The Road That Beckons: Portrait of a KOA

We’re spending two nights at the KOA campground just outside Cody, Wyoming. It’s nicer than we had anticipated and seems pretty representative of a typical KOA so for those who are not familiar with them I thought I’d give a brief tour.

My wife and I discovered KOA’s early in our marriage as we traveled from one camping destination to another. By camping I mean tent camping, usually in the mountains or national parks. Back then RV’s were not as frequently seen in the campgrounds we were headed for and tents far outnumbered Class A Motorhomes, fifth-wheels, and travel trailers. Still, on days where we spent all day driving and had not reached our final destination we’d pull into a KOA and spend the night in one of their cabins instead of unloading and setting up the camping gear and tent for one night. All that was needed in one of the “Kamping Kabins” was to unroll our sleeping bags on the bed frame and hit the sack. We found the cleanliness and consistency from one KOA to another to be excellent (with only the occasional exception) and quickly came to rely on them instead of pricier hotel/motel options when on the road.

KOA’s have always catered to the RV crowd but most offer the aforementioned cabins as well as spots to set up an actual tent for those who, like, actually want to camp. The other nice thing is that KOA’s offer toilet and shower facilities the likes of which are few and far between where we usually camp (though that too has slowly changed through the years). It’s undeniably nice to grab a quick shower after a long day driving. Most KOA’s also have laundry facilities if you need to do a load or two.

Some KOA’s have recreational amenities such as pools and hot tubs, bike rentals, mini golf, jump mats etc. Some also offer limited food service such as pancake breakfasts and pizza.

For those unfamiliar with RV’ing, most of the sites at today’s KOA’s offer what are called full hook-ups which means you can hook your camper up at your site to the campground’s electricity, fresh water, and sewer connection. You can more often than not also hook up for cable T.V. And most, if not all, KOA’s offer free WI-FI though the quality of the connection can still be challenging especially at night when all those kosy kampers are busy checking their Facebook and email. Most KOA’s have some type of store where you can buy basic grocery items, pizza, camping and RV’ing supplies, and even souvenirs and gifts.

The Cody KOA has a better-than-average store and best of all, at this time of year, almost everything save for the food and beverage items are half-price given that its the end of their season (not all KOA’s are open year round).

A lot of KOA’s are individually owned and operated and many rely on work-kampers who work a certain number of hours in exchange for a camping spot. We’ve found the staff at most KOA’s to be genuinely friendly and helpful which again is greatly appreciated after a long day behind the wheel. The staff also usually has all the inside knowledge of things to do in the area, where to eat,

etc. Rumor has it that the younger generations are not into camping and RV’ing as their parents and grandparents. Don’t know how true that is as we’re seeing a lot of young families in some pretty extravagant RV rigs so hopefully KOA’s will continue to dot the landscape across America for years to come.

Anyway, as promised, here are some images of the Cody, Wyoming KOA. Our two days here have been an unexpected treat...