First Time Snowbirds

[2005 ford]

Good morning all,
We will be first time snowbirds this winter and plan to leave in January,2013 for Northern Florida. Need some advice on a few things... Would it be possible to find campsites without advanced reservations? Any recommendations for full hook up campgrounds around $300-$400/mo or reasonable weekly rates ( don't need a lot of activities, just a place to call home)?

Thanks in advance,

Bill

[noreen&sal]

Check out Mystic Springs Airstream Park in McDavid, Fl. $11. a day, not sure of monthly rates. Might have to be WBCCI member, not sure. Very quiet. Sal.

[dwightdi]

There are a lot of campgrounds catering to snowbirds. The further south you go the more expensive they get. The shorter the stay the more they charge per week. I would go to my Trailer Life Directory or the ones available on line and burn up the phone lines to ones off of US 10 or 19 to see who offers the best deals. I stay further south because I have friends down there.

[Schools Out]

Bill,
If you are not locked into northern FL, consider southern AL. We spent the past 2 winters in an RV park near Gulf Shores, AL. Same weather as the gulf areas of the panhandle. 2 years prior to that, we were in the Naples area. Here are a few observations. Southern FL is more crowded & as mentioned already, more expensive. It also has consistently warmer weather. Northern Fl & southern AL will have cooler days & maybe even some cold (freezing) nights. The RV park we stayed at was $400 a month. That price was for full hookup, including cable & wifi. We noticed that many FL parks are going to metered electric. That can add quite a bit to the lot rental fee if you need to run heat or air. Also, FL has a tax added to the park rent. (might be called hospitality tax, but I don't remember.) We also thought that AL was a bit more welcoming to the snowbirds. The merchants, restaurants, churches, etc held many events for the snow birds. They clearly understood the economic boost to their communities. If you want to expand your search to include AL, I can send more specific information.

[AirHeadsRus]

If you are coming to North Florida in January there will be no better place to start than here.
Airstream Forums - Canopener 2013
http://www.airforums.com/forums/f288...6-a-87328.html

You will get to meet about 100 Airstreamers, a lot who hang around for the winter somewhere in FL, MS or AL.
Hope to see you when you get here.
Joe

[loudruff]

On the panhandle of FL, Fred Gannon-Rocky Bayou SP is near Niceville, FL which is a stone's throw from Ft. Walton Beach, FL. It is on the Choctawhatchee Bay, of the Gulf. It is a small park right on the water and the cost is lower than the parks of Destin, FL. But it is an easy drive across the bridge to Destin and Henderson Beach and all of the touristy stuff in the area.

[AWCHIEF]

The Pensacola WBCCI Unit has an Airstream park of their own. No idea what their long term rates are but might be worth looking into if you are WBCCI members.