I would like to know what is the motivation behind charging for showers (other than the "obviou$.....") Am I missing something? Let's see........ I can use the campground's water FOR FREE if I use my own shower. But if I use the campground shower, the SAME water..... I have to pay? I don't get it. :huh: Unless the "shower charge" is just a way of paying for the bathroom facilities..... How many of us are old enough to remember "pay toilets" in shopping centers? h34r: (I guess if I know enough to ask the question, I'm obviously old enough to remember their existence....) JJ
We don't charge for showers, but I can add a little insight into the reasoning. The pay showers I have seen are in areas where there are a large number of primitive campsites in the area. These campgrounds get large amount of traffic from people only wishing to shower. Coin showers make it simple to manage these guests and make sure the campground isn't taken advantage of. Coin showers also are a water saving device. You can only run so much water on a timer. It also makes sure the water is turned off when a guest finishes (water is left running full stream in an empty shower more than you can imagine). Furthermore, there is a lot more cost involved when a guest uses the campground shower house as opposed to their shower in the RV. Campground showers generally are higher gallon per minute than the RV shower, They also have unlimited hot water so a person can shower for a longer time than in an average RV and the campground has labor expense in keeping the showerhouse clean. Finally, it is a high revenue generator, I have heard park owners claim $20.00 or more in revenue per shower per day. Have 10 showers and a 200 day season and revenue can run $60,000 All that being said, I HATE coin showers and would never consider it in my campground.
We had a thread about coin showers last year. I foud them in the NE, but haven't seen too many in other parts of the county. I have seen faucets that you had to hold open or the water stopped which would seem to fix the overusage deal, but I found them hard to use. We almost always shower in the coach. We do use the electric hot water heater when we have shore power and gas when boondocking. We are at a state park now and they have unlimited hot water, but lots of Boy Scouts running it all the time. In 7 months we will be 65 and able to use the Florida State parks at 1/2 price or about$10 to $12 per night. I have rated several campgrounds poorly because to pay showers and I believe I started the other thread about thm.
Here in Portal RV, Moab, UT where we're staying this month they don't charge for showers. They do have codes on the doors to get in as they're for paying guests only. I do know that there are lots of people who come into town to tent camp stop by and want to use the showers here and they are directed to other RV campgrounds in town that charge non-paying guests to use their showers. I'm glad that Portal doesn't charge for showers for paying guests !
WesternRVpark, thanks for the insight. That makes sense. I'm at a state park in Oregon and this park doesn't charge for showers. (Except I'm at a friends rented beach house using the WiFi...) JJ
I have seen pay showers in public parks but I don't recall ever seeing them in a commercial RV park where we have stayed. I think most of the nicer parks are going to code locks on the showers and restrooms and I think that is a very good idea. I also prefer the RV parks that do not allow people from outside of the park to use the showers. One RV park that we stayed in was located near a public park that did not have showers and they had a separate shower facility for people from outside of the RV park to use, for a fee. I believe that they charged $5/person or a family could use the room for $15. But the showers in the campground were not open to those folks and had code locks. I believe the paying customers were given a key to the other shower rooms.
Thanks, WesternRVpark! Your reasoning makes sense. But Thank You even more for rising above these reasons and still not charging your guests for showers. I can see how water usage can go up with community showers as opposed to RV showers. When we hook up (even with full hook up) we restrict our water use due to the grey tank capacity. I do not enjoy emptying the tank very often so we do not overuse our water. I have been at some campgrounds where the showers have push button timers (the same kind you find on rest room sinks but stay on longer). This was a mild nuisance, but I could understand the reasons for having it.
Have workamped at two campgrounds that had pay showers. One had several public campgrounds across the street with only pit toilets, so lots of people camping there would come over and use the showers. The owner/managers allowed it, but had pay showers. The second one said they had pay showers to save on water and also everyone in the campground would have a hot shower. Of course this place could have built a couple more showerhouses. 200 sites and only six showers per men/women made things interesting at times. It does amaze me on how many people have their own shower but use it for storage and walk to the showerhouse.
QUOTE(Nolan @ Dec 13 2008, 01:13 PM) [snapback]14453[/snapback] It does amaze me on how many people have their own shower but use it for storage and walk to the showerhouse. Well, I use mine for "storage" (the laundry bag, and a rubbermaid tub), but I'm willing to pull those items out to use my shower, then I wipe the shower down and put those items back in. JJ
