Florida Campground Suggestions??

fansill · 07-02-2011, 08:36 AM

Good Morning All,

We are planning our winter get-a-way and we promised that we would visit family at their winter homes... Just short visits and wanted to stay at a CG nearby so that we have some "space"...

One family member has a condo in Fort Myers Beach.

Other family member has a condo in the Ventura Section of Orlando.

We would welcome any and all suggestions about CGs in those two areas.

I am also leaning toward visiting the Keys or the Everglades area for a few days and would love to explore the St. Augustine area (I am a history nut...)

Lastly, I understand that Lazy Days offers a 3 day-2 night freebie to first time campers. Am I dooming us to endless sales pitches if I take advantage of this offer? The campground looks really nice and I am sure that I will be browsing at the Camping World store. I also like to look at coaches even though I am still in love with ours....

All opinions would be greatly appreciated and welcomed.

By the way...we have a 40 foot Revolution LE with 4 slides...that may limit our choices.

Faith

edj · 07-02-2011, 10:29 AM

It can be difficult to get a reservation during the peak winter snowbird season in southern FL sometimes. I would suggest you refer to the website 'RV Park Reviews' for the best CG's in the areas you want to go. There are lots of ratings from the campers. To avoid the biased and really negative people, ignore the best/worst and take an average.

You should start to firm up your plans and get reservations ASAP. The better CG's are mostly full in Snowbird season. I would not hold out too much hope for campsites in the Keys. Those are very hard to get and also very expensive.

georgetown350 · 07-02-2011, 11:46 AM

I can comment on your question regarding Lazy days free offer. We took advantage of it and there are absolutely no strings attached. No pressure, sales pitches etc.

Free camping, free newspaper each day, free breakfast, free lunch, free wireless, great pool, great hot tub..... we have been back many times since that first free weekend.....

WheelingIt · 07-02-2011, 01:20 PM

If you're a history nut you'll probably enjoy Koreshan State Park near Ft Myers. We stayed there on our way south last year and found it an interesting stop.

I've got pics of the park on the blog http://wheelingit.wordpress.com/2010...ark-estero-fl/

We're 40 foot 4 slides so same as you.

Billieg · 07-02-2011, 01:34 PM

Hi, I live near Ft. Myers and if you want a cg on the beach you will need to reserve now for the winter months. Most of them are crowded and sites close together. Also, FM beach is about 30 minutes away from downtown FM. We just took the coach for a 3 day stay to test out new equipment at:
Arcadia Florida Campground Southwest Florida Campground RV Campground in Florida South Florida Campground

It's about 30 minutes north of FM and was one of the nicest CG's we have been at.

decodancer · 07-02-2011, 07:08 PM

Check out the Ringling museum in Sarasota while you're in the Fort Meyers area and St Augustine is well worth the trip. Fort Desota in St Petersburg is also neat for a history buff but the campground there books like a year in advance. Lived my whole life in that area and usually ended up at the local KOA because all the other places were booked in the winter. Good luck and have fun.

Lault · 07-03-2011, 05:30 AM

Lazy Days will not mess with you. And you eat free, what more do you want?? Oh and you get a free news paper in AM. All you have to do is show up and enjoy. I will be there in 3 days.

OSP1268 · 07-03-2011, 05:47 AM

We have stayed here several times during the winter months. Usually we only stay for 3 to 4 nights to visit friends. The campground is just north of Naples and south of Ft. Myers. They are very friendly and the campground roads are just a bit tight but in a nice quiet area. We always call about a week or two before we plan on going there. They said they always keep a couple of sites for people that only want to stay for a few days.
www.bonitalake.com

pacevette · 07-03-2011, 09:37 AM

We are frequent visitors of st. Augustine. We always stay at Anastasia State Park. Not too far from town and directly on the beach. I would recommend taking a car into town though. It'd a beautiful town and very relaxed.

ncason · 07-21-2011, 02:04 PM

If you have military or civil service status you can stay in Key West at Sigsbee Island NAS very cheap. If not try Jolly Roger RV park in Marathon, FL. They have a Passport America deal that we used and saved a lot of money.

D in Davie · 07-23-2011, 07:50 PM

OK, all of the suggestions are good ones. I'll have to look into that stay at Lazy Days myself but there can be no serious discussion about campgrounds in the Orlando area without talking about Fort Wilderness. It has been six months since my last visit and it is almost six months to long a wait. It is not something you can afford to stay at all season but it will ruin you for other camp grounds. JMO.

KIX · 07-23-2011, 08:07 PM

In St. Augustine area you can look at Stagecoach RV. Or Indian Forest CG.

Luckiest Dre · 07-26-2011, 07:44 PM

We stayed a good portion of last winter in Ft Myers at Woodsmoke campground in S Ft Myers.(find them online) There were several CG nearby and all of them had campers coming and going all winter. Woodsmoke had several spots (most were drive throughs) that they used for short term stays and many a night they had several empty. If you wanted to stay for longer periods a reservation was mandantory. I know they are having some road construction along Tamiami Trail and it may cause some difficulty in and out but the park is usable and the folks were friendly. Can you find better ? Yes, but many of them may have occasional problems as well!
Worked for us for 3 months.