Renting an RV in Houston (Mercedes, Atlanta: rentals, hotels, campers)

[astrohip]

We're thinking of renting an RV. Need feedback & advice. What to look for in a rental, where to find one? And all the things I'm not asking but should.

Details: Just wife & I, and two dogs. Probably about 10-14 days. From Houston to Atlanta and back, although we may make some side trips on the way. Looking at later part of October.

We want to visit our daughter & her family in ATL. We don't want to fly, and driving in a car sounds claustrophobic. So we thought... RV! We can take our time getting there, dogs will have a little room to move around, no hotels, yada yada.

Anyone rented one?

[astrohip]

If anyone has used any companies in Houston for a rental, your feedback--positive or negative--would be especially helpful.

Thanks!

[sonic0boom]

No experience with it, but Outdoorsy(.com) is sort of like AirBnB for RVs/campers. Granted, i'm not sure how i feel about renting from an individual and how confident i would be in regards to maintenance, but it's an option.

I had looked into rentals a year or two ago as an option for a vacation but never went through with one. But if you search for "houston camper rentals", i remember that several came up. I recall that some had the "full service" option where you return it as-is, and they would do the cleanup, dump the tanks, etc. I also remember that if your intent is to save money vs hotels/AirBnB, this isn't the way to do it since the options i looked at ended up being $200+/day.

Not sure how helpful that is, but good luck!

Looking at the map, i would also add that the drive doesn't seem too bad. You might consider driving to New Orleans and finding an AirBnb in a nice spot, then complete the trip to Atlanta. On the way back, maybe do Gulf Shores or some other beach for your halfway point.

[astrohip]

Thanks. I just looked at Outdoorsy. I like the concept, but as you say, the condition might be the great unknown.

I've made the HOU<>ATL drive several times, and it's not a bad one-day drive. Maybe 12 hours. But my wife wants to bring the dogs, and wants to take it easy, so RV it is. Economics isn't a concern. This won't even put a dent in the vacations we've cancelled this year.

[Monello]

16 years ago, I rented an RV for 2 weeks. I had to watch a video on how to drive it and how all the systems work. Had a blast. It was so much fun we did it again the next year, getting the next size larger RV.

Fast forward to today. I have a 34 foot class A RV that I live in full time. My rig has been in 34 states and several Canadian provinces. I suspect they put some sort of virus/bacteria/bug in rental RVs, because I got the RV bug bad. YMMV

Good luck with your trip.

[SugLandDAd]

We have rented on RV Share ( RVshare.com ) several times, and have been very happy with it. Many of the owners will let you come and take a look at the RV before you rent it.

Many listings on RV Share and Outdoorsy are the same.

We also rented once from these people. https://www.suncruisinrv.com/ they were cheap, and the RV was a little worn, but everything worked well.

If you go, remember RVs suck gas, you will go slower than you think, and will stop more often for gas. Not a problem if you are not in a rush.

[sonic0boom]

Something i've considered is renting one of the Mercedes Sprinter RVs (well, for 2 person trip, not with the kids). Looks like a place in Cypress rents them out. I like the idea of something more maneuverable.

[Lbjen]

Assuming your daughter doesn’t live on acreage, you probably should also consider where you’ll be putting the RV when you arrive in Atlanta, especially if you plan to stay for more than a night or two. Most HOAs don’t take kindly to them being parked for days. Something like the Sprinter would probably eliminate that issue though.

[astrohip]

Originally Posted by Lbjen

Assuming your daughter doesn’t live on acreage, you probably should also consider where you’ll be putting the RV when you arrive in Atlanta, especially if you plan to stay for more than a night or two. Most HOAs don’t take kindly to them being parked for days. Something like the Sprinter would probably eliminate that issue though.

Thanks, will have her check out options before we get there.