We are getting a pop up!!!!

[snocrossmechanic]

Congrats on the new popup.

Keep trying for Xmas 2011. We booked one year a month before. I called in and asked somewhat jokingly if they had the dates available. The agent paused and said it was my lucky day.

There are certain times that people have to cancel by and there are normally openings. I think packages are 90 days and hotel only is a couple days. If I were you I would start calling frequently about 100 days out.

Good luck and if you get a Ressie for this year we will see you there.

Mark

 

[2goofycampers]

Packages are 45 days out, there will be some openings then.

 

[Christymarie222]

Thanks for the tips guys...I will definitley start calling then!

On a side note we just picked up our pop up this morning...and got it set up for the weekend! A gallon of sweat later and checking everything four times (I am a little paranoid about breaking it already, lol) we are all set to go camping tomorrow!

I have to add...I have the utmost respect for all you trailer pullers out there....I nearly had a panic attack pulling my tiny 12 foot pop up. I don't like that feeling of going down a hill and it wobbling behind me! Yikes...glad for those electric brakes. Needless to say my hubby will be doing most of the driving. I did it for about 30 miles before he took over...but I didn't like it

 

[gillenkl]

as a popup owner I'll give my 2cents on traveling from up north - we live just outside Philadelphia and on our first trip we stayed in 2 campgrounds on the way down/back. We have learned our lesson and now stay in a hotel - doing the whole popup/popdown bit on the road mid trip is exhausting. We have found some nice reasonable hotels that offer free hot breakfast - now we get up, eat and get on the road. It's a big time saver and might save your nerves as well. Just my 2 cents. Congrats on the popup!

 

[bama_ed]

as a popup owner I'll give my 2cents on traveling from up north - we live just outside Philadelphia and on our first trip we stayed in 2 campgrounds on the way down/back. We have learned our lesson and now stay in a hotel - doing the whole popup/popdown bit on the road mid trip is exhausting. We have found some nice reasonable hotels that offer free hot breakfast - now we get up, eat and get on the road. It's a big time saver and might save your nerves as well. Just my 2 cents. Congrats on the popup!

Gillenkl is correct. I require a 2-night minimum to go to the trouble to pop up and pop down. Special exceptions have been made but like they said, we stay at a hotel for overnighters so that we can drive longer that night, get the hot breakfast previously mentioned, and be on the road early in the morning.

Sorta the best of both worlds.

Bama ED

 

[Cindy F]

Ditto to staying in a hotel for one night stops with the pop up. It's just too much hassle for 1 night and since pretty much all the La Quintas allow dogs of any size- no extra charge, we didn't have any problem staying there with our pup.

I have to admit, the hybrid does make it much easier to do the one night stops and I didn't have to give up my canvas bunk so it was a good compromise for us.

I'm still not letting go of the pop up though!

 

[krimi]

We have a 2000 bayside and its pretty comfortable. It is a heavy beast though. Make sure you have the highest rated tires you can get. I believe d rated will get you 1760 lbs per tire, and its 3000 lb unloaded. C rated will get you 1360 lbs per tire and a blow out somewhere...so I've heard....... ... .

 

[rbork]

Congratulations! We bought our pup 10 years ago specifically for WDW. It paid for itself after one long trip to the world. A/C is the best part of the pup.
Beware of any bread/ rolls in you pup in the humid summer months. They WILL mold quickly.

 

[Christymarie222]

ok....back from our first trip in the pop up! We had a blast. It was a bit more time consuming to set up and take down than I thought...but so worth it in the long run! Very comfortable, yet you still feel like you are roughing it a tiny bit.

I drove the one and a half hrs to and from the campground (due to hubby's work schedule we took two cars), and I did get used to pulling it. It was a breeze on the way there...coming home today it was a little rougher, with more traffic and more high speed down hills (at least it seemed that way to me), so a bit more swaying.

