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Complete disclaimer my husband and I are completely new to the RVing world, and don't have a clue as to what goes into owning an RV.
My husband and I have been throwing around the idea of buying an RV. We would be using it for weekend trips with our triplets, and longer trips during the summer. We live in Charleston and would mostly be using it to travel to Florida (we are annual disney pass holders). This would be purely for cost saving on hotels and food. We have a truck that can haul, and would be paying cash for the RV. But my question is after you pay for gas, and to hook up at sites which isn't too cheap anymore, along with maintenance do you really save any money? Or are we better off just staying in hotels?? Thank you!
You may break even. That is a huge maybe. In all honesty I doubt you'll save much money. Sure, you have a pickup. However the mileage goes down due to weight, wind and time. You're right fuel costs are there. Maintenance isn't always cheap. If you and your husband are handy and have some skills and tools you can do ok.
Then there comes the parking the beast. Campsites run anywhere from free plan to drop $20 to $50 depending on where you park it and whether you want electrical and water hookups.
From point A to point B I would stick with motels. If the destination is someplace outdoorsy and away from it all an RV makes perfect sense.
I don't think you save much money, if you have an economy car to drive when you don't take the trailer. If you have an economy car and stay in the lower price motels, then the motels would be cheaper.
If you are driving the gas guzzler either way, then probably the trailer would be a bit cheaper. Overnight fees are lower and you can cook instead of eating out.
Here's the advantage of the travel trailer: it is home, just like the triplets' own bedroom. Your kids will be a lot more comfortable and sleep a lot better.
You can leave some of your vacation stuff stored in the trailer, so packing to go isn't as time consuming.
Maybe if you have the trailer, you might try some of the more wilderness sort of adventures and discover that your children like them.
Here's the real downside to a trailer: unless the family is very carefully trained to share the workload, mama doesn't get a vacation. She just has her regular workload moved out onto the road. You have to make sure that the family understands that everyone cleans so that everyone can have a good time.
We haul a 5er simply because we want to stay where we want to stay and not rely on a motel or some other person offering accommodations.
If you want to just travel the main roads and bigger towns and prefer the prearranged (ain't nothing wrong with that) then I would leave the RV at the dealership and get a fuel efficient car and travel the coutry.
Nope. Not even renting it.
There ARE reasons to do these... but saving money is NOT one of them.
That's not necessarily true. It depends on how much you paid for your RV, what condition it is in, and your ability/inclination to work on it, among other factors. I paid well under $10k for mine, do minimal work on it each year and have gotten many, many weeks worth of fantastic family fun out of it, practically in my backyard, for a fraction of the cost of airfare, hotel, food and everything else (x4) that comes along with most other forms of vacation. However...
I agree that 'saving money' is NOT a good reason to buy an RV. Most people overbuy, don't want to do any repairs or maintenance themselves, and live very far from the places they wish to drive to, so it can get very expensive very quickly. Renting is even more expensive unless it's just a one time thing or otherwise very seldom. You should get an RV because you love driving, being in the outdoors and staying in campgrounds. You'll need to use it often in an enjoyable way to make it seem worth the cost. If you just want to save money, then you should buy a tent or perhaps a video game console for your living room and stay home.
No people rv because they like the life style and not to save money......FYI...since you mentioned Disney....Fort Wilderness during peak season runs about 110-115 bucks a night for a campground lot....sure that's cheaper than a room but it's way more then these 10-20 bucks a night that people say they spend camping....yes you can find campgrounds that cheap. ...but most major campgrounds in a high tourist area is going to run you 75 to a hundred bucks a night....and often times you need to make reservations up to a year in advance during peak seasons
I view a camper as something to use and enjoy that are off the beaten path. To go a tourist destination I prefer a motel room.
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