first snowbird season in florida this winter 2014/2015-help

[pattyann1750]

DH and I have wintered as campworksers in AZ last 4 yrs.Now we will winters in Big Tree rv park in Arcadia Florida for first time and not as camppworksers.We hear horror stories about bugs,humidity,"real old people' and I need facts and tips please.First off has anyone stayed @ that park or in the area that can enlighten us?Second do you use dehumidifiers in your rv to prevent the moisture build up/Also how do you store your food?All in plastic containers?I have been doing research and have not found much on the care with the moisture issue.The rv park does use powder for the ant issue which I hear is all over florida.As far as palmetto bugs I don't hear much.Just the darn ants.We are very excited.we live in upstate NY so the 1200 mile drive is much easier than 2300 but we have enjoyed it here.I need to see water,see color and smell things.I would love to hear all about florida and what to expect and should do to plan ahead from anyone who has the time.I appreciate your input.Trish,Dave and little mugzy and old Duke.We have a 36 ft fifthwheel and a 1ton silverado.

[StevenH]

Trish

A lot really depends on what your looking for in an RV park and the local area. Arcadia is RURAL. It is a small town. There is a Walmart, Winn Dixie, and a Publix (changing to IGA is the rumor) for grocery shopping. Plenty of fast food resturants. Other eating choices are limited. Seems to be plenty of golf courses near by. I am not a golfer so can't comment on cost or quality. You will have a bit of a drive to the ocean or major shopping, movies, etc (probably a little over an hour). Some people like rural areas others like a more urban environment.


Someone mentioned Sun N Fun in Sarasota. It is a very large park with tons of activities. It is also expensive and some of the sites are less than desirable. Very different than Big Tree which is much smaller.

Contact me if you have any further questions.

[2gypsies1]

Please be careful with your pets around all that powder and spray for bugs. Also, fire ants don't aways have mounds. I was walking through flat grass once and immediately had them crawling up me. They are painful. That's why we love Arizona. Have a good trip!

[pennysmom09]

Just want to add that this park had lots of seasonal park models, and the permanent residents were few and in their own area. We found all the people,to be very friendly and welcoming, always with a wave or greeting. RV's outnumbered the park models, and so those were the folks you interact with the most. So, our experience with "permanent residents" was no different than with everyone else.

[pennysmom09]

We just spent 3 months in central Florida and had a wonderful time. The park was large and had lots to do in and around the park. The older folks living in the park models were friendly and active. The majority of folks were from southern Ontario and nice folks they are! The rest were mostly from Ohio or Michigan.

We were warned about fire ants, but the powder we used at the first sign of any Nest/mound took care of the problem. Regular ants were everywhere, but we never had a problem inside. We sprayed garden bug killer on the ground around our site and had no problems. Mosquitoes are a abundant when the sun goes down, but sitting outside until then is perfect!

There were plenty of ponds and lakes around us, with lots of alligators, but they are inactive in winter and provided plenty of photo ops! If you have a pet, of course you keep them leashed and away from the ponds, nor did we let our dog lay in the abundant grass all around us. Fire ants will bite dogs too, but we were careful and had no incidents. DH and I each got one fire ant bite, and they are nasty, but once we were aware it didn't happen again. (Watch your step)
We had no problems with mildew or humidity in our fiver, Florida weather in winter is delightful, and used minimal AC. We already leased our site for next year and can't wait to go back!

[Dog_Folks]

rockhillmanor wrote:
My advice would be to ask the CG manager how many of the campers are 'permanent residents'. This will determine how pleasant of a stay you will have.

I full time and found out that once I drove over the state line into Florida it 'did' make a difference how many permanent resident campers where in the CG I stopped at. It became my first question when calling to ahead to reserve.

Sometimes, this is true.

I have to add that the number of permanents is not a hard and fast rule nor necessarily as negative item

I have been in more than one park with over 30% permanents and I would dare you to tell the difference between permanent, seasonal or overnight.

Those parks had rules regarding outside appearance and enforced them. I believe that made all the difference.

[rockhillmanor]

HappyKayakers wrote:

rockhillmanor wrote:
My advice would be to ask the CG manager how many of the campers are 'permanent residents'. This will determine how pleasant of a stay you will have.

Does that mean all permanent residents are bad? Or all permanent residents are good? Or they're more/less demanding?

:R The term permanent resident will always bring up controversy.

Everyone knows what it is and what it CAN mean in a CG situation.

Week end campers have the time and they can drive to the CG and take a look first to see if it has affected the overall tone of a CG.

Those of us on the road do not have that luxury. It is thru years of experience that I have found that I do not want to stay a few days or even overnight in a CG that is populated with perm residents.

