Looking for Vintage Bus friendly resorts in San Diego

Hawkeyenfo · May 26, 2016, 08:03:38 AM

Hi all,

Well, it's time to do a bit of life changing once again! I am planning on moving back to the RV full time but, have found that San Diego resorts/parks, for the most part, do NOT allow converted buses or schoolies.

I have a very nice '64 Superior coach Supercruiser conversion (owned for 13 years, rv windows, new paint top/sides, tires, looks like a Tiki hut inside) that is not able to even go in one night, let alone long term to most places that I've looked.

Any advice ? I'm AD military, bus is nice, no clutter.....seems like a no brainer to me....but, those with "expensive" Bounders and staple trailers seem to think differently.

Thanks !!!! Chris

ol713 · May 26, 2016, 09:03:52 AM

Hi;.
Have you checked out resorts like Thousand Trails and others?
You might have to move every 30 days or so, but it would be
good to exercise your coach.

Merle

luvrbus · May 26, 2016, 09:13:50 AM

Good luck on a San Diego RV park we were down there 3 months ago and the wife wanted to spend a couple of nights I called Mission Bay they wanted $365.00 a night with a 3 day minimum,called another park they were @ $400.00 a day.

So we went up the road 60 miles to Temecula @ the Pechanga Casino a beautiful RV Park Resort and only paid $41.00 a day ,I did have to buy some high priced San Diego fuel to leave the place though

Oonrahnjay · May 26, 2016, 09:16:53 AM

Quote from: luvrbus on May 26, 2016, 09:13:50 AM
Good luck on a San Diego RV park we were down there 3 months ago and the wife wanted to spend a couple of nights I called Mission Bay they wanted $365.00 a night with a 3 day minimum,called another park they were @ $400.00 a day.

I'd gone down the road, too!

Jon · May 26, 2016, 10:23:24 AM

This is no consolation, but our Prevost Community members have occasional rallies. We had one scheduled this coming September until we realized the resort had an age restriction.

We cancelled the rally at that resort.

The internet is a good place to spread the word and that is exactly what we did. On our site's forum we announced the cancellation and the reason why. We will not have a rally anywhere unless there are no restrictions that will impact any of our members. Financial pain is a good way to change some attitudes. If we try to make reservations and we get some lip about the age or appearance of our coach, I will ask the age of the resort, and then tell them their resort age exceeds my standards so I will not be spending any time there.

It is discrimination these resorts are practicing.

luvrbus · May 26, 2016, 10:28:17 AM

Quote from: Jon on May 26, 2016, 10:23:24 AM
This is no consolation, but our Prevost Community members have occasional rallies. We had one scheduled this coming September until we realized the resort had an age restriction.

We cancelled the rally at that resort.

The internet is a good place to spread the word and that is exactly what we did. On our site's forum we announced the cancellation and the reason why. We will not have a rally anywhere unless there are no restrictions that will impact any of our members. Financial pain is a good way to change some attitudes. If we try to make reservations and we get some lip about the age or appearance of our coach, I will ask the age of the resort, and then tell them their resort age exceeds my standards so I will not be spending any time there.

It is discrimination these resorts are practicing.

So true and 99 % of those parks have a affiliation with FMCA or Good Sams

Seangie · May 26, 2016, 11:25:02 AM

We have run into this issue a few times in California. I think this is a fairly recent move (last 5 - 10 years) because of the housing collapse. Alot of the parks we spoke to said people would move in and pay for a month and then never leave and stop paying. It was quite common. Mostly families where Dad/Mom lost their job and couldn't afford a house and the next cheapest thing was an RV. After 30 days I think the parks would have to file for eviction which could take up to 45 days to get the people out and by that time they had been there almost 3-4 months.

We found that parks with fewer restrictions have a 2 week maximum stay. We also found that many areas now have no RVs/No Overnighting and it can be next to impossible to find a place to boondock without doing a little work. And usually when you do find a place there are already 40 or so RV's parked there already.

Back to the original question - We stayed at (are you sitting down?) KOA. They were the cheapest (we got a rate for 45 a night) and they were pretty close to downtown. They had no problems with our rig. Not sure if they allowed schoolies or not. But you can also stay out on the beach at Silver Strand State Park. No full hookups but its relatively cheap and a nice view.

For Boondocking we have stayed in National City for 4 days. There are a bunch of boondockers over there so get in early so you can get your spot.
Also a little further on the North Side - In Mission Bay and Playa Pacifica Park you can try and sneak an overnight in there. You can stay till 2am and have to leave between 2am and 4am. The locals told us that the cops come around and kick everyone out at 2am and/or write you a ticket. They said its not every night but often enough. We drove to the mall up the street (Westfield Mission Valley) and boondocked there for a night. We found a nice place to hide and no one bothered us. We got in late and left early.

One last place - Further North up the beach is a rest area near oceanside that has an RV dump. Good place to hit on your way down and then back out again if you are planning on boondocking in San Diego.

You gotta be a little creative in CA but we have always managed to work something out. Look further south of the city and to the west. Usually if its off the beaten path they don't have issues. Also - Dont rely on website info. Sometimes when you call and talk to a real person and explain you are not a degenerate and you have a beautiful coach they have no problems.

Good luck!

-Sean

Good luck finding places in CA

Scott & Heather · May 26, 2016, 02:12:45 PM

Shanks, when I spoke at length with a couple of rv park owners, they said landlord tenant laws do not apply at rv parks so you can evict at a moments notice. The rv park we stayed at in Texas indeed did evict some residents on a somewhat regular basis with literally 24 hours notice and then the cops showed up. So that sounds like the parks making excuses to me

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luvrbus · May 26, 2016, 02:22:54 PM

I believe it may be different laws in different states for long term parking and the 30 day rentals vs shorter rentals.We are in Texas now at a friends RV park he is trying to get one out now it's has been going on for 2 weeks

Seangie · May 26, 2016, 02:40:34 PM

Scott - In CA, 30 days at a park and you are a tenant and have 30 days to move out after the eviction is served.
799.32 and 799.66 of the California Civil Code as it applies to RV Parks.
http://www.courts.ca.gov/documents/rv_park_occupancy_law.pdf

Scott & Heather · May 26, 2016, 04:11:08 PM

Shoot. Remind me to never own an rv park in Cali....must be why state parks and others make you move every so often.

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TomC · May 26, 2016, 05:16:39 PM

Have stayed many times at Campland on the Bay in Mission Bay. No problem with my bus and saw many other buses there what looked like long termers. Good Luck, TomC

TomC · May 26, 2016, 05:27:15 PM

Just looked at Campland on the Bay's site-they allow up to 270 days long term.

JRandall · May 26, 2016, 08:16:25 PM

There are a couple of older trailer parks around Main Street in El Cajon that sometimes have empty spots. They will rent them out on a month to month basis. Might look there, a good looking bus would improve their clientele.

Scott & Heather · May 26, 2016, 08:34:49 PM

Chris, does your bus resemble this at all?

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