Do you make reservations?

atreis wrote:
I suspect some of the difference here relates to the duration and season of the trip. Being a working stiff with a family, I'm limited to 2 weeks vacation during the summer months. That means: short duration, during a busy season, and little flexibility. In order to have the best site I can get, I make reservations as soon as they open (usually Jan/Feb).

For folk that either don't have kids (and can vacation while school is in session) or who are retired and able to take trips that are many weeks/months long, it's a different story... Flexibility over-rides in such a situation, and very limited use of reservations (for the few popular places) would be in order.

I look forward to those days.

this is my life as well, part of it anyhow, my kids are grown but limited vacation days puts a damper on the free spirited traveling, and I too am looking forward to those days sooo much.

If we're travelling "locally", i.e. here in Colorado or Utah, we often go w/o reservations. However for our longer trips, we almost always do. Why? For one, we always try to stay in the NP or SP we are going to see. If you get online, you'll often find these CG's are booked solid every day of the week during the spring, summer, and fall. If we were to just show up, we'd either end up in a private CG :( or at a NFS or boondocking location some distance from the park we are visiting. I prefer to spend my time in the park rather than "commuting" from some distance away. I've driven hundreds of miles to get to our destination. The last thing I want to do is spend more time every day driving into and out of the parks or whatever it is we are there to see. Plus, we can sightsee along the way and not arrive until evening if that's what our schedule works out to be.

Locally, we can leave on a Monday or whatever and find a place to camp. I will say we still don't get into places like Arches using this technique.

EVERYONE makes reservations. . . . :S . . . Some people make reservations weeks or days in advance. Other make reservations hours or minuets in advance. .. .. :B

I make my reservation weeks in advance so I can stay at GOOD sites at NP, COE, NFS, BLM campgrounds for $10.00 to $12.00 a night not at public parks at $$$$$.

Rarely make reservations, never have any problems.

We make reservations. It very much depends on where you are going and when and in what part of the country you are in. Here on the East Coast in popular areas it can be hard to find a vacancy during peak travel times and that can be Spring, Summer, and Fall and that does not include holidays which are booked a year in advance. We have had situations where we have had to change travel plans close to departure and have not been able to get a reservation. It is all a matter of preference. I want to relax when traveling and not be concerned that we won't find a site. Others don't care - that's not me (yet).

We went to Alaska and back without reservations and two nights we did not get a site where we planned.

One of those nights we found a camp ground across the road and on the other night while boondocking we met a great couple that is an R V Net member.

I suspect some of the difference here relates to the duration and season of the trip. Being a working stiff with a family, I'm limited to 2 weeks vacation during the summer months. That means: short duration, during a busy season, and little flexibility. In order to have the best site I can get, I make reservations as soon as they open (usually Jan/Feb).

For folk that either don't have kids (and can vacation while school is in session) or who are retired and able to take trips that are many weeks/months long, it's a different story... Flexibility over-rides in such a situation, and very limited use of reservations (for the few popular places) would be in order.

I look forward to those days.

We also made a similar trip a few years ago from Kentucky through the southwest, up the Pacific coast to Washington and back across the Dakotas, down to Nebraska and back home. Never had the first reservation and had no problem finding a nice rv park/cg when we wanted one. We made our trip in the summer months.:B

skipnchar wrote:
My experience is the same as yours. Reservations only on major holidays. I travel because of the freedom it provides and being tied down to a schedule just doesn't fit in with that lifestyle.

This is our feeling also. As retirees and full-timers we have plenty of time and flexibility so we don't make reservations. On the 3-day holidays we don't stay anywhere around water activities (lakes/rivers). We let the weekenders have their fun.

If you have limited vacation time then, yes, reservations would be recommended.

It works for us!

I make reservations at popular attractions like YNP, the Black Hills, Williamsburg, or destinations in Florida, because I like to spend a week to ten days, but I stay at FHU parks even at those places. When traveling, I still mostly choose KOAs because so many people hate them. I've always gotten an overnight spot without a reservation if I stop around 3PM. I leave a little slack in my plan for the unexpected, either good or bad. I've never been turned down for an extra night.