Willow Beach Campground

We stayed at Willow Beach Campground in Scott, Arkansas. (Campground Reviews listing.)

A pleasant campground next to the Arkansas River. Our first of two stays here, on the way to and from the total solar eclipse celebration in Paris, Texas.

Dates:

  • Check in: 2024-03-31
  • Check out: 2024-04-04
  • 4 nights

Weather:

  • Partly cloudy, some rain
  • High temps ranging between 65-80°F, lows around 44-66°F
  • Moderate wind, gusts to 28 MPH

Noise:

  • No road noise
  • Distant train noise
  • Distant plane noise

Site:

  • #F15, back in, asphalt
  • Needed to disconnect toad, parked in front of coach
  • Unlevel back-to-front; needed to use blocks under front jacks; used hydraulic leveling
  • Asphalt driveway about 65 feet long by about 10 feet wide
  • Grass between sites about 50 feet wide on drive side, 80 feet on passenger side
  • Picnic table on concrete patio under shelter
  • Fire pit and charcoal grill
  • Mostly clean site (some cigarette butts and bottle cap-sized trash)

Utilities:

  • 50 amp power, conveniently located
  • 40 PSI water, inconveniently located
  • No sewer connection

Internet (in usage priority order):

  • T-Mobile: 20-35 Mbps down, 2-10 Mbps up, 100 ms ping
  • AT&T: 35-200 Mbps down, 1 Mbps up, 100 ms ping
  • Verizon: 15 Mbps down, 10 Mbps up, 90 ms ping
  • Starlink: not used
  • Campground Wi-Fi: none

Amenities:

  • Garbage dumpsters
  • Dump station
  • River

Our review on Campground Reviews:

A pleasant campground next to the Arkansas River

COE campgrounds are usually very picturesque and well-spaced. This one is no exception. Nestled between the river and a lake, there is a nice view either way. There’s lots of space between sites, although each site is not guaranteed to be very long or flat. Our site was just long enough for our 40′ motorhome, but our tow vehicle had to park diagonally to fit in front. The site was very sloped front to back and required multiple pads on the front jacks to get it level. Water & electric only, so plan ahead if staying for a while and need to dump your tanks. The dump station was conveniently located on the way to the exit. We camped at Willow Beach in a Motorhome.

Campground map:

Map

Interactive map:

Our site:

Our site

Our site

Our site

Our site

Our site

Our site

Arkansas River:

Arkansas River

Utilities; power and water, but no sewer:

Utilities

Other sites:

Other sites

Other sites

Other sites

Other sites

Other sites

Other sites

Other sites

Other sites

Other sites

Other sites

Playground and birds:

Playground and birds

Info signs:

Info sign

Info sign

Info sign

Boat ramp:

Boat ramp

Dock

Snake on the road:

Snake on the road

Sunset:

Sunset

Sunset

Sunset

Red Bay Acres RV Resort

We stayed at Red Bay Acres RV Resort in Red Bay, Alabama. (Campground Reviews listing.)

A nice full-hookup RV park in the hometown of Tiffin Motorhomes. Our second stay here.

Dates:

  • Check in: 2024-03-24
  • Check out: 2024-03-31
  • 7 nights

Weather:

  • Partly cloudy, some rain
  • High temps ranging between 63-72°F, lows around 38-52°F
  • One very windy day, gusts to 54 MPH, otherwise negligible

Noise:

  • No road noise
  • No train noise
  • Hourly clock tower noise
  • A little neighbor and tech services noise

Site:

  • #24, back in, concrete
  • Needed to disconnect toad, parked in front of coach
  • Somewhat level; used air and hydraulic leveling at different times
  • Concrete driveway about 60 feet long by about 12 feet wide
  • Grass between sites wedge-shaped, from about 20 to 25 feet wide (their smallest “premium” site)
  • Picnic table on 12 by 12 feet concrete patio; fire pit
  • Clean site

Utilities:

  • 50 amp power, conveniently located
  • 60 PSI water, conveniently located
  • Good sewer connection, fairly conveniently located (1 10-foot pipe needed)

