Should Campers Be Charged For Showers?

[renodesertfox]

Howdy,
This could be a thorny issue and opinions are absolutely respected here and would like to hear from others if you have something to say?

Look, if you take the trouble of reserving a campsite anywhere in these great United States, and you have also purchased your firewood from a campgound host and you are camping there for more than a couple of days, isn't it a slap to your face that you have to additionally shell out more doe for a shower? Some organized campgrounds have charged as much as two minutes for 25 cents!

9 dollars for the reservation fee, x dollars for the site itself; anywhere from $10 to $30, depending on the site size. $6 for each bundle of firewood?
Then extra dollars for a shower?

[Bigdog57]

So far, every campground I have been at has the showers free - but we have easy water access here in the Southeast. Maybe it's different in the West and Southwest? :confused:

On the other hand, if customers are less frequent, maybe the park is trying to generate more cashflow?

[Lesserman]

Howdy,
This could be a thorny issue and opinions are absolutely respected here and would like to hear from others if you have something to say?

Look, if you take the trouble of reserving a campsite anywhere in these great United States, and you have also purchased your firewood from a campgound host and you are camping there for more than a couple of days, isn't it a slap to your face that you have to additionally shell out more doe for a shower? Some organized campgrounds have charged as much as two minutes for 25 cents!

9 dollars for the reservation fee, x dollars for the site itself; anywhere from $10 to $30, depending on the site size. $6 for each bundle of firewood?
Then extra dollars for a shower?

I don't like it either, but it is expensive for the camp ground to install and maintain the showers (pipes, pumps, water heaters, etc) Some people would stay in the shower for an hour if they were not limited by the cost of doing so. If I'm sweaty and dirty, I don't mind the 50 cents it costs to feel clean again.

[renodesertfox]

So far, every campground I have been at has the showers free - but we have easy water access here in the Southeast. Maybe it's different in the West and Southwest? :confused:

On the other hand, if customers are less frequent, maybe the park is trying to generate more cashflow?

Howdy bd, wow, free showers? Man, that sounds great, I've never been further south than the eastern edge of TN, so free showers, maybe we should move there for that! Out here, water is rationed. Can only water your plants during certain hours of the day. We removed our grass in the front and back and we now have an almost replica of the mojave desert in our backyard. Holy molly...free showers! :o

[Bigdog57]

I have an aunt (in her 70's now) who used to live in Kingman, Arizona. Their water was trucked in every couple weeks - so NO grassy lawn! :(

It's been raining here for a week! Plenty of 'free water'......:D

[ontariocamper]

The park that I camp at has showers........everyone pays for them in the site fee.
On our Provincial Park reservation website the fees are broken down into 3 levels of site "quality" and 2 levels of amenities......with/without showers (for the park) and whether your site has hydro.

[jehan60188]

*shrug* i usually go camping partially to have an excuse to not shower...

[rxcamping]

Free shower

Hey VDF,

Showers are free here in the midwest too. The only downside I ever find is having to hold the chain or button to make them keep working while I wash.

[Camping_Bookworm]

Wow, I've never heard of paying for showers. Here in Florida I've been to a few sites and never had to pay for showers once. I can understand having to pay for showers in places where water is scarce, but it would still suck. If they had a place to swim I'd probably just swim there instead of shower.

-Shelley

[Bigdog57]

The motorcycle campgrounds I use in Tennessee and North Carolina have free shower facilities - those mountain streams are just too FRIGID...! :D
Down here in sunny Florida, the waterholes are nice and tepid - but you may find a gator sharing your bath....... :eek:
I went down to one water hole to clean off, when camping in the wilds of my local National Forest - went into the mud up to my hips..... WHOA!
Gotta watch that danged quicksand! Luckily the danger is extremely overstated in those silly jungle movies.

Makes you appreciate a shower!

[Billy Bob]

I've paid for showers in Michigan. IIRC a quarter got you 5 or 10 minutes. I always thought of it as a way to conserve water and save their septic system. but it could be yet another revenue generator. :mad:

[davescampsite]

I have traveled to a lot of campgrounds and found only the National Parks like Big Bend have pay showers. Big Bend is run by some resorts company contracted out by the federal government, so they nickel and dime campers for every penny. If you find a place that does charge post it in the campground wiki at www.getacampsite.com

[renodesertfox]

But I can see you haven't traveled in the southwest. Here there has been a drought now for over nine years and wherever you camp: national park, state park, private campground, there are fees for taking a shower. It's not much money, but it is a very common practice here in the southwest. So to this writer your generalization about being a guru in regards to camping all-over doesn't hold any water for me! I thought this might be an interesting topic to pass around the campfire, not something to take a stand on and demand free water. Free water is great where there is plenty of it, like up in the boundary waters, but where there is a drought, I really don't mind paying if I really want a shower when I'm camping. Usually I don't care and perfer not to shower when camping.

[dieseltiki]

If its fall or winter...I won't think about taking a shower when I'm camping. Summer..I'll jump into the lake to cool off. Here in Texas at the State Parks there is not a charge for showers yet. If its reasonable then I'm not opposed to a charge. They might raise the camp fee for the sites to compensate.

[grp03_macro]

having charges for a shower is quite reasonable especially if the place is having hard times when it comes to water and most just wants to offer good experience to campers ...but if you can bath to any nearby lake or river then why not..:p