Harvest Hosts Review: Is It Worth It?

You heard about Harvest Hosts and now you want the honest truth about it. Is it actually something you'd use, or is it just another hyped up RV membership?

How does it actually work? What's the cost? And how helpful is it really in finding safe, quiet, and affordable places to spend the night on the road? Those are all questions we're going to answer in this review.

We've lived and traveled full-time in our campervan for several years. Out of necessity, we've become experts in finding good places to spend the night without breaking the bank. And the reality is: it's not always easy.

Campgrounds are often crowded and expensive. Boondocking is amazing when it's possible, but there isn't reliable public land everywhere. And parking lots or rest stops? They work in a pinch, but they're rarely ever relaxing.

Harvest Hosts is our back pocket solution to all of that. It's affordable, and gives you a guaranteed spot in a quiet, relaxing, and safe place. They're never crowded, because guest numbers are limited, sometimes to only a few people. And they can be found all over the country.

In this post, we'll break down how the membership program works, what the full cost is, and our honest pros and cons from years of experience using it - along with a few personal stories. Then we'll address whether or not it's a smart fit for you.

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Our Personal Experience: A Harvest Hosts Review

Having lived in our campervan full-time now for several years, we've experienced a broad range of overnight stays.

We've had plenty of evenings out on public land, surrounded by nature without another soul in sight, but we've also shared many parking lots and highway rest areas with fellow nomads.

One additional option we've had this whole time was a Harvest Hosts membership.

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Before we even set out on the road, a family member bought us our first year's subscription. And, in fact, the first couple of nights we spent living in the van were with Harvest Hosts. We really wanted to ease into the lifestyle and not have to stress about where we'd be sleeping right off the bat.

And that is the biggest highlight of our personal experience using Harvest Hosts: it's not something we're using every single week, or even every month. But, when we need it, it's an easy and stress free way to have a good night's sleep.

The second biggest perk we've enjoyed is how unique the locations are.

Those first two stays? One was a moonshine distillery in Tennessee, where we got a private tour of their facility and learned how the process works.

The other was a small horse rescue. In the morning we took our coffee, walked around with the owner, and got to meet and interact with all the animals.

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Harvest Hosts tend to be places that we'd otherwise miss while passing through the area. They're safe and generally very quiet places to stay that help introduce us to new and interesting experiences.

So, yes, we've been Harvest Hosts members for several years, having renewed it twice now after that first year.

We've never had a bad experience, though there have been a few communication hiccups with hosts, which we'll get into later.

Overall we'd certainly recommend it to most RVers or Vanlifers like ourselves. It's not a perfect fit for everyone and so we're going to really dig into the benefits and drawbacks throughout this post to help you make a decision on whether it's worth it for you personally.

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How Does Harvest Hosts Work?

An annual membership with Harvest Hosts gives you access to thousands of host locations throughout the country.

After choosing a membership level, you can browse hosts in the app or on your computer, check their availability, and request a stay. Instead of paying a campground fee, you agree to patronize and support the business, by making a purchase or donation. In exchange, you get to spend the night on their property.

That's Harvest Hosts in its simplest form, but let's address some of the most common questions.

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Membership Levels & Cost

Getting right to the point: how much does this cost?

There are three annual membership levels, starting at $99 per year. The least expensive Harvest Hosts Classic membership gives you access to 5000+ hosts, which include wineries, breweries/distilleries, farms, and museums or other attractions.

A Harvest Hosts + Boondockers Welcome membership will cost you $169 per year, but opens up 9000+ locations to choose from. Boondockers Welcome was previously a separate program that started out with a 'couch surfing' concept - hosts could make extra space such as their driveway or private parking space available for RVers.

In 2021, Harvest Hosts acquired BW and it's now included in this mid-tier level. There are currently more than 3500 BW locations. If you're a community-minded person this can add some major benefits, and we'll discuss Boondockers Welcome in more detail below.

