Has the lure of the road finally taken you in? Owning an RV is  rewarding, particularly if you’re well-versed with long distance road travels. It feels like a home outside of home, and there’s no place that you feel you can’t go. I felt this way, too, especially in my first few trips camping with family and my RV. I’ve learned a thing or two about what to think about when you’re out there on the road, some RV camping tips you might want to know.

We Got Some Nifty RV Camping Tips For You

The promise of an RV is this: movement and home. These two things never seem to go together, but with the RV, it does. You go to a faraway place to camp out, like the woods, and you like the place. Instead of feeling pressured to go home, you enjoy the mobility. Home is where you are with the RV. I enjoy having this kind of freedom. There’s so many things to do in faraway places and you can stay there indefinitely with an RV. But of course, it’s only fun when everything’s running smoothly. To that end, I give you some RV camping tips that I learned on my first trips with my own RV.

1. Did you buy or are you just renting?

  v

Because it’s important to know how far you can take your vehicle. If you’re only renting, then remember that the RV you’re renting isn’t yours to take away forever. Keep it as it is or return the items to where they belong. If you’ve your own RV, you have no time limit to worry about. Proceed to the next tip!

Pro-tip: if you’re only about to purchase your RV, be sure to rent the RV you’re planning to buy first. It’s better to get to know your possible RV as much as possible before you shell out your hard-earned cash.

2. What’s inside your RV?

Want to minimize the problems you get when driving around your RV? You need not only learn how to operate your RV, including what it can do and what it can’t do. It helps to have expectations. This means getting dirty every now and then for maintenance. The simple things will do such as how many amps your breaker can take. Expensive mistakes can be easily avoided, provided you don’t get lazy with what needs to be done.

3. Let’s Test Drive

Driving an RV is substantially more different than driving a car or van. The size is the obvious difference. You aren’t driving a sedan with a lot of moving parts. You’re driving a vehicle with drawers in it.  It takes awhile to actually get to know your RV as a vehicle, but given time, you can drive it around as if it were truly your own personal vehicle.

4. Things to Always Keep Inside the RV

Always keep tools in your RV, even if you have to sacrifice shelf and storage space. I learned this the hard way when I needed to change a tire mid-road one time and I couldn’t since I didn’t bring a tire iron with me. Have the basics along with you like jumper cables, bolts, nuts, and connectors. Even extra fuses and extra light bulbs for the nights would really be helpful when suddenly one of your light flickers and dies. Oh, that and a first aid kit!

5. Don’t be Spontaneous

Well you can be, but don’t forget that people still make plans for a reason. You can’t be so spontaneous all the time. You’re probably not gonna end up like the picture, but naturally, it is good to plan for the routes you’re going to take, the food you’re going to eat, the money you’re going to bring, and the stops along the way. You’d need also a place to park your RV and it’s hard to do that late at night and in the middle of the road. Plan first before everything else.

6. Electricity Hookups or Grids

No, not with people. I mean the ones where you attach your RV to get electricity and water, and  remove sewage. It personally took me some time to find one and work it out since I’m no electrical engineer. If there are people around your campsite, they might be able to help you along. Of course, you can always go for solar panels.

7. Campground Tips

When you’re finally in the campground, or the place where you decide to set-up camp, you need to take note of where to set up your awning, your tent, and your cooking area.  You also need to be mindful of the environment as well, especially if you’re camped on uneven ground. Again, the RV has a lot of moving parts and they shift around. Uneven ground can cause shelves and drawers to fall out.  These small things to watch out for will save you a world of trouble, when you’re there on the road already.

Could use a little bit more information? Owning an RV, you’ll want to take note of as much tips as you, no? Here’ s a nice video that will get you a little bit more up to speed by RV Education 101.

Camping out on your RV is extremely fun and refreshing. To be out there, at home and on the go at the same time, is a great way to kill the monotony of  city life. You’ll always have a home on the road when you have your own RV. Do you have any experiences on the road that took you to places you’d want to share? Any more RV camping tips to speak of? Driving out my RV with my family has always felt relaxing and therapeutic to me. If you think so too, feel free to leave a comment on the comment section below!

Now you got your RV camping tips, you’re all good to go. If you’re interested, you may want to read up on camping with tents as well. If so, here ‘s the link to the article!

Featured image via El Monte RV.