Do you have a bucket list of Michigan destinations? Check off a few next season and ensure you get there by planning early.

Many campgrounds, parks, and resorts fill up very quickly, especially at popular spots such as around national lakeshores, national forests, and the UP (yup, the whole UP, because there just aren’t as many choices). Campsites with RV hookups at these locations can be competitive to reserve.

For state campgrounds, as well as for sites at national lakeshores and forests, the Michigan DNR has a handy reservation website. This allows campers to start making their reservations six months in advance of your start date. So if you want to go on vacation June 8-17, you could have reserved your spot at your chosen campground on December 8 (and you’ll probably have your pick!). This applies if you are planning a trip for July, August, September, etc. An exception is group booking, if you’re planning on having a lot of people (more than six) traveling and experiencing a destination together.

Many private campgrounds, parks, and resorts have online booking systems. Some of them are ready to receive your 2017 reservation. Some online booking systems aren’t updated until the early spring. All of this will depend on the owner’s personal preference. For those who do not have online booking capabilities, and there’s only a telephone number or email address to contact, it doesn’t hurt to send an email or leave a message. Most owners will get back to you.

Now is not the time to go into hibernation mode. It’s the perfect opportunity to start reserving your spots for next season. Even if you own a site at an RV park or RV resort and are there for most of the season, or you always like to go to the same place, take the opportunity to get away to some new destinations… and actually stay there in your RV for two or three days.

Make the decision now as to where and when you want to go, if you want to stay there and camp in the RV, and which campgrounds around your chosen destination have RV sites. Don’t wait until the last minute, or you might miss out.