The third membership level is an All Access plan. It includes everything in the Harvest Hosts + Boondockers Welcome level, plus 300+ golf courses, and some additional membership perks like discounts at certain campgrounds. It costs $179 per year.

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How to Save on Harvest Hosts

It's almost always possible to get a 15% discount on your Harvest Hosts membership. Visit this sign-up page and you should see a banner advertising it at the top. If not, you can try using the promo code FRIENDS15 at checkout, or look for their email subscriber opt-in form.

With this discount you're looking at $85 - $152 for the annual membership.

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Nightly Costs

The other cost to consider is what you're expected to spend with your host. What makes Harvest Hosts work is that businesses are opening up extra space on their property to bring in additional customers. In the past, Harvest Hosts recommended spending at least $20, but in the recent past they've increased that to $30.

When we stay at a winery or brewery, we go in and enjoy a tasting or a couple of drinks. We may purchase some food if they offer that as well. We're getting something very tangible for our money, plus a place to stay, and they get our business - it's a win-win!

So what about other types of hosts? That horse rescue, for example. They were a non-profit organization so we made a donation. We've also paid for tours at museums and other attractions.

No matter what, it's always less expensive than paying for a campground.

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Where You Can Stay: Harvest Hosts Locations

The second biggest question always asked is: where are Harvest Hosts located?

And the answer is, everywhere.

As you can see from the map below, they're coast to coast, throughout the United States and Canada.

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We've used Harvest Hosts to our advantage many times on the eastern side of the country. Free public land for boondocking can readily be found out west, but it's a lot less common on the East Coast.

Even in some western states we've struggled to always find a reliable place to spend the night, particularly in urban areas.

Rather than risking a knock on our windows in the middle of the night, we've opted to find an available host. Sometimes they're conveniently located right in town where you want/need to be. Other times they're just on the outskirts of major towns and cities.

However, there's rarely a shortage of Harvest Hosts sites in tricky areas, especially when combined with Boondockers Welcome.

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Advantages of Boondockers Welcome

So, a little more on that. The idea behind Boondockers Welcome is that folks (commonly fellow RVers) who have some extra space available open it up to travelers at no cost. In exchange for a stay you can, of course, offer some money or lend a hand in some other way.

But generally, BW hosts are happy to just help out other like-minded people for a night or two.

Though you have to pay the extra annual fee to access Boondockers Welcome, this could pay off in the long run, since you're not really expected to spend $30 per stay.

Boondockers Welcome hosts aren't quite as numerous as Harvest Hosts, but they can still be found across the country and are particularly concentrated east of the Mississippi.

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Size & Vehicle Restrictions: RVers and Vanlifers

So, there have to be some limitations, right? Yes.

Each host will have their own size restrictions based on the property and we've found that they're usually very clear about this in the description. Harvest Hosts says that about 80% of their locations can accommodate vehicles of any size. You can also filter hosts by vehicle length.

One requirement, though is that you have a self-contained RV or vehicle. You must have a toilet inside and a holding tank that stores wastewater. Any vehicle type that meets the requirement is allowed. That includes motorhomes, fifth wheels, travel trailers, toy haulers, campervans, truck campers, pop-ups and schoolies.

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You can't dump gray or black water at a HH location and there are generally no hook-ups. Some hosts may provide electric or water for an additional fee.

You also can't grill or cook food outside your vehicle.

Based on these limitations, Harvest Hosts isn't available for car campers or tent campers, including overlanding rigs with a rooftop tent.

We think all of these limitations make sense, given that you're parking for the night at a small business. But, based on your setup, if any of these are a deal breaker for you, then Harvest Hosts may not be the best fit.

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Requesting A Stay: The App & Website

In the past couple years the Harvest Hosts app and website have undergone some changes and improvements. It seems to us that they're actively listening to user feedback and trying to improve their product.

Using the app is pretty straightforward.

The main screen will default to a map of your location, where you can see hosts indicated by pins of different categories: winery, brewery, attraction, and (optionally) golf course, or Boondockers Welcome site.

