Campground Review: Jolley Camper RV & Cottages, Ashton, Idaho

Introduction:

This isn't the biggest or fanciest campground around, but the people who own it are incredibly friendly and their customer service is wonderful.

The Basics:

Overall Rating: 4/5

Price per night / Discounts: $23 / They have a weekly rate of $150 and they pro-rate your stay after that, so we ended up paying about $23.00 per night with taxes. Their regular rate is $30.00 per night.

Campground website: Jolley Camper RV & Cottages

Our Site #: 13 FHU

Privacy Rating (how spacious and private do the sites feel):

2.5/5: This is a very small campground where RVs are parallel parked in two different areas. The first is a loop that surrounds a grove of trees; the second is along the perimeter of a large lawn. Some sites are more spacious than others, though none are particularly private. We were parked along the perimeter of the lawn and we felt like we had a decent amount of space, though not much privacy (it's all just one big open field). Sites in the loop around the grove of trees would be even more constricted because there's not much space to work with. While it's not a "parking lot campground" where you're looking into your neighbor's windows, it's also not a "sit outside and enjoy the sounds of nature" kind of place either.

Location Rating (accessibility to points of interest or to major highways):

3.5/5: This is a good place to stop when traveling to or from Yellowstone. It's about a 90 minute drive to Grand Teton National Park, so we only drove there once, but it is a workable day trip. Otherwise, there are some nice sightseeing options in the area (Mesa Falls was worth the short drive to see) and you're about 45 minutes from Idaho Falls. We saw a lot of people stopping at the campground for a night or two as they were headed through the region and we think it's a perfect place for that kind of stop.

Site Quality and Big Rig Accessibility Rating (utilities and accessibility of campground hook ups):

4/5: Our site was on the big grass lawn and it was large and level. We did need to put blocks down just to keep our jacks from sinking into the grass, but that wasn't a huge deal. The owner works hard to keep the grass looking nice, even with RVs driving over it. The sites that surround the large bank of trees are just dirt, but also appeared relatively level. We had no problems maneuvering through the campground. Utilities all worked well.

Technology and Customer Service Rating (online resources, reservations, and staff):

5/5: This place really shines because of its customer service. The husband and wife who own the campground and live on the property could not have been nicer. Not only are they friendly and helpful, they don't even require a deposit or credit card to hold your reservation. We had to change the dates of our reservation a couple times and we just emailed back and forth with them and they worked with our situation. No complaints, no issues... You can tell they work really hard to make the place nice and they go out of their way to help you out. I wish more campgrounds were this customer service oriented.

Internet Availability Rating (Verizon coverage or campground wifi):

5/5: Their wifi actually worked pretty well - another unexpected benefit at a tiny campground.

Summary:

We left this place with very good feelings because of how kind and flexible the owners were. We ran into some issues just before our reservation and they were incredibly understanding. We appreciated that they had a more than reasonable weekly rate of $150 and additional days were pro-rated, so it was an extremely affordable place to stay. It's definitely a pass-through campground for a lot of folks who are just staying for a night or two, but we stayed longer and we found it a good place to catch our breaths and relax. Customer service really does make all the difference and the owners of this campground understand that.

Campground Photos (Click for larger image):