Internet (in usage priority order):

  • T-Mobile: 50 Mbps down, 45 Mbps up, 40 ms ping
  • AT&T: 130 Mbps down, 15 Mbps up, 35 ms ping
  • Verizon: 28 Mbps down, 8 Mbps up, 28 ms ping
  • Starlink: not used
  • Campground Wi-Fi: not used

Amenities:

  • Garbage pickup from site
  • Package delivery to site
  • Onsite restaurant
  • Pond
  • Hometown of Tiffin; local RV repairs

Our review on Campground Reviews (from our previous visit):

Nice place to return to after service

This is the place to stay when in Red Bay for service. It is a beautifully maintained park, with all the sites facing the fishing pond. All the other parks in town were basic gravel lots. The one drawback is having to back in to the site when coming back from service each day, but that’s not a big deal. The concrete pad was nicely level and all the utilities were good. It’s also nice to have the Yacht Club on-site for a bite to eat at the end of the day. If you’re looking to get service done on-site, make sure to check the list of approved vendors. We camped at Red Bay Acres RV Resort in a Motorhome.

Tip for Other Campers: Lost Pines Coffee had decent coffee and baked goods for a midday pick-me-up. The Natchez Trace Parkway is fairly close and a very nice scenic drive.

Campground map:

Map

An interactive map:

Our site this time; again one of the larger corner sites, though this was only barely larger:

Our site

Our site

I used my ladder to check on a leak behind our shower (a loose connection, easily fixed):

Our site

Stuff from basement bays piled up, while doing wet bay enhancements:

Our site

Clearing land behind the park was a little noisy:

Clearing land behind the park

Other sites:

Other sites

Other sites

Other sites

Central pond:

Central pond

Central pond

Central pond

We visited the onsite Red Bay Yacht Club several times (you know, land yachts):

Red Bay Yacht Club

Red Bay Yacht Club

Red Bay Yacht Club

Pond view from inside:

Pond view from inside

We ate some dinners there, including pizza and loaded fries:

Pizza and loaded fries

Desserts:

Dessert

Dessert

Chicken wings and sandwich, while playing Phase 10:

Chicken wings and sandwich

Another night, tacos and more Phase 10:

Tacos

Games:

Games

Dog park:

Dog park

We wandered across the road to the Happy Hollow Outdoors store:

Happy Hollow Outdoors store

Happy Hollow Outdoors

Happy Hollow Outdoors

F.D. Roosevelt State Park

We stayed at F.D. Roosevelt State Park in Pine Mountain, Georgia. (Campground Reviews listing.)

Another nice state park, though a little tight for a big rig.

Dates:

  • Check in: 2024-03-17
  • Check out: 2024-03-24
  • 7 nights

Weather:

  • Partly cloudy; a couple days with some rain
  • High temps ranging between 59-70°F, lows around 30-50°F
  • Some wind, gusts to 29 MPH

Noise:

  • No road noise
  • No train noise
  • Negligible neighbor noise

Site:

  • #104, pull-through, gravel
  • Didn’t need to disconnect toad, parked behind coach
  • Fairly level, a little high on the driver side; used hydraulic leveling
  • Gravel driveway about 75 feet long by about 15 feet wide
  • Slope to driver-side site 20 feet wide
  • Grass and trees on passenger side about 75 feet wide
  • Picnic table and fire pit on 20×10 feet gravel patio
  • Clean site

Utilities:

  • 50 amp power, somewhat conveniently located
  • 40 PSI water, somewhat conveniently located
  • Good sewer connection, somewhat inconveniently located (2 10-foot pipes needed)

Internet (in usage priority order):

  • Starlink: 6-9 Mbps down, 5 Mbps up, 60 ms ping
  • T-Mobile: 10 Mbps down, 3 Mbps up, 50-120 ms ping
  • Verizon: 15-25 Mbps down, 5 Mbps up, 50 ms ping
  • AT&T: 30 Mbps down, 1 Mbps up, 30 ms ping
  • Campground Wi-Fi: none

