Look great! But what about showers/toilets??
Look great! But what about showers/toilets??
Whether you use an RV or a camper van you can't simply pull up in a City car park and sleep for the night. There are limited 'Boondocking' spots in the US [free camping sites] and more often than not you would have to travel miles to find one, often resulting in burning more fuel than you will save in campground fees.Quote:
Look great! But what about showers/toilets??
Truck stops are an option for sleeping with the option of being able to pay for a shower in the morning, but they are for eating or sleeping at,they are a rest stop. You obviously can't set up camp and get the BBQ out and other than sleeping it's not gonna be a lot of fun spending your night in a parking lot. There are a lot of private owned, State and National park campgrounds available at a reasonable cost and most privates campgrounds have shower and toilet blocks, as do some of the State and NP campgrounds.
City campgrounds are generally more expensive [probably because the land would be valuable for development] and many are little more than a parking lot. We travel by RV in the US as a lifestyle choice, but have little interest in the City's where the RV is not best suited too. With a smaller camper as described by John you would be able to get around the City easier, enjoy camping in the National parks etc and could still warrant a night in Motel once or twice a week to get a good bed for the night and a decent meal and shower.
The downside with the camper would be space, as even when I was young I don't think I could be comfortable sharing such a small area with 3 others, never mind how good a mates we were. It has potential for major fall outs over such a long period, especially if you are not that familiar with each others personal habits. A bad night can lead to a long day !
If you want to compare costs [although the 'Lifestyle' cost is of far more importance for the harmony of the trip] take a look at the RTA reservations to the top right of this page and get a 'ball park' figure for car rental per week and hotel room cost for four occupants in 3 or 4 different areas. Then go to the Cruise America website and put in all your details on the bookings page. Remember to add your extra mileage [daily average] and book kitchen and bedroom kits etc. This will give you a rental figure and then add, I would say $35 per night campground fees as many could be in the City. Now you have a comparision of costs before you turn the ignition key. An 8000 mile trip in an RV will probaly burn 880 gallons of fuel and a car, possibly 320 depending on model. At an estimated $4 per gallon that would be an additional $2240 to your RV cost. You will also have to pay for propane and generator use although these costs can be quite minimal.
Go through the same process with the campervan option and then discuss it with your mates. I would imagine the fuel costs will be somewhere in between the above but the HUGE difference over such a long trip is going to be the fact there is no extra charge for young drivers. That in itself will pay for a Motel room a couple of times a week or more and give yourselves an opportunity for a little space if needed by getting 2 rooms.
Escape campervans have gotten some good reviews here, but I don't know that I would choose that option with 4 people.
Really, to sleep 4 people, you're going to have to use their "rooftop sleeper." That looks like a pretty big hassle to me. At the very least, it's going to cost an extra $20 a day, and it is going to make urban boondocking - at places like Truck stops - pretty much impossible. I don't see any practical way where you'd be able to use it without looking like you are camping. That means campgrounds every night - so you're again, looking at $25 or so a night on average. Throw in the extra cost to rent a van, the extra fuel, and the potential for pretty significant mileage charges, and I don't think one of these vans will end up being a bargain choice for you either.
Hi, I just picked up the thread here. We are renting an escape campervan this summer...but for 115 days, to travel around US. There is one other thing to think about here, and that is the insurance; it does not come with the hire of the campervan. They want to charge 9 dollars per day for CDW and 9.25 dollars daily for SLI, (they offer only standard cover). That is quite a bit on top of the hire, and if you're on a budget it's something to think about. We have, and are still looking for, other insurance to cover it....this is proving very difficult from the UK. Two reasons; the length of time...most cover 45 days...and the fact that many companies here just will not do it,..too risky I guess. I cannot find insurance that covers the two insurances in one policy either. So, the extra cover would be over 18 dollars per day. By the way, if anyone knows how we could do this more cheaply I would be grateful for the information as we fly next week. Thank in advance.
Hello and welcome to RTA Mardiray.
Quite the trip you have planned, Wow ! Feel free to drop in anytime if you need any tips/suggestions and you can always create a trip report in the 'Field reports' section.
Thanks for jumping in and offering useful info on your first post, it's appreciated ! I can't help with your insurance on the Escape camper unfortunately, but for anyone looking in, most of the RV companies do include Insurance waivers in their fee. Always read the small print and check directly with the compnay you are dealing with about any doubts.
Dave.
Hi! I'm 21 from the UK and this summer i'm doing a roadtrip with 3 friends. We've rented a campervan from Escape Campervans and we're picking it up in LA in mid-July and dropping it off in Miami at the end of August. Our route is something like this:
LA, San Fran, Yosemite, Vegas, Bryce, Antelope, Grand Canyon, Sedona, Phoenix, Austin, New Orleans, Orlando, Miami, Everglades, Keys...
My question is should we be reserving spots in RV campsites like now? Or is it generally safe to ring up a couple of days in advance or can we even just turn up on the day?? I'd imagine that the situation is different in different places but if anyone has any knowledge on this for any of the places on our route that'd be fantastic. Thank you!
Mod note] Please keep all questions regarding this trip in one thread.
You are correct in thinking that it's different for certain places. Popular places like the National parks book out really quickly and even some City's have limited Campgrounds. If you want to keep things flexible then you could start making notes of possible sites and ring ahead from the road, or just see where you end up at the end of each day. For places like Bryce and the Grand canyon I would seriously consider booking asap.
Any time you are planning to stay inside a national park (RV or hotel) you should definitely get reservations! If they're already booked (and I'd imagine that Yosemite, Bryce, GC, and Everglades already are), you'll want to get something outside of the park and then keep trying to get in on someone else's cancellation. (There are NO waiting lists.)
Most of the time, you'll be able to get a place along the way without a reservation in a rural area. You'd want to book in LA, San Francisco, Orlando, and Miami for sure. Two of those have few RV places near the action (cities aren't for RV's of most types), Orlando will be BUSY and Miami may be as well. You'll probably be okay in Phoenix -- not too many RV'ers want to visit Phoenix in mid-summer when it's HOT.
Donna
As well as all of the above, you might like to do a little research on the various places you are considering stopping. If there is a special even on in town, or even some local celebration, you could find all the beds and places booked up. This happened twice to me in 2012, when unbeknowns to me, a special convention was on. These weren't big cities either. Fortunately one of the places which was fully booked, rang around for me in adjoining towns.
Not a deal breaker, but definitely something to be aware of.
Lifey
Guys thanks for all the info!
Couple more questions about my trip.
I have 7 nights to get from LA to San Francisco (after which point we'll be spending a few nights in San Fran, where we have a campground booked). What do you think is the best way to spend those 7 nights. How many nights should we stay in LA and are there even any campgrounds where we can keep out campervan in convenient places in LA (i know it's a huge city)? The places i'm intending to visit are Santa Barbara and Big Sur but other than that i don't know much about where's good to stop and spend nights on that route. Any tips??