Red Lodge KOA Journey

We traveled here with our 4 kids (ages 5-14). It was your typical KOA. There was a pool, playground, close to hwy, showers, laundry facilities, banana bikes (extra charge), tight sites, a dog park, etc. We had to pay an extra $6 per kid per night. We were told it was because of all the extra amenities they give like the good wifi and a pool. Apparently only kids use those amenities. So if you don't have kids you get to use all of that for no extra charge.

You are not allowed to put up a tent on RV sites. We had a tent up because our older kids (that we paid extra for) like to sleep in a tent instead of the camper. They had us take it down and said we needed to buy a tent site, but you needed to be 18 or older. I never ran into that being an issue anywhere else. But their campground their rules, we respected that.

There were good things good things about this campground. The wifi was great and streamed YouTube TV without any problems. The staff was really nice and helpful. The pool was heated. The bathrooms and showers were very clean. There was a little stream running through the campground and a pathway that lead to a bigger creek. The laundry facilities were nice, but we didn't use them. It was $3 to use the washer and another $3 to use the dryer.

All and all, this KOA was just ok. They sure nickel and dime you for everything. We wouldn't stay again.

We hear that this KOA is under new ownership and they're working hard to bring an old KOA up to date. It was indeed a clean and nicely manicured KOA. Management was super friendly, too. 5G WiFi was strong.

At $83 per night in late May, it's just too expensive for me. On top of that, the highway is quite close and the traffic noise is constant throughout the day. Not our cup of tea.

By the side of a busy road. Ugh. So much traffic from 5:30 am to 1 pm. Couldn’t hear the creek, which was right next to our tent site. Dirt in front of our tent, so incredibly dusty. Laundry, bathrooms, shower were decent. Not much at the store. A pool if you have kids. Not a pretty view. Did have Wifi. No streaming, so just ok there. Nothing special, though. Remote work is probably not doable without serious boosting abilities. Did have cell. AT&T. 2 bars. Verizon was three bars. Better. I stayed at a remote camping site before— Woodbine. 500x better as far as view and quiet.

We were just here for 1 night as we stopped to visit Beartooth Highway on a cross-country trip. For a one night stop it did the trick but I definitely wouldn't stay here for any longer. On our way to the campground, we had commented that we have always had really good experiences at KOA's and had yet to stay at a "run-down" KOA. We jokingly "touched wood". As we pulled into the campground, my wife and I both half-laughed because we knew what each other was thinking...we just jinxed ourselves.

Describing Red Lodge KOA as "run-down" is probably not accurate though and a little un-fair; it just doesn't have the best curb-appeal. As you pull into the campground, which is only wide enough to accommodate one vehicle in/out at a time, the first spots you see appear to be for seasonal campers which could only be described as "messy" with very limited space between each site. We had a pull-through site which wasn't very level and only had a small number of feet on either side of our trailer before you were on your neighbors "property". Zero shade or privacy between sites.

The staff were friendly and while the store was small with very minimal supplies it had what you would need. If not, Red Lodge is only a few mins drive away and has stores which you can get what you need. As mentioned earlier, we would probably come back here for just a quick overnight stop but for 2-3 nights or longer we would look elsewhere.

This is our 2nd time at this campground as we are passing through the area. Typical KOA. Nice office area, friendly staff, clean facilities, refreshing 80 degree pool. We stopover here mainly for the pool--the kids love it after riding hours in a cramped vehicle. Although it is on a highway, it's really quiet, never bothered by road noise.

What I DON'T like about the park:
--Sites TOO close together.
-- "Kid tax" ($6/kid) added.

Site 24 had a large dip just off the gravel pad. Since we were leaving the next morning, we wanted to keep the truck hitched to the 36 ft fifth wheel. It was a little tough to get in the site at a good angle to stay hitched and not stick out in the road.