Community Forums

CMcGGray · 04-26-2014, 08:01 PM

We will be traveling for a year - with mostly 2-3 night stays and a lot of 1 night stays in between.

How do you handle delivery of packages while traveling? We have a family member in Florida who will handle mail for us (mostly by scanning & emailing).

Will campgrounds accept packages if we are already there or have a reservation and we ask nicely? Are there any other good options?

I'm mostly worried about needing to order replacement parts for computer/communications set up - small, high cost packages generally.

Thanks in advance for any & all advice!
Cheryl

FlyingDiver · 04-26-2014, 08:12 PM

I can't ever recall a campground refusing to accept packages for me. I've only done it at the larger "destination" places, not the small ones that we only stop for one night. The office at the resort we're at now (and have been for almost 6 months) gets several a week for us (Amazon Prime).

If you can get it shipped Priority Mail, general delivery at a post office might also be an option.

twogypsies · 04-26-2014, 09:39 PM

Since you're traveling constantly and only having 1-3 night stays you'll definitely need to plan far ahead. If you're ordering from a retailer or from Amazon, etc., you just can't count on exact delivery time. Using Priority mail, General Delivery, works for us for our mail forwarding service. They'll only hold it at the P.O. a certain length of time so be sure to check ahead. Good luck.

bigmichael · 04-27-2014, 07:32 AM

We use Amazon Prime-which does allow you to plan on an exact delivery date. Guaranteed two day delivery- with an email which gives you the exact date. Even with that, it really means you need at least a 3 night stay from time of order to delivery. Some people of late have had some issues with Amazon-but we have used Prime for 3 years and have yet to have an order not make it as promised.

We have also called an RV park where we were going to be coming into, and asked them about having a pkg sent that might get there a day before we do or such. That has always worked for us-but we much prefer to know that we will be in the park when the pkg is to be delivered.

itgeekgal · 04-27-2014, 12:14 PM

In 4 years of travel we've only stayed in one RV park that did not accept mail... Newport OR Harbor.

Amazon Prime has been great for traveling, for all other mail I have it sent to the park we will be at next, not the one were at currently unless were staying put for over a week. I've never had a park complain, if anything receiving mail before you arrive let's the park know you are really coming.

paz · 04-27-2014, 12:56 PM

Some campgrounds accept mail, some accept packages, some both, some neither. Most state parks and Corps of Engineers campgrounds are examples of places that accept neither. Go to the office of the campground in question or call ahead to be sure. It then becomes a question of timing so you can get the package before you move on to your next stop.

TXiceman · 04-27-2014, 04:11 PM

Call ahead and have it shipped to where you plan to be on the dates it should be delivered by. Give the USPS , UPS or fed-X some extra time to make sure it will arrive.

On another note, just spending two three days at the most and moving on, will get tiring, plus expensive. Most places have weekly and monthly rates that are much better than daily. Also, the fuel with such frequent moves will really get expensive.

Ken

Selah · 04-27-2014, 05:54 PM

One: If you can have it shipped USPS then it can be delivered General Delivery to a post office. Not so with FedEx or UPS but they will deliver to a campground that accepts mail. Most private CGs and resorts will accept mail and packages for guests. That doesn't mean ALL CGs or resorts, you will have to call ahead to make sure.
Two: do you typically stay only 2-3 days at a destination or is this what your anticipating? We find that a full week is often not enough time to see everything we would like in an area. We're not speed dating here; spend 60 seconds at each attraction, check it off and move on to the next one. I think you'll find some of your stops will last longer with more than enough time to,have a package shipped to your campground.

CMcGGray · 04-27-2014, 06:13 PM

Thanks everyone - guess we'll figure where we'll be the day after the package should be delivered and then make a reservation based on if they will accept package for us. Fingers crossed that we won't need to order anything as that probably means that something broke. We're not really worried about mail forwarding since my sister will scan & email us anything that isn't junk mail.

TXiceman - this trip has been my husband's dream for over 40 years. Existing family obligations limit us to 1 year for travel. We know we will be paying higher daily rates everywhere (hoping various membership discounts will help lower some campground fees) and spending a lot on fuel. The plan has always been to see as much as we can in the time we have available. If the pace becomes too much we will modify our plan.

vsheetz · 04-27-2014, 06:14 PM

Might check with The UPS Store or PostalAnnex to see if they will accept packages from non box holders. They likely could forward it on to you if it perchance arrived after you had to move on.

CMcGGray · 04-27-2014, 06:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Selah

One: If you can have it shipped USPS then it can be delivered General Delivery to a post office. Not so with FedEx or UPS but they will deliver to a campground that accepts mail. Most private CGs and resorts will accept mail and packages for guests. That doesn't mean ALL CGs or resorts, you will have to call ahead to make sure.
Two: do you typically stay only 2-3 days at a destination or is this what your anticipating? We find that a full week is often not enough time to see everything we would like in an area. We're not speed dating here; spend 60 seconds at each attraction, check it off and move on to the next one. I think you'll find some of your stops will last longer with more than enough time to,have a package shipped to your campground.

This is going to be a "highlights of the US" sort of trip - we will limit our major destinations so that we are able to see what we can and then pick minor destinations based on the route we decide on. If we didn't have a family obligation limiting our time on the road we would spend a week or two in many locations and still not see all we want to see.

CMcGGray · 04-27-2014, 06:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by vsheetz

Might check with The UPS Store or PostalAnnex to see if they will accept packages from non box holders. They likely could forward it on to you if it perchance arrived after you had to move on.

I think most UPS Stores are franchise operations so that probably would vary. I'm not familiar with PostalAnnex so will have to research that.

paz · 04-28-2014, 06:20 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by vsheetz

Might check with The UPS Store or PostalAnnex to see if they will accept packages from non box holders. They likely could forward it on to you if it perchance arrived after you had to move on.

UPS Stores used to accept packages for non-box holders for a $5 fee, which was the cost for a box rental for a month. Some made you actually sign up for a box for 1 month, others didn't and just charged the fee.