There was a hijack of another thread that took it into the realm of the problems we have encountered with the GS ratings and what we would like to see to improve on the system. There was a request to open a thread under that topic so I am following through as I believe this is feedback that GS headquarters needs to hear. We are looking for problems and SOLUTIONS. I have just seen a number of campgrounds that I could not agree with the ratings on and wondered how they got such high numbers! (So we need to give good suggestions on how to correct this problem, not just list the campgrounds you had problems with!)
From the other thread there is pretty general agreement that there needs to be a way on the internet site when you look up a CG that the members that have stayed previously can not only review it but give it say a 1-5 star rating overall and in some specific categories such as bathrooms, noise that prevents sleeping, condition of park. These are the things that we need to help come up with, the specific categories in addition to a general overall rating. I would suggest only current dues paid members of GS/Woodalls registered on the GS website and identified should be allowed to rate - no non-members or anonymous ratings. In addition to putting a star up a short say 5+ word sentence should be required to explain why you rated it that way - such as: "Bathrooms were not cleaned for 3 days". This would let the GS staff handle problems if it arises that someone just gets mad at a CG and wants to cause them problems. They can actually contact the member giving the rating and they could determine if for example this was a camper that is mad at a CG because they were partying too much and got kicked out (I know that none of our GS members would do such!).
A system like this in addition to the GS yearly inspection would keep campgrounds wanting to keep their operation up to specifications knowing any member that stays there can be a part of the consumer ratings. Also it would allow GS staff to ID problems when the inspection ratings and the member ratings are in conflict, this would flag that either the park was not maintaining their facility, that there is an inspector problem or that there may be something happening during certain times or days of the week that the inspectors missed as it was not happening when they were there (example would be the local fishing tournament with boat launching/retrieval starting at 4am and ending on up in the night - we had that the last 2 days at a park and it happens on a regular bases but if the inspectors come on a Mon and Tue they would not know about it because this occurs on Friday and Sat).
Let's hear from others on the problems you have seen with the ratings and other suggestions to fix those problems.
1998 F150 4WD, Heavy Tow package - rated for over 7,700 pounds
2009 F150 4WD STX Tow Package - rated for 10500 pounds
2012 Jayco Jay Flight Swift
Honz our German Shepherd rules with Novak the Doberman terror puppy!!
What works in a CG for one does not necessarily work for another camper. Each camper and type of RV they have each have its own needs.
IMHO rating the bathrooms and showers CORRECTLY is really all that's needed. They get an F on bathroom cleanliness and trust me the condition of the park will be the same.
RV park reviews taken with a grain of salt, and google satellite areal and street view is all one really needs nowadays to see the park ahead of time. Bathrooms on the other hand, well, they NEED to be inspected and reviewed.
Correct me if I am wrong but Woodalls has is own rating which is applied to ALL CG's including those sporting the GS logo. Good Sam does not rate their own CG's.
Perhaps they do rate them on their 'own' website, BUT even though I have 4 of their GS plans $$$$, I am NOT allowed to view the GS website without PAYING another additional fee, I think NOT!
"We must be willing to get rid of the life we've planned,
so as to have the life that is waiting for us".
Remember that Woodall’s is NOT a rating system but just a listing to amenities. Example – a CG has a store, pool and a playground gets 3 W’s. The W’s (woodies) do NOT list how a CG is maintained.
Trailer Life’s Campground Guide and RVParkReviews is, IMHO, far superior to Woodall’s. Though sometimes using Trailer Life’s Campground Guide I did wonder how a CG got such a high rating. As for RvParkReviews, if there is a review that is way different from several others, I ignore it.
Frank now without Renae
KZ Montego Bay 37CKM
2007 Dodge 3500HD DDW
Three cats -- Sunkist, Topaz, & Amber
One dog -- Rascal
Started Full Timing since March 26, 2008
I really don't know how any system could be created that would be fair, accurate, and affordable. Parks in Minnesota are very different from parks in Montana, which are very different from parks in California. At some point, judgement has to come into play and everyone judges things differently. What constitutes a nice playground or pool? Even clean is subjective. If the park is a primarily a weekend park and the reviewer visits on Wednesday, the park is going to be quiet, and everything may very well be clean. But if they are on a once a day cleaning schedule, that clean restroom fully stocked with toilet paper, paper towels and the like from Wednesday might be a sewer without any supplies on Saturday night.
As for comments, I would be loath to advertise (and that is what the books and websites are all about) in a publication or online media where people are free to bash without recourse or proof. I can put all my great features in an ad and all it will take is one person to put out a review that says "All campground XYZ advertising is a lie, don't believe a word they say" and that advertising money is down the drain.
As for contacting people with problems and working out solutions, that would take a huge workforce, with no offsetting revenues. As a reviewer, I wouldn't like GS calling me and saying the park said I was a liar. As a park, I don't want Good Sam looking over my shoulder. I actually had this happen because someone complained to Good Sam about my park not accepting more than 6 people per site. It turned into a disagreement between me and the representative as to whether or not that was a good policy and whether I should count toddlers as people. My final response was, if they want to run my park, send me the check and it would be theirs to do with as they please.
As imperfect as the current Life system is, I am hard pressed to come up with a better one. (A good test is pull out the rating scorecard at the back of the trailer Life book and score the park you are in. Do it without emotion or interpretation and I bet your score will be close to what that park's score in the book is.) It definitely needs some tweaking, but I don't think scrapping it in favor of the unknown is the answer.
