Would you ever live in a RV full time?

2 years ago

Or for say, a year or six months? Have you done that? I thought about doing that when I retire but I don't think I want to now. I do find it interesting to hear how those people live and hear why and how they decided to do this. Seems like more and more people are doing this and the campgrounds are getting crowded. I wouldn't mind RVing for a month or so at a time. I think it would be fun. I wouldn't do it alone, though. I might do it in a van by myself, though. I think it would be easier for me to maneuver.

I have friends who did it for years and worked at parks being campground hosts. They're now living in a real home. I've also "known" a couple people from the KT who did or are doing it.

Featured Answer

patriciae_gw

2 years ago

Having worked in nation parks I have seen people do this. Often one is more into it than the other. One big downside that I saw was both of you had better be able to drive the thing because something can go wrong with the driver.

For me one of the worst things is how you have to live. It is cheek and jowl with other similar people also living on the road. You have no privacy as the campgrounds are packed like sardines. I would hate that. As a female I would generally be expected to do the cooking etc. I feel the same way about this that I do camping in general. I do all the same jobs I do at home with insufficient equipment and not enough room. Why would I want to do that? Tent camping has you living on a heap of tiny trash. No thank you.

Comments (58)

joann_fl
2 years ago
Not if I had a choice I wouldn't.
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nicole___
2 years ago
It sounds like a good idea...but if you stay in a camp ground for a night, you'd change your mind. Everyone wants a fire. Smoke everywhere! Noise all hours of the night. Trash. I really couldn't do it.
Kathsgrdn thanked nicole___
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moosemac
2 years ago
When my father retired, he reminded me of my promise to him, that I would travel to Alaska with him. I was married with a 2 year old son. My husband encoraged me to take this once in a life time trip with Dad.

Dad purchased a motorhome and we (Dad, the 2 year old and I ) set off from New England headed to Alaska. We left in late April travelled across Canada, up the AlCan to Alaska. We spent the entire summer in criss crossing Alaska site seeing and fishing and in early October headed home across the U.S.

We lived almost 6 months in the motorhome and never once stayed in a hotel except for our last night on the road. By that time, I wanted a real shower and a dining experience before we got home.

The trip was wonderful but I could never live in a motorhome full time. I need a real home.
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beesneeds
2 years ago
No, not really. I could stay in one for a few months if I needed to because of a house remodel or something like that... but I really couldn't because I have indoor kitties that would not deal with it well, even for a few weeks. I know some pets are cool with it, and also know mine would not be.

I also have always had a dislike of driving larger vehicles and am not good with trailers, so there's that, lol.
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Elmer J Fudd
2 years ago
last modified: 2 years ago
No. Not even for a week. If it were for one night, I'd think about it but it would have to be under very compelling and inflexible circumstances. But no, likely not even for one overnight.

For all the reasons others have cited and more.
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socks
2 years ago
My sister did this for several years in the Western US after retiring, and this was her only home at the time. She researched carefully, got in touch with groups who live this way. There is a steep learning curve to operate a motor home, but she did it. In the beginning she traveled with a group but found out it wasn’t a good fit for her. Except there was a man in the group who felt the same, so they teamed up, each in their own motor home, traveled at their own pace, staying a while here and there. They weren’t always together, but were in the same area and stayed in touch, sometimes together, sharing meals, planning travel. They tried to camp in what I think was “national forest” which is free for 14 days as I recall. But of course no hookups at all. They got jobs as “camp hosts,” last summer. They traveled to avoid high heat areas like Arizona in the summer. I worried about her, but she was brave and strong and handled well every “bump in the road.” She pulled a trailer with a small ATV so she could explore. She tried to live in the MH in a cold, snowy climate one winter, but it was too cold. She lived her dream, and I’m proud of her for that. ♥️
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Judy Good
2 years ago
No thank you....
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User
2 years ago
last modified: 2 years ago
No, and definitely not in a campground
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terezosa / terriks
2 years ago
No, and if my husband even suggested it I'd have to leave him!
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Coco
2 years ago
I think Don's getting ready to do that.
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User
2 years ago
last modified: 2 years ago
No, and if my husband even suggested it I'd have to leave him!

If my husband suggested it, he’d have to leave me as I’m staying put at home. He’d be the one hitting the road in an RV.
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Lars
2 years ago
No, my camping days are over. I think it is fine when you are in your 20s and even 30s, but beyond that, it gets old very quickly. I've done my time in the woods already.
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terezosa / terriks
2 years ago
No, my camping days are over. I think it is fine when you are in your 20s and even 30s, but beyond that, it gets old very quickly. I've done my time in the woods already.

