What I hate and love about campgrounds

[BandJCarm]

Feel free to chime in. I doubt any of them read this either, but just for idle chit chat.............. I guess this is really about mostly private campgrounds. Boondockers and COE campgrounds might not really apply, but feel free to include any of them.

What I love about campgrounds:

-Wide spacious sites.
-Online pictures of the actual campsites, not just the clubhouse.
-Fair pricing.
-Website with all info, including costs, and availability calendars.


What I hate about campgrounds:
-Websites that make you fill out a form to 'request' a space, no rate info.
-Campgrounds that require cash only (such as for Passport rates)
-Ones that have a huge acreage, but each site is crammed together.
-Sites that COULD be leveled with work, but are very unlevel.


I guess there's also things I'm ambivalent about. Things like how great their 'store' is, or even whether they have one. I have satellite, so never interested in their cable tv selections (many will have opposite opinion, I realize). With a full hookup, don't really care about their bathrooms either.

Can't really complain about how close or far they are from This or That attraction, not in their control........or if there are trains nearby, etc.

Disagree, agree, or add your own.

[SeaDog]

Mine is a campground website that shows this great big place and its really small just the way they took the picture.

[ependydad]

My only real beef is when the campsite is leveled such that the door is the low side. It means my steps have to be further off of the ground and harder to use.

[KWhite2018]

I love that when camping I don’t think about doing chores or working in yard! It also gives me permission to have a few more drinks.

I hate a crowded campground where 40 20yr olds show up and party and take over your space! True story over the 4th.

[Wiscampsin]

I like camping during the week. I don't like camping on the weekends. I know most people work but I'm lucky enough to be retired and DW has 5 weeks paid vacation a year plus she uses all her comp time during the summer so it works for us.

[JohnD10]

Private campgrounds like KOA's and such are not campgrounds...but are really called 'RV Parks'.

That being said, I was in an RV park in Golden, Colorado in June where the grounds keeper was mowing the lawn under my 5'ver at 5:30 am.

WHAT?

Next up...rude park employees!

I needed one more day in town, but this place was booked, so I found another place with a spot open in south Denver and went there...

Big mistake!

Minutes after I backed my 5'ver into the site, one of the grounds guys started working on the sprinkler head on the corner of my site, and when I came out of the 5'ver I almost slipped on the stairs because this guy had that sprinkler head blasting water and got my steps and the whole front of my RV all soaking wet.

WHAT?

But to make matters worse, I had all of my basement doors open and EVERYTHING in my basement was completely soaked!

When I asked him to shut the water off he said to me (exact words, although some will be bleeped)...

"Leave me the F$&@ alone...can't you see I'm busy? I know what the F$&@ I'm doing!"

And when I said..."Obviously you don't because you've soaked everything in my basement!"

He replied..."What does it matter? It's only camping stuff!"

Uhhh...well...no.

My basement was full of about $20,000 worth of electronics gear as I was on my way home from DJing at a camping rally!

And when I brought this matter up to the management, they replied, "Leave him alone...we can't afford to loose him!".

WWHHAATTTTTTTT!!!!!

I unfortunately had to stay there a week later on my way through Denver again as it was the only place that had a space available (gee, I wonder why), and they were even ruder to me that time than the first!

Too many words to type right now...

Other bad things about many RV parks...

Bad power pedestals, strange layout of hookups, low tree branches and railroad ties along the edges of the RV site that just love to tear up our tires.

[AudiDudi]

Fair Pricing = about $40/nt or less. But I see more and more over that lately. $50/nt they better tuck me in and leave a mint on the pillow

If they won't list their rates I do my best to find another local site that does.

I like decent *free* WiFi - don't need to stream, but a little surfing and getting email is nice without waiting 10 minutes.

The sites with the availability calendars are great! Shifting 1 or 2 nights is usually doable.

I don't mind cash only, especially if there is a discount.

I use Google Maps in Satellite view to see the actual sites.

Train tracks 100 ft away are a turnoff.

As for TV, I carry enuf stuff on flash drives that I really don't care.

[merrykalia]

We are currently at a large campground in the OBX of North Carolina. Apparently, you MUST have either a bicycle or a golf cart to get around! It is dangerous to attempt to walk on the roads to get from the back to the front of the campground where the store and pool are.

The golf carts, mostly operated by adults at 25-30 mph, even in the dark with no lights are a hazard and kids and adults ride their bicycles until 11pm and there is not a lot of light on the roads.

That's my rant for the evening.

[stormer]

Only got 49 days camping, but my list is growing. lol

1. Rude neighbors who park their golf cart in front of my rv.
2. Poorly designed black tank layout so that each campsite gets a beutiful view of the next RVs black tank hose... really? I currently have to walk under the awning of our neighbor to pull my valves. Poor design.
3. Golf cart stereos blasting music...
4. Having to drive a mile to dump trash.
5. Do i need to mention over priced sucky internet?

Im sure the list will grow.

James

[RVBuff]

X2 on the pictures. It's OK to show the clubhouse, the fishing lakes and the flower gardens, but what I really want to see are the places where I'm going to park.

[scubajosh77]

Golf carts

Get off your fat butt and walk.

[Reverse_snowbird]

What we love:

- Level sites
- Utilities close to rig, dependable electric
- Wide sites, but that's unusual in rv parks
- Lots of cable tv channels on rainy days
- Handicapped bathrooms
- Easy in and out of campgrounds, signs showing the exit route
- Trees trimmed high enough for rvs to prevent damage
- Picnic table at campsite
- Friendly hosts

[DreiHunde]

What we love:
Going

What we hate:
Leaving

[Triple SS]

I love space and trees between campsites. Level sites. Clean sites.

I hate when other campers do not pick up after their dogs and bring them to my site to do their business. Yes it does happen. Dh ran kid away twice because he was bringing his dog to our site to do business. Do they not understand that is problematic to wildlife. Sorry can get on a tangent because of this

[jking46]

Everything stated so far is precisely why I avoid private campgrounds at all costs.
Add one more reason...the private campgrounds are normally geared toward seasonal campers. I get the impression us weekenders and vacationers are looked on as necessary evils. They don't really want us and the seasonals make that clear.
State parks for me.

[bikendan]

We avoid a lot of the "hate" issues by avoiding summer, weekend and holiday camping.
Even before we retired, we only camped during the week and in Spring and Fall.

[CurtPutnam]

Things we dislike:

Sewer hookups well above ground (pet peeve)
Parks that do not enforce quiet hours
Spaces too small or tree encroached to run out slides and awnings
Inconsiderate neighbors
State/county parks too small for our trailer (almost all)

Things we like:

Getting out
Seeing the country

[Cowracer]

I love my early morning walks through the campground with my dog and a cup of coffee. You meet some really nice people that way.

I hate tearing down. It's just so sad to pack it all away.

Tim

[DRM796]

We love everything about camping.
But we stay away from campgrounds that are more than 40% seasonal. They tend to treat you like outsiders. Prefer to give our money to places that appreciate it.
Cant's stand when the dump station or sewer hookup requires you to keep lifting your hose to get it to drain. Everyone knows poop runs down hill. Who looks at this and says yea that'll work?
Don't have a lot a patients for inconsiderate people but that's not isolated to camping, that's everywhere.

[Mount Kidd Fanatic]

Totally agree on the sewer drain being well above the ground. That makes zero sense.

I REALLY hate these knuckleheads who, despite multiple warning signs and threats of fines that they are in bear country and need to keep their campsite clean, still leave food, coolers, garbage and other attractants out so that bears wander into the campsite. More often than not these bears are then shot and killed all because some moron was too lazy to secure their stuff.