KOA standard charge now $60?!

OutdoorPhotographer wrote:

dodge guy wrote:


There is a reason some people have what they have! It's because they/we watch our money!

The key to building wealth is spend less than you make. People mess that up at all income levels.

Amen to that!

X2

OutdoorPhotographer wrote:
So what site do you use to get those rates? There is a big gap between rack rate and $75. Few people are paying rack rate. The next question, is are those rates easier or harder to get on short notice for one night? It's a whole other conversation but my preference in a condo from VRBO if I'm not using our PUP for vacation. You can get a lot of bang for your buck.

It's not so much a particular site but knowing the industry. Knowing how to obtain heavily discounted rates for certain hotels at certain times in certain cities. Usually involves rate codes. It's easier on short notice in general. If that fails I often use Hotwire or Priceline bidding.

For RV parks I have negotiated rates at a few. Not easy or all that common. Usually it involves negotiating exactly how discounts are applied, such as parks that give 1 free night for every X nights staying. Sometimes the rates change mid-stay due to holidays etc. I've had luck in negotiating the free night to be during the higher rate period. Hotels are much easier at getting great rates!

dodge guy wrote:


There is a reason some people have what they have! It's because they/we watch our money!

The key to building wealth is spend less than you make. People mess that up at all income levels.

OutdoorPhotographer wrote:

2gypsies wrote:

jplante4 wrote:
I always get a kick out these threads. People driving around in motorhomes worth tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars complaining about paying $60 for a place to park it.

Most retirees driving big motorhomes or big 5th wheels with an expensive truck have saved many years for the privilege of buying it! They are not rich as you seem to infer.

We used public campgrounds 95% of our 16 years of full-timing. Not only because of the senior discount but because we'd much prefer being surrounded by nature than being surrounded by row after row of RVs.

I don't think it was a slam on folks being rich or not - we're all RV'ers at some level on this site. I think the price point is different for full-timers and vacationers. A full-timer (or frequent retired traveler) has more flexibility to stop in route where rates are lower and can go state park to state park. As a working family, if I'm on a 2-3 week trip for summer vacation, there is the stay portion and the transit. For us, the stay is almost always a national park. For the transit, I stick to a safe distance per day and try to be set up by 7 PM at the latest but I don't have the luxury of doing 100-150 mile days. If my schedule is get to the border of NY and MA, then I just need to find a decent campground that doesn't divert me off my route more than absolutely necessary. $60 near my route is better than $40 off of it.

It's also about balance. On our cross-country last year, we stayed at 3-4 KOA's averaging around $50/night, 2 Jelly Stones at $50-60, 1 municipal at $12, several private campgrounds and a national park. Loved the $12 municipal in MN for the setting although bath house was a dump. That was fine for the price and a couple nights. Worst experience was a campground in NE that was basically a parking lot, $60+ the best I remember, and had the bath house locked and decided not to leave the code for us after we called ahead to say we would arrive after the office closed. No campground host. What you get for $60 varies.

There is a reason some people have what they have! It's because they/we watch our money!

mileshuff wrote:

Skid Row Joe wrote:
Do you have any specific examples of these "$60 a night" hotels? I don't know of any with; "a spa, pool, and a gym," all for $60?

True if you only book hotels at rack rate. I stay at 3-4 star hotels quite often for $50-$75/night. Hilton, Sheraton, Crowne Plaza etc.

That said I don't complain about $60 for a decent RV resort spot. On the California coast during summer its quite common to see spots priced at $80-$110+.

So what site do you use to get those rates? There is a big gap between rack rate and $75. Few people are paying rack rate. The next question, is are those rates easier or harder to get on short notice for one night? It's a whole other conversation but my preference in a condo from VRBO if I'm not using our PUP for vacation. You can get a lot of bang for your buck.

Skid Row Joe wrote:
Do you have any specific examples of these "$60 a night" hotels? I don't know of any with; "a spa, pool, and a gym," all for $60?

True if you only book hotels at rack rate. I stay at 3-4 star hotels quite often for $50-$75/night. Hilton, Sheraton, Crowne Plaza etc.

