Should I Try Autocamp in Yosemite?
Best Camping Experience For Families in Yosemite
I would not classify myself as an outdoor enthusiast. Don’t get me wrong, I love being outside, but I am not typically one who seeks outdoor camping. Instagram go to my head at one point and I made an impulse purchase back in the summer of 2019.
This was not your average impulse purchase. We were in Michigan at my parent lake house, and on the side of the road I saw a pop up camper for sale. To be specific, it was a 1973 Hi-Lo Travel Camper Trailer. Writing about it now is making me long for the camper. Spoiler alert, we don’t have it anymore (insert crying emoji).
The camper was for sale for $500. Worked great, had all original design features. It was a dump! But I had big goals of revamping it and turning it into the cutest most amazing travel camper for my family. We negotiated $375 for the camper, and needed to immediately replace the tires. We replaced the tires for $150.
We towed her home. My husband started to become increasingly concerned with the game plan. All he saw was a ton of work for him. He doubted my ability and drive to fix up our camper. Within a year, she was put out to pasture.
We didn’t even sell it for money. A friend towed her away. I am not sure they are using it or if they had it remodeled. I think about that camper all the time. I want it back, at least that’s what I tell myself. What I really want is a Pottery Barn limited edition Airstream. If this was my primary living space, I’d totally get one. The price of $165k is not bad if you lived out of it!
My kids say they don’t want to live in Illinois when they are older, so our retirement plan may be to live out of the Airstream and travel state to state to visit them. In the meantime, my vintage camper/airstream dreams were not muted.
In 2021, my husband and I went on a week-long road trip. It started with a family trip and Bears game in Las Vegas. It was a blast! After the long weekend, we rented a car and headed west.
One of our planned stops was in Yosemite National Park. On this six day roadtrip, we planned to stay in five different hotels. A lot - I know! One of the sites was two days at Autocamp.
Is Autocamp worth it? ABSOLUTELY! For a great rate, we were able to enjoy two nights at Autocamp Yosemite. I was in my happy place the moment we checked in. We were in Big Sur - how fitting! The lobby gave all the luxury lodge feels. It was in the 40’s when we arrived, and they had warm fires blazing. It was very cozy.
These campsites are owned by Airstream. There were so many cute airstream campers on parade. I was in camper heaven. For someone who does not enjoy typical camping, but has dreams of camping luxury - this was THE SPOT.
The inside of our camper Airstream was SO cute. I was obsessed with the look and feel of the camper. It was warm and had everything we needed. Our outside porch had seating and a campfire area. We were able to purchase wood to create our own fire, which we did on the first night.
If you have every wanted to see what it is like to have an Airstream, do yourself a favor and stay at Autocamp. You will get a birds-eye view of the airstream life. I ate it up!
