Category: RV Park Reviews

Rondout Valley RV Campground is located on 105 Mettacahonts Road in Accord, NY.

This campground is located in a very central spot in the Lower Hudson Valley of New York.

It is right between the Catskill and Schawangunk mountain ranges. And it is almost like a gateway to the New England area.

Click here to view the Rondout Valley RV Campground map

Rondout Valley RV Campground Features

The campground provides 310 campsites and a number of different kinds of camping options for almost every camper.

It’s open from April through the month of October every year before it closes for the season.

And access to the park is relatively easy for every size rig. It is just off of route 209 which can easily be gotten to by exiting off the I-87 in NY.

When entering the park, you will find a circular drive that can be used to park while checking in.

If there are a lot of rigs, it can become a bit congested. But they do seem to keep things moving fairly well.

If you are towing a vehicle, you can unhook there or wait until you get into the park nearer to your site.

We usually unhook on the road that leads up to the campground though because it is very level there.

And we find it easier to maneuver in the check-in area if we are already unhooked.

The park staff has always been very friendly and as accomodating as possible.

Park Reservations

The park itself is part of the Thousand Trails membership program.

So it is possible to stay at Rondout Valley for $0/night if you have a Thousand Trails membership.

But reservations can also be booked outside of that system.

The prices for that option run $79 a night. And if you book for a week it averages out to be $68 a night.

If you are a Thousand Trails camper, it is first come, first serve as far as the sites are concerned.

But if you need a certain type of site, the office personnel is very helpful.

And they will direct you to the part of the park that offers those particular sites.

Do be aware though that there are many seasonal campers in the park.

And they seem to be taking some of the RV sites and putting park models or rental cabins on them. So this does limit your options somewhat.

Rondout Valley RV Campground Campsites

There also tend to be quite a few 30 amp sites with full hookups. But only a limited amount of 50 amp sites with full hook ups.

There are several more 30 and 50 amp sites that have water but no sewer.

And to remedy that they have two dump stations and also offer a honey wagon option.

The honey wagon costs $10 per time they come out though. And it only runs on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays.

Interestingly, the park staff mentioned that in the near future they plan on opening 81 more new RV sites.

And these are planned to have full hookups and 30/50 amp electrical options.

If they do, this will be very welcome to us Thousand Trails members seeking short camping stays.

How are the sites in the park? In general they seem to be dirt or gravel sites.

And they are fairly level for the most part. Although, as with most campgrounds, there are always some that present a challenge.

And there are some sites that are also pretty close together. But many offer a decent amount of room between you and your neighbor.

Rondout Valley RV Campground Amenities

There are two beautiful streams that run through the park too. But most of the sites that sit on those prime areas are taken by seasonal folks.

There are a few available though, if you are fortunate enough to get one.

But the park offers many shade trees and the campground is pretty to walk or drive through.

The amenities are OK here. The pool seems to be in good shape and the playground areas are manicured and kept up.

But the facilities are definitely older and quite dated. There are two bath houses in particular that need a lot of work.

There is also a third bath house that is located in the upper section and includes the laundry room in it.

It has been updated and is much cleaner and would be a great one to use.

Their activities center building itself is pretty rundown and needs a lot of work too.

They do have some activities in it daily though and the best thing in it is the snack bar.

It offers a variety of simple breakfast and luncheon items. But another big plus is their ice cream which is always a hit especially on a hot day.

Internet Connectivity At The Park

One other thing most folks wonder about with these kind of campground reviews is internet service.

Well, we used our AT&T hotspot and we had good internet connectivity.

We noticed that the park offers Satellite TV and WIFI too. But this comes at an additional cost and you would have to inquire about what that cost is.

Our hotspot and phones took care of everything we needed while we were staying at the park though.

The Surrounding Area

So how about the surrounding area???? Well, the good news is that there is plenty of beauty to be seen.

Lots of scenic drives, hiking trails, waterfalls and other sights that provide many things to discover and explore.

For instance, just down the road from the park there is a establishment called Kelders Farm.

And it has fresh produce. But also many things for the kids to do and ice cream for a treat.

There are other beautiful farms in the area that provide delicious produce too.

But you will also find home-baked goods and many jarred jellies, jams and sauces. Most of them being produced locally.

Places To Eat Locally

And little cafes and small restaurants dot the roads too. We ate at a nearby roadside BBQ restaurant that had some really delicious brisket.

But we also went to a place not far from the campground called Kerhonkson Diner. They have good American fair for a decent price.

We did get a calzone that was very good across the road from the diner at a place called Cancellier’s Pizza.

The calzone was very good. But the owner and his daughter, who was at the register, seemed to have an irritable attitude.

Although the calzone was good, we certainly would not go back because of that.

