Frequently when we go on a camping trip, whether for a weekend or a week, we leave when Robert gets home from work. On a good day, he might get done a little early and get home before traffic gets bad. On a more normal day, he will get home at 6 or 7pm. And then we hitch up the camper, do a few last minute things and hit the road. So, our first night out we usually arrive at our campground and set up camp in the dark. So, we frequently can’t form a good opinion of a campsite til morning.
Landa RV Park & Campground has good location going for it. It is in New Braunfels, right on the Comal River, and directly across the Comal from Landa Park and the Wursthalle. You could probably walk to the downtown square (though there are not a lot of sidewalks in some areas) or easily bike there. The square has a coffee shop that was open pretty much any time we drove past except late at night as well as many little boutique type shops and a few restaurants.
When I called to confirm the reservation I had made online, the campground host had not heard of us, so we redid the reservation. That should have been the first red flag, but, it was Thanksgiving week, so I thought things might be a little out of sync due to holiday plans and such. The campground price is a steal in the off season at $20 per night and that is one of the reasons I picked it. We did have to pay an extra $5 the night of Thanksgiving, which seemed a little silly to me, but, okay. It was still cheaper than nearby places.
We arrived at the campground around 11pm and found our reservation packet on the door of the office. It had the gate code so we could get in which was important. The gate is closed at all times, though there is a small pass through for people walking in. You can’t open the gate from your vehicle, you have to get out to be able to reach it. The campground host told me over and over on the phone that we would have to stay to the right when we arrived, even though the map said otherwise, or we wouldn’t make it under the train trestle. That probably should have been a red flag too. The train tracks run, literally, right through the campground. The trestle bridge over the Comal River was a stone’s throw from our campsite. The train engineer’s are very thorough and blow the horn a lot, even at night. I cannot imagine being there in a tent.
After looking over the map, we actually went left instead of right. The campsite we were going to was angled and had we stayed to the right, we would have gotten to it quickly, but been facing the wrong direction to back in. So we took a hard left turn, up a steep hill and drove through the campground to get to our campsite. The roads were in good shape in some areas and not so good in other places. It looks like there has been some flooding in the lower portion of the campground in recent years causing damage to campsites and roads that just hasn’t been repaired yet.
The lower portion of the campground that is right on the river is mainly a big gravel area so, you just kind of park in the general vicinity of the electric pole and get things set up. We had no big issues getting level, or getting our electric plugged in. We did have to use both of our hoses to reach the water hook-up and the sewer connection was too far back for us to reach it easily. We ended up waiting until the morning we left and just backing up to it to dump the tanks before we hit the road.
Imagine yourself backed into a campsite, the water and sewer were diagonal to the two back corners of the camper, on opposite sides. It was a different set up, to be sure. Had we not back-in in the dark, we might’ve noticed and been able to back up further to accommodate it all. But when we were backed up far enough to empty the tanks, there was just enough room to walk around behind the camper. In a place that shows obvious flood damage, that was a little too close for comfort.
The main recreation at the campsite is the ability to rent tubes and float on the river. November is not exactly the season for that though. I’m sure the place is packed in the summer with families enjoying that aspect of it. We did not visit the bathhouse because it was up a long, steep flight of stairs from the campsite and didn’t look to be all that well maintained.
We use a little voltage monitor in the camper, to make sure we have a solid electric supply. Our power fluctuated from 106 to about 119 volts depending on what was going on. We didn’t have any problems, but I wonder if a lot of breakers get tripped with air conditioners going in the summer months.
Here’s the thing. For $20 per night, it wasn’t a bad place. Our site was relatively level, no one bugged us or complained we let our dog walk around off-leash. We were out exploring most days and not just hanging around the campground. After the first night, we were used to the trains going by too so they weren’t a problem. If you’re going camping to be at your campground relaxing, go somewhere else. If you’re need a place to hook up that’s acceptable and affordable, go to Landa RV Park.
