Do you check online reviews of an RV park or other campground before making a reservation? If so, how important is it that it has a high, or at least a decent rating?
Or do you simply return to familiar places, where you already know if they’re up to your standards or not?
Curious minds would like to know. Remember, it may take a few moments for the poll to load. So stand by, partner!
I tend to read the reviews to discern the reason(s) for their rating. Horrible, awful, rude (and others) without an example just don’t help the decision.
EXACTLY!
A quality review with pros/cons, examples of negatives and proper grammar definitely carries weight in my decision.
I check out the reviews, usually I use Trip Advisor. Usually I look at the most recent, the 1 to 3 star ratings as owners, managers, friends, and their family can write the good reviews but will never write a bad one.
We always read reviews on campgrounds we’re considering, but they must be recent reviews
Even if I am just spending one night and regardless of what type of park I always check the reviews and I try very hard to post reviews. I do wonder if some of these reviews are AI and is this a problem in this area of the internet?. We travel a lot and I used to rely on trip advisor for for travel information but I don’t think I have opened up that sight in 5 years. To many advertisements and clearly no longer geared toward helping the consumer but a marketing tool. I hope the rv review sites never go down that road
I wish I had checked reviews earlier. On our current trip we packed up and moved out after one night. Hind site is 20 20, reviews identified exact issues I experienced. So, from here on out I’m checking up on what is being said by fellow campers.
One thing we do is Google Earth or Bing Map an unfamiliar park and area beforehand. A lot can learned with birds eye view and as well, photos. We rely heavily on photos guests have posted to whatever online site. We can gain perspective of road widths, trees, gravel condition and much more. Will it be satellite friendly or not, shade on the south, will the awning extend….. Much depends on our length of planned stay as to how much we investigate a park or site.
We travel and stop at parks that are continent. Have never reviewed a place that is on our way. We don’t have electronics when on the road. I do however sometimes look up a place and read reviews for laughs. People’s expectations and complaints are often amusing. I wonder if they are even reviewing the same place. I guess if people are asked to complain, they will search for something to complain about.
I have found that most happy campers do not leave positive reviews for the RV park that they have stayed in. It seems that any camper who has had a bad experience, will leave a negative review, even if the negative experience was their own fault. So while I will look at the reviews, I do not make a judgement based solely on them.
We don’t stay in RV parks. We camp mostly in state parks, national forests, national parks, and the occasional county or city park. We’ll stay at a gas station or Walmart when trying to just cover distance. RV parks just don’t have any appeal to us.
I compare reviews from multiple sources usually, and look for specifics that influence my decision.
I read the review but consider the nature of the complaint
We rely about evenly between on-line ratings and other available information, such as Google maps visual (taking in account the date of the map data when we do), location along route of travel, location in respect to our destination and price.
Yes, we rely heavily on reviews. Road noise is a big concern of mine. We will not stay if even a single review mentions this. But also unlevel sites, loud / partying guests and no management control, would be a problem, and lately we’ve had more concern with campfire smoke, which we don’t think fires should be permitted, especially in tight spots or windy areas. Campfire smoke is extremely bad for your health. We are pretty picky but we have had very few bad nights as a result of careful planning that includes both reading reviews, and checking the general area for trails we might enjoy the next morning — even on overnight trips.
I do research when we’re heading to a new area, online ratings are only a part of the process, and I take many with a hunk block of salt. For example, a complaint that a park has interstate noise when it’s just off the interstate shows more about unrealistic expectations than the park itself.
Our destinations are usually public campgrounds (national parks, national forests, etc.), private ones tend to be used for stopovers, so we may have slightly different criteria. Reviews help some, but it’s always a balance of location, the information we can find on any RV parks where we want to be.
Not true. Obviously noise is expected if park is right on a major freeway (although we have stayed in one that was big enough that we could park in the back and hear no noise). In those cases, we just won’t stay there. Not ever. However the problem arises when a park is on what looks like a smaller road, not a freeway. That might be a quiet country road, or a busy, loud inter city road. That’s when noise complaints in reviews might be the only way to find out. And, again, in those cases, we will not stay there unless we have no other choice at all. That has rarely happened.
I read the ratings but I look for certain tells. Often very negative reviews are from disgruntled guest that have had self imposed negative experiences like being expelled for bad behavior, pet violations, failure to pay, etc. Read them and apply more than a grain of salt. I look for general conditions, management responsibility and maintenance remarks. If the management is trying to keep things up I’m good for a night or two
EXACTLY!!!!
We generally are boondocking or using primitive campgrounds, so don’t consult reviews or ratings.
When I voted for “I rely on other information” … what I meant was online ratings are only part of the decision process. Online ratings depend a lot on how the questions are asked – same as the polls in this newsletter.
For me #1 is why I want to stop in a particular location: is it just a sleep stop? Is it a longer stay and am I looking more at park vs area amenities? Will I need hook ups? #2- Is the price commensurate with the first question? #3- what did other guests say about their stop and how does that impact my reasons for staying there? Finally, what is THE overall location rating?
I normally read the reviews. However, I also pay attention to when the review was posted. Some are years old and may no longer be pertinent. Most are complaints about noisy neighbors or kids running around the campground. You also have to take into consideration of where the campground is located. Ones near major attractions are crowded with ‘tourists’ and noise and kids are to be expected. I’ve also noticed a good number of the bad reviews are posted by people that expect everything to be the way they want it. Campgrounds with a lot of seasonal sites are another flag. The seasonal people seem to believe they run the campground and act like you are encroaching on their property.
We do not care about fancy swimming pools, hot tubs, recreation areas and other resort type amenities. That’s where the words RV Park and campground differ.
One thing that does bother us is the size of the sites, The fancy corporate owned RV parks squeeze in as many sites that they can.
“The seasonal people seem to believe they run the campground and act like you are encroaching on their property.” I’m a seasonal RVer. I could see your statement as true in some parks, but not all – certainly not where we stay. There is a core community that comes back every year. It is the best reason why we return every year. We do treat the park like we own it – keep it clean and treat neighbors with respect. That is all we expect from ANYONE, and EVERYONE is welcome to join all the activities the seasonal group organizes and self-funds (or not, your choice). The owners love to post photos of the activities – but in truth, very little would happen without the seasonal group. We have seen several short-stay people return for a longer stay because they feel welcome.
I don’t RELY on the ratings. But it is a factor in the process.
I certainly don’t depend just on the description of the park on it’s web site!!!!