Why not try both and also many other places? Our first winter out (1995) we put over 16,000 miles on our truck & trailer all the way from Florida to California and our longest stay in any one place was eight days. After extensive travelling around and sampling places, we now winter in Camp Verde, AZ and have done so for several years. I can't imagine just picking a spot on the map and staying there without extensive looking around.
jjwms wrote: We would much rather winter in Rockport-Fulton area of Texas than in the valley. It's on the coast 30 miles northeast of Corpus Christi and has both good fishing and golf courses if those are your interests. It is also a prime birding area if you're a birder like my wife and has a very active fine arts community if you are a painter as I am.
The best RV parks cost much less than comparable ones in Mission and have just as many activities.
What golf courses?
Barb
Barb & Dave - full-timing Traveling catpanion Shadow (age 12) Figment II (2002 Alpine 36 MDDS) Mischief (2004 Subaru Forester Toad) FMCA - F337834, SKP #90761 Our Blog
Just returned from Mission after our first winter there. We spent several months deciding on the Tx or Az thing. Wifes parents had been Snowbirding for years. They had gone to Tx,Az. and Fl. They settled into going to the Mesa Az. area. We decided on Mission Tx, simply because it was the shortest route from our residence. We were wondering about the stories on all the problems with wind in the Mission area. There were several days in the two month period that were quite windy-30 mph. Having spent nearly 60 years in southwestern Mn. I think there are more windy days in Mn, than in Mission Tx. I think that a 30 mph wind is more comfortable in 80 degree temp than in Minnesota's below freezing temps in february. Have reserved the same site for next winter.
We are in year 9 in the Rio Grande Valley but are staying in a park in Alamo rather than Mission. The safety issues are overblown and like others have mentioned it is like any other metro area. We go to Progreso, Mexico on a regular basis for shopping, dentist, wonderful food and just plain fun. When we finish fulltiming, we will buy a house in the Valley. It is rich with culture, entertainment, and the friendliest people in the world. I would recommend getting involved in some community/church activities in addition to the wealth of activites in most parks. It is a great place to live. And yes, the cost of living is lower than most winter destinations.
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Wind!!! I'm sitting here in eastern Nebraska with a 30 MPH wind gusting to 35 MPH and snow and a temperature of 30 degrees..... Why didn't I stay another 2 weeks in Mission, TX where I MAY have gusts to 30 once a month, but NO SNOW and temps in the 80s and 90s. The wind in the RGV from Weslaco to Mission is in my opinion a nonissue. Virtually every place I have lived has as much wind at times. That includes AZ, NM, OH,FL,CA and Hawaii. I spent some time in the military and lived in many places.
Just returned from 2nd winter in Mesa, AZ. My folks spent over 20 years in the RGV (McAllen) in the winter and I visited them a few times. Decided on AZ because of lower humidity, lower winds (although some days can be windy) and greater variety of "things" from being in a more urban area. A lot of folks seemed compelled to defend their choice...don't know why. Both are good locations. It all depends on your preferences. My suggestion is to spend some time in both locations. Perhaps 1/2 of next winter in each. I would advise choosing a place and spending at least a month or so to get the feel of the area and the in-park activities. Talk to folks in both places and take part in activities. Then decide.
Mark
33 Itasca - The Den of Antiquity
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I agree with masman. You need to spend some time in both places, and decide what works best for you.
We just got home after our 3rd year in Mission. We liked it so much, that we purchased our own lot there. It's NOT for everyone, and that's fine with me. It's getting almost as crowded there as Arizona.
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We just returned from our first year in Mission. Yes, it is windy, but the wind is not strong enough on most days to prevent us from riding our bicycles.
The park that you stay in will make a huge difference in your opinion of the RGV. We stayed in a park with a lot of activities. We are returning to Mission next year for three main reasons: we enjoy our park's bicycle club, the bird watching club and all of the birding areas in the RGV, plus the facilities in our park. We have an indoor swimming pool (plus an outdoor poor) and a nice workout room. We also enjoyed the dart games twice a week (teams of 3 or 4 played against one another) and we had fun learning how to make stained glass items. Our park has clogging, line dancing, and many, many activities.
As far as the crime rate, we went into Mexico seven times and two of those times were biking across the countryside and exploring small towns. We did this with a group, not alone, but we felt safe. The Mexican people were all friendly.
We were undecided about whether we would go to AZ or TX this past winter, but we decided on TX so we could see what it was like. Another thing.... you meet many friends in the parks and become close to some of them. The close friends we met are all returning next year, so we have already reserved our spot in Mission.
We stayed in the Tucson area a year ago and enjoyed that. We plan to go back to AZ again in the future.
As for the fleas... you might mean chiggers. Some of the dogs in our park had problems with chiggers. I also had some chigger bites on my foot. They are in the infant stage when they bite and they are usually found in moist grass. This year we had a lot of grass at our site. Next year we have reserved a concrete site that has very little grass. The stores (including WalMart) sell a product to put on chigger bites. The dogs that had problems were rubbed down with something they got from a vet.
Carolyn
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