ChiliandCedar, Author at Red Dog Tales

Texas Coastal RV Stay Near Port Aransas – Padre Island National Seashore

by ChiliandCedar | Mar 11, 2023 | Southwest Road Trip 2023

Port Aransas on Mustang Island boasts 18 miles of shoreline along the Texas Coast. Pioneer RV Beach Resort is a nice RV stay with beach access. Area attractions include Padre Island National Seashore and the city of Corpus Christi.

Key Takeaways:

Mustang Island and Padre Island are part of the largest barrier island in the world with 115 miles of beaches
Port Aransas sits on the north end of Mustang Island
The Padre Island National Seashore includes 61 miles of unspoiled coastline
The Pioneer Beach RV Resort features a boardwalk to the beach

Campground Review:

Pioneer RV Beach Resort is a full-amenity campground on Mustang Island in Port Aransas. With swimming pools, full hookups, cafe, clubhouse and a boardwalk to the beach, this resort is a favorite for return guests. The boardwalk to the beach was great for walking the dogs each morning. The beaches on Mustang Island are flat, wide and perfect for walking, driving, fishing or lounging. The location provides easy access for dining options in Port Aransas and Corpus Christi. Padre Island National Seashore is a short drive south. The route to the campground from the North through Port Aransas includes a ferry; we opted to take the longer route through Corpus Christi.

What to do:

Walk, lounge, fish and drive on the wide open beaches
Visit Padre Island National Seashore
Enjoy seafood at many seafood restaurants in Port Aransas; we enjoyed dockside dining at Virginia’s on the Bay
Visit Corpus Christi for more dining and entertainment options
Take a pirate ship cruise to learn more about Port Aransas’ rich pirate history

Padre Island National Seashore

Pirate Cruise Port Aransas

Chili & Cedar’s Review:

Everyone was very friendly in this park. We loved are morning walks on the beach. We didn’t go to the dog park – the rattlesnake warning sign on the fence scared us. Lots of green space in this park and many friendly dogs.

Campground Rating: 4.8 PAWS out of 5 PAWS

We loved our drive through the Padre Island National Seashore. The beaches on Mustang Island and Padre Island are all dog friendly – woof!

Area Rating: 4.8 PAWS out of 5 PAWS

Next Stop: The Alamo, San Antonio, Texas

Texas Coastal RV Stay on Galveston Island

by ChiliandCedar | Mar 9, 2023 | Southwest Road Trip 2023

Galveston Island is a fun place to visit. The beaches are wide and flat and dog friendly. The Stella Mare RV Resort is an upscale resort with large sites, full hookups, pool and plenty of green space for the dogs.

Key Takeaways:

All the beaches on Galveston Island are pet friendly – woof!
Stella Mare RV Resort is a nice RV stay; spacious sites, pool, dog run, paved sites
Historic downtown Galveston is a fun city to explore

Campground Review:

Stella Mare RV Resort is a great RV stay on Galveston Island. All sites are spacious and paved with full hook-ups. The dogs enjoyed long walks in the resort and on the nearby beaches. The resort offers a large pool, splash pad, tiki bar, club house, playground and two dog parks. If you run out of activities at the resort, the beach is within walking distance.

What to do:

Explore the dog-friendly Galveston beaches
Visit the Strand in historic downtown Galveston for dining, shopping and entertainment
Walk the dogs on the Galveston seawall
Have some fun at the Pleasure Pier; eat at the Bubba Gump Shrimp Company
Take the dog hiking at the Galveston Island State Park

Galveston Beach

Bubba Gump Shrimp CO

Galveston Beach

Chili & Cedar’s Review:

We liked Stella Mare RV Resort – lots of green space and wide open spaces for walks. They had a dog run too. The beaches were dog friendly here – yay! We also liked the Galveston Brewing Company – good beer and dog friendly.

Campground Rating: 4.7 PAWS out of 5 PAWS

Area Rating: 4.7 PAWS out of 5 PAWS

Next Stop: Port Aransas, Texas – Padre Island National Seashore

Cajun Country RV Stay: Fantastic Food & Tabasco Factory Tour

by ChiliandCedar | Mar 5, 2023 | Southwest Road Trip 2023

Lafayette, Louisiana is known for great cajun food and the annual Mardi Gras Celebration. Bayou Wilderness RV Park in nearby Carenco is a nice campground for a stopover in Cajun country. Stay long enough for a day trip to Avery Island to visit the Tabasco Factory and the Jungle Forrest.

