Florida State Parks increasing fees.

[Retired_JSO]

Got an email from Florida DEP stating fees will increase effective May 5. All campsites and cabins with electric hookups will have an additional $7 per day added.
Entry fees for Florida’s state parks and trails will remain unchanged.

The new fee schedule is as follows.

Reservation Fee

Non-refundable reservation fee per reservation for reservations online or using the call center; fee collected at the time of reservation; reservation fees do not apply to primitive sites. (No change in fee.)

$6.70

Cancellation Fee

Cancellation fee assessed for each reservation cancelled; visitors canceling on the day of arrival assessed a cancellation fee and the first night’s use fee. (No change in fee.)

$17.75

Transfer Fee

Visitors charged a transfer fee when making reservation change. (No change in fee.)

$10.00


Utility Fee

Non-registered, day-use sites per unit per day, all campsites with electric and water service and all cabins. Does not apply to primitive tent sites or to sites that do not use electric.
$7.00

[JoeH]

Not a problem with that... now they just need to give a preference in making reservations to Florida residents so that those who have funded the parks can actually get to use them !!!!

[bucky]

Read the email again. The sites and cabins well be assessed the $7 daily charge previously only charged to day visitors.
I doubt it will be retroactive, we'll find out eventually.
To be frank I'm tired of playing their game anyway, double the rates and the game will end.
There are those of us that are just cheap, and there are those of us that prefer the nature part of it.

[DrewE]

chindog wrote:

DrewE wrote:
Note that that's for "non-registered day use" of the site with utilities. It's not applicable to ordinary camping (i.e. registered campers). There's no additional (separate) utility fee for camping beyond the fee for the site, which of course varies based on the utilities and amenities available at the site, among other things.

If you want to drive your electric car in and charge it at a camp site while wandering around the park, or something like that, then it will be $7.00.

The letter states "Non-registered, day-use sites per unit per day,
all campsites with electric and water service and all cabins."
That means it's applicable to ordinary campsites that have electric and water hookups. Doesn't matter if you plug your electric vehicle in or not, you still have to pay the $7/day fee.

All of the conditions are required for the fee to apply: it's only applicable to non-registered campers (and not to registered campers) for day use (not to overnight camping use) of the sites with hookups or of the cabins. Thus the fee is per day, not per night. The Fee schedule PDF makes that a little more clear, when you compare it with the fees for showers and dump stations, which similarly apply only to non-registered campers.

[Dutch_12078]

I'll be curious to see if they add the fee on to existing paid reservations. We have about 3 months of paid reservations in place for next winter. I checked a few parks on ReserveAmerica using dates for next fall, and the new fee isn't showing up there yet.

[Retired_JSO]

The email
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 20, 2021
CONTACT: DEP Press Office, 850-245-2112, DEPNews@FloridaDep.gov
DEP ANNOUNCES CHANGES TO
STATE PARK FEE SCHEDULE
~Fees changing for overnight reservations and camping utility use~

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – In order to continue its tradition of award-winning visitor experiences and affordable nature-based recreation, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection's (DEP) state park system will implement changes to its fee schedule for camping/cabin reservations and related utility fees beginning Wednesday, May 5, 2021.

Currently, fees are collected for making, changing and canceling reservations. There will be no change in these fees under the new fee schedule, and they will continue to be collected at the time reservations are made, changed or canceled. Utility fees, which are currently collected from day campers using park utilities, will be extended to cabin stays and overnight campsites using electric and water. The fee will be assessed daily.

The Florida Park Service has not increased any fees since 2009. Subsequent increases in utility fees are proportionate with increasing costs of electric power, water, sewer and utility maintenance. The increase in revenue will enable Florida's award-winning state parks to continue providing high-quality recreation in an unmatched natural setting.

[chindog]

DrewE wrote:
Note that that's for "non-registered day use" of the site with utilities. It's not applicable to ordinary camping (i.e. registered campers). There's no additional (separate) utility fee for camping beyond the fee for the site, which of course varies based on the utilities and amenities available at the site, among other things.

If you want to drive your electric car in and charge it at a camp site while wandering around the park, or something like that, then it will be $7.00.

The letter states "Non-registered, day-use sites per unit per day,
all campsites with electric and water service and all cabins."
That means it's applicable to ordinary campsites that have electric and water hookups. Doesn't matter if you plug your electric vehicle in or not, you still have to pay the $7/day fee.

[DrewE]

Note that that's for "non-registered day use" of the site with utilities. It's not applicable to ordinary camping (i.e. registered campers). There's no additional (separate) utility fee for camping beyond the fee for the site, which of course varies based on the utilities and amenities available at the site, among other things.

If you want to drive your electric car in and charge it at a camp site while wandering around the park, or something like that, then it will be $7.00.

[LadyRVer]

$7 a day for electric is unreal. My electric bill is anywhere from 45.00 to 80.00 per month in FL in a campground. I pay my own bill, on annual rent fee.

Guess most of us old folks will be cutting back on State Park camping... hard to get a site to start with and now this.

My rant for the day.