Total Newcomers here .

[disneydoc]

Hello & greetings to everyone at this fine and helpful RV site.

We want to travel & see this vast & wonderful country, soon after we both retire in a few months. We are in our mid & late 50's and are a little apprehensive of starting to RV late in our lives. We have not camped in tents or pop ups or have towed anything for that matter behind our vehicles in our lives.

I have been on the various RVing sites, read blogs of people who have been Rving for a long time, full timing, boondocking ...etc & do think starting to RV will enhance the quality of our retirement.
I also have been actively researching on the internet, about getting a fiberglass Trailer, a Casita.

I suspect we are in the minority on this forum, in not having any experience at all. We will appreciate any help with a few following questions.

- Has any one rented the Cabins/Park Models in the RV resorts, before they felt comfortable & safe in the RV resorts/camps to go ahead & buy a RV? Would you advise that to a new comer in familiarizing themselves with the RV Camps?

-I know this may be a difficult one, but have you felt as safe staying in a RV camp as you felt staying in a Hotel ?

- I have not find many places which rent out Trailers, although many rent out motor homes. We wanted to try them out first before buying one. Did you rent, before you went out and bought a RV ?

- Has anyone faced a situation where in, a spouse likes hotels, driving or flying during travels & is reluctant for RV travel. Any pointers for me in trying to get my DW to try Rvs ?.

Thanking you in advance, with best regards

[Mike Magee]

Raj, welcome to the forum!

-I know this may be a difficult one, but have you felt as safe staying in a RV camp as you felt staying in a Hotel ?
Not difficult at all to answer. I feel safer in campgrounds than in hotels. Well, I feel safe in the hotel room, but eventually one must walk in and out of the room for things. Who knows what unsavory characters could be lurking in the hallway or around a corner? I am alert and careful in hotels. Most campgrounds and RV parks are more laid back and the people tend to be more friendly/less aloof. It's like going to a club with people who share a common interest.

- Has anyone faced a situation where in, a spouse likes hotels, driving or flying during travels & is reluctant for RV travel. Any pointers for me in trying to get my DW to try Rvs ?.
Wow, that's a tough one. Florida has plenty of RVers and plenty of places to camp. Does the spouse like the outdoors at all? If so, I would take her to a state park. Walk around, enjoy the park. Stroll into the campground section. Look at the different RVs. See if there's an owner sitting outside one of them, and strike up a conversation; ask questions about what it's like for them to camp, what they like about it, did they have hesitations at first and if so, why? Stuff like that. They might even offer to let you peek or walk inside the RV... especially if it's a FG egg (we're usually mighty eager to show off our babies!).

Then maybe take her to an RV show or to an RV dealer, and have a look at some of the units. Sit inside them. Talk together about likes and dislikes.

Then find a suitable RV to rent or borrow for a weekend. Go camping close to home, or even in your back yard if that's as far as she'll go. Try it out, see if you're both comfortable with it.

Quite honestly, I have to say that for someone in our age bracket who has no exposure whatsoever to towing, you both might feel more comfortable with a small motor home. A "class B" is built inside an actual van, and would feel most familiar, but a small "class C" (a squarish body built onto a van cutaway chassis) can provide much more space without necessarily handling too much differently.

[Ray N]

Because it takes a couple of trips to become at least minimally familiar and comfortable with a new camper, I don't think that a try-out with a rental would give you a fair appraisal of the difficulty involved. We bought our first trailer, (an EggCamper), at age 62, and just before picking it up I began wondering if we had made a horrible mistake. Looking at all of the little things that need to be done to set up and break down camp looked absolutely frightening - and then there are all of the things that could go wrong while towing. Anyway, we bought it and after two or three short camping trips, and with the use of a checklist, we found that it isn't such a daunting experience. We now feel very comfortable with the trailer; (but still use the checklist to make sure we haven't become too comfortable and forget to do something important).

Tell your DW that you aren't giving up on hotels and flying, they have their place; the trailer would just be for those times when you want to enjoy the great outdoors in a way that's not possible from a hotel room. And yes, we usually feel just as safe, if not safer, in a campground as we do in a hotel.

[papa-t]

Raj welcome to FGRV. Better late than never. One thing about smaller fiber glass campers is their easier to pull around and resale value is also a great reason not to buy a stick built trailer. Should be able to find a Casita in your area. Good luck on retirement and on your camping future.

