What Do People Expect In A Campground?

It would have been funny if it had been you, but it was in Florida. I really think they were serious, the poor lady behind the counter didn't know what to say. Personally, I am very easy going, I have never had a REALLY bad experience in a park, most things we take as "experience" I think that just because there was something I didn't like in a park, doesn't mean that you might not like it. Sometimes, the sites are too small but the entertainment was good. The site was a bit of a hill, but a couple of boards solved it, the staff wasn't friendly but the lake was beautiful. I try to look for the good stuff, life is too short to dwell on the negative. I would love those mocking birds!

 

Although I have only "tent camped" 3x in my life and not until I was over 35 and only took what we could pack on our motorcycle, I now have a "posh" 5th wheel. Even though my own accommodations are very nice, I still view it as "camping". Which means, its okay if there are not the same luxuries as a 5-star hotel, in my opinion if you want that, then go there. I think some of the people are too harsh also when rating campgrounds. Although I do not want to see pet droppings by my site, I feel its the pet owner's responsibility to pick up after them, or they will no longer be able to bring their pet and ruin it for everyone.

What I do not like seeing are the campgrounds that have "interesting" pricing systems, like if grandparents take their grandkids they get charged for "2 families". My husband and can tow 2 motorcycles or an ATV in the back of our 5th wheel. We ususally take friends with us. Some campgrounds do not allow this, we must all be related. I think we are pretty good guests, we pick up afterourselves, are quite (as we are usually out riding all day) and are considerate of our neighbors and are quite if we come back late (my husband has even push his bike from the "main road" to our site so there was no noise after 10). Anyone else see this?

 

my favorite park, i should say the one we frequent the most, has a very liberal policy, they rent their sites for two adults and three chilren or four adults. Relationships don't matter, i think with today's "family" they are often hers, his and theirs, or grandparents with grandkids, etc. but i do know of parks that rent to two adults and charge for everybody else.

 

anybody have an opinion on gate cards? We are at a park that has a $10 deposit on a gate card that you use to get into the park if you leave, i always get the card, i just like the thought of the added security, i like thinking that not just anybody can get in.
i don't like waiting behind the guy that didn't want to get a card for whatever reason, while they look up his reservation to verify that he is actually camping and not just some one of the street. then they get angry because they had to wait, i say get a gate card and save us all the trouble, it is a DEPOSIT you get the money back, what is the problem???





















































































i always get the card, because I appreciate the added security iy provides,

 

I expect campgrounds an their restroom facilities to be clean and in good repair.

I expect quiet hours to be enforced.

I don't like having to do the campground owners and their staffs jobs for them.

Bad campgrounds seem to fail in all those ways, not just one or another.

 

Butch,

You are right that if you stay at a membership park you should be made aware that the owner might show up. We have only stayed at one park like this, and we were not told that. However, I do not know if we were actually on a lot that was owned by someone or just one that was for rent. I just think that if you know there is a chance the owner might show up and if you still choose to stay, you should not be that upset if you do have to move. As I said it is the owner's lot and he deserves to have it. If it upsets you to have to move then you probably shouldn't stay at this type of park. I brought this up because there has been lots of discussion about review vs. experience. I think this is a good example of someone who obviously reviewed his experience not the park.

 

I expect the minimum: Sewer, water, electricity, and it's clean. Anything else is a "plus."

You can't blame the owners for noisy neighbors, but as one poster said, you can comment on how the campground deals with it. Also, you can't blame the park for "road noise," but knowing that some people don't like it, I usually comment whether or not it's there. And if you don't follow the rules, you can't blame the park. However, I will claim "false advertising" if the RV Park says "We have wireless" only to find out that you have to sign up with a third party at some outrageous cost do get it.......

I expect "free wireless" because it's norm in hotels, but if the park charges $1 or even $2, I'm ok with that. I know one park that does charge, I think, $2 a day, but it's THEIR wireless (not a third party) and I think they are just trying to recover the infrastructure costs.

I do expect cable, if they have it, to be free/included. I have been to one RV park that charges to have it. (The same one that charges for their wireless....)

