"Every year, the requests for financial aid go up and this is definitely no exception," Chet Tucker, director of Camp Cherokee. "We can't afford to give out the aid we've given out in this past, just from the strain of our budget."

Camp Cherokee is hosted by the Upper Palmetto YMCA at Kings Mountain State Park in York and Cherokee counties.

Families are waiting until later to decide whether to send their kids to camp, waiting to see how their finances look for the summer, said Peter Surgenor, the national president of the American Camp Association.

YMCA camping specialist Gary Forster said his organization started seeing a slowdown in registrations in March for both resident and day camps. Forster said in past recessions the length of camp stays also was cut by parents looking to save money.

But at least one camp says it has not seen a change in participation.

Most of the campers at Camp Thunderbird on Lake Wylie registered last fall, director Dave Purcell says. The day camp is full with 1,100 youngsters and the overnight camp is at 2,300 with 50 spots left.

"I guess we're better off than most," Purcell said.

Camp Thunderbird is in its 73rd year and about 10 percent of its campers are on financial aid.