Unfair, unreasonable and ridiculous

3-29-2008
Hello all, We just returned from a (6) week travel from Pittsburgh, Pa. all the way down to Key West, Fl. Very nice trip. We did not take our motor home this time. We stayed in motels and condos etc. for the full (6) weeks. All I can say is I missed my motor home. Maybe not the price of gas it would have cost, but just knowing the place I was staying in was "my dirt" and not someone elses would give you piece of mind. We stayed a week in a condo from the Armed Forces Vacation Club - cost approximately $360.00 for a 2 bedroom condo in Hilton Head, SC. That price included the taxes which they are now charging. Nice place near the beach. Next we stayed (2) nights at the Navy Lodge at Mayport - very nice rooms. Drove over to the campground looked full and saw no recent changes since we were there in April, 07. Our most southern stop was (14) nights at the mobile homes on Trumbo at Key West. These mobile homes are adequate to say the best for them. They could use some updates. If anyone goes to use them they might want to take something to place over the windows in the bedrooms because sunlight comes shining through very early. They do have mini blinds but that does not keep the light out. While we were there we talked with a couple who were also staying in the mobile home who had their motor home up at MacDill taking up a full hook-up site while they were down in Key West. This doesn't sound right or fair to me to be able to do this. But when we stopped at MacDill on our way north I went to get campground information and to leave your RV on a full hook-up site while you are not there is OK. Still does not seem fair to me. I think the way they do it at Sigsbee seems to be the most fair to me. At Sigsbee at Key West, Fl. everyone gets on a list and rotates into full hook ups for 2 weeks at a time. After 2 weeks you give some one else a opportunity to be in full hook-ups and you go back on the list to rotate back in. At popular places this seems to be the only fair thing to do. At MacDill I was told you could be on a full hook-up site for (6) MONTHS - at a popular place like that I do not think that is fair. I asked the clerk at the desk some questions and she said the "regulars" are having to come earlier now that this place is so popular and people can reserve a site up to (1) year in advance. So when they go down in Sept or so they reserve a full hook-up site for the next year. No rotation they stay in full hook-ups, they can leave their motorhomes and go home for the holidays and then return back to them. Next we went to Charleston, SC and visted Foster Creek. There we stayed in the villas they rent. A (3) bedroom villa or townhouse was $60.00 a night. Very nice full kitchen and full laundry. The campground there states I think (30) or so sites but really only eight are available to reserve. All the other sites are taken up by fulltimes. They are able to stay as long as they want. No rotation or anything. This again does not seem fair to me. It would be fine to stay in the full hook-up site as long as no one was waiting or wanting a site. But if someone came in to stay a week or two it seems unfair that these folks are able to stay unlimited especially if the area is a popular one. This campground was on a Naval Weapons Station Goose Greek, SC near Charleston. I guess if I was one of those lucky ones to have a full hook-up site at either MacDill or those near Charleston, SC I would see nothing wrong with this policy. But in reality I do not want to stay somewhere (6) months maybe (1) month for the very longest. I was just giving my opinions and observations which I thought you might like to read.
ty/ mimikv - Pittsburgh, Pa.

This is obviously A tricky subject. I have to say my wife and I are active duty, and we live in the campground. We do not consider oursleves squatters or regulars. We were forced to do this due to inadequate base housing and inadequate BAH to cover rentals. We pay a whopping 690 a month for our spot, and are required to move every 30 days to let others have a chance. Sometimes we get a good spot, other times we don't. The problem seems to be MWR wantiing the guaranteed income from "regulars" while trying to provide for people passing through. They ought to dedicate permanent and temporary spots. Then, if the temporary aren't full, anyone couls use them, and vice versa. Either way, we pay the same as "temporary" people. For those who call us "homesteaders" saying we live here cause it's cheap. WHATEVER!!! We pay 690 for rent, 704 for our rig, 100 a month for insurance. BAH barely covers it. We would rather have a nice home like we had in Hawaii, but the crappy little 800 square foot townhome we got offered after 4 months on the wating list was a dump. We are forced to live here, cause gas is so expensive to drive to the low rent district our BAH covers. When in Hawaii, we were given almost 500 a month in COLA. In California, we lost that COLA, we get a paltry 27 month, and the costs are HIGHER. I doubt any of us would choose to live here, it' just a little more convenient, and at least we can go places for vacation and an occasional weekend. Either way, we don't "squat" and we pay an outrageous amount for what we get. Think on that awhile!!!

3-31-2008 All please do not get me wrong. If the full-timers in the military campgrounds are active duty then I have no problem with them being there. It is not the active duty that are taking up the spaces. The spaces are being occupied by retirees. I am a retiree and it just seems it would only be fair if non-active duty rotated when it was necessary. Concerning the issue about MacDill allowing people who are occupying full hook-up sites to leave for extended periods of time while others may be sitting in partial hook-ups or are dry camping totally makes no sense to me. These campgrounds are extremely popular or this would be a non issue. Give the rest of us a opportunity to enjoy the fruits of retiring from the military. Again this is one person's opinion.
ty/ mimikv

Someone please explain to me how non military get into famcamp sites. Heck I cant get on a base without ID so how do they do it. Or did I missread some posts here.

I think you misread the message. Some bases alow DOD but other than that you have to be active or retired.

Jay I for another am saying I don't blame you for doing what you are doing, I would do the same. With this so called war we have activated more people in the military with no place to house them. And with all the base closings it only gets worst.

I think what some of us are saying is that it is not right for retirees to stay at a site for 4-6 months at a time. Most like me just want to be able to get to bases for a week or two.

We are with you brother! God bless and take care

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and THANKS

Ron

Jay.
I believe most all us retiree's would give up their spot in a second for ANY active duty member who needs it, either it be vacation or duty. Also, I feel any active duty member should NOT be held to the lenght of stay restriction. The different lenght of stay policies at the different bases are for most part fair. It is the exceptions they give to the good old boys club members and "workcampers" or "camp hosts" that stink badly. I will stop here so I don't get censured.
Thanks for serving and may GOD bless.
Frank