Good Sam - what's in it for the campgrounds?

JAC1982 wrote:
Before the internet was a "thing", you had to rely on things like Good Sam or AAA to tell you which spots were the best rated. I'm in my mid-30s, and I remember my mom planning our trips using the AAA guidebook when I was a kid. Nowadays, you can go on various websites and read reviews from actual people who stayed there recently, to see if the spot is worth a stay. Once a book is published it can become immediately out of date. So I don't blame RV park owners for wanting to ditch it and just rely on internet advertising and word of mouth since that is more up to date and in many cases, free or low cost.

Reviews from real people are flawed by their impression of the campground; ie, it is subjective instead of objective. They can rate the entire campground as poor because one thing didn't meet their criteria. Also, as much as I hate to say it, people are paid for good and bad reviews. I have been in highly rated BS campgrounds that had a messy restroom at the end of a long weekend. Likewise, I've been in moderately rated campgrounds that I thought deserved a higher rating. Nonetheless, go through the rating sheets and you'll come out nearly the same as the book. Like most rating systems, it's not perfect but it's pretty good.