As the U.S. slowly opens up after the COVID-19 pandemic, a lot of people are reassessing their summer plans. After being cooped up inside for so long, a change of scenery sounds amazing. The thing is, lots of people are still concerned about how safe it is to travel. For that reason, travel experts predict that the great American road trip is poised to make a comeback. And with that, lots of new RVers will be hitting the road.
I recently wrote a piece for Martha Stewart Living about how travel will change post-pandemic (give it a read here) and in it, Jon Gray, CEO of RVshare, tells me that RV travel is becoming incredibly popular—bookings on RVshare.com are up 1,000 percent since early April. Yes, 1,000 percent. It makes sense. An RV is a hotel on wheels. It gives you the opportunity to get outside of your house and visit new places, all without having to be too close to other people. It’s a social-distanced vacation on wheels.
It wasn’t that long ago that I, too, had literally no idea what to expect from life on the road. Now that we’ve been RVing full-time for about six months, there are some things I wish I had known before we set out.
Here, some of the best tips I have for people who are hoping to hit the road in a RV this summer.
1. Pick a model that fits your needs.
There are tons of different styles and models of RVs out there. Picking which one you want will depend on what’s important to you. Some questions you’ll want to ask yourself:
- How many sleeping spaces do we need?
- How much cooking will I want to do?
- How much storage will we need?
- Is a full shower important to us?
- Do we want a vehicle separate from the RV to take day trips?
- How comfortable am I driving and backing up a large vehicle?
- Do I want to deal with the hitching and unhitching process?
Once you have your parameters, you can start looking at models and deciding which one fits your needs best. For example, we only needed one queen bed, knew we wanted to have a decent-sized fridge that we could stock, and wanted a separate vehicle to visit national parks and other places that might have limited parking. We decided on towing a camper trailer with our truck.
If you’re renting a RV for a few weeks, something that’s all one unit is typically easier to drive and park, and you don’t have to worry about the logistics of hitching up and disconnecting. Most RV rental companies, like Cruise America, only rent these types of RVs. It eliminates a lot of the logistics and safety issues, so I’d recommend going that route if this is new to you.
2. Dumping the sewage really isn’t that bad. Promise.
One thing that people always wonder about is the bathroom situation. Having a bathroom on board is, in my opinion, the best part about traveling in a RV. You don’t need to use rest stops. Sometimes we do, but other times, we just hop into the back and use the toilet. It definitely seems gross before you know how it works, so let me explain:
If your RV has a toilet, there’s a holding tank underneath called the “black tank.” You also will have a “gray tank” for sink and shower water. When you go to the bathroom and flush, everything swirls down like a normal toilet, down into the holding tank. The tanks obviously have a capacity, which will range depending on the size of the RV. You’ll have to empty those tanks regularly. That doesn’t mean you have to go down there and open them up. On the side of your RV, there will be a sewage connection, where you’ll connect a sewage hose. You’ll then connect the other end of the hose to a dump—you can find these in campgrounds, some public parks, and more. (We use iOverlander and SaniDumps to help find free dump stations near us.) Once both ends of the hose are attached securely, you pull a lever that opens the sewage and the filth will drain. Always do black tank first, then close it, and then pull the lever for the gray tank. This way, the gray water wil give the hose a rinse after the black water has run through it. Then, close the lever, disconnect the hose, and store it in its own container—we have a big plastic bin in the storage space underneath our camper where we keep the hose.
3. You don’t need RV-specific toilet paper.
Another toilet-related question! Some people will say you need to buy RV-specific toilet paper to avoid clogging your black tank. We’ve found that to not be true, and tons of full-time RVers also don’t buy special toilet paper. (It’s annoying to find, and no one needs a harder time finding TP these days.) Avoid extra plush, heavy duty toilet paper, because that will not break down well, and instead, just buy regular one-ply paper. Some people suggest putting a piece of toilet paper in a container with water, closing it, and shaking it to see if it starts to disintegrate. If it does, it’s safe for the RV tank. I’ve never done that, though. We just use regular one-ply toilet paper and drop one of these toilet tabs into the toilet first thing to help break down the TP and neutralize odors.
