If you spend enough time in RV forums, blogs, and campground Facebook groups, you’ll see some weird campground rules.
Some of these strange rules sound less like campground etiquette and more like fractious local ordinances in the Land of Oz. But could there be sound reasoning behind these regulations? Read on and see.
Back story?
A lot of rules may look bizarre at first, but campground owners and managers deal with a wide range of visitors. They must protect not only their park’s bottom line, but the safety of folks, as well.
Note: Weird campground rules show up in both public park systems and private resort-style campgrounds. After reading some of these rules, boondocking might look better than ever!
Sit! Stay!
Rule: No walking around the park after 10 p.m. (Sorry, stargazers.)
Rule: Stay on your own site after dark.
I assume these regulations are connected to quiet hours, during which campers are expected to cut down on noise. People, pets, televisions, and other activities need to be toned down during quiet hours.
If a camp rule demands everyone stay on their own site after dark, the goal is usually to keep late-night traffic, noise, and casual wandering from turning into a campground-wide disturbance.
Keep off the grass
Rule: No outdoor rugs, bike tents, or flowerpots.
I assume this regulation intends to protect the campground’s grass. Outdoor rugs (or most anything else) can indeed kill the grass underneath them when left in place long enough. I like grass. A green campground is pleasant to look at. However, I also like how an outdoor rug catches a lot of dirt and debris to help keep our RV’s interior cleaner.
Some campgrounds warn guests not to leave items where irrigated turf needs to be watered. Others require campers to keep sites clear so the grass can be maintained. Those rules seem reasonable to me.
Sleep indoors
Rule: No sleeping outside.
This rule surprised me. What RVer sleeps outside? I guess this stipulation arose as a way to enforce occupancy limits. It may be an attempt to keep the campground from turning into a free-for-all after dark.
Doggone it!
Rule: No dog walking.
We once stayed at a campground with this rule. RVers were forced to transport their dogs (via their car) to the campground doggie park. It was a hassle and probably confused the dogs, too!
Campgrounds enforce this rule to protect lawns, pedestrians, and wildlife. (And maybe to confuse dogs, too.)
Rule: No dogs left unattended inside the RV.
Most RV owners know that leaving a pet alone can be dangerous for the animal. However, with today’s technology, temperature and behavior control is doable even when pet owners go off-site. The problem comes from a constantly yapping dog that irritates other campers.
Rule: All dogs must be leashed when outside.
Tell that to a pet owner who spent hundreds of dollars on a new, portable dog yard fence, then spent hours to get in place! Yes, there are campgrounds that require dogs to be leashed even when inside a portable yard. I assume this is to protect the campground from lawsuits.
Rules for pools
Rule: Sign up for pool use.
Rule: Families get one free swim per day; then $2.50 per pool visit.
These pool rules signal the campground’s effort to control access to a limited amenity. Pools often cap attendance or use reservation windows when crowding is a concern.
Here a fee, there a fee, everywhere a fee, fee!
Rule: Credit card payments carry an extra fee.
Rule: Camping sites cannot be guaranteed without a site-hold fee.
Today’s camping fees seem to go on and on. RVers are becoming used to these popular campground add-ons: booking fees, resort fees, facility use fees… the list seems endless. We once stayed at a campground that charged 25 cents to access the restroom. (They’d experienced an issue with vagrants using the facilities.)
And more…
Here are additional campground rules that, at first glance, seem a little weird to me. However, when I consider the scenarios that may have precipitated the rule, I begin to understand.
Rule: No child/teen off campsite at any time without a parent.
Rule: All delivered packages will be charged $20 per package.
Rule: All power/sewer lines must be run underneath the RV.
Rule: Campers may rent a fire ring for $15 a day.
Rule: RVers will be charged $50 for each additional air conditioner.
Rule: No hose splitters are allowed.
Upshot
The longer you camp, the more obvious it becomes that a lot of “weird” campground rules are made because a few RVers lack sensibility. When common sense and courtesy aren’t so common, rules are created and enforced.
Can you add to this list of rules? Which rule would bother you the most? What’s the strangest RV park or campground rule you’ve ever seen? Leave a comment below and weigh in.
