What RV Parks might consider..

[Finally]

We have been on the road several weeks, stopping at different RV parks each night. We have paid $36.00 to $50.00 a night to have a save place to sleep. We use rvparksreviews.com to plan our trips.

The park that charged $36.00 led us to our space. A very nice lady on a golf cart. 15 other parks, handed us a circled space and pointed and said "thataway". There you sit in an unknown town, in an unfamiliar state, in a 40 foot motorhome, towing a 20 foot pick up truck. There is NO room for error. The streets/gravel roads wind around 3 or 4 levels. The signs are faded and impossible to read. You can barely read the space numbers. We are in a park like that right now. We just saw an rv'er run over a sewer going the wrong way. We could see how he was confused. This park is $43.00 a night.

There was a long thread on Facebook last night where RV'ers are fed up paying $45.00 a night for just a place to pull over to sleep. In fact, more are boondocking. They think RV parks should adjust their rates for those not there to "enjoy the amenities".

Any RV Park owner should be required to tow a 5th wheel, Travel Trailer, Motorhome with tow vehicle into a large campground with faded "street" signs, and numbers you can't read, give them a map circled, that is down 3 levels, and point "thataway".

We've watched rv's make circles all afternoon trying to find their space. The signs were falling down and faded, so it was impossible to follow the map. RV parks, especially large ones, should have clearly marked street/road signs, and clearly marked spaces. Really, we don't think that is a lot to ask. We think its for their safety, as well as ours.

We do want to support RV parks. Probably should wait a day or two before making comments on anything.

[wbwood]

Veebyes wrote:
How far off ones route is a consideration. Sometimes the more expensive CG makes more financial sense.

12 miles off the route is really 24 miles which for many is an extra 2 gallons of fuel, or at least $7 added to the cost of that far away, but cheaper CG.

Also, what is your time worth?

Cost, time and convenience needs to be considered against what the OP may deem as somewhere that is easier to get into. Is it more worth it than the aggravation he gets?

[Veebyes]

How far off ones route is a consideration. Sometimes the more expensive CG makes more financial sense.

12 miles off the route is really 24 miles which for many is an extra 2 gallons of fuel, or at least $7 added to the cost of that far away, but cheaper CG.

Also, what is your time worth?

[wbwood]

What the OP might want to consider are something more like government type parks. Cheaper and no amenities. Some may have electric and water, but that's usually it. Sewer hook ups are far and few in between. That way, you are paying a lower price and have a place to stop overnight. Now they usually won't be a convienent stop off the highway. You may have to drive 10-20 miles to get to them, but one thing you are paying for at a place right off the highway is convienence. You also gotta remember that the owners are usually paying a good penny for the land for that convienence.

[wbwood]

tatest wrote:
Interesting, as some other RVers have objected to parks that required them to wait for an escort. I also prefer to have thes escort to a site, and will use expert guidance about the best way for me to get in.

I prefer not to have an escort....I was able to read a map to get to their location. I certainly should be able to read a map to get to my spot. Most places will mark on the map for the best way for you to go. I've never had a problem.

[kcmoedoe]

John & Angela wrote:

TyroneandGladys wrote:
They think RV parks should adjust their rates for those not there to "enjoy the amenities".
Then you get the post's who complain that cable was extra or the Wi-Fi or the site with sewer or the dump was not free.

I can't see why an RV park would adjust their rates for someone not to "enjoy the amenities". However an RV park owner who wants to make a little more money may want to fill a demand for non serviced drive through sites. If he has 100 per cent occupation anyway I see no reason why the campground business owner would do this. I just don't usually see 100 percent occupation. Might be a way to bring in a little more revenue for those parks. Like any good business strategy, find a need and fill it. If all the sites are serviced shut the power and water off to a half dozen sites and advertise them as no service overnight sites. Charge them 20 bucks and don't give out the codes to the bathroom or wifi. Just an idea.

Bounce around on one foot in front of the restroom building and tell the first person you see that the code is in your wife's purse and they will open the door for you. Same with the wifi code, you just don't have to bounce on one foot. Pricing strategies with significantly reduced prices for less services often backfire. You are just as likely to get someone who would have paid full price if that was all that was available opt for the lower priced site than you are to get someone to actually come in who wouldn't if all that was there was the higher priced sites. Be honest with yourself, most people just shrug their shoulders and pay rather than keep driving looking for the potentially non-existent lower cost, low service site an undetermined amount of miles down the road.
It is the same reason convenience stores charge more for their items than the supermarket down the street. If they lowered their prices to match the supermarket, they won't draw the supermarket customers, they will just get less revenue, and hence make less profit, from the items they would have sold at the higher price. A $20 RV site minimal service site is much more likely to draw interest from the guy who would have paid $40 for the full service site than it is to draw people away from the free Walmart Parking Lot.

[Robin1953]

TyroneandGladys wrote:
They think RV parks should adjust their rates for those not there to "enjoy the amenities".
Then you get the post's who complain that cable was extra or the Wi-Fi or the site with sewer or the dump was not free.

Let'em complain. Either the cost is rolled into the base rate or you pay as an additional cost. It is six of one and half a dozen of another. As my old college prof used to say "There 'ain't' no free lunch".

[Scottiemom]

I appreciate the escorts when we have them, but not the "official parking crew." We now ignore them and DH follows my directions. I look first to see where all the posts, hookups, trees, etc., are and have never failed to park DH on the first try without hitting anything. OTOH, official "parkers" are not always experienced parking a 40', 4 slide moho and all they are looking out for are their hookups. They have directed DH to back in from the "wrong" direction from the lay of the lot and street and nearly took off a mirror on the front. So from now on, you can have your official parker, but I am there and DH watches me.