4. Staying at RV campgrounds is really easy.
There are tons of RV campgrounds around the country, and if you’re OK with spending $30-$60 per night, then they’re definitely the most convenient. You can book sites at most RV campgrounds with just water and electric (less expensive) or with water, electric, and sewage (full hookups). If we’re staying at a site for three nights or more, we always book full hookups because we don’t want to worry about filling our gray water tank. If we’re only staying one or two nights, we try to save money and just go with water/electric sites, and then we dump our gray and black tanks at the main dump station (usually near the entrance/exit) before we head out. Some RV campgrounds require reservations—especially now post-COVID—while many others will take walk-ins (drive-ins?). We always try to book ahead of time just so we know we definitely have somewhere to stay.
Kampgrounds of America (KOA) has been our go-to campground chain because they’re pretty much everywhere, there’s an app that makes it easy to book, you get 10 percent off every night if you sign up for their loyalty program, and you also earn points that can be used toward free nights (though the accrual process is pretty slow). We also stay at privately owned campgrounds all around the country. I usually just use Google Maps to look at what’s in the area, read reviews, and check rates.
5. There are also lots of cool places you can camp for free.
I’m going to do a whole post on this with more details, but here’s the gist: In the RV world, free camping is called boondocking or dry camping. Boondocking is allowed on public lands run by two federal organizations: the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the U.S. Forest Service (USFS). Free camping on public lands is very hard east of the Mississippi; out west, it’s plentiful. States like Arizona and Utah have enough public land that you never have to pay for a campsite if you don’t want to. But boondocking requires some planning ahead.
First, you need to find spot. The BLM and USFS websites are generally not helpful. The USFS site does list primitive campgrounds depending in each national forest, but those aren’t usually free—anywhere from $11-$20 per night with no hook ups. There’s no central place you can go to figure out what’s public land around you and where there are spots that can accommodate your RV. That’s where user-generated apps come in. We mostly use iOverlander and FreeRoam. When people boondock, they check in with GPS coordinates and some details about what the spot was like. Hopefully, they include info on the condition of the road, cell service, and whether there’s enough room for a large RV or if it’s more suited for tent camping. So far, these apps have never let us down. We always try to pick out two in the area, so that if one doesn’t end up working out, we’ll have another to fall back on. We also always check in ourselves to help make the apps more helpful for other people!
Second, since you won’t have water and electric hookups, you’ll need to have a strategy. We sometimes fill up our fresh water tank when we leave a campground with hookups, if we know we’ll be boondocking for a few nights. Or, we try to find a free water fill-up that’s close-ish to our boondocking destination—lugging around a full tank of water kills your gas mileage, so we try not to, but sometimes it’s the only option. For electric, our batteries can last about a week in non-extreme temps, so around 40s-80s. If it’s freezing or really hot, the batteries die quicker.
6. Always be conserving (your water).
The number of days you can go before needing to dump your gray and black water tanks depends on the size of the tanks and how much water you use. We’ve never filled our black tank, but we have filled our gray tank—you’ll know it because it’ll backflow into the bathtub (if you have one). It doesn’t smell good. We’ve figured out that we can go about 9-10 days living off our full fresh water tank, which is 36 gallons. But that’s only if we are very careful while washing dishes and shower outside. We have a hose in the back of the camper, and we use biodegradable soap (and make sure we’re far enough from a body of water so that it’s eco-safe). If we only need the tanks to last for 5-7 days, we take military showers inside, aka, only running the water when we need to rinse off soap or shampoo. When we’re hooked up at a campground and can use water freely, we have to empty the gray water tank every other day. Another way we think about it: Our hot water heater holds 6 gallons of water, so usually our showers use about 6 gallons. After two days of each of us showering, that’s 24 gallons just from the shower. Dishes on top of it means we’ll definitely need to empty the tank.
