Are we too late for escaping the winter

[sking]

We bought a new-to-us small MH (19CB) in June. We have been enjoying a little trip every other weekend during the summer, and are headed north at the end of August for a few days.
We found out that we can take off for 4 weeks starting on Dec 21st. I know it is the peak season... We are driving from Chicago looking for warm weather. Is it too late to make reservations? We will like Florida, but anywhere with temperature around 65 and higher will be ideal.
Please help!

[2112]

Sam Spade wrote:
.......
The Florida keys, for instance, is now pretty much booked up that whole period. It is somewhat of an exception as I think it was pretty full even at the depth of the depression.

1934?

[John_Joey]

To the OP (doing laundry so I got time.)

True story:

There is one park that I always wanted to try. Seen it on this forum a couple of times. Every time I called they were full up for this year and for next. I called them for over two years.

I drove south and got into a park about 70 miles away from that park that was always full. DW and I took a drive to the other park and stopped in person an asked if they had an opening. The answer was "no we're all full up, but you can get on the day list."

The day list was for those that showed in person an if an opening came available they would slide you in. I told them I'm not driving my MH 70 miles only to be told no, only to drive the 70 miles back to the other park. She told me I could stay in the overflow (no hookups) lot. Great for how much? "free" she said, super for how long "as long as you want."

I drove there at the end of month, and they got me in that very same day. Lesson for me was a nice clean rig, cash in hand, with a friendly smile goes a lot further then just a phone call and research on the internet.

[TomG2]

Sam Spade wrote:
Listen, I think comments like that are just insulting and uncalled for.

.........

Ouch! We have an old saying in the Midwest "If the shoe fits wear it". Must have been something in my observation that fit you?


The OP asked if it was too late to enjoy a warm winter. Not, "Can I get site #35 at the park of my choice right on the beach with all the amenities at this late date?" He knew the answer to that one.

[John_Joey]

TomG2 wrote:
.... San Antonio is South Texas to some but colder than I want to spend the Winter...

These forums are like bittersweet chocolate. Many would say SA is too cold, yet when you spend time there in the parks you see how many spend the whole winter there and enjoy it. They like the city and sights and the social side of their park. Some are in park models and others in RV's.

There is so many different ways to snowbird that to listen to any one form is a shame. My only beef is to watch out for the non RV'ers.

This is a RV website and their input has many times made a rough go for me and the DW. Just a couple of examples, a park model with central air vs a MH with one 13.5K AC and a big windshield is going to view the month of April different in different parts of the country or an RV with an open bottom vs a casita in a park with wind breaks can turn a windy day into a pleasant place for happy hour vs freezing your butt off.

[Sam_Spade]

TomG2 wrote:

Glad that you did not let the scaredy-cats and fearful folks scare you off. Enjoy the adventure.

Listen, I think comments like that are just insulting and uncalled for.

People's situations differ widely. A young couple's "adventure" might be a nightmare for a family with 4 small kids.

Folks posting here don't (usually) try to throw people off on purpose and hearing ALL of the opinions is usually better than just one side.

[TomG2]

Since there is no official Subdivision of the Great state of Texas, people can call any part whatever they want. San Antonio is South Texas to some but colder than I want to spend the Winter. Same with Corpus Christi area. Sister lived there and they have a couple of really cool months. Even the Rio Grande Valley can have some cool days.

[LynnandCarol]

joebedford wrote:

LynnandCarol wrote:
For south-TX (Rockport, Port Aransas)

I think of those places a central Texas, not south.

Nope. South-TX. 2 hours from the Mexican border. Everything on the coast is considered south-TX.

[TomG2]

sking wrote:
Thank you to everyone for all the information. We are going to go without reservation as we are not looking to stay in one place for the whole month. .........

Glad that you did not let the scaredy-cats and fearful folks scare you off. Enjoy the adventure.

[John_Joey]

Sam Spade wrote:

sking wrote:
Thank you to everyone for all the information.

Keep in touch and let us know how it goes.
Others might find your experiences helpful.

X2

When I first started it was the great unknown, and these types of posts really helped. After all these years I now know how easy it really is, and not to sweat the small stuff.

Enjoy your first year out.

[GoPackGo]

I really wouldn't worry too much about Zika. Florida is full of plants, bugs and animals that can cut you, bite you, sting you, or even eat you - both in and out of the water. Just adding one more thing to the list.

But the good news is that you can wear shorts and T-shirts while putting up Christmas lights ! You can't beat that with a stick.

[Sam_Spade]

sking wrote:
Thank you to everyone for all the information.

Keep in touch and let us know how it goes.
Others might find your experiences helpful.

[sking]

Thank you to everyone for all the information. We are going to go without reservation as we are not looking to stay in one place for the whole month. We plan on moving around as much as our hearts desire! We are unsure as how far down south we are going to go due to concerns with the spreading Zika virus... Hence another reason for not making reservations. Who knows, maybe the cold winter airs will sent the mosquitoes away. I just don't want to risk it, or worry too much about it.
Again, thank you all for your advice.

[Parrothead_Mike]

While there may be a debate as to whether one can just go to FL and find a campsite or not we did pretty much just that our first year in FL. We stayed at 8 different RV parks over a 6 week period from the northern third to the Keys. I would suggest, however, that while you can go without a formal reservation you should definitely plan ahead to where you might want to go and know where you might want to stay and then call 2-5 days ahead to make sure they have a site for you. Staying 2-4 days is much easier than making monthly reservations. You have to be flexible in your schedule and types of parks you might want to stay in.

We visited several parks so that we could check them out and visit the area. Once we determined where we preferred to stay we made a longer reservation for the next season. This will be our 5th snowbirding season and we have pretty much settled on a park having reserved for one month during our second season to 4 months this coming winter. We like the Crystal River area--not so crowded and less expensive than further south.

Good luck with your travels!

[John_Joey]

TomG2 wrote:
... Let it go. It's okay if you are both wrong. 🙂

Yup, we're grownups. We can all accept that.