RV Trip

[Jaya]

Speaking from six years experience in traveling around the US for months at a time in an RV, I'll second...or third...the concept that a grueling trip like this isn't a good idea for a rookie RVer. If you're not pulling a car behind your RV, you will have to depend on the RV for transportation when you get to your destination and finding parking for an RV can be difficult at parks and attractions. For instance, last year we saw people driving campers round and round at Yosemite trying to find a parking space for the day; if you weren't getting there at the crack of dawn to find an RV parking space, you were out of luck. And some of the scenic highways in the Black Hills (especially Needles Highway) can be, frankly, terrifying....especially if you are in a large vehicle you're not familiar driving.

Driving a large RV also takes a lot of the "spontaneity" out of the trip. You're tooling along and "ooh, ooh....that lookout/road/gift shop/attraction looks/looked interesting!!!", but either you can't find a place to park the RV or you've passed it and there's not a place to turn around for two miles down the road.

I'm not trying to discourage people from RVing, but there are about a million things that can and do go wrong in/on an RV. Some rental RVs are spotless and well-maintained, some are a piece of junk and you may not find out which one you have until you're 300 miles down the road and the toilet is backing up and the lights don't work. It could be two days or more before they could get another RV to you and in the meantime you're sitting at the Dogsbreath RV Park swatting flies and staring at the green scum in the swimming pool.

Quite a few campgrounds have cabins for rent, if you're looking for the "camping experience". Some are full housekeeping, most are just a place to sleep.

If you do decide to rent an RV or want to stay at a cabin in a park, I highly recommend rvparks.com for reviews on pretty near every park in the country, including national, state and county parks.

Good luck on your vacation. We've had a wonderful time in the Black Hills.....there is no end of things to do and see.

 

[roliepolieoliefan]

Speaking from six years experience in traveling around the US for months at a time in an RV, I'll second...or third...the concept that a grueling trip like this isn't a good idea for a rookie RVer. If you're not pulling a car behind your RV, you will have to depend on the RV for transportation when you get to your destination and finding parking for an RV can be difficult at parks and attractions. For instance, last year we saw people driving campers round and round at Yosemite trying to find a parking space for the day; if you weren't getting there at the crack of dawn to find an RV parking space, you were out of luck. And some of the scenic highways in the Black Hills (especially Needles Highway) can be, frankly, terrifying....especially if you are in a large vehicle you're not familiar driving.

Driving a large RV also takes a lot of the "spontaneity" out of the trip. You're tooling along and "ooh, ooh....that lookout/road/gift shop/attraction looks/looked interesting!!!", but either you can't find a place to park the RV or you've passed it and there's not a place to turn around for two miles down the road.

I'm not trying to discourage people from RVing, but there are about a million things that can and do go wrong in/on an RV. Some rental RVs are spotless and well-maintained, some are a piece of junk and you may not find out which one you have until you're 300 miles down the road and the toilet is backing up and the lights don't work. It could be two days or more before they could get another RV to you and in the meantime you're sitting at the Dogsbreath RV Park swatting flies and staring at the green scum in the swimming pool.

Quite a few campgrounds have cabins for rent, if you're looking for the "camping experience". Some are full housekeeping, most are just a place to sleep.

If you do decide to rent an RV or want to stay at a cabin in a park, I highly recommend rvparks.com for reviews on pretty near every park in the country, including national, state and county parks.

Good luck on your vacation. We've had a wonderful time in the Black Hills.....there is no end of things to do and see.

Totally agree!

My mom and stepdad took my kids 2 years ago on a 19 state two month tour across the U.S.

This trip was planned out very carefully months in advance.
My stepdad has a CDL and drove large utility trucks for a living before deciding to buy their RV.

Granted theirs is a 40ft diesel but with any larger vehicle it would take some practice to learn how to maneuver.

When my husband and I met the crew in CA for a week we did see quite a few rent an RV 's at the campground , most of the people were from England so a lot of people do, do it.

 

[kathy884]

We wanted to camp at Yellowstone, looked at renting an RV, but it was just so expensive and we also don't have RV experience, so changed our mind. What we did instead was fly to Bozeman and rent a mini van and camping gear at the REI. Then we did a combination of staying in Yellowstone lodges and camping.

 

[bearzabout]

If you do decide to rent an RV, call your insurance agent and make sure your car policy applies to rented RVs. Often, car insurance policies do not cover rented trucks or RVs.

Buying insurance through the rental company can be expensive but is often worth it. There are often insurance options and the cost for a no or low deductible insurance is very high. Some policies have deductibles for thousands of dollars. Make sure the policy includes liability if your own liability policy will not be valid for an RV rental. Often times, the RV company is only concerned about RV damage so liability insurance is not included.

Since big RVs are difficult to drive, accidents happen more often than with car rentals. Our last camper rental was cancelled at the last minute when the previous renter wrecked it. They are tall and can get damaged by low branches and some policies won't cover any damage to the roof.

Do your homework before renting an RV.

 

[NY Pirate Princess]

We have a small travel trailer and love camping, but our Yellowstone trip of the future will involve flying, renting a vehicle, and hotels.

 

[Ladygoldenhair]

Two dozen years ago we started RV'ing, even purchased a six person Dodge class C, bunk over cab RV. Before that we borrowed my brothers. But, we stopped for two reasons; the gas prices made it ridiculous to get 9-10 miles a gallon and the tractor trailer traffic. It death defying out there anymore. For less cost and aggravation we could get on the road and stay in motels with codes and registering at their web sites.

I saw to many RV accidents, tractor trailer accidents and accident period during the long miles on the road. I didn't want to place the driver in a position of all that stress to do a road trip.
It is a lot of length, weight and vehicle to handle. It is not for a Novice. I think there should be a separate licensing test to operate these beast.

Mine has sat in the yard for years, the only thing we do is park it at a local campground a few weekends during the Summer.
Rethink just planning cabins or motels at key areas you want to visit.

Oh, the last straw for us was a driving rain, rain storm. We had a window leak, the windows fogged up on the driver, he couldn't see the road, couldn't pull off on the interstate shoulder, construction had two tight lanes with Jersy Barriers along side "flying" tractor trailers; then a mechanical breakdown. I wanted to just leave it and call for family to come get us.

 

[CalDisneyMomof2]

You all have been wonderful. I definitely have a new perspective of what RVing is all about. Thank you for all of the information and suggestions.

 

[HHMcG]

I found this whole thread very informative. DH has always planned to RV cross county for his 50th birthday (in 4 years). We have rented RVs in the past (maybe 6 times) and done long weekend trips. We are planning another one for this August. We planned to buy a (used) RV for the Big Trip. But now I am wondering if even that is worth it.

 

[daughtersrus]

Keep in mind that if you plan to stay a few days to see the sites around you, you will need to unhook everything like the electric, water, sewer, close the canopy, and gather everything else back into the RV every time you need to drive somewhere unless you tow another vehicle. We love to camp but chose a travel trailer for this reason.

 

[Earstou]

If you decide on a cabin, check out Custer State Park. We spent a week there when our kids were little and we all loved it!
They book quickly, so plan for that!