RV Livestyle(s)? One? Multiple?

[Dan_public]

My experience with RV'ing is limited to renting one a couple of times. Since I'm retiring in two months, my wife and I are considering buying a DP and seeing where the horizon leads us.

While pondering the RV "lifestyle" and reading a lot about it, there seem to be multiple lifestyles. I.e. different strokes for different folks. Both times when renting when we stayed in nice RV parks and when we visited friends at RV parks, I noticed that there were some people who just sat and chilled out. Others seemed to be gone most of the time (shopping, sightseeing, ???). I've read about folks who take their RV south for the winter and say in one place for several months. And others travel all the time - drive a couple hundred miles, stay at a campground, and then do it again. Then I read about the Wynns (Gone With the Wynns) - serious, full time RV'ers who like boon docking. Seems like lots of lifestyles. So...

What is your RV lifestyle? What rings your chimes about RV'ing? What do you spend most of your time doing in/with your RV? What drives you? (Pardon the pun.) Enquiring noobs want to know!

Thanks,

Dan.

[JJH3rd]

We thought about and I did research on different types of RVs for over ten years before I retired. The idea was and still is that the best hotel room, BnB, vaction home is the one you bring with you. As we become chronologically gifted, our dietary and other needs become more acute and weeks and months away from the stick & shingle home become more and more difficult. Just try getting a meals that is vegetarian, gluten free, no sugar, no wheat, no bell peppers or cucumbers at a fat boy's or other fast food eatery. Then there's the mattress and the bathroom. There's no place like home - so why not take it with you?

Our M.O. is to spend an amount each RV drive & overnight "day" the same as it would cost if we were in our auto and spent the night in a 3+ star motel.

We drive to a "destination" and stay there two or three days or weeks to see the sights and visit friends. We figure it's better to go see'em while they are alive rather than visit the grave site.

This year we will be in the RV a little less than 3 months. We plan to increase our RV time in the next few years.

JJ & Lois

[paz]

Yes, there are lots of different styles. There are weekenders, full-timers, part-timers (a few weeks or a couple of months at a time) and extended-timers (3 to 6 months at a time).

We are full-timers. We stay in one place in Florida for the winter months. During that time, we chill out, do a little local sightseeing, spend time with friends and eat out a lot.

We travel to different areas of the country in the summer. We go out sightseeing 3 to 5 days a week. In almost 8 years, we have been in 46 of the 48 contiguous states, many of them more than once. This year, we hope to pick up the last 2.

[Old Radios]

Campers mostly here. Stay at RV parks overnight only when traveling or when only thing we can find at our destination (like New York City).

Prefer boondocking. We canoe/kayak/hike and like to be as remote as possible. Makes no sense to me to go camping and be sandwiched in closer to our neighbors than we are at home. Use the RV as a base camp sometimes while we canoe or hike out to campsites not reachable by road.

[Dog Folks]

The "lifstyle" is as unique and individual as the people that live it.

One thing is constant, it will keep changing and adapting to your preferences/needs.

[mel s]

Originally Posted by Dan_public

My experience with RV'ing is limited to renting one a couple of times. Since I'm retiring in two months, my wife and I are considering buying a DP and seeing where the horizon leads us.
What is your RV lifestyle? What rings your chimes about RV'ing? What do you spend most of your time doing in/with your RV? What drives you? (Pardon the pun.) Enquiring noobs want to know!
Thanks,
Dan.

Dan
We've been taking our coach south, (for 3-4 winter months), for 12 years.

I prefer to drive 50-350 miles a day, stay at a campground, (or boondock), for a day or more and then do it again.
My wife likes to stay in one place for weeks, or months, and take 1 day "field trips" once in a while, (shopping, sightseeing, etc.).
As you say "different strokes for different folks".

We "fly by the seat of or pants", never planning or making reservations.
We move when we want to, stop when we want to, and see what we want to see.
For us that's what RVing is all about.

BTW, we've spent winters in FL, MS, LA, TX, NM, AZ and CA.
Although 1,800 to 2,000 miles from our sticks & bricks in Wisconsin, we prefer the southwest, (southern AZ and southern CA), in the winter.

Mel
'96 Safari, 132k miles

[Dan_public]

Folks,

Thanks for the great feedback. It sounds like RV'ing isn't just an end result, it's a growth path.

And regarding food... Awesome point! My reaction was "Holy Cr... errr... Crud!" I'm a diabetic on a strict diet and my wife is gluten intolerant - NO wheat. Pappa Joe's ribs and apple pie is NOT be on the menu.

