Caught in a donut hole. Do you feel the same?

[Stutch]

We are spending a few months in the San Jose area. We found that every rv resort is the same, with one exception (Coyote Valley RV Park).

In short, they are not RV resorts but neighborhoods of run down, low income "residents." I call it shanty town!

These "resorts" cater to the old run down campers that are permanent fixtures OR 1, 2 night passing through folks. Since we are here for 90 days, we fall into a catagory with extremely limited space. SAD and FRUSTRATING....

We stopped in one place had over 100 open spaces and were told there was a waiting list. Then they asked the age of the MH. Evidently they do not want old campers or MHs on their sites but only offer 30 amps. ODD!!!!! We have a 2015.

Sure.... Coyote is expensive, but in the scheme of things, they have a higher class of clientele. No Shanty town.

So for us, we are not campers that that want to live in these places nor are we transients.

Our site ( not saying) is OK except we could not useor Direct TV. There were a few open spots that had clear sight but we could not move into one because they were reserved for transients.

Too bad!!!

[wbwood]

Stutch wrote:
We are spending a few months in the San Jose area. We found that every rv resort is the same, with one exception (Coyote Valley RV Park).

In short, they are not RV resorts but neighborhoods of run down, low income "residents." I call it shanty town!

These "resorts" cater to the old run down campers that are permanent fixtures OR 1, 2 night passing through folks. Since we are here for 90 days, we fall into a catagory with extremely limited space. SAD and FRUSTRATING....

We stopped in one place had over 100 open spaces and were told there was a waiting list. Then they asked the age of the MH. Evidently they do not want old campers or MHs on their sites but only offer 30 amps. ODD!!!!! We have a 2015.

Sure.... Coyote is expensive, but in the scheme of things, they have a higher class of clientele. No Shanty town.

So for us, we are not campers that that want to live in these places nor are we transients.

Our site ( not saying) is OK except we could not useor Direct TV. There were a few open spots that had clear sight but we could not move into one because they were reserved for transients.

Too bad!!!

Forgive me as I haven't read all the posts and it might of been answered, but you appear to complain about places with older rigs. And now you are complaining because a place wants to know the age of your brand new rig? I'm confused...

[Travelr]

Those of you who have not traveled to or don't live in the CA market place, you are in for a eye opening experience. Those parks/resorts that are nice are either not near anything and cater to those passing through or if close to the ocean (meaning 25-30 miles) charge $80-$90 or more per night. Part of this is driven by those who rent the Cruise American types from Europe and othe places. The want to stay close, see the sights and are willing to pay the prices. We are going to Marin RV park for Xmas. 10 years ago, the price was $38 ( just looked back in our reciepts) This trip, $95 !! And nothing has been done to the park whatsoever.

[profdant139]

Stutch, I feel your pain -- you don't want to stay in the crummy parks, and the nice ones don't treat you well. I am reminded of what Groucho Marx said when invited to join a country club in Los Angeles: "I don't want to belong to any club that will accept people like me as a member." 😉

[westernrvparkow]

What I am missing is if that Coyote Park is so good, why isn't the OP there? If my guess is correct, it has to do with money. And if that is the case, from what it sounds like in the area, the 3 month stay would be the worst possible case for the local parks. Apparently, there is no shortage of demand for long term sites, so why take a three month stay when you could get a year or better?
As for the guy looking at nicer sites while being stuffed in a bad site, are those better sites for daily stays and consequently much more expensive on a daily basis? If the park offers a monthly rate much lower than the daily rate those expensive sites can stay vacant a lot of days each month and still generate more income than the monthly site. I don't know about the demand in the area, but it is likely that the coming holidays might be a popular time for shorter stays and the high income sites could easily be reserved and occupied in the near future.
And on top of everything, this is California. You can bet those run down long term stays are protected by multiple laws. They are almost assuredly protected by landlord/tenant laws and the is likely no way the park could move them out if they wanted to, and there is likely no mechanism that would even allow the park to force them to clean up their act. A great primer on California rental law is the movie "Pacific Heights". It's treatment of landlord/tenant law is much more fact than it is fiction.

[Crowe]

Visited every "campground" within 50 miles of San Jose.

Then you need to camp elsewhere. Yes, I've seen a few "shantytowns" but overall the VAST majority of campgrounds that take transients treat them fine.

I also find it interesting that you are from Maine but have stayed in every cg within 50 miles of San Jose.

[JT]

"Their waiting list is very long. Go Figure.."
----
Not hard to "figure" at all; there are *very few* RV park options of any kind, for anybody, for any purpose in the Bay Area as a whole, and the demand for space, particularly long-term rental, is extremely high. Simple "market economics".

