Tag Archives: free RV camping

Tips for Finding and Using FREE Campgrounds With Hookups

21 Wednesday Jul 2021

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Last year, during our travels through the middle of the country, we discovered an amazing thing: free campgrounds. And not just your typical dry camping sites in a government owned park, either—I’m talking about campgrounds with water and electric hookups and often even a dump station onsite! This was a game changer.

You see, we’ve done a bit of boondocking here and there, and we have plenty more boondocking stops planned for the next couple of weeks. That said, it isn’t our favorite way of exploring. We normally use Thousand Trails campgrounds to keep costs low, but when we’re not near these campgrounds, we need other options that don’t cost an arm and a leg. These free campgrounds with hookups fill that role perfectly.

In this article we will talk about how to find free (and incredibly low-cost) camping with hookups, and then give you some tips for using these campsites.

What to Expect from Free and Low-Cost Campgrounds with Hookups

Generally, free campgrounds with hookups are located in city parks, but some can be found at casinos, county parks, and other locations. The rules vary from one park to the next, but many ask for a donation in exchange for your stay, and all the places we’ve visited limit your stay to a certain number of days. These seem like reasonable requests, considering the awesome thing that is being offered.

In some cases, we will find city parks or county park campgrounds that aren’t totally free, but are under $15 a night. I still consider this an incredible deal, and we will often use these parks as well. The rules and amenities at these places tend to be very similar to those found at free campgrounds.

Most of these low-cost campgrounds have a donation box available, in which you place your gift or camping fees. However, we have come across some places that require you to check in at the city hall, sheriff’s office, or even a local museum.

We’ve found free and low-cost campgrounds that are electric-only with nothing but a field of grass to park on. We’ve also found parks that offer full hookups (water, sewer, and electric) and concrete pads. Most have electric and water at each site and a dump station somewhere in the park or the town. Many are near the local pool, and the majority have a playground very close by. Once in a while we will come across a free campground with showers for RVers.

Every free or cheap campground we’ve ever found has been located in a small town, if not in the middle of nowhere. Sometimes the town might have something to do, or it might be 30–45 minutes from a big city. Other times, there isn’t much in the way of attractions for miles around.

Where to Find Free and Low-Cost Campgrounds with Hookups

Wondering how one might go about finding a place to stay for free (or almost free)? We usually use the website called FreeCampsites.net. As the name suggests, this site is dedicated to listing free campsites. It also includes low-cost campgrounds.

In order to find the campgrounds with hookups, I will filter my search to find only the campgrounds with the hookups I need. That said, sometimes a particular amenity may not be included in the listing, so if I’m having trouble finding what I need in a particular area, it does sometimes help to read reviews in case the thing I’m looking for isn’t listed properly.

Once I find something that looks like what I need, I don’t stop there. I dive deeper, reading all of the reviews on FreeCampites.net and then seeking out yet more reviews on other sites. I’ll also look for information about a given campground on its city website. This helps to ensure the campground is still in existence and as listed.

Besides FreeCampsites.net, there are other ways to find free and low-cost campgrounds. Some of the options we know if include:

  • Campendium — This works much like FreeCampsites.net and is often where I’ll turn second.
  • RoamFreely — This is an app that also works like FreeCampsites.net. It has some campgrounds listed that aren’t on either of the websites mentioned above, but it’s missing several as well.
  • Keeping your eyes peeled — Another great option is to keep an eye out for campsites that look like they might be a part of a city park or a casino. This works well if you take backroads often or enjoy visiting small towns. If you find some, stop and check. If it is indeed a free of low-cost place to stay, be sure to list it on Campendium and FreeCampsites.net.
  • Asking around — Finally, it never hurts to ask others about campsites they know of. Ask other RVers on Facebook groups and forums, or ask locals if they know of any great and inexpensive places to camp. You might be surprised at the hidden gems you can find.

Tips for Using Low-Cost Campgrounds

At this point, we’ve stayed in our fair share of these free and super cheap campgrounds. Along the way, we’ve learned a thing or two that help make our trips to these places a bit more enjoyable.

