In this article I’m going to be talking about our five best full time RV living lessons that we can share with you.
These come from our first full year of full time RVing on the road. And you know, a lot of them we learned the hard way.
So they really come from real world experience. And hopefully what we share with you will help make your RV travels a little easier.
So maybe you’ve been considering part-time RVing or full-time RVing or just taking a long extended trip in an RV.
And if so, this article is definitely for you. We’re going to share with you the the best wisdom that we have learned over the last year of travel.
(Watch my video on this subject by clicking on the image above)
Disclosure: Please note this post may contain affiliate links. This means – at no additional cost to you – I earn a commission if you make a purchase using our affiliate links. I only link to products and companies I use and feel comfortable recommending. The income goes toward supporting the free content on this website
Table of Contents
- Full Time RV Living Lesson #1
- Full Time RV Living Lesson #2
- Full Time RV Living Lesson #3
- RV Living Lesson #4
- Full Time RV Living Lesson #5
- Conclusion
Full Time RV Living Lesson #1
Now let’s go ahead and get started with lesson number one. And that is slow down and enjoy where you are.
It seems that everybody agrees that when they get on the road it seems like they get itchy feet syndrome.
You know, you feel like you have to be traveling, going here or there all the time. This can happen even though you know that it’s not a good thing to do.
And yes, we certainly fell into that trap ourselves. What happens is you get a little weary after a while, but you don’t notice it right away.
But over the course of time you get progressively more tired and that takes away from your enjoyment of RV travel.
And then your anxiety level increases and it’s just not good for enjoying your time out on the road.
So there is a need to kind of regulate what you’re doing and watch it carefully.
Ultimately, the point we want to make to all of you is that the fun of RVing is really not in the travel.
Of course, it can be enjoyable too, but that’s not where the real fun and enjoyment is.
Instead, the really enjoyable experiences are what you do and where you go and the things you see because of your RV travel.
So don’t get the cart before the horse and think that traveling is what you need to always be doing.
No, travel is just a means to an end. And the end is enjoying where you are at right now.
Our Plan To Enjoy RVing More
So going forward we plan that when we know we’re going to an area, we’re going to just get on the road and get there.
And then, when we get there we’re going to plan to be there for at least a couple of weeks, maybe longer.
And that’s because we want to get to know the area well before we move on. We want to see it and take it in and really enjoy it while we are there.
So you can use your passenger vehicle and do day trips at that point. Just get out there and see the sights, and experience the joy of that area.
That way you’re not just rushing around all the time and it will really will lower the anxiety and stress level of RVing.
So once again, lesson number one is slow down and enjoy where you are. Don’t always be thinking about where you’re going next.
Full Time RV Living Lesson #2
Now, lesson number two is about managing camping costs. This is because you’ve always got to have some place to park your rig.
And since camping costs are the number one expense for most RVers, how can you control that?
Well, what we found is that you can easily control your camping costs through campground memberships.
And the number one camping membership that has really worked for us this past year is Thousand Trails.
Now I know that some are going to roll their eyes at that statement. Because maybe they’ve heard bad things about Thousand Trails or whatever.
But our experience has been very positive. In fact, we have had good experiences all across the country in Thousand Trails parks. So we can highly recommend it.
But not only did we enjoy staying in Thousand Trails campgrounds, but the savings were also fantastic.
We have already saved thousands of dollars over the last year, and going forward it’s going to get even better.
Thousand Trails Videos To Watch
Now, I’ve made two videos on Thousand Trails memberships already and I’m going to put the links to those videos in this article now.
Click here to view Thousand Trails Video #1
Follow this link to view Thousand Trails video #2
And in the videos I will give you the facts and the figures of what it actually cost us and what we’re saving with our Thousand Trails membership.
(For more information on new Thousand Trails camping memberships contact Jim and Brandy Reneau by email at [email protected] Or call them at (770) 622-4188 or (717) 585-6137 . Be sure to tell them that Duane at RV Inspection And Care referred you to get the best deal and the lowest prices on Thousand Trails memberships. OR Contact Kimberly at https://www.campgroundmembershipoutlet.com/ for information on resale Thousand Trails memberships.)
Another RV Camping Membership To Consider
Now the second RV camping membership that’s worked really well for us this year is Passport America.
You know, when you’re out on the road, there may not be a Thousand Trails campground anywhere near you. So you’ve got to choose other campgrounds to stay in.
Well, in many cases they will accept Passport America and give you 50% off from the normal camping costs for the night. And that’s really a great savings!
It’s worked well for us where we have camped all across the country. But we’ve even found that it often works when we’re staying for a week or so at a time.
So Passport America is a really good membership to have.
Click here to learn more about a Passport America membership
The Third RV Camping Membership That Has Worked Well For Us
Now, the third membership that has saved us money this year was Boondockers Welcome.
