Please rate campground WiFi in your reviews

[nothermark]

The issue is really availability. Stop and figure out the total bandwidth a park needs if half the spaces are streaming. Probably another chunk is on YouTube or similar. Figure a minimum of one device per person in todays world with pre teens carrying cell phones capable of streaming. When you get that total try and find any supplier that can supply the bandwidth. Most cannot except in odd circumstances like buying the summer bandwidth of the school next door. That is another factor, they only need those big pipes for two months per year when school is out but they have to pay for them for all 12 unless they can work a deal as described.

[kenautoone]

I'm not sure I understand this....you spent thousands of dollars to go camping.....and you are worried about will WI Fi??????

[beaverfever]

i have learned to ask if they have tengo wifi. if they do i go else where.
tengo is the worst thing that has happened to wifi in rv parks it plain stinks

[les.warden]

Originally Posted by vsheetz

We've been to a few campgrounds that actively block streaming protocols. They state the wifi is for casual browsing, email, etc. I think this is a practical solution. If one wants streaming, bring their own access.

Agree. A good Network Engineer or Technician can QOS those protocols down to almost nothing or route them to the bit bucket. Unfortunately some campgrounds throw up a few connected APs and call it good.

[les.warden]

I retired 2.5 years ago from State of Illinois. The biggest WAN lines we put in at the time were 3- 100GB fiber lines. No matter how big we would make the pipes, it always seemed they wanted more, more, more. The pipes would always eventually hit peaks.

[ralphie]

I can rate all CG wifi in one word, lousy. Seriously, I left SWFL and went as far north as Niagara Falls this past six weeks and can count on one finger a CG that had good wifi. I'm sure there were some folks streaming video that they shouldn't do, but my conclusion is the wifi signals are too weak or not in line of sight, or the CG just doesn't have enough antennas. It's difficult to overuse CG wifi if you can't get a signal to begin with.

[F4Gary]

Originally Posted by kenautoone

I'm not sure I understand this....you spent thousands of dollars to go camping.....and you are worried about will WI Fi??????

No, I spent thousands of dollars on a nice RV so I wouldn't have to "camp". I did that as an AF FAC with the Army. Don't want to do that again.

[WanderingUSA]

Personally, I wouldn't use a campground's WiFi as most are unsecured. This is low hanging fruit for identity theft.

[nothermark]

Originally Posted by ralphie

I can rate all CG wifi in one word, lousy. Seriously, I left SWFL and went as far north as Niagara Falls this past six weeks and can count on one finger a CG that had good wifi. I'm sure there were some folks streaming video that they shouldn't do, but my conclusion is the wifi signals are too weak or not in line of sight, or the CG just doesn't have enough antennas. It's difficult to overuse CG wifi if you can't get a signal to begin with.

Do the same trip in April or September and you will find the WiFi is pretty good most of the same places you stopped in the summer. That is part of why we travel more then than summer time.

[Ron_H]

I understand the frustration being voiced here but I feel a good deal of "problem" is actually a lack of knowledge and an incorrect perception. Now, don't get me wrong, I'm not disagreeing that many campsites/parks offer poor wi-fi systems but even those which provide a good system are commonly subject to uninformed or greedy users doing their best to gobble up whatever bandwidth is being offered.

Originally Posted by UTExplore

We need to put pressure on campgrounds that deliver crappy or non-available Wifi. About 80% of the campgrounds this year have had virtually unusable WiFi. It is an industry-wide sham. We are paying for something that is consistently not delivered.

Many campgrounds offer free wi-fi as an incentive to attract customers. If you are unsatisfied with their free offering then either don't stop at that location in the future or "purchase" a wi-fi signal. If you are paying for that specific service and it's crappy then you have a legitimate complaint.

Originally Posted by UTExplore

I am not streaming. I just want my email and the news.

That's good that you are not streaming, unfortunately, many others on that same wi-fi likely are and no matter how big the pipe is, it can and will be used to its capacity at some point. I often use free park wi-fi in the early morning hours and the bandwidth is fine but that same system will likely be painfully limited in the evening when a large number of people are checking email, checking their Facebook accounts, doing Facetime with their grandchildren and streaming movies.

Originally Posted by UTExplore

I have reverted to a Verizon JetPack in these parks and am paying for a large data plan.

If you are paying for a "large data plan" then I assume you are using a large amount of data. Can you see where I'm going with this? Your data usage is important to you but that "large" data usage would also take away from the bandwidth available to fellow campground guests, leaving them frustrated.

Originally Posted by UTExplore

When you rate a campground, PLEASE comment on WiFi quality. Hoping they will feel the pressure to improve.

I do love to see reviews stating that a location has good wi-fi because I know that they at least have a stable system. Unfortunately, without solid technical information and knowledge, poor ratings would be totally subjective. Even the best system can result in poor performance for some users due to the current traffic, their distance from a repeater, internal or external obstructions, their internal wi-fi system and much, much more.

I am happy when I get a good campground wi-fi signal, it;s a huge bonus. When I get a crappy or no signal, I utilize my paid wi-fi solution.

[UTExplore]

Originally Posted by kenautoone

I'm not sure I understand this....you spent thousands of dollars to go camping.....and you are worried about will WI Fi??????

Many people work while on the road. The next generation of RVers are more "connected" and demand good WiFi. Reviews of WiFi quality will help those who need it, find it.

[MisterT]

with our upgrade to AT&T's Unlimited Plus plan, we worry much much less about even whether a park has internet or not - its nice. Our WifiRanger gets very very little use now, as we only may need it if we happen to be out of ATT signal range, but that's so infrequent that it pales compared to the number of parks who advertise that they have 'wifi', then you find out it's either difficult to connect to, extremely slow if at all useable, or is only available 'at the office'!

RV parks, like hotels in years past, have had a lot of pressure to provide internet, and lately 'fast' wifi service, though most don't know much if anything about it, or try to just farm it out to a local 'person' to help them with it - it will go away soon enough, just as Cable Tv service is.

[Dale & Mark Bruss]

Originally Posted by kenautoone

I'm not sure I understand this....you spent thousands of dollars to go camping.....and you are worried about will WI Fi??????

For many of us being in an RV is not camping, it is a place to live. And life these days includes Internet and often a key element right after satellite TV.

[Bob&AnnaMari]

Originally Posted by beaverfever

i have learned to ask if they have tengo wifi. if they do i go else where.
tengo is the worst thing that has happened to wifi in rv parks it plain stinks

AMEN!!!