1.
What Is Work Camping?
2.
What Is A Workamper?
3.
What Is A Camp Host Or Park
Host?
4.
What Are The Qualifications To
Be A Work Camper or Camp
Host?
5.
Are There Paid Work Camping
Jobs?
6.
Can You Work Camp Without An
RV?
7.
Where Do You Find Work
Camper Jobs?
8.
Tips About Work Camping And
Camp Hosting
1.
(a) What is Work Camping?
According to an article in
Smithsonian Magazine
"Drivers began making camping
alterations to cars almost as
soon as they were introduced.
The first RV was Pierce-Arrow’s
Touring Landau, which debuted
at Madison Square Garden in
1910." So camping in a vehicle
has a long tradition and led to
the evolution of modern day
RVs.
When the first RVers decided to
work while camping to support
their travels certainly isn't
documented, the decision most
likely occurred in the nascent
years of RV travel. To support a
burning desire to see and
experience what awaited the
traveler along the growing
network or roads would have
required finding whatever odd
jobs could be had, unless one
was wealthy in the first place.
Today, work camping is
generally understood to be
working at seasonal jobs in
exchange for your campsite,
including utilities, or at varying
levels of compensation in
addition to your campsite. To a
lesser degree, there are also
full-time work camping
positions available.
Most of the jobs revolve around
working at private
campgrounds, volunteering at
National, Forest Service, U.S.
Army Corps of Engineer, State,
County, and Municipal campgrounds. In
addition, many people work camp by
taking jobs as Oil Field Gate Guards,
seasonal warehouse jobs with companies
such as Amazon.com, harvesting beets,
amusement parks, and working at
temporary locations selling fireworks,
pumpkins and Christmas trees. There are
also many other minor job variations that
meet the definition of work camping.
You may also enjoy reading an article by Camping World at this A
Quick Guide to Work Camping link.
1.
(b) What is a work camper?
A work camper is anyone who
accepts and works at one of
the seasonal or permanent
positions as described above.
Although many people envision
the typical work camper to be a
retiree, there is a strong trend
for younger people choosing
the full-time RVing work
camper lifestyle to support their
desire to explore and experience the vast wonders found along the
highways.
Work campers include retirees, couples, single women, and single
men. The ages for people working these types of jobs range from
early adulthood all the way up to elderly retirees.
Nearly all work camper jobs will require that you have your own RV.
There are a few work camper jobs that include on-site housing.
2.
What is a “Workamper”?
A workamper is the same as a work camper, the only difference
being that workamper is a portmanteau word where work and
camper are blended into one word combining the meaning of both
words.
According to Workamper News, a company that sells a subscription
service that lists work camper jobs, the company coined and
trademarked the word “Workamper”. The KOA campground chain
also has a long history of using the term workamper to describe the
jobs offered at their campgrounds.
3.
What Is A Camp Host Or Park Host?
The terms Camp Host and
Park host generally have the
same meaning. Typically, most
of the camp host positions are
considered volunteer work and
are usually at National, State,
County and Municipal
campgrounds. Most of these
positions require you to work at
least 20 to 25 hours per week and include a free campsite with most
or all utilities. On occasion a stipend will be included.
Tasks expected of the volunteer encompass a wide range including
office work, greeting visitors, collecting fees, grounds maintenance,
repair work, sales, cleaning various facilities including bathrooms,
interacting with and assisting guests and many other varied duties.
As a general rule, you will need to have your own RV to qualify for a
camp host job.
4.
What Are The Qualifications To Be A Work Camper or Camp Host?
Qualifications needed to be a
work camper or camp host will
vary greatly, and are often
quite lenient in regard to work
experience, depending on the
specific needs of the employer.
A sizable percentage of the
jobs offered will be open to on
the job training.
Whatever prior work work skills
you've accumulated will likely meet the needs of a large number of
employers looking for work campers. Even if your work experience
doesn't match the employer's needs, don't be afraid to ask if learning
on the job will work for them. It isn't uncommon that the employer
can't find just the right person, so you could become the person they
needed.