These are our top tips:

  • Arrive early — We are definitely not early risers. However, we have found that when it comes to free and cheap campsites, it pays to arrive as early as possible in order to snag a site.
  • Shower at the pool — As mentioned before, most of these campgrounds do not have showers for RVers. They also don’t tend to have sewer hookups at each site, making it necessary to conserve tank space. We’ve learned that the showers at the city pools are a great way to get clean and tend to be very low-cost.
  • Explore small towns — You might be far away from any true attractions, but that doesn’t mean there’s nothing worth seeing nearby. Go into town and try the local coffee shop and eateries. Some of our favorites have been in tiny towns.
  • Look for historic markers — Even in the middle of nowhere with no true attractions around, you will see historic markers. Make a point of looking for these and stopping to check them out.
  • Be willing to drive to attractions — If you’re looking to visit a particular attraction or city, you might be able to find free camping as long as you’re willing to camp 45 minutes away.
  • Find campgrounds along your route — Even if there isn’t a free campground close to your final destination, there could be some along your route. Since we don’t like to drive more than 3 or 4 hours in a day, these campgrounds can be a great way to break up a long trip.

About the author: Chelsea Gonzales

Chelsea has the amazing opportunity to take part in full-time RV living and traveling with her tiny tribe. She homeschools her five-year-old son as they travel, and takes full advantage of their unique situation by using the entire world as her son’s classroom. A group of total Disney fanatics, Chelsea and her family often find themselves in the Orlando area in order to visit the Disney parks, but they have also visited over 25 of the 50 states with plans to see many more along the way. No matter where her travels take her, Chelsea enjoys riding bikes, gazing at beautiful sunsets, finding new coffee shops, Irish dancing, and sitting around a campfire with her family.

You can join her adventures through her blog, Wonder Wherever We Wander.

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Our 6 Favorite Ways To Lower Campsite Costs

05 Wednesday Aug 2020

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Our 6 Favorite Ways To Lower Campsite Costs

We love to travel to new places and see new things. Luckily, as full-time RVers, we get to do quite a lot of that. Unfortunately, travel can cost a lot of money.

Considering the fact that we don’t have unlimited funds, it’s important that we lower our travel budget as much as we can without cutting out all the fun. There are several ways to do this including using reciprocal memberships to lower admission costs and using Amazon Prime to have items shipped wherever we are free of charge and take advantage of free books, music, and movies. We also lower our food costs as much as possible by packing lunches and using Groupon when we do eat out. However, one of the best and easiest ways to save is to cut down on campground costs.

In our years of travel, we’ve found quite a few fabulous ways to drastically lower the amount we spend on campgrounds. We do this by using a combination of 6 different tricks.

Thousand Trails

Thousand Trails is what we end up using most often. This membership did cost us a few thousand dollars upfront. However, we only pay around $500 a year to keep it active, and in exchange, we can stay at any of the 81 campgrounds in the system free of charge.

Horseshoe Lake

Not only that, but we can also stay for up to 21 days and even hop from one park to the next without spending any time out of the system. This means we could stay at Thousand Trails exclusively and never have additional camping fees, as long as we wanted to stick to areas where Thousand Trails parks exist.

In addition to our regular Thousand Trails membership, we also have the Trails collection add-on. This option gives us access to even more parks, most of which we can stay at for free. There are a handful of parks that do charge $20 a night, but because these are nearly always located in awesome places, that $20 is still an awesome deal. We can stay in Trails Collection parks for up to 14 nights, and we can go directly to a Thousand Trails park after, but we cannot hop directly to another Trails Collection park.

Rondout Valley

Finally, we have the option to add a Resort Park International (RPI) membership to our Thousand Trails membership. We’ve personally chosen not to do this, but if we changed our minds, we would only pay around $100–$150 a year and have access to a large number of campgrounds at about $10 a night.

If Thousand Trails sounds like something you might be interested in, but you don’t want to jump in with a full-fledged membership costing several thousand dollars, consider getting a Zone Pass to try it out. If you do end up buying a membership, I highly recommend buying used through Campground Membership Outlet. Also, don’t forget that Coach-Net Members can save 10% on standard RV or tent sites at more than 170 beautiful RV resorts and campgrounds. Check your benefits information for details.

Passport America

The second camping membership we always keep current is our Passport America card. At just $40 a year, this is a super inexpensive investment that pays for itself very quickly.

What you get is the ability to stay at hundreds of campgrounds across the country for half-price. While each campground does have its own set of restrictions, these restrictions are clearly stated on the website, and it is possible to work around them and still save a pretty penny.