The "local" (Morgan Hill, Gilroy, Redwood City, East SJ RV parks), with the possible exception of Coyote, which is a mixed bag, are not destination parks or "resorts"; they're primarily for short and/or long-term residents who are usually working in the area. They'd close up if they had to depend on transient/traveling RVers for steady income.

No, the places don't have to be dumps, but "dumpiness control" is a management/maintenance/rule enforcement issue, and some parks are better managed than others. :R

[Stutch]

Ok. Ok. My point is that if you are not a full time shanty town resident, or a 1 or 2 night stop over, you are given 2nd class treatment. It is not a class issue. It is the lack of accomodation of people who are not full timers in the park and those just stopping by.

I am in a non desirable back in site crammed in while lookin on nicer empty sites 50' away that I am not allowed to use. ALL the RV parks in this area are the same. We looked to move and they are all the same except Coyote. Not a class thing!

By the way, money or no money, a slum is a slum. Loads of disgusting fall apart garbage all over the campgrounds. I feel for people who are struggling, but the owners have no idea what to do or don't care. I came to visit my kids in San Jose for 2 months and my only choice is living next to Fred Sanford.

Campgrounds here are not for campers, they are for low priced housing. That is my point...........

Solution, limit stays for 90 days OR advertise what you really are. Visited every "campground" within 50 miles of San Jose. We are staying at the best of them, not counting Coyote. Their waiting list is very long. Go Figure..

[colliehauler]

Their campgrounds their rules, your money your choice.

[Searching_Ut]

I've been fortunate enough in life to have traveled a great deal, having visited every state in the US, lived in Europe for 9 years, Spent a month or more in 11 countries and passed though for shorter periods many more than that. One of many things I've learned in all those travels is that the only way I have been able to get to know how much "Class" a person has is to spend some time getting to know them. I seem to be a little confused as to the definition of "Class" in the original post here.

[kalynzoo]

Really, what is your point. You can look up the park on GoodSam or RVParksReview and get opinions, then you can go to the park website and look for pictures, even TripAdvisor lists a bunch of parks as does Yelp. Call ahead for a reservation, we often call while on the road, calling at noon and saying we will be in after 5pm. Last resort, if you get there and don't like the looks, move on...that is call the office, say you can't make it, and find another place. We have only applied this a very few times over the last 30 years. Some people like Resorts, some like National Parks, some like parking lots, and some like residential parks. Some of these shanty towns house traveling workers who must leave their residence while on assignment. Some are families that just don't want or can't afford a more permanent lifestyle.
Probably beats being homeless.
Anyway, to each his/her/its own.
Happy Trails.

[Crowe]

The point is one I agree with. Private RV parks have become slums and overnight stops. With the exception of parks in snowbird or other seasonal locations, they are sad places to stay.

Pretty generic statement. I'm assuming, then, you've stayed in every private campground in the US? Is this now the "new wave" of bashing because everyone's tired of bashing KOAs? And sorry, but when I'm traveling more than a few hundred miles from home I'm going to need that "overnight" stop because I won't stay in a parking lot. Sorry if that offends you but some of us don't have a choice.

Seems like the OP either can't or won't explain himself. Pity. Might lead to some REAL discussion if he does.

[4X4Dodger]

"Sure.... Coyote is expensive, but in the scheme of things, they have a higher class of clientele."

Are you Serious? Unfortunately I believe you are.

Perhaps we should require all RV'ers to wear a bit of colored cloth to distinguish between the "Right Sort" of people and those that are the
"Lower Class"?

Make sure your Daughter doesn't marry one of them.

[punomatic]

DW and I lived in one of the "run down" parks with "permanent residents" for many months. Many of the coaches were in less than pristine condition. Many of the residents were not well-to-do, or even as well off as we are. What we found was that virtually all of the residents wanted what you and I want: to be taken at face value, to be treated with dignity, to share what they had with their neighbors and to have the freedom to enjoy their lives. The joy of living has little to do with financial holdings or one's surroundings. It has to do with seeing others as fellow human beings, with whom we share many more similarities than differences. Sit down and have a chat with one of your neighbors. You might like him.

[petendoll]

Snowman9000 wrote:
The point is one I agree with. Private RV parks have become slums and overnight stops. With the exception of parks in snowbird or other seasonal locations, they are sad places to stay.

In some areas, the only way they can stay open is by renting to extended stay campers. There isn't enough traffic to keep them viable without the permanent residents. At least they offer a place to spend a night while traveling through. Most destinations have great campgrounds. Some campground "resorts" around me here in Florida have had the same people coming to them for so many years nothing ever seems to change. Trailers are set up permanently. If you are lucky enough to find one vacant for a month in the winter, the last thing I would complain about is who is there. The sunshine makes up for lots of other things.