Obviously, unless the employer explicitly states that on-site housing
accommodations are provided, the vast majority of work camper jobs
will require that you have your own RV and transportation, .
There is an excellent chance that you'll need to provide a resume
and references. Just becaise you've never worked at a campground
doesn't mean that you should be discouraged. Every business is
looking for people with a good work ethic and positive outlook and
will be willing to train good people.
An email address that you monitor regularly is valuable for quick
communication with the employer. Many companies want their first
contact with you to be through email. It is best to have a telephone
contact number where the prospective employer can contact you for
interviews and give you the opportunity to discuss any questions you
have and go over any special needs you have that the employer may
need to accommodate.
5.
Are There Paid Work Camping Jobs?
Fortunately, yes, there is an abundance of work camper jobs that
compensate you for your hours. The downside is that many of the
jobs only pay for a limited number of hours worked; a forty hour work
week may be difficult to find. With working couples, depending on the
number of paid hours and a free campsite and utilities, you can make
often enough money to get buy unless you're crisscrossing the
country for jobs. For single people, you may have to have
supplemental income to make ends meet.
6.
Can You Work Camp Without An RV? **Hint!! Some of the employers
also provide RV sites at a deeply discounted rate.
You'll be happy to know that there are jobs that do not require you to
own an RV, but you'll usually have to provide your own transportation
to the job site. There are employers that provide housing for
employees. Read the job descriptions carefully to understand what
you'll be getting and what charges you'll incur for housing and food.
Most of the housing and food are offered to you at a discounted rate.
A sample of destination jobs with housing provided include:
•
DNC Parks & Resorts at the Grand Canyon
•
DNC Parks & Resorts at Yellowstone - Yellowstone General
Stores
•
DNC Parks & Resorts West Yellowstone, Montana
•
DNC Parks & Resorts in Gardiner, Montana
•
DNC Parks & Resorts at Sequoia National Park
•
One of the best resources for finding jobs where housing is
included is through CoolWorks. You'll need to dig through the
listings to find jobs that include housing.
8.
Where Do You Find Work Camper Jobs?
At any given time, there are literally thousands of work camper and
camp host jobs open that you can apply for. Naturally, we hope that
you will use HappyVagabonds.com as a primary source, but we may
not necessarily have a job listing that meets your needs.
Below are a number of resources for you to explore during your job
hunt:
•
The very best way to
locate camp host jobs
with the National Park
Service, US Fish and
Wildlife Service, US
Forest Service, US Army
Corps of Engineers,
Bureau of Land
Management and other
organizations is to visit
the US Volunteer Portal
located at www.volunteer.gov.
To quickly narrow your search when you arrive at the website,
scroll down the webpage until you see "Find Opportunities By
State" with a United States map directly beneath the title. Click
on the state you're interested in and you'll find all the current
job openings for that state.
•
State Parks - To locate camp host positions at different state
parks will require more work on your part. A good starting point
is to visit our Volunteer Camp Host Opportunities in State Parks
web page and look for the links to the states listed. We've
found that the links that each State provides is a moving target
because they change page locations frequently, so please let
us know if one of the links is broken so we can keep the
resource up to date and useful for you.
•
There are a number of companies and organizations that
manage multiple campgrounds spread over a wide range of
states, or within a state. Below is a list of the companies we are
aware of, but please let us know if you’ve found one we've
missed so we can make this resource more complete.
o
Lower Colorado
River Authority in
Texas
o
Recreation Resource
Management has
campground host job
openings across
multiple states. Visit
their web page at
https://camprrm.com/jobs/ for application information. To
see what parks they manage click on the Parks link on their
menu at the top of the web page.
o
KOA is a well known campground chain that hires work
campers. A note of caution: in order to access their jobs list
you will have to purchase a "Work Kamper Membership"
currently priced at $35 which has to be renewed each
year.Visit their jobs page at https://workatkoa.com.
o
American Land & Leisure operates campgrounds over
multiple states. Learn more about what their camp host
positions offer by visiting their web page at
http://www.americanll.com/job-description.
o
CLM Services also manages campgrounds in many states.
