Grand Forks AFB FamCamp

Other than being a little far from the city of Grand Forks, we enjoyed our stay here on the way to Alaska. The campground is in an old demolished housing area, so the hookups are a little strange. Where we were parked near the restrooms, I would have needed 30 ft of sewer hose to reach the connection from our 23 ft trailer. Fortunately we didn't need to dump at the site, and used the dump station on the way out. Everything else worked, good power, good cable, good water, etc. The WiFi was a little iffy, because the Barn Swallows had built a massive mud nest over the antenna. You could get a reliable signal by going inside the laundry, but watch for the bird droppings. The base facilities are good although not the biggest we have seen. Personnel at the Outdoor Rec office were very friendly and helpful. And, there is a very impressive display on the history of the base next to the commissary. I recommend you take a stroll around that. If we come this way again, we'll stay here again, although we did get a little tired of being jolted out of bed by Reveille each morning. The speakers are huge and very near the campground.

I've reviewed this before, when the base was a large KC-135 refueling center. Under ACC and AMC, millions of dollars were spent updating and replacing much of ADC's and SAC's structures, remaining from the early days in the 50's and 60's. Within the last two to three years the mission of the base's 'owner', the 319th ABW, has changed from operating a major aircraft wing with wartime overseas missions occurring day in and day out to that of little more than a caretaker to the two tenant flying units, US Border Protection and ACC's Global Hawk drones. In 2000 there were 4,200 people on base, recent estimates are there now are about 2,000. That has resulted in far fewer operating hours for many services, including one of the newest and best equipped fitness centers (Olympic size pool, lap pool, squash/handball courts, and well over 100 various machines, as well as a huge free weight room), library, club, etc. Several years ago hundreds of new family quarters were built, some are occupied, many are not. Dormitories and VQ buildings are all new within the last ten years, yet the parking lots are about 1/4 full. Some unpaved walking trails and an excellent BMX trail, as well as family garden plots and a nature center are now abandoned and overgrown. The famcamp remains an excellent value, with full connections available to 21 spaces. The famcamp is on a huge parcel of land, and roads and sidewalks show that when first planned, there could be as many as 50 to 60 spaces. In the rare event that the full hookups are all taken, there are what amounts to a nearly unlimited number of places to dry camp, Not all electrical kiosks work, now do all the cable TV connections, although they are marked, and over the last couple years a lot of coax cable has been spread above ground to enable people to hookup in the event their pedestals no longer work. The laundry is clean, and men's latrine needed new toilet paper (which we supplied), but the heat worked and the showers were excellent and hot! Still just $12 a night, or $6 with Golden Eagle pass. Clearly maintenance has been reduced, you are on your own in many ways, but it is a GREAT place to stay without being hassled or bothered. Commissary small but very nice. BX OK too. 15 miles to downtown Grand Forks. This is our third time here, as well as several times without camping, staying in quarters. VERY clean and tidy base.

Our first time at this famcamp and we love it. The girls at Outdoor Rec were very friendly and extremely helpful. This is a famcamp that doesn't hand you a list of rules and regs. They are more concerned with the customer than with keeping the grass green. Just come and relax. We just wish this base was closer to Oregon so we could visit more frequently.

I reviewed this CG before and it was a good review. An update is that now they have WiFi, in fact, I am posting this review from our campsite. They also have cable for TV and the grass did not need cutting this time. All in all, a very nice campground.

The Famcamp is in a nice location on base and the facilities were clean. It did not have WiFi. They will accept National Park Access Pass.

