work camping good bad and ugly

Work Camping : The good, the bad and the ugly…

When we originally decided that we wanted to become full time RVers, we weren’t exactly sure how to go about it financially.  You see, we were both working for huge corporations in Atlanta, making good money, living in a big house with lots of big bills.

work camping the good bad ugly

We knew what we wanted to do, but it looked like it would take years of saving to get there.

work camping good bad and ugly

Then one day I ran across information on work camping on the internet.  Apparently, you could work for a campground, making an hourly wage and even get a free spot to stay while you are there!  It seemed like the answer.

With the income from my websites, and the campground supplying a spot to stay and spending money too, it made it possible for our dreams to come true even earlier than we expected.interior rv traveling sitcom

We sold our home and most everything we owned last April and hit the road in our RV.

Our expenses at the start included a RV payment, health insurance, vehicle insurance, phone/internet bill, approximately $500 per month in overhead for my websites, and of course food and spending money.

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We have been on the road for nearly a year and a half now, and we are successfully living on the income from my websites and the income from the campgrounds that we have worked at.

So, let’s take a look at this phenomenon called work camping.

As an insider, I would love to share with you some of the truths about this way to make a living.

Click here to read about the Good, the Bad and the Ugly!

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27 thoughts on “Work Camping : The good, the bad and the ugly…”

    1. Hi!

      Thanks so much for following along on our journey! It’s a small world out there. Maybe we will run into each other sometime!

      Hope you are having an awesome summer!

      suzy

    2. THANKS for sharing ALL the details of a work camper I know it cant ALWAYS be fun and games but i AGREE that people that come to your site need to treat you with the respect they would like to be treated like. I have been telling my husband how we can see the sites if we become work campers……he AGREES it would be a GREAT way to travel without breaking the bank lol! WE hope than in 2 yrs we can also be a part of this life!

      1. Hi Teresa!

        Thanks so much for stopping by my website! Work camping is truly the way to go for us, even on the bad days. We figure that we worked jobs that we absolutely hated for years. We are now living our dream, and a few bad apples won’t ruin for us. Hope to see you on the road!

        suzy

  1. I really enjoy your travel sitcom stories and all your crafty ideas. Your honesty about everything is refreshing. Life is not perfect but most of us just try to make the best of it. It must be nice to see all the different areas of the Country. Safe travels to you all.

    1. Hi Lorena!
      Thanks so much for your kind words! And yes it is awesome to travel as part of my job. My husband and I are finally living our dream! The great thing about work
      camping is it gives us time to really experience an area. Hope you are having a fabulous summer!

      suzy

  2. Well said.. the GOOD enjoy ever min.. the BAD deal with it and go on.. the UGLY kill them with kindness and smile while you do it..

    1. Hi Scoota and Phyllis!!!

      Miss you both! Hope you are having a fabulous summer. We are loving Arizona. And yes, I’m killing them with kindness here! LOL!

      Take care of yourselves and tell everyone in St. Pete that we said hi!

      suzy

  3. Loved reading your blog, we’ve been there, done that and now retired from workcamping but it was a blast. Our camper is now in a campground and we use it as our summer home in the woods.

    1. Hi Jeannie and George!

      Thank you so much! So glad you got the chance to travel and enjoy the country before you retired! It is great to meet a former work camper!
      The great thing about traveling the country is that eventually, you find where you really would love to live. We hope to one day find that place and eventually
      settle down. In the meantime, we hit the open road. Hope you are having a fabulous summer.

      suzy

  4. You nailed work kamping on the head! My hubby and I are work kampers as well but after a bad experience at a KOA with the manager (which is another aspect of work kamping I’m not sure you have run across yet-horrible managers!) my hubby decided it wasn’t for him but I still do it. He now drives for Uber, which gives him flexibility in his work schedule. Even with the bad, we still totally love our lifestyle, just a few months over a year now and wouldn’t trade it to go back to major bills or the horrible stress of the traffic of the city we used to live in. Happy trails to you and your husband!

    1. Hi Kristina!

      So nice to meet you both! Yes, I’ve heard some stories about management that is below par. We have been very lucky so far. All of our managers have been
      very professional and great to work for. It makes it a little hard to move on. But we got into this for the travel. So we plan to hit the road at the end of summer for our
      next adventure.

      Sounds like you finally found a good manager to work for. Maybe we will meet in the future! It is a small world out there! Take care, and have a fabulous summer!

      suzy

  5. Love full time life. My husband and I traveled the East Coast for 6 years and then he passed away. Decided to go alone and have been for 2 years. Love this way of life and being able to move and go where I want. May you continue to enjoy your dream and have safe travels where ever you go.

    1. Hi Alice!

      I’m so sorry to hear about your husband. Going it alone can be difficult, but it sounds like you are doing well. Maybe we will run into each other one day! Have
      a wonderful summer and remember to take good care of yourself!

      suzy

    2. Alice, I am fascinated by all that I have read. I have dreamed of some type of camper for years. I too would be traveling alone-some days I can’t wait, others all kinds of concerns flood my thoughts. Would you share with me what it is like to travel alone for long distances? Thank you.

  6. You are so right about lazy fellow workkampers. We had experienced that in Daytona. Unfortunately we loved the campground and the area. But there is always better places to work and to be appreciated. We have been full time/workkampers for 10 years. We still love it but it is time to retire and give back what we have been given. Whether that is good or bad. Good luck to you both.

    1. Hi Lynn!

      I think lazy fellow workers can actually be found everywhere! LOL! Fortunately, the managers usually figure it out. Those that have never done it think that work camping is an easy job. Maybe in some campgrounds, but we haven’t had the opportunity to work in one of the easy ones yet. Glad that you have had a good 10 years in the business! Enjoy your retirement and get some rest. You deserve it!

      suzy

  7. Hello, I love to read about your lifestyle and would love to be able to do it. Working as you go seems to be a good idea and I don’t think the BAD would bother me, I work with the public now and they are the same everywhere. Waiting for you next stop.
    Sharon

    1. Hi Sharon!

      Once you make the leap, you will never look back! The hardest part was selling most of our possessions. I was surprised at how attached I was to some of them. But it is amazing how free you feel when everything you own is right there with you traveling the country. Thank you so much for following along!!

      suzy

  8. This article really sums up the lifestyle. We love it and are doing it for many of the same reasons as you. We are just finishing our first season as work campers in a private campground in Bar Harbor and are looking for KOA jobs for our next stop. Hope to meet you on the road! Glad to have found your blog!

    1. Hi Larry and Donna!

      Thanks so much for stopping by! It is definitely a small world out there, and I bet our paths will cross! We will be in Tucson for the winter at Lazy Days, and then will be crossing the country again. Our first grandchild is due in May, so we will be in Atlanta for that.

      Let us know where you end up! KOA is a great organization to work for!

      suzy

  9. What a great synopsis of work camping! We are currently Airbnb-ing a sticks ‘n bricks home and looking forward to living in an RV someday. Thanks for the inspiration!

  10. Thank you so much for the camping inspiration and darling quilts! I can’t wait to start the Retro Flash group! ONE DAY SOON… I WILL HOPE TO MEET YOU ON THE ROAD.

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