Do I Need To Add A Rec/lounge Room To My Park?

I'm a rv park owner and want to add a rec,lounge (tv),game and kitchen room to our park.Can i get some feed back from some park owners and rvers about this. I'm for it but my partners are not as positive on the idea. We have a really nice park with bathroom/showers,laundry and a office. 54 sites.

Thank You

I'M getting good reponses.Opinions vary on both sides which is good.Its giving me a understanding what people are looking for.Please keep the comments coming.
9/18/09 4:12 pm central

 

I may well be in a minority here, but, after 8 years of lots of travel, I don't think we have ever used a park's recreation room/lounge. Most of them we have seen seem to be empty and unused. We try, however, to avoid parks who are catering to families; so if this is the direction you are taking your business, then a game/video room might be good for that market.

 

QUOTE(MaineDon @ Sep 18 2009, 08:49 AM) [snapback]19004[/snapback]

I may well be in a minority here, but, after 8 years of lots of travel, I don't think we have ever used a park's recreation room/lounge. Most of them we have seen seem to be empty and unused. We try, however, to avoid parks who are catering to families; so if this is the direction you are taking your business, then a game/video room might be good for that market.



MaineDon,
Thank you for your response.Most of our campers are in the 55 years and older age group, but in your travels have you seen small traveling groups use them maybe as a place to meet as a small club?

 

We never used a rec-room when younger and traveling with kids over 3-day weekends and such. Now that we travel seasonally as full-timers, the rec room is that perfect place to catch a free cup of coffee and skim the local paper in the mornings. Kind of a cool 'meeting' place to share local information with other travelers and the park owners, swap paper-back books, join in on a jig-puzzle while laundry is running, etc. Several smaller parks in our travels use this rec-room as an extension of the office for storing/renting out various toys relevant to their park as well.
If most of your market is in the 55 plus: go for it.
B)
Cheers!

 

QUOTE(FosterImposters @ Sep 18 2009, 10:44 AM) [snapback]19006[/snapback]

We never used a rec-room when younger and traveling with kids over 3-day weekends and such. Now that we travel seasonally as full-timers, the rec room is that perfect place to catch a free cup of coffee and skim the local paper in the mornings. Kind of a cool 'meeting' place to share local information with other travelers and the park owners, swap paper-back books, join in on a jig-puzzle while laundry is running, etc. Several smaller parks in our travels use this rec-room as an extension of the office for storing/renting out various toys relevant to their park as well.
If most of your market is in the 55 plus: go for it.
B)
Cheers!




Thank you for the info. Very helpful. If there are any other campers that would like to comment please do. This forum is just one avenue i will base my decision on. Keep them coming.

 

Never use the rec room or TV room or whatever when we travel. I actually try to avoid those areas because they are usually filled with unsupervised kids. At most campgrounds I have visited, even at the best one's, the rec rooms show a lot of wear and tear, furniture looks old and soiled, the TVs usually have no remote available and are showing some channel that I couldn't care less about. On the other hand, a meeting room may be beneficial if you are going to have activities, however I doubt you could get much participation out of a 50 site campground. A kitchen is a good way to get into the dishwashing and cleaning business. I owned a business with a kitchen for the employees and believe me, people are pigs when it is not theirs. I can't think of any reason I would ever use a campground kitchen, I have one in my RV and when camping, I like to use my outdoor grill.

 

QUOTE(kcmoedoe @ Sep 18 2009, 11:27 AM) [snapback]19009[/snapback]

Never use the rec room or TV room or whatever when we travel. I actually try to avoid those areas because they are usually filled with unsupervised kids. At most campgrounds I have visited, even at the best one's, the rec rooms show a lot of wear and tear, furniture looks old and soiled, the TVs usually have no remote available and are showing some channel that I couldn't care less about. On the other hand, a meeting room may be beneficial if you are going to have activities, however I doubt you could get much participation out of a 50 site campground. A kitchen is a good way to get into the dishwashing and cleaning business. I owned a business with a kitchen for the employees and believe me, people are pigs when it is not theirs. I can't think of any reason I would ever use a campground kitchen, I have one in my RV and when camping, I like to use my outdoor grill.



