South of I-4 between Christmas and New Years no reservations

The reason Flying J in Dade City and Dover don't allow parking is that their lots are too small. The Flying J in The Cracker Barrel in Brooksville has RV parking spaces. But there are only 4 or 5 spots and there will be lots of people looking for places to stop. Most cities and counties in FL don't allow RV parking except in designated areas. Most state parks will be full even during the week. Quail Run RV Resort in Wesley Chapel (just north of Tampa) may have some spots but their winter prices are $50-$70 per night.

Try Indian Creek RV Resort on San Carlos Blvd in Fort Myers Beach. Expensive but a great park and just two miles from the beach. Take the shuttle and avoid parking problems.

Also, we got into the state park in Sebring two years ago without reservations. Seemed to be quite a few spaces available.

I called a Cracker Barrel in St. Augustine and one in Clearwater close to Ft. Desoto, and both permit overnight Rv parking. Hmmm. I may not have to cook this trip!

The key may be to stay away from extreme southern Fl. I'm going to check Ft. Meyers close to Sanabel.

UPDATE. They do.

Wekiva Falls will probably have space. They have like 700 sites. Water feature, close to shopping, near I-4 Sanford (Orlando).

Orange City rv Resort.

I don't mind Cracker Barrels and Fly'n Js. Tampa, Bradenton or north of Tampa would be perfect. Love Ft. Desoto. AMI. Perfect for day trips. If the weather is nice a jaunt to St. Petersburg. Blue Spring State Park to watch the Manatees. 2 days at each of these places would be perfect. I just need a safe place to park for the night. I may try a walk up in one of the state parks. I just don't want to be tied to 1 place.

One reason I didn't make reservations because I believed UK would have a decent chance at a Bowl game over the holidays. After our performance in the Southern Miss game, I realized I needed a plan B. But i've always wanted to try something like this.

Looks like the Fly'n J in the Tampa area won't accept RVers. Do Cracker Barrels down there have similar restrictions?

Surely you jest!

Not only will you not find a Wal-Mart, you won't even find a K-mart.

In all seriousness, I suggest you look at/make reservations at parks along US-27 right now.

I'm planning to not find anything last-minute south of north Florida or south Georgia.

Not many boondocking places in south FL. You could try truck stops like Flying J or Cracker Barrel. Also commercial RV parks are probably booked already and are very expensive. Check with Christmas RV Park in Christmas FL. About 20 miles to Titusville beaches. What type of sights do you want to see? Which coast? I would not try the Keys without reservations. Long drive to be turned down. Casinos will also be extremely busy that week. For those dates reservations would be best.

Pioneer Creek in Bowling Green,Fl usually always has a few spots available, about 70-80 miles to Orlando

We booked Christmas through New Years back in April.

Any CG will be booked solid if:
1) It is during the 'season' that runs roughly from Thanksgiving to the end of March. Depending on the weather up north.

and if:
1) It is within a hour or so of a beach
2) Is south of Orlando
3) Is anywhere in the Keys
4) Is a State of Federal park.

So you may find an open spot in a CG in La Belle 75 miles from the coast or some other place like that but the truth is that that central part of Florida is mostly farmland. Or National park of one type of another. And also the west coast has much more limited beach areas than does the east coast which is solid beach from Jacksonville to Key West.