Campground Ratings -

wannavolunteerFT wrote:
I think the suggestion of a scorecard is critical to making the ratings mean anything.. For example, a park I know of would get probably get a 9 or so in the third category. But the thing is that 9 would make me think it is a pretty good place, and it is ... if you can get in and parked... I have been there previously in a popup, but am not near brave enough to try taking my TT that I travel alone with. The sites are really strangely arranged, and with lots of trees to dodge, I don't think I could park my trailer.. unless the park was empty, so I could ignore roads and cut across multiple sites to get situated. It is quiet, well maintained and fits all the check marks for a high rating in that category.. so if I didn't know from having been there, I would think it would be a great place... only 1 point deducted for the site layouts.. some type of report card/scorecard to tell me why the park got a 9 would be so helpful. This park does not have a GS rating, only a listing that it exists.

the same applies to all categories, when I am traveling, I don't necessarily need all the recreation activities. I may just want a place to park and sleep. for example, when visiting my DD, I stay somewhere that has NO activities, good hookups, sites clean and easy to get into, park itself is a challenge to find, sign is not very large or obvious. so it would get low ratings for a number of things.. and a zero for bath facilites (they have NONE), but if it were rated under Good Sam ratings, it would have terrible ratings.. the score card would allow me to realize, they are because of no recreation, not bad connections, sites or roads. Just went and looked... this place has a 6.5 for facility, and 8.5 for appeal, and a 10 with a star for RESTROOMS... How does it get a 10 when there are NO restrooms.

I am sure that if you edited the book to the parks there would be many of these mistakes...but it is a really good question that makes you wonder if anyone really went there to look.

I have been in several parks where the bathrooms are spotless and yet their rating for them is midway. It makes me wonder what personal standards are being applied in the rating process.

And like you I have been to many parks that were wonderful in lots of ways but lacked the so called "popular Amenities" and were rated lower on that basis. This automatically skews the rating system toward the huge parks. In the southwest give me SHADE TREES any day over shuffleboard, pot lucks and sing-alongs.