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RVT1263
A fine for leaving your laundry unattended, a vehicle’s or RV tires on the grass, speed in excess of 5mph, spinning tires in gravel, loud exhaust before 8 am, water leaking from your hose, staying a minute past 11 am checkout, dog barking at night, noisy children, children unattended at playground. All these fines in one RV park. RV Life took down my review and refuse all new reviews because I posted this.
That’s really messed up. Especially RV Life taking down/refusing reviews.
I suppose there may be Liability concerns, naming someone?
Naming a campground. Isn’t that kinda the whole point of a Review Site?
In my opinion, parks that have exceptionally long lists of rules created highly specific rules for a single incident and tacked the rule on to a list. For example, a list of things you cannot do on or to grass rather than a simpler, ‘no activities that damage grass or impede maintenance of grass’. The best parks have a shorter, more generic list with all interpretation done by park staff. Also means staff have to have some interpersonal skills.
It seems parks with many rules are attempting to sort the folks who camp there into the most desirable..Lots of rules about kids or pools make families less likely to stay there. A quick way to be sure your guests are couples. Unreasonable rules about dogs just keeps people with dogs away. Don’t let those parks off the hook with nonsense about liability. They only want the guests who require the least effort.
Thank you for sharing the list and discussing why the rule may have been created, Gail. We found a highly rated campground near some friends in northeastern Ohio. However, their prohibition on walking a dog outside the pet area was a deal-breaker. Have a great week and safe travels!
Yes TT have a rule for dog fences no higher than 24″.
What happens if you have a great dane. They can walk right over that height.
This only applies to rv’ers. The permanent occupant’s get to use what ever height fencing they want
I rarely pay the site lock fee and usually get the site I pick.
We ignore this rule: No dogs left unattended inside the RV. We can’t take our dogs everywhere we want to go sightseeing or when eating out. They are safer in the RV with the AC running and the shades pulled down. Neighbors have told us they weren’t a problem, so that’s a good thing.
The site lock fee is a scam. Just like the airlines adding bag fees. The reservation computer system lets you pick a site. Unless management gives your site to someone else, it usually does not just “change on it’s own”. Some campground just said, hey, a way to make more money. Tell them they may not get the site they booked and charge them extra for us to “not change their site”.
Good reporting, Gail. I once stayed at a private park where you were issued a wristband and required to wear it when going anywhere in the park; this was a new one. Most of the others I’ve encountered, especially in San Diego, CA. In one Forest Service campground I won’t mention, we were asked to move our RV because “half the tire” was hanging off the paved area! I guess rules get made when inconsiderate or lack of common sense dictates it. Unfortunately, a few mistakes by these folks effects all of us.
I had a ranger in a Pa state park give us a hard time because my truck was a few inches off the pavement. I mentioned to?office that was in charge of the State parks. It seemed like the park manager tried to cover for the woman ranger. But it was ok for people to park on grass at the lake.
I have a small trailer that does not have a bathroom. If I can’t walk around or leave my site after dark, I can’t use the campground restroom at night and that’s a deal breaker for me. I got caught with that rule once so now I read everything on the campground website before I book. The rules are usually there, although sometimes you really have to search to find them.
Just find a nearby tree…
No Screaming
My all time favorite
Posted at an RV park in Sedona AZ
We have a seasonal site at a campground 8. mile from our condo. There is only one rule: “Don’t piss John off” It works!
The truly weird rules I’ve seen were at restrooms. “No Bicycles in the Restroom”, “No Water Balloons!” “Absolutely No Pheasant Cleaning!”
Campground I lived at was charging a fee for golf carts. When I asked why, they said it was to maintain the roads. How much damage can a golf cart do to a road?? I have mobility issues and needed my cart to get around. Nope. Not without a cart tag. I left shortly after.
Seems to me the many 10,000 lbs and up rigs would be the real cause of any “road damage” vs a golf cart.
Must run sewer and power under the RV? I once had to turn my RV around because I had my power and water under the RV. They blamed insurance.
This one is kind of sad but true, just encountered it last week in Montana. No pooping in the showers.
No RV’s older than 10 years!