Parrothead_Mike
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Re: Where are the snow birds ?
It's still a bit early for most snowbirds. We don't leave until after Thanksgiving and try to get to our Florida park by December 1st. Even when we get to our campground there are always plenty of empty spots. Late December and early January is when things get busier.1.8KViews0likes0CommentsRe: The impact of Ian...
Thankfully Ian went well south of Tampa since we stay the winter about 80-90 miles north of Tampa in Crystal River. In years past we've camped at Oscar Schere SP just north of Venice and Mayaka SP as well as Riverside RV Park along the Peace River toward Arcadia. Those parks are likely in rough shape at the present time. I suspect that folks that left their RVs south of I-4 along the Gulf Coast may not have an RV anymore. If those RVs survived the storm they certainly don't have electric and may find a layer of mold on things. We still have a couple of months left in hurricane season so things could still change in the near future. As Jimmy Buffett said; "You cannot reason with hurricane season."1.2KViews0likes0CommentsI-15 or I-215 Question
No camper on this trip, but I'm not travelling in the Midwest this time. Driving from Las Vegas, NV down to San Diego, CA later this week. Would it be better to take I-215 rather than I-15 to avoid potential traffic, mud slides, fires, or whatever else seems to be happening around that area? I know 215 would be a bit longer and hooks back up to 15 further south, but we have some extra time so that's not a problem. Just trying to keep moving forward. Thanks!2KViews0likes5CommentsRe: Florida Park costs this Winter?
The park is generally pretty full. Plus Sun Corp., who now owns the park, put in about 30 park models a few years ago that they rent out. We stay at Rock Crusher Canyon RV Park in Crystal River. There are a few other parks in the area, but I'd shy away from those west of U.S. 19 because it gets pretty buggy there. It's a fairly rural area without much in the way of beaches. It's a river area with fishing, kayaking, and plenty of manatees. Your best bet is to try to get in during December or early January because February & March are pretty busy. Give them a call to see what's available.2KViews0likes0CommentsRe: Florida Park costs this Winter?
We have reservations along the Gulf Coast (Citrus County) about 80 miles north of Tampa. Our monthly rate for 4 months is $912.50. That includes electricty, water, sewer, garbage service, about 60 cable channels, in a gated 400-site park with a nice pool. The mostly private sites are generous with plenty of trees, bushes, and grass. The rate has gone up over the years from the lower $800s. We've stayed at this park since 2013. The late December and January weather can be a bit cooler than south of I-4, but we stay December 1 - April 1 and there is plenty of warm weather. Not real beachy in this area, but if you like to fish, kayak, ride motorcycles, golf, then there is plenty to do. The seafood is excellent. Tampa, via the toll road, is only about 1.5 hours.2KViews0likes0CommentsRe: This is too easy!
Here in Citrus County FL, about 80 miles north of Tampa, January is generally the coolest month of the winter. Today's high is a cool & rainy low 50s. Yesterday morning there was frost on the vehicles, but it was around 60 when we went to the golf course at 2 p.m. It still beats the heck out of Michigan in January. I tell my friends back home that January in FL is like fall in Michigan. In a few weeks we'll be complaining about how warm it is.966Views0likes0CommentsRe: Where are all of the snowbirds?
There is a constant flow of RVs here in Florida. Our park has a few vacancies, but overall, it's been fairly full since January 1. In fact, here in Citrus County 2 new RV parks with 400-500 sites are being planned and built. Sometimes I think snowbirds find the park or parks of their choice and keep the info to themselves. When we first started snowbirding in February 2013 we didn't need reservations because there were plenty of vacancies throughout Florida. In fact, it was that way for the first couple of years. Those first couple of winters we did 6-8 different parks. Once the effects of the Great Recession slowed the great snowbird migration seemed to pick up. With all that sites got harder to come by. We now stay in one park for 4 months and have renewed the same site each year. Another issue that I see is happening more and more is that with the sky-high price of homes local Florida residents (and also some former snowbirds) live permanently in their RVs. The cost of renting a site in our park for 4 months is around $800+/-. That's a lot cheaper than renting or buying a home. We are seeing more sites taken by folks with FL license plates and as long as the park enforces clean-not cluttered sites then they are happy to rent year around. Personally, I wouldn't live in FL year around due to the summer heat.1KViews0likes0CommentsRe: Late Snowbirding/ full timing
I've found that Campground Reviews.com is a good source for locating potential campgrounds in all 50 states. Just click on the state you want to focus on and you'll find the previously reviewed campgrounds along with their websites, etc. Plus you get input from real campers rather than just looking at their websites. I used this prior to our first snowbirding trip to Florida in 2013. Start your research, keep track of those potential places you might want to contact for the time period you're looking for. Good luck! https://www.campgroundreviews.com/544Views0likes0CommentsRe: Any RV parks left in RGV?
Parks having a steady income is obviously important for their bottom line and potentially their survival. We snowbird in Florida and have for 9 seasons. One thing that my wife & I have noticed the past few years is that more and more people are living year round in the park we've stayed at most of the time. Our park isn't age restricted so there are a few families now residing there in RVs. The housing shortage, cost of homes, etc. is driving some to just purchase an RV and live in a park full time. I assume some of this is due to the fact that lot rent and utilities, if any, are cheaper than owning a home or even renting a home.930Views0likes0Comments
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