Considering buying a pop-up - do we need a potty?

[clkelley]

My best friend is considering taking her popup camper with her four small children to stay at Fort Wilderness and was wondering which camp sites are closer to the restrooms. I was able to get a map of the campgrounds but could not drive through. Can you request specific sites and if so, does anyone have any recommendations for which are close to the restrooms?

Each loop has it's own comfort station, so when they make their reservations, they need to request with the reservations folks that they are near a comfort station. Also a few days before their trip they can send a fax directly to Fort Wilderness again stating that they wish to be near a comfort station.

 

[Shan-man]

She can simply make a request at the time of her reservation and ask to be near a comfort station (that's Fort-lingo for restrooms and bathhouses). I'm sure given the number of children in the party the assigner's will bend over backward to satisfy her request. And if she gets to her site and it isn't acceptable she can always call the desk and request another, more suitable site.

HIH

 

[retired and happy]

A few years back we towed a small trailer, about like a teardrop, to FW. It was small enough to sit on our campsite behind our MH and was used by our daughter's family. It had a small room(?) which doubled as a closet and a place to set a portable Thetford. We told them, "Whoever uses it, cleans it." You know, it was never used the whole week we were there. The TV and air conditioner ran a lot.

 

[YellowXterra]

We have a porta potty, would not leave home with out it. We always stay where there is a clean bath house so a shower is not a biggie, but at 2 AM a potty is

 

[Shan-man]

A few years back we towed a small trailer, about like a teardrop, to FW. It was small enough to sit on our campsite behind our MH and was used by our daughter's family.

I'm glad to hear that they let you do that, since the rules state that a site can hold one camping unit and one tent. I don't know why they should care as long as it fits on your site and doesn't look like the Clampetts have moved in! But I did want to mention the rule so others might not assume that this is normal and plan to do the same, unaware that they might be refused.

 

[ZetaGirl]

Thank you for the fast replies! I'll pass that info along

 

[twinkie]

Oh brother do you ever need one! Ever had to get up during the night and walk a child with the "green-apple-quick-step" to the bathroom like about 10 times? Do that once and you will be kicking yourself for not buying the toilet.

 

[scot@dvcstore]

TIA,
I have had pop-ups with and without facilities. Having 2 young girls I will say having the potty far out weights any additional storage, especially in the middle of the night. Storage is always an issue in any pop-up and many travel trailers. The potty/shower combination in our current pop-up is often used for storage during the day and emptied at night for the kids to use if needed.

Scot

 

[pjhootch]

Our pop up had the toilet/shower combination and we used both constantly. There was no mess at all. Our coleman westlake had a cassette that removed from an outside panel. Dump a little blue stuff in the toilet and that was that. The shower was usable without a full hook up site. In fact, our pop up couldn't hook up to a sewer site, but the black water went into a cassette and the gray water went into a plastic tote with wheels that we towed to the dump station when necessary.

The shower isn't good for a long scrub, but was wonderful for rinsing off sticky little kids quickly. We lost some storage that way but honestly, nothing we couldn't manage without. We did have a pop up that had the front storage trunk (where the water heater was) and we never felt we had to leave anything behind due to lack of storage space.

 

[MALE*RN*777]

We just upgraded to a hybrid mid last year. Our Pop-up which we loved didn't come with a potty or shower (did have an outside shower). Anyway after several years of the wife having to go for a walk in the middle of the night (me and boy had bottles) and then having a girl we bought a privacy tent and porta potty which was great for us. Easy to empty and no walks especially in the rain for the wife. Anyway I was thinking it was better for us to have an outside one because in such a small place with just a curtain would you want someone doing their buisness right next to you. JMO

 

[starbuc71]

I agree with the toilet shower idea. I have been camping since I was a kid and started with my parents in a pop up, of course that was back in the early 70's. Since being married, I could not talk the wife into camping unless there was a toilet and shower. The both of us and the kids have been camping for 4 years now and are on our 4th TT. We started with a starcraft hybrid starshuttle and now worked our way to our outback loft. The shower and toliet amke each trip perfect.

 

[BigDaddyRog]

Ok...some may be WAY above this....but it works for us. I just bought a popup....looked long and hard because I really wnted a potty/shower....but that just didnt work out. So, with a wife who's medication wakes her up at least once a night for a potty visit, and 2 of my 4 daughters who are still young enough to camp with us on every trip....we just use a 5 gallon bucket, lined with a good quality garbage bag and about 3 or 4 cups of kitty-litter! It works just fine, theres no odor (Its understood that this bucket is for #1 usage only....emergency #2's defintely require bathhouse visits), in the morning, we tie the garbage bag up and toss it into the trash. The bucket doubles as a trash can in the daytime.

I know many will raise eyebrows on this...but we just returned from our first camping trip in our pop-up, and it worked out just fine. At first the kids were all "Are you crazy, I aint peeing in a bucket!!!" The second night they were completely used to the idea.

 

[Born 2 Fish]

Ok...some may be WAY above this....but it works for us. I just bought a popup....looked long and hard because I really wnted a potty/shower....but that just didnt work out. So, with a wife who's medication wakes her up at least once a night for a potty visit, and 2 of my 4 daughters who are still young enough to camp with us on every trip....we just use a 5 gallon bucket, lined with a good quality garbage bag and about 3 or 4 cups of kitty-litter! It works just fine, theres no odor (Its understood that this bucket is for #1 usage only....emergency #2's defintely require bathhouse visits), in the morning, we tie the garbage bag up and toss it into the trash. The bucket doubles as a trash can in the daytime.

I know many will raise eyebrows on this...but we just returned from our first camping trip in our pop-up, and it worked out just fine. At first the kids were all "Are you crazy, I aint peeing in a bucket!!!" The second night they were completely used to the idea.

Sounds like a reasonable deal to me.

 

[starbuc71]

actually a cheap, more comfy idea is that Wal-mart in thier camping section sells a plastic port a potti with a bucket inside and a pop on seat on top. I thin it retails for 20 bucks or so. Worked great on my boat when the women did not want to jump in the water

 

[LORNADUCK]

BDR so let's hear about your first camping trip. I thought you would post a trip report by now. Did everyone love it. Are you coming to the FT for July 4th

 

[BigDaddyRog]

BDR so let's hear about your first camping trip. I thought you would post a trip report by now. Did everyone love it. Are you coming to the FT for July 4th

I posted a few pics on the community board: BDR's First Trip in the new Pup Pics

 

[clkelley]

actually a cheap, more comfy idea is that Wal-mart in thier camping section sells a plastic port a potti with a bucket inside and a pop on seat on top. I thin it retails for 20 bucks or so. Worked great on my boat when the women did not want to jump in the water

I've got one of those port a potties. Works good. I have also seen actually potty seats sold for the 5-gallon buckets.

 

[OK GRUMPY]

When we were kids my dad used a bucket with a potty lid. He use to set it up in a closet for privacy. He use to put pine sol in it and to this day I smell pine sol and I think of that potty