Shopping In The Area Around The Park

How about grocery stores and other bigger box stores???? Well, there is really not too much around.

There is a Walmart that is about 9 miles away in Napanoch, NY.

Also near that is a Liquor Store. And just a little further down the road is Peter’s Market.

But to go to any bigger area you need to travel to Newburgh or Poughkeepsie.

And these are about 1 hour to 45 minutes away respectively. But if you don’t mind a beautiful ride through the countryside, it is no bother at all.

Rondout Valley RV Campground – Our Conclusion

So how would we sum up our time at Rondout Valley and the vicinity? Well, the area itself is beautiful.

You will find gorgeous views, clear water, pretty waterfalls and a laid back lifestyle.

And that is a welcome change from the hustle and bustle of daily life.

But how would we rate the campground? We would give it a 3 out of 5.

Why? The amenities could definitely use updating. But, most of all for us, the availability of sites that accommodate all rigs could DEFINITELY be improved upon.

And we hope that will improve in the near future with the changes that are planned for the campground.

But we want to thank the staff for being so helpful. And even in spite of the negatives we mentioned, we will definitely go back.

We just are very aware of both the pros and cons of this park. And now, hopefully you are aware of them as well through our review.

Happy camping everyone!

Hershey RV Park is located at 493 S. Mt. Pleasant Rd. in Lebanon, PA.

It’s situated right in the heart of Amish country and only a stones throw from the town of Hershey itself.

And what a beautiful park to stay at while you enjoy all that the area has to offer.

Click here to view the Hershey RV Park campground map

Hershey RV Park Features

First, about the RV park itself. This park is easy to access for large and small rigs alike.

The roads within the park are either asphalt or gravel. And the gravel roads can get rutted and have a few holes in them, especially after a rain storm.

But the park staff is vigilant though and re-grades and adds gravel to the roads in a timely manner. So the roads aren’t a major issue here.

The sites are dirt with gravel spread on top. And most of them are fairly level so that even a bigger rig can find a good spot.

The general appearance of the park is very nice. There are rolling green hills, multi-level spots, and a beautiful pond with many geese and ducks.

You can take a canoe or kayak on the pond. And they also have pedal-powered swan boats that can be used too.

They also mow regularly and trim trees and bushes so that the park looks very well maintained.

Hershey RV Park Campsites

There are a variety of sites that offer various options. So there is one area that is entirely 50 amp with full hookups. And many of the larger rigs stay there.

But they also have numerous sites that are either 50 or 30 amp with full hookups. This is a very versatile area that accommodates many rigs.

There are also a few sites that are just 30 amp with full hookups too.

And they have one area that is 30 amp with just water. This seems to be a great area for those who want a shorter stay and tenters.

Many of the sites offer shade trees and a nice view of the park.

And there is one thing that we really appreciated about this Thousand Trails park.

That is that although there are some seasonal campers, they offer many sites to campers who want to stay on a daily or weekly basis. What a plus!

Check in was easy with the onsite staff. They try to be very accommodating and direct you to the right area for the size of your rig.

In fact, it seems that all the people that work at Hershey are very helpful and friendly.

And here’s a shout out to the park staff because they keep this park immaculate!!!

RV Park Amenities

The amenities are well kept up. The pool is large with a smaller section for the little ones.

The spa is located inside the clubhouse and that’s a real plus on cooler days.

The mini golf course is in great shape and the tennis/pickle ball courts are immaculate too.

In fact, while we were there, they were scrubbing them and then pressure washing them clean. That is something you don’t see very often.

The actual clubhouse and bath houses, although a little on the older side were very clean too.

And the laundry room had 6 washers and dryers and was very clean as well.

The camp store offered a variety of goods and they also sold ice cream. Hmmm … I wonder what brand being in Hershey? LOL.

The ice cream offerings seemed to be well received by many campers and was priced reasonably too.

Campground Prices

So what is the price for such a lovely campground???? Well, as mentioned, this park is part of the Thousand Trails system.

So those who have a Thousand Trails membership can stay for $0 a night.

But you can also reserve outside of that system and the daily price is $98 a night.

If you stay for a week or more, it averages out to about $90 a night. A little pricier than some of the other parks, but very worth it in our opinion.

Internet Connectivity At The Park

How about the internet???? Well, the park offers an internet wifi as many other parks do.

It costs a little extra to hook up to their high speed option, but it is not outrageous.

In fact, we actually used their wifi system for some of the time that we stayed here.

That’s because the internet in this area was a bit spotty and extremely slow at times on our AT&T network.

It was also slower at times on the campground wifi too. But going back and forth between the two, we were able to stay connected.

Hershey RV Park – Things To Do

Now let’s talk about the area. We personally love the area around the Hershey RV Park ourselves.

