Mail in the desert - which LTVA

[skibumone]

After checking out the options I think a standard 90 day PO Box is the best option. All the online mail forwarding services require a notarized form with 2 pieces of ID every time you want a new address which seems like a pain...and they want to charge to forward packages amazon, walmart, homedepot delivery for free. USPS doesnt require any of that and if you already have a PO Box the process of getting another one for 90 days is pretty simple.

Cant decide on where to get the PO Box tho and I would like to get it dialed in before I leave town for the desert next week so my mail from home is getting forwarded while Im on the road. Ive decided anything around Quartzite is going to be too crowded/slow during the season so La Posa is out. Midland and Mule Mtn seem less crowded and the Palo Verde Post Office looks pretty mellow. But everything up there seems isolated. I still have a lot more work to do on the RV and would like to be close to homedepot, metal mart, and Kroger store.

Thinking Yuma is best option for services, but Imperial dam ltva seems pretty crowded? Maybe P.Knob, Tamarisk, Hot Springs are better options? Winterhaven, CA has little post office that looks like it wouldnt be to busy...and there are several post offices around Yuma.

Any feedback on which post office is going to have shortest line at window for picking up oversized parcels, and info on adjacent LTVA (with preferably mellow vibe and moderate privacy) would be appreciated? Thanks in advance for your time and the valuable feedback, so far everyone seems knowledgeable n helpful.

Best CC

 

[maki2]

The post office in Parker AZ seems to be a good facility in my limited experience. That is where I am having my mail sent this month. They only do a once a year for 30 days for general delivery which is the standard. But I have not rented a P.O. Box there so I do not know about availability of boxes.

I know some of the people who stay at the La Posa LTVAs rent a P.O. Box at the small Post Office in Ehrenberg, AZ.

Both Parker and Ehrenberg have nearby BLM dispersed camping. Parker has a Walmart and lots of other amenities. Ehrenberg does not have a Walmart but nearby Blythe, CA idoes have an Albertsons and other affordable large grocery stores plus a Rite Aid pharmacy. People who stay in Quartzsite for the winter do a lot of their grocery shopping in Blythe, CA and Ehrenberg is on the way to Blythe, CA.

In Quartzsite there is the main Post office but there is also an annex building over near the police station. In that annex building are lots of P.O. Boxes. If you can rent one of those annex building boxes you would not have to deal with going into the main P.O. building other than to set up to rent a box.

Just remember that mail forwarding service is a time limited service. Be sure you check out the rules before you make decisions about what to do. Best plan is to try to get all bills and such done with internet communication and auto pay to your bank. Then you will have very little in the way of mail that needs forwarding.

 

[shadowmoss]

You could see if Amazon has delivery lockers near where you want to stay. I know Payson, where I spend parr of the year, has a couple of clusters of them at local gas stations. You just grab parcels from them lime a large post office box when you have a delivery.

 

[jacqueg]

I liked the post office in Blythe. Closer than Parker, and there's both an Albertson's and a Smart & Final there. Both of which I like better than WalMart.

Some folks recommend the PO in Ehrenburg, but I have no personal experience. Once you've gone to Ehrenburg, you might as well keep on going to Blythe, IMO.

No Amazon lockers in Q, but I believe there's one or two Amazon pick-up stops in Blythe. For Amazon packages, I'm using Quiet Times in Q this year, so far like them better than DCM.

 

[maki2]

Last winter I never could get an Amazon package accepted as deliverable into the Blythe hub counters, they were always closed for deliveries, lots of traffic demand on them. So instead I needed to send them to the Amazon locker in Salome AZ. But lockers have size limits so anything larger than a breadbox got sent to Quiet Times in Quartzsite. There is a new notice posted at Quiet Times saying this is the last year for the business. That business has been for sale for a long time but no one has bought it. So I guess it will just shut down without new owners taking over. Of course it is not the only mail service in town, there are at least 2 other private services.

 

[justanothermaroon]

I spent 3 winters at Imperial Dam. There are crowed areas but also isolated areas. It's pretty big. They also have an on-site mail & package delivery pick-up service and you can use that as your address. Plus you're about 30-40 minutes from Walmart and Home Depot.

 

[DLTooley]

I’ve used hold for pickup in Havasu. I don’t recall the details, but their posted hours were also pretty limited. There should always be someone there first thing in the morning as that is the busiest time.

 

[skibumone]

I spent 3 winters at Imperial Dam. There are crowed areas but also isolated areas. It's pretty big. They also have an on-site mail & package delivery pick-up service and you can use that as your address. Plus you're about 30-40 minutes from Walmart and Home Depot.

Good info, thank you. Is that Christain Center the "on-site mail & package" service you mentioned?

 

[justanothermaroon]

Good info, thank you. Is that Christain Center the "on-site mail & package" service you mentioned?

yes

 

[lonerwolf52]

I liked the post office in Blythe. Closer than Parker, and there's both an Albertson's and a Smart & Final there. Both of which I like better than WalMart.

Some folks recommend the PO in Ehrenburg, but I have no personal experience. Once you've gone to Ehrenburg, you might as well keep on going to Blythe, IMO.

No Amazon lockers in Q, but I believe there's one or two Amazon pick-up stops in Blythe. For Amazon packages, Amazon drop box at the Pharmacy on Hobson Rd in I'm using Quiet Times in Q this year, so far like them better than DCM.

There's an Amazon drop box at the pharmacy on Hobson Rd in Blythe. The post office in Ehrenberg is great for General Delivery.

 

[maki2]

The Rite Aid Pharmacy in Blythe is no longer an Amazon Hub Counter. Last winter I could not get the other Hobson Way Pharmacy to take my Amazon order. So I used Quiet Times in Quartzsite and paid the fee, feeling grateful to have that option.

Too bad there are no outside, orange colored, Amazon lockers any closer to Quartszite than the one in Solome, AZ.

 

[LargeMarge]

... I never could get an Amazon package...

.
Eugene, Oregon.
Across from Valley River Maul, the ROSS department store has Amazon lockers near the koshers.
.
We invest our money in our local community, so we know nothing of the alleged success of the operation.

 

[Tony's Dream]

I'm a retired postmaster. Depending on what services you may want.......I recommend going to a small RMPO office (most are only open 8-12). You can establish better repore with the smaller office and are likely to remember you and treat you better. They are located in very small towns and not as busy.

 

[BelgianPup]

RMPO: Remotely Managed Post Offices.