Road Stop Campgrounds

[Taftcoach]

As we're planning this summer's road trip I'm rethinking our overnight road stops. We've tried a few options with mixed results

Harvest Host - a couple of the best and a few of the worst. The downside for us is having to stop earlier, no hookups in hot weather, sometimes less than ideal sites, etc. the plus was meeting some amazing hosts with great products. Ultimately we aren't renewing.

Private Campgrounds - we typically have had the "we're only here for one night and why spend a lot of money" thought. That has led us to a few campgrounds we wouldn't return to. But saving a few bucks here and there is nice.

Public lands. They never seem to be right off the interstate but our first choice usually.

So my question, are resort style KOAs, etc worth it for one night in at 6:00 pm and out at 8:00 am stays? Would we find ourselves stopping earlier and using the pools, club houses, etc?

 

[Jayhawk 29]

I will give you my take on several of your picks and options, as previously stated during your travels. While Harvest Host went thru a horrible transition dealing with booking online versus calling the outlet, the online booking has improved a lot.

I do like the interesting farms. But in general we have experienced a new addition to numerous outlets that offer power and water for a minimal charge, vesus what KOA and commercial chain campgrounds charge these days. We can filter the outlets now on their webpage.

 

[Taftcoach]

What we didn't like was checking in before the business closed and then sitting around for a few hours that we could be driving.

 

[Jayhawk 29]

Well many of the wineries and distilleries allow later check in, since most are open. I have not dealt with the issue of early check in. The KOAs do allow late check ins, my expericence being they leave the paperwork on their doors or on a bulletin boards. There are three levels of KOAs. One is the Journey, which is mostly stopover sites without a lot of glits. The other one is the Holiday, which has more amenities. The top of the line high end one is Resort.

 

[JFlightRisk]

We have stayed at a KOA for overnight on a longer trip than we wanted to drive straight through to, and the $58 or $60 was tolerable for water and electricity.

State parks are reasonable (in our state), and you can google "county and municipal parks that allow overnight camping" and may find some along your route.

 

[Jayhawk 29]

I will add that when using HH outlets we do try to purchase products that we cannot find normally anywhere else. If nothing else we give away products as one of the kind gifts on special occasions to folks.

We get a return on our money that we spend by supporting the local outlets in the process. On many occasions we like to hear their stories behind the origination of their businesses.

These types of outlets give back to small communities, which gets passed over by big box and mega corporation outlets that rarely gives back in proportion to their intake. We have met so many salt of the Earth folks this way and is part of our mission when we travel.

 

[Tunce the traveler]

I plan several of my long runs using the Casino parking lot areas reserved for RV’s and Travel Trailers. Most of them have full hook-ups at a very reasonable rate.
Fuel stations plus food inside the casino makes for a fairly comfortable evening.

 

[Taftcoach]

By early I mean 5 pm or sooner.

I forgot about casinos. We've used Downstream Casino on the Missouri, Oklahoma border several times. That's one of our favorite stops. Also midway through Missouri in Sullivan is a park that is perfect for overnights. Flat level pull through sites you reserve on line and just pull in.

HH have been great, but they have also been awful. I think the businesses and people are so nice that reviewers are too kind regarding the actual place you are parking or maybe we are too picky.

We tend to decide mid afternoon where to stop. Can we go another two hours? Four hours? HH just hasn't really fit well for our style of travel days.

 

[Rodney27505]

We stayed at a couple of the Loves RV stops last year. Perfect for an overnight, close to the interstate with full hookups. I think it was less than $50. Not somewhere you would want to stay long term but for an overnight it worked well for us.

 

[Jayhawk 29]

Peoples travel patterns differ. Even if you want to book two to three hours before stopping, in heavily traveled areas and peak seasons you may end up having to take whats left over in remote areas. These locations may not be the best either. We want to know about potential security risks and being able to get in in daylight. Running and backing into trees are not something that is worth traveling late and not knowing where we will stay in most cases.

 

[Taftcoach]

Peoples travel patterns differ. Even if you want to book two to three hours before stopping, in heavily traveled areas and peak seasons you may end up having to take whats left over in remote areas. These locations may not be the best either. We want to know about potential security risks and being able to get in in daylight. Running and backing into trees are not something that is worth traveling late and not knowing where we will stay in most cases.

The past six years we found during trips from Texas to Maine and Texas to Minnesota that there were plenty of openings. Once we were "up north" in destination areas we needed to reserve in advance, but campgrounds in the middle states were wide open. Even areas I thought would be a challenge like Tennessee.

It's summer and still daylight until 9:00 pm. Getting in at 6 or 7 pm leaves plenty of daylight. The security issue is why we're considering KOAs and parks with more amenities. I can't remember a park that offered those and also made us feel uncomfortable.