Generally speaking, we use Passport America for one- to three-night stays on our way from one place to another, and not so much as a membership for snagging a discount on a long-term stay.

Freecampsites.net

Another superb option for finding super cheap short-term camping is Freecampsites.net. This website features crowdsourced information on free and extremely cheap (under $12 a night) campsites across the US. Most of these are dry camping spots, but some have potable water, a dump station, or even electrical hookups.

Camper At Free Campsite

We’ve found some really cool hidden gems through this website, and always take a look at it when planning our travels just in case there’s a super cool spot we need to see.

Boondocking

Of course, there’s also the option of good old-fashioned boondocking. To be honest, we haven’t done as much boondocking as I would like. This is mostly due to the fact that we simply aren’t equipped to stay off-grid for long. That said, the boondocking we have done has been fun, and we definitely see this as a feasible option, especially when we take our next big trip out west.

Boondocking

To find good boondocking locations, you can use the Freecampsites.net website mentioned above. However, there are many other good resources, including Campendium and the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) website.

State, County, and City Parks

Camping In State Park When we want to stay in a particular location and the options listed above aren’t working out for us, we tend to turn to state, county, and city parks. These options tend to be much cheaper than privately owned RV parks, and since we actually prefer a more rustic and natural setting most of the time, this works out.

Monthly Stays

As much as we like to wander, there are times when staying in one place is necessary. Usually, we try to be in a Thousand Trails park when this happens. However, when that isn’t possible, the next best thing is to see monthly rates.

Many RV parks offer monthly-stay rates that are far less than their nightly rates, making it more feasible to stay for long periods of time. If you’ll be in a place for more than a couple of weeks, ask about a monthly stay to see what it’ll save you.

These are the money-saving methods that work best for us. That said, they are far from the only options out there. There are several camping clubs and memberships available that could help you save on campground fees. Among these are Coast to Coast, Boondockers Welcome, and Harvest Hosts.

I recommend checking them all out, deciding which one suits your travel style best, combining it with the other tips above, and investing in additional memberships only as needed.

About the author: Chelsea Gonzales

Chelsea has the amazing opportunity to take part in full-time RV living and traveling with her tiny tribe. She homeschools her five-year-old son as they travel, and takes full advantage of their unique situation by using the entire world as her son’s classroom. A group of total Disney fanatics, Chelsea and her family often find themselves in the Orlando area in order to visit the Disney parks, but they have also visited over 25 of the 50 states with plans to see many more along the way. No matter where her travels take her, Chelsea enjoys riding bikes, gazing at beautiful sunsets, finding new coffee shops, Irish dancing, and sitting around a campfire with her family.

You can join her adventures through her blog, Wonder Wherever We Wander.

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5 Days You Can Visit National Parks Free of Charge

06 Wednesday Mar 2019

Posted by in National Parks

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National Parks

 

National park entrance fees go up nearly every year, but the price of admission shouldn’t deter you from visiting. Every year you have five days to visit national parks free of charge, wherever you want to roam.

The Five Days You Can Get into Parks Free

National park vacation costs are still less expensive than a family trip to Disneyland. But between entry fees, camping charges and additional excursions costs, a simple trip to the Grand Canyon could send anyone to the poorhouse. The good news is that if you plan your next national park adventure properly, you can save on the entry fees many parks charge visitors.

According to the U.S. Parks Service, 115 of the 418 parks managed by the National Park Service charge entrance fees. Those fees range anywhere from $5 a day to $35 a week. This allows visitors to come and go from the park as they please, sometimes for up to two weeks in many locations. The entrance fee waiver for the fee-free days does not cover amenity or fees that quickly add up, like camping, boat launches, transportation, or special park activities.

Glacier National Park

Thankfully, each year, national park visitors’ wallets get a break on five designated “fee holidays.” If you time your visit to arrive on of the free national park days, you can stay for as long as the usual entry fee allows – sometimes up to two weeks in places like Texas’ Big Bend National Park. The cost of a park’s entry fee may not be enough money to fill up your fuel tank, but for many campers, the lure of a “free” visit makes the journey even more appealing.

