This can get complicated

[Rodbuster]

Today, while I was putting around outside, my wife spent about 7 hours on the computer trying to plan and map out our first "mega trip" in our new RV for this summer. I guess she tried her best to incoorporate the "Gillette Rally" in this trip but she told me that because of specific dates where we have to be someplace, that it just wasn't possible.

Anyways, our trip will begin the last week of May leaving from the Daytona Beach area and taking us to the very northwest part of Montana where we will be spending some time with family. From there we will be crossing the northern states on our way to New Hampshire to spend a couple of weeks with more family, and then take a few more days to head back to Florida. I guess we're looking at "about" a 2 1/2 month trip.

Being VERY NEW to all of this, we have questions on how we should make (or not make) reservations at different camp grounds.
We know that we should make reservations at or near National Parks.... but what about the 1000 miles in between a favorite destination? Should we make reservations at about every 300 or 400 mile intervals or should we take our chances and maybe end up in a Wal-Mart parking lot?

I'm sure some of your answers will lead me to more questions, but it's a start that will help us very much.

One more thing. Has anybody stayed at Colter Bay Village RV Park in GrandTeton National Park...and if you did, would you recommend it?

I thank you very much for any help.
Dick

 

[TedS]

When we travel from point A to point B, I check Woodall's the evening before and pick out a few possible stopping places. Call about 1 to 4 hours before getting near a stop to make sure there will be a spot for the night. Haven't had any problems. That gives us a flexible driving day without having a must-stop reservation.

 

[Invizatu]

Dick... We too are going to the Tetons (after the gillette rally). Check out RVreviews.com for Colter Bay Village and any others you might consider.
We plan a few places and book ahead but leave some traveling "on the fly" and if we end up at a flying j or walmart, no big deal. Half the fun is getting there?
We try to arrive mid week when there are no reservations, we basically book a week end arrival or a holiday. Good luck!

 

[TravelTiger]

We are planners. We try to make reservations. But, that's just us. Against our better judgement, we've probably not stopped, when we should have, a few times.

We research locations way in advance (rvreviews.com), and usually pick the KOA if there is a choice. Our trip to Gillette is still in the planning stage, haven't booked anything yet. Hope to in the next week or so. Have not had to stop at a Wal-Mart yet. If the stop is just for overnight, the requirements for the park are less strenuous.

Sounds like fun! Enjoy!

 

[danemayer]

Dick,

I make reservations all along the way. I plot the route looking for a park every 375 miles. Often, there's no suitable park on the planned route at that precise distance, so I'll go + or - 25 miles to find a suitable place.

"Suitable" usually means 50Amp full hookup long enough for 39' RV plus tow vehicle, preferably a pull-thru. Last summer, we drove 6000 miles around the country including Montana and had temps near 100 most of the time. I want 50Amps to run both A/C units and other appliances. In 2010, we got off course one afternoon and ended up staying overnight at a truck stop. Fired up the generator for about 12 hours to run the A/C and went through most of a 40# LP tank. The LP cost as much or more than an overnight at most campgrounds.

I usually start with the Woodall's CD from 2011. Sams Club also has route planning that lets you search, and provides ratings. I look at those ratings, but I've learned to trust the user reviews at http://rvparkreviews.com/

 

[Invizatu]

rvparkreviews.com..... what they said!

 

[tweber]

I am planing a trip west to AZ, NV, CA, and then WY for the rally and back east to WI. I found by using www.freecampgrounds.com and www.casinocamper.com
I was able to save $. Some places and casinos have full hook ups other have no hookups, but I am only staying for the night. Just a suggestion to help you save $ as you plan your trip. I was also able to get reservation at Passport America CG, and saved enough to pay for the membership in Passport America at the first extended stay CG. Good luck.

 

[2psnapod1]

I am a planner (I plan - he drives) so we tend to make reservations especially if we plan to stay a 2 or more nights. Depending on the weather we will overnight at a Pilot or Walmart...if it's too hot or too cold we'd rather be comfortable and pay for a full-hook up.

We try to stay around 350 miles per day. I figure out where that 350 lands us and begin looking for parks that can accommodate our 41 ft coach. I usually try to have a few options, just in case. To save some $$ I look for military campgrounds or parks that offer military, Good Sam, or Passport America discounts.

Michael retires October 1 (but we are heading out on leave August 11th) and I have reservations up to December 1 at this point. I also pretty much know where we'll be until June of 2013...but know reservations at this point...they won't be made for a few months yet!

 

[recumbent615]

as many people have said - I also book my Point A, B, C ( where I plan to be for more than an overnight ) and the way points I use an application on my phone - "All Stays - Camp and RV" it uses the current location and shows a map of the area Campgrounds - and if I plan on driving a bit more I can just scroll the map and it will show me more CG and how far they are from my current location... I have an Apple but I believe that is is available for droid as well as the PC. I'm also not averse to using truck stops and Waly-mart ( the program also lists them - and details if overnight parking is allowed ).


I have always felt that sleep is far more important than a proper campground for a way-point stop.

Happy travels - and remember a little well planned spontaneity is good for you !!

Kevin

 

[ziggy]

I just looked for that app at the app store but the closest I found was Allstay Camp and RV-Tent. Is that the one you are talking about? It is 5.99 for the full version.

