camping outlook 2021

My daughter just booked 3 weeks at their favorite campground.

My impression is that it depends on where you are camping. For example we left Florida, proceeded thru 21 states and and over 30 camp spots. All the way up to Idaho, back thru MT and the Dakotas and then southback down. 10,000 miles and never got an advanced reservation. Our tactic is to locate a camp a few hours ahead when we are ready to stop, call then for a spot and we got a place every time except once and that was right outside Yellowstone. And there a second call to another place got a spot.

So no in the center, SE and most western free states there did not seem to be a campground glut. However in states where they close the state parks and limit camping ro every other spot, thus eliminating more than half the camping spots then I believe there is an overcrowding situation. This is mainly the NE states and maybe the left coast. Plus NM is an outlier with a major campground lockdown

We are mainly Thousand Trails campground campers, and did not see massive overcrowding.

But state parks in New Mexico closed unexpectedly, cost me $180 in a bunch of reservations the state cancelled without notice. They have a non-refundable $10 fee per reservation. Had a couple months planned.

Texas State parks were reserved almost every weekend. Even in Jan and Feb, it is very hard to find a weekend spot. Which is not unusual. Much of Texas is pleasant, but cool for camping during the winter. But so many people do not know of hundreds of open COE and dozens of USFS cg open in Texas during the winter.

I've seen some 'rush to reserve' for federal COE campgrounds for weekends.

Now, many folks got upset when the realities of trying to get a spot in the major national parks hit them.

We had no real troubles. But the uncertainty bothered a lot of people.

And I'm willing to bet a dinner or cold beverage that the uncertainty continues through the 2021 main camping seasons.

What I have seen over this past winter is more scary. The number of people with low end rigs without enclosed underbelly, tanks heaters, etc - trying to full-time is much higher than I've ever heard of happening.

I must have seen photos of 50 different rigs across the middle of the US in this cold snap with ice covered floors, big ice sickles from broken plumbing in their rigs. Folks not knowing how to take the most simple precautions.

And whining that the full-timing is supposed to be cheap and easy.

A major RV event was just cancelled for early April, so we are starting to consider changes for the summer. We have a grandchild wedding near Dallas on Mar 20, then fly to Miami for another grandchild wedding Mar 27. And a grandson HS graduation near Dallas the first weekend in June.

Probably we will try to travel the southeast US, maybe as far north as the Ohio River. I'm not going to stress over changing plans. Stay flexible. There are places to go. I know I won't get into Pigeon Forge or a CG in Great Smokey Mountains NP, but we will be able to find decent CG to enjoy the journey.

OP Interesting questions.

We reserved a few hard to get into sites last fall. We just completed 3 months of reservations up the CA/OR/WA coast. We've never done this amount of reservations in the past and decided to have a complete plan in place.

Texas State parks were reserved almost every weekend.

That's normal, the local weekend campers come out to camp and they book up local to them parks, This especially includes COE parks where the fisher folk head on the weekend.

Now, many folks got upset when the realities of trying to get a spot in the major national parks hit them.

Nothing new there. For the major Utah parks, especially Arches and Zion this has got worse. Utah State Tourism ran a major ad campaign in the big eastern cities and I believe Europe for Arches and Zion with billboards in Times Square and other spots. Unhappily for us RVers that was a major success. Arches is so crowded that they are closing the gates and the line was two miles long at Zion when we when by this summer.

But it has always been tough to camp inside the big parkas in the school's out period of the year.

We have a workaround for that and had no problem camping at Yellowstone.

The thing that is a concern, to us, is the boondocking craze for people who have no idea of what they are doing and are pigs and slobs in the camp areas. There is some fellow on RV Village who posted that he was a newbie but want people to tell him places to go for winter boondocking. A very bad idea on his part.

Did you stay at all RV parks or a mix (state parks, national parks etc.)?

Timeking wrote:
Did you stay at all RV parks or a mix (state parks, national parks etc.)?

If you mean us, we stayed at private camps, COE parks, State parks, city and county camps and boondocked. Just about the only place we skip are high price RV 'resorts' and for the most part Walmart parking lots and such tho we did com3e close once.

Thank you for all your input it's much appreciated.

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We took a trip to our favorite area last Fall, the Grand Teton and Yellowstone area. One campground had more campers than normal, but we were still able to get in and juggled another night to move to a better site. At another CG near West Yellowstone, it was as crowded as it has been in the past, so no change there and we were able to get into an RV park for one night, same as before. For this year, the number of reservations has not changed and we've been able to book a site for July 4th, but as before, will have to chance a first come first serve for Memorial Day. So, no changes here.