o Camp Galilee
P.O. Box 236, Glenbrook, NV 89413
Please do not send food in care packages as it tempts animals to try to come into the cabins! We distribute mail each afternoon during rest hour in the cabins. Campers can also send letters home. The post office will appreciate it if younger campers come to camp with pre-addressed, pre-stamped envelopes.
To help our staff focus on providing a fun and safe experience, please phone the camp in emergencies only. Mail from home is welcome and can be sent to Your Child, c/o Camp Galilee, P.O. Box 236, Glenbrook, NV 89413. Consider sending a letter or two before they leave for camp so they’ll have letters at the beginning of the week.
Questions Answered (for Campers)
You’ll sleep in a cabin with 6-10 other campers and two counselors. The cabins are heated and have an indoor bathroom. One group each week gets to sleep in our tipi, and those campers use the bathrooms next door in Hunting Lodge. Boys and girls are housed separately. Once during the week, your Adventure Group will go on an overnight, when you’ll sleep out under the stars at one of our camping spots.
Summer camp is a great chance to get up-close-and-personal with nature. But don’t worry – not too close! The types of animals we have here (raccoons, deer, bears) aren’t interested in humans – especially big groups of humans – and will stay away. Remember to leave all food (even gum!) at home, so critters don’t try to rummage through your bag searching for a snack.
Every day looks different at summer camp. Most of each day you’ll spend with your Adventure Group, playing games, hiking, swimming, kayaking, rock climbing, doing team-building challenges, making art and having fun.
An essential part of the camp experience is living simply, in harmony with your new friends and the natural surroundings, so please leave all electronics at home. This includes, and is not limited to, smart watches, cell phones, music devices, video games, hair dryers etc. Standard digital and box cameras are allowed.
Yes. Cameras are allowed, as long as they are used properly, and are not a distraction during group or meal times. You may not use a camera that is part of a phone or smart device. It must be a camera only.
When you arrive on the first day of summer camp, you’ll meet the camp’s healthcare provider and give them your medicine. They will make sure you know when and where to go to take your medicine. The healthcare provider is always in the Health Center before each meal, after each meal, and after Campfire for bedtime medicine. If you’re going on an overnight, they will pack up your medicine and give it to your counselor.
If you need your inhaler nearby at all times, your counselor will always have it in their backpack for you. If you just take two puffs twice a day, or similar, your inhaler will stay in the Health Center and you can use as needed by visiting the healthcare provider.
On check-in day, all campers will venture down to the waterfront for a swim quest. This is where you will go for a quick swim in the water so our lifeguards can determine if you should wear a life jacket in the deeper part of the swim area for the week. If you’re not a strong swimmer – don’t worry! Stick to the shallow waters, and the lifeguard will keep a close eye on you. You can go in the deeper water if you wear a life jacket. Starting on the first full day of camp you can go to the Polar Bear swim each morning before breakfast if you want to. In the afternoons after lunch, all of camp goes to the beach to play in the water.
Definitely! Have them address them to:
Your Name c/o Camp Galilee
P.O. Box 236, Glenbrook, NV 89413
Mail will be delivered each day during cabin time.
Great idea! Consider addressing and stamping the envelopes before you leave home, then you can write and mail the letters from camp. There’s a mailbox in the Dining Hall to drop your letters in – they’ll get mailed every day.
We can practically guarantee you’ll have a great time at Camp Galilee, but that doesn’t mean you might not miss home a bit at first (even if you’ve been away from home before!). The best thing to do is talk to your counselor or staff person – they might suggest writing a letter home, or getting really involved in camp activities so you don’t think about it too much. Before you know it, you’ll be having so much fun, you won’t have time to miss home!
You may request one friend – of the same gender and approximate age – as a cabin-mate. The request must be made by the friend as well, and submitted in writing by a parent/guardian via the online registration form, to [email protected] or P.O. Box 236, Glenbrook, NV 89413, at least 3 weeks prior to the start date of your session.
Camp Galilee is an Episcopal camp, which means providing an inclusive and loving community for all, regardless of religion, gender, race or age. The most we ask is that you are respectful of others’ beliefs and traditions. No one is obligated to participate in any song or prayer that they’re not comfortable with. We invite you to learn more about spirituality at Galilee.
Every day after Camper’s Choice time at 3pm.
Our chefs work really hard to serve food that will give you the energy you need for a full day of summer camp, and that is really, truly delicious. It’s hard to argue with pancakes, grilled cheese, or pizza! But even if you’re not crazy about the main food being offered at a meal, there are options: Fruit, bread and peanut butter & jelly are available every meal. And summer camp is a great time to try something new – maybe you’ll find a new favorite food!
If you have a food allergy, make sure your parent/guardian notes it on your medical form, including how severe it is (For example: can you be around peanuts, but not eat them?). With severe nut allergies, no nuts will be served all week. For more mild allergies, if a dish includes that ingredient, our chefs will prepare a separate bowl of the same dish without that ingredient, just for you! If you are a vegetarian, lactose-intolerant, or gluten-free, or have another dietary need, just indicate it on the medical form. On the first day of camp, your counselor will show you where to find the “alternate” food. For example, if you’re gluten-free, and we’re having pancakes for breakfast, there will be gluten-free pancakes available on a table at the front of the Dining Hall. This goes for vegetarian options when it’s a meat-based meal too. You will always have plenty to eat! Learn more about food at Galilee.
After meals, you can hang out in the free time area until Adventure Group time begins. There, you can play rescue ball, try rope jousting or ring tosses, play gaga, make up games or play with other surprises that your counselors bring out.