Amenities:

  • Garbage dumpsters
  • Trading post
  • Lake
  • Park

Our review on Campground Reviews:

Nice park, a little tight for big rigs

Very few sites here are FHU, but they all have lovely views of the lake in one form or another. The roads into and around the campground are a bit narrow and windy to drive a big rig around comfortably, but if you take your time and pay attention it’s manageable. Lots of nice trails around the park for hiking and boat rentals are available at the lake. Nice camp store at the main building where you check in and a convenient trading post in the campground itself, where you can get snacks, bait, firewood, etc. In the spring, the pollen is positively ridiculous, turning every internal and external surface bright yellow. If you’re sensitive to such things, bring your meds. We camped at F. D. Roosevelt State Park in a Motorhome. 

Campground map:

Map

An interactive map:

Our site:

Our site

Our site

Our site

Our site

Our site

Our site

There was tree pollen everywhere; here’s some on our truck:

Pollen on truck

We used our griddle:

Griddle

The visitor center; we went straight to our site, then drove our truck back to check in, since their parking lot is too small for our coach and toad:

Visitor center

Park info sign:

Park info sign

Visitor center:

Visitor center

This site, #113, would probably be my preference if we were to stay here again:

Other sites

Other sites

It has a nice private patio overlooking the lake, down a couple of steps:

Other sites

Another Tiffin Allegro Bus:

Another Tiffin Allegro Bus

Other sites:

Other sites

Other sites

Other sites

Other sites

Other sites

Other sites

Other sites

Playground:

Playground

Tent sites:

Tent sites

Tent sites

Bathrooms:

Bathrooms

Shelter:

Shelter

Shelter

Little free library:

Little free library

Goose:

Goose

Lake:

Lake

Trading Post:

Trading Post

Trading Post

The nearby Liberty Bell Pool:

Liberty Bell Pool

Liberty Bell Pool

Liberty Bell Pool

A narrow exit road:

Narrow exit road

Reed Bingham State Park

We stayed at Reed Bingham State Park in Adel, Georgia. (Campground Reviews listing.)

A nice state park with a lake and dam.

Dates:

  • Check in: 2024-03-10
  • Check out: 2024-03-17
  • 7 nights

Weather:

  • Mostly cloudy; one day with rain
  • High temps ranging between 62-81°F, lows around 41-61°F
  • Negligible wind, gusts to 19 MPH

Noise:

  • No road noise
  • No train noise
  • A little neighbor noise (kids)

Site:

  • #33, pull-through, gravel
  • Didn’t need to disconnect toad, parked behind coach
  • Mostly level; used hydraulic leveling
  • Gravel driveway about 150 feet long by about 15 feet wide
  • Leaf-covered ground between sites about 50 feet (front and back; nothing on side)
  • Driver side to road about 25 feet
  • Picnic table
  • Fire pit
  • Lantern hook
  • Mostly clean site

Utilities:

  • 50 amp power, somewhat inconveniently located
  • 50 PSI water, somewhat inconveniently located
  • Good sewer connection, somewhat conveniently located (2 10-foot pipes needed)

Internet (in usage priority order):

  • T-Mobile: 20 Mbps down, 2 Mbps up, 50 ms ping
  • Verizon: 25 Mbps down, 2 Mbps up, 70 ms ping
  • AT&T: 30-80 Mbps down, 3 Mbps up, 50-90 ms ping
  • Starlink: not used
  • Campground Wi-Fi: none

Amenities:

  • Garbage dumpsters only in a central location
  • Mini golf

Our review on Campground Reviews:

A nice state park with a lake and dam

Nice large sites, not all 50A or FHU, so plan accordingly. We were in site 33 in loop 2, which was a large pull-through site under the trees. A pleasant walk down to the lake and dam and several easy, short hikes in the park. We would definitely stay here again. We camped at Reed Bingham State Park in a Motorhome.

