What Makes A 'Good' Campground?

Evaluating a campground, like rating a restaurant or book, is highly subjective. But, this is our blog, so we're going to talk about how we make the determination of what campground is worth recommending or considering for another visit if we're in the area again.

Overall appearance---is it clean? Are the sites well maintained? Are there trashy campers with flat tires and assorted crap all around (sort of the suburban equivalent of a trailer with a car on blocks in the yard). Are the sites spacious or are we close enough to hear our neighbors' TV, or worse, see it?

Amenities---for us, WiFi is the big one. Is it reliable and fast? Ideally, we can stream video, particularly when there's no cable.
Other important amenities---laundry and good water pressure. Cable is a bonus.

Price/Value---until very recently, we didn't pay for our campsites because we were working at the campground, but now that we are, that's a big consideration. Nightly rates for a campsite that can accommodate our RV range from $40-70. Monthly rates are more reasonable, but still can be $400-700.

These probably seem fairly obvious, but there are some additional factors that come into play, now that we've had more experience. Most of these aren't make or break, but they can make the difference between an average or poor experience and a very good experience.

Trash pick up. Campgrounds have dumpsters for your trash and some also will pick it up at your site (just don't leave it out overnight due to critters). At our last campground, there was only one dumpster and it was not w/in walking distance, so we had to drive our trash there. Not a huge big deal, but not convenient. For me, the bigger issue was cleaning up after the dog. We're diligent about doing so, but also want a place where it can be disposed of. If there's no dumpster or designated doggy doo receptacle (also popular at campgrounds and me as well), then what do you do with it?

Customer Service. Once we're set up, we don't usually need much attention, but if there's an issue, we'd like it to be addressed and we'd like to feel as though someone cares.

Convenience. How close are grocery stores, gas stations and if need be, a laundromat? Is there heavy traffic that makes going out of the campground stressful and annoying? Are there nice restaurants in the area?

Location. Are there interesting things to do in our off time? Do we feel like we're able to explore the area and expand our adventure.

Overall atmosphere. Campgrounds are like a neighborhood. You can move into a neighborhood that looks pretty much like a dozen other neighborhoods in the area, but some can have a different feel to them based on the people who live there.

Intangibles. Great scenery. Unique amenities. Particularly nice or interesting staff members.

Next up...we'll evaluate some of our recent campground stays based on these criteria.