Reservations

[Jammer]

Do you make campground reservations, or do you just arrive early and plan on moving to another location if there are no sites available?

If you make reservations....
-- How far in advance do you usually make them?
-- Do you follow your plan closely enough that you don't have to cancel?
-- If you cancel, do you find that you end up paying cancellation fees, or are these waived in most cases?
-- Have you been "bumped" due to overbooking even though you had a reservation?

If you don't ...
-- Are there particular locations or times of the year which you avoid due to the difficulty of finding a campsite?
-- How early in the day do you usually arrive?
-- Do you call ahead to see if space is available?
-- Do you avoid traveling on Fridays to improve your chances?
-- How often do you have to make more than one stop in search of space?
-- Have you had to resort to late night travel or campgrounds of last resort (e.g. Walmart) due to unavailability of sites?

If you make reservations at some times but not others, how do you decide?

 

[Tom]

If you use the Search feature, you'll find lots of answers to your question.

We rarely make reservations, and prefer the flexibility of being able to decide on a whim if/when to take off, or where we'll go. I'll usually call an hour or less out from what looks like our next stop, just to see if they have space; If not we'll move on to the next one.

We've never been "bumped", and only once have we been turned away from a campground when we arrived (without a reservation) late in the evening on a holiday weekend. We've never overnighted at WalMart or a truck stop.

Been RVing for 25 years.

 

[ArdraF]

We don't usually make reservations but, when we decide to stop in an hour or so, we often call to see if there are open sites where we expect to end our day.  There almost always are, especially now in the down economy.  In certain parts of the country they have fewer pull-through sites with full hookups and 50 amp electric so we're more likely to call in those areas.  That's where the Trailer Life Campground and RV Park Directory (or Woodalls) comes in handy.  It not only tells us how many sites the place has but also how many have full hookups and whether they have 50 amp.  If it's a tossup between two places that sound pretty equal and one is a Good Sam park we'll probably choose the GS park because of the Good Sam member discount.  Oh yes, the directory also has the campground phone number.

Exceptions include if we're visiting relatives or going to some special event like a reunion and want to be sure we have the nearest RV park.  Another is at the start and end of a long ferry ride such as Alaska or Newfoundland.  Other than those specific needs, we're like Tom and prefer to go on a whim.  Last summer we drove around the country in about 8,000 miles and we only ran into one full place because they had a caravan coming that would fill every available site.  We simply chose another nearby alternative.  Holidays also are more problematic and we're more likely to call then.

ArdraF

 

[Jim Dick]

We used to make reservations when we first started traveling. Now we do the same as Ardra. We try to get off the road by 4:00PM so we don't have to fight for a spot and the sun isn't low enough to be into our eyes, when traveling west.

 

[geodrake]

We too make reservations when we are visiting someone and want to stay in a specific campground.  In doing so we seldom see the intended campground full.  Most of the time we pull off the road around 3:00 without reservations.  Never has this been a problem.

 

[BernieD]

We used to make reservations when we first started traveling. Now we do the same as Ardra. We try to get off the road by 4:00PM so we don't have to fight for a spot and the sun isn't low enough to be into our eyes, when traveling west.

I think Ardra said it for many of us. Gee, it is so good to hear that now you'll be traveling west again and having to shade the sun while driving

 

[Jim Dick]

Hi Bernie,

Yes, we're excited about coming out west again although much of the time will be spent working. We hope to see as many framily members as we can. I doubt we'll stay long enough for the QZ rally since we do have commitments at home.

 

[LindaH]

We don't often stay in RV parks, but when we do, about the only time we make reservations is for one of our C2C or RPI parks which require them; otherwise, we just wing it.  We've never not been able to find a place to stay.  Of course, we're off the road early in the day...usually by 2 or 3 and always by 4.

 

[Betty Brewer]

The only reservations we make are on or around Major Holidays, July 4, Labor Day Memorial Day just to ensure our spot.  As has been said we may call ahead an hour or so before  arriving at an overnight location but that call is usually to confirm whether or not they can accomodate a 40 foot motorhome that turns like the Queen Mary.

We were once booked over a Thanksgiving weekend (Paid in advance)  in Lake Havasu for 4 days.  On  morning of day 3 the wind was so terrible that we left and were not able to get any kind of a refund.  We have not paid in advance since then.
Betty

 

[FrontrangeRVer]

We are not full timers or retired like alot of the folks that responded here.   

We both have full time careers that allows us only to take two or three week stints in our motorhome here and there. and THAT requires reservations in my opinion.  If we need to cancel, we call a day ahead of time and usually avoid the cancelation fees.  If we don't cancel in time, we aren't too concerned about the fee.

We try to only stay at places rated 7.5 or above in the Trailer Life Campgroud Directory as we prefer lots of amentities and don't have any desire to park our motorhome in Walmart parking lots or truck stops.  ;D

I usually drive at least 8 hours a day, sometimes more, and then plan ahead using the directory for a nice place to spend the night.

We've RVed since 1984, and have owned 13 RV's over the years, and we are big on reservations.

EDIT: We are going (again) to Yellowstone this Summer, and we have reserved every night for the whole trip.

 

[Tom]

We are not full timers like alot of the folks that responded here.

We're not fulltimers either, and have no plans to be. AFAIK only one fulltimer responded. We RV'd for many years while both having careers, not feeling the need for reservations. But, I understand the need to be sure of a place to stay during a well-earned, limited vacation.

 

[FrontrangeRVer]

Also, there are usually plenty of places available in the lower rated Campgrounds, but rarely empty in the higher rated Campgrounds.....it's up to you where you want to stay.

Where we stay, there are rarely any empty spots, and reservations are recommended. 

 

[Wendy]

We're part-timers, half-timers, some-timers. The only time we make reservations for a campground is when we're going to one of the busy California state parks during their season. Otherwise, we don't bother.

Wendy
Salton Sea SRA

 

[ArdraF]

We're currently retired long-timers (not full-timers) so we have a lot of flexibility, but even when we were working and had shorter vacations of limited time we seldom made reservations.  Only at very busy times or very popular places like the California parks Wendy mentioned.  The point is, each person has a comfort zone and what may be okay with us might be beyond your comfort level and that's okay.  Each of us has to live within our own comfort zone.  Try both ways and see which one works best for you.  Unless the kids have their hearts set on DisneyWorld (reservations usually required), then see what it's like to do things on a whim.  The last I heard even DisneyWorld leaves a few sites for non-reservations same-day arrivals.  Our first time there we were in that category and got a site with no problem.  It might be different today, but even back then we had been warned to make reservations - but didn't!    We were willing to go somewhere else if necessary.

ArdraF

 

[Mc2guy]

We are vacationers, which means tight schedules and usually, long drives to get wherever we're gettin' to.  As such, I do make reservations to make sure when we show up somewhere at 9pm, there is a spot for us. 

If I had a lot of time and no particular place to go, it might be different, but for now, we are generally a "destination" oriented family.  We have various friends we plan to meet up with at specific locations and will reserve adjacent spots to ensure we can be near our loved ones.

The only time we've gone without reservations, is when we've camped at some of the COE and/or state parks that do not take them.  In Virginia, first come first serve usually means you are lining up at the gate at 5am to wait for someone to leave...not my idea of fun, so we make 'em when we can.