[theresa p]

Welcome, Raj! First off, i just want to say congratulations on your upcoming retirement. I just retired mid-December. Instead of heading south in our trailer, I headed north to the Arctic and worked for a month instead. To each, his own.

As to how to convince your better half that camping/rving is the way to spend your retirement, my suggestion would be to firstly take her tent camping. Borrow the stuff you need from a friend if you can and let her experience camping thru the screens of a tent.
Then, borrow or rent a smal FGRV the next time. The difference will astound her----plus, it should make her a convert. Not that there is anything wrong with tent camping,...but the sheer improvement in comfort when in a FGRV is immeasurable. That alone should aid your cause.

Attendance at a rally should help- in choosing what kind of rig you are going to pick. Meeting folk from all walks of life who enjoy travelling and living in their FGRV will come from that. Exposure to all different types of rigs is a great idea and most easily done thru attendance at either a rally.
Good luck.

[honda03842]

Originally Posted by disneydoc

Hello & greetings to everyone at this fine and helpful RV site.

We want to travel & see this vast & wonderful country, soon after we both retire in a few months. We are in our mid & late 50's and are a little apprehensive of starting to RV late in our lives. We have not camped in tents or pop ups or have towed anything for that matter behind our vehicles in our lives.

I have been on the various RVing sites, read blogs of people who have been Rving for a long time, full timing, boondocking ...etc & do think starting to RV will enhance the quality of our retirement.
I also have been actively researching on the internet, about getting a fiberglass Trailer, a Casita.

I suspect we are in the minority on this forum, in not having any experience at all. We will appreciate any help with a few following questions.

- Has any one rented the Cabins/Park Models in the RV resorts, before they felt comfortable & safe in the RV resorts/camps to go ahead & buy a RV? Would you advise that to a new comer in familiarizing themselves with the RV Camps?

-I know this may be a difficult one, but have you felt as safe staying in a RV camp as you felt staying in a Hotel ?

- I have not find many places which rent out Trailers, although many rent out motor homes. We wanted to try them out first before buying one. Did you rent, before you went out and bought a RV ?

- Has anyone faced a situation where in, a spouse likes hotels, driving or flying during travels & is reluctant for RV travel. Any pointers for me in trying to get my DW to try Rvs ?.

Thanking you in advance, with best regards

We retired at 58 and had never traveled in an RV. Besides that we had rarely spent a night in a tent. We are in our 14th year and average 7.5 months per year on the road.

As to safety, we have always felt safe in our camper and we have spent about 3,000 nights in RVs in every state and province. Most people live in relative people or traffic congestion, definitely a lot less safe.

We bought our RV and parked it in our front yard for about 6 months before we really hit the road. During those 6 months we would travel on weekends, learning about the rig and lifestyle.

We had very interesting pre-RV lives, many would envy our pre-retirement lives. However there is no doubt our post retirement life was many time more exciting and fun. Everyday, every minute of every day, I get to spend all my time with Ginny. We have had the very best of times.

Before this trip I spent time in the very finest hotels, they are nothing compared to camping in a pitch black campground with the stars overhead or parked on an island beach with the sea before loaded with football field sized icebergs.... I could go on and on... all the time new adventures, information, and knowledge. In a sense it's like being a child again, opening your eyes and mind to the new and unknown.

Glad to give you information on anything about our adventures, equipment and lives.

[honda03842]

Raj,

By the way we are in central Florida right now. If you'd like to visit us and have your wife meet Ginny just say so in this thread and we'll invite you over.

[honda03842]

Raj,
As an aside we were big flyers and airplane people. In 14 years we have now only flown twice and rarely use hotels. We love our own trailer bed, our slow interesting pace, and escaping that former world.

[Stevesway]

Norm and Ginny, I see you are towing a 16' Scamp with your Honda. I am thinking about getting a 13' Scamp to tow with my 2014 Ford Escape which is rated for 3500 lbs with its tow package. But now that I see that you are towing a 16' Scamp I may want to do the same. So, tell me, how does that handle? And do you think that my Escape would do ok with the 16' Scamp?

[Stevesway]

Oh, and I am here in central Florida also. Bartow.

[honda03842]

Steve,

If you'd like to give me a call and we can arrange a visit if you like. I'll send you a PM with my phone number.

[Stevesway]

Sounds good. I would like to take a look at your setup. Thanks.

