Finding a Florida campground??? - Montana Owners Club

Dan Giacalone · 03-07-2020, 02:25 PM

I am retiring in July. I called campgrounds in Florida for space to spend Jan or Feb 2021. Nobody has space. I am on the waiting list and was told the list are long! People reserve spots for years in advance. Everybody up north wants warm Florida. Any tip/ideas?

Loneoak · 03-07-2020, 03:56 PM

We spend every winter in Florida. There is usually space in our park. I guess it depends where in Florida you want to be.

richfaa · 03-08-2020, 08:30 AM

We winter in Florida and yes CG,s are booked well in advance. Camp grounds along the cost are more expensive and harder to reserve.

Loneoak · 03-08-2020, 08:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by richfaa

We winter in Florida and yes CG,s are booked well in advance. Camp grounds along the cost are more expensive and harder to reserve.

The general rule is that the further south you are, and/or the closer you are to the coast (either one), the more expensive it is.

We are inland (close to an hour to the beach) and near Tampa (mid-Florida). We find it to be a nice balance of weather and price. We are not beach people anyway. We take part in activities in our park and enjoy local attractions (Busch Gardens, nature preserves, etc.).

richfaa · 03-08-2020, 10:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dan Giacalone

I am retiring in July. I called campgrounds in Florida for space to spend Jan or Feb 2021. Nobody has space. I am on the waiting list and was told the list are long! People reserve spots for years in advance. Everybody up north wants warm Florida. Any tip/ideas?

I sent you a PM on the subject.

richfaa · 03-08-2020, 12:39 PM

We do not sit in our rocker and play bingo. We do not even have a rocker. We do not play cards and dominos and have never seen big band dance here. We have a golf course here and there are plenty of Motorcycles and kayaks. This facility caters to everyone and there are not all that many really old folks here except for maybe me.

You post is not a fair description of the 55 plus parks in Florida.

Loneoak · 03-08-2020, 01:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by richfaa

We do not sit in our rocker and play bingo. We do not even have a rocker. We do not play cards and dominos and have never seen big band dance here. We have a golf course here and there are plenty of Motorcycles and kayaks. This facility caters to everyone and there are not all that many really old folks here except for maybe me.

You post is not a fair description of the 55 plus parks in Florida.

I agree. There are many activities in our park, and although we do not have a golf course, people get together and go to one of the many courses in the area. There are a number of people in our park who have motorcycles and they take off for little trips, often in groups. We have a very active billiard community, as well as shuffleboard, bowling, etc. Several people used to have boats and they would go fishing in Tampa Bay and elsewhere. Right now that is not happening, but that could change.

The kind of music favored by many in this area is the older country music, but that is starting to change with some newer, younger people coming into the park. A lot of people in this area are musicians, and jamming is a very popular activity.

With the many nature preserves in the area, a lot of people go hiking and kayaking. You can busy as busy or not busy as you want.

richfaa · 03-08-2020, 02:30 PM

Actually the number of folks 80 or older is low. There is a large number of retired military in the parks around us.

mtlakejim · 03-08-2020, 02:47 PM

Ok some folks took my previous post the wrong way. I wasn't saying that parks designed around the elderly was a bad thing. Only that it wasn't for us. And the 55 plus parks we toured were very heavily populated by a much older crowd that would not have shared our more active lifestyle. That doesn't mean they all are, we didn't tour every park in Florida.

If there are parks geared towards early retirees we would be interested in hearing more about them for sure. Particularly those that have golf and marinas (I plan to buy a large sailboat or cruiser).

And at some point we will reach an age where we won't be so active. But we already have a plan for that with our country estate in Arkansas. That is I hope our final retreat. Despite the fact that my wife has been a nurse in nursing homes for years, I can tell you for certain I don't want to end up in one!!! I hope my last words are yippie!

