RV living

[Q_T]

We've heard of ER people living in RV's and traveling the country more or less permanently, and wondered how they feel living daily in such cramped quarters compared to previously living in homes/condos/apartments, etc.

Also, is there a feeling of "rootlessness" once on the road like that, especially if for many months/years?

I've lived in the same town all my 42 years, but love to travel. I am torn about leaving everything to do the RV thing on a semi-permanent basis. But at the same time, we love a good adventure, and I think buying a used RV (perhaps a smallish Class B type) and exploring the US would be a great way to havea some fun and also see if there are other areas that we could root in some day.

Thoughts?

 

[Cut-Throat]

CF,

I've got a better idea. Rent an RV for 3 weeks and hit the road. My guess is that by the end of week 2, you'll have come up with a different plan and maybe saved yourself a whole lot of money

 

[Q_T]

Yup, I should have mentioned that we're planning on doing the short-rent deal first.

But we're still interested in hearing of other people's first-hand experiences, ideas, what they'd do different, how they got along without all their "stuff", etc.

 

[Billy]

IMHO, a 5th Wheel is the way to go...more space, no tow car, one engine to deal with.

RV'ing is a great lifestyle...your living room stays the same, but your front porch changes with each stop.

There are a couple of good books written on this...I think one is titled "Full Timing RV" or something like that...I read it years ago, and it was a big help.

Billy
Web-site www.geocities.com/ba264

 

[nwsteve]

We have been doing a bunch of research on the RV life style choice and found the week we spend at a Life on Wheels conference invaluable.
We attended the U of Idaho session but they now have them in several other campus sites.
Great way to meet people who are doing it and hear a no commercial view of choices of going w/a Fiver or Class A/C unit. (Vendors not allowed). Lots of resources are made available and many of the authors of the RVing "bibles" come and teach the various classes.
It is really like a 101 of RVing. Sesson was less than $200 each for tuition.
Web site is http://www.lifeonwheels.com
NW Steve

 

[wabmester]

I tried to talk my wife into RV travel. She wanted something small and manuverable, so we settled on a truck camper. We bought a one-ton truck and then started shopping for campers. In the end, she decided she didn't like the size of the showers (or the limited hot water supply). So RVing was effectively vetoed, and now we just travel "normally" and stay in hotels. And I have a monster truck that I find very useful

 

[charlie]

One hot Texas summer when I was much younger
I built a cab-over camper in my garage. Took my
sweetie Lyn and our first born 3 year old camping
that fall. Lyn was about 5 mo. pg with our 2nd.
I had fun, but it was miserable for her. Never
tried it again and sold the camper to my Dad.

Like wab, we have used motels, etc. ever since.

Cheers,

Charlie

 

[Traveler]

A good source for finding out what others think about full-time rv-ing is the www.motorhomemagazine.com site. Go to "community" (the forum section) and find "full time rv-ing" as a topic. Should be helpful.

 

[John Galt]

I know a lot of people do this in retirement
(RVing). Hey, if you enjoy it that's great. Honestly
though, I would rather be boiled in my own juices.

John Galt

 

[unclemick]

1981-1994. used 17' and 28' campers - with full a/c and color tv - mostly Florida Gulf and Keys.

After ER in 93 - the need to 'get outta Dodge' and 'be' on vacation - went. I don't know how to explain the mental shift - but knowing that you can cruise, fly, go anywhere and stay as long as you wanted - made staying at home just ducky.

Travel - except within a driving distance is rare now a days. The option is always there if we want to go - it's nice that $ and time are no constraint.

 

[haha]

When my kids were little I thought we would enjoy an RV to go to the mountains, the Oregon coast, etc. Since I already had a 3/4 T truck , I bought a used 24' Avion travel trailer. It looks like an airplane. The inside is paneled with real birch. It looks a lot like an art deco 50's home. I really dug the way it looked.

But what I hadn't planned on was how scary it was to drive the thing. It was definitely in charge, not me. It's still parked on my place. I go have a drink in the nice 50s kitchen every now and then. But I wouldn't take it out for anything.

Mikey

 

[unclemick]

Avion is uptown (like a Buick) - I guess Airstream would be like a Caddy. Flatland driving was o.k. - I learned from experience to avoid Miami, Houston, to a lesser exent Mobile during the rush hour. Backing a truck trailer always was fun - my brain aways rebeled and wanted to turn the wheel the wrong way. And she always wanted to check out the local dining/dancing and shopping - I liked the wilderness areas so we often did both on the same trip - time permitting. I actually enjoyed seeing how many miles down the road per day I could roll per day. On longer vacations, we used to flip a coin at the head of the drive way and head out with a campground/RV atlas and no particular destination.

 

[sewinglady26]

As a first post I wanted to address Rving. My DH and I were able to RV for about a year before starting the employment cycle again. For us it was proof that we both have gypsy genes. We feel that trying the lifestyle is the best idea. We are not water people but would council the same for people contemplating living aboard. When we ER, we will go into an RV.

 

[jobob]

You might want to check this website too

http://www.rversonline.org/

 

[riverrat]

Last Feb my wife & I rented a Class B for three weeks and brought our dog along. Went to Arizona to the Tuscon Mineral show. We liked rving but still not sure if its for us.

 

[nwsteve]

For a "lower cost" way to rent an RV to give it a try, check out Cruise America's website. Go to Hot Deals. http://www.cruiseamerica.com/hot_rental_deals/default.asp You can pick one of their repositioning trips that will give you up to a week for $24/day rental vs the usual 85+. Some of the units are going back for refurbing while others are just in the wrong place.
Be sure to call the originating location. Corp told me the unit we were interested might have some unworking interior issues (eg frig not working). Called the location and mgr said he had just completed a bunch of repairs and had no problems.
If you want a real adventure look at their units coming back from Alaska. Supposely these are all in good condition but can not be left in Alaska over the winter.
Pick up in Anchorage and bring back to lower 48.
You still have to pay gas and operating expenses but it is the lowest cost rental I have found.
We are giving it a try on a unit from Portland to Mesa end of next month.
nwsteve

 

[Traveler]

Thanks for the Cruise America link about repositioning rentals. Great idea! And while this has nothing to do with RVs, if you like to cruise on the water, look into lower-cost repositioning cruises. We went late last September from Victoria, BC to San Francisco (not far from where we live). Five nights/six days on board the Norwegian Sky, with airfare from SF to Vancouver, transfers to the ship, port fees, tips, all meals, some drinks, a comfortable inside cabin for about $500 per person. The ship was coming down out of Alaska to winter on the Mexican coast. A wonderful trip. For us, just the right length and price.

 

[pjaye]

We retire in 15 yrs. and are planning on RV'ing and just making a home base close to where either of our kids end up.
I have never had the travel bug, DH has it, but working, raising kids and all the other stuff, adding traveling to that just seemed like more work. Work extra hours to be able to get away from the job, get everything set up at home, do all the extra work on the trip, along with the ride. I'm the big kid that sits in the back and goes, are we there yet? I've gotta pee. So we have not traveled much. We love campgrounds and usually rent a cabin or a RV. We just inherited a lot in a campground about an hour away so we'll spend the next 15 yrs. vacationing there. If we like it after we retire we really want to try hitting the road.