RV Parks Occupancy

[Texas Clodhopper]

We've been traveling for a month and we have yet to stay in a full park. The parks have been anywhere from 50% to 90% full and albeit they aren't exclusive resorts they have all been excellent parks in desirable areas. We have already decided that next year we will go back to the pre covid travel by the seat of our pants style.

We are in Berlin, Ohio at Scenic Hills RV Park, and at 5 PM on Sunday, the park is approximately 30% full. Friday and Saturday nights it was approximately 75% full.

 

[Texas Clodhopper]

I would be interested to hear what others are finding.

 

[Jim]

I would be interested to hear what others are finding.

Wow, you are in Ohio? You aren't letting any grass grow under that rig!

We are at 60% right now, but in a few days we will be full.

 

[TheLooks]

Here on the Tennessee River in my work area we are generally full on the weekends and not during the week. I just booked 4 nights at the Harrison Bay State Park this afternoon. In the more desirable area of the park to boot. Personally, I think the cost of travel etc. has curtailed many campers.

 

[AbdRahim]

I have not been out in the last few months. I have seen the very popular campgrounds fill up on weekends. During the week only 30 to 50% occupancy at most.

 

[LMHS]

Last week, the local state park was almost empty during the week. Maybe 25% full. Going Reservation only might of had something to do with that. We were also there for July 4th and it was about 50% full. BUT that was also weekday not the previous weekend. I live in a mostly permanents park with a few overnight slots available. At best, there have been 4 overnighters at one time. Often none. The new owners aren't real happy. They should have kept the Passport America discount going.

While there are pretty much always RV's in the Walmart parking lot, The normal amount simply aren't there. Not even for the Spring migration. Fewer RVs in the lots and parks? I can't decide if the numbers are truly dropping or if it's because of the heat. But triple digit heat is our normal for NM.

 

[bpaikman]

We've been traveling for a month and we have yet to stay in a full park. The parks have been anywhere from 50% to 90% full and albeit they aren't exclusive resorts they have all been excellent parks in desirable areas. We have already decided that next year we will go back to the pre covid travel by the seat of our pants style.

We are in Berlin, Ohio at Scenic Hills RV Park, and at 5 PM on Sunday, the park is approximately 30% full. Friday and Saturday nights it was approximately 75% full.

We're seeing the same thing - this park we're in right now is beautiful and cheap. We're enjoying the privacy (park is about 30% maybe? - not sure because we're all spread out
Except for the 60% occupancy at "sold-out-for-months" Cheyenne Mountain SP, we've been seeing about 30%. At the beautiful all-paved fairly new Aspen Grove RV Park in Utah, maybe 20% occupied. We thought it was because it's expensive, and too hot, the new trees won't do any good for 10 years.
But this gorgeous state park we're in now is sparsely occupied - warm, but comfortable in the shade. Mid 60s at night. We're amazed. (Three River Crossing SP in Idaho).
Unfortunately the interpretive center is only open 9-4, we have to miss it this time.
We're not seeing a lot of rigs on the road either.

 

[Admiral Jarok]

We've been traveling for a month and we have yet to stay in a full park. The parks have been anywhere from 50% to 90% full and albeit they aren't exclusive resorts they have all been excellent parks in desirable areas. We have already decided that next year we will go back to the pre covid travel by the seat of our pants style.

We are in Berlin, Ohio at Scenic Hills RV Park, and at 5 PM on Sunday, the park is approximately 30% full. Friday and Saturday nights it was approximately 75% full.

We have a permanent campsite at a small campground in PA. For the last 3 years it ould be 100% full on the weekends and about 50% during the week. This year it's at about 50% on the weekends. Holiday weekends are not even filled

 

[LMHS]

I wonder if a large number of the COVID buyers have decided that they prefer their hotel/motels with the restaurants for every meal. I imagine many of the people who typically cooked all the meals at home, still did most or all of the cooking on their RV vacations. So it's not much of a vacation for them. But it's hard to cook a meal in a hotel room with only an under powered microwave. So basically, no cooking for them in hotel/motels. That was a common complaint amongst new RVer/Campers (mostly from the women who still do the bulk of the household chores).

I'll never forget the family we once met in a National Forest park. The husband and kids LOVED "camping". He watched TV and slept, the kids ran wild and the wife? She spent all her time cooking and cleaning up the mess everyone else made. She HATED the camper and it was a good sized one. She kept asking me how to torch it and how I managed in our little pop up with a husband, two kids, a big dog and a cat. I told her. I wasn't a domestic diva. Everybody chips in all the time, at home and camping. We camped so much that the kids didn't differentiate between the house and the popup.

I don't think her husband was happy with my husband after he verified what I had said was what we actually did. My kids were cooking their own lunches on the cooktop and in the microwave by the time they were in the 1st grade (6yo). In headstart (2 yrs @4-5yo), they would help cook breakfast for the other early kids (with my permission - the cook was an old neighbour) and set the table so the cook wouldn't have to do that job.

I have often wondered if they ever got it sorted out or if they sold the camper. I suspect the latter, based on the amount of other miserable women I've met who ended up working harder during their "vacation" than they did at home.

 

[Joe Hogan]

wonder if a large number of the COVID buyers have decided that they prefer their hotel/motels with the restaurants for every meal. I imagine many of the people who typically cooked all the meals at home, still did most or all of the cooking on their RV vacations. So it's not much of a vacation for them. But it's hard to cook a meal in a hotel room with only an under powered microwave. So basically, no cooking for them in hotel/motels. That was a common complaint amongst new RVer/Campers (mostly from the women who still do the bulk of the household chores).

You are probably correct. Camping is not as "easy" and "Carefree" as it is promoted to be.

