You’ll notice that the title of this article indicates that the RVing lifestyle is a cost effective way to live your dreams. Do you find that difficult to believe?
Consider that there will not be a need for expensive airline tickets, which you know are outrageously high these days due to the cost of jet fuel. In addition there are no hotel room charges, no need for a rental car, and no need to eat out every day and night since you can prepare your meals in the comfort of your RV. Believe me when I tell you we’ve prepared some incredible gourmet meals in our coach.
Can you imagine the sensation of truly losing your sense of time? How would it feel to have to regularly check a calendar to see what the date is? That is basically how we live when we are traveling in our RV. This is a true sense of freedom. Our lifestyle is free and spontaneous.
As a retiree, it is crucial that you contemplate what you want from retirement. It is of the utmost importance that you have a retirement plan. Do you want to continue to grow and learn? Or, do you simply want to relax? Maybe you’d like to reinvent yourself and continue working part time. During our Third Age, (the first being childhood and the second family and career) we can experiment with new interests and ideas. We are living longer and healthier lives. The RV lifestyle will offer you the means to implement your plans. And, over the long term, you’ll find that regardless of fluctuating fuel prices, you can do this economically. We do know this to be true because we are doing it right now.
To make the RV lifestyle work for you, it is imperative to find out if you can adjust your life to the RV way of life. Are there encumbrances that will prevent you from leaving your home? For example, are there family members that you must attend to? What about care and maintenance of your home? Do you have pets to provide for?
What do you think the term “RV lifestyle” really means? Your RV lifestyle is whatever you want it to be. If you have that all-important plan for retirement in hand, an RV can be a great tool to help implement that plan. When you think about it, your RV can actually assist in the planning of your retirement. With all of the conveniences contained within an RV, even simple tasks such as going to the shopping mall, or the beach, or to most tourist attractions become more enjoyable.
We have found it most enjoyable to travel around with our living room, kitchen, and bathroom. When hiking or picnicking these facilities make the experience even more enjoyable. Certainly, van conversions, truck campers, and in general, small rigs work very well in these situations. There are certain other conveniences that are specific to an RV. For example, you will not need to pack any suitcases. You will not need to catch an airplane, and, you eat in a restaurant only when you want to. If you find a location that you are particularly fond of, you may even be able to store your unit in a campground facility and perhaps have it moved on site when you arrive. Then when you leave, the RV is returned to the storage lot.
Types of Recreational Vehicles
Motorized RVs offer a variety of amenities including cooking facilities, refrigeration, a self -contained toilet, heating and or air conditioning, a portable water system, an electric system, sleeping facilities and a LP gas supply. So, what that really means is that they are self-contained. You drive it and live in it.
Many motorhome owners prefer to tow a car behind them. I tow a Honda CRV behind my coach because it fuel efficient, tracks well (follows the coach with ease), and is one of the few small SUVs that can be “flat towed” (towed behind the motorhome on all four wheels). There is no need to hook up a car trailer. If you do not care to tow a vehicle then you will have to unhook the RV and drive it out and about, which can be challenging if you have a large rig.
A towable RV is one that is towed behind another vehicle. These are commonly referred to as trailers. Most often the tow vehicle (towing the towable) is a pickup truck, SUV, van, or even another small, motorized RV that is equipped with a tow package.
Try the RV Lifestyle
If you’ve never experienced the RV lifestyle for a period of time, it is critical that you do a “test drive” of sorts. That is, rent an RV and go out for a few weeks. RV rentals are a great way to travel. You can vacation, visit new places, and at the same time, figure out what kind of RV best suits you. Before you rent you will want to consider choices of destinations, and exactly how much time you have available. Be certain that you plan well enough in advance as rental agencies to get quite busy during periods of warm weather. You will also want to think about who is going on the trip and the interests of everyone. That may affect the size of the rig that you rent.
Campgrounds
Most campgrounds fall into two basic categories: overnight and destination. When we travel for longer time periods on Interstates, we typically look for those campgrounds that are that have easy on and off access. The intrinsic value of these campgrounds is convenience and not necessarily beauty. So, if they have cable TV and wi-fi access I am satisfied. Sometimes, however, if you have your handy campground guide handy, you may be able to locate a state park or private campground close by, so you do not have to listen to the sounds of the highway. And, if you are really lucky, you may come across a campground in that offers level, pull-through sites where little effort is required to set up camp.
In the next article I will discuss some very useful frugal strategies for the RV lifestyle.
Jeffrey Webber is the author of four books. The first is entitled The New Professional Person’s Retirement Lifestyle. The second is Technology & Your Retirement Lifestyle: Tools For The New You. The third is RVing & Your Retirement Lifestyle: A Cost Effective Way to Live Your Dreams. The most recent book is Volunteering & Your Retirement Lifestyle.
Mr. Webber was a public school educator for thirty-three years. Also, he has traveled extensively around the world and is a veteran of RV travel throughout the U.S. He is an avid hobbyist, classical musician, dancer, and is devoted to the cultural arts. Additionally, he volunteers extensively for Heifer International, and maintains a fervent devotion to physical fitness activities.