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Guide To Choosing A Campsite

Choosing a campsite and campground can be just as hard as choosing the camper of your dreams! Don’t worry, we’ve made this guide for you to help when picking and choosing a campsite spot that will work best for your RV’s needs.

The first thing you’ll want to look for when researching a campground to go to is if they have RV sites, tent sites are too small even if you have a pop-up camper.

Next, check to make sure the campground and the campsite accommodates to your RV’s length. The bigger the camper, the more challenging it may be. The type of hookups, and the type of RV parking offered by that site will also help you choose an RV campsite site that’s right for you.

Rig Size

When researching which campground to use, you’ll find that most have physical or online maps showing all their campsites and how they’re laid out. There’s even some campgrounds that tell you the RV length of that particular site. Be sure to check on size restrictions because some campgrounds can only accommodate up to a certain length of an RV.

Your tow vehicle isn’t normally included in a campsite’s size restriction so double check before deciding your campground. Most travelers have an extra vehicle on their trips for errand or visiting the local town. So also keep in mind if you do typically have that additional vehicle since most campsites will fit just 1 RV and 1 vehicle.

Hookups

After picking a campground that best accommodates yours and your RV’s needs, now it’s time to think about hookups. Campsites are either a “Full Hookup” site, a “Partial Hookup” site, or “Primitive” meaning no hookups.

  1. Full Hookups – This means you’ll have access to sewer, water, and electric hookups. Now lets break this down, a sewer hookup allows you to hook up your sewer hose so your waste can come right out of your RV. If you don’t have access to a sewer hookup, your waste will go into your black and gray tanks, then you’ll have to dump your tanks at the campgrounds RV dump station when they’re full. A water hook-up is a connection to the city water supply so you won’t have to rely on your fresh water tank for water. Finally we have the electric hookups. This one is pretty simple – your camper gets power! You just plug your camper into the RV pedestal and then you’ll have power to your electric RV appliances and components without using a generator, battery power, or solar power.
  2. Partial Hookups – this when you have water and electric, but no sewer. These are the most common types of campsites you’ll see. There are rare cases when ‘partial hookups’ means the campsite has electric OR water. If there’s no electric, you’ll be relying on a generator, solar power, solar power charger, or battery power for use of your electric appliances. If water hookups are not provided you will be relying on your fresh water tank for your water. Some campgrounds have a location to get fresh water but it would be best to show up with fresh water in your tanks.
  3. No Hookups – or primitive campsites, means you’re needing to be self-reliant on your water and electrical needs. This term can also be referred to as “dry camping” or “boondocking.” Just like the partial hookups with only electrical available, you’ll have to fill your fresh tank before arriving to your destination. Your power will have to come from a generator, solar and/or battery supply. A lot of your newer campers nowadays come either solar prepped or have a solar panel featured on it. There’s even some toy haulers that come with generators when purchased too. Just consult with your local RV Service Department or call us here at Walnut Ridge and we will be happy to answer your questions about additional power options.

We hope this guide has helped you on how to choose a campsite. Just remember always do your research before packing up and hitting the road. The worst thing you can do is show up at a campground and have your RV not accommodate the campsites requirements.