Just starting to think about a trip to Florida this coming winter. I am debating stopping at Universal Studios in Orlando, but I am not coming up with convenient campgrounds. Can someone more familiar with the area give me some information on area campgrounds? We would like something with at least water and electric. We have a 20' motorhome so it should fit in most park sites. We do not have a toad so will have to drive the motorhome from the campground to Universal.Also we would like to drive out to Key West and take the ferry to the Dry Tortugas. I would prefer to take public transportation to the ferry. Is there a convenient campground on or near Key West that would allow this? Any help would be appreciated.

Can't help you much with Universal, but we know the Keys .....The Key West Bus line runs a regular schedule from Key West all the way up the Keys to Marathon, so any campground from Marathon to Key West will work for you. Bad news is that reservations are tough during the winter season, so you need to see what you can find for the time period you are looking for. There are always last minute cancellations, but I would not want to count on that happening. We are pretty familiar with all the campgrounds in the Keys, and obviously some are better than others, but none are really bad .....

Thanks for the information. I will try to finalize a time frame in the next couple of weeks and hopefully will get something fairly close.

Bill Frederick Park - OrlandoBluewater KeyI have not stayed at Bill Frederick Park...but it is very close to Universal...and appears to be a well maintained facility.Bluewater Key RV resort is close to Key West, but far enough away to feel relaxing. They are Rentals of ownership lots. Many have chickee huts, wet bars, on the water...etc... We've stayed there during the off season when the rates are lower. There's even a little coffee shop a short bike ride away that roasts their own coffee.

Although I, too, would recommend Bluewater Key, it's minimum length is 24'. Bahia Honda State Park is great, and there are others listed in rvparkreviews.com I agree with Bill Frederick as an excellent choice for Universal.

http://www.geigerkeymarina.com/rv-homehttp://www.boydscampground.com/Bahia Honda State Park is only $43 a nite, but is about an hour from Key West. It's very difficult to get a site there, they sell out 11 months in advance.http://knightskeyrvresortandmarina.com/This is in Marathon, more affordable than the 2 above. It's more than an hour to Key West..

Universal Studios/Key West Campground - Florida

noe-place
Explorer
Oct 12, 2014
Tropical Palms in Kissimmee is our cg of choice since Ft Wilderness and Disney has become so costly. It's a short drive from the cg to the interstate up to Universal, Disney, Sea World and the like.
LarryJM
Explorer II
Oct 08, 2014
bee_46 wrote:
Just starting to think about a trip to Florida this coming winter. I am debating stopping at Universal Studios in Orlando, but I am not coming up with convenient campgrounds. Can someone more familiar with the area give me some information on area campgrounds? We would like something with at least water and electric. We have a 20' motorhome so it should fit in most park sites. We do not have a toad so will have to drive the motorhome from the campground to Universal.

Also we would like to drive out to Key West and take the ferry to the Dry Tortugas. I would prefer to take public transportation to the ferry. Is there a convenient campground on or near Key West that would allow this?

Any help would be appreciated.

The only CG that has a regular bus stop and IMO a decent bus schedule is Boyd's. It's the closest and most convenient to everything in KW, but is at the very high end and might be hard to get a short notice reservation.

Larry
bee_46
Explorer
Oct 07, 2014
The Bill Frederick Park looks good for Universal if I am able to get a reservation. Thanks all for that info. We are traveling with a cat so I don't want to leave the motorhome for overnight or in a parking lot for all day. That is why I would prefer to stay hooked up in a campground for the Dry Tortugas trip. I will see what Boyd's Campground has available. DH is getting his schedule settled by tomorrow so we can get reservations.
captbru
Explorer
Oct 07, 2014
Here's another option to consider. If you want to go to the Dry Tortugas take the high speed ferry from Ft Myers to Key West, spend a couple nights in a hotel there and do the Tortugas. Maybe they have a package deal and you just drive over from your rv park to Ft Myers. Then you don't have to worry about moving around.

High Speed Ferry
bee_46
Explorer
Oct 07, 2014
Thanks all for the replies. I will look into each of the parks mentioned and see what I can get. I know winter in Florida is "prime time".
JoeH
Explorer III
Oct 07, 2014
Check Tropical Palms in Kissimmee f0or your Universal part of the trip. In the keys, since you want to take the ferry over to the Dry Tortugas, staying close to Key West is advisable as it's a long day trip on the boat. Boyd's is close by and you can take public transportation to the docks or it's an easy bicycle ride if you have bikes. Call them as soon as you figure out your dates.... I had to change a reservation there yesterday and they were able to accommodate me , so they must have some open slots right now.
Luke_Porter
Explorer
Oct 07, 2014
http://www.geigerkeymarina.com/rv-home

http://www.boydscampground.com/

Bahia Honda State Park is only $43 a nite, but is about an hour from Key West. It's very difficult to get a site there, they sell out 11 months in advance.

http://knightskeyrvresortandmarina.com/

This is in Marathon, more affordable than the 2 above. It's more than an hour to Key West.

.
soricobob
Explorer
Oct 07, 2014
Although I, too, would recommend Bluewater Key, it's minimum length is 24'. Bahia Honda State Park is great, and there are others listed in rvparkreviews.com I agree with Bill Frederick as an excellent choice for Universal.
chuggs
Explorer
Oct 07, 2014
Bill Frederick Park - Orlando

Bluewater Key

I have not stayed at Bill Frederick Park...but it is very close to Universal...and appears to be a well maintained facility.

Bluewater Key RV resort is close to Key West, but far enough away to feel relaxing. They are Rentals of ownership lots. Many have chickee huts, wet bars, on the water...etc... We've stayed there during the off season when the rates are lower. There's even a little coffee shop a short bike ride away that roasts their own coffee.
bee_46
Explorer
Oct 06, 2014
Thanks for the information. I will try to finalize a time frame in the next couple of weeks and hopefully will get something fairly close.