Advice needed for one-week RV trip

[Drew]

I grew up in Seattle, but have lived overseas for several years, so a bit out of touch with various things. This August, my wife and I hope to visit Seattle along with our adult daughter, and then together take a one-week, or so, driving trip to non-urban places. Originally, we were thinking of just driving a car, but now she has the idea of taking a small RV. So, here I am in need of help. mile:

I guess my questions are in two categories. A simple link to a website for more info would be fine.

1. What's a nice loop drive from Seattle that takes a week? I'm thinking Eastern Washington to Montana or so, then back through Yellowstone? I don't mind driving, but is driving a smaller RV for several hours much more tiring that a regular car?

2. What do I need to consider about using an RV? Are RV campsites busy in August? Need to reserve? Is it OK to park anywhere overnight? Safety issues?

Thanks much.

[Markintosh]

Answer 1a: Eastern Washington is not all that exciting, things improve in Idaho and might get better in Montana. If you dont already have reservations around Yellowstone...that part will be difficult.

Answer 1b: Driving every RV is completely different. Driving a class A or class C will definitely wear you down as it requires total attention to detail due to increased width and height. Plus the poor handling of those rigs can be stressful on smaller roads or cross winds. A class B camper van is much closer to driving a car. I don't find it stressful as it is only as wide a larger car and fits in a regular parking space.

Answer 2a: Traveling by RV is not all kittens and puppies. Parking, maneuvering into tight spaces, learning how to use electrical, water and waste systems takes time and patience. Sometimes things just don't work and it can be very frustrating. It takes practice. Your first trip can be a trying experience.

Answer 2b: The popularity of RV travel was already exploding, and then the pandemic just threw gas on the fire. The best campsites are completely booked out, often on their first day of opening reservations. What's left now are generally the more expensive RV parks in less desirable locations. Trying to find a spot in Tahoe for this summer...unless you find a last minute cancellation...nope! Yes, I would try to have reservations. The days of random travel are long gone. Added: You might come across some singe night reservations midweek...which helps if you're okay to keep moving.

Answer 2c: Okay to park anywhere? Sometimes yes and sometimes no. Many popular cities and tourist destinations have outlawed "boondocking" as it just gets out of hand with RV's parked all over, some long term. Some national forests and BLM lands allow "dispersed camping", where you can find a spot and set up camp on your own. In our area it just got crazy last year. We would go biking down a forest road that you would never see an RV and there would be a dozen in the next mile...turn down a smaller road and there's a dozen more...turn down the last tiny spur and there's 6 more. It was way out of hand. Some areas will be closed to dispersed camping this year. You will have to check local laws.

[Speedy]

First and last thing to always remember, we drive on the right side of the road. Practice for awhile in a car. For comfort, rent a small Class C rather than a Class B RV. No need for a slide out or even a Diesel. You have an advantageous starting point in Seattle. Go north into Canada and take the Trans-Canada Highway through some very nice parks. Drop south into the USA towards Glacier National Park, then Yellowstone before heading back to Seattle. You don’t want to drive the same road twice. Hopefully Canada will allow you in because the border is closed now to pleasure crossers.

A small Class C is not much different than driving a long and wide SUV. They are very comfortable to drive. It is a good idea to reserve a space if you want to stay in a particular place. Plan accordingly. Many Walmarts allow overnight parking. Where you will be traveling there will be many RV campgrounds, rest areas and pull offs. As far as safety issues, park where other RV’ers park and you’ll be fine.

Drive 10 MPH under the speed limit and you’ll be fine except perhaps on the windiest of days. High winds will push you all over the road.

[Acer]

We made an extended trip last July in that area. We outfitted our minivan with a bed platform, but it was only two of us.

Reservations were a necessity almost everywhere. In the more touristy areas, a week out seemed to be the minimum to assure we'd finda something that would work, and even then we had to shop around the private campgrounds. The in-park national campgrounds were all booked solid, but, they had a lot of them outright closed then. Hopefully this summer they will be open again. Private campgrounds and most local or state level campgrounds were fully open. The in-between areas away from the Big Name Parks, say, south-central Idaho or wild wonderful Nebraska the reservation window was less stringent.

[Drew]

Thanks for the good replies.

>>First and last thing to always remember, we drive on the right side of the road.<<

Yeah, I typically return to the US a couple times of year, when things were "normal". Though have on occasion started off down the wrong side of the road, especially when there's no other traffic around to give me a clue.

>>The in-between areas away from the Big Name Parks, say, south-central Idaho or wild wonderful Nebraska the reservation window was less stringent.<<

Maybe a good plan would be to visit famous places during the day and then park at night in not so famous places. At this point in planning, I don't think that we'll spend more than one night at any one place.

On the other hand, maybe renting an RV for this kind of trip doesn't make as much as sense as just renting a car and staying at hotels.

[Speedy]

Drew wrote: On the other hand, maybe renting an RV for this kind of trip doesn't make as much as sense as just renting a car and staying at hotels.

Then it’s a whole different kind of trip. If you can afford it, go with your original plan, you’ll never have another chance again to do it this way with your daughter. If you want cheap, rent a pop-up camper to tow behind your car.

[Ombligo]

Switch up your planning -- see if you can get reservations now, make them and then rent the RV. If you can't get places to stay along your route, then it makes no sense to go any further into the planning.

Also rather than go east from Seattle, maybe look south to Oregon and Northern California. The Columbia gorge is beautiful, but also very popular with RV'ers.

You will also want a way to move about that may not entail driving the RV. Setting up/breaking down just to go to dinner or supply shopping is no fun. One option is getting a rental car at each stop.

[macphanatic]

Speedy wrote:
[quote=Drew]On the other hand, maybe renting an RV for this kind of trip doesn't make as much as sense as just renting a car and staying at hotels.

Then it’s a whole different kind of trip. If you can afford it, go with your original plan, you’ll never have another chance again to do it this way with your daughter. If you want cheap, rent a pop-up camper to tow behind your car.
If one hasn't towed before and isn't used to backing up a trailer, a small Class C might be a better option. It may also be tough to rent a car that is equipped for towing.

I started driving a 23 ft Class C at 16. Wasn't a big deal to get the hang of it. The nice thing is that you have all the amenities always available in the Class C. Not so much with the popup. With the Class C, it wouldn't be as obvious if one stops to camp somewhere that isn't a camp site.

[Drew]

Good stuff here to consider. Thanks again everyone.

[cbelt3]

Based on a coworker's process.. I do recommend doing a test weekend trip just to get the bugs worked out of your processes and equipment. Better to find out the problems early rather than halfway into an Epic Trip.