What you are really working with here is the expectations of many different types of people. Some of us are low maintenance and are happy with any park that does not have significant problems. Others are miserable as hell if everything is not absolutely perfect. How do you ever bridge that gap with any meaningful rating system. If you are really worried about it you just have to do your homework and spend lots of time checking a place out on your own -- if it's that important to you. If parks with lots of bells and whistles are important to you seek them out. If you'd prefer a quiet peaceful place with a bit of scenery and hardly any services go find it.
What is really needed is an on-line site that allows you to check boxes of what's important to you personally. A 70 year old retiree is not going to check the same boxes as a 20 something family with kids. Let such a web site go find the parks that have what you want (or don't want).
Frank&Renae wrote: ......
Trailer Life’s Campground Guide and RVParkReviews is, IMHO, far superior to Woodall’s. .....
These two directories have been one and the SAME from conception, printed at the same plant. Just the cost of printing a different cover and insertions of different ad pages to make it appear different. Objective? More advertising revenues.
Now that the printing business is in the toilet, they are """consolidating""" the two, like that is really going to be a stretch for them!
Trailer Life | RV Business
www.rvbusiness.com/tag/trailer-life/
Nov 21, 2011 – Trailer Life Directory and Woodall Publications, publishers of “North America's top ... 21) that they will be “uniting” to form a single “super directory” North American print edition in 2013. ... “The consolidation of the two directories into one 'super directory' will provide our .... s Springdale plant in Goshen, Ind.
Woodall's | RV Business
www.rvbusiness.com/tag/woodalls/
Mar 22, 2012 – Other features include Woodall's point-to-point “One Tank Trips,” green-friendly ... Sales rep teams from the newly merged Trailer Life and Woodall's campground ... 21) that they will be “uniting” to form a single “super directory” North American print edition in 2013. .... A program for frequent tree planting
* This post was
edited 04/15/12 02:32pm by rockhillmanor *
Annual inspections would be hard to implement. The big question is "Who's going to pay for it?". Another problem is that some rating systems are based upon the amenities present, not working or functional, but present.
The ratings don't ask if the pool has water in it or if the swing set has swings on it. Nor will a cleanliness rating indicate if the playground sand under the swing set is an open-air litter box. Ratings cannot tell the whole story. This is why camper reviews (however subjective or inaccurate) are needed.
2005 Cruise America 28R (Four Winds 28R) on a 2004 Ford E450 SD 6.8L V10 4R100
2009 smart fortwo Passion with Roadmaster "Falcon 2" towbar & tail light kit - pictures
Frank&Renae wrote: ......
Trailer Life’s Campground Guide and RVParkReviews is, IMHO, far superior to Woodall’s. .....
These two directories have been one and the SAME from conception, printed at the same plant. Just the cost of printing a different cover and insertions of different ad pages to make it appear different. Objective? More advertising revenues.
Now that the printing business is in the toilet, they are """consolidating""" the two, like that is really going to be a stretch for them!
Trailer Life | RV Business
www.rvbusiness.com/tag/trailer-life/
Nov 21, 2011 – Trailer Life Directory and Woodall Publications, publishers of “North America's top ... 21) that they will be “uniting” to form a single “super directory” North American print edition in 2013. ... “The consolidation of the two directories into one 'super directory' will provide our .... s Springdale plant in Goshen, Ind.
Woodall's | RV Business
www.rvbusiness.com/tag/woodalls/
Mar 22, 2012 – Other features include Woodall's point-to-point “One Tank Trips,” green-friendly ... Sales rep teams from the newly merged Trailer Life and Woodall's campground ... 21) that they will be “uniting” to form a single “super directory” North American print edition in 2013. .... A program for frequent tree planting
They had separate inspection and ad sales staffs for each company. They use different criteria for ratings. They did not have the same formats for campground descriptions. Yes they had pretty much the same content, but what the heck else should be the content of a campground directory other than campgrounds? They were surely overlapping, but so what? It isn't the first time two books covered basically the same subject matter. Probably the biggest reason for merging the books is the books have become unprofitable to publish with declining sales due to the internet. There isn't enough market space for two paper books anymore. And of course Good Sam Enterprises is going to spin it that it is an improvement. They are trying to market it.
Thanks Wilford,
for opening the topic so properly in response to my request.
Everyone here is familiar with rvparkreviews.com, and how to read between the lines there. There are other less known less used wannabe sites such as rvbuddy.
How many of you have used GuestRated.com,on the opposite end of the anonymous sites mentioned above?
TripAdvisor is another well known though less applicable site to our chosen mode of travel.
Each has appeal to a segment of travelers, none address our particular interest in camps public or private specific to those listed in and rated by TL/Woodalls account Reps
To me the whole concept is to cherry pick from these other well meaning sites.
Imagine a not anonymous consumer rating or link that is specific to GS/Woodalls listed camps, public or private with 1-10 ratings by members only on issues of other concern not covered in account representative rating. Response by the camp operator or other knowledgeble person, through a moderator to delete incorrect/unfounded/flaming comments. The same as is here.
Like GuestRated but more flexible, like rvparkreviews but more accountable,like tripadvisor but specific to outdoor hospitality, limiting operator comments through a moderator . Above all specific to members, park and guest, equals.
How about it?
Max
Offline
).
Online
