Are campgounds a crap shoot?

[IrishIroamed]

I've been wandering Illinois for the last 3-4 years going to state parks for hikes and checking out campgrounds. Some are nice, others not so much.

For example, Nauvoo SP cg looks OK on Reserve America, but in reality the cg itself is probably less than 2 acres, with really bad roads, overgrown trees and sites so close, that between the trees and the site proximity, I doubt you could put out a slide. Big rigs are out of the question.

So when you look at booking a campground, do you have any where you go for ratings? Opinions? etc?

[Redetotry]

Have you seen this site? http://www.rvparkreviews.com/

[FancyFree]

I have been using RVParkReviews for several years and have been quite satisfied. You have to read all of the reviews to get a balanced picture. Some complain there is nothing for the children to do. For me that would be a plus - nice and quiet. Some give a negative review because the sites are too short for the big rigs. Not an issue for me as I am only 23.5 ft. However, if there are negative comments about the neighborhood, or that the cg is known as a party park, then those would be negatives for me too. Hope you find this site helpful.
Marilyn

[JudyJB]

Ditto on RV Park Reviews. I would also encourage you to post reviews on that site to help others make decisions. Also, I agree about reading the reviews carefully. For example, some people give a campground low scores because the restrooms were dirty or the check-in people were not "friendly." I never use the restrooms, and I am not going camping just to meet friendly personnel at check-in.

The other thing I do is to use Google maps a lot. I zoom into the campground and make sure it is as promised and even use it to pick out a spot. The photos might show open campsites so I can get satellite, but they may have been taken 15 years ago before the trees grew up! Google maps shows me a more accurate picture of what the specific campsites look like than the posted photos.

And you can also ask the ladies on this forum! But let us know what you like in a campground, first. I like to have wide-open vistas to look at and widely-spaced sites, but others might like a more woodsy feel and prefer to be next to streams, etc. One of my favorite campgrounds, Midway in southern Florida, is a long way from anything, and has no amenities to speak of, plus not a single activity, but I love it because it is open, which keeps the Florida bugs off and is in the middle of nowhere, except for the alligator in the center pond and the birds and wildlife along the Tamiami Trail. Has a lot of older campers, as well.

[IrishIroamed]

Thanks for the info ladies. Nauvoo SP isn't listed on there, but when I have 10 minutes free, I'll post if possible. And never thought about Google maps. I'm so stuck on looking at the Fox32 app (Chicago) satellite map (you can zoom to the whole country or down to street level) I never thought of Google.