The great experience American and travel in style is symbolized by the Motor Homes, RVs, travel trailers and camper units now available. RVs or Motor Homes come in many flavors. There are Pop-up tent trailers, pickup truck slide in campers, hitch level towed travel trailers, Class A, Class B and Class C motor homes. Each is discussed in their own section.
From a few $1,000 (maybe less) to over $250,000 for some serious high end and high luxury units, there is something for almost any budget. And units can be used full time for retirees to just a few weekends and a week or two during the year for young families with little ones. With amenities ranging from just some sleeping areas out of the weather and some storage space up to complete home like amenities including stoves, microwaves, ovens, TVs, heating and cooling, to complete bathroom setups with commodes and showers.
Many Federal Parks and Recreation Areas have available parking spots as do 1,000s of state parks scattered from coast to coast. In addition there are commercial RV parks with spots available (park dependent) from nightly to even monthly. Some are simple mostly level parking places with no amenities. Others may have full fresh water hook ups, waste water drains and electric power. Of course the more features – the more the prices. An advantage of many travel trailers, 5th wheel trailed and motor homes, is that even if the park has limited amenities – you have your own built in.
A common feature in many RVs/Motor Homes is a built in generator to power 110VAC appliances and accommodations. Especially in the Class A, Class B and Class C motor homes, most items are 12V DC powered. Over the last 20 years, manufactures have flooded the market with 12C DV cooking appliances from simple water heaters for tea/coffee/soups to frying skillets, to sauce pans and even slow cookers.
If you are new to the RV or Camping lifestyle, carefully consider your options and your needs. And your budget. You might want to start small with just a pop-up trailer or a real small hitch towed travel trailer. If you already own a pickup truck, a small slide in might also work. If you are newly retired or a young family starting out, these could provide you with more then enough space to begin the RVing life style.
As retirees transitioning to full time or nearly full times, you can use the smaller unit to sort out what you truly want to travel with. Space will be limited so you will learn to include only the most important things and leave a lot of the knickknacks and collectables at home or in storage. Plus you will be able to visit with other RV’ers and see the advantages and disadvantages of each of their units.
A young family might be able to get away with less sleeping space but as the kids grow up you will need more sleeping space plus more space for their toys, clothes and other needs. Additionally as your outdoor adventures expand to include hiking, rock climbing, advanced photography, etc, you will also need more space for the supplies and equipment.
One final consideration is the taking of more toys with you. If you have a motor home, it is much simpler to tow a boat, jet skis or maybe a small cargo trailer with inflatables plus other beach/water sport toys. Some states do allow a ‘triple’ with a boat towed behind a travel trailer tower behind a properly GVW (Gross Vehicle Weight) SUV or pickup truck. Others you will have to check the rules. And towing a triple is extremely complicated and dangerous. It should not be undertaken lightly or casually. Think long and hard before you try it and get training from someone who has done it before. Or buy a motor home and just tow the toys.
I am including a list of books to consider to help you select and enjoy your first unit from the first day.
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Courtesy S. Ward – Nature trails, Paranghat Wildlife Refuge