The beauty of traveling in a motorhome or RV is the ability to go wherever you want, whenever you want, and take your whole home with you when you do. And RV parks and campgrounds let you do that easily and safely. But there are things that you can do to help make your stay at a campground or park better and more pleasurable. Here are a few suggestions for your consideration:

* Match the park to your needs and wants. It's a good idea to plan ahead for each night's stay and know what facilities are available in the area you will be going to that will meet your needs. To do that, owning a copy of both Trailer Life and Woodall's camping directories can give you plenty of great information about thousands of parks and campgrounds across the country before you even get there. Once you find the ones that can accommodate your size RV or motorhome, and has the hookups you need at the price you want to pay, call in advance and book a reservation. Nothing can spoil a trip easier than arriving at a campground only to find that it is full and having to scramble at the last minute to come up with a place to stay.

* Make sure that you use a water pressure regulator and water filters . As you travel around the country you will encounter hookups that can run the gamut from modern and updated to very old. One of the sensitive systems in many RVs is the plumbing system and some campground hookups use such high pressure that it can cause damage very easily. So have a water pressure regulator in place to prevent this. Also changing your water source daily can be problematic as you don't really know how good the water is from one area to another, so having a top notch water filtration unit can be huge help here.

* Make sure that you read the rules before you check into a campground. You can avoid a lot of hassle and grief if you familiarize yourself with any posted rules and abide by them during your stay. Rules can vary considerably from one park to another so knowing them in advance is imnportant. If the rules seem ridiculous, just find another place to stay.

* If you haven't stayed at a campground before, only commit to one night initially to test it out. You just don't know what an RV park is really like until you have actually spent a night there yourself. Although many campgrounds offer discounts for multi-night stays it's a good practice to book a spot for only one night at first. If the park just doesn't suit you, go somewhere else for the next night. If all seems well though, you can always go arrange for a discounted multi-night stay after the first night is over.

Hopefully these simple camping guidelines can help you have a safe and successful experience as you travel and stay at RV parks and campgrounds across the country.