During the past rescission many CG's to try and stay in business turned to accepting local permanent residents. Many of my favorite CG's along my north to south travels are now on my do not stay list. 😞

To each his own. But when I pull in after a long day of driving my MH? I don't want to have to listen to yelling, screaming, drunks, gun shots, and the like.

[HappyKayakers]

rockhillmanor wrote:
My advice would be to ask the CG manager how many of the campers are 'permanent residents'. This will determine how pleasant of a stay you will have.

Does that mean all permanent residents are bad? Or all permanent residents are good? Or they're more/less demanding?

[rockhillmanor]

My advice would be to ask the CG manager how many of the campers are 'permanent residents'. This will determine how pleasant of a stay you will have.

I full time and found out that once I drove over the state line into Florida it 'did' make a difference how many permanent resident campers where in the CG I stopped at. It became my first question when calling to ahead to reserve.

[Ivylog]

As a SE Fla native I often recommend Arcadia as a good place to snowbird if you are on a tight budget. It's far enough south for warm weather, not too far from the beach but at a price many are willing to pay. If you want more things to do then N or S of Arcadia will be better but you'll have to pay more. Bugs in the winter are not that big a deal and even fire ants are easy to control. Winter is the dry season in Fla so all of those problems are over stated for snowbirding. Any items that you will use in a week can be kept in it's own bag with a clip on it. Relax as you will not be there in the summer.

[elle8]

dog folks is right ,, the people are real nice people . very down to earth and genuine . and also right about it not being touristy . and also right about the farmers who could buy and sell me ,,, funny thing is though the farmers who own the land ,,orange groves ,,, dont live there . they live in sarasota ,,, and are still my friends .

[Dog_Folks]

Well I have lived in Florida for 35 years and most of elle8 says is their opinion and should be taken as such. It may be their attempt at being funny.

Arcadia is rural, and does have ants, those two items are true. The rest........

As for the people, the are much more friendly that those found in the standard tourist areas of Florida. Some of the farmers there could buy elle8 and not even miss it.

If you want the real Florida, Arcadia is a great place. If you want more of the tourist traps, it is not.

[elle8]

oh , yes , old people ,,, be prepared to pull a shopping cart of a moving cars bumper every time you go to the grocery store . they put it in reverse and go , no looking . oh and be patient while in the grocery store . old people do what they use to smack their for doing .

[elle8]

morning pattyann ,, i am a bostonian who lived in fla for 7 yrs . i have been to arcadia many times , lived in sarasota . the ants ,,well they are there . red ants actually . and you cant miss them . they make piles . step in one and immediately rip all your clothes off and get in the shower . like immediately . they can go from your feet to your neck in seconds . you will never even know they are on you until they start biting . the powder does kill them ,, what an awful smell to that powder . thats not what i would be worried about . as far as food goes ,,,not a problem at all . just keep it all in containers after opening . its humid there but not as much in the winter . what we call cockroaches , they call palmetto bugs . they are there ,,,and i use to have my house sprayed quarterly . everyone did . fla is buggy ,,,snakes , alligators , also . i mention snakes and alligators because they are in every fresh water lake,pond river . dont let the dogs go in the fresh water . okay so none of what i have mentioned should stop you from going . however ,,,,ARCADIA,,,,dont do it . its a pretty long drive to the ocean , one way, there is nothing but orange groves there . its farmland . the joke was , the best looking woman in town was the one who had at least 3 teeth . very backwards . very behind the times . alot of poverty . my concern is that there isnt anything to do other than hunt or fish . they did have an excellent rib place there ,,,forget the name ,,,and the rodeo comes every year . but honestly i wouldnt go there . i must be cheap rates or at least i hope so . if you want to be near a beach and activities , check out Sun and Fun in sarasota . it might be a little pricey now but it has everything . and its close to everything . and still off the beaten path . its on fruitville st. my mom stayed there for yrs. also there are some nice places that i understand arent too pricey in punta gorda i think ,,, stay along the coast . Arcadia is to central ,,,nothing there . you can always drive out there to see , well, nothing . PM ,me if i can be of any help . i know the area well .

rickybobby

[NanciL]

I would like to hear some of the "horror stories about real old people" !!!!!

Jack L

[HappyKayakers]

You shouldn't need a dehumidifier during snowbird season. I developed an ant problem a few months ago and used Terro to fight them. This product takes a whole different mindset since you want the ants to visit, then take the poison back to the nest. It took about 2 weeks but I've been ant-free since then.

Real old people in FL during snowbird season? You betcha. Since you're staying for the season, I would assume you'll be at a combo mobile home/RV park. As you're driving through the park, be on the lookout for tricycles and folks using walkers. Don't mess with the shuffle board courts.