I just need to get this off of my chest. We are workampers and are currently working in Texas. We are at a KOA that has 35 cabins and 237 RV sites. The manager is awesome, and probably the best manager we have ever worked for. The problem is that people have been scheduling HUGE family reunions and are occupying most, if not all the cabins. They have been a total pain in the rear as many of them could care less for the park rules. They lie about how many people are occupying the cabin and they have extra cars blocking traffic and parking where they are not supposed to. We work very hard to be courteous to everyone but the RV crowd is upset because the cabin dwellers are tearing things up, and the cabin people are mad because we ask them to obey the rules. They let their kids run wild, leave trash everywhere and it's really sad. Sadly, my prediction is that the family reunions will be the downfall of this nice park.The Google reviews are becoming terrible but it's from the cabin people and not us RV people. I just looked through the reviews and the bad ones are obviously the cabin people who weren't allowed to run wild and ruin it for everyone. Not sure what the answer is but I will look further into reviews when we are looking for our next stay.

My wife and I - a few years back - came up with a one word answer to most anything in life................ P E O P L E !!Well, this can be bad - or it could be good.Usually, in today's US society it is bad. Total disregard for rules / laws / etc. Laws / rules / common courtesy simply is not part of many people's lives.I have also said for years that I am glad to have lived in the best years the United States has ever seen - or ever will see. I honestly believe that.I do not mean this to be political at all - just general observations.

In my humble opinion, the "cabin people" are the main source of discontent between the two (campers vs. Cabin). But as I see it C/G's are going more with cabins since they can make more profits on them despite having more maintenance and upkeep and possibly more user problem. We have seen some of our favorite C/G's going the cabin route, and as a result we have stopped using them. When given a "questionnaire" to fill out about our stay, it seems all of our "problems" have been because of the cabin users, not to mention the disappearance of various small items left in the open of our site. (Thanks for letting me get this off my chest) lol. Good Luck and Happy Camping !!!

The answer is eject the ones causing trouble.Give them back their money and be done with it. To many people see the lost revenue and will not do what is best for the business.

Takes backbone to evict but it's necessary sometimes.

we stayed at a large private campground (not a KOA) this past year for a month. the owner would ask once and then would have the police remove them from the campground and they were never allowed to come back. there were many cabins and only once did I see someone asked to leave them- on 3 occasions the police removed campers and chased out a couple of unwanted motorcycles.the owned also employed an off duty officer to patrol on the weekendsthe KOA we stayed at in Granger, IN did not put up with anyone acting out and when the nearby micro brewery had an event and Notre Dame had home games the park would fill up- they also had off duty officers patrol to keep it safe and under controlboth of these campgrounds are very nice clean and really feel safe- it is up to the owners to maintain a level of safety and keep their parks clean and under control or they will deteriorate, get bad reviews and eventually wonder what happened JMHOI feel for the work campers (have been there too) you do your best to provide a clean and friendly environment only to have a selfish person post because they are told how to act

Reviews are not always fair. | Good Sam Community

Farmboy666
Explorer
Jul 03, 2017
rav wrote:
we stayed at a large private campground (not a KOA) this past year for a month. the owner would ask once and then would have the police remove them from the campground and they were never allowed to come back.
there were many cabins and only once did I see someone asked to leave them- on 3 occasions the police removed campers and chased out a couple of unwanted motorcycles.
the owned also employed an off duty officer to patrol on the weekends

the KOA we stayed at in Granger, IN did not put up with anyone acting out and when the nearby micro brewery had an event and Notre Dame had home games the park would fill up- they also had off duty officers patrol to keep it safe and under control

both of these campgrounds are very nice clean and really feel safe- it is up to the owners to maintain a level of safety and keep their parks clean and under control or they will deteriorate, get bad reviews and eventually wonder what happened JMHO

I feel for the work campers (have been there too) you do your best to provide a clean and friendly environment only to have a selfish person post because they are told how to act

Were the motorcycles unwanted because they were motorcycles or because of the people riding them?
2012Coleman
Explorer II
Jul 03, 2017
Most review sites have the ability to give a response to a review. RVarkReviews allows owner response and Goolge also allows responses - instructions here

Your best bet is to respond(or let management) to these reviews using the following guidelines - copied from RVParkReviews.com:

Responding to Reviews:

Always be polite. Remember that your responses will shape opinion about your Park.

Craft your messages well. Professional, caring and courteous responses go a long way to great customer relations and experience.

Thank the reviewer for taking the time to post feedback.

Address specific complaints and explain what steps may have been taken for improvement.

Do not offer incentives for reviews, or coupons or discounts for return stays.

Be positive! You might mention improvements or updates that may interest the reviewer.

In the end, most people can see through these rant reviews on Google.

Good luck!
rav
Explorer
Jul 03, 2017
the motorcycles were not camping, they went around the gate and entered the campground.
egregg57
Explorer
Jul 03, 2017
Kick a few of them out. Sends a clear message. The rest don't shape up, everyone associated with the group goes. Ask the police for assistance. People like that will ruin your place. They are a cancer...get rid of them.
winnietrey
Explorer
Jul 03, 2017
Having been in business almost 40 years, I would wonder if perhaps the owner is fairly new, like less than 10 years? If so he making be making a classic mistake that I certainly made as did many others. Thinking he has to please everybody and take everybody. What he may not understand, is these large problem groups are not making him money. They are costing him money, and horrible stress.

The answer is easy, don't take large groups. That is easier said than done. But I can guarantee in the long run he will make more money with 1/10 the stress.

Took me many years to understand that. Some people will abuse a business, for as long and as hard as they can. Just don't take those folks in the first place, and if you do get them, get rid of them as soon as possible.
Winnebago_Bob
Explorer
Jul 03, 2017
Large groups in any campground are generally a cancer. Cabin people usually have a different mentality that long-time RV people, just like weekenders. Their behavior will never change and the sense of entitlement isn't going to get any better. Ignore it or call the cops.
lj2654
Explorer
Jul 03, 2017
My wife worked at an RV park in Florida for two years as a housekeeping supervisor. They also had rental cabins, rental pontoon and Jon boats! I volunteered my time for our site and she was a paid employee. Many of the guests were clean and orderly, but that 25% ruined it for everyone. They destroyed things, partied 24/7 at times and just didn't care. We finally got a new Manager who was a big burly outspoken guy that straightened things out quickly! He would flat tell people to leave if rules were broken and gave them time to do so before he would call the sheriff in to remove them. Things settled down after word got out.
Dance_Chick
Explorer
Jul 03, 2017
Kicking them out certainly helps to keep peace within the CG and send a message, but it doesn't help the bad reviews as nothing will stop them from posting and lying about their experience. Don't have an answer for that except a rebuttal as was mentioned earlier.
ken56
Explorer
Jul 03, 2017
Any time I read a review like that the first thing I think is what did you do to be subjected to poor treatment by management? I have found it to be a rare instance that management is rude or indifferent to people. The campground will usually reflect the pride in ownership or lack of and I can take a guess at how the management will be.

I don't put much stock in most reviews anyway and use them as a very general guide. I've been to CG's that have 5 star ratings that I would not give 2 to and some with less than stellar reviews that I have enjoyed. Go figure.
ksg5000
Explorer
Jul 03, 2017
Whether they are staying in RV, tent, Yurt, or Cabin ... if they are creating problems they should be evicted .... if you don't evict them then the campground deserves a negative rating.

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