Living full time in an RV is a lot different from camping in the woods! Some RVs are quite luxurious mini palaces, and the RV parks aren't the wilderness.

Still, I don't care how nice the RV is - I'll take a nice hotel room or Airbnb over an RV vacation any day.
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maire_cate
2 years ago
I could live in an RV for 6 months I just couldn't drive it anywhere. I used to have a Chevy Suburban when the kids were in college but that's about as large of a vehicle that I care to drive.
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artemis_ma
2 years ago
No. When I camp, I still prefer a tent. Which is easier to set up away from crowds from other RVs. (I camp with a cot.) I don't want to drive one, either.
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Chessie
2 years ago
last modified: 2 years ago
Hell no. Camping trip? Yes. Definitely. We go often and enjoy it. But full time?? EEK.
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hounds_x_two
2 years ago
Not by choice!
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bpath
2 years ago
My cousin (mentioned upthread) has a fifth-wheel, so not quite as cumbersome as an RV, they can separate it from the truck at a campground so they can drive around, withough towing a car, but still, she lets her hisband drive when there is maneuvering to be done,
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lily316
2 years ago
Not in a million years. One of us would be arrested for murder. Sometimes a ten-room house isn't big enough.
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Adella Bedella
2 years ago
I've known a few people who have done it. I wouldn't. I have limits. It would be enjoyable for a short while. I'd prefer staying in a cabin and getting takeout and spending my money that way. I like a shower and a restaurant at the end of my hikes. We've done tent camping and pop-up camper camping, but it is work. I'm not driving a behemoth through the mountains.
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pudgeder
2 years ago
There is no way in Hades we could do that.

#1 -Husband snores like a freight train

He'd have to sleep outside. Other campers would complain and we'd be kicked out of any a campgrounds.

#2 Claustrophobia would prohibit it.

Nope. Ain't happening.
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Fun2BHere
2 years ago
I think it might have been fun for a summer when I was young, fit and flexible. Now? No.
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maire_cate
2 years ago
I forgot to add that there's no way you'd find me in a campground. Friends of ours who are having an adventurous retirement sold their home and lived on a boat in Seattle for a few years. When they tired of that they bought a 32' RV and spend winters near Palm Springs and summers in upper Wisconsin.
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bragu_DSM 5
2 years ago
no, we lived in a trailer home in college...
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yeonassky
2 years ago
If DH wanted to try this I would go along. He would want to travel from place to place and ride on his dirt bike. It's gives him that spark. I would just consider it another adventure. I guess I don't have the sense that many of you do.
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terezosa / terriks
2 years ago
I feel the same way about this that I do camping in general. I do all the same jobs I do at home with insufficient equipment and not enough room.

Same here. Years ago there was a story in the "outdoors" section of our local paper on Saturday. Pictured in the article was a woman washing up at the camp site while dad and the kids were exploring the woods. My thoughts then and now were "no thanks."

Did anyone see the 1985 movie Lost in America? It's about a couple who decide to sell everything and live in a RV, I haven't watched it in years, so I don't know how well the movie has aged, but I do remember one scene where I was laughing so hard that tears were rolling down my face.
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Lynda (Zn9b/23 - Central CA Coast)
2 years ago
No, I would consider it the equivalent to being homeless.
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maggie200
2 years ago
I think so. i would try it if a friend went with me. i wouldn't rule out eating at a camp fire or neeting people a couple of times. i'm great in small spaces and curious to travel.
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artemis_ma
2 years ago
I go to a yearly gathering where the choices are bunk beds with lots of people in each cabin, or setting up a tent where it is quiet, private and you don't have to put up with the inevitable snorers. I'm a very light sleeper. I choose the tent. At this site we get food staff makes for us and there are bathrooms. I am hoping to go again next fall... i missed it the past two years, once of course not by choice....

I've been lucky when tent camping where friends and I need to do our own cooking, near everyone either cooks together or we take turns at the domestic tasks... men just as eager to cook as women. Of course, no one really enjoys clean up, but we all pitch in. Even when we were kids, dad didn't run off with us leaving mom to cook/ clean up. We were a family.