To view their current list of work camping positions visit
their web page located at https://www.clm-
services.com/employment/job-openings.
o
The Cradle of Forestry has work camper positions in
multiple states and you can view information about their
jobs at https://cfaia.org and click on the Employment link at
the top of the web page.
o
Hoodoo Recreation operates campgrounds within the
Deschutes, Gifford Pinchot and Wenatchee National
Forests. To learn about their campground host jobs visit
their employment page at
http://hoodoorecreation.com/hoodoo-recreation-
employment.
o
Rocky Mountain Recreation Company offers positions for
campground hosts. You can learn more about their camp
host requirements and compensation by visiting their web
page located at https://rockymountainrec.com/contact/job-
opportunities.
o
Recreation Resource Management of America operates
campgrounds in Arizona, Colorado and Idaho. To see what
openings are available visit
http://www.rrmofa.com/Employment.asp.
o
Scenic Canyons Recreational Services manages Forest
Service campground facilities throughout the Western
United States. Visit their application page at
https://www.sceniccanyons.com/apply-here.html.
Additional websites that supply work camper and camp host job
listings are below:
•
Work Camper News provides a subscription service to see their
list of work camping jobs. Their most recent prices range from
$19.95 per year up to $67.00 per year.
•
CoolWorks
•
Workers on Wheels
•
Working Couples
•
WorkampingJobs
When all your efforts fail to locate a work camper job at your
preferred destination, all is not lost. Peruse your favorite campground
directory, do Internet searches, and find our whether there are any
privately owned camprounds, National Park, State Park, Forest
Service, Fish and Wildlife Service, Corps of Engineers, County or
Municipal campgrounds near your desired destination. Except for
many US Government facilities, you should be able to call, email or
write to campgrounds on your list and discover whether anyone is
accepting applications. If none of those sources yield a job you can
always contact local business and see if they hire seasonally.
Tips About Work Camping And Camp Hosting
•
One of the major attributes
sought in candidates for an
employer's work camping or
camp host position is a
positive attitude and a
willingness to be flexible and
willing to perform tasks that
weren't in the initial job
description. Usually, such
requests are short in duration
and your employer will remember that you helped them cover the
inevitable hotspots that occur in the normal day to day running of a
business. People who are inflexible and become belligerent in such
situations probably aren't going to be welcomed back for the next
season.
•
Before you crank the engine and go forth to that distant job, keep in
mind that you are not only investing lots of time getting to the
campground's location, you also have a sizable financial
investment in the cost to get there including the wear and tear on
your motorhome or tow vehicle and RV.
•
Be crystal clear about what the employer expects from you and
what you expect from them. Documenting expectations in an email
about what has been agreed upon by both parties will go a long
way toward settling honest lapses in memory by either party. Make
sure that expectations on your part such as hours worked, whether
the campsite is free and exactly what utilities are included at no
cost to you, whether the employer is OK with you working
additional hours offsite, campground amenities that you will be
allowed to use at no cost and, critically, know exactly what the
campground expects of you.
•
Again, keep in mind that it isn't unreasonable for an employer to
ask for a temporary departure from the duties you agreed upon. It
isn't uncommon for either, or both, the employee and the employer
to villainize each other when the terms of employment are vague at
best. Avoiding a volatile meltdown over imagined wrongs is best
avoided. On the other hand, some employers are just jerks and
there's little you can do other than biding your time until the gig is
complete, or pulling up stakes and moving along immediately.
•
We hope that you find the resources available on our website
useful. If you have the opportunity, please help other people find us
by recommending our website to your friends by mentioning and
linking to our website from your online social media accounts,
forums, website and other venues.
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