CG Prices

[kfp673]

Preaching to the choir, beating a dead horse, etc etc I know but I still have to vent.

I've been camping my whole life and have had travel trailers for the past 18 years and never thought I would see site prices even come close to approaching what I have been seeing lately. Thankfully state parks (which we love and prefer) have kept prices somewhat flat, but we can rarely get a site at state parks. We are not year in advance planners outside of 1 trip each year so we rarely get in. We do it all from boondocking to "luxury RV resorts". The mid tier to "luxury" range has always been from $65-$150 that we have seen, and places like Fort wilderness up around $200. While looking for a site over memorial day weekend, we found a few near Ocean City MD, NJ, and elsewhere that we have used in the past (but not for the last 5 years) that ranged $200-$350 per night! Are they crazy?!?! It's a darn camp site not an all inclusive resort!! It's no wonder the few we found in that price point were not sold out over the holiday weekend. And, KOA's and others we looked at similar to KOA's are all over $100 now. We ended up boondocking and had a great time but we are finding our boondocks sites are far busier now likely because of it. I just can't believe anyone would pay even $150+ let alone $300+ per night at any RV resort / campground. For that price it should include food delivered to my camper, unlimited cocktails, and someone should come make my bed and clean my camper each day. I really hope people continue refusing the Sun RV and others like it so prices start dipping again. This is not inflation. This is "because we can" greed and its ruining camping for those of us without deep bank accounts.

Sorry for the rant 😉

[wapiticountry]

PButler96 wrote:

JaxDad wrote:

time2roll wrote:

PButler96 wrote:
"The Farm Bureau just reported that the average Fourth of July meal this year costs 17% more than last year. But pricier barbecues are just a sign of much bigger issues.

The numbers don’t lie. Inflation has hit a new 40-year high and it’s showing in prices for even the most basic items. Hot dogs are up 10%. Chicken and hamburger have surged 17% and nearly 14%, respectively. Ice cream will cost you roughly 10% more. And the cost of propane, kerosene and firewood has increased by 28%. Even kitchen staples like milk are up almost 16% and eggs have surged by an astounding 32%. "

And yet no improvements were made on these items. Same stuff, just more money.

But somehow many will expect improvements from the campground.

I don’t know about that, it seems every commercial I see touts the featured product as being “new & improved”, it smells / tastes / feels better than ever before.

I’ve rarely seen a new renovated CG.

When they do it you'll know because it involves shutting down entire sections, and in the Northern part of the US with limited construction seasons I've seen it take multiple years. I know of one state park campground where upgrading 10 electric only sites to FHU took over 3 years. Snow flies early in November and can still be on the ground in April.

What is new and improved with featured products right now is smaller packaging to go along with the added price. It's one of the reasons why when the morons tell you inflation is x.x% start adding a lot to the number. The 14 ounce package is now 12 ounces and costs 25% more.

One of my favorite facts is when computing the inflation rate the scoundrels use a model that assumes if the price of something rises, you will buy less. As an example if beef goes from $3.00 a pound to 4 dollars a pound they may calculate you will now only buy 80% of what you used to buy. So if your hamburger purchase was one pound at $3 your current purchase for inflation calculations is $3.20 since the powers to be decided you are now going to buy on 80% of a pound. So even though hamburger went up 33%, inflation numbers say it went up 6.67%.

[PButler96]

JaxDad wrote:

time2roll wrote:

PButler96 wrote:
"The Farm Bureau just reported that the average Fourth of July meal this year costs 17% more than last year. But pricier barbecues are just a sign of much bigger issues.

The numbers don’t lie. Inflation has hit a new 40-year high and it’s showing in prices for even the most basic items. Hot dogs are up 10%. Chicken and hamburger have surged 17% and nearly 14%, respectively. Ice cream will cost you roughly 10% more. And the cost of propane, kerosene and firewood has increased by 28%. Even kitchen staples like milk are up almost 16% and eggs have surged by an astounding 32%. "

And yet no improvements were made on these items. Same stuff, just more money.

But somehow many will expect improvements from the campground.

I don’t know about that, it seems every commercial I see touts the featured product as being “new & improved”, it smells / tastes / feels better than ever before.

I’ve rarely seen a new renovated CG.

When they do it you'll know because it involves shutting down entire sections, and in the Northern part of the US with limited construction seasons I've seen it take multiple years. I know of one state park campground where upgrading 10 electric only sites to FHU took over 3 years. Snow flies early in November and can still be on the ground in April.

What is new and improved with featured products right now is smaller packaging to go along with the added price. It's one of the reasons why when the morons tell you inflation is x.x% start adding a lot to the number. The 14 ounce package is now 12 ounces and costs 25% more.

[wapiticountry]

JaxDad wrote:

time2roll wrote:

PButler96 wrote:
"The Farm Bureau just reported that the average Fourth of July meal this year costs 17% more than last year. But pricier barbecues are just a sign of much bigger issues.

The numbers don’t lie. Inflation has hit a new 40-year high and it’s showing in prices for even the most basic items. Hot dogs are up 10%. Chicken and hamburger have surged 17% and nearly 14%, respectively. Ice cream will cost you roughly 10% more. And the cost of propane, kerosene and firewood has increased by 28%. Even kitchen staples like milk are up almost 16% and eggs have surged by an astounding 32%. "

And yet no improvements were made on these items. Same stuff, just more money.

But somehow many will expect improvements from the campground.

I don’t know about that, it seems every commercial I see touts the featured product as being “new & improved”, it smells / tastes / feels better than ever before.

I’ve rarely seen a new renovated CG.

