1st time Snowbirding in Florida 2019

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Kemo

Kemo

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Joined
Feb 2, 2018
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Macomb,Mi
Planning on doing a "tour" of campgrounds/resorts in Florida next Jan-Mar 2019.  We were going to plan a month long stay for each month but now we don't think we want to be locked into a location if we don't like it.  So now we're thinking about maybe 2 to 3 weeks at different camprounds to get the feel for Florida.  (our first time)  So the question is should we try to book this far ahead or can we get sites on the road next year?  Looking for some voice of experience.  Areas we'd like to checkout are Ft. Meyers for first leg, Orlando for second leg, and maybe Jacksonville for the last leg.  Any suggestions or recommendations welcome really. 
 
Good plan. I would start reserving your sites now. Florida is probably the most popular snowbirding destination in the US. Orlando is the number one tourist destination in the country with 60 million tourists a year (NY=55 mill, LV=40 mill). However you really should rent a month in each place. The typical RV park charges something like $35 a night, $175 a week and $325 a month. Staying by the week is expensive. I love my park, but it is usually filled all winter since the rates are cheap and it is close to the mouse. It is called The Floridian. I think your best bet is to stay near Orlando. It is centrally located in the state and there is a jillion things to do here.
 
SeilerBird said:
Good plan. I would start reserving your sites now. Florida is probably the most popular snowbirding destination in the US. Orlando is the number one tourist destination in the country with 60 million tourists a year (NY=55 mill, LV=40 mill). However you really should rent a month in each place. The typical RV park charges something like $35 a night, $175 a week and $325 a month. Staying by the week is expensive. I love my park, but it is usually filled all winter since the rates are cheap and it is close to the mouse. It is called The Floridian. I think your best bet is to stay near Orlando. It is centrally located in the state and there is a jillion things to do here.
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Thanks Birdman!
 
  If you haven't made reservations yet you're out of luck. If you're going to do weeklies you're looking at $1,000 to $2,000 a month, if you can find them. Seriously. And Bird's numbers are out of date; while there are undoubtedly secret spots charging $325 the majority have seen the suckers coming and they've changed to big bucks.

  You might want to consider Texas.
 
We also live in Central Florida and agree there is a Jillion things to do. But the different parts of Florida are very different in terrain, lifestyles, climate, plants and animals.

If we were visiting Florida for the first time and wanted to really see it,  this is what we would do:

Start with a month in Orlando/Central Florida. As we are the #1 Tourist Destination, it gets crowded here starting in February. So start here in January and get out before the crowds arrive.

Next we would spend 2 to 3 weeks near Ft Myers or a little further south of there, but east of 75. Then you can make a base there and see Ft Myers/Naples and also the Everglades and Lake Okeechobee.

Next would be a week or two in the Keys. If you stay near Marathon then you are in the middle of the Keys to take day trips to Islamorada and Key West and all the other Keys. John Pennecamp State Park is not to be miseed.

Then work your way north to the Vero Beach area for maybe a week to visit Melbourne, Cocoa Beach, Ft Pierce.

Then a week in St Augustine, the oldest city in the USA. So much history there.  And you can take a day trip to Jacksonville.

Lastly we would spend a week in the Panhandle. We highly recommend Topsail Hill Preserve State Park.

Definitely start making reservations now. All of our state and county parks are very reasonably priced, so they fill up very fast. Even the commercial campgrounds will be filling up soon.

Good luck and if you are in Central Florida in January, we have a mini-rally in Lakeland. It will most likely be the 3rd week in January and a notice will be posted in the Rally Section of this Forum. Maybe we'll get to meet in person.
 
I have shopped parks in the Fort Myers area for friends coming down and found the cheapest to be $800/month with an average of about $1,200, some as high as $1,800. And these parks will book out completely long before season begins. The problem you're going to have is going up against return visitors who make their reservations for the following year when they pack up and leave this year.  There are a number of parks that won't even quote a weekly rate or give the seventh day free. Good luck.
 
johnhicks said:
  If you haven't made reservations yet you're out of luck. If you're going to do weeklies you're looking at $1,000 to $2,000 a month, if you can find them. Seriously. And Bird's numbers are out of date; while there are undoubtedly secret spots charging $325 the majority have seen the suckers coming and they've changed to big bucks.

  You might want to consider Texas.
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My numbers are not out of date, they are the current prices where I am staying.
 
I've spent nearly 9 winters in Florida and while you can careen around without reservations, it's extremely frustrating. I know I tried that for 2 winters.

