Gateway cities: more opportunities for working near national parks

Susan Chittam is only a stone's throw away from Bryce Canyon National Park. She is working at Ruby's Inn just outside the park. Businesses in gateway cities or clusters of tourist services outside a national park or other major attraction hire more employees during the busy tourist season.

We traveled up to Bryce Canyon after our visit to Zion, where I met Susan. Susan is a solo woman RVer in her first year on the road. She worked last winter at Fountain of Youth Spa in Niland, CA (near Palm Springs) and loved it. This is her second job working on the RV road, both found through Workamper News. She is selling jewelry in the General Store. Ruby's Inn includes a hotel, gas station, restaurants, an RV park, Old Bryce Town shops, plus excursions so they hire locals, Workampers, and foreigners to meet their employee needs. Employes can stay in one of two employee RV parks at $75/month or in dorms.

Susan has been guaranteed three days off — at least two in a row. Ruby's offers a number of perks. She can purchase a meal card for meals that cost $1.02 each or she can eat at the buffet for 50% off on her work days. She gets a generous discount in the store and discounts on horseback riding, the scenic helicopter ride and other tours that Ruby's offers.

This area is quite a ways from major shopping. Cedar City, with a Wal-Mart Supercenter, is 80 miles away, though Susan prefers the small town of Panguitch 25 miles away because of its history.

Because college kids are often a labor source for tourist-related businesses, there are opportunities for more mature workers (or those without a fixed schedule) to pick up work. Before the main season and after Labor Day are good times to get short-term jobs in these locations. They could need people any time, however; turnover can be high.

When my late husband, Bill, was offered a job at Rocky Mountain National Park I did not have a job. However, when we arrived in early June many businesses in Estes Park had helped wanted signs in their window or were advertising in the local paper. I quickly found a job. Several years later when I worked in Skagway, Alaska for the national park service, Bill was able to find jobs in town too after we arrived.

For singles particularly, working in gateway cities as well as for concessionaires opens up many more jobs and experiences. Most businesses hire each person on their own merits rather than as a couple. Plus, in a busy place like Ruby's Inn, you meet all kinds of people. One of the things Susan loves about her job is meeting people from all over the world. She is working on picking up a few phrases in other languages so she can communicate with her customers. And they appreciate her efforts.


Bryce Canyon is a gorgeous park with colorful hoodoos left standing after years of erosion and you can hike down into an ampitheater full of them. Besides the usual deer, Bryce has a prairie dog town just off the scenic drive. We were able to get close enough to pronghorn antelope to photograph them. It is tempting to find a job and stay while! Jaimie

For information on Jaimie Hall's recently revised book, Support Your RV LIfestyle! An Insider's Guide to Working on the Road, 2nd ed., see RVBookstore.com.