[Carl Pa]

Welcome, I am 70 and just starting out, never owned any kind of a trailer. I live in SE PA and drove all the way to MN to pick up my new 16` scamp and learned to tow it on the way home. Everything is all set up now but however we feel a little apprehensive about taking it out till the weather changes. Just do not know where to go and to what to expect to find when we get there, just a little unsure. So i will sit this winter out till i know more about how to do things. Never layed eyes on the scamp until i got there. We like it a lot.Good luck, Carl

[honda03842]

Originally Posted by Stevesway

Sounds good. I would like to take a look at your setup. Thanks.

Steve give me a call or drop me an email. The only time we're really busy is March 12-March 16. Other then those days we'd be happy to meet you just give us a little notice.

Really looking forward to meeting you.

[Cathi]

Hi, Raj,
We were older than you when we bought our (first) trailer. There is a lot to learn but you can read and ask about anything you need. I can only suggest that you get a trailer with a bathroom for the spouse. At most campgrounds, there are hosts and they can tell you just about anything you need to know on a trailer and so can anyone around you.

As for flying and hotels, been there done that so much, and I wish we had had a trailer decades earlier. A hotel is a nice break once in a while but it is hardly being in the woods or at a lake. Campgrounds are very safe, I would say, as long as they are not empty, which you only tend to find in the off season.

[honda03842]

Cathi,

Ginny and I frequently travel when few others are and go to place many don't go. When we leave in May for Newfoundland, much, of the time we are the only ones in campgrounds, just Ginny and I. Now when we camp I never feel unsafe, but alone safety is magnified. Ginny is yet to attack me, at least to hurt me.

The benefit to a populated campground is that there are tons of people who will help your with any problem. Most of the time you don't even need to ask, just look a little helpless.

I agree with Cathi's suggestion of a bathroom.

[Ray N]

Buying a small RV doesn't mean that you're giving up anything; you're just adding one more way to enjoy your retirement. You can still go places in planes, stay in hotels, take cruises, and live in a house with a large yard. Personally, we aren't cut out to live in a trailer, but we do enjoy a few camping trips every year, usually for just a few days, or maybe even a week, then we are anxious to get back to our house and on with the rest of our lives - until we get the urge to go camping again.

[honda03842]

Originally Posted by Ray N

Buying a small RV doesn't mean that you're giving up anything; you're just adding one more way to enjoy your retirement. You can still go places in planes, stay in hotels, take cruises, and live in a house with a large yard. Personally, we aren't cut out to live in a trailer, but we do enjoy a few camping trips every year, usually for just a few days, or maybe even a week, then we are anxious to get back to our house and on with the rest of our lives - until we get the urge to go camping again.

There are certainly multiple ways to use an RV. Our life is the opposite of Ray's. Our way has turned into a different life from our pre-RV life, probably not for everyone but we love it. It's all conscious choice.

We don't treat our RV life as a little change, a vacation from the life we experienced for almost 60 years. We have stepped over the line of the past into a different way of living, it's not a short term escape but a choice to live differently from the way we used to live.

We talk with many RVers. After the Scamp Camp we had 8 people over, most could not imagine our lifestyle, finding it tough to be away from the old for more than a month or two or three.

It's interesting to think about why that is.

[disneydoc]

Today we take our first step in getting to know about a RV live.

Norm has been kind to invite us to his RV resort and we are going to visit them today in their RV in Central Florida.

Thanks Norm & Ginny, honda, cathi, Ray, Carl, Steve, Theresa, MikeMagee & Papa for chiming on this thread & encouraging us, Total Newcomers .

Best regards to everybody on this forum, I am sure we will continue to have many questions as we go along.

Raj

[Paul O.]

Welcome, Disneydoc; as you see from the other posts, there are many, many ways you can approach this. Some people dive right in, some make a few short trips a year, some, especially the retired folk, make longer, multiweek trips a few time a year. We are in the last category. I never towed anything until two years ago, at age 68. For us the Scamp was two steps up, we say, from a minivan and a tent, which we used a lot. I got tired of sleeping in motels which were sometimes really nice, sometimes less so (I am being charitable). I did years of thinking and research, asking questions, lurking on this forum and on the ScampOwnersInternational, and occasionally updating my DW on my findings. After pitching our tent in a gale force wind on a sandy campsite in Page, AZ and finding all motels booked when the weather turned rainy, we both were convinced that an upgrade is needed. That's kind of the short of it.

Consider that these fiberglass trailers keep their value pretty well, especially those well cared for. Renting trailers or small RV's, I found, is very expensive. You could buy a Scamp, try it out and sell it and be ahead, compared to renting as a trial.