Thank you.Good info.If i do consider this, some house cleaning,upgrades and rules would be set in place for sure.Please discussion forum, keep the comments coming! This is very helpful.

 

QUOTE(parkowner @ Sep 18 2009, 10:40 AM) [snapback]19010[/snapback]

Thank you.Good info.If i do consider this, some house cleaning,upgrades and rules would be set in place for sure.Please discussion forum, keep the comments coming! This is very helpful.


We are fulltimers and stay in a park for a few months at a time winter and summer. Rec rooms I have noticed are used by those of us over 55 for pot lucks, games, get togethers and so on. I would think if you have quite a few guests over 55 and that stay for a while it would be an attraction.

 

QUOTE(parkowner @ Sep 18 2009, 10:46 AM) [snapback]19005[/snapback]

MaineDon,
Thank you for your response.Most of our campers are in the 55 years and older age group, but in your travels have you seen small traveling groups use them maybe as a place to meet as a small club?



Parkowner: I guess my impression has been that, when such areas are used, it is by year-round or seasonal residents. We were at a park in Visalia, CA, last May where year-round residents were having a very spirited bingo game in their club house. And my father used to winter at a park outside of Tucson where the lounge area seemed to get a lot of use. But if your park is basically for over-nighters, or if you are in a location where there is a lot to see/do (e.g., near Yellowstone, Grand Canyon, Zion, etc.), I don't think people use these facilities much. I may be wrong (and just not paying attention), but such has been my impression.

 

Parkowner,

As we travel our needs are small as we carry everything we need. About the only items we look for are 50 amps if weather is hot, good water, and a good working Wi-Fi system. Nice to have are cement pad or gravel pad to park on, sewer is nice but dump station works for me, and we never use any other items in a RV park. We use lots of COE and State parks as we travel. Only water and power in this type of park.

 

QUOTE(nedmtnman @ Sep 18 2009, 12:28 PM) [snapback]19012[/snapback]

We are fulltimers and stay in a park for a few months at a time winter and summer. Rec rooms I have noticed are used by those of us over 55 for pot lucks, games, get togethers and so on. I would think if you have quite a few guests over 55 and that stay for a while it would be an attraction.




Thank you for the input.What you desribed is what i was thinking about it would be used for and just a sitting area to read or get out your rv for a while.Maybe have a daily paper and updated magazines on hand.

QUOTE(MaineDon @ Sep 18 2009, 12:48 PM) [snapback]19013[/snapback]

Parkowner: I guess my impression has been that, when such areas are used, it is by year-round or seasonal residents. We were at a park in Visalia, CA, last May where year-round residents were having a very spirited bingo game in their club house. And my father used to winter at a park outside of Tucson where the lounge area seemed to get a lot of use. But if your park is basically for over-nighters, or if you are in a location where there is a lot to see/do (e.g., near Yellowstone, Grand Canyon, Zion, etc.), I don't think people use these facilities much. I may be wrong (and just not paying attention), but such has been my impression.




Thank you for the information.

QUOTE(John Blue @ Sep 18 2009, 03:35 PM) [snapback]19017[/snapback]

Parkowner,

As we travel our needs are small as we carry everything we need. About the only items we look for are 50 amps if weather is hot, good water, and a good working Wi-Fi system. Nice to have are cement pad or gravel pad to park on, sewer is nice but dump station works for me, and we never use any other items in a RV park. We use lots of COE and State parks as we travel. Only water and power in this type of park.




Thank you for the information.

 

In our travels we have found that most rec rooms are either dirty and uninviting or occupied by "regulars" that make us feel unwelcome. The only one I felt comfortable in was in the mountains of NC. They had a small room next to the laundry room. The room had lots of books for reading or exchange, a couple of card tables, games available and picnic tables outside where you could relax and read. Where I am now we have a rec room that is no longer used by the public. The only people that have tried to use it were people that wanted to rent it out for parties.

