Newbie Question: Best Memberships to Get?

[bswanson0]

Hello,

We are planning on taking our pull-behind trailer to RV campground sites to get used to it. I have seen discount site memberships that say you pay half-price, etc. for stays that are relatively short if you are a member.

What memberships do you have that you recommend because they have given you a good value in some way?

Also, for longer stays, a lot of times the discounts don't apply because it's only for a night or two or three. For longer stays, is there a membership club you recommend that gives you a discount, or what is the best way to get the best price for longer stays (a month or longer)?

Thanks in advance,

B. Swanson

[bikendan]

Passport America has always worked for us. But we don't camp on weekends, holidays nor summertime.
Some places will let you stay 5-7 nights.
Don't have Good Sam because most campgrounds that take it, also gives the same discount for AAA.

[Beachbourbon]

The best discount I’ve found is the government discount. Stay at local, state and national parks and you pay less than half what you pay for a private park. Even with all possible discounts at a private park, you still won’t get near a government campground rate.

[bikendan]

Also if you're over 62, get the America the Beautiful Senior Pass.

[smgelsie]

We prefer Corps of Engineers and National, then State parks. And with the Lifetime Senior Pass, 1/2 price is awesome. We also use Passport America for the (rare) times when we are on a long trip, and there are no National Parks, enroute. But with PA, you have to read each participating Park's specific rules about eligibility. Also, we had one PA park that jacked the rate when I told them we were hurricane evacuees!!!

[jwfrede]

Before buying a membership you should think through where you will be camping. My first year with the trailer I got Passport America because I had a couple campgrounds with PA I had planned to stay so it would pay for itself. Then plans changed and I didn't get my money's worth because my alternative campgrounds were not PA. I travel cross country to get to desired locations and have found the KOA's to be dependable places to stay on the way. So even though its just one or two nights at a time it tends to pay for itself because there are a lot at convenient locations.

[Scheinin]

I have been traveling full time, including Alaska and Canada, for the last 3 years. I found the most useful memberships are Passport America, Good Sam, and KOA. Using those 3 I have saved hundreds of dollars. Also, if you are a veteran, most places will give you a 10% discount. If you already belong to AAA, some campgrounds honor their 10%.

[Philkaty]

GS, AAA, and retired Navy

[Big Bill]

What not to get is thousand trails !☹️We got the untenable for 8,000 with the understanding we would get our money back when we retired from RVing . Not yet , still waiting

[Philkaty]

Originally Posted by bikendan

Also if you're over 62, get the America the Beautiful Senior Pass.

If your a disabled Veteran you can also get this pass no cost

[Scheinin]

Originally Posted by Big Bill

What not to get is thousand trails !☹️We got the untenable for 8,000 with the understanding we would get our money back when we retired from RVing . Not yet , still waiting

I agree. I know four couples who have thousand trails, and they hate it.

[Garrette]

If you are looking for a resort membership, check online for private membership sale before spending full ride price and save $$$$. They have their pros and cons.

[bswanson0]

Thanks for all the suggestions. I did look at Thousand Oaks and then looked at complaints and saw a lot of unhappy customers with that. I understand there are membership clubs that have many of the same campsites.

I just ordered Don Wright's book about campgrounds less than $20 a night, and they may be all national parks or state parks, as opposed to private campgrounds.

I hear that they beat the private campground prices even with the membership plans.

For those travelling for longer timeframes, has anyone had experience getting good month long rates? To avoid moving every couple days, just park and stay for a month in one location, then move to another location for another month (or longer)?

[Garrette]

Do not think this is a hijack just trying to help with another camping resource.
I do not know your camping style but, just for the shear volumn of campgrounds available in an area you may be going to, along with price estimates, affiliations, reviews, etc, give RV Trip Wizard a try. I find it very helpful just finding CG's. Also find overnight stops, fuel stops. IMHO it is the best RV trip planning tool out there.

https://www.rvtripwizard.com

[Scheinin]

Originally Posted by bswanson0

For those travelling for longer timeframes, has anyone had experience getting good month long rates? To avoid moving every couple days, just park and stay for a month in one location, then move to another location for another month (or longer)?

That is a hard question to answer, as it depends where you are in the Country. I am currently in Louisiana, where I am staying at Reunion Lake for 3 months. Very reasonable rates, until April 1st. It is one of the better campgrounds we have stayed.

[D W]

Been to quite a few GS CG's. Everyone of them has also offered AARP, AAA and Military/Veteran discounts. One CG in Oregon last year gave me both GS and Veteran discounts, and thanked me for my service!

[SailorSam20500]

What I've read is that the memberships become cost effective for folks who camp A LOT. Some have an initial buy in AND an annual fee. Think full timers or nearly so. Or folks who tend to go to the same campground regularly and are also able to deal with the max days in / out.
For us, we got the Senior National Park pass and have gotten more than our money back from that. Beyond that, we use the AAA discounts when available. Haven't stayed at KOA's enough to make them cost justified.

[SunseekerFunseekers]

Thousand Trails - we really like them...

[whj469]

How happy will you be if you paid a lot of money for a RVing membership and then you can't get reservations when or where you want them?