Campground Rates

[Beer_Belly]

My Wife and I usually start and end the camping season with a weekend at a local CG (Cozy Hills in Litchfield CT), and when we called to make a reservation at the start of the season, we were told "All weekends are a 3 day minimum". I can't see checking in on Friday afternoon, checking out on Sunday (because of work on Monday), and paying for a 3rd day. So, fast forward to end of season, we called and the 3 day weekend is gone and rates for full hookups are less than W/E ?, I questioned the rates and was told "The pricing is being driven up by availabilty, much like booking on an airline", either way, I'm not willing to spend $94 per night for W/E, nor $85 for full hookups on a basic CG....it's not a camping resort by any means. Has anyone else run into ridiculous pricing or gimmics.

[mdcamping]

Beer Belly wrote:
My Wife and I usually start and end the camping season with a weekend at a local CG (Cozy Hills in Litchfield CT), and when we called to make a reservation at the start of the season, we were told "All weekends are a 3 day minimum". I can't see checking in on Friday afternoon, checking out on Sunday (because of work on Monday), and paying for a 3rd day. So, fast forward to end of season, we called and the 3 day weekend is gone and rates for full hookups are less than W/E ?, I questioned the rates and was told "The pricing is being driven up by availabilty, much like booking on an airline", either way, I'm not willing to spend $94 per night for W/E, nor $85 for full hookups on a basic CG....it's not a camping resort by any means. Has anyone else run into ridiculous pricing or gimmics.

W/E, $94 per night? Ouch! thats even high for CT. My guess, anything to do with real estate in western ct is through the roof.

Somewhat off topic, GrandView CampResort & Cottages and Countryside RV Park both get good reviews, prices are more reasonable.

Mike

[goducks10]

We tend to do mostly dry camping at Rec.gov places. I get the 50% off rate. Most spots are around $18+/-. So for 5 nights I spend $45 plus $8 for the online res fee. At Ore St parks it's around $30-33 or so a night. So 3 nights for $100 or so.
RV parks we stay at run in the $45-65 a night. I've spent in the $70's before but only a couple times for a specific trip.
As long as I have an RV I'll not be doing any hotels. I did BnB's and hotels for 12 years when riding motorcycles. I hate the atmosphere in hotels and while BNB's were nice they're too demanding time wise.
There's just no way I'd want to try and spend 50-60 nights a summer in hotels.

[MitchF150]

Don't come to WA state then... I think all of those places are now closed due to the fire danger.. State Parks and private parks are open, but we are so tinder here.. Especially East of the pass.

Good luck. Mitch

[NamMedevac_70]

mockturtle wrote:
While I occasionally spring for an RV park, most of my camping is done at USFS campgrounds and dispersed areas. While the USFS campgrounds are becoming more popular and most seem to be taking reservations, it's still possible to find a site on a weekday. I would never dream of paying $94 to park my rig! :E

Well said. Almost all my camping in western US is at nice scenic spacious BLM, NF, SP and county campgrounds with a 50% discount in most places. I have only seen and stayed at one nice private RV park and it was an Indian Casino in Oregon. The rest I have seen were overpriced jammed up cruddy looking places and I kept on truckin. Some looked like a homeless encampments but with many late model RVs. I drove thru some of them and saw leaking sewer hoses with water or something oozing out from the ground. Yuk. Another one I stayed at near Dexter Oregon had hateful management which is often the case I hear from others.

[rexlion]

OP, it's too bad you can't head west to the middle of the country. I've been mapping my route for an upcoming trip and when looking for an overnight CG in mid-Kansas I found a number of $10 campsites along the route. Some include showers and water/electric. A couple of the municipal CGs in towns I'll be driving through are free (no amenities, though).

Iowa and Nebraska have plenty of affordable campsites in the $10-$30 range, too. And the NF CGs at my Wyoming destination are $10 as well.

East coast real estate is expensive, so maybe that influences the CG fees.

[mockturtle]

While I occasionally spring for an RV park, most of my camping is done at USFS campgrounds and dispersed areas. While the USFS campgrounds are becoming more popular and most seem to be taking reservations, it's still possible to find a site on a weekday. I would never dream of paying $94 to park my rig! :E

[toedtoes]

RetiredRealtorRick wrote:
I'd cry myself to sleep at night if I had to pay $94 for a campground! Out of necessity, my wife and I just made a 9-day trip by car, staying primarily at either Hilton or Marriott properties. Seldom did we spend over $94 for our room, and of course there were plenty of cheaper alternatives at that. Throw in the free breakfast and camping is looking less and less attractive. Unfortunate that there are no new campgrounds springing up, but there are tons of new hotels. It's got to cost more, a lot more, to construct a hotel than a campground. Granted, the campground takes up substantially more land, but still, where are they??

Here in the west, I think "campgrounds" are not the same as "RV parks". RV parks tend to compete with hotels as they tend to be in more populated areas. Campgrounds may have some competition with inns and lodges. I think the cost comparison is different.

One campground I love is just one mile from a quaint little weekend tourist town. It has a variety of overnight options with the others being right in the town on the highway:
The campground is $26 per night - no hookups.
The local RV Park is $65-75 per night - with hookups.
The local inn is $89-125 per night - they also have a 1950's spartan trailer-camper for $180 per night.
The local cottage rental with 4 rooms is $100 per room per night.

