Yuma RV Resort Possibilities

After our night in Winslow, AZ and our stop at the Meteor Crater, we arrived in Yuma, AZ. We were able to “mooch-dock” at Bob and Janet Bockus’s place for the night.  Since we arrived in the early afternoon we took advantage of the daylight to check out both Fortuna De Oro (Cal-Am Resort) and the Palms RV Resort.  

FORTUNA DE ORO:
We were definitely disappointed in the sites at Fortuna De Oro. Having stayed three months last winter at View Point RV & Golf Resort in Mesa, we tend to compare places to it. The only sites we would consider at Fortuna De Oro are in the newer area for all RV’s. The concrete patio pad is quite narrow.  It appears that they would like to have a small tree at each lot, but so many either have nothing but dirt, or have a dead straggly resemblance of twigs. Hoping winter peak season may look better. The sites in the original areas of the park are quite tight. Many had worn and broken patios. However, they have FABULOUS pickleball courts!  I think there were 11 courts—fully dedicated pickleball courts. Courts were even lit for evening play!!!  The courts are also labeled by levels of play for each.  Another big plus is that the monthly rate to stay here is $750. Staying only one month in the Mesa area would be about $1500. We’ve heard it is a very friendly and fun resort. We’ll see.

THE PALMS RV RESORT:
I absolutely loved the Palms RV Resort.  Such a peaceful feeling. The grounds are beautiful, and in my opinion are the best in the Yuma area. Cost of renting a site varies according to the month.  The Palms RV Resort has lots that you can actually purchase.  Currently a standard site is $40,000. A super site is currently $64,000.  You are free to build on your site or just use it for an RV and tow vehicle. We took a tour of lots, and saw some smaller “home” buildings that also had room for a large RV.  All buildings have the stucco Spanish exterior which unites the resort, yet allows for individuality. Since you own the land, you pay property taxes based on whether it is a “vacant” lot (~$650 yearly), or how much of a home you build onsite (could be ~$2000 yearly). There is also a $250 HOA monthly fee. This fee includes all resort amenities, water, trash, and sewer. There are some sites available to rent, but it was going to cost more than we were wanting to pay for a single month stay this coming spring. Drone video via YouTube

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A place where you can park a motorhome, AND have a SMALL home on the lot is what we are likely interested in when we transition to having a winter home-base and/or when we may be ready to stop RVing in a large Class A motorhome. It is important to me to have a place where we can accommodate a visit from our kids or friends. Location is crucial. A few hours to our grandkids, and awesome amenities are a MUST! Palms RV appears to be very friendly.  They have a nice social pool as well as a lap pool.  Currently the two tennis courts on site share time with pickleball. This is a major con for me. Totally dedicated pickleball courts with a highly active pickleball group is critical to me. I have hopes that with pickleball growing as much as it is that Palms RV will convert at least one of the tennis courts to 4 pickleball.  And then of course a couple years later get four done on the second court!

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Palms RV Resort offers a great special if you have never stayed there previously.  It is a “buy one, get one” type offer. In other words, rent a lot for one month, get another month free; rent for two months, get two more months free; rent 3 months, get 3 free! Unfortunately, that offer ends each September. We missed out for this year, so they suggested we stay elsewhere in Yuma this March, but come over to enjoy some events such as the concerts and “Burger Bashes” to get a feel for the Palms. https://yumapalmsrvresort.com/

How does the Palms RV compare to Viewpoint RV & Golf Resort (VP) in Mesa?  VP is much bigger and therefore has more amenities. They have TWO amazingly big, updated workout rooms at VP. The pickleball club is huge and level of play is good. VP has play for everyone Monday-Friday, and some weekends. There are 9 dedicated courts with 4 more planned for fall/winter of 2021. Cons: While VP’s phase III homes are really nice, there is NO room for an RV on your site. You either buy a home and rent the land which includes HOA (~$8500 yrly) or you pay that same rent/HOA for an RV site lot. I don’t believe water, sewer or trash is included with yearly rentals at VP. Mesa AZ is twice as far from Chula Vista, CA  than Yuma, AZ is. Loved all the people I met at VP last year!

WESTWIND RV & GOLF:
Jan 30, on our way back through Yuma from our Dec 2019 -Jan 2020 Florida trip, we stopped for one night at Westwind RV Resort. It is a nice resort that is practically in our friends’ backyard! (Janet and Bob Bockus). I didn’t think to take pictures since our time was so limited. Sites are a good size for a large class A and tow vehicle. The pool area seemed OK for the size of the park. There were 3 dedicated pickleball courts. I didn’t have a chance to check out better level play. Supposedly 3.5 and up have a scheduled time to play, but it was prior to our arrival that day. WestWind has a really nice looking ,9-hole executive golf course on the property. We used Passport America for a $22.50 one night stay. I noticed that currently they offer a yearly site for $3950+ electric. The month of March would cost us $800.

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All this is simply fact gathering at this point–with much more to research and experience. 🙂

MARCH 2020:
We have made a reservation at Fortuna De Oro for the entire month of March 2020. The month will cost $750. The price won – along with a nice pool and incredible pickleball. One month will fly by. We look forward to seeing what it is like to be in Yuma for a full month! We like how much closer it is to Chula Vista where Erika and Justin live should we consider a long-term type site in the area.