ann m

We priced up a 10-day RV rental for this summer from Seattle to head south and do the Oregon coastline. It was going to be over $3,000, plus gas, plus campsite fees. We decided we could stay in some pretty awesome hotels, motels and B&B’s for that kind of money! I’m gonna book a couple of spa days 😉

We’ve also looked at buying one, but a good one is pricey and we can have a lot of holidays for that kind of money, plus I don’t want to park the thing at home and then drive the same few hundred miles every trip just to get somewhere interesting.

But the thought of it still appeals to me.

scrubbedexpat091

About the same price I was quoted when we looked into an RV for our trip we took earlier in the year.

christmasoompa

I only used Motel 6 as an example because anything else would be far more expensive than an RV IME. One thing you’ve not mentioned, but which makes a huge difference to the price, is food. If you’re in hotel rooms then you have no option but to eat out for every meal, which bumps the price up considerably. In an RV you can eat at ‘home’, most campsites have fire pits too.

christmasoompa

Crikey! The general rule with RV’s is the earlier you book the cheaper they are. We’ve got ours for 15 nights in August and didn’t pay anywhere near that amount, but we booked the minute the booking window opened. The same RV now for the same dates would be double what we paid.

GermanytoCanada

Does anyone have experience of 5th wheelers and the advantages/disadvantages compared to RVs?

I like the idea of having a vehicle to drive around in when at a destination without having to take the whole RV every day, but a caravan just seems a bit small with two kids.

Whilst a lot of this thread seems to be going along the lines of the cost comparison with a hotel/car trip, from my point of view, I spend a lot of time flying around Europe and staying in nice hotels. The choice to use an RV or something similar for me is to do something different and spend quality time outdoors with the kids. Whether it costs more or less than the alternative isn't much of a consideration.

I would also be interested to know whether anyone camps in Nova Scotia and whether this province has a reputation similar to BC/AB for sites booking up well in advance.

Cape Blue

I've RV'd around most of the US and Canada, I've also driven around lots of it.

My take is that if I was doing a 3-week or less trip I would tend to use my car and stay in hotels, longer than that I would use my RV (it had my motorcycle and bicycle on the back) - I once spent 6 months on a US/Canada RV trip.

Not so much about the cost, although that can be an issue, but more about the packing/unpacking every day if you are doing a long road trip, the joy of sleeping in the same bed each night and not unpacking toiletries and clothes every day, being able to take more of your own stuff, being able to cook your own food rather than eat out every night and so-on.

Like you I spent a lot of time in hotels for work so they are not a novel experience for me.

5th wheel - exactly what you say, gives you more flexibility (unless you tow a toad and have a small car behind your RV) - they have some pretty big ones now with their own slides etc.

I've parked my RV in Nova Scotia, stayed at a campsite somewhere near Sydney - was a while ago and I think off-season, so can't help there. Goodsam had a nice GPS system back then, I guess it might be an app now - listed all sites and gave directions for you based upon the size of your rig (bridges etc) and what you carry (propane for tunnels etc).

Partially discharged

I'm jealous. Beautiful coastline. Probably my favourite state followed by Vermont, New Hampshire. I'm a prime Subaru customer

The Oregon Acquairum in Newport is worthwhile. Cape Blanco State Park is beautiful and then the Redwoods NP in northern California is good.

If you get the chance Oregon Caves National Monument and this place

Out'n'About Treehouse Treesort & Construction

which is a tree house hotel in southern Oregon founded by a guy in the 70's who had lots of battles with the local building code guys about the structural stability of his tree house hotel. You can stay there (quite spendy) or go on a tour which our family did.

As well, the Saturday market in Eugene, Oregon is a step back in time to when tie dye ruled.

https://www.eugenesaturdaymarket.org/

chawkins99

We've done it all (nearly). From a 14ft caravan pulled by an Astra turbo-diesel in England up to a 40ft diesel motorhome pulling a Chevy Equinox. Plus several variations in between. We have also done car/motel road trip to the Grand Canyon.
In England we would regularly go off on weekend rallies and camp in some obscure spot with a bunch of like-minded people. Sometimes and airfield or farmer's field. They were great fun and often less than an hour from home.

