Question for the planners?

We almost always have the trip completely planned out. We decide if the campground will be full enough to need reservations. We decide how far we will be going and where we will be stopping for fuel. If things do not go as planned, we just redo the plan.

In 35+ years of traveling we have never made advance reservations accept when we have a destination event where we have to be there by a specific date and camping is limited because of the event. In all those years we were only left out in the cold once. With not even a Walmart like place to park for the night, we went to a motel. We almost paid for the room to camp in the parking lot but decided to actually use the room. We do call a few hours before we arrive in high traffic areas.

We don't reserve every night for every trip. It depends on where and when. But we do often pretty much reserve a whole trip and so far we have never not made it to the reserved place. But, if we don't I am prepared to sacrifice a few bucks for peace of mind.

For us, we strike a happy middle. I know people who say "No reservations for us".
Well there are places like Yellowstone, oceanfront, etc you are not going to get into if you don't plan way ahead. We leave big gaps between destinations, set low daily goals so you can stay longer here and there as you find a place you want to explore.

If you quit for the day around 4:00 you will almost always get a space.

I limit our daily hours behind the wheel to 4 or less and so we have time to make stops along the way. We have a short RV so we have less to worry about with campgrounds that are first come first serve. If we had a rig that was longer than 28 feet there would be fewer campsites available and a much greater need to reserve one in advance into which the RV would fit.

For example there is campground at a state park east of Phoenix where fewer than 10% of the campsites are pull through ones where a long trailer or a motorhome with a towed vehicle can easily fit.

I only make reservations where there is not another campground in the area. If there are 3 campgrounds then we have options is one is full. So it all depends.

X2
No reservations. Find em when I decide to pull off for the night.

I don't do reservations for my destination any more either. Ended up at too many places I didn't like. Now I pull in for just the night and if I like it I will sign up for the extended stay discount at that time.

Ha! None of you "I never make reservations" folks should take a trip with my DW!!

I'm a "spin the bottle and head in that direction" type and she needs to have everything planned out 3 months in advance. So far it's worked out because we're doing short trips, but when we cut out for our "let's see America" trip. it may be a problem.

Of course, I can be just as rigid. We reserved a house boat on the west coast of Florida for our 20th anniversary and I had the entire trip planned out 6 months in advance. Totally destroyed me when the boat broke down on the first day.

I'm certainly in the "planner" category. It helps to be retired and not have to be home at any particular time. So I make reservations every 300 miles or so, usually at KOAs because so many people hate them that they aren't crowded. :)About every third or fourth stop I reserve two nights. I call if I have a problem making the reserved day(s), but that's only happened a couple of times in over 10 years. I hit the road about 8AM which gets me to the next CG around 2 PM, figuring in gas stops. On interstates, I stay in the right hand lane, set the speed control for 5 to 10 MPH above the minimum posted speed and let the world pass me by.

We are still in the weekend warrior mode so the rig does not role unless we know we have a place to park and set up. We leave the driveway and head there, usually 1-3 hours from home. Hope to get to a time when we can pull out and drive to see where we end up. Don't want to lose those deposits if we are not there on time.

Yes, we push on, usually because we have no choice. If we go through high traffic areas such as DC we plan accordingly and cut down the miles for the day. Regrettably "rigid schedule" is our middle name!