Best RV Parks & Resorts near Pineville, LA

Gator Grounds is a great private RV park near Bunkie, LA. We stayed two nights. Most of the sites are not shady. The park streets are concrete and sites are small crushed limestone. The park was clean and the staff was friendly, except for the manager. We went to the pool/slide area after setting up camp the evening of July 2. The big slide was closed. A staff person said they were short handed. We tried the yellow slide. My kids had no trouble, but I got stuck several times. My kids continued to slide while I went to the lazy river. Unfortunately we didn't have much time because we didn't realize the outside pool area closes at 7pm. Bummer! Really? Fourth of July weekend and you close down at 7pm! As we left my kids told me the manager was rude. She yelled at them for going down the slide doubled up. Ok, maybe that's against the rules, but there was no lifeguard at the top of the slide and the slide is not dangerous. Many kids were doing the same thing. The manager argued with my kids there was a lifeguard, even though I personally saw there wasn't. She also argued with them that they had been there for hours even though we only arrived less than 30 minutes ago. The fireworks show July 2nd night was very good. I was surprised how good and long it was. Included music, too. The rest of the weekend was great. Had a lot of fun playing beach volleyball with another family we met. Fortunately, the big slide was open July 3rd. But the outside pool area closed at 7pm again. One nice feature is they let you bring your own ice chest to the pavilion area by the pools. I didn't use the restrooms myself, but my kids said they were not clean. 

Amenities include pools, water slides, lazy river, hot tubs, volleyball pool, indoor pool/slide/splash pad, beach volleyball court, basketball court, hay bale"obstacle course", pond, camp store, mini restaurant, trash pickup, and golf cart rental. There is a zip-line area, but it didn't look open and we didn't ask about it. Stayed in back-in campsite#116 which was not shady but level. It was a crushed limestone site with some landscaping on either side and grass in the back. There are some trees planted between the sites, but it will be some years before they provide significant shade. There was enough parking for my 34 ft TT and truck. Neighbors are close by not crammed in. The site included: picnic table and fire ring. Utilities: 20/30/50A electric in middle of site. Water in middle of site, good pressure. Sewer in middle of site with 4-in screw-on fitting. 

AT&T had 2 bars of LTE. AT&T Speedtest: 7.6 Mbps down, 1.07 Mbps up. Did not use the WiFi service. Would probably stay here again, especially with a group. We camped at Gator Grounds RV Resort in a Travel Trailer.

PRODUCT REVIEW BANNER AND OAK T-SHIRT As a Ranger for The Dyrt, I get products to test from time to time - today I am testing a Banner and Oak T-shirt. https://bannerandoak.com/products/camp-navy?variant=441825624068&currency=USD&gclid=CjwKCAjwtO7qBRBQEiwAl5WC2_0XqYiJxOuate5OBrZoqMXBxOQJYNVPo5C4gRHVLoRXmsNnkAvO9BoCA78QAvD_BwE This shirt is fantastic! My husband is very tough on clothes, but after several washes, it still maintains it's size and shape! The shirt is super soft and held up well in the extreme heat of Louisiana summer. Thanks for the honor of trying this out, and I hope you all do as well! You won't be disappointed! CAMPGROUND REVIEW: PARAGON CASINO RESORT AND RV PARK When my sons suggested that we all go camping here, I was leary at first. I thought since it was a Casino that it would be all concrete and flashing lights. I am a woods and water type of girl so I really didn't want to go, but am glad I did! There was ample room for our camper which is 32 feet. Our site number 3, had full hookups and room for a couple of canapies. (Very little shade!) Also had a concrete picnic table and lots of space between campers. The kids were able to go swimming in the large outdoor pool. There's also one inside! There is a walking trail, golf course and of course, if you gamble the casino. If it rains there's also a movie theater. I didn't use the showers or laundry facilities but they had those provided, too.

     I was looking for a Louisiana location for an extended stay, I wanted to find a riverside, quiet location with large sites. A place where there was room for my travel trailer, boat, and truck. I found that and much more at Jones' Riverside Marina & RV Park.

     It is in the country but not that far from the charming city of Natchitoches. The staff members are always friendly and helpful. There is a well-stocked store along with a carry-out restaurant (sit down part is closed due to covid-19). They have a free boat ramp and docks (very handy for me). The fishing is always good from the bank or a boat. My travel trailer is small but this facility is big rig friendly. I like the laid-back atmosphere and southern hospitality that is present here. This is not a huge, fancy, "resort", but those are not for me. I don't care for the crowds, noise, price, and many restrictions of those places. This RV Park emulates the real Louisiana!

This is a really nice RV park, and you get a multi day Passport America 1/2 off discount, which is nice (usually the discount is only for one night). Sites are tight, as most RV parks are. Staff is incredibly helpful and friendly. Nice showers and laundry rooms. Hot tub was fun but kind of awkward to use, it was out on the marina side, just kind of on the sidewalk.

We did not eat at the restaurant on site but the store was really nice. They have a daily Katrina documentary playing.

There is no shuttle to downtown anymore. A free shuttle would have made our stay perfect. We don't have a tow car, so getting downtown was a little bit of a hassle. We took the city bus, which was fine, and cheap (something like $1.25) but the bus stop was a mile away and the ride downtown took about an hour. We took Lyft, which came to almost $20 each way. They gave us the name of a guy who will pick you up and bring you back, but that would have come to more than the Lyft.

This was a really nice, beautiful, clean, quiet, peaceful place but next time we're in NOLA we're going to see about staying at the RV park that's right near the French Quarter.