I've been looking for the Love's Truck Stop locations. Those would be ideal for our style of road stay nights.

 

[Jayhawk 29]

The past six years we found during trips from Texas to Maine and Texas to Minnesota that there were plenty of openings. Once we were "up north" in destination areas we needed to reserve in advance, but campgrounds in the middle states were wide open. Even areas I thought would be a challenge like Tennessee.

It's summer and still daylight until 9:00 pm. Getting in at 6 or 7 pm leaves plenty of daylight. The security issue is why we're considering KOAs and parks with more amenities. I can't remember a park that offered those and also made us feel uncomfortable.

I've been looking for the Love's Truck Stop locations. Those would be ideal for our style of road stay nights.

We travel with a large family dog that we can no longer board. A six hour normal drive requires at least an eight hour event. Our towing habits include 60 to 62 MPH tops. So with the stopping for fuel, potty breaks, taking meds and making lunch while resting a bit as we eat, our age tells us to stop before many people have settled into their night gowns.

If you do not leave before 9 am, this makes for a full day and about all I want. When traveling many of the back roads, cell service is not always available to check for a site.

Of course I am a bit more flexible than the bride as it relates to booking at the last minute. But I am also tight too. Paying top dollar for a blow in and blow out hook up does not make me smile or enjoy any trip. :<}

On average 30 to forty bucks, hook up surcharge included this past year of traveling has returned us a lot of goodies and experiences in comfort so far. And we have never been cramped up against another camper.

While we used to have some crappy places early on when using HH, this has improved with the new features available on their new webpage and more intensive information. For sure it does take a bit more advanced planning, but not that much.

 

[Redhawk 26M]

What we didn't like was checking in before the business closed and then sitting around for a few hours that we could be driving.

We like KOA Journeys when available. They're usually right off the highways and have after hours check-in so there's less wasted time.

 

[Taftcoach]

We like KOA Journeys when available. They're usually right off the highways and have after hours check-in so there's less wasted time.

Thank you. They do seem like a great option.

 

[LuckyDuck1]

We’ve probably stayed at more KOAs on long trips than anything, mostly because they are in the right place at the right time. Bottom line, I choose the approximate distance I want to travel, then start searching for the best park within a decent radius. Quality and safety, based on reviews, is first priority, location second and price third. I’ll take a nicer park that may not be as far down the road as I’d like. It seems like KOAs are often that option. They do vary, and a few have been stellar. Most have been average but none have been terrible. I found having the membership discount helped, too.

 

[BWG-JAY]

I agree with the others recommending KOA. We’ve towed our trailers on 5,000+ mile trips in each of the last four years (2024 was actually 8,000 miles). Most of our overnight stops have been KOAs. Like someone said above, Journey level is light on amenities, but has everything needed and everything works (power, water and sewer). They’re a few dollars more per night than a lot of independents, but you know what you’ll get.
We plan our stops ahead of time and try to limit our miles to <500 per day. We can usually find a KOA on the Interstates that suit our needs.
Good luck and safe travels.

 

[poohbear]

We’ve never had a problem getting a spot during travel days using RVparky.

 

[Lynn Thompson]

FYI. Don’t count on Loves or Pilot and the other big gas place. When we drove down to AZ from north Iowa, none of the three had places for an RV with a tow vehicle or any space for us. Fortunately, we figured that out before we purchased gas and found another place to spend $150 on the gas tank. We always felt safe there; and restrained ourselves from tiring the truckers area. We have several truck driving nephews and they told us just not to think about it. BTW WalMart also has the same history! We drove into a Walmart about 10:30 and their security guard told us to move on. I had planned to go in and buy groceries, and decided I would just buy the minimal things for the rest of the way home. We will probably plan HH stops more now with Loves and Pilot being snots! As we get older, he is 83, we are ready to stop earlier than in prior years.

 

[garywilson]

As we're planning this summer's road trip I'm rethinking our overnight road stops. We've tried a few options with mixed results

So my question, are resort style KOAs, etc worth it for one night in at 6:00 pm and out at 8:00 am stays? Would we find ourselves stopping earlier and using the pools, club houses, etc?

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For a one-nighter I'll usually go with Casino, park, Cracker Bbl, WalMart, Sam's, Church, roadside parking, public land, etc. State Parks and COE parks are usually great yet inexpensive.

KOA's I used to stay at from around 1965 until around 1985 or so until they got too blamed expensive. I don't need their outdoor movies, ice cream, swimming pool so I wouldn't be stopping any earlier than normal.

 

[Pfflyer]

KOA-yes. On long trips with overnight stops I would drive extra hours to make it to a KOA verses taking a chance at other private campgrounds. As stated above, I have never stayed at a bad KOA. No problems with late check in at a KOA. Other convenient private campgrounds that I stayed at had over 50% long term "campers".