Campground reservations

[Anne Mejeur]

Hi all,
We will be taking our first long trip out from NC to AZ next month.
Should we plan out our stays for each night or wing it? Any recommendations on campgrounds for parking Scamp on I-40? We will travel about 400 miles a day.
Thanks for any recommendations!
Anne

[reeves99]

I'd wing it. I just traveled I90 (from PA to WA) and had no problems getting into campgrounds. If you want something special in AZ you should reserve it tho.
Oh, and use State Parks when you can. They're less expensive and really nice.

[mary and bob]

We take the regional campground books from Woodalls, along with another book that covers all state parks in the US, and a book that is only the Corps of Engineer Parks. I know that comment will result in a debate about carrying books or using online resources like RVparky and Allstays, but I like the books. But my point is we generally have our route pre-planned, make a list of campgrounds on that route ( a list could eliminate the books) and when we get an hour or so ahead of when we want to stop we call a campground in that area to see if a site is available.

[Anne Mejeur]

Thank you for your response and experience! That's what we will do.

[Anne Mejeur]

Thank you. That is a great idea. I like the state parks and hopefully that will work.

[Paul O.]

This time of the year you should have no problems. Wing it.

We travel with the Woodalls books, state maps from AAA and the RandMcNally road atlas, and have only "dumb" phones, which are usually smart enough. Flipping paper pages may be a lot faster than viewing web pages, one at a time. When approaching our target area, we might call some campgrounds to be sure they are not closed for the season.

[Cathi]

You will have an easier time with campgrounds the farther south you are. Even off I-40. There are many state or private campgrounds that close by October due to winter weather. You should not need reservations but may have to call ahead or check now to see about winter dates.

[Al and Cindy K]

We've made that trip several times and haven't found a need for reservations, especially at this time of year. We do have a list of public campgrounds that aren't too far off I40 and will call mid to late afternoon while driving to check availability.

These are some we've used in the past and would stay at again.

TN - Cedars of Lebanon State Park
AR - Petit Jean (worth a couple of days if you have time)
OK - Brushy Lake (County Park near Sallisaw)
OK - Red Rock Canyon State Park
TX - Palo Duro Canyon State Park (must stay here, Mesquite is best CG)

Are you going to Carlsbad Caverns? If so, Brantley Lake State Park is fairly close to the Caverns and better than any of the private CG's but we really like Dog Canyon in Guadalupe Mountains National Park if we're going to stay for a few days.

Hope you enjoy your trip. Please post back with photos and a trip report.


Al

[Cathi]

Also liked Brantley Lake near Carlsbad and Palo Duro near Amarillo.

[mary and bob]

Good advice from Paul and Cathi about campgrounds being closed for the winter. That information is generally listed in the books, but if it will be close to the closing dates when we are traveling we will call potential stops before leaving home to verify if they will be open.We have found that while many campgrounds in any given area may be closed, there may be a few that are open, and some that are open year round in an area where you would least expect it. Oh, we also carry the KOA book too. As AAA Premier members we get 3 ( I think that's the number) Woodalls regional campground books per year, plus free maps. The other choice is the big Good Sam guide book, available at Camping World

[Gilda]

If memory serves me well these are some places we stopped in Arizona and New Mexico a couple years ago. I only remember the name of the one campground in Seligman, AZ. While we were traveling in “off season” it was most difficult to find campgrounds available near cities.


Seligman, AZ, Route 66 KOA This is a basic open campground with a little shop/office, good bathrooms and a cafe within walking distance. The clerk was very helpful. While we did not go to visit Seligman, we understand that it is a very “cute” town that maximizes the “Route 66” theme.


Flagstaff, AZ, ? I think we just stayed one night in a rather crummy campground which was full for the night but they found a space for us, without hookups. since we had the 13' Scamp. The camp had no bathrooms so you had to be self-contained. It looked as if most RVs were there for the long term as it appeared that the people lived there.


Acoma Sky City Indian Reservation, NM What a great place to visit to learn about and see Acoma life today and yesterday.


Petroglyph National Monument, NM (near Albuquerque) A terrific monument with a walk through the petroglyphs which is like no other.

[Anne Mejeur]

You all have been so helpful with information regarding traveling I 40 in November.
I'm reading about Walmart parking overnight. How does that work? Is security a concern??
Anne

[mary and bob]

Walmart overnight; we did it one time only, pulled in around 9:00 PM after getting lost, no campgrounds in the area. Went into the store, asked to see a manager, asked him if it was OK to park overnight. He said it was OK and told us where to park, and asked when we would be leaving in the morning so he could tell the day manager. Do not put out awning, chairs, gas grill, or anything to make it look like you are camping there. Some Walmarts do not allow overnight parking so you should ask. Also did a truck stop one night, Might have been a Pilot or Loves. Did the same, asked permission and were told where to park. They had WiFi and food. Only negative was some truck noise. Watch you tube videos "people of Walmart" and decide if you want to be there

[David B.]

Anne, do you have a destination in mind in Arizona? We live here and perhaps could give you some places, but it is a large state with many climate zones, as the elevation changes.
Dave & Paula

[Steve Outlaw]

This is the Official Corporate Policy on RV parking at Wal-Mart per their web page:

"While we do not offer electrical service or accommodations typically necessary for RV customers, Walmart values RV travelers and considers them among our best customers. Consequently, we do permit RV parking on our store parking lots as we are able. Permission to park is extended by individual store managers, based on availability of parking space and local laws. Please contact management in each store to ensure accommodations before parking your RV."

I have never been turned away even when there are signs to the contrary posted in the parking lot.

[Byron Kinnaman]

A nights sleep can be had in numerous places, Walmart, Rest areas, truck stops, even some gas stations.
As for extended camping we prefer federal places, National Parks, Forest Service campgrounds, BLM campgrounds, and Corps of Engineers campgrounds.
If any member of your traveling party is over 62 and US citizen a Senior pass can be acquired for $10 that gives you free entrance fees to National Parks and generally 50% off of nightly camping fees That $10 is for a life time pass.

[Byron Kinnaman]

We very rarely have reservations. In fact most of the time I refuse to stay in a place that wants reservations, there are a couple of exceptions. We've been out for about 90 days every year for past 7 years and our average nightly camping fees are less than $8.00 per night. A couple places have raised their fees so I expect this year to be closer to that $8.00 point.

[CindyL]

We are different from most of the comments here. We always make reservations.

CindyL

[Anne Mejeur]

We will be on I 40 going to see family in Flagstaff. We hope to find a campground for a week during Thanksgiving.
thanks!!

[mary and bob]

Originally Posted by CindyL

We are different from most of the comments here. We always make reservations.

CindyL

We do too because if we didn't, we would not get into the campgrounds where we want to be. Only exception is traveling to and from Florida in the states north of Georgia as in the late fall and early spring it's easy to find a site for one night. Sometimes the issue is finding a campground that is open.