RV After Cruising???

[Davy J]

And we paid I think it was $300 a month for a slip in Panama City Fl. at the City Marina, many private ones were even less expensive.
Not sure what your point is? I bet campgrounds in Key West if they exist aren’t cheap either?

Let me try to make it clear...........

First you need to compare apples to apples, a single transient night in a marina, and a single transient night in a campground. Campground, average 30-40.00 per night. Marina, 80-100.00 per night. Thirty transient days in campground = 1200.00. Thirty transient days in a marina = 3000.00.

Monthly rates are entirely different. We currently pay $400.00 a month for our "home" RV site. Electric is seperate. Our "home" marina is $468.00 per month it includes electric. They roughly come out about the same, in the summer months the electric charge at the RV resort goes slightly higher. We have stayed at Sugarloaf KOA twenty miles north of Key West, still no where near the nightly rate of Key West Bight Marina.

[Sojourner]

We were RVers to some extent before moving into cruising (on a VW bus, but still). If we're thinking of 'retiring' from cruising, which seems so impossible to find a better or more fluid way to spend a life but still, we all get old..... The canal boat thing sounds pretty awesome. We also look around places we sail to to see if we want to buy a little cottage there for retiring... a little piece of land can be bought now pretty cheaply even oceanfront in lots of nice places, and then twenty years down the line, build a little house, plant a few grapevines and tomatoes....mmmm

[Mr B]

If your in the USA you can buy one of these for between 10 and 25 grand, USD,
I wanted a 34 foot one, but the Govt here wont allow them on the road,
They are 4 inches too long on the overhang at the back, ADR's,
Some Beurocrat with a finger stuck up his you know where,

So I bought a 36 foot one instead, 15 Grand, USD, And imported it myself.
It was 70 grand AUD, registered and on the road here,
With right hand drive, Left hand door, gas and electric conversion,

I could have bought a 40 footer in immaculate condition for 10 Grand, USD, But it wont go around the corners on some of our roads here,
I have enough trouble with the 36 footer getting it around corners, Our skinny mountain roads, ,

Its a Foretravel Grand Villa, 1989 ORED Diesel Pusher, 300 HP Turbo diesel with a 4 speed Allison gear box, High speed diff, Ive had it to 90 MPH,. Drives grouse, Power steering, Air suspension,
Trailer on the back carries my Honda Blackbird, 1100XX,
Or you can get a triangle and hook you car up to the back of the RV,


sleeps 6 comfortably, 12 MPG, has full sized fridge, microwave, 4 burner stove and oven, ducted vaccuum cleaner, flushing dunny, ice maker, 3 seater lounge that folds down to a double bed, queen sized main bed, TV's Stereos, garbage compactor, Shower and bath, Gas Heaters, AC X two,
Black tank empties via a hose into the pit in every town, Grey water tank washes the hose out,
I pull up on the side of the road for overnighting, With the drapes drawn, you cant even see a light inside,
Next street back from the main road, Is usually RV friendly, big spaces for caravans and RV's, and usually free parking,

This way the town gets the passing trade from RV's and caravans.
As Caravan parks have their own shop and the town gets nothing from them, ,

After I take my 34 foot Gemini Catamaran around OZ and where ever, I will sell it and set off in the RV,
Too old to drive and ride, I will come home to my house,
Thats the plan at the moment,

Cheers, Brian,

[dcstrng]

Originally Posted by sailorboy1

just like in a cruising boat you get a RV to travel to see new things

Yes, there is merit to this familiar concept… but I may be the nut that proves the rule. I am more of an enjoy-the-trip kind of person, than waiting for the destination… I enjoy driving or riding fairly long distances, rarely stop anywhere for more than a gas fill-up and then get moving again – in my limited cruising I’ve used the sails more than the anchor (or I seem to, my wife says). Haven’t seen the whole world but have done the duffle-bag-drag through a lot of it from traffic jams to grass huts to sheik’s bastions, likewise camped in most of the national parts I intend to – so the destinations don’t seem to fascinate me quite as much as the peace and privacy of the trek itself; generally the longer the better. Am not one who enjoys day sailing all that much and I may travel solo more than many… so, I guess I’ve never really pined for the apparent conveniences of a Winnebago. Only destination (usually) on my list is Ducie Island (don't ask... cuz I'm not sure I know why)

[sailorboy1]

Who would have thought this simple thread could have as much “fire” as it does

[PEACETIME]

The parks that have had the US Corp of Engineers do any work for that park qualify for the senior discount. Even if they are state parks or campgrounds. The senior discount is about 50 percent, which makes the campground very affordable. I cruise on my boat about half the time and cruise in my RV the other half. The RV does cost more, unless it isn't driven much. I tow a trailer with a small sailboat and a small row boat for use on the lakes. I really haven't been inconvenience with no other motor vehicle. After sitting for the winter, I would like to think that driving the RV is good for it anyway. Both lifestyles complement each other but are enough different to be a welcome change.