Campground map:

Map

An interactive map:

Our site:

Our site

Our site

Our site

Our site

Nice side view from our coach:

Nice side view from our coach

Utilities:

Utilities

Our first visit to Georgia, so time to add its sticker to our coach (the older ones are so faded!):

Georgia sticker

Other sites:

Other sites

Other sites

Other sites

Other sites

Other sites

Other sites

Other sites

Bathrooms:

Bathrooms

Little lending library:

Little lending library

Mini golf:

Mini golf

Mini golf

Playground:

Playground

Nature path:

Nature path

Nature path

Bat box?

Bat box?

Kids fishing ponds:

Kids fishing ponds

No swimming, alligators present:

No swimming, alligators present

Stage:

Stage

Pond:

Pond

Boat ramp:

Boat ramp

Lake:

Lake

Ducks:

Ducks

Dam from bridge:

Dam from bridge

Flooded:

Flooded

A GIF of the dam:

Dam

The water level after the dam was very high due to rain:

Dam

Later in the week, a lower level:

Dam

A nice state park. We’d be happy to stay here again.

Thousand Trails Orlando RV Resort

We stayed at Thousand Trails Orlando RV Resort in Clermont, Florida. (Campground Reviews listing.)

A second visit to TTO, the flagship Thousand Trails park.

Dates:

  • Check in: 2024-03-05
  • Check out: 2024-03-10
  • 5 nights

Weather:

  • Mostly cloudy, some rain
  • High temps ranging between 78-85°F, lows around 59-66°F
  • Negligible wind, gusts to 21 MPH

Noise:

  • No road noise
  • No train noise
  • Some neighbor noise, dogs
  • Distant fireworks from Disney some evenings

Site:

  • Mako 11, back in, asphalt
  • Needed to disconnect toad, parked in front of coach
  • A little unlevel, high on right; used hydraulic leveling
  • Asphalt driveway about 45 feet long (plus about 30 feet of gravel behind that) by about 17 feet wide
  • Weedy grass between sites about 12 feet
  • Picnic table
  • No fire pit
  • A bunch of trash on site

Utilities:

  • 50 amp power, conveniently located
  • 45 PSI water, conveniently located
  • Loose sewer connection, conveniently located (1 10-foot pipe needed)

Internet (in usage priority order):

  • T-Mobile: 55 Mbps down, 5-7 Mbps up, 36 ms ping
  • Verizon: 18-25 Mbps down, 15 Mbps up, 30 ms ping
  • AT&T: 0.1 Mbps down, 0.01 Mbps up, 500 ms ping
  • Starlink: not used
  • Campground Wi-Fi: none

Amenities:

  • Garbage dumpsters only in a central location
  • Package delivery to office, for $5 per package (we got a local mailbox)

We’ve done a review on Campground Reviews for TTO before, so didn’t bother doing it again.

Campground map; our site this time was in the narrow strip on the left side, above the X-ed out section:

Map

An interactive map:

Our site; a quiet area of the park, one that would be a good choice for a longer stay:

Our site

Our site

Our site

Our site

Our site

Swamp near our site:

Swamp near our site

Cabin near our site:

Cabin near our site

Other sites:

Other sites

Other sites

Other sites

Other sites

Other sites

Other sites

Other sites

We enjoyed some Chinese food from the local takeout restaurant:

Chinese food

Sunset:

Sunset

 

Disney’s Fort Wilderness Campground

We stayed at Disney’s Fort Wilderness Campground, within Walt Disney World, Florida. (Campground Reviews listing.)

So nice to spend over a week inside the Disney bubble. Disney World is huge, covering 25,000 acres (39 sq mi; 101 sq km), including four theme parks, dozens of resorts, golf courses, etc. The Fort Wilderness Campground is 750 acres of tree-covered paved campsites, cabins, and various amenities, with boats and buses to the parks.