I've never actually spent a night in an RV.
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arcy_gw
2 years ago
Contemplating this sounds common when dreaming of retirement. I know a few snow birds that do this each winter. I think this is part of the Tiny House movement. It sure sounds doable, setting up for an elongated visit in each of our offspring's driveways..but bottom line the cramped space would kill the dream faster than I can say No Thank You!
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aok27502
2 years ago
My in-laws do it part time, but it sure isn't "camping." They have a 38' coach. Queen bed, full size shower, gas stove. They typically go for 4-6 months at a time, although that is changing now that Dad is almost 83. They love nothing more than to ride to the mountains, where the campsites are large and more isolated. They'll spend days or weeks in one place, doing whatever it is they do all day. They've also done multiple trips cross-country, Alaska, Nova Scotia, Canada. No regrets.
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jupidupi
2 years ago
I enjoy small space living but hate motor vehicles. I don't even want to be in a car any more than necessary. I knew someone years ago whose dream retirement was to travel around in an RV. I learned from him: 1.) You are very limited in sightseeing because you can't exactly park it on that quaint Main Street. 2.) Everything rattles. In fact, if you think a car depreciates the moment you drive it off the lot, look into motor homes. Sooooo many parts to go bad, get loose and cause problems. Check out the funny movie The Long, Long Trailer, in which Lucy and Desi are newlyweds traveling in an RV.
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marilyn_c
2 years ago
The idea has some appeal to me, but I am tied to too many animals to ever really consider something like that. Actually we did live in an RV when we first moved to the bayou...but parked on our own land. It was okay...showed me that I really could live in a small space.
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sleeperblues
2 years ago
I must be the odd duck out, but the thought of it is quite enticing. We bought a used motorhome 4 years ago and have been using it in the summer. It's nice, but nothing super fancy. Some of those rigs are gorgeous, and can cost as much as a home. If I were to do it, it would have to be in one of them. I love nature and hiking and being able to have the dogs with us. I would never go to a place and park it for the summer, I would visit national and state parks and also do some boondocking, which is camping off road in national forests. You can be as far away from people if you want, you don't have to choose RV parks with sites on top of each other. I could probably do it for a year or more, but would have to have a home base to return to.
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User
2 years ago
last modified: 2 years ago
Yes to boondocking but not in a motorhome. And no to living in it for any length of time.

My husband bought a small fiberglass trailer last year. I was a bit hesitant about the whole thing but now I love it. The actual trailer is 13 feet long and about 6.5 feet wide. It tows easily behind an SUV.

Last year we headed into the Northwest Territories. We also travelled the Canadian part of the Alaska Highway. We were gone for a few weeks. We saw very few people. It was a wonderful trip and we were able to go off road into some very beautiful places.

This year, we are loving it as we like to travel the province and go golfing at small town courses. Normally we would just book an overnight hotel room where ever we were but I now prefer our little trailer. We can park it almost anywhere on Crown land and have yet to stay in a campground. It has solar panels and bathroom.

Would I live in an RV? No.

eta Sticking with hotels would be overall cheaper but I like the trailer much better.
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Elmer J Fudd
2 years ago
last modified: 2 years ago
I think there are many factors that people weigh:

Camping. Do you like camping? Where you go and how on the scale from camping to glamping as the equipment and comfort factors are added to don't change the fact that spending time in an RV is a form of camping. Many love to camp, many dislike it. I'm in the second category.

Where do you want to go? Do you want to move around? Are there alternative lodging choices available? (I know that campgrounds in popular places are booked months in advance, sometimes more so than hotel rooms). RV sites at popular National and State parks can be very busy and booked up. Here as was mentioned with "crown land" in Canada, barebones camping and RV parking (without facilities provided) is allowed in National Parks. At least in the West that I've seen, there ain't nowhere busier and more crowded than campgrounds/RV sites at national and state parks and at beach parks.

Do you want solitude? Out in the boondocks alone? Or someplace more in demand? Organized RV sites/campgrounds can be as crowded and full of random sketchy people as a busy parking lot at a shopping center on Black Friday. With spaces slightly larger than for cars but still closely side by side.

How much can you afford? Is the RV or mobile home direction (as mentioned above) a way to fit your desires into a limited budget? Or can you afford more comfortable travel and lodging but just prefer the RV approach?

We know two couples who have the very small, tow behind a car basic models that offer a bit more than shelter from overnight rain. For them, it's cost, they can't afford much more. Another who owns a rather large bus-type unit but uses it infrequently. No thanks to either approach for me but I know these things do appeal to others.
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User
2 years ago
last modified: 2 years ago
Yep, cost is not always a factor. A basic, no frills Oliver 13 foot fibreglass trailer starts at 50,000 USD! Airstreams are about the same. Armadillo too.

Also, sometimes there are just no hotels where one travels to.

