Archive for May, 2009

Recently, I received a call from a couple who were anticipating the purchase of a park for which the owner claimed he did not have any business records at all. This should have brought a great big red stop sign into focus at once; unfortunately, it did not. The prospective buyers were trying to figure… »

This Memorial Day weekend, an estimated 18 million RVers will pack up and set out for campgrounds across the country to mark the official start of summer by spending time in the Great Outdoors. In the Campfire Canvass survey of RV owners conducted by RVIA, 58% of RV owners said they plan to take their RVs… »

Combine a global economic recession with fears of pandemic disease, and it looks to be another dismal summer season for the travel industry. But for one sliver of the accommodations industry – the small business-dominated private campground business – things are looking up, according to BusinessWeek. All the gloom and doom about job loss and… »

I enjoyed the opportunity to speak with RV dealer Larry Troutt today. He’s the owner of Toppers RVs in Waller, Texas, and the current chairman of the RV Dealers Association. He is absolutely fired up for what’s going on in the industry this month. Although he can’t yet apply any statistical numbers to support his feeling, Larry… »

The Grand Rapids Press Sunday May 17, 2009, 5:00 AM Mark Copier | The Grand Rapids PressRon and Betty VandenBerg walk in their family-owned Oak Grove RV Resort last week in Park Township. With just a few days to go before the Memorial Day weekend kicks off the summer season, retiree Richard Sevic still has… »

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — America’s economy is finally showing some signs of life. Job losses are slowing; the stock market seems to have found solid ground and gas prices are half of what they were last year. “People are starting to feel more confident and have resumed living their lives,” said Rob Tischler, president and… »

CALGARY, Alberta — With the peak summer holiday season coming up quickly, a recent report by Go RVing Canada found that, on average, RVing is 50 to 70 percent less costly than a traditional vacation for four – particularly since RV prices are at an eight-year low. That’s a turnaround from recent years when high… »

RESTON, Va. — Shipments of new recreation vehicles from manufacturers to dealers continued to climb for the third month in a row, according to data released today by the RV Industry Association. However, the shipments are less than than half what they were one year ago. A total of 12,800 new units were shipped to dealers in March, compared to… »

Bob Ashley Woodall’s Campground Management Friday, March 27, 2009 An 8,700-square-foot historic mansion built in 1863 that is now a bed-and-breakfast is the centerpiece of Poche Plantation RV Resort in Condent, La. – pronounced poo-shay for the French-impaired — which features 85 concrete RV sites on 22 manicured acres. And it has something that most… »