CG "Guaranteed Site Fees"

**flybouy** · 01-24-2021, 12:24 PM

Making reservations for this year and so far 2 campgrounds a charge an extra fee to guarantee your reservation for a particular site. I'm making a reservation for site #123 and not for a site that may or may not be site #123 when I get there. What a ripoff IMHO.

Cherrystone Family Camping Resort $21.07/week
Frontier Town RV Resort & Campground $ 25/week

Anyone else seeing this around the country?

**sourdough** · 01-24-2021, 12:33 PM

I have not but I have only been in this one this year. I will begin making future reservations soon so that may now be a new tactic out there. I DO know that the park owners I know do not like reserving a specific site. Don't know why other than it complicates things a bit when they are booking folks later after you have reserved one and they have to keep checking. Like you, there are certain places where I only want to stay in a particular spot so guess we'll see if this is a new wave for the future.

pikespeakviewer · 01-24-2021, 12:36 PM

one of our favourite campsites also says that they charge to reserve a specific site #, but so far (7 years) we haven't been charged it. I get it, they want to be able to move people around on paper to maximize occupancy, but I would hate to have to pay the fee...

**flybouy** · 01-24-2021, 12:53 PM

Both cgs are owned by major conglomerates and not "family owned". Frontier Town is Sun RV Resorts and I think Cherrystone is a private partnership but not sure. They are both huge campgrounds in highly desirable locations.

They both "claim" that it's the computer software that say if you reserve a large site for a small camper the computer will move you to a smaller site to free up the larger site for a larger camper. They claim it's for better customer satisfaction. I said, and how satisfied is the family in the small camper that wanted to be closer to the playground or the pool? It's a way to squeeze more money out of folks IMO but what can you do?

notanlines · 01-24-2021, 01:03 PM

I just can’t imagine a company wanting to squeeze more money out of a customer...

**chuckster57** · 01-24-2021, 01:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by flybouy

Both cgs are owned by major conglomerates and not "family owned". Frontier Town is Sun RV Resorts and I think Cherrystone is a private partnership but not sure. They are both huge campgrounds in highly desirable locations.

They both "claim" that it's the computer software that say if you reserve a large site for a small camper the computer will move you to a smaller site to free up the larger site for a larger camper. They claim it's for better customer satisfaction. I said, and how satisfied is the family in the small camper that wanted to be closer to the playground or the pool? It's a way to squeeze more money out of folks IMO but what can you do?

Tell them you have a monster size trailer LOL. I fudged my length on a few occasions to make sure I got a big enough site.
IMO, that fee is ridiculous.

jasin1 · 01-24-2021, 01:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by flybouy

Making reservations for this year and so far 2 campgrounds a charge an extra fee to guarantee your reservation for a particular site. I'm making a reservation for site #123 and not for a site that may or may not be site #123 when I get there. What a ripoff IMHO.

Cherrystone Family Camping Resort $21.07/week
Frontier Town RV Resort & Campground $ 25/week

Anyone else seeing this around the country?

I wonder if it’s because in the year of COVID ,so many people have free time on there hands that they stay a few days at a campground and decide they like it and want to extend the stay.,. I did that this last year. If someone has the spot reserved then it means packing up and moving to a different spot. Some people might think it’s not worth all the trouble. The campgrounds probably heard that a lot last year and they figured they lost some money....by charging $25 they figure some people will just not reserve the spot and take anything they campground gives them,opening up the extra money from people extending there stay....it’s definitely not right though

**flybouy** · 01-24-2021, 01:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by chuckster57

Tell them you have a monster size trailer LOL. I fudged my length on a few occasions to make sure I got a big enough site.
IMO, that fee is ridiculous.

I told them it's 36' travel trailer. The guy at Cherrystone said their computer goes by "living space". I told this guy that while I may not live over that 2 1/2' of trailer tongue I still need to get off the road. He said he had a site parallel with the road. When I asked the size he said "it's listed for a 35' "living space" camper and he could not give me the actual site size. I'm a pretty good driver but I need SOME space to parallel park. He said, "no problem, they make the site so you can JACKKNIFE them in!"

I tried to explain the difference between a TT and a 5th wheel when backing/turning.

Next question was how much is a golf cart rental for the week. He said "let's see, that's $70/day for for 7 days is $490 plus tax is...". NO!, I just wanted to rent it not buy it. Jeeze, I feel like I've just been mugged and robbed.

ewbldavis · 01-24-2021, 02:30 PM

FWIW - we've paid a "premium" before to select a specific site.

