“We are so excited and yet overwhelmed with the growth this year,” said Susan Novotny, who owns the park with her husband, Kyle. They purchased the land in 1999, opening their main building in 2007 and the campground in 2008.
Currently, the campground offers 37 sites, five cabins and one cottage, as well as a camp store, restroom facilities, dump station, laundry facilities, game room, “Triple K” Raceway and Camp “Grounds” Espresso Bar and Café.
The expansion will add 33 water and electric sites, three cabins, two park models, a 40x120 pavilion and pet park area. Special attractions will also include a jumping pillow, water-wars feature and several new bikes for campers to rent. All cabins are outfitted with Keurig coffee makers and a new security gate is also being installed.
Recently, Susan took time out of her day to answer a few questions from me via email.
1. You and your husband, Kyle, are avid campers, especially when your children were younger. How did this help prepare you for operating South Haven Family Campground?
It's funny really, it didn't! We would sit around a campfire and dream about owning one, what we would do or not do. Well in some way camping did, we seen what others did at their campgrounds and what we liked or did not like. But in the overall operation it did not. Running a campground is alot of work and we currently work full time jobs on the side. Now with this expansion I am going down to on-call. We jokingly say now, running a campground takes the fun out of camping.
2. The RV and camping industry is finally coming out of one of the most difficult economic times ever. Is South Haven Family Campground also experiencing this rebound, and is this what led you to undertake the expansion project?
We started in 2008, in the height of the $4/gal gas. We have nothing to compare to. We have always seen an increase but we only had 26 sites (2008) to begin with.
We turn a lot of cabins and RV site reservation away, so that was a natural choice. The pavilion was something that alot of groups ask for so they can have potlucks, meetings at, etc. We also have been working out of our maintenance garage for all of our crafts and activities. A pavilion was desperately needed. Since we can not afford a pool yet (next year) we wanted to have something that kids could enjoy and that was a much cheaper alternative.
4. What other amenities does South Haven Family Campground have to offer? What are some attractions of South Haven and the surrounding area?
We offer a Mining Sleuth, Volleyball, Horseshoes, Carpetball, Large Playground and Rec room. Each weekend is themed and offer activities within that theme. We also have a new activity this year, I can't tell you as we have a guessing game on facebook. The first person that figures it out will get FREE camping. The clue that is given out is that it is wet and it is round. We will be doing this activity for about 1 hour on Saturdays. We have rental bikes and we also have a large outside track that battery operated cars go on (purchased or rented).
South Haven is a great touristy town, great shops and restaurants in downtown. There are several museums that are available, my favorite is the Maritime Museum. There are many farms in the area for in season fruit, as well as many wineries that have tastings and tours. South Haven also offers the rainy day the option of bowling or movies. Many championship golf courses as well as mini golf for the youngsters. Horseback riding is a favorite to many of my campground guests. There is a national level road race track just a mile from the campground. My overall favorite it Lake Michigan (only 5 miles away) and the beautiful beaches that one can stand on the boardwalk or fish off the river. Not to mention the beautiful sunsets!
5. Final question. Many of us RVers and campers always envision how we might do things better if we owned a campground. As prepared as you might have been when opening South Haven Family Campground, there inevitably must have been certain surprises along the way. What are some of the pleasant surprises of operating a campground?
The #1 surprise was the friendships along the way. The good people we meet. After the first year in business I told my husband, when doing the business plan and trying to follow it along the way... No where did it talk about the people. That was the most welcoming and surprising aspect of owning a campground. You develop many friendships, Christmas Cards are sent, maybe a birth or a death along the way. Truly our guests end up being more like family.
Renting cabins at South Haven Family Campground start at $64 per night up to $159 per night, depending on the amenities. Two of the cabins have outdoor hot tubs, which means they usually are rented first.
Families enjoy unlimited activities at South Haven Family Campground, with themed weekends – including the September 28 Halloween Spooktacular and the “Everything Chocolate” Weekend with a chocolate slip-n-slide, chocolate pudding wrestling, chocolate milk guzzling (out of a baby bottle) and other planned activities. Craft projects and events like outdoor movies, are also offered throughout the summer.
South Haven Family Campground is open April 15 through October 30 each year. It has been one of the “A” rated parks for the fourth year in a row for customer service on GuestRated.com. Only 44 parks nationwide were given this honor in 2011.
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