And, I have been to a KOA that gave you the choice of either free wireless or free cable. In that case, on a review, I will "comment" but not say "bad park" because of it.....

JJ

 

:lol: OMG! I am still laughing. And I have decided when we travel to Big Bend National Park in March I will ask (with a big smirk on my face just to see the reaction I get) if they can turn off the sun! Otherwise I will gladly accept the wind, the sand and everything else those campgrounds offer. That's why I am there. Thanks for a great read!!!!!!!!!

 

I expect a safe, clean site with working electricity and a clean bathroom. I'm pretty easy to please....

My husband and I looked at purchasing an RV park in Washington a couple of years ago, but decided against it. With the costs of electricity, sewer, water, road repairs, insurance and taxes, it would be very difficult to make a living at it. I don't begrudge these owners who are having a hard time keeping up with a park. We were told that it cost on average $50,000 PER SITE to develop an RV park.

 

I'm so glad to see this thread. I have thought for years that some of these people have lost their minds when it comes to rating a park.

"lousy wi fi, give it a 2,

Sites too small for my 90 foot motor home towing my 25 foot enclosed tool shed with nine slide outs" give it a 2.

Damn folks, some of these parks are a lot older that your modular home you are driving down the road. some of you would complain that wal marts parking lot is too small.

A lot of these parks were built back when everyone towed an airstream with a pontiac. then you want them to charge $10..00 a night and be able to enlarge the parks spots on that. get real !

If you want all the whistles and bells, go pay $60.00 a night on the west coast at some r.v. resort. better yet, stay a night at lost hills in caly, then you will have something to complain about. or at morro strand r.v. in morro bay where they built a brand new park with spaces so small you can't hardly fit your trailer in the spot, then they want you to park next to it. what a riot!

Why compain over not enough t.v. stations, get you a dish. most really bad posts i see are written by people driving huge rigs, hardly ever by someone pulling a little pop up, or even a fiver. the bigger the rig, the bigger the bitcher. (look at me, i'm important ! get out of my way, i can afford a million dollar rig)

 

QUOTE(rodeo1 @ Oct 7 2007, 06:04 PM) [snapback]8574[/snapback]

I'm so glad to see this thread. I have thought for years that some of these people have lost their minds when it comes to rating a park.

"lousy wi fi, give it a 2,

Sites too small for my 90 foot motor home towing my 25 foot enclosed tool shed with nine slide outs" give it a 2.

Damn folks, some of these parks are a lot older that your modular home you are driving down the road. some of you would complain that wal marts parking lot is too small.

A lot of these parks were built back when everyone towed an airstream with a pontiac. then you want them to charge $10..00 a night and be able to enlarge the parks spots on that. get real !

If you want all the whistles and bells, go pay $60.00 a night on the west coast at some r.v. resort. better yet, stay a night at lost hills in caly, then you will have something to complain about. or at morro strand r.v. in morro bay where they built a brand new park with spaces so small you can't hardly fit your trailer in the spot, then they want you to park next to it. what a riot!

Why compain over not enough t.v. stations, get you a dish. most really bad posts i see are written by people driving huge rigs, hardly ever by someone pulling a little pop up, or even a fiver. the bigger the rig, the bigger the bitcher. (look at me, i'm important ! get out of my way, i can afford a million dollar rig)



Dude, you just became my favorite poster.

 

There are some things that are completely out of a campground owners hands. A factory that has just opened up next door is noisy - sorry, I can't do anything about that. Trust me I've called to see if there are noise ordinances in my area...there are not.

As for size of sites - it's true, some of the campgrounds are 40-50 years old - the sites were there when we got the campground - as we put new sites in, we try to make them 40x60 minimum.

The bathrooms - keep them as clean as I can - the showers are small - sorry, again - that's the way they were built 40 years ago. As soon as I have the extra $60,000 to install new washrooms, I will but until then I will keep them as clean as I can and as updated as my budget will allow.

I read the reviews and truly wonder if people really ever know the other side of the counter when it comes to camping.

