Best RV Parks & Resorts near Bowie, TX

We were here for 5 nights in August 2020. We were in back-in site 20, which was level, shaded and plenty wide and long enough for our 35’ MH and tow car. The pads are gravel with a paved pad for picnic table. There are a lot of pull through sites that are plenty long for big rigs and not tight together. They have FHU, great cable and very decent WiFi. Verizon cell service was 4G 4 bars. The fulltime and long-term folks are over in a different section. The park is on the Wichita River, has lots of ducks and geese that like the pond there and there are lots of kitschy things around the park. They have a pool, laundry and bathhouses- all clean. I did not meet any staff as they had contactless check-in– your paperwork is taped to the office door. There is plenty of shopping all around. We took a lovely hike through Lucy Park and saw the beautiful Wichita Falls. We would go back to this very nice park.

I have seen this place a million times living in the community nearby and never thought to check to see if they all tent campers. I was shocked to find out they do accommodate them so I passed through and checked out the grounds and wanted to let people know it exists!

There are two entries at the front of the property each easily accessed from the highway. Though they are gravel they are easy to navigate but do hold a little water in the rain. As you drive into the camp there are 4 main rows of camping, mostly in use by RVs however they do also accommodate tent campers. These sites can be picked up nightly or for more long term use so many people at this park have called this their home for a bit. Despite obvious signs of the long term dwellers, the grounds are clean and well maintained and don't look cluttered like some long term campgrounds will begin to look.

The site offers nice restrooms with showers, a bbq for general use, a rec room perfect for having your breakfast or dinner or perhaps a game of cards with friends and has connections for RVs up to 50 amp as well as a dump station.

For the tent camper sites are wide enough to be comfortable to move around and have scattered picnic tables. The tent camping sites are located on a grassy area next to the pond so they are not squished between big rigs and have a bit more privacy.

This site might not look as elaborate as some, but it more than makes up for the few things you do not have by its friendly staff and on site mechanic.

TIPS:

• Call in advance if looking for an RV site, they do have several spaces available but during certain times of the year they do fill up as they are centrally located to many things.

• Check out the LBJ Grasslands which are nearby when visiting this location, a great get away for some outdoor activities.

As far as Thousand Trails this is an average park. There are some full hook up sites but many are partial hookups. You pick your own site which is nice but most of the full hook up sites are occupied by long term residents or annual site holders. The view of the lake is beautiful and the park is quiet. They do have a lot of amenities.

Sites: most were level, grass or gravel. Some have a view of the lake. I sprained my knee and ankle at this park because our site was so unlevel and the mud sunk our jacks a little. Our rig weighs 16,000lbs so the Class As should be careful. The ground was soft and I came out of the RV without thinking and twisted both. Medical services are within a half hour of the RV Park.

Each site had picnic tables and fire rings.

Cellular: we were able to work and stream video easily with T-Mobile and AT&T.

Amenities: Club House Shuffle Board Pool Hot Tub (closed while we were there) RV Storage Mini Golf Hiking Trails Laundry Bath House Playground Fishing WiFi

We parked at Winstar RV park(FunTownRV) at the beginning of the"Covid Closure Days". The casino was absolutely closed, but the Chickasaw tribe elected to keep the RV park open. Fortunate for us!

The park is very large. The sites are excellent and at least half of the park is comprised of large, pull-through sites. These sites basically have two grills, two power poles, two water hookups, two picnic tables. More on the good stuff, but to be clear, the only reason we left Winstar RV park was because they wouldn't offer us a monthly rate. We parked there while selling our sticks-n-bricks in Dallas. The manager said they had too many monthlies and it was too much work for them. I didn't(and still don't) understand that. But there it is. After three weeks, we relocated to a park that did have monthly rates. We did, based on our Winstar players card usage, get the first 4? 5? days free that we stayed there. If we had to rely on getting it from the casino, that might have been difficult. I didn't actually have the cards, but they looked us up.