That said I don't complain about $60 for a decent RV resort spot. On the California coast during summer its quite common to see spots priced at $80-$110+.

qtla9111 wrote:
Boondocked all the way through the western U.S. and then across Canada down through the Great Lakes and back into Canada four months. The few times we paid it was never more than $20 or less thanks to Passport America. $60 a night I would pull into a hotel, use their services, park in their lot and use my own kitchen at dinner time and free breakfast in the morning with use of the pool, spa and gym.

$60 and above is nuts. It's not about whether I have money or not, but what is really best for my needs. We saw so much wilderness and beauty on our last summer's trip I have pretty much sworn off rv parks all together.

Do you have any specific examples of these "$60 a night" hotels? I don't know of any with; "a spa, pool, and a gym," all for $60?

There was another thread on here recently where a couple of (non-KOA) park owners jumped in. One shared that on average a private CG will change owners in about 3.5 years. From that I can guess that very few of them (CG owners) are getting rich off us RVers.

We stayed at a KOA last weekend and I was impressed with how well staffed they were from a maintenance perspective. It showed in the restrooms/showers and at one point we took note of how many of the different amenities were being used by the other campers. Probably in part because of how inviting the "care" made everything.

They had new folks working the front office, so that experience wasn't up to par. But they were nice and I'm sure they'll learn to do it better.

rockhillmanor wrote:

jplante4 wrote:
I always get a kick out these threads. People driving around in motorhomes worth tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars complaining about paying $60 for a place to park it.

Before making flipent remarks like this there are VERY 'different' ways people RV. Weekend, vacation, snowbird, full time.

IRREGARDLESS of what 'type' of RV they have it is how OFTEN they use CG's that makes a difference regarding the costs of CG's NOT the cost of what type of RV they are capable of owning. :R

$20 bucks per night here or there for a week end trip or a vacation most certainly will not break the bank for the weekend warrior or for someones once a year 10 day vacation.

FYI:
For the full time and Snowbird RV'er traveling on the road.
60.00 x 30 days = $1,800
28.00 x 30 days = $840.00

Hmmm, possible savings up to $1,000 a month? Don't care who you are a millionaire or not. It's about prudent 'smart' management of ones finances. Just saying.:W

You can play that game with most any purchase. But I don't believe those two campgrounds are comparable. The $60.00 a night place has advantages over the $28.00 place. It might be location, it might be amenities, it might be the $60 is an overnight rate and the $28.00 is the daily rate if you stay for a month. But it isn't a comparison of apples to apples.
What I find amusing about these threads is that the option is not paying $60.00 or nothing it is really about paying $60.00 versus what that person somehow feels should be the price. I have asked a few people over the years who though my price was too high, what they thought the price should be. Most don't even answer, and those that do give some insane amount like 20% of what the rate really is. If that $60.00 site was $56.00 instead, would that really make life hunky dory? It is quibbling over very small amounts of money.

2gypsies wrote:

jplante4 wrote:
I always get a kick out these threads. People driving around in motorhomes worth tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars complaining about paying $60 for a place to park it.

Most retirees driving big motorhomes or big 5th wheels with an expensive truck have saved many years for the privilege of buying it! They are not rich as you seem to infer.

We used public campgrounds 95% of our 16 years of full-timing. Not only because of the senior discount but because we'd much prefer being surrounded by nature than being surrounded by row after row of RVs.

I don't think it was a slam on folks being rich or not - we're all RV'ers at some level on this site. I think the price point is different for full-timers and vacationers. A full-timer (or frequent retired traveler) has more flexibility to stop in route where rates are lower and can go state park to state park. As a working family, if I'm on a 2-3 week trip for summer vacation, there is the stay portion and the transit. For us, the stay is almost always a national park. For the transit, I stick to a safe distance per day and try to be set up by 7 PM at the latest but I don't have the luxury of doing 100-150 mile days. If my schedule is get to the border of NY and MA, then I just need to find a decent campground that doesn't divert me off my route more than absolutely necessary. $60 near my route is better than $40 off of it.

It's also about balance. On our cross-country last year, we stayed at 3-4 KOA's averaging around $50/night, 2 Jelly Stones at $50-60, 1 municipal at $12, several private campgrounds and a national park. Loved the $12 municipal in MN for the setting although bath house was a dump. That was fine for the price and a couple nights. Worst experience was a campground in NE that was basically a parking lot, $60+ the best I remember, and had the bath house locked and decided not to leave the code for us after we called ahead to say we would arrive after the office closed. No campground host. What you get for $60 varies.