Where to Late April early May

[garmp]

Based out of St. Louis, Mo. and looking for some place different to spend our anniversary. Want a two or three trip, spending a couple of nights in each location en route to the destination for 3 to 4 days.
Looking for something different. Been to the Florida/Alabama coast many times. Made the trek from FL to Mustang Island, TX, so that's pretty much out. Besides, that time of year, it seems that TX, LA & MS tend to get hit with constant storms.
DW want Hocking Hills, OH. won't that be too cold?
Something refreshing and different.
I'm stumped.

[Busskipper]

garmp wrote:
Thanks for all the great ideas. As of now, but that's a long way off, we're leaning toward either Charleston, SC or the state of Louisiana somewhere. The southwest and western areas are appealing, but seem to daunting. We only like to drive about 3 hours a day. State and COE are the parks we prefer, but an occasional county or municipal park can work. Lake city FL which to us, is the gateway to central FL, is about the same distance for us as to Charleston, but Lake City seems farther.
Palmetto Island SP, LA is appealing, as we were there before and really liked it, but that time of year LA and Texas seem to be very storm intense. But another factor is the park cost. SC state parks seem to range from $47 to $60 a night, on the coast. While Palmetto Island, for example is $28 and a geezer pass is reported to get you 50% off of that. Say that times 16 nights? That could buy you a lot of adult beverages! Florida panhandle has been visited to many time recently and we need a break.


Purpose is to drive from the cold weather of the midwest into sunshine. Beach not required.
Thanks all.

Map of possible route and stops.

Not recommending anything but the Last stop from personal experience, but would seem to fit into your requirements Short days - pretty drives - Nice locations - with the end result at a Warm and Beautiful spot "Hilton Head" - HHIMR - Link Nice thing about HH is the fact that it has A Wide selection of Great Restaurants, including the one at the RV park.

Did not really dig into COE and State Parks along the way but pretty sure they are all along the Route. One spot, a little out of the way is RT 64 to Lake Toxaway area out of Ashville, while the road is a little challenging in a Big Rig it is truly a Beautiful area, and should be an easy drive in your 2100.

Just adding to you many thoughts as you think about where to go - One more spot we have enjoyed is Jekyll Island So Many Choices ...................

Hope this helps,

[RGar974417]

Many possibilities. That is our favorite time to camp. In 2016 we went to Yellowstone. This year went to Arizona and Texas. We stayed at Canyon Point Campground which is a Forest Service campground on Rt 260 about 15 miles west of Heber ,Arizona.Beautiful forest setting with electric hookups and new showers and bath house.Then we went to Texas and spent a few days at Hickory Creek Campground on Lewisville Lake.It's a COE Campground north of Ft Worth and has water and electric hookups.In 2017 we went to the Outer banks and stayed at Frisco Campgound which is a NPS campground. If you have the senior pass it's half price at any Federal campground. 20 years ago we stayed at Dead Horse Ranch State Park near Cottonwood ,Az. You are close to Tuzigoot,Jerome and Ft Verde.

[garmp]

Just did the Hot Springs, Eureka Springs and Crystal Bridges trip last year. And yes, the Crystal Bridges is amazing, especially for a free day of sightseeing!
thanks. We'll be kicking this around for a while.

[garmp]

Just did the Hot Springs, Eureka Springs and Crystal Bridges trip last year. And yes, the Crystal Bridges is amazing, especially for a free day of sightseeing!
thanks. We'll be kicking this around for a while.

[4runnerguy]

How about NW Arkansas? Several nice COE parks around Lake Ouachita. Visit Hot Springs. Hang out at the lakes. Visit Crystal Bridges Museum (free and really good). Pea Ridge NMP is also quite interesting. Buffalo National River. And then there's Eureka Springs. Definitely a romantic place to visit. Stay near Beaver Dam Reservoir as the road into Eureka Springs is pretty curvy.

[padredw]

the state of Louisiana somewhere. The southwest and western areas are appealing, but seem to daunting. We only like to drive about 3 hours a day. State and COE are the parks we prefer,

I think April and early May would be ideal for a visit to Louisiana and East Texas. Wildflowers are in bloom, days have not become hot and humid.

In Louisiana: a new favorite is Grand Ecore near Natchitoches, a joint effort between COE and Red River Authority. Seems like they were trying to create a perfect RV park and they came close. Natchitoches is worth a visit with plantations, historic sites, and good places to eat.

Further south are two great state parks: Fontainebleau and Fairview Riverside. We've stayed at both several times.

In East Texas, Tyler State Park is a jewel, lakeside campsites, great trails, full hookups. Tyler's Azalea Trail attracts visitors from far and wide. {lookup on Google for dates}

There are also COE parks on Lake 'o the Pines and the former riverport of Jefferson, Texas.

Just some ideas that come quickly to mind. There are many more reasons to visit Louisiana and East Texas.

[garmp]

Thanks for all the great ideas. As of now, but that's a long way off, we're leaning toward either Charleston, SC or the state of Louisiana somewhere. The southwest and western areas are appealing, but seem to daunting. We only like to drive about 3 hours a day. State and COE are the parks we prefer, but an occasional county or municipal park can work. Lake city FL which to us, is the gateway to central FL, is about the same distance for us as to Charleston, but Lake City seems farther.
Palmetto Island SP, LA is appealing, as we were there before and really liked it, but that time of year LA and Texas seem to be very storm intense. But another factor is the park cost. SC state parks seem to range from $47 to $60 a night, on the coast. While Palmetto Island, for example is $28 and a geezer pass is reported to get you 50% off of that. Say that times 16 nights? That could buy you a lot of adult beverages! Florida panhandle has been visited to many time recently and we need a break.
Purpose is to drive from the cold weather of the midwest into sunshine. Beach not required.
Thanks all.

[RedRocket204]

dkreuzen wrote:
Look at Utah. Start in Moab with Arches and Canyonlands National Parks. Then pick some of the other National and state parks along with Monument Valley.

BINGO!

Just do all 5 of the National Parks in Utah. Shouldn't be too crowded outside of Moab and would be a great time of the year to be in the UT desert areas.

[TenOC]

welove2drive wrote:
Azaleas will be blooming at low to mid levels at Smokey Mountains.

The Azaleas Gardens around Charleston SC

[dkreuzen]

Look at Utah. Start in Moab with Arches and Canyonlands National Parks. Then pick some of the other National and state parks along with Monument Valley.

https://www.visitutah.com/plan-your-trip/recommended-itineraries/

[welove2drive]

Azaleas will be blooming at low to mid levels at Smokey Mountains.

[agesilaus]

Dick_B wrote:
Which Florida coast? We head for middle Florida, on the Gulf side, in the middle of April. Best weather of the year. Dunedin RV Resort is a nice park. Of course, there is always the Atlantic side.
Does it have to be camping? What about a Caribbean cruised?

Well the weather here in Florida is usually great in April. You might consider doing the Florida State Park springs in north and central FL. Manatee, Rainbow, Blue Springs, Juniper, Alexander, Salt and lots of others. The last three are federal (USFS).

Natives consider the ocean to be a tad on the cool side in April but northerners are more tolerant.

[Dick_B]

Which Florida coast? We head for middle Florida, on the Gulf side, in the middle of April. Best weather of the year. Dunedin RV Resort is a nice park. Of course, there is always the Atlantic side.
Does it have to be camping? What about a Caribbean cruised?

[K_and_I]

Hocking Hills could very well be cold that time of year. The DW and I like to go to the Smoky Mountains that time of year. Weather is better than Ohio, and crowds have not shown up yet.