Has anyone rented an RV?

[mommyoffive]

Pros

Cons

 

Would you do it again? 

 

Did it save you any money vs staying in hotels?

 

 

How many people did you travel with?

[Pawz4me]

We haven't done it.

We considered doing it before we bought our own RV.

When we looked at it it was very expensive, plus all that was available for rent were Class Cs and we wanted an A.

So we just went ahead and bought our own.

That was nine years ago, I don't know if they're still so expensive to rent now or not.

Whether you can save money with a rental probably depends a lot on how far you'd be driving. They are not fuel efficient. ;) 

[livetoread]

We rented one for four nights in Alaska. I would do it again. It slept us comfortably and it was great fixing meals when it was raining outside. A con versus a hotel is that it's very hard to block out all the light and my teens grumbled about waking early. I think the cost was less than other accommodations where we were going (except tent camping). It ended up being higher than I had anticipated though due to all the taxes etc. A con is they can be nerve-wracking to drive, IMO. We had one of the smaller ones and I still found it stressful.

 

I'm not sure I would rent one for the lower 48 unless I was needing to camp where it rained a lot, or the temps were extreme enough that heat or air were important. I like tent camping and driving our minivan.

[mommyoffive]

We rented one for four nights in Alaska. I would do it again. It slept us comfortably and it was great fixing meals when it was raining outside. A con versus a hotel is that it's very hard to block out all the light and my teens grumbled about waking early. I think the cost was less than other accommodations where we were going (except tent camping). It ended up being higher than I had anticipated though due to all the taxes etc. A con is they can be nerve-wracking to drive, IMO. We had one of the smaller ones and I still found it stressful.

 

I'm not sure I would rent one for the lower 48 unless I was needing to camp where it rained a lot, or the temps were extreme enough that heat or air were important. I like tent camping and driving our minivan.

 

good point about the light.

 

I wouldn't have ever thought of that.

[OneStepAtATime]

I hadn't but I have a friend that does it every year. They tend to go to places that don't usually have hotels though. It is costly and a pain to drive but they love it and the relative comfort it gives for living when you are away from civilization. Cost of an RV vs. a hotel would really depend on where you are going and what type of hotel you would normally stay at.

[Spryte]

We rented one, but didn't actually take it. We wanted one with the seatbelts connected to the chassis of the vehicle, not just basically screwed into plywood. We reserved and paid for our rental (I think it was about $1200), went to pick it up, double checked - and nope. Plywood. We are seatbelt fanatics, so we didn't take it. They refunded our money and we found a cabin rental instead.

[mommyoffive]

We rented one, but didn't actually take it. We wanted one with the seatbelts connected to the chassis of the vehicle, not just basically screwed into plywood. We reserved and paid for our rental (I think it was about $1200), went to pick it up, double checked - and nope. Plywood. We are seatbelt fanatics, so we didn't take it. They refunded our money and we found a cabin rental instead.

 

Another good point.

[lmrich]

We did on my favorite trip ever! We rented an RV in Alaska for 9 days. Our kids were little (4, 7, 9) so it was perfect timing in terms of fitting in a smaller RV comfortably. I don't know if it saved $ but it allowed us to do and go places we could not have if we had to rely on hotels. It was also nice to save $ on not eating out; we only ate out once (except in the airport when our flight was delayed). I highly recommend this type of vacation to everyone.

[Nan in Mass]

We did on my favorite trip ever! We rented an RV in Alaska for 9 days. Our kids were little (4, 7, 9) so it was perfect timing in terms of fitting in a smaller RV comfortably. I don't know if it saved $ but it allowed us to do and go places we could not have if we had to rely on hotels. It was also nice to save $ on not eating out; we only ate out once (except in the airport when our flight was delayed). I highly recommend this type of vacation to everyone.

Ditto except our children were in their twenties when we all went. It was a fantastic trip and the RV made it very comfortable for us all.

 

Nan

[Sarah CB]

I rented one for nine days last summer and it was *so* expensive!  I guess it was less than having two hotel room for nine days plus you really save on the cost of food when you can cook your own meals, but still.  In previous years, we've owned our own RV, but last year we moved across the country and still wanted to fly back and camp for a week - hence the RV rental. This year I'm renting a VW van - 1/4 the cost of an RV. 

[livetoread]

good point about the light.

 

I wouldn't have ever thought of that.

It certainly wasn't anything I had thought of, but believe me, we noticed in Alaska in the summer!

[kroe1]

I thought about it because I had never been camping. I was interested in a Class B to stay in while I work. I ended up just buying the RV because I really needed that option whether I liked it or not.

 

What I realized was an RV vacation cost is really going to depend on where you are going. Lots can run from $20 to $110 a night. Then add gas at 8 to 12 miles per gallon. Finally, figure out if you need to tow a car. That can be extra rental fees. Make sure you get taxes, water, cable, etc. fees added in your quote. Then compare it all to the cost of your car and a hotel. Food would depend on whether you want to eat in or dine out, obviously.

[Carrie12345]

I want to, but I'm way too paranoid about passenger safety to handle it without heavy sedation.  Which, technically, is an option, since I'd NEVER be calm enough to drive it myself!

 

 

[Spryte]

I want to, but I'm way too paranoid about passenger safety to handle it without heavy sedation. Which, technically, is an option, since I'd NEVER be calm enough to drive it myself!

Yep, that's what happened to me. Try talking to your friend who is a state police officer, hearing stories about what happens to an RV in an accident. Aaack!

[Tammyla]

Sleep mask for blocking out the sun!  

 

We always wanted to rent an RV, but it just never worked out financially.  We just flew or drove and stayed in hotels or with family.