I think this is most common with electronic booking (versus your mom & pop campgrounds). We sometimes like to select the specific site we want, so we'll pay the premium. KOA for example does this - you book and go in the mix, or for $25 pick your specific site number.

We add a couple feet to our length to make sure we have some wiggle room. It's like the truck debate- having too much never hurts.

Also, $490 for 7 days seems par. We typically pay around $375-400 for 6 days in Myrtle Beach. We have a cart at home, so it's worth it to us to roll around checking things out

**sourdough** · 01-24-2021, 03:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by notanlines

I just can’t imagine a company wanting to squeeze more money out of a customer...

I can't either. When they squeeze me it's not "money" that comes out.....

**sourdough** · 01-24-2021, 03:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by flybouy

I told them it's 36' travel trailer. The guy at Cherrystone said their computer goes by "living space". I told this guy that while I may not live over that 2 1/2' of trailer tongue I still need to get off the road. He said he had a site parallel with the road. When I asked the size he said "it's listed for a 35' "living space" camper and he could not give me the actual site size. I'm a pretty good driver but I need SOME space to parallel park. He said, "no problem, they make the site so you can JACKKNIFE them in!"

I tried to explain the difference between a TT and a 5th wheel when backing/turning.

Next question was how much is a golf cart rental for the week. He said "let's see, that's $70/day for for 7 days is $490 plus tax is...". NO!, I just wanted to rent it not buy it. Jeeze, I feel like I've just been mugged and robbed.

You ARE being mugged and robbed! I'm staying at a golf "resort" (I don't golf any longer) and the fees for a cart are $10 DAY! Although I don't golf I still pay the monthly "membership" fee for our space so guess it all comes out in the wash. We sit here and watch all of them chasing each other around the course....we call them "bugs".

LHaven · 01-24-2021, 04:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jasin1

many people have free time on there hands that they stay a few days at a campground and decide they like it and want to extend the stay.,. I did that this last year. If someone has the spot reserved then it means packing up and moving to a different spot. Some people might think it’s not worth all the trouble.

Heck, I've been told that to get my requested term at a park, I'll have to camp in one site for part of the time and then move to another for the rest. As far as I'm concerned, it's part of the camping experience.

jasin1 · 01-24-2021, 04:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LHaven

Heck, I've been told that to get my requested term at a park, I'll have to camp in one site for part of the time and then move to another for the rest. As far as I'm concerned, it's part of the camping experience.

I wasn’t saying that I wouldn’t do that. I have and it’s not a big deal to me. I was merely saying that campgrounds in general have probably seen an influx of people with more flexible and disposable time.
I’m sure you guys with lots of rv experience can attest to the fact that 2020 was a little different then what was the norm for the previous 30 years.
A lot of people have taken to full timing and working from home or rv. MANY more families bought rv’s last year so it has to be more campground bookings.Families have maybe one parent that is out of work or flexible schedules so staying en extra day or two at a campground isn’t unheard of. It’s a different world then when families scheduled a vacation week once in the summer.
I will probably pay the extra money because I hate surprises.

NH_Bulldog · 01-24-2021, 04:57 PM

I started seeing the site guarantee fees a couple of years ago here and there but it is becoming more and more common it seems. We mostly stay at State Parks and so far it hasn’t been an issue there.....yet.

When we do stay at places that “offer” a site guarantee, we have had good luck just calling the office to make our reservation and have found everyone to be very accommodating to our specific requests......so far.

**JRTJH** · 01-24-2021, 05:17 PM

In Michigan State Parks, you make "online reservations" by date and site number. So, at least here, there are some specific site reservations that don't cost more for that privilege.

Most of the FAMCAMP (military campgrounds) have a "site request" capability, but there is no additional charge if you do ask for a specific site.

Private campgrounds are "for profit facilities" and "squeezing every drop of profit" is, I suppose, to be expected..... If you think about it, for years now, if you want a concrete pad, you pay extra, if you want a "deluxe firepit" you pay extra, if you want a gazebo, you pay extra, if you want full hookups, you pay extra, if you want 50 amp service, you pay extra, if you want a pull-through, you pay extra. This is "just one more step in the evolutionary process of separating you from as much money as possible".....

**flybouy** · 01-24-2021, 05:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LHaven

Heck, I've been told that to get my requested term at a park, I'll have to camp in one site for part of the time and then move to another for the rest. As far as I'm concerned, it's part of the camping experience.

