Potential Snowbirds - LOTS of questions!
Hi. We're Canadians who have never been to Florida but are seriously contemplating spending next winter down there - Dec to Mar. We spent 2 months travelling in a Class B in 2015 but now have a TT -...
Forum Discussion
We did our first winter on the road last winter (2015-2016) in a motor home. We had a lot of the same questions and we had no idea where we would go. We had a couple of places we wanted to be (Thanksgiving in W. Palm area with relatives, Christmas in Sarasota with friends), but other than those 2 we were open. Here are my observations.
* People from the same areas in the north tend to go to the same areas. The county park we were in in Lake Worth - John Prince Park- was 75 percent K-beckers. We went to a campground north of Tampa (Rock Crusher Canyon) that was 75 percent Michiganders.
* The further south you go, the further in advance you need to make reservations, to the point where if you didn't make reservations when you left last year, you probably won't get in this year. This mostly applies to places you'd stay for the entire winter season. You can find last minute places due to cancellations, but it's hit and miss. If you're the kind of people who like to know where you'll be 3 weeks from now, stay north of I-4. However, if you want to spend $100+ a night, you can find a site anywhere south of I-4.
* Do not disregard the "forgotten coast" - the Gulf coast north and west of, say, Homosassa and out to and including the Destin area.
* First time I would not book the same place for 4 months, but rather travel around the different areas and see what you like. We did a max of 2 weeks in one place. Most places we stayed a week. Move on Wednesday.
* On the way to Fla and back, you'll need to research campgrounds that are open year round for an overnight stop. The further north you go, the fewer are open. Walmart, Cracker Barrel and Cabelas usually allow overnight stops.
* People from the same areas in the north tend to go to the same areas. The county park we were in in Lake Worth - John Prince Park- was 75 percent K-beckers. We went to a campground north of Tampa (Rock Crusher Canyon) that was 75 percent Michiganders.
* The further south you go, the further in advance you need to make reservations, to the point where if you didn't make reservations when you left last year, you probably won't get in this year. This mostly applies to places you'd stay for the entire winter season. You can find last minute places due to cancellations, but it's hit and miss. If you're the kind of people who like to know where you'll be 3 weeks from now, stay north of I-4. However, if you want to spend $100+ a night, you can find a site anywhere south of I-4.
* Do not disregard the "forgotten coast" - the Gulf coast north and west of, say, Homosassa and out to and including the Destin area.
* First time I would not book the same place for 4 months, but rather travel around the different areas and see what you like. We did a max of 2 weeks in one place. Most places we stayed a week. Move on Wednesday.
* On the way to Fla and back, you'll need to research campgrounds that are open year round for an overnight stop. The further north you go, the fewer are open. Walmart, Cracker Barrel and Cabelas usually allow overnight stops.
