What a great subject. I expect we all have different ideason the pros and cons of RV’ing versus driving/flying and staying in hotels, etc. As has been previously pointed out, there areways to reduce the costs of RV’ing, just as there are with traveling by car andstaying in hotels/motels, or worse yet, staying with relatives. We love our relatives, but staying with themmore than a day or two just about maxes out patience for using someone else’sbed and bathroom.
Referencing fuel usage, yup, it’s right up there. My wife and I are fortunate to get 10.1 to10.2 mpg as a routine unless pulling in the mountains extensively. Fuel prices are only going up, as witnessedover the last couple of weeks. Finding diesel fuel for under $4.00/gal. in theNorthwest is like finding a prize. Prices are quite volatile recently. Lastweek we left Seattle filling up at $3.99/gal and tomorrow we leave centralOregon to pull back to Seattle again, with the prices here in McMinnville OR around$4.10 to $4.20/gal where prices in Oregon are typically 10 cents to 20 centsless per gallon than Seattle.
Making a point about traveling with, and living in an RVcompared to going to the hotel once you have arrived at your destination; mymoney is in staying in the RV. After dragging luggage around, in and out of carsand hotel rooms for decades, DW and I find it so much more relaxing andpeaceful to pull to our desired location, set up the utilities, go inside andexpand the slides, set the temp, make the coffee, hit the recliner and look outthe picture window at all there is to see, be than nature, or all the peoplerushing here and there.
If you are traveling and staying in a hotel room, have youlooked closely at some of those chairs and sofas in hotel rooms? Let’s just say that they are less thanappealing. You almost want to go showerafter setting in some of them.
And two of the most important considerations for us, oftraveling by RV; being able to prepare our own meals and sleep in our own beds.Yes, admittedly, we do eat at restaurants on occasion while traveling by RV(preferably not often due to high cost of eating out), but it is really nice toprepare and enjoy fresh foods economically in the comfort of our own galley. And, the “sleeping in your own bed” part;this part is priceless. There are nobed-bugs or roaches here in our RV, and as long as we stay out of hotel rooms,there won’t be any bed-bugs in our RV either. The mattress if comfortable, the pillows arecomfortable, and the bedding,,,,,,,,,, is clean!
Is RV’ing a rich man’s sport??? I would suggest not any more expensive than(the sport of) traveling/vacationing in the more traditional sense of using a car/airplane/hotels,etc. The cost, overall, for the amount we like to travel,we could not afford if we traveled by car or plane and stayed in hotel rooms.Added to this, we find it so much more enjoyable arriving at our RV destination,,,,,,,,and relaxing in the comfort of our own RV home; something that seems less thanavailable/enjoyable to us when we travel and stay in hotels regardless of theirbeing a 3-star, 4-star or 5-star hotel. Yes, you can cut your costs by rentingcottages, houses, condos or apartments by the month, but their amenities and desirabilityare likely to decline. We have enjoyedthe RV’ing lifestyle in the short time we have been doing it, and expect manymore great experiences from it. Nuf said…….