Sorry if I sound cranky here - was involved in a survey all summer and those are then things that came up a lot - thankfully there were enough nice items about the things we actually ~do~ at our campground that made up for the negatives.

What I do find from folks that review us is this - those that are "RV'ers"...full timers or long time campers tend to look for "RV parks"...we are a "campground" and cater more to the person who wants to get out and enjoy nature and life with family for a few days without wifi, satellite etc. We have decided to focus more on them and let the RV parks around us cater to the full-time RV'ers. That way everyone is happy.

 

People tick me off sometimes. If one thing goes wrong they give the campground a really low rating. You see some campgrounds with all tens and then there is one review that give the campground a one because some stupid thing happened. On resort I could have swore that the same person reviewed the campground 3 times because the reviews gave the same ratings just slightly different reasons. Now if the campground receives all 1 then there might be a problem.

 

I just read a review of a STATE park where the reviewer complained about no cable TV or WiFi. (Slap, slap, slap).

 

This is a really interesting thread. We're still relatively new to the RV life style (3 years). We have a 35 ft. Pusher and tow a Chevy HHR. I just gave a 1 to the Harpers Ferry KOA because of hammered camp sites narrow roads, and $45 per night for 30 amps with sewer.

I agree with some of the posters in this thread. Those of us driving rigs over 30 ft should find some where else to park. The folks in the Pop Ups and Trailers were having a good time. We left the next day without staying for the weekend activities.

Tonight I gave a 10 to Riverside RV Park And Resort in Sevierville, TN for level gravel sites with grass concrete patios and 50 Amp full hookups Cable and WIFI (for a fee) at $26.00 per night.

In our travels across most of the southern US, and now up to Maine and back. Some of our best Overnight stops have been at COE, State Park, and Mom and Pop Campgrounds.

Value is in the eye of the beholder. One of the most memorable stops was a roadside campground on US 50 in the middle of Nevada that only had 10 sites. But everything we needed was there.

 

QUOTE(Richard Angeli @ Oct 14 2007, 07:06 PM) [snapback]8670[/snapback]

Value is in the eye of the beholder. One of the most memorable stops was a roadside campground on US 50 in the middle of Nevada that only had 10 sites. But everything we needed was there.



That's true! Helpfullness of staff is a biggie with me. If the staff bent over backwards to be helpful, I'll take that into consideration, even if the park has "just the basics."

For a Full-timer, WiFi and Cable are a necessity, unless they are carrying a Sprint Card or whatever, and a satellite. For the part timer, those are "luxuries."

JJ

 

"DO NOT EXPECT CABLE TV OR WiFI IN A STATE PARK!!! You just get the basics! Water and Electricity! In fact, you are lucky if each site has a sewer dump! I have run into a couple State Parks in WA that have sewer dumps at each site, but that is not "norm.""

Actually, if you have *ANY* hookups in a state/fed park you should consider yourself lucky. Most CA SP's do not have water/elec/sewer. Many are getting WiFi.

"I just gave a 1 to the Harpers Ferry KOA because of hammered camp sites narrow roads, and $45 per night for 30 amps with sewer.

Tonight I gave a 10 to Riverside RV Park And Resort in Sevierville, TN for level gravel sites with grass concrete patios and 50 Amp full hookups Cable and WIFI (for a fee) at $26.00 per night."

For me, I'd have to go a long way to give a place a 1 or a 10. As someone else posted, I tend to start every place off at a "5" and adjust accordingly. To get a "1", a park would need to be in a garbage dump, at the end of an airport runway, between a freeway median near a nuclear power plant with a rail line running through it, in Kraplakistan. Or Cleveland.

Likewise, a "10" would be equally difficult. If a site was at the 50 yard line at Lambeau Field, included a Heineken hookup and Emeril Lagasse cooking your food served by Playboy Bunnies. That might get it.

Hmmmm...

Ok, nobody take my idea. I 'm going to work on a business plan.

