Ann Arbor, MI camping or resort

[gbanker]

We are moving our son to Ann Arbor for Graduate School in August using the 07 Winnebago Adventurer and towing the Jeep. We are looking for info on staying for 4-5 nights as close by to U of Michigan North Campus as possible. Electrical hookups required.
Does anyone know if University would allow overnight parking in their parking lot on campus??
Thanks.

[codgerbill]

I live near the U of Michigan and for many years, working for the electric company, I worked at the university and had to park at their many locations. The U of M requires parking permits for everyone on their campus (including at their campus housing locations). Their employees have to pay an annual fee to park at the university locations. The permit does not give them exclusive rights to a particular spot but rather guarantees them the right to enter a lot and search for an open spot. As a utility worker we made them give us parking spaces near the electrical substations so we could do our job with out harassment from their parking enforcement people and we still got tickets from them. For you to park somewhere on campus would probably require an act of god and even if you could I don't know where you would get an electrical service. Maby a 120Volt 15/20A extension cord but certainly not a 30A or 50A service. There are not a lot of RV parks in the area either. There is a KOA near Ypsilanti and a state park in Brighton and in Pinckney.Other than that imaby a private individual not in a subdivision with restrictive homeowner rules might be a possibility. Motorhomes park at the Ann Arbor Pioneer High School for football games (Many overnight on the High School grounds) but I dont think the public schools would allow an extended period of parking and besides there is no electricity avaliable there anyway.

[gbanker]

Bill Thank you for the insight...I am finding it is NOT an RV friendly place to even visit...too bad as I am sure the residents are great and they could use the sales tax revenues, etc in their local economy.

[codgerbill]

Gary,
Ann Arbor is not all bad . It has a really nice downtown area with lots of great resturants and small shops. The university has some very good Museums too. Parking during the day can be a problem as the city had hired extra "metermaids" sometime ago and they seem to be like vultures waiting for the meter to expire . They do have several parking structures and those are a safer bet than the metered parking on the street if you are not sure on how long you will be. I think in the evening (after 6) the meters are not enforced, however the parking spaces on the street are limited.
Regarding the camping you are correct. I have stayed at the Brighton State Park ( actually Brighton State recreation area) and it is nice . It is also typical of Michigan State Parks, with electric (usually 30A)and sometimes water and no sewer (dump station near entrances...usually). Here is the website for michigan State parks http://www.midnrreservations.com/ParkCampgroundMap.aspx and you pick a site with the regards to you motorhome. The description includes site length, width and if there are trees and stuff. It also tells you the amperage of the electric service and if water is avaliable on the site. Its about a 30+ minute drive from downtown ann arbor. The KOA in the Ypsi area I have no personal experience with it but it is aprox 20+ minutes from downtown ann arbor. The travel time will vary depending on the time of day too. They do have a morning "rush" hour and the delays might be maby 15 minutes or so.

[dobrien]

Call Fingerlea Lumber in Ann Arbor and ask if they can help you. They would be a great place to start.

[buckeyes]

As you can see from my sign on name, "Buckeyes", I have no interest in traveling to Ann Arbor again. During my playing days at Ohio State, we had to make that trek for our yearly beating of the Wolverines. Seems they were rude to us, just because we were the "enemy". As we were bused into the stadium, thousands of loud Wolverine Fans would greet us, and always signaled that we were Number 1 by the use of their fingers. I guess that is what they meant.

Anyway, while Michigan is a beautiful state, and I actually know some wonderful people from there, " they are Spartan fans", taking my motorhome to Ann Arbor would not be considered. Oh, may I mention that it has Ohio State displayed prominently where possible, and that the license plate says," BUCKEYES".

On a serious note, I wish you well with your trip to Ann Arbor, and please know that we will be in the stands this year on November 21st as our Buckeyes win again, making it 7 our 8. We sure do like the hiring of Rich Rodriquez as the new coach, heck, we may never lose to them again.

Have a wonderful trip, and enjoy the fall colors, as Michigan has some great scenery to enjoy, but none of it is Maze and Blue!

[wa8yxm]

Re: Ann Arbor,, Been there many times, Lived there for nearly two years. University of Michigan Hospital is one of the best in the world (if you subscribe to "you get what you pay for" it's the most expensive in the world, at least according to one doctor I used to serve coffee to)

Camping.. I don't know of any campgrounds in A^2 (That's A squared) myself.. However there is a KOA just east of there (Greenfield KOA) and there is a county park, as well as several private parks, in Jackson County (one county west) there are some state parks too don't know if they have camping.

The city itself is very nice. You can also fine the usual asortment of big parking lots where you can spend one night if I'm not mistaken.

I still have several friends in the A^2 area.

[gbanker]

Thanks to all for the info!! We actually had a great trip to Ann Arbor in August and stayed at the Detroit Greenfield (formerly KOA) in Ypsi. It was more convenient than the State Parks, although we would like to check them out another time. Would recommend the Greenfield RV park to anyone who needs to be close to UM. (We also towed a car, so once we were unloaded, the RV stayed at the park and we got around with no problems.)
As it turned out, we drove the motorhome right next to the apartment buildings (WillowTree Apts) on Plymouth Rd and the unloading went smoothly!! Spent a couple of additional days in town enjoying the town and great places to eat/drink. We are planning to drive back November 12th, but with the car this time due to travel/time of year weather uncertainties, etc., and stay at a motel....I know, not as enjoyable as the RV!!
It certainly appears that everyone takes their college FB seriously in that region!! We are now adopted UM fans with our son in grad school there, but still root for South Dakota State University..currently ranked 9th in Division IAA FCS. Go Rabbits!!

[wa8yxm]

Interesting about that "Detroit Greenfield" Campground

It's miles from Detroit

Short story: When I was a police dispatcher we were ask to deliver a notification (Please call home type message) to a couple of RVers.. I spoke with the person requesting and found they were supposed to be visiting Greenfield Village (in Dearborn MI) as part of their trip and were supposed to be "Nearby"

Greenfield KOA (At the time still a KOA) was the nearest campground.... I missed 'em by about 2 hours but at least was able to provide a good lead to the troopers looking for the RV on the freeways.

(In all of the state police 2nd district, A team of about 40 dispatchers.. I was the ONLY one who had what it took to locate that campground quickly (A AAA campground guide) in my work bag.

[NLOVNIT]

Quote:

Originally Posted by gbanker ...It was more convenient than the State Parks, although we would like to check them out another time.

Short thread hijack here. MI state parks charge an $8 per vehicle per day pass for non-residents. We discovered this on our MI vacation 3 weeks ago. It made a $23 per night (as published on the state parks pricing schedule), electric only site come to a grand total of $39 per night.

MI state parks are beautiful (the ones we were in) & well kept, but quite pricey for the site ammenities you get.

Lori-