GM Jay Jamison Discusses The Allure Of His Central Coast Destination & Its Dynamic Beach Power
Located just north of Santa Barbara and south of San Luis Obispo, Pismo Beach offers that right balance of California Living with coastal sprawl. It is the place where Donny from “The Big Lebowski” spent a lot of his time surfing and its proximity to the great sea is undeniable. GM Jay Jamison, who grew up only a small ways down the road in the Santa Ynez Vallley, understands the power of such a place and how Pismo Coast Village RV Resort is such a dynamic place to stay and be.
The Buzz: Where are you geographically?
Jay Jamison: We are actually within the city limits of Pismo Beach… just across the creek. You’re less than a 15 minute walk from all the restaurants, shopping and the pier. [It is an] ideal location. We are not only on the beach but our guests can walk into town or ride your bikes very easily. It creates another amenity that we don’t have to provide.
The Buzz: How do you speak to people about this area of Cali who are coming in from elsewhere?
JJ: We have excellent weather. We always tell people to use Pismo Coast Village as their home base as they explore our county and the Central Coast area because there are a lot of areas to see within an hour drive of the resort. You can go to Moreau Bay, Hearst Castle, wine taste…there are over 300 wineries nearby if you want to do that. There are all kinds of hiking and biking trails. We have casinos south of us…less than an hour. There are a lot of opportunities for people to come into the area if they really want to lay down a base to hang out.
The Buzz: There is a definite uniqueness to the park as well and that involves a specific focus on infrastructure.
JJ: We have 400 sites. We offer facilities with full hook ups…and we just upgraded our Wi-Fi with fiber optics so we have a real fast, easy to get on Wi-Fi system that we are getting a lot of positive comments about. We are a family park. We don’t have long terms stays so it is all people who are recreational users of their RVs. That makes it in some ways unique because everybody who’s here is either here because they want to be here for up to a month or they are passing through just enjoying the area. We get a lot of foreign travelers. And that is because we are in proximity to the north and south bound Highway 101. It is the scenic highway 1 which in itself is an attraction, especially north of us with the cliffs. If you travel between the Bay Area and San Luis Obispo you hit a beautiful section. It is kind of iconic in a lot of ways. And that way you go past Hearst Castle…and the elephant seals which are incredible to go out on the beach and have the dosens tell you about the seals.
For the resort itself, there are a lot of things to keep people here. However, we encourage people to really explore and visit the community too. We are dog friendly. We allow people up to three well-mannered pets. It is a relaxed atmosphere. We keep our pricing to where it is all inclusive when it comes to the fact that the rate includes the Wi-Fi We don’t try to charge extra for amenities. It is pretty much a nightly rate and you get everything that we offer.
The Buzz: Plus, beyond the Elephants Seals, there is ample wildlife in walking distance of the resort.
JJ: We see the whales from the shore a lot. Almost daily you will see some kind of marine activity whether it is dolphins or the whales. We also have a freshwater lagoon that goes around by the resort so you are going to see a lot of water fowl activity…pelicans…lots of different kinds of ducks. So, from a natural standpoint, you are going to see a lot of things that will take your interest. The lagoon [itself] is natural.
The Buzz: Looking at the bird’s eye view: proximity to the pier and what looks like a drivable beach seem apparent.
JJ: Two things you bring up. If you look at the aerial photograph, you can see the pier in the background. So we can use that photograph to let people know without much words show the proximity of us to the Pismo Pier and downtown Pismo Beach. It is an easy access to make that walking loop outside the resort. And you mentioned the driving….We’re just north of the Oceano off-road vehicle park where you can actually take your vehicles out on the beach. This is one of the only places in California you can do that. There are places on the East Coast but not so much California. There are two access points. You have to go through a kiosk that is manned by the California State Parks personnel. It is an experience that people come here specifically for. You can get out there with a four wheel drive and go up on the dunes. That’s fun. But there are also a lot of companies that can take you out on hummers onto the dunes or you can rent ATVs to go out on your own.
The Buzz: What has generated the integral nature for in how Pismo Coast Village RV Resort has had to evolve?
JJ: The first thing is just the increase of the RV industry and the demands of the RVer over the years. They want bigger, more powerful RVs with a lot more amenities in them. That facilitated Pismo Coast Village kind of staying ahead of the curve where we decided to go ahead and renovate the resort over a period of ten years. What that meant is that every year we would close down a section of the resort. It might be anywhere from 25 to 50 campsites. We would totally abandon all the old utilities, even the underground where we put in new sewer, electric and water lines based on what the demands were for the modern RV which would be the 50 amp service and making it as large as possible. [It was also about] making room for all their slide outs and what they would bring with them. Now we basically have a new resort…built not in 1972, like it originally was, but built in the 2000s. We have done this with our restroom facilities also. In a lot of ways we have a park that’s built better and more efficient because of California’s drought. We’ve put water on share hoses. Everything’s low flow. [We’re really] trying to do our part to be as lean as we can. That’s been one of those evolutionary items that’s been very significant for our company as we’ve tried to look into the future.
Tim Wassberg
A graduate of New York University's Tisch School Of The Arts with degrees in Film/TV Production & Film Criticism, Tim has written for magazines such as Moviemaker, Moving Pictures, Conde Nast Traveler UK and Casino Player. He enjoys traveling and distinct craft beers among other things.
Make Sure to Stay At:
Pismo Coast Village RV Resort where visitors can relax to the sound of the surf, scent of the salt air, and the feel of an ocean breeze on California's Central Coast. It won't take a visitor long to realize they have discovered a unique RV camping paradise on the ocean.