 

What area are you from. I think that would make a big difference. We have camped hundreds of nights all over the US and I can't think of once we used the Rec room or kitchen. I have seen it used, but it seemed to be used by the long termers. If weather permits, something with a ceiling and no sides (like a pole barn) might work. If it was popular, then you could close it in at a later date. When you get into kitchen, they you get into regulations and the health department, inspections, insurances issues and thing you don't want.

 

QUOTE(dalsgal @ Sep 18 2009, 10:15 PM) [snapback]19021[/snapback]

In our travels we have found that most rec rooms are either dirty and uninviting or occupied by "regulars" that make us feel unwelcome. The only one I felt comfortable in was in the mountains of NC. They had a small room next to the laundry room. The room had lots of books for reading or exchange, a couple of card tables, games available and picnic tables outside where you could relax and read. Where I am now we have a rec room that is no longer used by the public. The only people that have tried to use it were people that wanted to rent it out for parties.




Thanks for your comment.If we add a rec/lounge room we would not let our monthly campers us the facility since we give them a discount price and it would definitely be kept clean. If you knew if a campground had these rules inforce would you use the facility?

 

QUOTE(Lindsay Richards @ Sep 18 2009, 10:32 PM) [snapback]19022[/snapback]

What area are you from. I think that would make a big difference. We have camped hundreds of nights all over the US and I can't think of once we used the Rec room or kitchen. I have seen it used, but it seemed to be used by the long termers. If weather permits, something with a ceiling and no sides (like a pole barn) might work. If it was popular, then you could close it in at a later date. When you get into kitchen, they you get into regulations and the health department, inspections, insurances issues and thing you don't want.




Thanks for the comment.Is there any reason why you don't us a rec/lounge room? I'm not saying their is something wrong if you don't use it,but if everything was in place and it was comfortable to use would you use it?

 

QUOTE(parkowner @ Sep 19 2009, 03:29 PM) [snapback]19028[/snapback]

Thanks for your comment.If we add a rec/lounge room we would not let our monthly campers us the facility since we give them a discount price and it would definitely be kept clean. If you knew if a campground had these rules inforce would you use the facility?

Just how many monthly guests do you have versus how many daily customers. A policy like this will surely make the monthlies feel like second class citizens and make them more hostile to the "better"customers. We still wouldn't use the facilities.

 

Kcmoedoe has a good point. Care must be taken (depending upon your customer base) to avoid the "special treatment" syndrome.

We're spoiled when over-wintering in the Hemet, Calif. as the Sunland Resorts group now owns roughly half-dozen nice parks in and around the San Diego to Palm Springs areas. They actively market to the FMCA, Good Sam, Fleetwood, Winnybago, Monaco, Elks Clubs, etc., groups and thus have a nice set of 'meetin rooms' so folks can get together and enjoy each other over pot-luck breakfasts and dinners. When the groups have left (mid-week) all the rest of us can enjoy the room(s). B)

Pechanga Indian Reservation's RV Resort (Temecula, California) has tried this on a smaller scale, with meeting rooms that are locked unless you are part of a sanctioned 'group' that has booked on site. Much like higher-end hotels, (they've got that too) with meeting rooms. Now in all fairness: Pechanga RV park limits your stay to 29 days, and does NOT advertise to the family or seasonal market, so they don't have the issues of fairness, or kids who trash the place (and ruin it for all the well-behaved kids).

Much depends upon your market (as others have noted). Have enjoyed this thread. Thanks for asking!
Cheers!

 

We just stayed at a nice park that had what I would consider to be a really good rec room/lounge. The park itself is large (more than 100 sites), and there are about 50% long term tenants (not permanent) and 50% overnighters/short-termers. The rec room was about 30x30 with large floor to ceiling windows and a tile floor. It was open, bright and extremely clean. It held 7 round tables that would seat 4 comfortably and more if needed. The tables were all hard plastic and the chairs were folding metal making them easy to clean and maintain. There was a small attractive Fall decor center piece on each table. There was a small adjacent kitchen that could be locked separately, and there was another small room that had two very nice large tread mills and a book exchange area. While we were there we attended the free breakfast that they offer each morning. Since we were only there one night I can't say how much the room is used other than for breakfast, but that event was very popular.