When my wife and I discussed RV'ing for the last several years, one topic kept coming back - You don't have to have an RV. You can just go on day trips. But we never once considered meeting our diet restrictions. Duhhhhhh!

And did I mention that I have a very bad back? Compressed disk, structural issues, lots of Chiropractic, yada, yada. (It sucks getting older, but the alternative is worse.) A good mattress can help control this stuff.

One dream that Marianne and I have is taking a riverboat cruise in Europe. These are long skinny boats that hold maybe 100-140 people that cruise down the rivers in Europe. It's great because you can unpack once, sit on deck and watch the scenery go by, and take day trips when you come into port. Relaxing and fun. Of course that's completely different from an RV where where you unpack once, sit in your easy chairs, and watch the scenery... uhmmm... hmm... Yep. Lots of differences. I'll come up with some in my next post!

I especially liked Mel's comment about "Fly by the seat of our pants." It reminds me of a famous poem by Robert Frost that ends with:

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I— I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference.

Linky to the full poem: 1. The Road Not Taken. Frost, Robert. 1920. Mountain Interval

I want to again find the "road less traveled". Thanks for reminding me of that.

Regards,

Dan.

[D Lindy]

For those that have gone FULL TIME RVing for more then a year and did it like they were on vacation (i.e. trying to see everything at once) there was a common issue in that they seemed to "Burn Out" on it after the 1st year. If you are going to stay on the road for the near future (over 1-2 years) then don't try to see it all the first time. Over the years you will travel cross country east-west and north-south several times and can take your time and enjoy the trip not trying to see it all at once. Slow down and enjoy rather then burn out.

[jeepersrus]

My wife and I workamp our way around the country. It keeps us in one area for a time so we can experience what the area really has to offer(not just the tourist traps). It also lets someone provide us a free site and make a couple bucks. To exchange 20 hours of our time(10 hrs each)per week is not a big deal for us. It just helps us live the lifestyle we want.

[mel s]

Originally Posted by D Lindy

For those that have gone FULL TIME RVing for more then a year and did it like they were on vacation (i.e. trying to see everything at once) there was a common issue in that they seemed to "Burn Out" on it after the 1st year.
Slow down and enjoy rather then burn out.

D Lindy
Good advice!
Although I only PART TIME, (aka: winter time), you could say I'm "Burned Out" from "trying to see everything at once", but it took 11 years, (and many $$).
Mel
'96 Safari, 132k miles

[missourijan]

We've been fulltime for 8 years and did very little planning. We lived in Reno and flew to see my elderly father in OK. Both of us had stressful jobs and whiney bosses, "you are taking vacation time again!?". We put the house up for sale and gave notice, after a few months the house sold and we hit the road. We discovered we had to workamp to cover our costs. For several years we had 2 jobs a year, a winter season then travel to somewhere for a summer season. We started taking the summers off to travel and only volunteering in the winter. It suits us. We have seen many beautiful areas and took a 6 month trip in 2011 to the east coast. It will take us many years to see all the places we want to see and that's ok with us. No plans to settle down, love having my bed go with me.

[Dan_public]

Again, thanks for the feedback. I'm pretty sure that our trips will be a few days to a couple weeks in summer, and much longer trips in the fall, winter, and spring. Just finding the right pace will be a growth opportunity.

Regards,

Dan.

[Just For Fun]

Originally Posted by Dan_public

My experience with RV'ing is limited to renting one a couple of times. Since I'm retiring in two months, my wife and I are considering buying a DP and seeing where the horizon leads us.

While pondering the RV "lifestyle" and reading a lot about it, there seem to be multiple lifestyles. I.e. different strokes for different folks. Both times when renting when we stayed in nice RV parks and when we visited friends at RV parks, I noticed that there were some people who just sat and chilled out. Others seemed to be gone most of the time (shopping, sightseeing, ???). I've read about folks who take their RV south for the winter and say in one place for several months. And others travel all the time - drive a couple hundred miles, stay at a campground, and then do it again. Then I read about the Wynns (Gone With the Wynns) - serious, full time RV'ers who like boon docking. Seems like lots of lifestyles. So...

What is your RV lifestyle? What rings your chimes about RV'ing? What do you spend most of your time doing in/with your RV? What drives you? (Pardon the pun.) Enquiring noobs want to know!

Thanks,

Dan.

Yes, all of the above!!!

[Tha_Rooster]

We still have the working lifestyle a few weeks out of the year and weekends. I need something to do not just sitting and watching the squirrels while my DW can chill and read a book. I'm a person that can't wait to get there and can't wait to get home.