Campground Review: Thousand Trails Orlando

We plan to begin reviewing campgrounds to help folks looking for a non-biased, honest perspective from non-retired full-timers.  It’s important to remember that we are not vacationing, so what we value in a campground may be different than what you like.  We’ve also come to realize that certain factors can heavily influence a camper’s experience at a campground.  It seems that if you have a good site location and good weather, chances are you will have a good experience (and the opposite is often true)!

Many of our reviews will be for Thousand Trails parks.  For our explanation of Thousand Trails and the various memberships, check out this article!

Thousand Trails Orlando

2110 US HWY 27 S
Clermont, FL 34714

Time of year we camped  there: We’ve stayed at this campground numerous times, in all different seasons.  As goes for most of Florida, the busy season is late Fall through Spring.  Summer is EXTREMELY hot and muggy.

Verizon Coverage: Yes

• I can’t vouch for every area of this campground since it is so large, but we’ve never had an issue with Verizon coverage here. It’s not the best signal (2-3 bars on our MiFi), but plenty for our data and call needs.

Notes about the surrounding area: The address is Clermont, FL, but it’s actually about 15 miles south of Clermont.  It is very close to the Disney area.  Along with the parks, there are a lot of restaurants, bars, retail businesses and potential traffic that go along with that.  US 27 is a divided, multi-lane road that can be very busy.  It is necessary to use 27 to get anywhere outside the campground.  US 27 does have bike lanes, but many cyclists would not be comfortable riding there.

Particular notes about this campground and/or sites:  This is a BIG campground!  The Thousand Trails website says there are 867 sites – I haven’t counted them myself, but I’ll take their word for it.  The roads are better than average for TT campgrounds (a few potholes, but overall pretty decent).  Sites range from concrete pads to sand/grass.  Most are deteriorating asphalt.  During the 2016 Summer, TT did an expansive upgrade of multiple sections with 50 amp electric.  We’ve always stayed in “G”, which is popular for big-rigs, but now A, B, C and E are all viable options for 50 amp big-rig sites.  There are a few areas which are reserved for seasonal/annual sites (section H in particular).  The D section is largely wooded, which can be great for keeping cool, but 50 amp sites are sparse.

Amenities: Quite a few!  Two nice pools and a jacuzzi – one pool is for adults only.  A small workout room with a couple machines and a spattering of free weights.  Some nice (and popular) pickleball courts – during the winter, there is a crowd playing every morning and everyone is welcome.  A random basketball hoop with a small paved pad.  Putt-putt golf and shuffleboard.  A camp store with beer, soda, mail room and a few camping goods.  The Activity Center has WiFi and an adult-only lounge.  There are a few ponds/lakes where fishing is permitted, but no swimming due to wildlife.  They have a couple human-powered boats that are available for use at no extra cost.  WiFi is throughout the campground, but it has a cost associated with it.

Our experience:  Before hitting the road, we lived about 15 miles north of here in Clermont, so this is a little like coming back home for us.  This is one of the better, and popular, TT parks in the country due to its location.  This is positive because it tends to be kept in better condition than some of the other parks in the system, but it can be an issue during the Winter for making reservations or finding a good site once you arrive (TT parks are first come, first served for sites).  Upon our most recent arrival (12/16), they have implemented a new system where each RV must be escorted to their site by an employee in a golf cart.  This makes it so that you’re at their mercy for what is available and what you’re looking for in a site – such as satellite access, sun direction, condition of the pad, etc. We never had an issue last year by driving back with the toad, claiming a spot and then bringing back the coach, but this is the new procedure.  We’ll see how long that lasts. During the busier months, they will sometimes have member’s reservation paperwork at the ranger station, meaning you never have to get out of your RV for check-in, which is nice.

One note for this park is that due to its popularity, Thousand Trails will designate a couple “overflow” parks in the area to accommodate members during the winter.  These overflow parks are Encore parks (Encore and Thousand Trails are owned by the same company).  TT members can stay at the overflow parks with the same privileges that they have at the Orlando campground.  In other words, the overflow parks are treated as if they are the Orlando park – this means you cannot bounce between the overflow parks and the Orlando park without taking the necessary time away.  To reserve a spot at an overflow park, you must call TT reservations.

SOH Score (1-10, 10 being the best campground imaginable): 7 – We really have no complaints with this park.  The location is great, the amenities are better than average, solid hookups and we can be here without spending any money out of pocket with our TT membership.

Have any questions about this park?  Have you stayed there and have a different take or something to add?  Send us a message or comment below!

See you on the road!

Ryan, Kim and Jet