What are the best discount cards to have AAA, passport, koa, etc we are traveling to cali from daytonaand i need input on some good disount memberships are good for this particular trip daytona beach fl to la california.
We have AAA and Passport America, Passport America pays for its self quite quickly if you use it 2-3 times. There are restrictions on the time of year or the time of week it can be used thou, this is probably the determining factor in getting it, we are retired and use it enough but my Brother who is not retired and can only get out on weekends, it probably would not pay him to get it. I'm not big on the 10 % discounts you get with others but thats just me. AAA gives you 10% discounts for daily rates and covers emergency tows etc. for the motorhome. These are the 2 I have that fit my criteria. :blink:
Each card has its pros and cons. Passport holders often find that a campground has "no vacancy" when they identify themselves, or are often relegated to the worst spots in the park. Also, there are usually many restrictions. The KOA regular card gets you a 10% discount, and their "Gold Card," which you get after so many stays, gets you a 15% discount. The Good Sam card gets you a 10% discount at many, many places. I am not familiar with the AAA discounts. Overall, you will likely find that the Good Sam card is the most widely accepted one and is the most useful one.
We have two cards we use, 1) Good Sam card @ 10% discount, 2) a KOA Gold Card @ 15% discount. The KOA Gold Card is obtainable after 20 stays at KOA campgrounds, note that the card is issued for the next year after your stays. If you have a Gold card, be very watchful of the amount you are charged. Upon registering, have been given the 10% discount, when in fact a 15% discount should have been given. We personally do not have a Passport card, but we were traveling with our Florida friends, in July of 2005, and they had made reservations at a Passport campground in upstate New York. The campground on first observation looked just okay, but upon closer observation, it was substandard. On the third day, of a five day stay, we had to leave because of conditions. As this was our first time of being involved with a Passport campground, I really feel that we will not join Passport or even stay at a Passport listed campground in the future. Definitely was not a good experience, but have to give a benefit of doubt as to the conditions that exist at other Passport cgs.
We have Good Sam and AAA. We have had AAA for about 20 yr. If you go with that one - make sure you get AAA RV Plus. The regular membership will get you the discounts, but will not cover and towing or service to your motorhome. We upgraded when we got the rv, my husband took one look at the tires and decided he never wanted to have to change one. Beastdriver is correct in saying that Good Sam is the most widely accepted. That is the one we generally use and I really enjoy the subscription to Highways magazine that comes along with it. I have no knowledge of Passport America other than what I have read here. In another 2 years, I will turn 50 and can join AARP - does anyone know if you get a discount at rv parks thru them?
Cheryl: Some campgrounds do offer discounts for AARP, but they are few and far in between. Go with Good Sam.
We have had Passport America for quite a few years and as full timers we have used it frequently and strongly suggest the program. The small yearly fee is recouped with just a few stays and as far as a previous post that had one bad experience, this club is no different than any other. We have found substandard campgrounds all over the US and not particular to any club affiliation. We used PA often a few years ago on our trip to Alaska both in USA and Canada and because we log lots of miles each year we have found it to be one of the best club investments we have made in our many years of RVing. We suggest you try it for a year with the advantage is that you only pay for one year with no enrollment fees and can drop it if it doesn't fit your needs.
I second PappaDee, Passport America has easily paid for itself for the last 5 years.We do most of our traveling in the west and have not experienced any of the problems mentioned in an earlier post.
Big Ben, I am not familiar with Passport America as I have only heard of it on this website. Is it age restrictive???
That is good to know. I guess it probably wouldn't work for us though as we are not lucky enough to be able to spend that much time on the road yet. I think I read somewhere here on this forum that it really wouldn't pay for itself unless you traveled a lot. Until hubby retires, we are restricted to the long weekends and (2) 14 day trips per year. Just a little over 6 weeks from heading to San Antonio and the Padre Islands. I can hardly wait!!!
Passport America, Escapees, and Good Sam are the ones I carry. I don't plan to renew my KOA. Expensive and generally kinda rundown campgrounds or nice but snooty. Doug and Cassi
One last possible option that might or might not apply. Both my wife and I are retired Army and when I call for reservations I asked if they gave a Military Discount. The last place we stayed at offered us a 50% discount and a warm thank you for our service. In fact the camp ground owner, 2 days into our stay brought us a little America Flag Decal for our brand new rig. We had a good long talk about service one evening over a bottle of wine and old war stories. While there is no general policy, it never hurts to ask, if it applies. The only thing they wanted was to see our ID Cards. Good Luck. PS as a Newbie, the only card I have at the moment is Good Sam.
