Community Forums

sbleiweiss · 01-02-2021, 07:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by twogypsies

Hmmm. You snuck in your huge dogs and now you won't stay at places that allow dogs or cats? What am I missing here?

Exactly what I was thinking. I once got fleas in a Hampton Inn, but that is a story for another forum.

vincee · 01-02-2021, 09:01 AM

As far as depreciation goes, what besides your home real estate (and that's not a guarantee) does not depreciate? Virtually every single item from vehicles, house goods, lawn and yard equipment, to your in-laws depreciates! Sure, perhaps that figure is larger because of the higher costs of a decent RV, but little of what we buy to enjoy life is purchased as an investment.

Rob_M · 01-02-2021, 09:26 AM

RV or more precisely for us, MH ownership is strictly a convenience on some trips and a luxury on others. Other than our many weekends to the coast (3 hours away) our longer trips include at least one overnight stop en-route getting to our ultimate destination. Main conveniences being zero bathroom or restaurant stops and not having to check in and out of a motel which chews up travel time. It’s so easy and convenient to leave after I get off work and drive until I’m tired, find a place to boondock, drop the airbags, start the generator, and go to bed. Even with the kids along, with our floor plan we don’t have to put the slides out. I wouldn’t even need to step outside except I always do to inspect the tires and toad if we have one. LOVE the convenience.

Like stated many times, cost-savings will probably never justify owning one.
Having a place on our property to store it and me being very handy mechanically offsets the cost of ownership quite a bit but I don’t think it will ever save us money if you do all the math, even though I bought used and paid a small fraction of what new equipment would have cost.

Put a dollar amount on the hours spent working on it? Well I don’t want to do that math. Lol

Calson · 01-02-2021, 11:03 AM

My dogs were very well behaved as most working dogs tend to be. I am allergic to cat dander/saliva and people that I know who travel with cats will leave them in the room while they are out sightseeing and the cat is likely to be all over the bed. Vacuuming and sink cleaning and fresh towels does nothing for the cat fur and saliva on the fabrics.

As I said I have no issues with places that allow dogs, only with places that allow cats and the majority of AirBNB postings I have found for areas state that cats are OK and so they are places we would never rent. B&B's are cheaper than an AirBNB rental for a couple. Hotels are much cheaper than a AirBNB rental for a couple.

Pre-coronavirus we would travel overseas several times each year. With Americans failing to wear masks and practice social distancing and with the governments not providing adequate testing and contact tracing the death toll in the USA is 1000 times higher and so we have had to radically alter our travel plans. With an RV we can avoid airports and airplanes and taxi cabs and restaurants and lodges with other guests.

With cost not a concern it was a matter of which RV provided the best travel support and for us that was a Class C motorhome. $100,000 cheaper to buy a travel trailer and tow it with our diesel truck but that would greatly restrict how we like to travel where we stay 2-4 days at a spot and then move on to the next area.

After my last dog died we stopped having pets other than the wild bird population around our house. It gives us the flexibility to travel and not worry about leaving the animals behind when leaving the country or flying across the country to spend time in another area. Flying from California to Canada and renting an RV or flying to Florida and renting a car and staying at hotels would not be possible if we wanted to take pets along with us. It is a matter of priorities and this is subjective - to each his own.

Bobby F · 01-02-2021, 11:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by twogypsies

Hmmm. You snuck in your huge dogs and now you won't stay at places that allow dogs or cats? What am I missing here?

I read it as, dogs okay, cats yuck.

Roadgypsy · 01-03-2021, 12:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Calson

My dogs were very well behaved as most working dogs tend to be. I am allergic to cat dander/saliva and people that I know who travel with cats will leave them in the room while they are out sightseeing and the cat is likely to be all over the bed. Vacuuming and sink cleaning and fresh towels does nothing for the cat fur and saliva on the fabrics.

As I said I have no issues with places that allow dogs, only with places that allow cats and the majority of AirBNB postings I have found for areas state that cats are OK and so they are places we would never rent. B&B's are cheaper than an AirBNB rental for a couple. Hotels are much cheaper than a AirBNB rental for a couple.

Pre-coronavirus we would travel overseas several times each year. With Americans failing to wear masks and practice social distancing and with the governments not providing adequate testing and contact tracing the death toll in the USA is 1000 times higher and so we have had to radically alter our travel plans. With an RV we can avoid airports and airplanes and taxi cabs and restaurants and lodges with other guests.

With cost not a concern it was a matter of which RV provided the best travel support and for us that was a Class C motorhome. $100,000 cheaper to buy a travel trailer and tow it with our diesel truck but that would greatly restrict how we like to travel where we stay 2-4 days at a spot and then move on to the next area.

After my last dog died we stopped having pets other than the wild bird population around our house. It gives us the flexibility to travel and not worry about leaving the animals behind when leaving the country or flying across the country to spend time in another area. Flying from California to Canada and renting an RV or flying to Florida and renting a car and staying at hotels would not be possible if we wanted to take pets along with us. It is a matter of priorities and this is subjective - to each his own.

