General Campground Question

[pld33270]

My wife and I have camped since about '87. Due to family situation (a 16 year old who would not go any more and my wife tending to her mom after her father's death) we got out of camping for the last 3 years. So, now the wife, dogs, and I are back in! Well, camper is on order. While shopping for a camper, we were told that the Millennials are getting into camping and it is taxing the RV manufactures. Oh, and down sized for several reasons.

So, on to my question....

Are campgrounds getting noticeably more crowded?
If so, is the crowd mainly in the private campgrounds?
What about Federal and State campgrounds?

Sorry Millennials. I do not mean any offense!!! Welcome to RVing.

[PawPaw_n_Gram]

As full timers this my observation

1) More rigs - mainly among weekenders and 1-3 week vacationers.

2) More TT, 5er and small class C and A units.

3) State parks are the most impacted, harder to get into. Several states charge out of state residents extra fees so that state parks now cost as much or more than local commercial parks.

4) As always - popular National parks are almost impossible to get into / reservations.

5) Many COE, BLM and USFS campgrounds are getting full that didn't used to.

6) Commercial campgrounds near popular destinations are crowded and expensive. Three nights ago the KoA outside Devils Tower Nat Monement was charging $72 per night for a FHU site, and the park was almost full.

7) I strongly recommend make Reservations for Memorial Day, 4th of July and Labor Day weekends as far in advance as possible. Especially if you want to go to a popular destination.

As always seasons matter a lot. Places like Texas can be very empty during the summer, but very crowded over Thanksgiving, the week after Christmas and spring break.

Most of the time a person can find a campground, but it might not have full facilities. I'm finding the weekenders and short vacationers are willing to pay a lot more money for a site than retirees.

[coolmom42]

It's all us rapidly retiring boomers, bitten by the travel and camping bug, but unwilling to sleep on the ground. 😄

My kids are millenials and have plenty of stick-to-it-ness. What they don't have is a lot of time off from work.

Key to avoiding crowds is to travel between Labor Day and Memorial Day---the other 9 months of the year. My first post-retirement trip is going to involve a mid-May departure from TN for Wyoming and Montana. That will put us into June for Glacier, well before the crowds there.

[Two_Jayhawks]

I suppose it could be the millennials but I suspect it also has to do with a strong economy for 8-9 years. We absolutely have encountered some difficulty getting in places we used to with no lead time. Great for the industry & the RV park owners I say.

[jplante4]

We avoid holiday weekends during the summer. We can check-in on Sunday and be gone on Friday. I heard that the popular parks in CA are getting quite crowded, but that has more to do with over-population than any demographic buying more RVs.

Florida, south of I-4 in the winter is getting difficult to get a reasonably price spot for any length of time. This is mostly baby boomer snowbirds. If you want to stay north of I-4 or spend $100 a night, there are plenty of spots.

I wouldn't worry too much about millennials. The few I know don't have the patience to stick with anything very long. The RV fad will fade shortly after the tiny house fad and all the other HGTV touted activities. Most are not willing to make a lifestyle change.

[donn0128]

We camp host during the summer. For the last three years we have noticed that where we used to have sites available, now, there booked full. People that we have talked to that have been traveling say it is that way everywhere.

[mattmountz94]

I go camping maybe 6 long weekends a year and i always have to call a year in advance to get a spot. I do have a 42' fifth wheel though. All the campgrounds i always go to are fully booked almost every weekend. Another couple we go with has a smaller hybrid and they generally have to call 2-3 months out to get a spot. I am generally in the eastern Pa area.

[downtheroad]

Owner of a large Northwest Arctic Fox (and others) dealer told me that it's baby boomers that are flooding the RV market...

...and yes, lots more RVers recently and very few if any new campgrounds. Result: more crowded, harder to get sites especially in prime locations during the "season." We never use to make reservations, we do now.