Clicking on a host let's you see their full listing, which includes host and guest submitted photos, a star rating from past reviews, and important information such as max vehicle length, how many nights they allow, and if they offer any other amenities.

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Each host provides their own description and operating hours. There's an availability calendar you can click on to select the date(s) you want to book.

When setting up your account you'll be asked to provide information about yourself, such as rig type and size, whether or not you travel with any pets, etc. When requesting a stay, this info auto-populates, then you can add any necessary details and submit your request.

We've had our stay requests approved in anywhere from 30 minutes to a couple days later. Usually within 24 hours.

On that note, we have had two negative experiences with host communication.

Once, where a host simply never responded to our booking request. While searching for alternative places to stay, we were left wondering if they'd approve it last minute or not. In the end, we found somewhere else and chose to cancel the request.

The other time, our request was approved, but we sent a message to coordinate our arrival with them. They never responded to that, so we got in late, after business hours.

The parking lot was nearly full, including their designated Harvest Hosts spots. Since we had an approved stay, we squeezed into one remaining spot and went to sleep. They were closed the following day and we ended up never hearing from them.

Those were isolated cases and obviously had to do with the individual hosts, rather than the program itself.

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We've experienced a few quirks, such as not always being notified of a message sent by the host, but nothing major.

The website experience closely mirrors that of the app. You can easily browse host locations on the map and filter by a number of different parameters.

On either platform you can send and receive messages with hosts in a familiar, chat-like environment.

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The Benefits of A Harvest Hosts Membership

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It’s an affordable and safe way to camp.

For us, the biggest draw is that it's an easy, stress-free way to find a safe place for the night.

We'll be some of the first to recommend free boondocking on public land as often as possible. But, there's no denying that finding and vetting safe, legal spots on a day-to-day basis can be tiresome and take the fun out of this lifestyle.

It's also affordable compared to the rising costs of public and private campgrounds and can even be used on short notice - have you tried walking up or getting a reservation at popular campgrounds these days? Pretty difficult.

We've been able to get a same-day request approved on Harvest Hosts several times.

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The host locations are interesting and unique

Did we mention the time we spent the night at a historic WWII airfield? It was a key training facility during the Manhattan Project and the money we spent there got us a guided tour through the entire airfield, plus a great history lesson.

In the morning, we made our coffee and carried it up to the top of the old control tower for some views of the surrounding area.

That's what we mean by interesting and unique stays.

There are alpaca farms, cheesemakers, churches, art studios, and small off-the-wall museums. Places you might otherwise never discover.

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Your money supports a small local business

We have nothing against spending our money with campgrounds, but we find that we're usually helping pay overhead costs and not benefiting from the amenities. We rarely, if ever, plug our van into shore power. We don't need full hook-ups.

Oftentimes, we simply need a place to park for the night.

So, we'd prefer to spend our money with a small business, in exchange for something tangible, like a meal, tour, or drinks. Harvest Hosts lets us do exactly that.

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It's easy to use and everything is handled through the app

Within a few minutes, you can browse hosts in the area, narrow them down by your preferences, and submit a stay request. You'll generally hear back within 24 hours and then you can message back and forth in the app.

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You (may) get special discounts with a membership

The top-tier All Access membership includes some discounts that might make the extra $10-$70 worth it for some. The Campground Partners perk gets you up to a 50% discount at 1200+ RV parks and campgrounds in their network, including some Jellystone, KOA, and Sun Outdoors locations.

Additionally, there are discount offers for all sorts of RV and vanlife related things, such as a mail forwarding, tire purchases, and roadside assistance.

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The Downsides of Harvest Hosts

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There are limits on how long you can stay

It used to be that you could only request one night with a host. Now you can see and even filter by hosts who offer multiple nights. (Thank you for adding that feature Harvest Hosts!)

They may charge an extra fee or just request that you spend additional money during your visit.

Either way, you can't book stays that last more than a few days. Advantage: traditional campgrounds.