GFAFB FamCamp is a very good value. For $12/night ($6) if you have a Golden Age Pass, it is very much worth it. We arrived when it was relatively full and had to park in an open area with no shade. We moved to a shaded area after a couple of days and it was very nice. The bug sprayers still drive around once a week. Good note on bringing longer cords an sewer hoses. The shaded areas have full hookups, but they are on the (PS) wrong side. Facilities (laundry and restrooms/showers) are very clean. They get serviced every day. Outdoor Rec staff friendly helpful and responsive. Campsites are level, some have campfire rings, some with and with/out shade. Maintenance on the FamCamp is sketchy. The grass gets cut weekly but 2 campsites have water leaks and the base has corrected it after two attempts. The pavement is needing repair because large trucks go through the area from one side of the base to the other. Road repair doesn't seem likely. Not sure about the future of the base. The air planes left in Dec 2010 and the rumor is the the UAV wing is ramping up to go operational with in the next year. Meanwhile, on base housing is being emptied in the older sections. All in all - it worked fine for us. The base commissary and BX are small but adequate and they have a nice 9 hole golf course. We camped in a 40' motor home and would do it again.

Nice park and the price is the best value for any military campground. With the Golden Passport or Golden Access Pass the daily rate is reduced from $12.00/night to $6.00 night. Access through the Cargo Gate is tricky on the weekends. The Cargo Gate is closed on Saturday and Sunday and is probably closed after working hours. I had to call the base info, who in turn transferred me to base security. I had to wait 20 minutes for someone to open the cargo gate. And then I went through a canine inspection. I would not recommend trying the main gate with a big rig! Showers are clean, campground is clean, the clerks at Outdoor Recreation are friendly but clueless (did not know who emptied the washers/dryers of quarters). They did not have enough change for $10.00 worth of quarters. Mosquitoes are terrible this time of year but they do spray at least once a week. I would have rated the park higher if it had wi-fi and cable TV. I was able to pick up NBC, ABC, CBS and PBS with an antenna (and digital TV).

G.L. left this review using the Directory software: Lots of ticks and mosquitoes this time of year. C130 sprayed the base one afternoon, how's that for service. Southern Saskatchewan and North Dakota having lots of flood problems. The campground is an old housing area, quiet. Great place to stay. Choice of trees or open area.

Grand Forks AFB has a great FamCamp and the price is definitely great. However there has been a recent change on how to enter the base in an RV. The directions above sent you to the Main Gate of the base, but now you must go to the Cargo Gate which is 1-1/2 miles further west on Hwy 2. When through the Cargo Gate, you will be on Eielson St which is a straight through drive to Outdoor Rec (on the right) and then after registering continue on to the FamCamp.

Outstanding facilities in all respects; even had mosquito spray truck servicing camping area. Entire Outdoor Recreation Dept staff most courteous, friendly, and helpful.....even giving cafe recommendation for upcoming visit to geographical center of North Mmerica in Rugby ND. Definitely stop there next trip in area.

L.O. left this review using the Directory software: This base rec. area is very clean, open, BX is being updated, we will stop there often as our G-son is going to UND.... very happy with campground.

We had a very pleasant stay at this CG. The only mark down in rating was because the grass needed cutting pretty badly. Otherwise, the facilities were clean and well maintained. Check-in isn't right in the campground area but it's easy to find at MWR. The guy at MWR was helpful and very nice. There were not many campers there which was a plus if you want peace and quiet. We had a nice shaded site near the fence. We will willingly stay there again, probably next year when we go to Oregon.

We are currently here at one of the best FAMCamps we have run into. The facilities are new or near new and the people that run the facility could not be nicer. The commissary has some of the best deals going, we bought steaks for $1.45 a pound, fresh fruit, and nice veggies. Of the sites available, only one is unoccupied. Regular price is $12.00 a night and with a Golden Age pass it's $6.00. Cannot beat the deal. The only drawback would be the location of the e/w/s in relation to the RV.

For a BRAC listed base Grand Forks has a lot going on. Most of the base facilities appeared to be near new and in excellent condition. The BX and Commissary are top notch. The FamCamp is located in a quiet area with great facilities. Restrooms with showers and a laundry room just for FamCamp residents. Pretty popular as it was near full when we were there. A very good value even without the Golden Age Passport.

R.O. left this review using the Directory software: This is a great facility. All the sites I saw had 50A service, sewage and water.