Planning July Trip Wisconsin or Michigan

[illini_10]

Planning a family trip to a lake in either Wisconsin or Michigan this July. 2 families with travel trailers. Looking for:

1. Prefer Lake Front sites.
2. Good Fishing.
3. Boating opportunities.
4. Secluded/Spaced Out Campsites.

I know there are tons of options, however I have spent countless hours looking online with not much luck due to the abundance of choices.

Looking for Tried-and-True recommendations.

[drsteve]

joe puma wrote:
We've been trying to book Holland SP, has some beach sites tried logging on first thing in morning and they're gone before we can book.

Just looked, and there is at least one beach site available first week of June. Use the partial availability calendar to see all sites and dates available on one screen.
People cancel and rebook all the time. Watch the website on a regular basis, stuff pops up at odd times.

[joe_puma]

We've been trying to book Holland SP, has some beach sites tried logging on first thing in morning and they're gone before we can book. Might be interior sites. If you want full hook up, depending on trailer size and type we love Sunny Brook RV resort in South Haven. Beautiful sites, pool, five minutes to town and lake front. Probably fishing boats in town.

[drsteve]

drsteve wrote:
What he said. And now the time frame you want is probably filled, so if you cancel, you will have to start watching the reservation site for other site cancellations to open up, or just eat the fees and use only the days you want.

Anyone who wonders why they see open sites in fully booked campgrounds now knows at least one reason.

Uh-oh... I was just making a reservation at Hoffmaster SP, and I see that they DO now allow changes to existing reservations, without being forced to cancel and start over. There is however a $10 charge for doing so, as well as another $8 reservation charge.

My bad.

[2gypsies1]

drsteve wrote:

Did you read the rules first? You will lose your reservation fee for each booking, plus you have to cancel the whole reservation (you cannot just cancel days off the existing reservation) and then start all over new, with another reservation fee tacked on.

What he said. And now the time frame you want is probably filled, so if you cancel, you will have to start watching the reservation site for other site cancellations to open up, or just eat the fees and use only the days you want.

Anyone who wonders why they see open sites in fully booked campgrounds now knows at least one reason.

Exactly. This kind of practice ruins it for others.

[drsteve]

Did you read the rules first? You will lose your reservation fee for each booking, plus you have to cancel the whole reservation (you cannot just cancel days off the existing reservation) and then start all over new, with another reservation fee tacked on.

What he said. And now the time frame you want is probably filled, so if you cancel, you will have to start watching the reservation site for other site cancellations to open up, or just eat the fees and use only the days you want.

Anyone who wonders why they see open sites in fully booked campgrounds now knows at least one reason.

[bid_time]

bgradert wrote:
We booked Holland, Sleeping Bear Dunes and Petoskey the last week in June right when the 6 months timeline hit. I had to book a bunch of extra days to get our spots but I will go back and cancel the days we don't need. You have to plan in advance for popular parks.

Did you read the rules first? You will lose your reservation fee for each booking, plus you have to cancel the whole reservation (you cannot just cancel days off the existing reservation) and then start all over new, with another reservation fee tacked on.

[2gypsies1]

TxGearhead wrote:
Sleeping Bear Dunes Federal Seashore seems much harder to book than state parks.

It definitely is difficult to get a site there. It's been listed in many publications as a premier destination park.... for a reason. It's in a beautiful area of Michigan and the park is awesome. We volunteered there for 9 seasons. It holds a special place for us. You won't be disappointed if you can get a site.

One reason that it's great is that it has a lot of rules and they're enforced. 🙂

[TxGearhead]

Sleeping Bear Dunes Federal Seashore seems much harder to book than state parks. I'm looking in the same area and am seeing vacancies late into the night at state parks. Just have to dig.
I'm not used to this mad rush at booking time to get a reservation. The short camping season up north puts a squeeze on it. We're pretty much year round down here. Spring break is a bit crowded but otherwise it's rock and roll.

[bgradert]

We booked Holland, Sleeping Bear Dunes and Petoskey the last week in June right when the 6 months timeline hit. I had to book a bunch of extra days to get our spots but I will go back and cancel the days we don't need. You have to plan in advance for popular parks.

[rexlion]

You might take a look at http://www.alconapark.com/

[2gypsies1]

Here's a state park that we've used. They do have lakefront sites available and the date I plugged in was July 5 for 4 nights. I didn't search for any other parks or dates - just a blind stab. If you want to boat you probably want to look at an inland lake - not Lake Michigan or Superior.

https://www.midnrreservations.com/OnawayStatePark%2f1-85%3fMap

[dodge_guy]

Welcome!

Yes, unfortunately you need to book a year in advance for really good sites. I booked last May for this July/August in Yellowstone. Munising MI had a nice campground in the lake (Bay) that looks out over the island. They offer water from sites and aren't on top of each other. I think you may have to scratch (water front) off your list this late in the booking season.

Good luck!

[illini_10]

I was afraid of the availability, we are new to camping as we purchased our TT late last summer.

[C_B_]

Here's a place on Lake Gogebic at Berglund MI.

They have some campsites down by the lake.


linkwww.thetimbersresort.com


C.B.