Dates:

  • Check in: 2024-02-25
  • Check out: 2024-03-05
  • 9 nights
  • We had originally booked 7 nights, but added a couple more

Weather:

  • Mostly sunny; a little rain later in the stay
  • High temps 75-82°F, lows around 47-62°F
  • Negligible wind

Noise:

  • No freeway noise
  • Little road noise (including bus on main road)
  • No train noise
  • Some neighbor noise (kids, especially basketball)

Site:

  • #1334, back in, concrete
  • Needed to disconnect toad, parked beside coach
  • Level; used hydraulic leveling
  • Concrete driveway about 60 feet long by 15 feet wide
  • Trees between sites about 20 feet wide
  • Picnic table
  • No fire pit
  • Mostly clean site (a little minor trash)

Utilities:

  • 50 amp power, somewhat inconveniently located
  • 60 PSI water, somewhat inconveniently located
  • Good sewer connection, conveniently located (1 10-foot pipe needed)

Internet (in usage priority order):

  • T-Mobile: 40-50 Mbps down, 35-45 Mbps up, 25 ms ping
  • AT&T: 500 Mbps down, 25 Mbps up, 70 ms ping
  • Verizon: 25 Mbps down, 25 Mbps up, 25 ms ping
  • Starlink: not used
  • Campground Wi-Fi: not used

Amenities:

  • Pools
  • Garbage bin near site
  • Golf cart rental
  • Boats and buses to Disney World parks

Our review on Campground Reviews:

A state park, but make it Disney!

If you’re an RVer and want to do the Disney Bubble experience, this is the place to be. Direct access to all the parks from the campground (boat to Magic Kingdom, buses to all the others) and a bit of that trademark Disney flare in the campground itself. We stayed a week and have already booked for next year, we enjoyed everything so much. We spent pretty much all day every day at the theme parks, so didn’t use many of the amenities in the campground, but it looked like you could have a blast of a day just hanging out here.

Our site (1334) was plenty big enough for our 40′ motorhome, tow vehicle, and rented golf cart. Renting a golf cart is a must. There are shuttles that run through the campground, but we enjoyed the freedom of getting around on our own timetable. Unfortunately, our site was right next to a playground with a basketball halfcourt that some sociopaths thought would be fun to play on late at night and early in the morning. Not cool.

One other minor niggle was that we decided to extend our stay while we were there. I called the number for reservations and was told that only the front desk could do that. Went to the front desk and was told that they couldn’t do it because we’d booked a package through the Disney Travel Co. So I booked a new reservation online and then went to the front desk to get them to join the two reservations so we didn’t have to check out and check in again. A bit less magical than I expected from Disney customer service, but we got there in the end. We camped at Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort & Campground in a Motorhome.

Campground map:

Map

An interactive map:

Our site:

Our site

Our site

We rented a golf cart during our stay, which is highly recommended to get to the boat and bus stops, and other amenities:

Golf cart

(They do have a shuttle bus to take people to various parts of the campground, too, so a cart isn’t critical, but it is more convenient.)

More of our site; we didn’t really use the site, other than to sleep, since we were at the parks during the days:

Our site

Our site

Our site

Utilities:

Utilities

Utilities

One thing we didn’t enjoy was that our site was right next to a playground, with a basketball hoop; kids bouncing basketballs is super annoying for us DINKs:

Playground

The campground offered horse and cart rides:

Horse and cart

A popular thing is to decorate the golf carts, which not only makes them more festive, but also easier to spot in a parking lot (if you look at the earlier pictures, we added a couple of koi wind socks to ours).

Some examples of decorations:

Decorated golf carts

Decorated golf carts

Decorated golf carts

Decorated golf carts

Decorated golf carts

Decorated golf carts

Decorated golf carts

Decorated golf carts

Decorated golf carts

Decorated golf carts

On our first evening we attended the onsite Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue:

Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue

Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue

Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue

Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue

Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue

Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue

Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue

Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue

Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue

Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue

Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue

Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue

Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue

Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue

Afterwards, we watched the Magic Kingdom fireworks from the nearby beach:

Fireworks

Fireworks

Fireworks

Fireworks

Fireworks

Fireworks

Welcome to Fort Wilderness:

Welcome to Fort Wilderness

Store:

Store

Store

We took the boat to the Magic Kingdom park on several days:

Boat to Magic Kingdom park

Boat to Magic Kingdom park

Pioneer Hall has mobile-order or grab-and-go food options:

Crokett's Tavern

Crokett's Tavern

Bathrooms:

Bathrooms

Other sites, which people often decorate too:

Other sites

Other sites

Other sites

Other sites

Other sites

Other sites

There are sections of the campground with cabins, for people without RVs:

Cabins

Cabins

The Meadow Swimmin’ Pool:

Meadow Swimmin' Pool

An excellent campground. We’ll be happy to stay here again in the future (though would see if we can request a site away from playgrounds etc).

Yacht Haven Park & Marina

We stayed at Yacht Haven Park & Marina, in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. (Campground Reviews listing.)

A canal-front site, with a boat docked in front, and food onsite.

Dates:

  • Check in: 2024-02-18
  • Check out: 2024-02-25
  • 7 nights

Weather:

  • Mostly sunny; rainy on the first day
  • High temps 72-80°F, lows around 49-57°F
  • A little wind, gusts to 24 MPH

Noise:

  • Nearby freeway noise
  • No train noise
  • Nearby airport noise
  • Some neighbor noise

Site:

  • #425a, front in, astroturf
  • Needed to disconnect toad, parked beside coach
  • Unlevel, high in front and right; used hydraulic leveling
  • Wedge-shaped astroturf site about 45 feet long by about 13-40 feet wide
  • No picnic table
  • No fire pit
  • Clean site
  • Waterfront (canal)

Utilities:

  • 50 amp power, conveniently located (with no breaker switch)
  • 20 PSI water, very conveniently located
  • Decent sewer connection, very conveniently located (2 2-foot pipes needed)

Internet (in usage priority order):

  • T-Mobile: 25 Mbps down, 15 Mbps up, 28 ms ping
  • AT&T: 200 Mbps down, 1 Mbps up, 35 ms ping
  • Verizon: 14-24 Mbps down, 15 Mbps up, 20 ms ping
  • Starlink: not used
  • Campground Wi-Fi: 0.05 Mbps down, 2 Mbps up, 22-72 ms ping

Amenities:

  • Pool
  • Package delivery to office
  • Garbage pickup from site
  • Food boats and trucks

Our review on Campground Reviews:

Mega yachts and pizza!

This was a nice enough place, but a bit expensive for the current amenities. They’re building a new pool and clubhouse, but it’s not there yet. We had a Grand Waterfront site, but our particular site (425A) seemed to also be a bit of a placeholder site. We parked directly on the astroturf and our power pedestal wasn’t a pedestal, just a raw outlet with no breaker switch. Other sites in the row had nice brick driveways with landscaping. If they finish installing this site, it will be lovely. As it was, it was just kind of meh and we were paying for the nice view of the canals. Watching the big yachts come and go was very entertaining. There’s a nice NY-style pizza place onsite which was pretty decent. We camped at Yacht Haven Park & Marina in a Motorhome.

Campground map:

Campground map

An interactive map:

Our site:

Our site

Our site

Our site

Our site

Our site

Our site

Canal view:

View

Superyacht:

Superyacht

The boat out front had a couple of cats, one of which visited Paladin through the door:

Cat

Rental Airstream trailers:

Airstream trailers

Other sites:

Other sites

Other sites

Other sites

Yachts and RVs:

Yachts and RVs

Yachts

Yachts and RVs

Yachts

Yacht

Yachts

Party boat across the canal:

Party boat across the canal

Food boat:

Food boat

Pizza trailer:

Pizza trailer

Pizza menu:

Pizza menu

Pizza

Pool:

Pool

A new pool and clubhouse is coming soon:

New pool coming

Shelter:

Shelter

Shelter

Bathrooms:

Bathrooms

Rental tiny home:

Tiny home

“Royal Point Waterfront” site shelter:

Royal Point Waterfront site shelter

Office:

Office