 

[Kevin D Pem]

I wonder if a large number of the COVID buyers have decided that they prefer their hotel/motels with the restaurants for every meal. I imagine many of the people who typically cooked all the meals at home, still did most or all of the cooking on their RV vacations. So it's not much of a vacation for them. But it's hard to cook a meal in a hotel room with only an under powered microwave. So basically, no cooking for them in hotel/motels. That was a common complaint amongst new RVer/Campers (mostly from the women who still do the bulk of the household chores).

I'll never forget the family we once met in a National Forest park. The husband and kids LOVED "camping". He watched TV and slept, the kids ran wild and the wife? She spent all her time cooking and cleaning up the mess everyone else made. She HATED the camper and it was a good sized one. She kept asking me how to torch it and how I managed in our little pop up with a husband, two kids, a big dog and a cat. I told her. I wasn't a domestic diva. Everybody chips in all the time, at home and camping. We camped so much that the kids didn't differentiate between the house and the popup.

I don't think her husband was happy with my husband after he verified what I had said was what we actually did. My kids were cooking their own lunches on the cooktop and in the microwave by the time they were in the 1st grade (6yo). In headstart (2 yrs @4-5yo), they would help cook breakfast for the other early kids (with my permission - the cook was an old neighbour) and set the table so the cook wouldn't have to do that job.

I have often wondered if they ever got it sorted out or if they sold the camper. I suspect the latter, based on the amount of other miserable women I've met who ended up working harder during their "vacation" than they did at home.

She probably was asked to put another log on the fire at home too!!! I'll bet it was much the same on all trips, not just RVing.

 

[AbdRahim]

It is like everything else. one has to find what fits them and the style which they prefer. Camping, fishing, boating, - none of it is for everyone. If Iwere restricted to a weekend, I would not like camping either.

 

[bpaikman]

I wonder if a large number of the COVID buyers have decided that they prefer their hotel/motels with the restaurants for every meal. I imagine many of the people who typically cooked all the meals at home, still did most or all of the cooking on their RV vacations. So it's not much of a vacation for them. But it's hard to cook a meal in a hotel room with only an under powered microwave. So basically, no cooking for them in hotel/motels. That was a common complaint amongst new RVer/Campers (mostly from the women who still do the bulk of the household chores).

I'll never forget the family we once met in a National Forest park. The husband and kids LOVED "camping". He watched TV and slept, the kids ran wild and the wife? She spent all her time cooking and cleaning up the mess everyone else made. She HATED the camper and it was a good sized one. She kept asking me how to torch it and how I managed in our little pop up with a husband, two kids, a big dog and a cat. I told her. I wasn't a domestic diva. Everybody chips in all the time, at home and camping. We camped so much that the kids didn't differentiate between the house and the popup.

I don't think her husband was happy with my husband after he verified what I had said was what we actually did. My kids were cooking their own lunches on the cooktop and in the microwave by the time they were in the 1st grade (6yo). In headstart (2 yrs @4-5yo), they would help cook breakfast for the other early kids (with my permission - the cook was an old neighbour) and set the table so the cook wouldn't have to do that job.

I have often wondered if they ever got it sorted out or if they sold the camper. I suspect the latter, based on the amount of other miserable women I've met who ended up working harder during their "vacation" than they did at home.

oh my! I think back on my childhood camping days in our very simple trailer (zero power, zero built-ins) with our family of 6. I remember my job was blowing up air mattresses for everyone with some sort of hand pump. We all had to pitch in, but Mom cooked - I don't recall she hated it. We didn't have a 'rig' - our trailer was nothing more than a carrier with a tent attached. She cooked on a coleman stove and sometimes used a campfire reflector oven thing, I think, for biscuits.
We lived well for the times. I remember anfamily nearby that was amazed at our bacon and eggs breakfast - they had canned soup.

 

[Neemer]

I remember my job was blowing up air mattresses for everyone with some sort of hand pump.

You were glamping. I blew ours up by mouth. It was good lung development for the marathons I would later run though.

 

[bpaikman]

You were glamping. I blew ours up by mouth. It was good lung development for the marathons I would later run though.

All six?! And I was about 6-8 years old.

 

[Jim]

Everyone I know that has an RV Park, is down by 70% this month. Sure, things will pick up in the fall months, but it's a bit concerning that there is such a decline in visitors.

It's got to be a scary place to be for park owners, but even worse for those companies who are building RV's.

 

[Rosy]

Everyone I know that has an RV Park, is down by 70% this month. Sure, things will pick up in the fall months, but it's a bit concerning that there is such a decline in visitors.

It's got to be a scary place to be for park owners, but even worse for those companies who are building RV's.

Doesn't seem to be down here at all. Jasper and Banff are full all summer. Tried to get into a small campground near where we live and all that was available was Sunday to Friday.

 

[Texas Clodhopper]

Everyone I know that has an RV Park, is down by 70% this month. Sure, things will pick up in the fall months, but it's a bit concerning that there is such a decline in visitors.

It's got to be a scary place to be for park owners, but even worse for those companies who are building RV's.

Jim, we're finding the same results. A few parks are close to capacity on Friday and Saturday and then 50% or less during the week. I wonder if prices are changing? Since I made reservations months ago, I have know way of knowing. We've already decided next year we will not make reservations except for holidays.

Interestingly enough, I have found it difficult getting space at a few Harvest Host locations.

 

[MemoriesByTheMile]

We just traveled from western WY to MO and were able to make last minute changes to reservations without any issues. For the first time since starting RVing 4 years ago we used campgrounds for overnights.
Was shocked that campgrounds had no issues accommodating us, even for specific sites that are long enough for our rig.

 

[Texas Clodhopper]

We stayed at a Wally World in Ironwood, MI last night. Five motorhomes, three fifth wheels, and four bumper pulls.

On the road again for a week in Ely, MN.