Living the good life at senior RV parks: escape the ravages of winter for camaraderie under the sun

Travel America, May-June, 2004 by Nancy Baren Miller

After too many years of gazing at pallid gray skies and watching countless snowflakes fall, vast numbers of RVers every year decide to fly the coop and become snowbirds. For an increasing number of seniors, escaping winter's doldrums means choosing an active adult RV resort in the Sunbelt, particularly Florida, Arizona, and the Rio Grande Valley of Texas.

Entering one of these resorts, you soon realize they're much more than ordinary campgrounds. The only similarities are the full hookups provided for those living in their RVs.

These gated communities with named, paved streets contain lots instead of standard sites. Driving around, you discover a combination of park models (permanent RVs similar to small manufactured homes attached to a site), fifth wheels, and motorhomes. You don't see folding trailers, truck campers, travel trailers, motorized RVs under 21 feet, and tents. They are simply not allowed. In some places, RVs older than 10 years are not permitted.

Almost all these resorts require at least one family member be age 55 or older. Park model owners are often older residents who return year after year. They have established friendships and regard these communities as their second homes. Long-term residents are the pioneers who moved in when their RV resort was new. Some live in these resorts year-round, while many escape the summer heat and head north.

Those living in their RVs are often baby boomers or retired full-timers who wish to partake in an active community without establishing permanent ties. They spend one winter in Arizona, another in Texas or Florida. In a few years, if they find this type of lifestyle is suitable for them, they often purchase a park model at one of the RV communities where they've stayed.

A third classification, to which my husband and I belong, consists of those ranting park models. Some resorts rent their own park models, while others have a real estate agent or rental department that connects renters to park model owners.

We are among those escaping snow and trying out this lifestyle before making any commitment. We like the roominess of a park model compared to an RV. For example, our rental home this past winter at Valle del Oro in Mesa, Arizona, was like a cottage with a dining room, kitchen with side-by-side refrigerator and dishwasher, bathroom, bedroom, and a large Arizona room (similar to a Florida room) transformed into a living room.

Rental fees for RV lots and park models vary not only from one RV resort to another but according to the length of stay and time of year. Staying for several months may substantially lower the rate you pay. The popular January-through-March period is the most expensive.

From April through October, it is easy to find a place to stay. For the other months, it is wise to reserve well in advance.

"I tell people that as soon as you know your dates, call and make reservations," said Christina Bamper, national reservations coordinator for Cal-Am Resorts, which recently acquired Valle del Oro.

Most, but not all, of these active adult RV resorts allow pets and have pet sections. If you travel with your pet in your RV or own a park model, the choice of communities is much wider than for those renting a park model. Valle del Oro was one of only four I found in Arizona ranting park models to people with pets.

The breadth of activities and facilities in these communities is so wide it is impossible to partake of everything offered. Larger resorts offer hundreds of activities a week from November to the end of March. When the snowbirds return to their summer nests, the number of planned activities drops dramatically. That's because it's the residents who volunteer to run these programs. They will approach the activity director with their idea for starting an activity or group.

At Valle del Oro, over 1,300 residents volunteer their time to create the successful program. "Without our volunteers we could not run," said Karrie Preston, manager of Valle del Oro. "We couldn't staff with such a seasonal business and do everything that we do."

Activity directors coordinate sports, dance, and crafts programs. There are exercise classes, computer classes, and card tournaments. Evening programs range from bingo and movies to dances, patties, and special events. For example, each Thursday at Valle del Oro, area entertainers perform in the 25,000-square-foot ballroom.

Most active adult RV communities offer craft rooms for silversmithing, lapidary, woodworking, pottery ceramics, and stained glass. Beadwork, quilting, sewing, basketry, and making greeting cards are other crafts.

Those who enjoy sports find softball fields, bocce and croquet courts, shuffleboard courts, horseshoes, and lighted tennis courts. Some communities, such as Cal-Am's resorts in Arizona, provide miniature golf or chip and putt, while others, such as Llano Grande lake Park in Mercedes, Texas, boast 18-hole championship golf courses.

All resorts offer swimming pools. Valle del Oro has two heated outdoor pools and two hot tubs. Cal-Am Resorts' Val Vista Village in Mesa maintains an indoor pool as does Voyager RV Resort in Tucson. Water exercise, water volleyball, or just soaking in hot tubs are popular.