There is something for just about everyone. And first off there is Hershey Park, which is something that most families enjoy.

It is an amusement park with rollercoasters and many other rides and attractions. Many in the park enjoyed going there.

But there is also a museum in the town about Mr. Hershey and how he developed his company.

And they also explain why he chose this area for his chocolate factory. Very interesting and informative.

There is also the Hershey Hotel that can be toured and the Hershey Gardens that have been established.

They are just beautiful and have a great variety of plants and trees and flowers that change with every season.

Additionally, it has a butterfly atrium with many gorgeous butterflies to learn about and see.

We enjoyed all of these things located only about 15 to 20 minutes from the RV park.

Amish And Mennonite Local Culture

But you can also travel about 45 minutes to Lebanon and enjoy a place called The Amish Farm.

After all, you are staying in the heart of the Amish countryside. So why not learn a little bit about the people that work this land?

There is a bus tour of the area, a farm area, and they also show you what a typical Amish home looks like.

And they explain the difference between the Mennonite and Amish cultures.

We have to say that the Amish work ethic truly makes this area a beautiful one to look at.

And there are plenty of places around that offer Amish cuisine and baked goods too. All are worth a try, especially the baked goods.

Other Interesting Local Areas

If you go the other direction for about 45 minutes, you can get to Harrisburg. There are many things to see there.

But we actually went to the fire museum and saw how things have progressed over the years. Very interesting.

But Harrisburg has so much to offer being a larger city, so there is something for everyone there.

We didn’t get a chance to go to Stroudsburg, PA but there is a railroad museum there. And many other sights that we will probably explore another time.

Stroudsburg lies about 1 hour away. So a little further, but definitely within a day trip. So as you can see there is much that can be done in the area!

Hershey RV Park – Places To Eat Locally

Places to eat!!!! There are plenty of these. There are basically all of your chains in all three places we mentioned.

But there is also more Mom and Pop places and regional restaurants too.

We loved eating at Primanti Brothers in Hershey. It’s a small regional restaurant chain that offers a tavern/grill feel.

And they serve absolutely delicious sandwiches, etc. (the pastrami was to die for).

Then you can wash it down with your favorite beer, wine or mixed drink.

Located right near Hershey park, it is a great place to go after a day at an amusement park.

But we also ate at a diner call the Soda Jerk Diner located near Hershey Park as well. They serve a great breakfast and American Home style cooking.

Where To Get Supplies

Okay, that all sounds good, but what about places to provision?

Well, right on the road coming in from Hershey to the RV park are two great places.

One is a farm stand called Risser-Marvel Farm Market. Great local produce and a selection of jams, jellies, sauces, mustards, whoopie pies, and shoo fly pies.

There is also an Amish market called Country Pride with very good prices on many things.

A selection of spices, and stock items that is varied and well priced. And they have a great deli too.

Also, if you drive about 12-15 minutes away to a town called Palmyra, there is a Walmart and a Weis store there. And that pretty well takes care of everything else you need.

Just an FYI – that the farm stand and the Amish store are closed on Sunday.

There is also another Weis store and a Redners in Hershey where you can find provisions too.

And if you need a Costco or other big box stores, Lancaster PA offers that.

Oh and one more thing, both Hershey and Lancaster offer Tanger Outlet Stores, which is something that may interest some.

Hershey RV Park – Our Conclusion

So as you can see, there is so much to do and to see in this area. But now, how do we rate the Hershey area and the park itself???

The area is a definte 5++ stars. Just a unique and interesting place to visit.

Hershey RV Park itself we would give a 4.5 star rating. The park itself is great.

But there are just a few minor things we would like to see improved. Especially for us was the internet connectivity.

But this is definitely one of our overall favorite parks in our travels.

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR A FANTASTIC PARK AND STAY!!! We will be back. 🙂

Gettysburg Farm RV Campground is located at 6200 Big Mount Road in Dover, PA.

What a unique and totally enjoyable park this is! And it’s located only about 30 minutes from the historical town of Gettysburg.

This RV park gives you a total feeling of being out in the country. But without being far from most things you want to visit and enjoy in the area.

Getting to the park is very easy and is definitely big rig friendly. Some corners are a little tight for a large motorhome, but still very doable.

This park is part of the Thousand Trails campground system and has a total of 249 sites.

And as a Thousand Trails member you can stay here for $0/night.

As is often the case, it can also be reserved outside of the system for about $69 a night. And weekly costs average out to about $60 a night.

Click here to view the Gettysburg Farm RV Campground map

Gettysburg Farm RV Campground Features

This campground is very friendly to big rigs. We easily navigated this park with our motorhome.

It’s true that the roads were dirt and gravel. But they seem to often come around and fill in the holes that develop because of rain, etc.

