Cancellations

Campground Cancellation Policies: Finding the Right Balance

The RV boom that began during COVID continues to affect campers and campground owners in many ways.

One of the biggest changes has been campsite availability.

At many popular campgrounds, especially on weekends, reservations need to be made months in advance—sometimes a year or more.

The problem is that life can change a lot in a year.

Family emergencies happen.

Health issues arise.

Floods, wildfires, and other natural disasters can disrupt travel plans with little warning.

Even the weather can change dramatically. While forecasts have improved, it’s still difficult to know what conditions will be like months in advance.

That leaves both campers and campground owners in a difficult position.

The Campground’s Perspective

It’s easy to forget that campgrounds are businesses.

In northern states, many campgrounds have only a few months each year to generate enough income to support their owners, employees, and ongoing maintenance.

When someone cancels a reservation, especially on short notice, there may not be enough time to rent that site to someone else.

An empty campsite generates no income.

I understand why campground owners want to protect themselves from that loss.

The Camper’s Perspective

We’ve had to cancel several camping trips over the years.

We’ve experienced just about every cancellation policy imaginable.

Some campgrounds simply wished us well and refunded our deposit with no questions asked.

Others kept the entire payment, regardless of the reason for the cancellation.

Most policies fall somewhere in between.

Personally, one of the fairest policies we’ve encountered is at many KOA campgrounds.

As long as you cancel at least 48 hours before your arrival, they refund your reservation and charge only a small administrative fee. Cancel later than that, and you forfeit your first night’s deposit.

To me, that seems like a reasonable compromise.

There Has to Be a Middle Ground

Campers need to recognize that last-minute cancellations can cost campground owners money.

At the same time, campground owners need to recognize that many cancellations are beyond anyone’s control.

Weather, illness, vehicle breakdowns, and family emergencies happen.

Those aren’t excuses—they’re simply part of life.

When I’m deciding where to camp, I do pay attention to the cancellation policy.

If one campground offers a fair, flexible policy and another has a strict no-refund policy, I’m much more likely to book with the campground that shares some of the risk with its customers.

Fairness builds loyalty.

Campers Have Responsibilities Too

As campers, we also have a responsibility to be considerate.

If you know you’re probably not going to make your reservation, don’t wait until the last minute to cancel.

Give the campground as much notice as possible.

That gives them a better opportunity to rent the site to someone else and helps another camper who may have been hoping to find an opening.

Sometimes It Works Out

One of the things I often do is call our favorite campgrounds when we have an unexpected free weekend.

Many times we’ve been able to take advantage of a campsite that someone else had to cancel.

One campground we really enjoy has a policy I appreciate.

Instead of refunding your deposit, they apply it as a credit toward a future stay—even if that stay isn’t until the following season.

That works well for both of us.

They keep our business, and we know we’ll be back.

Final Thoughts

There probably isn’t a perfect cancellation policy.

Every campground is different, and every situation is unique.

But I do think the best policies recognize that both campground owners and campers have legitimate concerns.

Owners deserve to protect their business.

Campers deserve to be treated fairly when life gets in the way.

When both sides are willing to meet somewhere in the middle, everyone benefits.

One Last Thought

A campground’s cancellation policy tells you a lot about how it views its customers.

The ones that balance protecting their business with treating campers fairly are often the ones that earn repeat visitors.

And in the end, that’s good for everyone.