 

I guess that is what I do, too, start with "5" and work from there. The worst I have ever stayed at, I still gave it a 5. I didn't like the location (in the middle of an industrial area, and I didn't feel safe), but it was on a great busline with good service to the city. Now, I feel someone would like that feature, so......

For me to rate a "10," it would have to have BEAUTIFUL LANDSCAPING, Spaces far apart, free cable and WiFi (but I disregard this for a state/county park...), and DO MY LAUNDRY FOR FREE! Ok, this basically means I don't ever give "10."

Now, at a State/County park, I will comment on what kind of TV reception you get, because people do like to watch their TV's (ok, speak for myself.....yeah, yeah....). But I'm not going to downgrade it for lack of cable or WiFi...

Oh, thanks for the tip that CA State Parks don't have hookups! So, now if I stay at one, I'll have to revise my "expectations" for the "experience."

Ok, I guess my ratings are based on a combination of "what type of experience is the campground trying to offer" versus "how did I like it."

For example, if it's a "high end" place (like Crown Villa Resort in Bend, OR), then I have a certain set of expectations. If it's a "Mom and Pop" place, I have a different set of expectations. If it's a State/County/Fed park, again, another set of expectations. If it's a primitive place, no hookups, well, I'm not going to downgrade for lack of hookups. You buy an RV so that you can survive without hookups if needed. A primitive place can still rate a 5, 6, 7, or 8 from me, and the difference would be whether or not I felt safe.

JJ

 

QUOTE(DXSMac @ Oct 15 2007, 02:35 PM) [snapback]8682[/snapback]


Oh, thanks for the tip that CA State Parks don't have hookups! So, now if I stay at one, I'll have to revise my "expectations" for the "experience."

JJ



Ok, let me re-state that, there actually are quite a few CA SP's that have hookups of some sort. (electric and/or water) , but I'd say the majority do not. I've noticed at a few in the area that have or are in the process of adding hookups.

But yeah, you're right. Set your own expectations accordingly before showing up.

 

I have had only three "bad" experiences, one state park and two private.

The bad experiences really had nothing to do with owners, actually there was little to no interaction with them other than check-in. For me, it's about the campgrounds themselves.

One place was obviously not reinvesting the fees into the place, it was in desparate need of repair, and for the $40 a night fee, it was clear to me the money was going elsewhere. The experience was still good because of who we were with, I was strictly rating the campground because it was in such bad condition.

The other one the place just wasn't kept clean and they did NOT enforce quiet hours, there was loud partying till after 2:30 in the morning. And when someone spilled their load in the wrong place at the dump station, 2 sites away from us, we had to smell it constantly. We left a day early because we just were miserable overall. I don't know if I would go back, some of the sites there were better than others and if I could ensure one of those, and I was say, in a fifth wheel or TT, I would consider it because of its location.

My first reviews were negative, so now with my newer reviews I'm trying to be more objective of the campground itself, not so much the overall "experience"...it's our third season and we are a little more "wise" as to what to expect and not let the little things influence our review.

I noticed two 'good' reviews of a Michigan Campground that we HATED. I tend not to like Michigan State campgrounds because I find the sites lacking and there are not enough bathroom facilities considering the number of sites, etc., they facilities aren't clean; etc. the sites are small, etc., if I'm in a pop-up and I think the sites are small I would want folks to know that. We were at Warren Dunes and I would not recommend it for larger rigs. We barely fit... it's suitable for tents and popups and smaller trailers...but that's about it. Would I go back, likely not, but I'm sure there are folks there that loved there experience and wouldn't agree with me. That's okay.

I have not had a bad experience at Indiana State parks, they are some of the best run and maintained campgrounds. I don't mind not having hookups because I'm in a pop up. I gotta have electricity tho...

I'm planning to upgrade next year and plan a trip out West in a few years. I will use this site to plan my trip. I won't be expecting too much from overnight stops...and that's what folks should keep in mind when they are reading reviews. What are you looking for in a campground? A place with tons of activities that you are going to use for a week? Or a place to safely spend the night, have a meal, and hit the road?

This is a great site, glad to be here!