While a number of Phoenix RV parks went begging during the winter season, parks in outlying areas, especially in Casa Grande, enjoyed their best seasons to date. Casa Grande is a rural town about 30 miles south of Phoenix.

Each of the 1,089 spaces in the Palm Creek Golf & RV Resort was leased during the high season, generally considered to be from January through April, says park manager Angela Buechel. The season was so good that Palm Creek plans to add a second nine-hole golf course and another 400 spaces to the park, she says.

All 180 spaces in the Foothills West RV Park were full this winter, says park owner Brigitte Michael, as were the 580 spaces in the Fiesta Grande RV Resort, according that park's manager, Char Wilson, who notes that all but 40 of the park's spaces are already booked for next winter.

In metropolitan Phoenix, and especially in the far East Valley where there is a concentration of RV parks, occupancy this year was far off what it has been in previous years. The vacancy rate at many parks remained at 30% throughout the winter season, compared to a typical rate of closer to 10%.

Encroaching development around many of the parks in the Valley, worries about crime, increased lot fees, and traffic congestion are being blamed for driving seniors to rural settings.