Harvest Hosts

[KillerIsMe]

I was down in a rabbit hole the other day and ran across this:

https://harvesthosts.com/

Anyone use it, used to use it, know someone who uses it?

Looks like it might be a good idea for an overnight stop on the way from point A to point B but maybe not necessarily a destination. Problem is they don't tell you where you can stay until you hand over the cash so I can't tell if we would actually make use of it.

We're going to Maine this summer, probably a trip to the Jersey shore, Connecticut once or twice. All these are fairly long trips (especially Maine) and it would be nice to stop at a winery or whatever for an overnight rather than jam our trailer into some motel parking lot.

Any insight would be appreciated.

[oldmanAZ]

We belonged to Harvest Hosts a year ago or so ago. Overall, IMO. it was a great experience.

I'm not sure what you will find along the east coast. Generally you'll be in a business's parking lot with no hookups. Out west there is more open space so usually they have larger parking lots. We've had no problems at locations west of the Mississippi. Also, keep in mind that the businesses listed on Harvest Hosts have little RV knowledge.

Our worst case: In a mid-west location, they said to follow a gravel road to behind the barn to park for the night. They said there was 'plenty of space' to park back there. I opted to walk the road before committing to driving into a dead-end. Glad I did! There was no solid ground other than the road. Rain had turned the field area behind the barn into a soggy mess. We had to go elsewhere that night.
Our best case: In Michigan at Fenn Valley Vineyards they allowed us to park out near the grape vines (not in a parking lot!) for almost a week while our truck was worked on! Very much above and beyond the expected and very much appreciated.

A down side to Harvest Hosts? We like wine (and beer) so we usually spend as much money (more?) in the tasting room and bottles to go with us than we'd would have spent for a RV site for a night or two. I'm happy with that. The DW, not so much.

So as of today, we're not sure when we hit the road again this winter if will be in Harvest Hosts or not. Hope that was of some help.

[KillerIsMe]

Originally Posted by oldmanAZ

We belonged to Harvest Hosts a year ago or so ago. Overall, IMO. it was a great experience.

I'm not sure what you will find along the east coast. Generally you'll be in a business's parking lot with no hookups. Out west there is more open space so usually they have larger parking lots. We've had no problems at locations west of the Mississippi. Also, keep in mind that the businesses listed on Harvest Hosts have little RV knowledge.

Our worst case: In a mid-west location, they said to follow a gravel road to behind the barn to park for the night. They said there was 'plenty of space' to park back there. I opted to walk the road before committing to driving into a dead-end. Glad I did! There was no solid ground other than the road. Rain had turned the field area behind the barn into a soggy mess. We had to go elsewhere that night.
Our best case: In Michigan at Fenn Valley Vineyards they allowed us to park out near the grape vines (not in a parking lot!) for almost a week while our truck was worked on! Very much above and beyond the expected and very much appreciated.

A down side to Harvest Hosts? We like wine (and beer) so we usually spend as much money (more?) in the tasting room and bottles to go with us than we'd would have spent for a RV site for a night or two. I'm happy with that. The DW, not so much.

So as of today, we're not sure when we hit the road again this winter if will be in Harvest Hosts or not. Hope that was of some help.

Thanks AZ. I don't mind the downsides It would be nice if they would let you in on the locations before they reach for your wallet, and then you would be able to see whether or not it would be useful. You're right, there isn't as much open space here in the northeast as out west, but there are also many more roads. I don't want to be getting off the Mass Pike and going 25 miles out of our way just to stay in a place more beautiful than a Hampton right off the exit. Sounds great for frequent travelers but it's a hard pass for us I think.

Tom