Thousand Trails is not our only camping membership, but it is definitely our go to membership. Since we began our full-time travel in June 2019, we have stayed 376 nights in Thousand Trails or Trails collections parks. Thousand Trails are used by many campers from full- time travelers, to weekenders, and all of those in between. The variety of camping memberships they offer reflects the diversity of their members.
For the purposes of this blog, in an effort to keep it simple and understandable, we will be referring to and discussing memberships that are currently available to purchase new from Thousand Trails, including the newest membership upgrade being offered for a limited time, the Adventure upgrade. If you are a member on any level from camping pass to Odyssey, you are eligible to upgrade. This includes members who purchased older, no longer offered, memberships on the used market.
Thousand Trails did a masterful job building anticipation for the announcement of their newest upgrade, resulting in many people, us included, anxiously awaiting the unveiling of the Adventure upgrade. We will begin with a quick overview of memberships options.
The basic membership is a Zone Camping Pass, which is currently priced at $499. With this membership, you can book 60 days in advance and can camp from 1 to 14 nights. If you camp 4 nights or less, you may go to another Thousand Trails park right away, but if you camp more than 4 nights, you must be out of the system for 7 nights. Other zones may be added for a small fee. At the present time, it is $65 for each additional zone.
Other levels are available for purchase and all of them are lifetime memberships. You do however, have to pay yearly dues which vary depending on factors such as your age but are usually around $500 a year. The memberships that are currently available are Elite Basic, Elite Connections, and drum roll please… Adventure, which has taken the place of the former highest-level membership, Odyssey. All these memberships offer longer booking windows, longer stays and the ability to go park to park within the Thousand Trails system. See the charts below for specifics on these memberships.
All the above memberships provide you with the opportunity to purchase the Trails Collection, which gives you access to over 100 additional campgrounds nationwide at a cost of $315 a year. Reservations for parks in the Trails collection can be booked 60 days in advance. You are permitted to camp up to 14 nights and then you must be out of the system for 7 nights. These rules are the same for every member regardless of what Thousand Trails membership they have. This is an extremely important fact to take note of when looking at the new Adventure upgrade.
As we previously stated, we were anxiously awaiting the unveiling of the Adventure upgrade and we must admit that we were not disappointed. We were really thrilled with the introduction of Trails Collection Plus, which increases the booking window to 90 days in advance. Length of stay increases from 14 to 21 nights, and if that isn’t sweet enough, it allows members to go park to park with no time out of the system required!!! The price for Trails Collection Plus is $615, which is $300 more than Trails collection. However, there is a catch… Only Adventure members have the opportunity to purchase the Trails Collection Plus add on.
We were more than a little excited! We knew we wanted in, so Bart headed to the Thousand Trails website to find the answer to the million-dollar question. How much would it cost us? The good news was not a million dollars! The bad news was the price on the screen gave us sticker shock! So much so that we decided we would have to take a pass.
Thankfully, we were able to speak with membership specialist Michael Yum. and he informed us that the numbers on the computer were incorrect. He proceeded to share with us what our cost would be to upgrade our Elite Basic to Adventure! And we said YES to Adventure! Fifteen minutes later, we were Adventure members, and we were making reservations with all the benefits that it provided.
Along with the increased benefits of Trails Collections Plus, our Thousand Trails plan also improved. Our booking window went from 120 to 180 days in advance, holiday reservations increased to 2 at a time, we received improved family benefits, free Getaway cabins and a new RPI membership with excellent benefits.
Thousand Trails memberships are definitely not one size fits all! Each camper needs to determine what membership best suits their camping style, needs and budget! If you have questions, it is best to talk with a Thousand Trails membership specialist. If you are already working with one and are interested in learning more about what Thousand Trails has to offer, give them a call. If you are not currently working with anyone in particular, we highly recommend Michael Yum at (469)934-0043 Please tell him we sent you!
Regardless of how or where you camp, remember to ENJOY THE ADVENTURE!!!!!
UNTIL NEXT TIME…
We have been TT members for over 20 years since the girls were little. You gave a great overview of the membership options and the upgrades.
We are platinum members and have the Trails Collection Upgrade. We aren’t sure if we will upgrade to the Adventure plan yet. We have decided.
Thanks.
Deanna and Bill
Wow, 20 years! Id say you’ve gotten your moneys worth on that purchase!!! Be sure to let us know what you decide! If you have any questions that we might be able to answer let us know! Good luck!