As far as using rec rooms in other parks I have to say that we very rarely do, usually because they are not very attractive or very clean. If you put one in it would need to be kept in tip top shape or I don't think it would be used.

 

QUOTE(kcmoedoe @ Sep 19 2009, 04:41 PM) [snapback]19031[/snapback]

Just how many monthly guests do you have versus how many daily customers. A policy like this will surely make the monthlies feel like second class citizens and make them more hostile to the "better"customers. We still wouldn't use the facilities.




Thank for you comment.I understand what you are saying, but our monthlies we rent to are mostly construction workers doing jobs in our area and our monthly fee includes full hookups (water,electric,sewer,wifi,cable tv) for half the cost a our nightly rate. We have our monthlies sign out rule sheet, which consist of a list of rules of what is expected of them, so they understand up front what they getting.We can ask them if they want to use the other facilities they would have to pay extra. I would think they would understand that and that would only be fair to our other campers paying full price for the facilities. What do you think?

QUOTE(FosterImposters @ Sep 19 2009, 07:42 PM) [snapback]19040[/snapback]

Kcmoedoe has a good point. Care must be taken (depending upon your customer base) to avoid the "special treatment" syndrome.

We're spoiled when over-wintering in the Hemet, Calif. as the Sunland Resorts group now owns roughly half-dozen nice parks in and around the San Diego to Palm Springs areas. They actively market to the FMCA, Good Sam, Fleetwood, Winnybago, Monaco, Elks Clubs, etc., groups and thus have a nice set of 'meetin rooms' so folks can get together and enjoy each other over pot-luck breakfasts and dinners. When the groups have left (mid-week) all the rest of us can enjoy the room(s). B)

Pechanga Indian Reservation's RV Resort (Temecula, California) has tried this on a smaller scale, with meeting rooms that are locked unless you are part of a sanctioned 'group' that has booked on site. Much like higher-end hotels, (they've got that too) with meeting rooms. Now in all fairness: Pechanga RV park limits your stay to 29 days, and does NOT advertise to the family or seasonal market, so they don't have the issues of fairness, or kids who trash the place (and ruin it for all the well-behaved kids).

Much depends upon your market (as others have noted). Have enjoyed this thread. Thanks for asking!
Cheers!



Thank you so much for your input.I'm learning a whole lot of how these facilities operate without having to go there myyself.Thanks

 

QUOTE(Texasrvers @ Sep 20 2009, 08:15 PM) [snapback]19072[/snapback]

We just stayed at a nice park that had what I would consider to be a really good rec room/lounge. The park itself is large (more than 100 sites), and there are about 50% long term tenants (not permanent) and 50% overnighters/short-termers. The rec room was about 30x30 with large floor to ceiling windows and a tile floor. It was open, bright and extremely clean. It held 7 round tables that would seat 4 comfortably and more if needed. The tables were all hard plastic and the chairs were folding metal making them easy to clean and maintain. There was a small attractive Fall decor center piece on each table. There was a small adjacent kitchen that could be locked separately, and there was another small room that had two very nice large tread mills and a book exchange area. While we were there we attended the free breakfast that they offer each morning. Since we were only there one night I can't say how much the room is used other than for breakfast, but that event was very popular.

As far as using rec rooms in other parks I have to say that we very rarely do, usually because they are not very attractive or very clean. If you put one in it would need to be kept in tip top shape or I don't think it would be used.



Thanks. What you said is what most of the others have said and thats keeping it clean,making it enjoyable,usable,comfortable and quite. I believe if all the campgrounds that have these faclities would operate their facility in this way it would get more use and that would in turn would mean more campers returning to the campground, also receiving new campers hearing about the facilities.Do you see it that way?