I definitley can see how the hotel on the way down makes sense after set up and break down this weekend...you really work up a sweat and with 3 kids and a big goofy dog added to the mix...well needless to say, I would like to get down to disney with my marriage still intact..lol! (Thanks for the Quinta's dog friendly hotel tip)

Our next trip planned is to Hershey park or Lake George NY in two weeks...I am thinking about doing Hershey park now and Lake George in the fall when the leaves are at peak color. Can't wait for the next trip...and hopefully with a few more trips under our belts we will be experts at the pop up thing come our much anticipated trip to Disney.

Thanks for all your help folks...it is much appreciated and I am sure I will "pop" back in for more questions along the way!

 

[parrothead64]

.

so a bit more swaying.

Does it have a sway bar? If not, I suggest geeting one. Harbor Freight has one for like $35.00 and some change.

http://www.harborfreight.com/trailer-sway-control-kit-96462.html

 

[rbork]

Glad to hear of your first trip out. You WILL get faster with set up. After years of experience DH has his set of set up jobs and I have mine. We are now down to 14 minutes! Hershey Park is fun for camping, we are season pass holders. I do recommend picking a site farther away from the freight tracks. With my AC on, I can't hear the train at night. Not sure what your towing with but we noticed a huge difference between towing with an Explorer vs. an Expedition.
Have a great summer.

Oh and just an fyi. During winter we disconnect the faucet all together from the bottom hose under the sink. We went through 3 faucets. They used to bust over winter every year now matter how much winterizer we pumped through.

 

[Christymarie222]

Does it have a sway bar? If not, I suggest geeting one. Harbor Freight has one for like $35.00 and some change.

http://www.harborfreight.com/trailer-sway-control-kit-96462.html

I think my husband said it has the attachment for the sway bar...but no sway bar if that makes sense???? Thanks for the tip...didn't know they were so cheap...I will definitely put one on.

 

[Christymarie222]

Glad to hear of your first trip out. You WILL get faster with set up. After years of experience DH has his set of set up jobs and I have mine. We are now down to 14 minutes! Hershey Park is fun for camping, we are season pass holders. I do recommend picking a site farther away from the freight tracks. With my AC on, I can't hear the train at night. Not sure what your towing with but we noticed a huge difference between towing with an Explorer vs. an Expedition.
Have a great summer.

Oh and just an fyi. During winter we disconnect the faucet all together from the bottom hose under the sink. We went through 3 faucets. They used to bust over winter every year now matter how much winterizer we pumped through.

Thanks for the tip about the tracks...nothing like a freight train waking up the 1 year old at 2 in the morning!!!

Yeah...we are pulling it with a touring town and country mini van...so we are pushing it a bit with weight...as mentioned in the above post...I really think we will add the sway bar! Although the van did a great job with pulling it power wise barely went over 3.5 rpm's even on the hills! I was pretty surprised at that.

Good to know about the faucet...will tell the hubby as I won't have anything to do with the winterizing

 

[YensidCamper]

As mentioned we have an 02 Bayside and tow it with an Odyssey van. We use a weight distributing hitch. It helps to keep the rear end of the van from sagging and puts more of the weight on the front wheels. This really helps a front wheel drive van have more traction. The one we use has built in sway control, others require the sway control bar posted earlier. Good luck and enjoy your camping!

 

[Lyndria]

Woo hoo!!!! We found one It is a 2004 Fleetwood Bayside. AC, outdoor shower, king beds...the works!

Thank you all for your advice and suggestions. Next on my list is to make my reservations for next year. My husband threw out there Christmas time...but I am sure the Fort is booked by now. And the parks will be so very crowded....decisions, decisions....I LOVE IT!

We have a 2008 Bayside! LOVE LOVE LOVE it! You will enjoy it!

I second the swaybar recommendation. Major difference in towing.

 

[FlyingBelle]

Sorry to hear that! Could you get a pop up and then put in the AC? I have no clue how that would work, but thought I might mention it!

We just did this to our 1975 popup last week. We bought a $99 window a/c from Target and installed it under one of the counters. We bought a door on ebay for about $8 that covers the unit outside while traveling.

My dad used it in Michigan over the weekend in 95 degree temps - said it worked great to cool off and cut the humidity during the day.

we're taking 2 trips to Wisconsin next month with our 4 year old and 2 month old - so glad we installed the a/c!