Dale

[Finally]

Scottiemom, we do exactly that. Never thought suggesting clearly marked roads and signs would be considered unreasonable.

I think we plan exactly like the above recommendations. Never expected such a lashing and lectures for only suggesting properly marked spaces and road signs. We also drive about 200 miles a day. We use Google Earth. We do use rvparksreview.com , although one member posted he hated it. We use rvparky and trucker path.

The RV Park owner seemed to get it.

[mgirardo]

DownTheAvenue wrote:

mgirardo wrote:

Now that we own a Motorhome, we only use campgrounds for camping. If we are just stopping for the night, we are in a Wal-Mart parking lot. We did that a couple times in the travel trailer, but the weather had to be just right. I can't sleep if it is too hot and my wife can't stand being cold.

I have to assume from this post that you may run the generator all or most of the night to keep cool or warm. You have to factor in the cost of operating that generator. Fuel and maintenance costs can approach $1.00 per hour. If a campground charges $25 per night, and many do, and you run the generator for 10 hours, then you are really only paying $15 for the campground that will offer amenities, safety, and quiet as compared to a truck stop or Walmart.

If we are stopping for the night, it is rarely for more than 8 hours. Get in around midnight and pull out by 8 - 9 am. Sometimes we are there less, but rarely more. The last time we did it, we pulled into the White Marsh, MD Walmart around 1 am and got back on the road at 7 am. Also, there are little to no campgrounds along I-95 (where we usually do this) that are $25/night.

I hear what you are saying, but that extra $25 - $35 we save by not using a campground for a quick 6 - 8 hour stop will be better spent in the fuel tank.

-Michael

[Lantley]

It's nice to think that an escort will solve all your problems. However there are good parks and bad parks. I have been to bad parks that have escorts. I have been escorted to bad sites. I have been to places that let me drive around in a golf cart and choose my own site.
In the end proper planning and research is the key. Google maps and the various review sites can give you a good idea of what to expect from a CG.
Honestly I don't worry much about the reviews anymore. I do avoid the really bad places, but for the most part I can enjoy myself at most any CG for a few days
I can get my rig into most any feasible site without issue. I feel responsible for my own rig and campsite choice, I'm don't require or expect a lot of assistance from the CG. Signs are helpful but just give me a map of the CG and I'll figure it out. Sometimes if I'm unsure I will get out and walk until I figure things out. I've yet to be helplessly lost in a CG.

[Teacher_s_Pet]

We have fulltimed for 9 years plus, travel days for us are usually 200-250 miles at the most, on the road by 9am and in a campground by 2pm and hang out for a couple of days. Back in or pull through doesn't matter since we usually unhook anyway. If we are stopping at an unknown location, I try to check the location with Google Maps on the satellite setting, checking for trees and width of sites and clutter (trashed Rvs). If it looks "bad" from the air and gets poor ratings on the review sites we opt for another location if there are any. Have listened to the "Oh .. No problem with a 40ft 4 slide motorhome, they come here all the time" to many times.

[Jim_Shoe]

There's a common thread in these posts. Most, but not all, seem to be pulling into an RV park that they know nothing about and then get surprised. They've driven until they're tired and desperate. I understand that there are reasons for traveling that way, but you have to live with the consequences. There are places on the internet to do research before ever leaving home.
The RV park's own web site. I don't expect the owners to tell me about anything bad any more than I expect somebody to make fun of their own haircut. But they will tell me what they think is good.
RV Park Reviews. If a place gets a bad score because they don't have a pool or playground, that's OK. I don't use them. No dog walking area? I don't have a dog. Electric only? A must for an overnight, but not for a week. Water, sewer, 30 Amp, cable and WIFI for extended stays? Absolutely. Back in only? I have a toad, so only if there's nothing else. That's happened once in over 10 years.
Finally, 300 mile travel days. On the road by 8AM gets me to my next overnight stop by around 3PM, when I have a choice of sites. I also plan for an extra day on the road for long trips - just in case. If there are no delays, I call ahead to my final stop to see if I can get in a day early. Never had a problem.

[Finally]

Rvcamperowneroperator, thank you so much for your post. What I described yesterday was not meant to bring so many comments about "if you can't drive in a park, you shouldn't be driving an RV". It would be very difficult to plan trips, or drive on interstates without clearly marked signs. Also, there are differences in RV's and what you are towing. As Big Kahuna posted, some parks don't have space at the office to unhook your toad. ( We didn't plan to anyway). I'll admit that after driving in the rain, arriving in an RV park with gravel roads with poor drainage, park was in the mountains so there was fog, 175 spaces on 3 teirs, being handed a map and pointing down the hillside and saying "thataway" may have caused some extra stress.

We never want to harm campground's hook ups, grass or campground landscaping. I'll also admit that we don't want to damage our motorhome or toad ( as Big Kahuna described "over hanging limbs, and bushes scratching the sides of our rig").

It sounds like you are a park owner that care about your customers, and takes pride in your park. We are in a park right now that has good signs, and the space numbers are easy to read. That's all we were saying. We certainly didn't think it would turn into nasty comments about map reading in rv parks.

Again, thank you for your input as a park owner.

[SDcampowneroper]

We insist on escort to site, show the visitor the site assigned or if available on a golf cart prior to escort. due to the unusual layout of the camp. Signage and a map cannot begin to replace experience. Never have we seen a guest that refused,did not appreciate escort. This isn't a walmart with hookups. Thats the beauty and the trouble with a 'camp outside the box ' our blessing and curse.
The next new post will be a compaint about too many signs. We've had that one on rvparkreviews.com