Kristy

 

[57chevyconvt]

Just returned to Texas from a month's stay in Ft. Lauderdale. Used the Trailer Life Directory, Campground Navigator on CD as a planning tool. Can purchase this software program for Good Sam. I am also a member of Pass Port America whick will save you about 50% off of the normal rate. Passport America and Camp Club USA have recently merged, therefore the number of RV parks honoring the PA card has been greatly expanded. Passport America has a website that is also a trip planner. I believe that Passport America, Good Sam, and Camping World are all owned by the same Corporation. I set the distance and/or hours to travel and let the Travel Navigator software do the approximate location of where we will spend the night. Don't know about other states, but in Texas some of the cities have RV camp grounds that are free or maybe $10.00 per night for a few days stay.
Trip planning used to be a real pain, at least for me, but now I can do a lot of RV park shopping via the Internet and softwar programs. Kinda fun now a days to plan a trip.

 

[recumbent615]

Ziggy,

yes that is the one -

 

[TXBobcat]

I just looked for that app at the app store but the closest I found was Allstay Camp and RV-Tent. Is that the one you are talking about? It is 5.99 for the full version.

Kristy

I just downloaded the Allstay Camp & RV App. It is real cool. It also has clearance heights. What I would like to do is select things I do not want to see, such as lodge sites. I am not a member of lodges.

I use Microsoft Streets & Trips to plot a route and find campgrounds. Here is a sample of the campgrounds around Dallas - Fort Worth TX as shown on Streets & Trips.




The Allstay will give me another way of looking up campgrounds. We don't stay just one night anywhere, this eliminates using WallMarts but it does show Wallmarts. We are not in Vacation mode, so we only travel anywhere from near by campgrounds up to 250 miles. Only under special circumstances will we travel over 300 miles and we only travel on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Only under special circumstances will we travel on any other day. This way we can relax and see a little bit of the area were we are staying.

BC

 

[Wharton]

We rarely make reservations unless it is a holiday weekend, don't like to be locked into a schedule. Part of the advantages of RV for us is no schedule. When something interesting appears or bad weather we just pull over for the night. Campground amenities aren't important, we have our own house. All we look for is a pull-thru and 30 amps(prefer 50). We have a generator if we need to boondock. We travel with full water so all we really need to do is plug in. In travel mode we rarely unhitch. Just pull in and set up.

We travel about 300 miles a day, rarely more. Around 1 PM DW looks for a CG and calls ahead if we feel it is needed. We generally know where we are going in a gross way but deviations do occur. We had a brake failure in Amarillo on a Saturday and ended up staying until Tuesday. No big deal. If we need to be someplace on a specific day, depending upon the distance we need to cover, a few days are built in for "emergencies" and fun.

 

[Rodbuster]

I didn't expect this many responses. I just didn't think that so many people would take the time to write a long post explaining their methods for planning a trip.

This forum is great.
Thank you
Dick

 

[Birchwood]

I have to have a reservation for each night but others wing it and take whatever.You can easily have problems hauling
a 40 ft trailer if tired from a days drive.Again,others are very flexible stop anywhere and be perfectly comfortable.

 

[clubmgr]

When we travel from point A to point B, I check Woodall's the evening before and pick out a few possible stopping places. Call about 1 to 4 hours before getting near a stop to make sure there will be a spot for the night. Haven't had any problems. That gives us a flexible driving day without having a must-stop reservation.

This approach worked for us all the way to Alaska and back.

We only make advanced reservations when we want to stay somewhere and visit or sight-see. That way we know where we are going to be. If travel time is tight and we know exactly when and where we have to be on each leg of a trip we will make reservations in advance.

If we are "touring", we decide about where and what we want to go the next day and about lunchtime we figure out where we are going to end up and call ahead.

We have never had to stay in a Walmart parking lot and probably would not.

 

[davebennington]

I can understand the need for some folks to have reservations every night along the travel route. We have found that if you get off the road around 3 PM you can get in most every campground. We feel that it is too restrictive trying to stick to a schedule where you have to be at a place at a specific time. What if you have a break down, flat tire or you see something that you really want to see along the way. Last year when we went to Alaska the only goal/schedule/plan we had was going to Alaska, we never had a problem with finding a campground.

All that said, just go and have fun that is why you purchased your RV in the first place.

dave

 

[danemayer]

For us, a lot depends on what trip "milestones" are planned. Last summer we had the Goshen Rally, a wedding in Michigan, family visits in Michigan, friends to see on a specific date in Iowa, another wedding in western Montana, and a family event in Colorado. The schedule of key dates dictated we stick pretty closely to our plan. We made a couple of changes en route, but pretty much stuck to the original plan.

Our plan usually includes at least 1-2 extra days between the "can't miss" events so we can deal with the unexpected, or take an extra day somewhere.

Also, although I realize many people don't do this, we have all our mail forwarded (USPS Premium Mail Forwarding) to various addresses en route; usually tying in with the family visits. Once we give the Post Office the forwarding instructions, we're semi-committed to being in specific places on Friday/Saturday to get our mail (might have to impose on someone to re-mail the package if we change plans).

 

[lorax]

Wow! Lots of opportunities present themselves on such a trip. First, the reservations for National Parks may be hard to get. Get them as early as possible especially Yellowstone and Yosemite. Check out National Forests as well, beautiful campsites and most rigs can camp one night without hookups. Dump stations are easy to find. We have found tha KOA's and campgrounds in general have space is you stop early. There are road atlases that have scenic routes. These routes will take you to some amazing sights. The pace is slow which is great for gas mileage. Enjoy the planning. Have a save trip.
Ted