Many want views like this from their campgrounds. So do we. This is a very nice public campground in Ashland OR. It is called Emigrant Lake CG. Not only do you get great views like this, but it is also fully equipped with full hookups and 50 amp power. It is also 100% full. Even though it is away from all road noise there are lots of activities here like jet skiing, fairly noisy dogs, and lots of kids. And noisy neighbors very close to us sitting outside playing loud music. Don’t get me wrong, for me this is a 8 out of 10 park. Off season this is likely a 9 out of 10 park. If there was wifi I would rate 1 point higher. Wifi in my opinion is a basic utility these days needed by almost everyone. There is good 4G Verizon.
The previous couple of nights we stayed at a private park located in the Cal Expo area of downtown Sacramento CA. That park was right near the wonderful Old Town Sacramento Railroad Museum where I took the above picture. They even let my wife and I into the museum for free because I volunteer for CA State Parks. The Cal Expo RV park had either asphalt or gravel/dirt spaces. Their utilities were also complete with good 50 amp power. A very nice fenced in dog park. Plus wifi free that actually worked well. Good 4G Verizon. This was a noisy park due to freeway noise and moderate train noise. The cost was about the same as the public campground.
Close to the Cal Expo park was shopping and eating in a great old refurbished Sacramento as it was in the 1800’s. Both these parks cost about the same. How would I rate this park. Harder to do because I don’t like noise. Because of the bare gavel and no site development at all besides utilities I am going to rate it a 7-8. 7 if you don’t like freeway noise and 8 if you don’t mind. This park was about 60% full.
The above image is from the resort’s web site. A couple nights before we stayed for a couple of nights at the Bakersfield RV Resort. This is one case where the word resort is true. This is one of the best private parks amenity wise I have ever stayed at. Very spacious sites with some grass. Good wifi. Very nice pool and hot tube. Clean bathrooms and showers. Very friendly staff. Free DVD’s from lobby. A good restaurant. Not great but good food. The freeway was a couple blocks away but you could definitely hear it. We also noticed lots of police-ambulance noises. This park is a 10. It made staying in a town that is definitely not a 10 pretty good. I did not love the noise, but the facility is so nice I am still going to rate a 10.
Conclusion. Which is better, public or private parks? In my opinion it depends entirely on the park. I think generalizing does not work well. As we continue to RV we are getting better at picking places to stay. I generally use all the information available to pick places. This includes, RVparkreviews.com, Woodalls-Good Sam ratings, Google ratings, Google maps & other maps. In general planning out RV routes and places to stay is very laborious. It takes me a lot of effort and work to do it. I find if you just wing it you end up at places you don’t like well and skip attractions you want to go to.
Bob Nuttmann 