With pet allergies, it's a no-brainer that hotels/motels can't guarantee the cleanliness of the room for the comfort of the next patron. Having a asthmatic who is allergic to cats in the family highlights this risk-yes: it is a risk. Once the asthma kicks in, it's no party to treat and ride it out. ER visits, epipens and breathing treatments we can do without on a vacation or trip.

As far as the COVID is concerned, I put the responsibility on everyone. We all know what to do when we're around someone with mono, the flu or a cold. This is no different-Just nastier and fatal for some. And, we (DH) are "high risk". Testing means nothing if not everyone complies with the basic and simple rules-block transmission. Test one day, show negative, get infected by the miscreant tomorrow who doesn't care. All testing does right now with the current public attitude is generate money which comes out of taxpayer's pockets.

While motels/hotels offer their luxury, we still prefer to "rough it" in our small motor home. Aside of the sheer pleasure of the road trip, we very much enjoy the freedoms it offers.
Since we aren't full timers, stop for a few days, use RV CG, this works great for us. We are shuttling cross country to spend time with family and on a mission to do this.
What ever works best for one's needs is right.

Danny Salas · 02-01-2021, 11:32 PM

I am also a newbie, and nowhere near the Major Leagues on RVing. I bought a 2017 Ford Transit wagon (15 passenger van), took the seats out and set it up with a bed, portable toilet, mini fridge, off shore powered AC and portable stove. I am taking DW on roadtrips and mostly boondocking basically every weekend and holidays. The Ford is my commuter too. Will never pay for a hotel again. Total expenses of conversion are still under $1500. Hope it offers a different vantage point from full timers in DPs.

Danny Salas · 02-01-2021, 11:45 PM

Also, the freedom of driving when you want, until the time and location you want (or feel tired) instead of planning nights at specific hotels and dealing with check in and check out schedules. Many times I have driven all night long until 4-5 AM and then taken a “quick break” on a truck stop or rest area, then breakfast and hit the road again. Would hate to pay full daylong price to use a hotel for 3 hours.

Desert Flyer · 02-03-2021, 05:52 PM

Danny, you are just as much an RVer, or camper, as any of us, whether you tent, camper, TT, 5th Wheel, Class A/B/C, or homemade. We are all kindred spirits. Plus, no matter who you talk to, we all want something else, whether upsizing or downsizing! Enjoy the ride and our beautiful country and the outdoors!

astrocamper · 02-04-2021, 08:01 AM

I paid about $30K for a 20 foot travel trailer because we camp for 4-7 nights at regional astronomy events were you can't stay in a motel. The truck to pull it was the biggest expense. I have a coworker who camped for 15 years in a used pop-up trailer and recently upgraded to a 15 year old 16 foot travel trailer for about $4000 used. I am pretty sure they save money staying in the trailer verses hotels.

We only use our travel trailer about 20 nights a year. We plan on more use after we retire in about 3 years. Dark skies for astronomy and hotels/motels don't go together. Spent quite a bit for LiFePO4 batteries and solar so we can stay off the grid for as long as the tanks hold out. We have done 8 days without emptying tanks.

crossle32 · 02-08-2021, 10:03 AM

RV is almost always NOT more "cost effective" for a family of 4. More than than 4, then plane tix, to say... Disney, get expensive and maybe RV is cheaper. Fuel for a big A can get pricey too. More enjoyable? Def the RV. Less schedules to keep, stop where you want to stop and when, packing/unpacking luggage, food is there in the fridge, kids bicycles and toys. RV for us (Dad) is more enjoyable.

6ofus · 02-08-2021, 10:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Old-Biscuit

Bed bugs, adult activities, shower fungus, unknown when carpets were last cleaned, unknown when bed spreads were last cleaned etc etc etc

Hotels/Motels -- disgusting

I don't care what it costs.....MY RV is safest/cleanest means of travel

This says it in a nutshell!

astrocamper · 02-08-2021, 11:50 AM

I made one trip without the trailer last year. My father died and we drove 2600 miles in 2.5 days to get to the funeral. Wouldn't have made it in time if we towed the trailer. Wasn't going to fly last June.

I am fine traveling with the trailer if we limit our days drive to about 8 hours or much less preferably.

OldracerJim · 02-10-2021, 07:37 AM

I've travelled over 2 million miles through the air, with and without family, for vacation and business, and have enjoyed it by and large. I bought an RV last year and took a vacation to the Smokey Mountains, the same vacation we took a couple years ago without an RV. The difference was amazing. "Home" every night. Our favorite foods and drinks in the fridge. Our clothes, toiletries, dog bed, everything the same as home yet we got up every morning to beautiful sunrises, drives through the mountains, entertainment much different than at home and nice people to meet and befriend. No fighting crowds at the airport, finding (and paying for) a parking space, the gates, the waits, the smelly person in the seat next to you on the airplane, the late flights, terrible food, and strangers in a hurry caring only about themselves. The competition was a no brainer; the RV travel was much better.