How do campgrounds charge you?

[groundhogy]

Hi All,
Another thing that just crossed my mind and will have an impact
on what may be best to purchase....

How do campgrounds charge you?
Is it by the foot?
Then, if its a TT, is it the combined length of the
pickup truck and trailer?

That's how boats are. Most everything is by the foot.
So you can pretty easily BUY a nice big boat, but
sometimes the issue is... can you upkeep a big fancy
boat. lol.

groundhog

[msmith1199]

ol' yeller wrote:
Last year, Washington State Parks changed how they calculate prices at their campgrounds. They now rate the site based upon popularity and charge more for the most popular sites. I don't know if this is the case at every State Park in Washington but it has been the case at the more visited ones that we hit last year. It doesn't appear to be based upon amenities as at Grayland they charge more for the beach sites (no sewer) than for the interior sites with full hook-ups.

California State parks have different rates based on the locations of the park. But even with different rates it's still a bargain to get an ocean front campsite at a State Park. The problem is it's so cheap, that you can't get them. You have to be on the computer at 8am on the day the release the next month which is five months in advance, and even then you may not be able to reserve spaces. I wish they would raise the rates myself so maybe they would be more available. The State parks are generally a lot nicer than the private parks and have lots more room between spaces, but the price difference is huge. State parks generally don't have club houses with a pool and all that, but I don't use that stuff anyway.

[DE88ROX]

most of the private campgrounds as well as state parks i visit, have a single flat rate per day. some private CG's, on rare occasions, will charge extra if you run your A/C

[ol__yeller]

Last year, Washington State Parks changed how they calculate prices at their campgrounds. They now rate the site based upon popularity and charge more for the most popular sites. I don't know if this is the case at every State Park in Washington but it has been the case at the more visited ones that we hit last year. It doesn't appear to be based upon amenities as at Grayland they charge more for the beach sites (no sewer) than for the interior sites with full hook-ups.

[K3WE]

bsinmich wrote:
People will complain that Cherry Hill by Wash. DC is expensive...

Yep...

No one's said this exact phrase yet, but it's very simple...Location, Location and Location.

We've stayed at Cherry Hill- Nice place. Indeed, it was a lot more expensive than some campsites in the middle of nowhere. "Camping on the Gulf" in Destin, FL, that is essentially on the beach, is also pricy compared cheap spots in rural areas.

That being said, for a site in prime real estate next to prime attractions...Cherry Hill and Camping on the Gulf are reasonable when compared to a hotel in the immediate area.

As someone said: $0 to $100 is roughly "the range"

[msmith1199]

SCVJeff wrote:
You're arguing semantics. Everyone knows about sailboats, and powering it with a aux power plant at 14mph, then trying to compare it to an RV cruising at 55mph simply makes no sense any more than pulling the big block and replacing it with the cute little emergency power plant from the sailboat.

I'm arguing and you're not? Okay.

[bsinmich]

People will complain that Cherry Hill by Wash. DC is expensive. I personally don't mind the price for the convenience. They could easily sell that property and have condos built that would get them more money than the CG. That is worth something when you are looking at pricing. Enough level land to build a CG near Yellowstone is also another thing that raises prices, plus they only have a few months in the summer to earn a living. Location determines price in many ways.

[SCVJeff]

You're arguing semantics. Everyone knows about sailboats, and powering it with a aux power plant at 14mph, then trying to compare it to an RV cruising at 55mph simply makes no sense any more than pulling the big block and replacing it with the cute little emergency power plant from the sailboat.

[msmith1199]

Veebyes wrote:

msmith1199 wrote:

Triker33 wrote:

groundhogy wrote:
Thanks for the info.
RVs seem cheaper to dock but more expensive to move.
The 25 ft. limit thing is good info as I probably will outfit this
unit to boon dock.
gh

I think most RV's get much better MPG moving then any boat. 😄

Not a sailboat.

Next time you are out on the water notice how many sailboats are chugging along under power. The sweetest sound a sailor ever hears is his motor starting when he really needs it.

Boat engines spend their entire lives doing the equivilent of pushing up a steep hill. They never get a break from the resistance of passing through the water. That is why they do not last anywhere near the hours of a road engine. The faster you want to go & the larger the hull the worse the milage gets. There are variables, yes, but generally for a decent sized cruising boat, not a trailerboat, the owners measure their economy in gallons burned per mile not miles per gallon.

I was a boat owner, I know. But a sailboat under sail power uses much less fuel than a motorhome. Most sailboats under engine power use less fuel too generally speaking because if they have an inboard engine and the boat is under 40 feet, it's generally a small diesel engine that burns about a half gallon an hour just like a diesel generator in a motorhome. Of course you're probably only doing about 7 mph or so with that engine running, but that would still be 14 miles per gallon.

[stripit]

Exactly, My boat was a cruiser and burned 30 gallons per hour at 23 mph and that was the least it would burn on a cruise. If I kicked up the speed 2 mph it used another 10 gallons per hour. RV's are a lot less expensive to move than my boat ever was.

[Veebyes]

msmith1199 wrote:

Triker33 wrote:

groundhogy wrote:
Thanks for the info.
RVs seem cheaper to dock but more expensive to move.
The 25 ft. limit thing is good info as I probably will outfit this
unit to boon dock.
gh

I think most RV's get much better MPG moving then any boat. 😄

Not a sailboat.

Next time you are out on the water notice how many sailboats are chugging along under power. The sweetest sound a sailor ever hears is his motor starting when he really needs it.

Boat engines spend their entire lives doing the equivilent of pushing up a steep hill. They never get a break from the resistance of passing through the water. That is why they do not last anywhere near the hours of a road engine. The faster you want to go & the larger the hull the worse the milage gets. There are variables, yes, but generally for a decent sized cruising boat, not a trailerboat, the owners measure their economy in gallons burned per mile not miles per gallon.

[msmith1199]

Triker33 wrote:

groundhogy wrote:
Thanks for the info.
RVs seem cheaper to dock but more expensive to move.
The 25 ft. limit thing is good info as I probably will outfit this
unit to boon dock.
gh

I think most RV's get much better MPG moving then any boat. 😄

Not a sailboat.

[msmith1199]

groundhogy wrote:
Ok. That sounds like good news.
So how much do they charge then. Is there like an average charge
or does it vary wildly?

gh

It varies wildly! Maybe not in Kansas or Nebraska where the landscape is mostly the same, but in California prices are all over the place. We have RV parks on the coast where the prices can be well over $100 a night. Or you could find someplace in the farmlands of the Central Valley for $25 a night. Or you could drive out onto National Forest or BLM land and camp for free.

[Triker33]

groundhogy wrote:
Thanks for the info.
RVs seem cheaper to dock but more expensive to move.
The 25 ft. limit thing is good info as I probably will outfit this
unit to boon dock.
gh

I think most RV's get much better MPG moving then any boat. 😄

[Veebyes]

RVing is far cheaper than owning & operating a cruising boat. Marinas get you for everything. Charging by the foot is just the start. Never seen that at a CG.