Motorhome rentals (Anchorage, Fairbanks, Homer: RV parks, rental car, appointed)

[Adventurer99]

Tossing around the idea of a motorhome rental vs a hotel and rental car for the first couple of weeks up there. I'm thinking that it would be infinitely more convenient with kids for the day trips, and could extend our reach for exploring, or at least minimize the hassle of figuring out ocernight accommodations on the fly. I've never driven a motorhome before though, so that seems intimidating. I have observed rv hookups enough that I feel confident I could handle that. There's probably a lot of other factors to consider that I'm not even thinking of.

Alaska.org recommends abc motorhomes. Anyone have any experience with them, or the others?

Is this a ludicrous idea for a mom and kids?

[AKStafford]

This question comes up often in the TripAdvisor forum for visiting Alaska. The general consensus is to use either Great Alaska Holiday or ABC. You might find something cheaper, but there are several companies out there you DO NOT want to use. https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowForu...49-Alaska.html

[riceme]

I'm sure you already said this in a different thread, but when are you all coming and how many of you are there? How long are you staying?

[Haolejohn]

Depending on when you come. If the cost of a hotel room and car are the same, I'd go that route.
Rvs suck with their mpg consumption. It would open up time on the road. If you went five hours north of anchorage you could stay in the RV and maximize your vacation time. But if your doing most of your time within two hours of anchorage I'd skip it.

[Adventurer99]

Myself and kids, 4 of us. Coming hopefully first or second week of September. If we get delayed any more than that, the motorhome idea is probably out. Coming for at least a year. Hopefully we love it and buy a place next summer, we will give it a year. Flying into anchorage, and figuring we will need a couple of weeks to find a rental. Could do hotel and rental car, but then this motorhome idea occurred to me.

[Adventurer99]

Since I'm open to renting in a wide number of locations, I thought the motorhome would give me better options to visit and check things out. Maybe it's not the best option, though. I would pretty certainly still end up in hotels here and there, just for the bathtub and a little more privacy from the kids, though.

And I know someone will ask. I'm taking a year or two sabbatical, and have plenty of cash to sustain us, buy a place when and if I'm ready, and to go home if it's not what we are looking for.

[jetakai]

Depending on when you come and the fact that you have never driven a motor home before, I would get a Milepost and plan your trip around a car and B&B or small motels. Milepost will let you plan well in advance. You can get most places within a day trip. Like take the train to Fairbanks and then rent your SUV and drive back to Anchorage and down to Homer over the next few days. We have a ton of tourists up here, so maybe an SUV for you and a pop tent for the kids might be an alt-plan.

You need to remember there will be a TON of motor homes on the road when you are. They are slow and most cars pass. They have special rules, like if there are more than X (I think it is 5 cars) behind you, you must pull over. Hookups (er waste dump) can be messy. And you have to take care of it all, not just mom and kids stuff.

PS: Go to the zoo first in Anchorage, so you guys can see the animals before you hit the wilds. Sometimes people get disappointed when they want to see wildlife but can't see it because they don't know where to look or how camouflaged the animals can be.

https://www.themilepost.com/
home | alaskazoo.org

[lvmensch]

Originally Posted by Adventurer99

Since I'm open to renting in a wide number of locations, I thought the motorhome would give me better options to visit and check things out. Maybe it's not the best option, though. I would pretty certainly still end up in hotels here and there, just for the bathtub and a little more privacy from the kids, though.

And I know someone will ask. I'm taking a year or two sabbatical, and have plenty of cash to sustain us, buy a place when and if I'm ready, and to go home if it's not what we are looking for.

We did it and boats for many years as our preferred mode of travel. Particularly nice in places like rural Canada where we would go a good bit. Would still do it today though we have reached mature status. No longer have the physical ability for boats so now it would be RV.

Recommend you try it locally a couple of times. Ideally while getting away for civilization. It is not at all challenging in RV Parks but that takes all the fun out of it.

And you need an understanding of the equipment. The deluxe units are a piece of cake but you may find those difficult to find in places. And leveling an RV in the bush can be a challenge without some exposure. The fancy ones do it for you though still requiring some thought. But primitive ones may be more of a challenge. And the fancy ones can easily turn primitive when a system quits.

I would ignore the economics. If money is an issue cheap motels. But if you can afford it the RV is a very nice way to go particularly in backwaters.

Don't sweat the privacy. They are quite nice that way...particularly the larger units. Don't get to big however. 40 foot diesel pushers are not for the bush. They are RV park mansions.

As to driving one it takes a little getting used to. Another reason for a local trial. DW refused at first but was cajoled by a suitable sexist threat involving various acts. However after a half hour she loved it and would not let me drive. She does not like to ride when I drive normally so that was our regular pattern. Funny on boats. She is very competent on the helm but resists it particularly in bad weather. We liked boats with good autopilots. .

[Adventurer99]

I have milepost, and will take a test drive maybe next week to see how a motorhome feels. I hadn't thought about splitting things up, train. SUV, motorhome. That might work well. I also need to sit down and map out a route. I didn't want to get too far ahead of myself because of the potential delay factors I have here. But, then again once I'm clear to leave, I probably won't be waiting around, so I'll just make the plans now.

Thanks for the tips and advice.

[lvmensch]

Originally Posted by Adventurer99

I have milepost, and will take a test drive maybe next week to see how a motorhome feels. I hadn't thought about splitting things up, train. SUV, motorhome. That might work well. I also need to sit down and map out a route. I didn't want to get too far ahead of myself because of the potential delay factors I have here. But, then again once I'm clear to leave, I probably won't be waiting around, so I'll just make the plans now.

Thanks for the tips and advice.

You need a little more than that. With a little care anyone can drive them. But for full use you need to deal with them when you are off a concrete pad. It is not hard stuff but you need to be familiar enough you won't do anything stupid.