The U.S. National Park Free Days happen on the same five calendar dates every year. Start planning your national park visits around the following dates:

Monday, January 21 – Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

Saturday, April 20 – First Day of National Park Week/National Junior Ranger Day

Sunday, August 25 – National Park Service Anniversary

Saturday, September 28 – National Public Lands Day

Monday, November 11 – Veterans Day

Once you decide to go, keep in mind that you aren’t the only RVer who loves a good deal at the national parks. You’ll have lots of company with other frugal campers, so prepare for busier attendance. Campgrounds in and around the park are guaranteed to fill up faster than usual on those free days, so make your campsite reservations as far ahead as possible to ensure you have a place to camp. Plan any tours in advance, and create a “Plan B” for alternate activities should your first choices be unavailable.

If your schedule won’t allow you to take advantage of those free national park days, you may be able to get in free using other methods, such as camping with a friend family member who qualifies for a free yearly U.S. National Parks pass. These designated groups of campers include disabled persons, current military members, and young children who qualify for the free annual pass just for fourth grade students.

If you aren’t lucky enough to camp with someone who possesses a free annual pass, you can get in free to parks any day of the year by volunteering your time with the six federal agencies participating in the “Interagency Pass Program.” Log 250 or more volunteer service hours with the National Park Service, U.S. Forest Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Bureau of Land Management, the Bureau of Reclamation or the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and you will receive a free annual entry pass.

Of course if you have the cash and you know several national park visits are coming up this year, it pays to spend $80 annually on the America the Beautiful National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Pass. By paying ahead, you can enjoy year-round, unlimited entrance to more than 2,000 federal recreation areas, including all national parks. Plus you’ll feel good about helping out the parks with your cash. And perhaps the best reason to buy an America the Beautiful Pass is that you won’t have to limit your RV trips around those five free days in the national parks when everyone else plans on doing the same.

About the author: Rene Agredano 

Rene Agredano, a Coach-Net member since 2015, is a self-employed full-time RVer who enjoys writing, jewelry design and animal advocacy. Her adventures with a three-legged dog and husband Jim are chronicled at LiveWorkDream.com

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Harvest Hosts l The New Way To Camp

20 Thursday Dec 2018

Posted by in Travel Destinations

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Harvest Hosts

The sky is rich fading over the horizon in hues of ombre orange and peach, pierced with glistening beams of gold. The bustle of the day has settled leaving a hushed silence softened by the gentle rustling of the tall grass and the mellow singing of the swaying wind chimes. The smooth wine slowly swirls around the curved glass and you breathe in the warm aroma just steps away from the grapevines that produced it. RVing is about pursuing your passion of adventure and mindfully embracing the unique experiences this world has to offer. Sometimes you want to take in a familiar tourist spot set up at a comfortable campground overflowing with countless other travelers like yourself. But other times, you really want to dig deep into the soil and bathe in something more refreshing. You want to explore remote areas green with life and breathe in the warm, welcoming sensation of small-town hospitality. Harvest Hosts is your connection to a uniquely enriching camping experience.

Harvest Hosts provides unique camping experiences with hundreds of varied locations all across North America. I’m sure you spend hundreds of dollars every year on campgrounds that probably look and feel quite similar. While they may be comfortable and familiar, there’s rarely anything truly distinctive about them. Harvest Hosts wants to help you embrace the adventure of road-tripping and uncover beautiful places that are anything except ordinary. Instead of a cliché campground, you can set up at a vineyard, brewery, museum, ranch, or farm. Sometimes they have animals exotic to city dwellers, and other times they simply have fields of fresh growing crops providing a stark contrast to the miles of concrete surrounding many RV campgrounds. And while the majority of Harvest Hosts campsites are strictly for boon-docking, more and more are starting to offer access to electricity and water. But even when you’re boon-docking, you truly are their guest and your hosts want to ensure you enjoy your sojourn off the beaten path.

Airstream pulling into Bar Z

 

Once you are a member of Harvest Hosts, there are no additional fees for staying at any of their varied locations. Harvest Hosts really only asks one thing from their members: please give back and support your hosts. The owners of the farms, ranches, vineyards, and breweries are all small businesses that pour their hearts and souls into the curated goods they offer. There is no minimum purchase requirement. It can be something as small as a bar of handmade soap, or a bottle of locally aged wine. And their current members couldn’t be more pleased with their experiences. Robin B. was thrilled about their stay on the rim of the historic Palo Duro Canyon, the wine made from Texas grapes, the WiFi access, and the water/electric hook-ups free with purchase.