That is likely because improvements at RV parks are often unseen. Things like new sewer lines, updated electrical services, landscaping, road maintenance and a host of other things go unnoticed to the average guest. I bet you drive by hotels every day and for years they look exactly the same. They likely have updated the rooms multiple times but the average guest has no idea if it was this year or 5 years ago. I know that when I got my first RV 30 amp service was the expectation and amenities like wifi, cable TV and 50 amp were almost non existent. Now they are pretty much the norm. Having been in the business for decades, I have gotten to know many owners and almost all regularly reinvested back into their parks.
However, if someone actively seeks out the absolute lowest cost provider they may find that the business is able to offer that low price precisely because they don’t reinvest in upkeep and improvements. Often times you do get exactly what you pay for.

[WinMinnie02]

Federal or state parks or boon docking. Have not stayed in commercial campground in 15 years. IMHO staying away from crowds and not traveling around holidays.

[JaxDad]

time2roll wrote:

PButler96 wrote:
"The Farm Bureau just reported that the average Fourth of July meal this year costs 17% more than last year. But pricier barbecues are just a sign of much bigger issues.

The numbers don’t lie. Inflation has hit a new 40-year high and it’s showing in prices for even the most basic items. Hot dogs are up 10%. Chicken and hamburger have surged 17% and nearly 14%, respectively. Ice cream will cost you roughly 10% more. And the cost of propane, kerosene and firewood has increased by 28%. Even kitchen staples like milk are up almost 16% and eggs have surged by an astounding 32%. "

And yet no improvements were made on these items. Same stuff, just more money.

But somehow many will expect improvements from the campground.

I don’t know about that, it seems every commercial I see touts the featured product as being “new & improved”, it smells / tastes / feels better than ever before.

I’ve rarely seen a new renovated CG.

[time2roll]

PButler96 wrote:
"The Farm Bureau just reported that the average Fourth of July meal this year costs 17% more than last year. But pricier barbecues are just a sign of much bigger issues.

The numbers don’t lie. Inflation has hit a new 40-year high and it’s showing in prices for even the most basic items. Hot dogs are up 10%. Chicken and hamburger have surged 17% and nearly 14%, respectively. Ice cream will cost you roughly 10% more. And the cost of propane, kerosene and firewood has increased by 28%. Even kitchen staples like milk are up almost 16% and eggs have surged by an astounding 32%. "

And yet no improvements were made on these items. Same stuff, just more money.

But somehow many will expect improvements from the campground.

[BarabooBob]

My favorite campground is about 5 miles down a Forest Service road north of Burgess Junction, WY. It is free and we seldom have neighbors except wolves, elk, and moose. The best part of the place is the price-FREE.

[PButler96]

Grit dog wrote:

Camper445 wrote:

Free Cheese?

Nope, none of it's free, but the capitalists pay for both kinds. The stuff they eat and the stuff that gets handed out to those who don't buy their own, lol.

Forget the cheese.....how about the other stuff. You're in the hole before you ever pay for a campsite and free cheese may be all that's on the menu.


"The Farm Bureau just reported that the average Fourth of July meal this year costs 17% more than last year. But pricier barbecues are just a sign of much bigger issues.

The numbers don’t lie. Inflation has hit a new 40-year high and it’s showing in prices for even the most basic items. Hot dogs are up 10%. Chicken and hamburger have surged 17% and nearly 14%, respectively. Ice cream will cost you roughly 10% more. And the cost of propane, kerosene and firewood has increased by 28%. Even kitchen staples like milk are up almost 16% and eggs have surged by an astounding 32%. "

I don't know who is grilling brats with kerosene, but on this board I would not find it surprising LOL.

[DallasSteve]

Mayor30 wrote:
I'm 70. But have had the Federal Senior Pass since I was 62. On our trip to Texas in March,we paid anywhere from $7.50 to $19 for water and electric sites at federal campgrounds. We paid between $35 and $45 at state parks. $35 for W&E and the $45 was for FHU. 1 night at a private campground with FHU was $45. Diesel for the trip was $1700.00.

My brother taught me the trick of staying at Corps Of Engineers parks to save money. They are cheaper (a couple of years ago I think they averaged around $20 per night), but the facilities are pretty basic. At least they are usually at a lake.

[Mayor30]

I'm 70. But have had the Federal Senior Pass since I was 62. On our trip to Texas in March,we paid anywhere from $7.50 to $19 for water and electric sites at federal campgrounds. We paid between $35 and $45 at state parks. $35 for W&E and the $45 was for FHU. 1 night at a private campground with FHU was $45. Diesel for the trip was $1700.00.

[Grit_dog]

Camper445 wrote:

Free Cheese?

Nope, none of it's free, but the capitalists pay for both kinds. The stuff they eat and the stuff that gets handed out to those who don't buy their own, lol.

[valhalla360]

monkey44 wrote:
Taking advantage and gouging during a tragedy or catastrophe is pure greed, no matter how anyone can try justifying raising prices beyond normal conditions.

Running a successful business under normal economic conditions will support raises to employees who help make that company successful.

Look to Venezuela for your proposed solution. The govt mandated that bakeries follow state pricing when their economy blew up (ie: a tragedy or catastrophe).

Result: Most bakeries simply shut down because they couldn't even pay for supplies at the govt mandated prices.

Of course, most sane bakery owners started operating on the black market rather than go bankrupt.

[ferndaleflyer]

Time to roll gets it

[covered_wagon]

WinMinnie02 wrote:
OP - Owning an RV gives you options boondocks, state parks, and private parks. Always stay away from holidays and crowds, avoid overpriced CG. Been RVing for 20+ years learned quickly to avoid Private CGs.

X2, I know of some great places because people are too afraid of bears. The bears never charged very much LOL.