Key Takeaways:

Lafayette, Louisana is a great stop to sample Cajun cuisine
The Tabasco Factory on Avery Island is worth a visit
Bayou Wilderness RV Campground is a nice stay near Layfayette
Tread carefully; roads in Louisiana can be very rough!
Visit during Mardi Gras

Campground Review:

Bayou Wilderness RV Campground is fine for a short stay. The country setting offers lots of green space for walking the dogs. The campground features a large pool, but it was a bit chilly during our stay to try it out. The roads getting to the park are very winding and narrow. The sites at the campground are gravel and grass and tend to turn to puddles and mud after a heavy rain — which is common in Louisiana.

Bayou Wilderness RV Campground

Bayou Wilderness RV Campground Pool

What to do:

Dine at a local cajun restaurant; we enjoyed Prejeans in Lafayette
Tour the Tabasco Factory and Jungle Forrest on Avery Island
Enjoy Madi Gras celebrations in February; Lafayette holds a Madi Gras pet parade every year

Tabasco Factory

Tabasco Factory General Store

Jungle Forrest Budda

Bird City on Avery Island

Bird City

Cedar on Avery Island

Chili & Cedar’s Review:

The campground was just okay. It was muddy around the RV, but we did like all the puddles. The park had lots of green space so that was good. We really liked our drive through the Jungle Forrest on Avery Island. We didn’t tour the Tabasco Factory but that’s okay since we don’t like hot sauce.

Campground Rating: 3.5 PAWS out of 5 PAWS

Area Rating: 4 out of 5 PAWS

Next Stop: Stella Mare RV Resort, Galveston Island, Texas

Luxury, Dog-Friendly RV Resort in Orange Beach, Alabama

by ChiliandCedar | Mar 2, 2023 | Southwest Road Trip 2023

Orange Beach, Alabama sits on the Gulf Coast with spectacular, white sandy beaches. Buena Vista Motor Coach Resort is a luxury dog-friendly RV resort a short walk to the beaches and close to attractions in Orange Beach and Gulf Shores. Resort amenities include large sites with tropical landscaping, brick pavers and full hookups. The dog-friendly resort offers a small dog park. Resort amenities include an indoor pool, outdoor pool with a lazy river and club house.

Key Takeaways:

Orange Beach is a hidden gem on the Gulf Coast of Alabama; beautiful, white sandy beaches, less the crowds
Buena Vista Motor Coach Resort is a high-end RV resort with many ownership lots
Short distance to beaches and attractions in Orange Beach and Gulf Shore
An expensive resort for Class A and Super C RVs featuring high-end amenities

Campground Review:

Buena Vista Motor Coach Resort is a open to Class A and Super C RV’s. We loved our stay at this beautiful resort with tropical landscaping and brick pavers throughout. Our site included a hot tub and tiki bar with outdoor kitchen. This is an ownership resort with new phases under development. The resort pool with lazy river looked amazing, but it was too cold for us to enjoy during our visit. The resort also offers a large indoor pool for owners and guests. The beach is a short walk or bike ride from the resort. This dog-friendly RV resort features a small dog park. Our dogs loved their walks around the resort. The resort also adjoins the Gulf State Park with 28 miles of hiking trails, although the access from the resort was inaccessible during our visit due to the construction.

What to do:

Go to the beach!
Visit Gulf Islands National Seashore
Visit the USS Alabama Battleship Memorial Park in nearby Mobile
Take the dogs to the Lake Shelby Dog Park in the Gulf State Park for playtime and swimming
Enjoy many dog-friendly restaurants in Orange Beach and Gulf Shores; we enjoyed the Pleasure Island Tiki Bar in Orange Beach
Visit the Unleashed Dog Park in Orange Beach

Gulf Islands National Seashore

USS Alabama Memorial Park

USS Alabama Battleship

Pleasure Island Tiki Bar

Chili & Cedar’s Review:

This was a nice park. We enjoyed our walks around the park. The dog park was a little too small for us. We’d prefer to have more green space but we had a good time here.

Campground Rating: 4.6 PAWS

We loved our ride through the Gulf Islands National Seashore. The Orange Beach Area is dog-friendly area with many dog parks and dog-friendly restaurants. Chili wasn’t feeling well so we couldn’t go swimming or go to the dog park but we did go to the Paradise Tiki bar – woof!

Area Rating: 4.7 PAWS

Next Stop: Bayou Wilderness RV Park in Lafayette, Louisiana

8 Amazing Dog-Friendly RV Stays in Florida

by ChiliandCedar | Mar 1, 2023 | Favorite Dog-Friendly Florida RV Stays

With input from the dogs, we’ve chosen our favorite dog-friendly RV stays in Florida. We carefully plan our visits to Florida with dog-friendly RV parks a top priority. Our labs love long walks, access to green space and ideally, a dog-friendly beach. We picked our favorite parks with the best combination of dog-friendly RV park amenities, local attractions and amazing settings. Our list does not include the wonderful and economical state parks due to long wait lists for reservations and the fact that all Florida’s state parks do not allow dogs on the beach.

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