Rules and Cost of Add-ons
Every campground has rules. Keep your dog on a leash. Don’t leave your trash curbside overnight. Quiet hours. From our experience:
- most campground managers enforce some of the rules most of the time
- some mangers give a half-hearted attempt at enforcing some of the rules
- some managers enforce rules for some people but not for others
- some managers don’t enforce the rules at all
The rules that managers fairly consistently enforce are the rules that make the campground money. These rules are financial add-ons you may not be aware of at the time of booking your site. For example, the State of Maine now has a $5.00 camping fee for making a reservation. The following are all add-ons that we have experienced in our travels. As you can tell, we have been surprised more than once by extra fees and costs!
The Extra Cost of Add-Ons
- Early In
During a recent stay in coastal South Carolina, check in was 2 p.m. We arrived at 1:47 p.m. and were told we had to pay a $25 “early entrance” fee. RVs were lined up behind us, so we couldn’t “back-up” and we were not allowed to wait out the 13 minutes in line. We paid the $25, but we will not return to this campground. - Site Request
We travel with a satellite dish. In a campground in coastal Connecticut there are some sites that are definitely not satellite friendly. During the busy summer months, you are lucky to be able to book any site! We have paid the extra $25 to be able to be in a site that is both shaded and satellite friendly. - Site Type
Not every site at the same campground is the same price, for example, a pull thru can cost more than a back in site. Or a waterfront site may cost more than one 6 rows back. During a recent trip through Louisiana when we were planning on only staying one night and didn’t want to unhook the Jeep, we paid more for the long pull thru site. - Change Site Fee
We reserved a site at an Army Corp of Engineers campground. When we arrived, trees made it impossible for us to put our slides out. We went back to the gate house and were reassigned to a new site – that already had an RV on it. Through no fault of our own, we were charged two change site fees of $10 each!! - Dogs
An extra fee for more than 1 or 2 dogs or for a dog more than 35 pounds is becoming more the norm. These fees range from $2 – $5 per day per dog. We were on Cape Cod Massachusetts when were hit with a surprise $5 per day fee for our 100 lb. dog. Still cheaper than boarding, but we would have liked to know in advance! - Extra People at Your Site
Campgrounds usually base their nightly fees on the electric, sewer and water consumption of 4 people per site (2 adults and 2 children). We have noticed some campgrounds are now charging an extra fee of $2 – $5 per person per day for over four people per site. - More than 2 Vehicles per Site
Most people travel with one or two motorized vehicles, their RV and a towed vehicle or a tow vehicle and their 5th wheel or travel trailer. Some campgrounds will charge for more than two motorized vehicles at any one site. There can be free overflow options. Fees vary, but could be anywhere from $5 to $10 per day. - Fees for Tow Dollies or Trailer
Though we have not experienced it personally (we flat tow our JEEP, no trailer), we have had friends who have had to pay for tow dollies or trailers. Some sites are not large enough to accommodate these items. From what we have been told, these fees can range anywhere from $5 per day to $25 per stay. - Cancellation Fees
Nonrefundable fees for cancelling your reservation can be any amount from $10 to the fee for one night, to forfeiting your whole payment. Time frames for a refund can vary from 24 hours before arrival to 30 days before arrival. We lost one night’s stay in North Carolina because we didn’t cancel more than 30 days in advance! - Visitors
Many campgrounds charge a fee for visitors. A campground on coastal Maine charges $7 per child and $10 per adult per day. It doesn’t matter if the guest is there to use all of the amenities (beach, pool, playground, arcade, etc.) or to sit quietly at the campsite for a cook out. Overnight visitors may be an additional fee. - Washing of RVs or Vehicle
This is a fee that seems to vary wildly. A campground in Texas encouraged us to wash our RV and towed vehicle for free. At a campground in Alabama we were not allowed to wash our RV or Jeep at all. At campgrounds that allow washing vehicles, the standard fee seems to be $10 for RVs and $5 for tow or towed vehicles. - Laundry
We are so happy to have a washer and dryer on board! However, at a particular campground in Florida, if you are monthly and have an onboard washer/dryer you are charged an extra $7 per month, even if the washer is not working! Many campgrounds have washers and dryers onsite. Fees are usually $2-3 per wash and $2-3 for drying. - Gate Card
It seems like there are more and more gated campgrounds. Some have a key pad, some have a key card. We stayed at a gated community campground in Georgia that charged a $20 cash deposit for a gate card. If you lost your card, or failed to turn it in at the end of your stay, they would keep your $20! - Honey Wagon
Many coastal cities and/or states have regulations about not having sewer hook-ups at individual sites. There will be a pump out, but it is centrally located. For $20 – $25, some campgrounds offer a “honey wagon” that will go around to your site and pump you out, so you do not have to go dump every few days. - Late Out
If your check out time is 11 a.m., many campgrounds will let it slide if you leaving a few minutes late. Other campgrounds are much stricter about their departure time. We stayed at a campground in Ohio that charged a $10 fee if we were still on-site at 11:01 a.m.
Take-away Point
For all of our traveling we have experienced a lot of “add on” situations. Some we have been surprised by (fee for large dogs), some we have “willingly” paid (satellite friendly site) and some I have been downright angry about (change site fee). Before booking your site, read the website and ask questions!
Your partners in travel,
Kathryn, Dave and Lucky
RVing Nomads
It’s a lifestyle
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