Recreational vehicles sit somewhere between hotels and tents.
The
upside: RV life is autonomous—your quarters travel with you—and allows
for spontaneous stops. But then again, RVs need loads of gas and can be
tricky to park. In any case, they represent a truly unique mode of
transport that’s tailor-made for road tripping.
Here’s your guide to getting started from travel writer Jeannie Ralston:
> Things to Know
Not
all automobile insurers cover rented RVs; ours didn’t, so we paid $17 a
day for coverage. Also, RVs gulp down gas. Our Freelander should have
gotten 8 to 10 miles per gallon, but our mountainous route had us
averaging 7 mpg.
On the upside, our RV came with dishes, pots, and
cutlery (some companies charge extra for them), which we supplemented
with our own special knives and cooking utensils. Bed linens and towels
for four of us cost $30.
> Where to Hook Up
Recreational
vehicles take up a lot of space and have special needs. They might seem
high maintenance, but RVs are pretty easy to deal with if you pick the
right places to pull off for the night.
Yellowstone National Park has more than 10 campgrounds that can accommodate RVs;
Glacier National Park has six with hookup facilities. Note: Not all national parks in the U.S. can accommodate large RVs, so make sure to call ahead.
> Total Costs
The
grand sum for our two-week rental—daily fee, insurance, extra mileage,
cleaning, and taxes—was $3,650, or about $260 a day for four people. Gas
was an additional $1,262.
