Military Campground Price Complaints

Well I must as well through my hat into the ring on this one. As for comparing prices we all know it is human nature to compare prices on just about anything we do or buy today so sure we compare prices with military and commercial campgrounds. Do the same thing with what we buy in the commissary and the exchange, my husband can walk down an aisle of WalMart or a grocery store and tell me what we pay at the commissary for the same item, talk about comparing military and non-military costs I live with it every day and that is life and we all want to get the best buy for the bucks we spend. Also we have different lifestyles so we spend our dollars differently and if the cost of a campground military or otherwise is too much then we do not go. We both remind ourselves the use of campgrounds, exchanges and commissaries are benefits from hubby serving 23 years they are not entitlements and who even knew when he joined up that campgrounds would be a benefit. Prices are very reasonable at most military campgrounds and sure they go up slightly periodically and I too tire of hearing the complaints from folks in the military campgrounds about price increases and have on occassion mentioned a commercial campground they might want to try that is close by and when I tell them the price I know I will not hear that complainer again. Frank A. you sure are welcome to state your opinion and keep on posting here as I too have been the recipient of some unusual comments but so be it, I am still here and not going anywhere soon (God Willing).

Yes, I meant no disrespect to anyone - and it appears sometimes we write things that come out differently than we mean them.

What I was generally stating, and what pissed me off, was anyone saying we MCG should raise prices because civilian CG did it - and that's what gets me upset, when the people that make those decisions use that as a reason for us to pay more. And, that to me is not a good reason.

A good reason to raise prices is to pay for our camping services - and it makes sense for the MCG or MWR to decide what it costs to run it, not what the neighborhood KOA charges. The two are not comparable and what a KOA charges shouldn't have anything to do with what we pay.

So, in fact I think we're all on the same page, even if we didn't know it. Happy camping all!

While I agree with Monkey that price increases at Military Campgrounds SHOULD be tied to improvements and services withing the campground, it's naive to think that this is the case. Like it or not, the campgrounds are run by MWR and all MWR activities are supposed to be self supporting using non-appropriated funds. We all know that this is not the case in the real world. I seriously doubt that many of the golf courses on posts and bases are self sustaining. I play golf and know that the costs on post are substantially lower than private courses off post. Golf is a very popular recreational pastime, but the maintenance costs are tremendous.

Most of the military campgrounds that I have been to are reasonably priced and have not raised their prices in many years. The maintenance costs of a campground are not as high as a golf course, and are substantially lower if there are volunteer park hosts who keep the grounds mowed and cleaned just for the cost of a site.

On the other hand, Military Campgrounds can easily be used as a "cash cow" to help a strapped MWR honcho to show a profit across the board, especially if the post or base is located in a high demand tourist location. I can easily see a situation where somebody suggests raising the rates at the campground because "we don't have to worry about complaints...we're still lower than any of the private campgrounds around here." The sad thing is that they're right. We vent our spleens here on the forums, some submit complaints via ICE, but the campground stays full and the hubbub dies down.

I'm reminded of the irate comments and discussion of the Navy campgrounds in southern California a couple of years ago. Big rate increases, hot discussions here in the forums, dire threats, and what is the final result? Nothing. The prices are still high, the campgrounds are full, and they all get rave reviews.

So, what's the solution? I don't know, but I'd suggest we all enjoy this benefit before it too goes away. If you think the price at a military campground is too high, go someplace else. Life's too short for us to get pissed off at our brothers and sisters here in the forum.

As the old saying goes: "Here's to us and those like us...there's damn few of us left!"

John

AMEN, Sarge!!

John Quote: "So, what's the solution? I don't know, but I'd suggest we all enjoy this benefit before it too goes away. If you think the price at a military campground is too high, go someplace else. Life's too short for us to get pissed off at our brothers and sisters here in the forum."

I agree totally, and I'm guessing no one thinks MCG prices are too high - what we worry about and should worry about is that prices get raised for the wrong reasons ... so, I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm gonna use the h..l out of 'em as long as I can afford it, then I'm gonna park in Sarge's back yard and drink all his beer -

Can we come too Sarge if we bring that big pot of chile with MEAT and beans?