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We asked RVers to give ratings between 0 and 5 (0 = not
important 5 = VERY important) for the following:
1. COST. How much influence does the cost of
the camp have on your selection?
2. WEBSITE. How important is it that a
camp should have a website that you can visit before deciding
to go there?
3. SPACING BETWEEN SITES. How important is
the spacing between RV's?
4. SHADE TREES. How important are these to
YOU?
5. INTERNET ACCESS. How important is that
the RV park provides internet access?
6. PHONE CONNECTION. How important is a
phone connection at your site?
7. PET-FRIENDLY POLICY. Maybe you have a pet,
maybe you don't. How important is it that an RV park has
a pet policy and enforces it?
8. PULL-THROUGH SITES. How important are
these to you?
9. GOOD LAUNDRY FACILITIES? How important
are these?
The top answer - with an importance rating of 4.2 - in
other words, VERY important - was spacing between sites.
This was not only highly important but agreed upon by most
RVers (the standard deviation was only 0.93!).
This was also mentioned by very many of the poll takers in the
comments section. The comments expanded on this point -
many felt that spaces were not only not wide enough in many RV
parks but also that they were often difficult to maneuver
into. Many people felt that they were taking a big rig
to parks designed when rigs were smaller.
The second most important answer was pet-friendly
policy. Note that this was not about pets or no pets,
but about the RV park having a pet policy and enforcing
it! The average rating for this was 3.72 with a standard
deviation of 1.72. A high standard deviation showing
that although considered generally important there was a wider
range of opinions. In the comments sections of the poll,
many many people expressed dissatisfaction with pets in RV
parks - from the cleanliness aspect to the noise of barking
dogs.
The following table shows the ratings and standard
deviations for the 9 points considered:
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Rating
0 = not important
5 = VERY important |
Standard
Deviation |
| Spacing between sites |
4.20 |
0.93 |
| Pet policy |
3.76 |
1.72 |
| Cost |
3.60 |
1.01 |
| Shade trees |
3.43 |
1.40 |
| Laundry |
3.15 |
1.60 |
| Pull-through sites |
3.07 |
1.49 |
| Internet access |
3.05 |
1.84 |
| Website |
2.92 |
1.60 |
| Phone connection |
1.80 |
1.80 |
Cost is - surprisingly perhaps (?) - not considered as
important as spacing between sites and pet policy. Many
people mentioned in their comments however that they resented
additional charges - such as showers or pets etc.
In the comments section, the biggest item was
"rudeness" in all forms by the RV park staff.
Many campers mentioned this point (about 18% of all campers
referred to it in some form in their comments!). Clearly
the point is that for many people, dissatisfaction is equally
felt to be about RV park staff rather than just about
facilities or lack of them.
Other major aspects of dissatisfaction were (in order of
number of mentions):
* Noise
* Inconsiderate RVers
* Inadequate electrical supply
* Dirty restrooms and other facilities
* Overhanging trees
* Website misleading
* Dirt roads |
Good points: Many of the people who took the poll
commented that generally they are happy with most RV
parks. The thing that was most mentioned was
friendliness. In no less than 34% of the replies, the
friendliness of the campground staff and owners was
mentioned. People like easy check in systems and several
commented that the attitude of the person at the desk was very
important.
Cleanliness was mentioned very often - restrooms, showers
and people cleaning-up after pets are particularly important.
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