Wednesday, January 9, 2013

Activities in RV Parks…

One thing we never even gave a second thought to when choosing RV parks were the activities offered. I guess the main reason we never considered them was the fact that we assumed we'd be so busy playing and exploring to actually have Today 012much time to participate in many park initiated activities. The beach was a huge diversion so we did not have to rely on park sponsored activities in Florida as we have had to here. Now that we are in our second winter as full time RV’ers we have become quite aware of just how important these park sponsored activities are.

What do I mean by that statement? Well our first winter was in southern Florida where we apparently just happened to luck into staying at winter parks that offered an assortment of activities and recreation that we enjoyed. This year has been a bit different for us. Here at the park in the Rio Grande Valley (RGV) we have found that most of the activities don’t match up well with our interests. It made us realize how much we enjoy playing shuffleboard, Frisbee golf and taking occasional beach visits to shell, sun and fish. So with these things missing here, we have found the RGV not to be a great fit for us..

Progresso Mexico 007Now don’t get me wrong we are enjoying our stay in the RGV but it has made us aware that for future winter stays we will make darn sure to check out the park activities and recreational facilities more closely. The park we are in centers the activities around birding and butterflying, golf, billiards, crafts, woodworking, line dancing and  bringing evening entertainers in for the guests. All fun and wonderful things for one to do… but only if that is what you really like to do.Sharon is not a crafter, I enjoy woodworking but have no desire to build anything just yet.  In my working days I often played golf but have found in retirement that I am more interested in other things such as hiking, biking and simple nature walking. Sharon doesn't play golf at all. She does like line dancing but since I am not a dancer and don’t enjoy dancing one iota, we have not participated in that activity here!  And Altamira Oriolealthough we enjoy live entertainment we prefer the ambiance of honky tonk dive bars to clubhouse folded chair gatherings so in paying attention to our budget the value for us doesn't justify the ticket fee..The little town of Mission has no quirky bars we could find and in the larger surrounding towns we have only found the big chain bars.  Adding that the nearest beach is 90 miles away and we have found ourselves starting to look forward to going to our next location 

The things we have liked here are wine tasting, birding outings, ice cream socials, margarita night, kayaking the Resacas and have really enjoyed the pool and hot tub. Sharon also frequents the Zumba classes and makes use of the fitness facilities.. We have also met some great people here and have had many a relaxing time sitting under the Palapas for happy hours and pot lucks.

Great KiskadeeAnd where is our next location? Well the beach is beckoning us so we have a month booked in Rockport, Texas at the Copano Bay RV Resort formally known as the Big D RV Resort. The Big D RV Resort had a lot of bad reviews but since the park has had a facelift and undergone a management change the reviews have gotten much better. Well post our review here after our own experience there. The beach is a short walk from the park so we are both really looking forward to the sand, sun and surf.....

15 comments:

  1. Great minds must think alike :) We'll be in Port Aransas, not far from Rockport, the month of February. This is our third winter as fulltimers, and we feel the same about many of the activities planned at the different resorts. Not our cup of tea. Hope to see you this weekend.

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  2. I'll be interested in hearing how you like the new park. We're not sure we would like Texas, but since we haven't been there, it's hard to tell. We do like to be near the water and the warmer the better..at least in the winter.

    Key West is calling us back!

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    1. Karen and Al,
      We didn't know if we would like Texas either. I guess it depends what part of Texas you go to. It's a huge state.

      We went to an RV rally in Kerrville (Texas Hill Country) last April and we're still here, although we've traveled hither and yon too.

      The Texas Hill Country is lovely. There are many fresh water springs, historic small towns, breath-takingly beautiful wildflowers in the spring, many state and COE parks, world-class birdwatching, butterflies, good food. Well, obviously I could go on and on. We like it here. Currently in San Antonio for a while.

      Susan & Bob

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  3. Resort activities our opinion is the same as yours.
    We love the Rock Port area, will be at Bayview Resort near the airport around the first two weeks of February, maybe catch up with you guys.

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    1. well we will certainly be there so we must meet up for a cocktail or two...

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  4. As promised, we are going to Nuevo Progreso this Friday, Jan. 11. Send me an e-mail if you can make it. FesterandCC@aol.com

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  5. We are on the same page as you. We'll have to keep tabs of the parks you find. :)

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  6. We stayed two weeks in Rockport. We enjoyed our stay but would not stay there any longer than the two weeks. We didn't find all that much too do unless we fished or golfed. We do neither. Enjoy your stay.

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  7. Interesting. We haven't picked a park either based on activities because most of the time we're just too busy to get involved or they haven't been of interest. We had thought about making Texas again this winter but didn't. However, we never planned on the RGV since it was too far from the Gulf. We do love Rockport so will be interesting to read what you have to say about the park.

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  8. Isn't it funny how we all have different opinions regarding destinations.

    We pretty much agree with you about the RGV. The main entertainment is eating out and shopping.

    For some reason we did not like Rockport. It was very windy, and the beach was kind of rough ... again, we did not find a lot to do.

    Yet we LOVED Galveston, and when we tell others, they shake their heads telling us why they did not like it !!

    Hopefully, you and Sharon will have a favorable experience.

    Take care ... TnT

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  9. Not much into resort activities either ... as long as there are opportunities to explore on our own, we're happy campers. Maybe that will change as our time on the road grows.

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  10. Cool, we will be headed that way next week. We will be in Port A. Lets make a plan to meet for drinks.

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  11. We have not yet been to Texas either. Appreciate hearing your candid reviews of the RGV and your perspective on park activities. We are in a park with zero activities and I was worried that I would miss these diversions, but the beach and dive bars with live music are keeping us busy.

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  12. We plan to be down that way for a month starting some time next week.

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