A while back I wrote a post about discount camping clubs, such as Passport America and Recreation USA. Today, let’s talk about membership campground systems.

The first thing we should do is understand the basic differences between a discount camping club and a membership club. A discount camping club consists of a large number of campgrounds owned by different people and companies, who agree to give RVing members a discount, usually 50% off of their regular rates. Membership in a discount camping club is much less expensive than it is for a membership club, no home park is required, and there is usually no long term membership obligation. You just pay your annual dues and use the participating campgrounds.

A membership campground system on the other hand, is usually a more expensive proposition, and (according to the folks who sell the memberships) comes with benefits and privileges not available to the general public.

If you have ever attended a membership campground sales pitch, you probably know that the people hustling these memberships have hard sell down to a science. I’ve known more than one RVer who has walked out of the room after being pushed too far one time too many.

Years ago, after we attended one such sales presentation at a membership campground in Oregon, the sales rep came to our motorhome at 10:30 p.m. asking if we had made a decision yet, and telling us that if we did not purchase right then, we’d be “blackballed” and would never be allowed to purchase a campground membership from any company in the future. Can you guess where we told them to stick their membership?

When you join a membership campground system, you are assigned a home park, and then you can stay at any other campgrounds in the system for a given period of time. Depending on your particular membership, that may be one to three weeks, and again, depending on your membership, you may be able to go directly to any other campgrounds in the system, or you may have to be out of the system for one or two weeks.

Campground memberships can be very expensive, up to several thousand dollars, and annual dues can be $500 or more a year. The salespeople will assure you that your membership is an “investment,” and that if you ever decide that you no longer want it, it is a valuable asset that you can sell. Yeah, and once you do, I have a bridge to sell you with all of that money burning a hole in your pocket.

Used campground memberships are a dime a dozen, and with just a little research and effort, you can pick up a used membership for pennies on the dollar, or sometimes even free, because the current owner is tired of paying the dues. For example, a few years back we bought a used nationwide Thousand Trails/NACO membership with all the bells and whistles for $100, plus the transfer fee of $750.

You have to be careful when purchasing a used campground membership, because there are dozens of different memberships out there, and most membership systems have offered many different levels of membership, with different benefits, over the years. Do your homework before you buy any new or used membership.

The two biggest membership campground systems are Thousand Trails (TTN) and Western Horizons. Both have campgrounds in several states nationwide. The Thousand Trails website says that between all of their affiliated campgrounds, they offer over 80 camping locations in 22 states and British Columbia. This includes NACO and Leisure Time Resorts (LTR) campgrounds, two smaller memberships that fall under the general Thousand Trails umbrella. (Not all TTN members can use the NACO or LTR campgrounds.) The Western Horizons website says that they have 22 camping resorts nationwide, and one in Mexico.

We belonged to Western Horizons for a short time years ago, and while we found most of their campgrounds to be more than adequate for our needs, their business practices left a lot to be desired, in our opinion. We soon left the system.

As I stated above, we picked up a used Thousand Trails/NACO membership a while back. We have stayed at TTN/NACO campgrounds in Arizona, Pennsylvania, Texas, Ohio, Indiana, and Tennessee. Some of the campgrounds are very nice, and others are outdated and in need of major upgrading.

I always tell new RVers not to obligate themselves to any membership campground system until they have been on the road at least a full year. It will take you that long to get out of vacation mode and begin to define your own traveling style.

When and if you do decide that a campground membership is right for you, research the different systems, and then look for a used membership. We found ours by putting a simple post on the Escapes forum saying that we were looking for a used TTN/NACO membership. I had over 15 different memberships offered to me by the next day.

You can also find used memberships in ads in the back of RV magazines, on campground bulletin boards, and even on eBay. But again, don’t spend a lot of money on a used membership. The seller may believe he really has an “asset” to sell. Wait until you find someone to whom the membership and its annual dues have become a liability and you can get a heck of a deal.

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There are several discount camping clubs available to RVers, including Passport America, Recreation USA, Happy Camper Club, Camp Club USA, and probably a couple of others that I have forgotten to mention. A discount camping club can save you a lot of money, if you use it, and if you understand how it operates.

All of these organizations operate basically the same way – participating campgrounds offer a discount, usually 50%, off their regular price. This discount is usually limited to a specific number of days, sometimes as little as one night, and other times as much as two weeks.

Most participating campgrounds have “blackout dates” when they do not honor the discount. These blackout dates are usually during their peak periods. Many RVers grumble about the blackout dates, but you have to look at this from a business standpoint on the part of the campground.

If I own a campground in Florida with 500 RV sites, during the spring and summer I may only have 100 of those sites rented. So I join one of the discount camping clubs and offer a 50% discount off my regular rate, and maybe I can fill another 50 sites. Half of something is better than all of nothing. But during the winter, when I have snowbirds lining up to fill my RV sites, why would I want to rent them for less? Thus the blackout dates. As long as RVers understand these restrictions and plan accordingly, they can still get a lot of value for the cost of their membership.

If I had to choose just one discount camping club, my vote would be for Passport America. It is the oldest and largest, with over 1,500 participating campgrounds from coast to coast. Most of the campgrounds are smaller mom and pop operations, and they are not always on the main highways, but that’s fine with us. We prefer two lane roads and small, friendly campgrounds. But if you only travel on the Interstate highways and like big campgrounds with lots of amenities, you will still find quite a few member campgrounds that will meet your needs.

Current Passport America dues for one year are $44, and some RV clubs offer further discounts on annual membership. We have used it for 10 years now and been very happy. We recently spent a week at Mission West Resort in Mission, Texas, a huge campground with plenty of amenities and planned activities. Their regular rate is $28 a night, but we paid $14/night under Passport America. That is a savings of $98, which pays for a couple of years of Passport America membership. It doesn’t take a mathematician to figure out that this is a heck of a bargain!

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