Although there are some seasonal guests, they leave plenty of sites for travelers. And we truly appreciated that.

They have one large section of the park with full hookups including both 50 and 30 amp sites.

And there is another section that has full hookups with just 30 amp service.

They also have a section down by the river that has 30 amp and water but no sewer.

If that is where you wish to be though, they provide a honey wagon for sewer service.

It operates on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday’s for free. You just have to be sure to sign up ahead of time.

Also, we noticed that most of the sites were fairly level. So as you can see, they try to make it comfortable for just about everyone that comes in.

And this park also has a very welcoming staff who try to make your stay enjoyable.

Gettysburg Farm RV Campground Amenities

The onsite camping store carries a variety of goods that could come in handy too.

They even serve ice cream by the scoop and we found many took advantage of that perk.

The amenities are good for the most part. The miniature golf is kept up and in nice shape.

The basketball courts, playground area, the horseshoe pits, and the pool were all good too.

There are a few things that could use improvement though. And one is the bath houses.

Just now, they finished renovating one bath house. And it is beautiful.

The other two are badly in need of some updating though. And we assume these facilities will be updated sometime in the near future. At least we hope so, because they need it.

During our stay at the park though, the laundromat was closed for maintenance.

But there is a decent laundromat in town that you can go to if you need to. However, not having one onsite during our stay was a little disappointing.

The Best Part of Gettysburg Farm RV Campground

The grounds of the RV park are kept up well. There are beautiful flowers, unique farm equipment, and well mowed and manicured green spaces.

The best part of the whole campground, though, is the animals. We enjoyed them so much! And if you have children, they will enjoy them too.

They have goats, a llama, alpacas, chickens, peacocks, a pig, cows and horses. And they sell feed at the camp store to feed them.

We especially loved the three horses…Danny, Tucker, and Ring. When we came by the barn, they always came right over to be fed and enjoy a pet.

Also, Theodore, the Jersey cow was super friendly too. It was so much fun feeding them and watching the children interact with the animals too.

Internet Connectivity

But for many of us who work on the road, the question is – how was connectivity??? Well, we had very good connections through AT&T.

In fact, we enjoyed good download and upload speeds. If you do not have your own hotspot though, the campground offers complimentary wifi near their buildings.

And you also can connect through a private internet provider that they offer. But of course, there is a charge for that.

We didn’t use that service ourselves. But we didn’t hear of anyone complaining about not being able to have connectivity of some sort if they wanted it.

The Area Around Gettysburg Farm RV Campground

So then, what is there to see in the area? Well, what can we say???? You are right near historic Gettsburg!

There is so much history to be seen in this area. While there, we visited the Seminary Ridge Museum, and the Gettysburg Museum and Visitor Center.

Both had so much information and were extremely informative. After those, you can also take the Gettysburg Battlefield Self-Guided Driving Tour.

If you do, it will make all the information that you learned come to life. And we thoroughly enjoyed that!

But maybe you want to do other things in Gettysburg. And if so, there are many unique stores with goods that would be peculiar to that time period too.

If you are into specialty shops, it could make for an enjoyable day just doing that.

Local Places To Eat

And, of course, there are plenty of places to eat. There are many different cuisines with outdoor as well as indoor areas to eat.

We ate at the Lincoln Diner in Gettysburg which had decent family style food for a good price.

And we also enjoyed a place called Hunts Battlefield Fries & Cafe.

They served amazing fries, good burgers and excellent chopped beef cheesesteak sandwiches. We would definitely go back.

We also ate at a place called the Appalachian Brewing Co. It offered an outdoor Beer Garden and many Pub style foods. Again, we thoroughly enjoyed it and would go back again.

One thing to be aware of though …. in the township itself. And that is that parking in town is at a premium.

In fact, the on-street parking can tend to be a bit expensive. So just be aware, so you can prepare for that.

Shopping Around Gettysburg Farm RV Campground

How about places to provision? Well about 5 miles away there is a small township of East Berlin.

And in that town there is a Weis supermarket. You can get just about anything you want there.

They also have gasoline that was a good 10 cents less per gallon than many of the other places around.

And if you need more stores than that, right on the outside of Gettsburg is a Walmart. And many of the bigger box stores.

So you can always go there for those things. Again, Gettysburg is about 30 minutes away, so it is not a very long drive to do that if you need to.

Our Conclusion

As you can see, we were very happy with the area and campground. So how would we rate the RV park?

Well, the area was a definite 5. So much to see, and all the little towns and farms in the area were absolutely beautiful.

As for the campground – we would give it a 3.8.

As we mentioned, some things need some attention. But to be fair, they seem to be being addressed.

The whole environment was delightful though. This is our second visit here and we will definitely be back!

Thanks to our hosts for a great two weeks in Gettysburg!!!!