Last2Die · 03-08-2020, 06:55 PM

Great park in Daytona, interstate RV park stayed there last year a lot of full timers there. They have plenty of spots, and great people !!

phillyg · 03-15-2020, 01:40 PM

Getting multiple weeks in the same location is admittedly difficult. But, if you're flexible, we've found that most parks have sites for up to a week before you have to move on. Also, late cancellations occur at times; you have to be aggressive trying to find them.

Fish · 03-15-2020, 01:45 PM

We have a yearly lease at The Glades RV Resort and Marina. Moore Haven florida. They always seem to have a few spaces.
Our neighbor this year for 2 months didn't have a lease, just called and made a reservation.

CaptnJohn · 03-15-2020, 11:31 PM

It depends ~ we live at the beach so near on for winter that is not a requirement, still we find the newer, nicer, CGs with lots of activities more to our liking as long as there are other things and places to explore! The closer to the coast and farther south the higher the prices Many take reservations by length of time, maybe march for those staying 3 months or more, April for 2 months and by then are filled As we winter for 3 months or more in 1 place we want it to be really nice and an interesting area Our monthly next winter is $1990 plus electric We can find less expensive places but this one checks all our boxes

mtlakejim · 03-16-2020, 07:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CaptnJohn

It depends ~ we live at the beach so near on for winter that is not a requirement, still we find the newer, nicer, CGs with lots of activities more to our liking as long as there are other things and places to explore! The closer to the coast and farther south the higher the prices Many take reservations by length of time, maybe march for those staying 3 months or more, April for 2 months and by then are filled As we winter for 3 months or more in 1 place we want it to be really nice and an interesting area Our monthly next winter is $1990 plus electric We can find less expensive places but this one checks all our boxes

Hmmmm at that price I am starting to think maybe our other option of a sticks and bricks in a resort community might be a better option. I have found a few in the 200K range with golf and marinas. I am thinking we will be spending about 4 months a year (Dec-March) in Central to South Florida on the Gulf Coast Side. It's a tough choice.

zwma6@aol.com · 03-17-2020, 10:07 AM

Yes sir, U found the right guy....I live in Fla 30 yrs and have spoken to MOST of the parks on east and west coast.....and SEBRING. As a matter of fact SEBRING is a cute town in the middle of FLA> It's between StPETESBURG and VERO BEACH...call WOODYS for a starter. If I were u I would stay away from WILDER parks. They have very many and have more RULES and Regulations than u could believe. They carry em out like a prison. The water was BROWN ! and pipes broke ALL the time.....then water off for 2-3 days. Then gotta boil it for a while......WoW sucked

Fish · 03-17-2020, 01:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mtlakejim

Hmmmm at that price I am starting to think maybe our other option of a sticks and bricks in a resort community might be a better option. I have found a few in the 200K range with golf and marinas. I am thinking we will be spending about 4 months a year (Dec-March) in Central to South Florida on the Gulf Coast Side. It's a tough choice.

I only pay 4200 per year where I'm at. Not near a beach though, we don't really care for that.
On the Caloosahatchie Canal not real far from Lake Okeechobee, marina on site.
9 hole golf course on site.

mazboy · 03-17-2020, 01:43 PM

Dan, all I can say is good luck. If you want really South campgrounds you needed to make reservation this past November/December for the 2020/2021 winter.

Try Texas.

CaptnJohn · 03-17-2020, 04:08 PM

Try Strawberry Fields. Very inexpensive but somewhat isolated. Might be ok for a month but not enough for us especially for 3 months. Or look inland, out in farm county it’s cheap and may still have availability. All the most desirable areas are booked. Just depends on what you find acceptable. Get on lists on the panhandle like Emerald Coast.

mhs4771 · 03-17-2020, 06:21 PM

There are cheaper CGs in Florida, but they tend to be pretty remote, like 20 to 30 miles to get a loaf of bread.

CaptnJohn · 03-17-2020, 06:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mhs4771

There are cheaper CGs in Florida, but they tend to be pretty remote, like 20 to 30 miles to get a loaf of bread.

That is what I indicated, more cows than people around That is about all he can hope for being both cheap and available unless far enough up the list to get a more costly cancelation

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