Reservations required?

[Bill/Kathy]

We’re on the Eastern leg of a three month trip from PA. We didn’t go to the west coast, just as far west as Yellowstone NP. We found out real fast that anywhere near a National Park you will need a reservation. We didn’t stay in any of the NP’s, but while driving through every CG we passed was full. Some do take reservations but most are first-come to get a site and they fill up early.

Trip Wizard and our Rand McNally took us on roads I wasn’t sure about. I asked CG workers and other RV’ers if a route was doable in my MH before taking it.

Keep an eye on the weather. We were in West Yellowstone mid-September and there was snow in the park at the higher elevations. In early October we were snowed on in Utah south of Moab.

If you have time visit Custer State Park in SD (The Black Hills). We stayed in Hermosa, SD and visited the park plus Mount Rushmore, Chief Crazy Horse Monument and had lunch in Custer at the Black Hills Burger & Bun Company (Great food).

I don’t know what southern route you’re taking east but if you’re in southern Texas try to fit Big Bend NP into your itinerary. You won’t be disappointed.

[Glensouth]

You will be better off getting reservations before you leave for National parks. They start filling up in January for the summer. I found this out when I started planning a trip like you are planning.

[Frankthetank]

Hello,
We r from Ca and advise reservations especially on the coast.

[JoeyAllen]

I never make reservations unless a special activity is going in the area. Never know how many miles I feel like traveling in a day. Full timing for 2 years.

[sip]

San Francisco bay area, maybe a 100 mile radius ... is PACKED. Housing is outrageously expensive so people get creative and find every which way to stay somewhere ... also RVs in town now pretty much equate to "homeless" as in many just can't afford even the cheapest rent and end up boondocking on the streets.

So plan this part of the trip in advance .. northern CA you'll be fine .. pleny of great places to stay. If you want right on the coast, you should reserve in advance but unless it's a weekend, it's unusual that everything is gone.

Between the SF bay area and LA, you have to plan a bit more than northern CA .. especially if you want to be right along the coast. Inland shouldn't be a problem with a couple days notice.

The big touristic spots like the national parks and Big Sur definitely fill up fast ... and yosemite .. well yah forget about that. The other unfortunate thing that really changes everything is the massive wild fires we tend to get after Summer. But not much you can do about that at this point other than have flexibility in your plans.

[Cason61]

Originally Posted by sip

San Francisco bay area, maybe a 100 mile radius ... is PACKED. Housing is outrageously expensive so people get creative and find every which way to stay somewhere ... also RVs in town now pretty much equate to "homeless" as in many just can't afford even the cheapest rent and end up boondocking on the streets.

So plan this part of the trip in advance .. northern CA you'll be fine .. pleny of great places to stay. If you want right on the coast, you should reserve in advance but unless it's a weekend, it's unusual that everything is gone.

Between the SF bay area and LA, you have to plan a bit more than northern CA .. especially if you want to be right along the coast. Inland shouldn't be a problem with a couple days notice.

The big touristic spots like the national parks and Big Sur definitely fill up fast ... and yosemite .. well yah forget about that. The other unfortunate thing that really changes everything is the massive wild fires we tend to get after Summer. But not much you can do about that at this point other than have flexibility in your plans.

Yeah, I remember when a relative had to go to Stanford med center in San Fran for a month. The street leading to the hospital had some parks and quite a few RVS were parked there. After we tried to find a RV PARK nearby that had some slots, (no joy), the hospital in San Jose let us park in the empty lot they were adding onto it and we learned that early in the morning was the best time. We had help to get motel rooms to break the monotony, but yeah RV parking was not highly regarded there.

[capeharj]

We have made the trip more than once and have never made advanced reservations. We like to go at our own pace. You can call when you leave one campground in the morning to reserve for that night, we never had a problem, even on a trip to Alaska in the middle of summer. That way you have a more enjoyable unregimented trip.

[thebigd123]

We are on our return leg, started out 9/9. Went east to west, NJ to WA, without long term reservations. We also are RV Trip Wizard fans. Typically we would guesstimate where we wanted to be two or three days at a time and just noted a place we thought looked good. Then would call that AM to book as we went along. So far all have been able to accommodate our 38 footer w/toad.

[Metz]

Oregon coast is still very busy & popular thru most of October so I “would” make reservations. Tillicum Campground near Yachats has sites right along the ocean. Winchester Bay to the south is also very nice. Enjoy!


QUOTE=Maddie8511;146665]Hello all, *We*are planning a trip out west next September. *We will go from Ohio to Seattle, down the California coast and then southern route home. *I have planned it out with RV wizard. *Figuring about 2months. * *I have never planned a big trip like this and don’t want to make reservations in case we need more time than I planned. *Do you think we should make reservations or can we hope there are open spots at the campgrounds I selected. * *I did try to do as many army Corp of engineers and national parks I could before selecting private campgrounds.
Also, RV wizard has me on some state routes when an interstate is not too far away. * *Should we try to stay on interstate routes? * We have a class A camper. ** I welcome any ideas or suggestions!! *Thanks in advance!![/QUOTE]

[Cason61]

Originally Posted by Metz

Oregon coast is still very busy & popular thru most of October so I “would” make reservations. Tillicum Campground near Yachats has sites right along the ocean. Winchester Bay to the south is also very nice. Enjoy!


QUOTE=Maddie8511;146665]Hello all, *We*are planning a trip out west next September. *We will go from Ohio to Seattle, down the California coast and then southern route home. *I have planned it out with RV wizard. *Figuring about 2months. * *I have never planned a big trip like this and don’t want to make reservations in case we need more time than I planned. *Do you think we should make reservations or can we hope there are open spots at the campgrounds I selected. * *I did try to do as many army Corp of engineers and national parks I could before selecting private campgrounds.
Also, RV wizard has me on some state routes when an interstate is not too far away. * *Should we try to stay on interstate routes? * We have a class A camper. ** I welcome any ideas or suggestions!! *Thanks in advance!!

[/QUOTE]California coast in the northern part. The road there has more than a few turnouts, Cause you want to stop every five minutes and take pix. Biggest trees there too. Eureka is a nice town with Samoa cook house good place to eat. Highway 36 is pretty, as is 96. Forest service campgrounds are usually good.

[jewing54]

You will likely have little problems finding a place to stay, but of you want to stay near a beach or other popular spot, they are often book six months in advance.