The closer you are to major cities the higher the rents. Ditto for closer to coastal areas or main attractions. Florida has tons to do where ever you go.

Make reservations now, maybe 1-2 weeks or a month at a time. There is NO rule of thumb how parks price and discount for longevity. It's all over the place!

Some parks are overstocked with pricey amenities while others have a lot less. While some parks will dip as low as $300 a month for rent, those are typically for annual rents. There are people who find a park they love so much, they just pay the annual rent and leave their rig year round, then visit it when the mood strikes them.

I've also noticed a trend in many snowbirders that are not off-season do-it-yourselfers (on maintenance etc.) tend to store their rigs in Florida year round then move them to their reserved parks when they arrive for winter.

Because snowbirders tend to be an older crowd, every year folks die or get too ill to travel, so the parks have winter vacancies to fill at odd times. So it's worth checking back every few weeks to see if anything has opened up in future reservations.

Last summer I bought an RV lot yet I had prepaid for an upcoming winter in another park. I knew my friends had a crummy spot reserved, so I called them up to take my nicer reserved spot. We then did a conference call to the RV park to see about cancelling my reservation but transferring my friends to the lot, so I was able to get a refund and they were able to nail down the spot with their funds. The park still stuck me with a $20 processing fee, but my friends were thrilled to get a great spot before it was snatched up by someone else.

Florida is a year round destination but Jan-Feb-Mar are definitely packed with snowbirds and those without reservations are moving around every few days and sometimes boondocking which can be very difficult to find in Florida. I spent some spring and fall time careening around so I could see more areas and enjoy more parks on a trial basis in case I wanted to return for longer stays in the winter.

I have visited many RV parks I wasn't staying out so I could see what they had to offer and if I wanted to stay there in the future. Typically I asked if I could park and walk around, only one place in 8 years said no. The others I took my doggy on a walk around the park, so I could get a closer look and feel for the place. Hey, if the dog didn't like it, I didn't either.  ::)

Some parks will let you do a drive around to look-see others don't want the extra traffic, hence me asking if I could walk around rather than drive.

Good luck. Think outside the box and you will find reservations available.  ;)

 
We have gone to Florida for the month of December for the last 4 years and get out at the end of the month.  I have decided I do not like Florida and will be heading directly for the RGV in Texas when we leave home this November.  There are no problems finding a nice park to stay at, without reservations, and the prices are half what you will pay in Florida.  We will spend December and January there, then move further west, stopping wherever we feel like.  4 months on the road ending this past weekend, we did not have one time where a park was full.  I like low stress trips.
 
Pete & Sandy
We will be down in Tx in February this Winter I just want to check and see if it would still be ok to make a reservation on the fly or should we plan to make them now. Going to be traveling down the gulf area for a month or so

Thank you

Sherry
 
johnhicks said:
  If you haven't made reservations yet you're out of luck. If you're going to do weeklies you're looking at $1,000 to $2,000 a month, if you can find them. Seriously. And Bird's numbers are out of date; while there are undoubtedly secret spots charging $325 the majority have seen the suckers coming and they've changed to big bucks.

  You might want to consider Texas.
Click to expand...
My numbers are not out of date, I just paid rent a few days ago. Still $375 for this park and we do have a few spaces available.
 
    Here is the link to the website of where we used to stay in St Pete, it is a nice clean park with lots of activities, and you will see it is between $600 and $700 monthly: https://robertsrv.com/winter-rates/
    We enjoy the area, it is close to the beaches, lots of excellent restaurants, pro sports, and good shopping and golf.

Ed
 
Hfx_Cdn said:
    Here is the link to the website of where we used to stay in St Pete, it is a nice clean park with lots of activities, and you will see it is between $600 and $700 monthly: https://robertsrv.com/winter-rates/
    We enjoy the area, it is close to the beaches, lots of excellent restaurants, pro sports, and good shopping and golf.

Ed
Click to expand...

Ed, we may look at that one next year. We're good for this winter by rumor has it that our rates are going to up sky high again for next winter. Right now, we're paying the fall rate for the entire season. But next year, the rates are going to go up to what ever they are in January.
Do you know if they allow pets?
 
Dream Chasers said:
We also live in Central Florida and agree there is a Jillion things to do. But the different parts of Florida are very different in terrain, lifestyles, climate, plants and animals.

Good luck and if you are in Central Florida in January, we have a mini-rally in Lakeland. It will most likely be the 3rd week in January and a notice will be posted in the Rally Section of this Forum. Maybe we'll get to meet in person.
Click to expand...

We might be interested in meeting up with you all in january!  How soon will those plans be made.?
 
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