1st time RVing. 1st time to the States. Please help...

[Shel_Steph]

Posted 9/10/2010 10:11 PM (#)
Subject: Newbie Aussies planning US holiday.1st time RVing,1st time US... [Pending moderation]
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Hi, my husband and I are planning to come to the states in around 6 weeks and would like to hire an RV / caravan.

We are planning on being there for 14 - 17 days and are hoping to drive to the following places:-

Start Los Angeles to San Francisco to Los Vegas to Memphis to Nashville to Niagara Falls to New York.

If anyone could answer these questions, I would really appreciate it:-

1. What is the longest drive times we should do each day?
2. Are there any good RV parks in/near these cities?
3. How do you get from the RV park into the city (can we drive it in and park it somewhere or is there transport to and from the park)?
4. Do we need to book the parks in advance or can we just show up?
5. How much would we expect to pay at a powered park?
6. What type of RV should would be the best for us?
7. Any suggestions on a good company to hire from?
8. Is there anything else we need to know or be careful of?

Thanks in advance for helping us, I know I have a lot of questions.

Cheers
Shel

 

[hamdave]

Re: 1st time RVing. 1st time to the States. Please help...

Hi, my husband and I are planning to come to the states in around 6 weeks and would like to hire an RV / caravan.

We are planning on being there for 14 - 17 days and are hoping to drive to the following places:-

Start Los Angeles to San Francisco to Los Vegas to Memphis to Nashville to Niagara Falls to New York.

If anyone could answer these questions, I would really appreciate it:-

1. What is the longest drive times we should do each day?
Ans: The itenary you describe says your time period is not enough. You will only average about 50-60 mph. A 300-400 mi day is possible but is very tiring.

2. Are there any good RV parks in/near these cities?
Ans: You should find very nice campgrounds everywhere you go for the most part. You can also use State Parks etc as well. Some are better than othrs.
3. How do you get from the RV park into the city (can we drive it in and park it somewhere or is there transport to and from the park)?
Ans: If you get a smaller rig,(about 25-28 ft) you can normally drive into smaller cities. I would suggest planning the trip using a trailer and rental vehicle, where you can then un-hook at the RV facility and use the vehicle for local traveling.
4. Do we need to book the parks in advance or can we just show up?
Ans: On most of my extended travels, we just reserved a day ahead of time as we traveled and have never had problems.
5. How much would we expect to pay at a powered park?
Ans: It varies by location, I have paid as low as $15.00 and $45 for a high. Most of the time in the $25-$35 range. It also is seasonal.
6. What type of RV should would be the best for us?
Ans: I repeate from above. consider a rental vehicle and trailer for your needs. You won't travel faster, but it will be more convenient for what you are doing.
7. Any suggestions on a good company to hire from?
Ans: Can't help you there as I don't. You might try "Enterprise" for the vehicle and get an SUV type capable of pulling a trailer. Another company is Cruise America. I don't work for any one of these and these are just suggestions. You should be able to 'google' for these types of companies. Others on this forum and other forums may be of more help to you.
8. Is there anything else we need to know or be careful of?
Ans: Probably, but life is too short to start worring about what you forget. It's probably a trip of a lifetime, go back to step one and look at the mileage between cities you mention. What are your goals. Just see cities ?? There probably is much more of the US to see than cities at least in my view, but you have to decide what your primary goal is. Good Luck

cheers

 

[akjimny]

Re: 1st time RVing. 1st time to the States. Please help...

Shel, welcome to the RVUSA forum. That is one ambitious itinerary I Googled the trip and it works out to around 3860 miles, not counting any sightseeing along the way. Plus, you end up with your rental RV in New York, on the other side of the country from where you rented it. I don't know if that is possible.

But, I just completed a trip from Florida to Alaska and back and this would be my advice: Figure on 300 or so miles per day. What with fixing breakfast and unhooking everything in the morning to potty stops and lunch and sightseeing, then setting up and fixing dinner in the evening, 300 miles is about what you can expect.

We never made any reservations on our trip - just looked up a campground in Woodall's when we stopped for lunch that was going to be near where we figured we would end up that night and drove there. Never had any problems and were never turned away. However, some of the facilities were a little "interesting." :laugh: :laugh: Prices ran from $18.00 to $59.00 (but the $59.00 places was really nice)

Good luck with your trip and please post back to let us know how you do.

 

[Kirk]

Re: 1st time RVing. 1st time to the States. Please help...

That trip is a total of 3,463 miles if you just go through those cities and do not stop or take any side trips. Assuming that you have 17 days and that you spend one day in each of the locations, that will require six days, leaving only 11 days for travel. If we allow an extra day for unexpected stops, this leaves ten days to drive or about 350 miles per travel day, or six to seven hours of drive time per travel day.

In addition, on that route it will mean that you drive past things like Grand Canyon National Park ( http://www.nps.gov/grca/ ) as well as hundreds of other wonderful places with no time to stop. Let me suggest that you read the page on the following link to see what some folks from your country who own an RV here have to say about such travels.
http://www.adventure.1tree.net/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=139&Itemid=270

I really think that you will find it most economical to rent an RV of what Americans call a class C, or a unit that is built on to the van chassis and plan to drive it as your transportation as well as your living quarters. Most foreign visitors find this the best way to go, as to rent a trailer would also mean a second rental of a vehicle to tow it with and that could get expensive and difficult to locate. Your plan seems to call for renting in California and turning the unit in at the end of the trip in New York. Probably the best company for that type of rental is Cruise America who has many dealer locations around the country. I suggest that you check them out at this link: http://www.cruiseamerica.com/