And this was a surprise to us because we aren’t really boondockers. We like staying overnight mostly in campgrounds.
But it was recommended to us by a friend we met in our RV travels. So we decided to give it a try.
And now we really enjoy that program because we can stay overnight on the road for zero dollars a night.
Boy do I love that figure of zero dollar a night camping. And we have stayed at some very nice facilities across the US through our Boondocker’s Welcome membership.
Once again, I made a video about Boondockers Welcome and I’ll put the link here in the article. And that way you can learn more about their program if you like.
Click here to watch my video about using Boondockers Welcome
So lesson number two is that if you want to save a lot of money, consider campground memberships.
Of course, maybe you’ve got plenty of money and you’re not budgeting anything because you don’t have to.
In that case, campground memberships are really not all that important. But if you do have to budget while traveling, the campground memberships I’ve mentioned can be a big help.
Full Time RV Living Lesson #3
Now it’s time for lesson number three. And that is about staying connected on the internet while you’re traveling.
You know, maintaining internet connectivity while traveling around the country can be a challenge at times.
And over the course of this last year it’s gotten even more challenging, mainly because of Covid restrictions.
This is because many people have been staying home and using their devices to access the internet. Through their phones, their tablets and laptops.
Well, cellular bandwidth for the carriers has really been eaten up as a result of this. So this has caused a lot of upheaval in the cellular internet industry.
And many folks that are RVing often use cell carriers for their access to the internet.
So once again, I made a video that gives you some very practical advice on how to maintain internet connections on the road.
Of course, we learned these things the hard way. We went through some real trial and error and some expense too.
But in the video I explain what carriers you need to focus on and the data plans that are are good for RVing.
I also cover the equipment that you need and the strategies necessary to keep connected while traveling.
So be sure to access that mobile internet connectivity video at the link that I provide here below:
Click here to watch my video on mobile internet access
RV Living Lesson #4
That now leads us to lesson number four. And that is that planning ahead is really a good idea when you’re out on the road full time.
Now, when you’re just going RVing for weekends or short trips, planning ahead is not nearly as important.
But when you’re out on the road and are a long way away from any home base, you need to plan ahead a little bit more.
One reason for this is that there’s been a huge influx of people into RVing over the course of the last year.
So there’s a lot more RVers out there now, just like you. And they’re making campsite reservations and filling up campgrounds too.
So if you don’t have a reservation you can find yourself in a difficult and tight situation at times.
So we recommend that you plan your trips in advance. Let me tell you, it worked so much better for us when we planned things in advance.
Of course, I know that doesn’t appeal to everybody. But we found that the more you travel and the bigger your rig, the more important to plan ahead.
That way you won’t have near as much stress and anxiety about where you are going to travel and stay.
And again, I made a video on how we use RV Trip Wizard to lay out our trips in advance.
It’s been a real help to us, so follow the link below and there’ll be a lot more information on how to use RV Trip Wizard.
Click here to learn more about RV Trip Wizard
Plan Ahead For Your RV Maintenance Too
But one other point i want to make about planning ahead is about the maintenance that needs to be done on RVs.
You know, if you don’t keep up your RV maintenance, you’re going to regret it. Most likely, it’s going to come back and bite you somehow in the end.
And it’s probably going to cost you a lot more than if you would just keep up the maintenance as you go.
So when you’re traveling for a while, try to plan to be in an area where your maintenance can be done.
For instance, where you know that there’s an RV tech or an RV service center that can be trusted and reliable.
Then plan ahead to be there for a little while and let them catch you up on your RV maintenance.
As a result, you’ll have a lot better and more safe trips. And you won’t have as much going wrong with your RV while you’re out there on the road.
So once again, it’s a good idea to plan ahead for those things.
Full Time RV Living Lesson #5
Now lesson number five is that if you’re going to be out there traveling a lot, get a fuel discount card or program and use it.
This is the second best way that we have found to save money on full time RV living costs.
In fact, being part of a fuel program really worked well for us. Recently, we added it all up and we saved over seven hundred dollars last year in just fuel costs alone.
Now, that’s some real savings. So we encourage you to look into fuel discount programs if you’re going to be out traveling for a while.
It’s definitely going to save you money that you can use for other things that is going to be more enjoyable.
And I did also make a video about this too and you can find the link for that video here below:
Click here to watch my video about the fuel discount program that we use
Conclusion
Well, those are the five best lessons that we learned about full time RV living that we wanted to share with you.
And lots of full time RVers that we know have learned these lessons already. So we are sure that these tips will benefit you in your RV travels as well.
And by the way, if you have suggestions about other ideas that’s really worked well for you, please leave them in the comments below.
That way we all benefit from each other’s RVing experiences.
Have safe and happy travels my friends!