Camping at Walmart?!

[Pinecone]

Hi everyone, so a few of the people in my new RV circle told me that if I ever get in a pinch to find a Walmart parking lot and I can pull in there and camp overnight with my Pinecone. Is that true? He told me to just go in an buy a DVD and/or some groceries or supplies and no one will bother you or ask you to move.

Is Walmart teardrop-friendly?? Please weigh in and give me advice on this. If several of you out there have tried this, were you ever asked to "move along"?

Greg
newbie from Longview, WA

[les45]

Policies are different at every store. Some do and some don't allow campers. Ask the manager first.
Same with most of the larger name brand truck stops.

[dexstrom]

And, more and more towns are prohibiting overnight camping in store parking lots, so the manager may not be setting the rules.

[CarlLaFong]

We've stayed overnight at WalMart many times. When you pull in, the policy of the store is usually obvious. If you see an RV or two, off in a corner, in the lot, then it's OK. We've seen a few where there were "No Overnight Parking" signs. In Kalispell, Montana, they have a guy in a golf cart, who will help you find a spot and guide you in, if you have a large vehicle. We've also stayed at roadside rest areas. Best to pick busy ones, most are anyway, to avoid sketchy people. Some small towns have free RV parking and dump stations, to encourage tourists to spend money, in town. Baker, Montana has one and Roscoe SD has one, with free water and very clean restrooms. Of course, when you pull into Roscoe, the population doubles. Camping World allows parking also.
Lots of free or nearly free places here http://www.freecampgrounds.com/

[deleted]

I just call ahead and ask that morning so if they don't I can make other arrangements that day. Whoever answers the phone will say if it's ok or not. If it is ok they only ask that you park in the corner furthest from the front door. I've called four and stayed at two. Of the two I've stayed at neither asked me to check in with the store when I arrive. At times you can tell from the street view on Google Maps if they allow parking or not. As Carl said, a pile of RVs and campers in the corner usually means yes. Once I could see the "No Overnight Parking" signs in the street view images. In Oregon there was one that didn't allow overnight parking and one that did because as les45 said, different cities have different ordinances.

[Vedette]

The first night we took Miss Piggy out of the driveway, we ended up staying in a Walmart.
Stayed in three so far this year.....they are great when you can't find a campground.
So Greg, if you ever get stuck......don't discount a Walmart camping experience.
Good Roads
Brian & Sandi
PS
You will save the cost of a great breakfast the next morning before you continue on your journey!

[Woodbutcher]

Spent 3 nights at Walmart on the last 2 week trip. We wait till dark. Find an out of the way spot. We do not setup anything. Just get in and go to sleep. Get up and on the road by 7AM. We always buy our groceries, ice, etc while there.

[Lgboro]

Spent a couple of nights in WalMart parking lots and over 50 nights in larger chain truck stops in the last year. I prefer the truck stops but if your camper isn't well insulated the noise may be bothersome from the trucks generators and some night traffic.

[dguff]

Walmarts can be very convenient but it is not "camping". Just park, sleep, buy something, leave no trace and all is well.

Jerome

[Mary C]

I have heard, there is no cooking or sitting in lawn chairs etc. in the parking lot at Walmart. just sleep!!

Mary C.

[KennethW]

I did road trips with my kid in a minivan. Walmart was great in between national parks. Drive to 10:00 ,park ,sleep. In the morning start driving at daybreak. About 8:00 wake the kids and find a picnic table in make breakfast. Made travel time between the park go faster for the kids and we could see more of the parks instead of setting around a camp ground for 6:00 to 10:00 It allowed about 7 hours more travel time between the parks. Me and the kids didn't do the campfire thing anyway. So the kid in 3 trips got to see around 20 national parks. From the National Mall to Carlsbad cave to Vancover island and some of the Canadian parks. Thank to Walmart stay overs.

[RAYVILLIAN]

We've done the Walmart thing 3 times. First was great no problem. the second, some near by plant got off work at 12:30 and everyone came to Walmart to cash their check. Lotta noise. the third and last had a truck back down the side of the building about every hour from 10 to 2 Am with back up beepers. Than a 3 the parking lot sweeper came in to clean the parking lot. After that we gave up, got coffee at Quiktrip and headed down the road to a roadside park and took a nap till dawn. they are a store parking lot and you get what you get.

Gary

[Kevin & Sandy]

We were stuck going down the road between campgrounds that were completely full, we pulled into one Walmart, an older smaller one, some pretty shady characters walking around. So I kept going and at the other end of town was a nice new Wally World with about 15 campers already there. I snuck in between a couple of them and slept there. Worked good until a diesel engine was started and I had to listen to the clankclankclank of that thing idling for a few hours.

Use good judgement, but it works in a pinch.

[cdfnchico]

I agree that overnight parking at Walmart isn't camping, but it is a safer alternative to Hwy rest areas when needing to catch a few winks. Both Yosemite and the coast are farther away than practical for to drive to after work and get a headstart on a weekend. But there are a couple Walmarts we can make it to. Pull in, get some rest, get up early and continue to our location. My understanding is that as a corporation WalMart allows overnight parking, but that some cities and municipalities do not allow it. For my iPhone there is an app called ONP Walmart (Overnight Parking) It tells you which stores allow parking, gives some reviews and tips re where to park etc. Pretty nifty!

[Backroads4me]

Oh gosh NOOOOOOOOOOOO! I work in a "Big Box" retail establishment (hint, hint), and the very last thing I want to see when I get up in the morning, on my time off, ---is the sun coming up over a WalMart sign. Since we like to travel the "old road" alignments, back roads and do our best to avoid the interstates ("Friends don't let friends drive the interstate!"), we're going to be passing by Walmarts (or other large lots) anyway. Most of our one or two night excursions are within reasonable driving distance. We'll plan accordingly should we make a cross country or multi state trip.

In defense of Walmart lot camping, yes----most Walmarts allow RV parking overnight. My Walmart used to have "No overnight semi or RV parking" signs at each entrance (local town ordinance), but the signs disappeared years ago. Meanwhile, there's plenty of rigs parking each night on the outer fringes of the lot. Doesn't seem to be a problem unless you unload all your chairs, bicycles, grills, etc (like a small convoy of RV trailers recently did) and block a parking lot lane of traffic. What were these people thinking?