porkenstein
South Dakota
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Joined: 06/22/2008
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This will be my first year getting out of the cold winters of South Dakota. We are planning on spending winter in Arizona this year. I have checked out many places in the mesa area along with a few others so that I could make reservations. When I picked up my new 5th wheel the owner of the dealership says he winters every year in Arizona and that there is no need to make a reservation as there are so many places to stay that it's never a problem. I need other folks opinion on that. Since I have never been there I hate to make a reservation for 4 months as I may not like the place and also may want to try a few different places. Kind of leaning towards Sunrise Rv Resort. Do I need to make reservations. Thanks in advance.
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USAFBILL
Alabama
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Joined: 09/20/2002
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We have spent several winters in both Arizona and also RGV of Texas. There will always be parks with openings. I would never never book a park before being to the area so your thoughts are valid. Our first trip to Mesa we booked 1 week which allowed us to visit the parks and see which one we felt best suited our life style. We picked Canyon Vista in Gold Canyon and it is our favorite park. We do not have reservations for this winter and probably Canyon Vista is already booked up but we know there will be other places available.
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gsjk
St Albert Alberta Canada
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Joined: 05/21/2007
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Hi there,
We stayed in Casa Grande which is located about 40 miles south of Phoenix at the Palm Creek Golf and RV park.
We thoroughly enjoyed our stay and if you wanted anything it was there complete with a very clean and quiet park.
We will be going there again this winter.
You can check it out on their web site.www.palmcreekgolf.com
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Marv Hoag
Redding, CA
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Joined: 04/14/2001
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Just made reservations for Canyon Vista today. They still have a few spots left.
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Ron Butler
Federal Way WA.
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Joined: 02/29/2004
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We have spent 2 of the past 3 winters down in the southwest. We have never made any advanced long-term reservations and have never had a problem finding a place to stay. The only exception to that is if we had wanted in a park in the Yuma area. That area seems to fillup quickly. However, we love to boondock out on the desert and on BLM land, so we have used the Imperical Dam location there a lot. There is also free boondocking next to the VFW post just north of Yuma on 95, as well as all the boondocking land just west of Yuma and on the CA border.
In the Mesa area, we have never had any problem getting into any of the CalAm Parks, of which there are 6 or 7. These are great parks with more activities than you can shake a stick at. It also seems that east of Mesa into Apache Junction, there are parks you should be able to get into. There are also numerous parks west of Phoenix, towards Surprise and Sun City.
The Tucson area has several great spots, probably the best known being the Voager and Rincon. Not sure how packed they are ahead of time, but we had friends that had no problem getting into Rincon last winter for a month.
I guess it depends upon your spirit of adventure and how much structure you have to have to your schedule to feel secure!! After 25 years of cruising in our sailboats, we feel very comfortable in playing if by the seat of our pants!! The only time we got bit was not having reservations for the Grand Canyon, but someone left a day early, so we got in for one night!! Then boondocked just outside the south entrance!!
I would say start with a months reservation and use that time to explore different areas OR just boondock first and see what happens!! There are several neat national and state parks to go to as well.
The main thing is to kick back and enjoy the sunshine and warmth!! Good luck.
Ron & Carolyn
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bjbear
Cold Lake, AB, Can
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Joined: 02/14/2004
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Highly recommend Canyon Vista. It is perfectly located for us. Far enough out of the city but close enough to go when you want. Walking distance (or bike) to Basha's Grocery and bank. Good restaurants close by.
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pjsky
Renner SD/Yuma AZ
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Joined: 11/17/2004
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We go to Yuma and have to reserve one year ahead in the resort that we go to. Yuma seems to fill up faster that the other areas. Keep in mind that Yuma has the warmest average temps because of the low elevation. We also live in South Dakota, so almost ANYWHERE in Arizona is great.
Paul
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jimnbubba
Mesa AZ
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Joined: 08/12/2006
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Check out Sun Life in Mesa ,it willl have a spot for you ,it's a Cal-Am park and no shortage of activties ,we came here 2years ago in our 5er and decided to stay full time
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shoreman
texas
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Joined: 12/27/2007
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We are going to try Desert Gardens in Florence this winter. We made reservations because it is our first time. After this year we will know the "lay of the land" better for future stays. Good luck.
Whaland and Susan Clark
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samsontdog
Sac. Ca summer, Yuma Az winter
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Joined: 08/06/2002
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I have my own RV lot in Yuma so I don't have to worry about a place to stay. I ride my bike in and out of the Parks daily for exercise and there are always people leaving. I have a lot of friends who never get a res. If there are no vacancy in the Parks there are many People who have fully self contained sites
for rent on there lots. I don't think you would have a problem except maybe in Feb as every thing fills up. Good luck
samsontdog 
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