In the US we started with a 30ft travel trailer towed by a Ford Expedition. Kept that for several years before upgrading to the motorhome. The motorhome was 8 years old when we bought it ($65,000). When new it would have been $250,000.

When in Alabama, we would go off several times a year. Our favorite destination was Wind Creek State Park and never had a problem getting in at short notice. We also did trips to FL, TN, AR, GA, IN, MO among others.

When we moved to Florida, we ran into the problem discussed earlier. Everywhere is fully booked months in advance. Plus living 5 minutes from the beach we didn't see the need to go further afield. So, we sold it. We are now sans-RV

Reasons to RV vs Motel:
Kids. If you have kids, it's much easier and, depending on number, MUCH cheaper
Pets. We have a 120lb husky. Not many motels will accommodate him.
Get to sleep in your own bed every night
We know who/what has been in said bed before us
Cheaper to dine in. Can still dine out when we want to.
Self-contained. Our MH had a generator and onboard fresh/waste water tanks and satellite TV
Passengers can pee while on the move
Surprisingly easy to drive and comfortable over long distances
We always had a car for local excursions

Cons to an RV:
Initial outlay particularly if you buy new
Need somewhere to store it when not in use
Fuel consumption. We got an average of 8.5mpg although when we had the Expedition/Travel Trailer combo, we only got 10mpg.
It had a 100 gallon diesel tank which could cost up to $300 to fill but would take us 800+ miles.
Maneuverability. You have to think ahead and plan an escape route. With the car on the back, reversing was a no-no. I preferred to fill up at the highway truck stops.

We loved our time RVing and only sold because we weren't getting enough use from it. We plan to buy another when we retire and will most likely be another diesel MH. We recently bought a Jeep in preparation

caretaker

Last summer I saw quite a few RV's in BC that were pulling into viewpoints, rest areas or just wide spots to stop for the night, as opposed to campgrounds. At the time I thought there were significantly more doing that than I'd seen in previous years. The advantage of being able to drive until you want to stop then just pulling in somewhere vs booking campsites seemed attractive.

Almost Canadian

5th wheels are usually sufficiently large but, not only do you need to buy it, you also need to buy a truck that has sufficient towing capacity to be able to pull it. This then adds to the cost of gas.

I have never owned either an RV or a 5th wheel, but I have been on many trips with people that have and I learned from those experiences that I would rather take a car and stay in nice hotels.

The other thing that hasn't been mentioned is what one uses for a vehicle when one gets to the destination. Lots of those that own Class As tow a vehicle behind. While I accept one can rent or own different classes, I wouldn't want to have one much smaller if I was travelling for a long period of time, or a trailer becomes the preferred option as the truck can be disconnected and used for grocery trips.

Each to their own.

Almost Canadian

I accept that.

chawkins99

While I haven't personally had a 5th wheel, I have researched them and know people who have them. In general, 5th wheels are larger and better equipped than travel trailers. They are more stable and easier to maneuver despite the size.
As a minimum, you need a 3/4 ton truck (F-250 or similar) to pull them but then the big truck is your daily driver so costs more when you're NOT towing.

If you go the motorhome/toad route, you have to setup the toad with a tow bar and braking system which will cost from $500 upwards. Or use a tow dolly/trailer. Most vehicles can't be towed with all 4 wheels on the road so you have to select the toad appropriately.

christmasoompa

It’s probably not such a big difference for a couple, but we’ve got 2 kids so for the 4 of us to eat 3 meals out a day (maybe 2 if breakfast was included at a hotel) would be astronomical.

There’s also a lot to be said for the convenience factor. Much easier to just quickly make some pasta or sandwiches at the side of the road when you get the ‘I’m hungry’ from the back, rather than driving around trying to find a suitable restaurant.

But I’m looking at it from the viewpoint of a family of 4, rather than a retired couple. Possibly then the price difference won’t be so big and I might want the occasional hot bath and bit more comfort! For us now though, it’s cheaper, far easier and a brilliant adventure.

ann m

Thanks for some great suggestions 👍

Danny B

I bought a tent trailer years ago, seemed a good idea at the time but what a pain in the arse to setup. It's basically one step up from a tent.

Don't talk to me about reversing the bloody thing into a tight spot, my God I was terrible at it.