RV/camping clubs

[bbwvixen]

Brand new and just starting to research.
I've seen a lot of different types of memberships such as Travel America, Sam's Club, etc that offer deals on camping, such as 50% off.
Which is the best one to join? We are going to be Canadian snowbirds and heading south next winter.

 

[Rene T]

Brand new and just starting to research.
I've seen a lot of different types of memberships such as Travel America, Sam's Club, etc that offer deals on camping, such as 50% off.
Which is the best one to join? We are going to be Canadian snowbirds and heading south next winter.

I didn't know Sam's Club did that.  : :-\ We have one a mile away. I'll have too ask the next time we go shopping for food.
Maybe you meant the Good Sam Club affiliated with Camping World.  ;D

I just had to. We have fun on this forum.

Welcome to the forum.

 

[jayc2640]

We use Good Sam more than Passport America.  Not only can you get 10% of on camping, at pilot/flying j stations you can get discounts on fuel.

 

[1PlasticMan1]

I found Passport America to be very disappointing.  50% off of many RV parks that are not very good.  Feel that is why they are part of PPA, usually have a low rating.  Use Good Sam, FMCA.  Also get discounts on gas at Pilot and Flying J with Good Sam card.  Pays for itself every year.

 

[Larry N.]

I found Passport America to be very disappointing.  50% off of many RV parks that are not very good.  Feel that is why they are part of PPA, usually have a low rating.  Use Good Sam, FMCA.  Also get discounts on gas at Pilot and Flying J with Good Sam card.  Pays for itself every year.

PPA is generally good for an overnight stay (sometimes two nights), and we only use it when enroute somewhere, when we're not so concerned with how "nice" a park is as with just an inexpensive night. With lots of restrictions (which vary by the park) they're not always useful, but can help keep costs down. Good Sam's (10%/night discount) and KOA (10%/night plus "reward points") are a couple we find useful, though many parks will offer discounts if you are an FMCA member or an AARP member.

 

[Isaac-1]

Personally I only use Good Sam's for the 10% discount, at $35+ per night it does not take long to pay for itself, which is almost universally accepted at privately owned campgrounds (excluding KOA which has their own loyalty club).  I have considered getting passport america, and it might be worth it if I travelled with overnight stops more, as it is I average only 70-80 nights per year in the coach.  Note passport america parks tend to have lots of unique restrictions on when you can use the 50% off discount, usually only good on the single night rate, sometimes only on week days, or during the off season, ...

 

[malexander]

I don't know if Good Sam has a lifetime membership any more or not. 22 years ago, when we bought our first RV, we bought a lifetime Good Sam membership. IIRC it was about $900.00. I feel like we've gotten our money's worth out of it.

 

[decaturbob]

I have Good Sams and KOA. Been fine to use.

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

The pros and cons of GS and PPA camping clubs have been covered.  We always found both useful, but you have to spend more than a few weekends on the road to get any benefit from them (we did 150-175 nights/year).  Further, if your camping style leans more toward state and federal parks or boondocking, you won't get much benefit at all.  Neither is real expensive so not much of a gamble, but I wouldn't be in a hurry to join either one until I developed a feel for the places I would be camping.

You mentioned being snowbirds. Most such spend weeks at a time in one place once they hit the target region.  Discount club rates rarely apply to longer term stays - you generally get a discount as part of the extended stay rate.  And sometimes in prime snowbird country, there are no discounts at all simply because the parks fill up every winter anyway. The nicer ones may even have waiting lists or are booked a year in advance.

 

[mrschwarz]

We are Good Sam members for the discount. We usually join Passport America when we can justify it with an immediate discount. Then, we'll use it until it expires and it may be a year or two before we renew again.