The campground is significantly less expensive and the space and privacy between campsites is much better than the RV park. In addition, the campground and rv park allow pets. The inn charges an additional $30 per night per pet. The cottage does not allow pets.

For a road trip where you will be staying in populated areas, you won't see the low cost no hookup campgrounds so the cost differences will be less dramatic.

[wildtoad]

Weekends are popular especially for those that still work so they are going to demand a higher price. Lots of folks will come on Thursday and leave Sunday. We as retired, will book Friday thru Monday at our local SP to avoid the long lines at the dump station. But mostly book during the week. Travel today take planning, flexibility, and repeat one and two.

[RetiredRealtorR]

I'd cry myself to sleep at night if I had to pay $94 for a campground! Out of necessity, my wife and I just made a 9-day trip by car, staying primarily at either Hilton or Marriott properties. Seldom did we spend over $94 for our room, and of course there were plenty of cheaper alternatives at that. Throw in the free breakfast and camping is looking less and less attractive. Unfortunate that there are no new campgrounds springing up, but there are tons of new hotels. It's got to cost more, a lot more, to construct a hotel than a campground. Granted, the campground takes up substantially more land, but still, where are they??

[wapiticountry]

For years we owned a park adjacent to a major, major national park. We were sold out every night virtually all season long. Yet, every evening we did not have a line of RVs hoping for a no show. For popular places, people know you do not travel to them without a reservation. It is actually hard to fill last minute cancellations even at a park that turns hundreds away hundreds of reservation requests.

[valhalla360]

If they were full up for the weekends, it makes sense. Why fill a site for 2 nights per week if they have someone willing to pay for it for 3 nights.

I presume, later in the season, things eased up.

Why they would charge more for a W/E site...All else being equal, it makes no sense. Are they somehow in a better part of the park?

[2_Retired]

It really is Economics 101! The demand for campsites has expanded as the availability of sites has decreased in several parts of the country - notably the Northeast. In that area land values have exploded and the costs of both creating and particularly running a campground have gone up perhaps every higher. Very few newer campgrounds have been constructed over the past 20 years and so many older ones have sold and have become shopping malls or residential developments! Ask anyone who owns a campground today. Costs for everything have skyrocketed over the past decade far beyond their ability to absorb them. DH and I have been RVing for over 45 years. We have seen costs increase over all this time. We used to camp often in the Myrtle Beach area, generally in the 2 state parks there. Their price for a site with full hookups was $25/night for SC residents for years, with a significant discount for Seniors. Over the past 3 years, the state has gone to the 'price determined by demand' system. This season, the base price for the same site is $56/night, higher during periods of the most demand - and getting a site over a weekend is basically an impossibility! The many privately owned CGs in the area, for the same dates, are getting over $100/night - and they are full as well! While I agree almost $100/night for an RV site is absurd, I look at the cost of a simple motel room in the same area, then factor in the enjoyment we both get from camping, the security we feel when being in "our own bed" and the expenses we do not incur when making our own meals, etc. and we still find it well worth while. So, to answer your question directly - yes, prices are climbing much faster than I would like. I do not see a "3 night minimum" reservation requirement as anything particularly new or 'gimmicky" - we have seen them often for many years, particularly in high-volume tourist areas, over holiday weekends, and during high-demand times for years. Airlines and hotel chains have used the "prices determined by demand" process for years. A number of attractions, like theme parks and others, have "in-season and off-season"- pricing too. That's similar, I think. They are all about supply and demand. The more something is wanted, the higher a price it can be sold for! Reservations are still very hard to come by when planning a trip in our RV for weekend stays. The demand for each site is very high. I am in the process of finalizing our plans for a month long 'voyage' in September. still not complete, and I began it in April! There may well be a few nights while traveling spent boondocking in a parking lot (which we do not like to do, as we believe in supporting local campgrounds as much as we can) simply because the travel is over a weekend night and there is 'no room at the inn'! Fortunately we belong to a national fraternal organization and have found several of their lodges that allow for and have facilities for our RV, or the planning would have been much more difficult!

[agesilaus]

#1Flyboy wrote:
…….. 6 years of RECORD RV sales & NO NEW campgrounds; supply & demand; prices are only gonna go 1 way…. Unfortunately….

Actually that is supposedly not true, it's said that there is a record number of new cg being built countrywide. However you need to look at the area of the country. I doubt the NE and Cali don't have a record number being built because of land prices and outrageous regulations. So yes, lot of folks want the camp but there are minimal cg and the price will go up, simple supply and demand.
As Pres Obama said, "elections have consequences"
Cg prices run in the $20-40 range for many cg in the SE, Midwest and Rocky Mountains with scatterings of prices about that.

[goducks10]

#1Flyboy wrote:
…….. 6 years of RECORD RV sales & NO NEW campgrounds; supply & demand; prices are only gonna go 1 way…. Unfortunately….

Spot on.

FWIW every RV park In our area of camping has seasonal adjusted rates and some have a weekend and holiday minimums for years.

[_1Flyboy]

…….. 6 years of RECORD RV sales & NO NEW campgrounds; supply & demand; prices are only gonna go 1 way…. Unfortunately….