Back to the good. Just near the entrance(1/4 mile) is a Sonic, which was very convenient during Covid days. You could technically walk to the casino(note, this is the WORLDS LARGEST CASINO, and it's huge) but I wouldn't. There is a shuttle, which I assume runs when the casino is open. (We have spent many, many hours at Winstar World Casino and we very much like it. Lucky for us it was closed or we'd be broke!)

We had zero problems with package deliveries. Sometimes they even called us to let us know(but of course, I watch tracking numbers, so...). Everyone was very polite. There is a bit of a store in the office and there was more of a store behind doors that weren't open, I assume closed by Covid.

Each site has a nice grill and nice trash can on a pole, with a trash bag. These are emptied daily. There are also large dumpsters. The power is available at the large sites in 50/30/20. Water was great pressure. The only negative, for me, at least, was that this is SOFT water. I have never been a fan of soft water. In addition, we used the water a couple of times to make ice, and I didn't like the taste of it. After the first couple of times, we went to bottled water for ice and drinking, though I didn't mind the boiling of it for coffee.

The entire park is very clean. The grass is very well maintained. The caretakers never nicked my water hose or sewer lines, defaulting to leaving grass a little taller around those hoses rather than risk it.

The campground Wifi is very good, better than most any other place I've visited, in an RV or otherwise. We were never blocked for too much usage, and I was re-installing a lot of large development and server software on a new laptop while I was there. There are a large number of repeaters throughout the park.

The laundry facilities were clean. (There are two separate buildings in the two"wings" of the park.) You have to get a card from the office to gain entrance(like a keyless hotel card), which we weren't provided with upon check-in, so be sure to ask upfront, or make sure you try to wash clothes during the office hours, which I think ran to 9pm? I think it was about $2 for a wash/dry. Yes, $1 for the wash, $1 for the dry, obviously assuming normal run times.

There's a nice sidewalk that runs around most of the park, with doggie bag/trash stations along the way. In addition, the park was clearly planned as there is a definite drainage system. You don't get large puddles after a rainstorm. Lots of birds around, I think there was a family of three rabbits that my dog would smell and chase(if I would've let her off the leash!) Several small'ish (not yet mature) trees are around the park. Some of the grass was so great, I was jealous! Winter rye or something, but it was so great it looked fake!

If you were boondocking, or not hooking up, there IS a dump station at the exit. There is also a pool and a meeting room. It was closed off for winter(and Covid) while we were there in March-April 2020.

We would most definitely stay there again. I didn't want to leave, it was only their refusal to give us a monthly rate, otherwise, we would still be there.

For location, though, f you're visiting for any reason OTHER than the casino, you're out of luck. Thackerville, Oklahoma is absolutely nothing to write about. You're two hours from Oklahoma City and an hour from Dallas. (Though Gainesville, with a Home Depot and Walmart, is about 15 minutes away.) I would also nick on price if that were a category, but price is subjective, so... and really, $30 most days($50 Friday/Saturday) isn't shabby for water, sewer, and 50 amps in a clean park.

This is mainly an RV site however they do have a few sites for tents. Tents and vans are only $20 per night with full access to amenities. RVs are $35 per night and they do make concessions for long term stay as well.

Something that sets this apart from other locations in the area is it provides a small store for those staying and also access to storage for recreational vehicles. It also has on site propane sales so if you happen to be in an RV you do not have to worry about finding supplies elsewhere.

I enjoy the pool at this stop perhaps the most. It is rare that it is busy despite also allowing non campers to for a small fee swim.

Bathrooms and showers are available in the main building however they also have a clubhouse which can be used for a fee that includes a kitchen which makes it feel like a more complete campground experience.

This is one of the most popular roadside stops in this area because of its amenities.

Tips:

• Call ahead for long term camping sites - also available are campers available to rent when available

• Each site is metered for long term campers so they will have direct feed to electricity and is pay by the month by the meter

• Store here offers a variety of household items as well as food items. If you aren't fully prepared when you arrive this store is very helpful but a little higher than marketstores