“We enjoyed our first Harvest Hosts stay at Bar Z Winery. Monty and staff are awesome, and the wines are excellent. Our dogs were welcomed too. The scenery is beautiful, and Palo Duro Canyon is a short drive away. We met an awesome fellow Harvest Hosts family while there. And there are electric and water hook-ups for two RVs. A great first experience!”

Parked at Campsite

Traveling the country is about seeing something you’ve never seen before and collecting exciting new experiences. Harvest Hosts understands that even among those of us who travel regularly, few know what it’s like to stay on a working farm waking up to the nostalgic sounds of rural life, and we rarely get to gaze at the stars unencumbered by the lights of the surrounding city. The hosts cultivate homegrown experiences and Harvest Hosts helps to cultivate and enrich your RV travels. Harvest Hosts is your connection to farms, ranches, vineyards, breweries, and other numerous breathtaking venues. That is why Coach-Net is proud to partner with them in our continued pursuit to be your connection to Carefree RVing.

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The Pros and Cons of Free Camping

26 Friday May 2017

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Camping fees aren’t getting any cheaper but thankfully the internet is loaded with free camping resources to lessen the blow of rising camping costs. If you’re like most RVers you love a good bargain, but as the popular saying goes, there’s no such thing as a free lunch. Before you rely on free RV camping websites to plan your frugal RVing journey, consider this short list of the pros and cons of free RV camping.free campin

The Cons of Free RV Camping

Free camping sounds like a great deal, but it has a few drawbacks. Let’s get those out of the way first.

Small campsites

Free camping spots in the United States are located on public lands. They’re often scenic and secluded, located off-the-beaten path where few people travel. Unfortunately, many of these prime camping spots just aren’t built for modern, larger RVs. A free and low cost camping guide published by the Escapees RV Club for its members describes one such campground as “Some sites OK for large rigs, but turnaround may be tight – scout first.” This is the general rule you should follow for almost all free RV campsites: first visit the destination without your rig. This ensures you can actually maneuver into and out of campground roads and parking spurs.

Rustic facilities

Free camping often means bare bones amenities, if you have any at all. In all but a few places, picnic tables, shelters and toilets are hard to come by. Water and RV dump stations are almost non-existent. You’ll probably also need to pack out your trash since many free campgrounds don’t have refuse removal services. Don’t expect your site to be perfectly level, either. Come prepared with all you need for comfort, like a ground cover and leveling blocks, or you may be disappointed.free camping

Harsh conditions

You usually won’t find free RV campsites in premium locations with mild weather. Most are situated in rough terrain that’s subject to extreme seasonal temperature changes. The free camping in Arizona is a perfect example. You’ll love the mild winters if you visit in January. But camping in July includes consistent triple digit temperatures which can make summer camping uncomfortable.

The Pros of Free RV Camping

Now that you know the disadvantages of free RV camping, let’s discuss the these benefits of campground penny-pinching.

Rugged isolation and solitude

If you crave an occasional escape from civilization, you’ll usually find it in these freebie spots. Many are located away from popular, crowded attractions like national parks, boating lakes and coastal regions. Cellular service can be unreliable or even non-existent, which keeps most technology-addicted campers away so you’ll often have the place to yourself. When you take the road less traveled, you’ll be rewarded with fewer people and more of a true wilderness experience.free camping

Less competition for campsites

Most RVers don’t want to work too hard for their campsites. They flock to the spots with easy access and conveniences like utility hookups. The majority of RVers also aren’t willing to sacrifice creature comforts when camping. Since most free RV campsites don’t offer these luxuries, your odds of finding a good spot increase exponentially, even on busy holiday weekends.

When you’re scouting reviews about free RV campsites, keep in mind that other RVers opinions are totally subjective. What one person thinks is paradise, another may interpret as hell on earth. There’s only way to find out the truth (and no, it’s not by doing a drone flyover). Get out and live the spirit of RV adventure. Just point your rig that way and find out for yourself.

 

About the Author:

Rene Agredano, a Coach-Net member since 2015, is a self-employed full-time RVer who enjoys writing, jewelry design and animal advocacy. Her adventures with a three-legged dog and husband Jim are chronicled at LiveWorkDream.com

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