I've done that before when I was informed of the situation when I booked a site but never after the fact. Barring an issue with the site, say electric is out and can't be fixed or they need to dig up a line someone would be calling the law enforcement to evict me if they want me to move

I don't find it acceptable. If I buy a ticket for a game or a concert it has a number for that reserved seat. If someone else wants to set there that's too bad. For the duration of the game that seat is mine. If I want to take my chances on where I'm going to set then I'll buy a cheaper seat in the bleacher sections.

To me it's the principal jot the money. $20 to $25 for 7 days is an extra $3 so just increase the price and be done with it. When someone tells me that unless I give them money something I dislike may happen then I call that extortion.

jasin1 · 01-24-2021, 05:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JRTJH

In Michigan State Parks, you make "online reservations" by date and site number. So, at least here, there are some specific site reservations that don't cost more for that privilege.

Most of the FAMCAMP (military campgrounds) have a "site request" capability, but there is no additional charge if you do ask for a specific site.

Private campgrounds are "for profit facilities" and "squeezing every drop of profit" is, I suppose, to be expected..... If you think about it, for years now, if you want a concrete pad, you pay extra, if you want a "deluxe firepit" you pay extra, if you want a gazebo, you pay extra, if you want full hookups, you pay extra, if you want 50 amp service, you pay extra, if you want a pull-through, you pay extra. This is "just one more step in the evolutionary process of separating you from as much money as possible".....

Quote:

Originally Posted by flybouy

I've done that before when I was informed of the situation when I booked a site but never after the fact. Barring an issue with the site, say electric is out and can't be fixed or they need to dig up a line someone would be calling the law enforcement to evict me if they want me to move

I don't find it acceptable. If I buy a ticket for a game or a concert it has a number for that reserved seat. If someone else wants to set there that's too bad. For the duration of the game that seat is mine. If I want to take my chances on where I'm going to set then I'll buy a cheaper seat in the bleacher sections.

To me it's the principal jot the money. $20 to $25 for 7 days is an extra $3 so just increase the price and be done with it. When someone tells me that unless I give them money something I dislike may happen then I call that extortion.

I agree with both of you..it’s like your phone or cable bill. When they advertise a monthly price and then you look at the itemized bill it’s much more with all the add ons. Campgrounds can get away with advertising a low nightly rate and satisfy all the campground review sites based on price. Then when you see what you actually want it’s much more with all the additional fees .
And it is like extortion........ I looked at a couple of koas and was surprised at the ala carte style of ordering campsites.

**JRTJH** · 01-24-2021, 06:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jasin1

...
Campgrounds can get away with advertising a low nightly rate and satisfy all the campground review sites based on price. Then when you see what you actually want it’s much more with all the additional fees .
And it is like extortion........ I looked at a couple of koas and was surprised at the ala carte style of ordering campsites.

It's not "just campgrounds and Phone Companies"....

If you think about it, Keystone advertises "shipping weight" and a tongue/pin weight based on that shipping weight, which, in reality is "pure fantasy"...

They go on to list a trailer MSRP, then in the "standard equipment" list "mandatory optional packages" which are added to the MSRP "after it's established".... I still haven't been able to get them to confirm whether the "shipping weight" includes the "mandatory optional equipment" or "only the rest of the optional equipment"....

Sort of "half ton towable" in every trailer they build for public sale.....

**flybouy** · 01-24-2021, 06:32 PM

I don't have an issue paying a premium for a premium site. If I reserve a premium site it's because it was my choice. If I wanted a different site then that's what I would reserve. I think it's unconscionable that making a site specific reservation 7 months in advance, letting them hold the money for the deposit for 7 months, that I shouldn't get "bumped" by someone who may have just arrived.

If I order a steak in a restaurant I expect to pay more because I'm getting more. What I won't accept is ordering a steak and receiving a hamburger because the guy that came in after me ordered and got the last stake they had.

The campgrounds get away with it because they can. The demand is exceeding the supply. It's like the price gouging after a hurricane IMO.

JimQ · 01-25-2021, 04:06 AM

It is a rip off. Last year I had a reservation and went online a week before the arrival date and saw my campsite that I already reserved and paid for was available. I called the campground and was told the computer moved me. I was furious. They moved me why? It is not right. I got back into my site original and they waived the lock in fee. The other excuse they use is lame also. "You were moved to accommodate a group". Oh, so I plan months ahead to reserve a spot I want and someone at the last minute can bump me out because they are camping together. Give me a break! Oh well, good to vent once in awhile.

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