7. Prepare for the weather.
Important note: In most RVs, you can’t run the air conditioning without an electric hookup. So if it’s going to be very hot out, it might not be a good idea to boondock (unless you have a more complex setup with solar or have a generator you can use to run the A/C). If you’re renting a RV, ask the company about the A/C—and heat, if you’ll need it—and what you’ll need to run them. If you don’t have a way to run A/C while boondocking, you’ll need to stay at campground with electric hookups to stay comfortable.
Heat requires both electric and propane to work properly. And as I mentioned, freezing temps will drain your battery quicker. So that’s all important to consider when you’re deciding between staying at a paid campground or “roughing it” on free public land.
8. Don’t overpack.
Yes, it’s a road trip, but it’s generally not a good idea to shove as much as you can into your RV. If you’re towing a camper like we are, there’s a weight limit on how much your tow vehicle (truck) can pull. Packing the camper full of stuff adds to the overall weight capacity. It also will get you worse gas mileage. Tow limits don’t matter if you’re driving a motorhome that’s all in one piece, but gas mileage is still something to keep in mind. Living on the road, our biggest expense by far is gas, even now that it’s relatively cheap.
9. Expect some unwelcome visitors.
RVs are not at all airtight, so it’s pretty easy for mice to climb aboard. We picked one up near Lake Powell, when we were camping in a wide open, sandy area with lots of shrubs—a mouse oasis. For the next two nights, we heard it coming out to party when we went to bed. We bought regular ol’ snap traps and he was gone the next night. Just know that this can and likely will happen if you’re somewhere that gets cold at night, and if you’ve got lots of food out in the RV. We now try to put food completely away in the cabinets and avoid leaving it out as much as possible. We haven’t had any hitchhikers since that first one, but we left traps locked and loaded (and duct taped to the floor) behind the toilet where we think it came in, just in case. If you end up with a mouse on board, don’t freak out. Buy traps, load them with peanut butter, and get rid of the problem (sorry, mice).
10. Ask all the questions. Seriously, don’t hold back.
If you’re renting a RV, ask the company literally everything and everything. Some basic things you should always know before you hit the road:
- What is the amperage? Do I need a converter to plug the electric in at a campground?
- How many gallons do the fresh, grey, and black water tanks hold?
- Where is the sewage hook up? Do you provide a hose?
- Where is the fresh water hook up? Do you provide a hose?
- How do the A/C and heat work? Can I use them without being plugged in? What will I need to use them if I’m dry camping?
- If you’re going with a camper, ask them to show you how to hitch and unhitch! This is a PROCESS that you need to get down to make sure you’re doing it correctly and safely every single time. I recommend
Honestly, you’ll probably have other questions when you see the RV and start thinking about how you’ll use it. Ask whatever questions pop into your mind. Nothing is stupid. You’re about to live in a vehicle you’ve never driven before. It’s better for everyone that you get all of the information possible so that your trip will be safe and comfortable.
11. Things will go wrong. Don’t let it ruin your trip.
RVing is not all rainbows and sunsets (though you’ll likely see both if you’re exploring the country). Things will break—RVs are notoriously made cheaply and things break all the time—and you might even get stuck trying to park somewhere that’s not big enough. But you have to just go with the flow. My best advice is to plan ahead as much as possible, Google EVERYTHING, and be patient. There’s a lot to learn, and you’ll be outside of your comfort zone. But that’s part of the fun. Living in a RV gives you the opportunity to explore the country and stay in beautiful places where hotels don’t exist. If you don’t let the logistics freak you out, you’ll get comfortable and ultimately, be able to fully enjoy the ride.
Do you have any other questions about prepping for your RV trip? Leave a comment below or message me on Instagram at @amymart or @rvintheusa and I’ll be happy to point you in the right direction!