I love staying in hotels but I certainly wouldn’t want to live in one. It’s all about where you want to go and what you want to see.
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summersrhythm_z6a
2 years ago
last modified: 2 years ago
We love RV camping in state parks when we have time, have been busy lately, haven't camped for a couple years. We have a small 17' Toy Hauler, a small 125 cc motorcycle and a 50 cc scooter are a part of our camping gears. If kids are coming with us, we also load 2 kayaks + 2 bicycles, and one more motorcycle or scooter. We normally camp less than a week. Long term camping would be difficult for me. But a lot of snow birds here are happy campers down south during the winter months. It's totally doable for many.
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User
2 years ago
last modified: 2 years ago
About 89% of Canada is Crown land. It’s not all in National/Provincial Parks.

summersrhythm, kids love that kind of stuff.
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Chessie
2 years ago
sleeperblues I would not even consider, for even a second, having a dog in the RV. No way in h e double l. Eeegads that is way too much for me!!
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nicole___
2 years ago
Story: We were in Canyon Lands National Park, 6am to camera shoot Mesa Arch. A guy dressed in a one piece snow suit said he'd been awake ALL night, tent flapping in the wind. He paid $37.50 for a camping spot. It was 9F, he was freezing...just miserable. We said, for $40 we'd stayed in a newly remodeled hotel, with a FREE hot breakfast & huge in ground hot tub. The price was so cheap because no one was there. The place had granite counter tops, cable TV, super cute ultra modern decor, He left @ 8am to go to OUR hotel. Said it was worth getting a good nights sleep before driving home to Florida. He thanked us. A motorhome would have had propane heat, but then when you get home, you have to empty out the privy, clean up dishes after each meal, none free & pay to store it.
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Kathsgrdn
Original Author
2 years ago
I've camped in tents, fun when you're a kid, not so much as an old lady even with an air mattress. I've camped in the back of a camper attached to a truck, a truck bed, and once in a RV at Holiday World campground in Indiana. The RV was better than some motels I've stayed at. Of course I didn't have to do any maintenance, driving or dumping of waste products.
Elmer J Fudd
2 years ago
My first trip to Hawaii was while I was in my mid-20s, a two week visit. The first week was split between two islands and the second week was on the Big Island. A friend had convinced me to rent a small RV and spend the 7 days visiting a selection of what at the time were several beach campsites in (I think) state parks. This guy was quirky and had questionable judgment, I should have know better than to follow his suggestion.

After 2 days, I'd had enough of the inconveniences. We made a beeline to a resort hotel on a beach that had a room available. The camper spent the remaining time in the hotel parking lot other than when taking us out to dinner or to local touristic activities. We enjoyed our time very comfortably at a nice resort. That was my last camping experience.
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terezosa / terriks
2 years ago
The subject of this thread is living full time in an RV, which to me is definitely not the same as camping!
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wildchild2x2
2 years ago
Not by choice. I could adapt if I had to. It would certainly beat being homeless.

I also like to camp. But anything beyond a tent doesn't feel like camping to me. My first choice is sleeping under the stars, second is a tent. Beyond that may as well get a room.
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nickel_kg
2 years ago
Full time RV life would never be my first choice. I'm too tied to earth and gardening and daily contact with "my" growing things to want to move all the time. And I like a bit of space to spread out in. But I could do it if I had to.

DH and I have daydreamed about long term vacations to thoroughly explore other areas of the continent. One of the advantages of an RV (or tent) is that you control the cleanliness level. The more often you stay in a hotel or air bnb or such, the more exposure you have to other people's germs and bugs. I'm not paranoid about it, but even nice places can have bedbugs, is my understanding. The cost factor is something you need to evaluate based on your own plans -- for us with our relatively modest trips, it looked like staying in hotels would be cheaper than renting or buying/selling even a small RV.
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User
2 years ago
My husbands late cousin (my one time best friend who introduced us) was basically homeless with her husband and their daughter. Her small family once travelled across the country in a small older RV and she LOVED it. When they lost their home, they moved into their RV and lived in her sons backyard so they would have access to the shower and if needed a larger stove, but spent most of their time in the RV in the backyard. She said she would love to live in it forever. I would need something bigger. We have a similar older RV and while it's great for a week while we are camping. it's too small to live in. But I cannot see buying a larger one these days as they cost what I paid for my house....
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nicole___
2 years ago
last modified: 2 years ago

About a year ago I came across one of these, with the side flip outs. It had 28K miles on it, 4 years old, $50K. I did a double take, then moved on. ♥ (It was listed on Nextdoor for a week) I did consider buying it.
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User
2 years ago
last modified: 2 years ago
Smart move, nicole. It probably leaks like crazy.

Plus anywhere you could take it would most likely have decent hotels nearby. You’d end up squished together with other monstrosities like it.
Kathsgrdn thanked User

Would you ever live in a RV full time?

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