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You may need to coordinate with the host

One of the only difficulties we run into using Harvest Hosts is making sure we arrive at the right time. As full time adventurers, who are often packing our schedules full from sunrise to sunset, we typically roll into a campsite or parking spot late in the day.

When staying with a host, you'll need to make sure you arrive during business hours to patronize them. If you can't, you'd need to give them notice and make sure a late arrival is approved, then visit them the next morning.

We've had a few stays where it was required that we meet up with the host in person to be given access to the property or be shown our parking spot. That doesn't always work out perfectly with our schedule, so we have to shift things around.

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You probably won't have hook-ups.

Most hosts don't offer water or electricity hook-ups, although there are exceptions. You can filter your search by those needs, but typically you're looking at more of a boondocking/dry camping experience rather than what you'd get at a traditional campground.

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Availability is hit or miss.

Just like with anything else, when demand is high you'll need more time to plan ahead. There can be a lot more flexibility in using Harvest Hosts, but don't expect to always find a spot during peak season in a popular area.

Hosts manage their availability independently and sometimes you can request a stay several months out. Other times it may be limited to a few weeks.

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Host communication isn't always perfect.

Let's face it - these are businesses that have a lot going on besides just managing their Harvest Hosts account, unlike a dedicated campground, which should be used to dealing with guest inquiries all the time.

Communication isn't always perfect or as fast as you might like. Sometimes it can take several days to hear back and have a request approved.

Some hosts will provide their phone number so, if messaging through the app isn't working well, you could always call them up and try to speak with someone.

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Is Harvest Hosts Worth It?

So the bottom line is this: we'd definitely recommend Harvest Hosts as an option for most RV travelers, campervan owners, or nomads like ourselves who have a self-contained rig. But we also recognize that it's not a universal fit for everyone.

It's hard to accurately gauge the average cost of a campground, but according to most sources it ranges from $20-$80 per night, depending on how basic or luxurious you want to go.

At $30, one night with a Harvest Host falls squarely in the average for a lower end, basic campsite. And instead of just getting a parking spot with a picnic table or fire ring, you're getting drinks, a meal, or something from a farmer's market, etc.

We've also found that the hospitality of many hosts is second to none. More often than not we're blown away by how welcoming and generous these folks are. They take pride in what they do and it shows.

We'll never forget the time we stayed at a winery on a lake and the owner insisted that we hang out, eat our dinner, and enjoy some wine overlooking the surrounding vineyards, even after their patio was closed for the night.

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You do need to factor in the annual membership fee, but we think the advantages of having access to thousands of locations across the country, sometimes with same-day availability, make the whole package worth it.

If you're interested in signing up for Harvest Hosts, remember to use our link and get a 15% discount on your first year.

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Who Shouldn't Sign Up For It?

We'll be totally honest here. If you either can't afford to spend the $30 with a host or don't want to, then you shouldn't sign up. We've actually seen some complaining across the Internet about how that's too much "for a parking space."

And those people have missed the point.

Yes, you're parking for the night without any hook-ups. But the whole concept of HH is that they're letting you stay on their property to bring in more business.

Buy a bottle of wine, pick up some fresh produce from a market, or pay for a tour. Feel good about supporting small businesses, and enjoy your quiet night in a safe spot.

But please don't join HH and then take advantage of the program.

Obviously, if you're not self-contained, then it's not a good fit.

We have nothing against law-abiding, responsible car campers, but we've found that these limitations actually help filter out some of the sketchier folks you might find in, say, a Walmart or Cracker Barrel parking lot. If you know, you know!

Similarly, if you depend on full hook-ups, or can't imagine going one night without a "traditional" campground experience (outdoor cooking, campfire, generator, etc.) then you may need to think twice about a membership.

Personally, we still think Harvest Hosts can make a great option for any kind of RVer. You could simply use it on stop-overs between destinations.

Either way, we hope you've learned something from this honest Harvest Hosts review and that it's been helpful in making a decision!

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