Pros vs Cons of RV types and Boondocking

[TheBeachHous]

Quote:

Originally Posted by J&SW We were in the same boat - trying to decide which way to go - MH? or 5er? A good salesman we ran across made a few comments that finally made the difference for our decision, and our experience since then has borne out the logic. 5ers - best for when staying in one location for extended times. Gas milage usually pretty bad all the time. MH - best for getting up and moving along after a day to a week. Gas milage worse, but toad great. So, long term camping, probably prefer the 5er. Also, with MH, a great advantage - when pulling off to eat, bathroom, etc., the temperature is already comfortable. Getting into a 5er that has been towed in high heat or very cold can take a while to make reasonably comfortable, like by the time you're finished eating and ready to get back into the truck, which is now hot or cold too. We chose the MH with drop dead easy to hitch and unhitch 4 down toad, and are very, very pleased how it all turned out.

Thats got to be up there with some of the best advice from a dealer i can think of...
The type of vehicle depends HEAVILY on the type of use...
As a MH guy, i can't say enough positive things about it, but a few months ago i was Truck and 5r shopping.... We ATV and couldn't decide what works best for us...
It ultimatly came down to... In order to have a 5r and have 4 ATVs it would have to be 45ft long 3 axels and FREAKIN huge... Then i'd need a 1ton truck... Which i was willing to do... But after going with someone and watching them set up and tear down... Un hook and hook... Jack and Unjack... It got to be to exhuasting for me to even think about... When i get ready to go, i don't want to think about all the work it takes when i get there...
So i sold my 1995 Tioga Arrow (which wouldn't pull an ATV trailer and itself over the hills here in Colorado) and bought a little bigger MH with a lot bigger engine and now i pull in, hit LEVEL on the pad, slide the living room out, open the door, pull the awning out and i'm THERE!!! The only work i have to do is getitng hte ATVs off the trailer... But i'd have to do that with anything...
AND
There is NO reason why an ATV should be INSIDE taking up valuable space, stinking up the place, getting everything dirty, beating up walls etc. etc...
So... In summation... (i know i tend to ramble) You have to decide what kind of camping you're going to do... And if you let Fule costs make a decision for you... You're in the wrong Game... WE drive around our kitchen sinks for comfort and convinence, not to be green!!!

[lajuene]

We went back and forth and decided on the Motorhome route with a toad for all the reasons previously mentioned but mostly for daytime parking in and around cities. We go to cities a lot to see museums, street cafes, shows (really like local high school plays) and walking around people watching. We do the "middle of nowhere" a lot too. Can't beat it. We enjoy doing both and when we go fulltime in the spring we can do even more of both.

We WalMart half the time or so. We often unhook the toad and go off to see local museums etc. but only if we are passing on the same day. Campgrounds are better for a longer term. If a city has several days of things to do for us we get a campground. If it has 1 or 2 short things to do, WalMart is better.

As far as free, we LOVE WalMart and shop there all the time. We have paid them back for all of our free overnights and daytime MH parking many times over. I'm glad some people would NEVER do the WalMart thing. After all, it would then be way to crowded.

We usually put 2 slides out over a lawn area if there is one but never if it means taking up more asphalt space. Never use jacks.

Our rule of thumb is "will this inconvenience anyone?" if yes, we don't do it. If there will be no hinderance to anyone then we do it. Always ask permission of course. You never know when some misguided local govermental agency will make a rule against it. If they do they usually are shooting themselves in the foot because of the lost revenues. There's a WalMart in the next town too you know.

We always stay quiet, pick up trash, even others and shop at the store. I think WalMart is a great partner and a very RV friendly place.