Planning a road trip was a very new experience for me as someone who really likes having a clear plan and itinerary for every second of the vacation. The nature of a road trip required me to be a little more flexible which was stressful but also exciting to see where our travels took us! After deciding that we would get a camper van instead of a car and Air Bnb’s, we had to decide where we would stay at each stop of the trip. Would we try to camp at free sites or did we want to guarantee a comfortable spot with a reserved camp site?

My anxiety can’t handle winging it every night and hoping for a camp site, so we started looking at campgrounds but while scrolling on instagram I camp across something better, Hip Camp! We have had great experiences previously with Harvest Hosts and this gave the same vibes: unique camping at non traditional sites! I am all about enhancing our vacation so it was an easy choice to use Hip Camp even though each site was more expensive than your traditional camp ground.

The first day of our trip we needed a site around the West side of Olympic National Park. Sadly we only had time for one morning in the park and decided to explore the Hoh rainforest which was all the way around the Olympic Peninsula. It was one hell of a travel day, so we just needed somewhere to sleep. I found the perfect site at SolDuc Campground, a quiet tucked away location with very responsive hosts. I wish we had more time to spend at this camp site because it was a semi private site with a fire pit, toilets and beautiful river views. It was a little difficult to back the van in, but the site itself was spacious. The site was $35/night with the total coming to $44.31 with the booking fees.

The next day we headed south to our next campsite in Skamokawa, Washington. This site was a little out of the way from our next destination, but let me tell you, it was 1000% worth it. My husband and I are huge animal lovers, but he has a very special place in his heart for two very specific animals: sloths and goats. I have tried my hardest over the years to get him to be able to hold a sloth with no success, but I was able to deliver on the next best thing, baby goats! I found a campsite that was on a working goat milk farm. Not only did they have goats, but they also had chickens, sheep and pigs.

We pulled up to the Skamokawa Farmstead Creamery and were immediately greeted by two huge and incredibly friendly pigs who wanted all of our attention and pets which I was more than happy to provide. The hosts showed us where to park and set up camp and then told us all about their farm, animals and how they operate a working goat creamery! When we got back from dinner we got a full tour of the creamery and barn and learned how they make all of their goat milk products. After that we had a one of a kind experience and most memorable camping experience of our lives. We got to go in the stall with 20 adorable baby goats who immediately swarmed us demanding our love. I have never been more happy to be sitting on a barn stall floor than I was right there with baby goats climbing all over me. To make it even better they also had baby sheep and piglets too! The site was $45/night with the total coming to $53.10 with the booking fees. Honestly, I would pay more for this site because the experience was so unique.

The Next site we stayed at was called The Terrace in Newport, OR which was our last stop before heading to Bend. We live on the East Coast just about as far away as you can get from the West Coast, so seeing the Pacific Ocean was definitely a priority on this trip. The Terrace immediately caught my eye with its huge sites and breathtaking views of the coast and sunset. When we arrived the owner met us at the gate to take us through his property to our site. His property was HUGE and it was clear how much time and passion he put into creating each of this sites. When we arrived to our site, he offered to take us to one that was up even higher with better views that was not occupied. The site was sprawling and had the most incredible views of the ocean and sunset. When I was looking back through our reservations, it looks like his property is no longer available on HipCamp, but hopefully it will return some day! The site was $50/night with the total coming to $59.00 with the booking fees.

The last site we stayed at was called The Getaway which was basically just someones side yard with RV hookups, but it was perfect for what we needed! We arrived late and were leaving early the next morning to go hiking so we just needed somewhere to park. The site was clean and in a quite neighborhood. The site was $45/night with the total coming to $57.73 with the booking fees.

I know these prices are expensive compared to traditional campgrounds, but I am always happy to pay more for a unique site, experience or proximity to where we are hiking. If you spen a little bit of time browsing the Hip Camp site or app you will see how incredible some of these sites are! We will absolutely be using Hip Camp in the future to add to our travel memories.