[a64pilot]

Originally Posted by Davy J

Let me try to make it clear...........



First you need to compare apples to apples, a single transient night in a marina, and a single transient night in a campground. Campground, average 30-40.00 per night. Marina, 80-100.00 per night. Thirty transient days in campground = 1200.00. Thirty transient days in a marina = 3000.00.



Monthly rates are entirely different. We currently pay $400.00 a month for our "home" RV site. Electric is seperate. Our "home" marina is $468.00 per month it includes electric. They roughly come out about the same, in the summer months the electric charge at the RV resort goes slightly higher. We have stayed at Sugarloaf KOA twenty miles north of Key West, still no where near the nightly rate of Key West Bight Marina.

Your assumption is that “Cruisers” travel from one Marina to the other.
Your assumption is incorrect. I’m on a ball right now in Vero Beach at I believe $17 a day, but it’s the first place I have paid to stay since last Oct. or so, with a two day exception of Spanish Wells where I made a tactical error

You can’t go months in an RV without paying for a place to stay, unless of course you want to stay in a Desert in Nevada or similar.
You just can’t. You pretty much have to travel from one campground to another.
I did the RV thing, in both a 5th wheel and a Class A.
I have boondocked, but you can’t make water in an RV either, although in many States there are free dump facilities in a lot of the rest stops, but just don’t discharge like you can a boat in the Bahamas.
Hint a 5th wheel is a fraction of the cost, but it helps if you already have a Diesel Dually.
Add to that I would burn as much fuel in a day in the RV that I will do in our boat in a month.
I’m going to fuel up when we leave Vero, I expect to buy 25 gls. I last fueled up in Marsh harbor about a month ago.

Nothing at all wrong with an RV, just don’t make the mistake of thinking you can do it for as little as you can Cruise, cause you can’t. If times get tight, staying put at anchor and living on the cost of food alone isn’t an option.

Trying to do if for Cruising money means you have to be stealthy in an old work van and move it around and hope the Cops don’t catch you, cause guess what? I believe it may even be illegal to live in a van.
I know I was told it was illegal for us to live in our 5th wheel while the house was being rebuilt, and I owned the 250 acres of land we were on.
Zoning laws prohibited it.

[robert sailor]

My wife would never consider buying an RV...so it will never happen. We have visited over 50 countries in the last 7 years and that is the type of traveling she really enjoys. We still like motorcycle camping and aircraft camping but we don't cook on these trips and if the weather turns crappy we head for a motel/hotel. She figures the RV lifestyle is for old people and my response is hey I'm kinda old you know....her reply, not mentally. She has no interest in sitting in an RV park, none.
Personally many of my friends do the RV thing and seem to enjoy it so there must be something there.

[Davy J]

I don't really care to go on about it, but this was your statement:

Price a KOA, you’ll find most likely it’s about as expensive as always staying in a Marina is.

Anchoring out and mooring balls aside, staying in a marina, without a long term contract, will always be way more expensive than staying in RV parks.

[Tillsbury]

I'm guessing that the maintenance cost differences far outweigh the marina/park fees though, don't they? And if it starts falling apart you can buy a 10 year newer RV for very little money that's pretty much ready to cruise, unlike with a boat.

[a64pilot]

I never really had to put much money into either of our RV’s repair wise, for some reason most everything just didn’t break.
Walmart batteries every other year, my truck’s electrical system was set up to charge the camper battery bank as you drove.
The 5th wheel needed a new fridge, but that was WAY cheaper than a boat ice box conversion one, way cheaper, and it had an ice maker too.
The water heater needed a new electronic box, which I think was maybe $50. The tires got old and dry rotted, bought used heavy duty ones, cause they never wear out, they die of old age and dry rot.
That was about it in 8or 10 years owning the thing, we lived in it, the family did for about a year until house was finished being rebuilt.
Oh, wait I did have to replace a landing gear leg, it started binding up, it was electric and it wasn’t expensive and was just easier to bolt in a new one than to try to repair the old one, I think I may have bent the old one.

It had triple slides, and slides make a huge, tremendous difference, with the slides out, it easily doubled in volume.
Motorhome slides are usually smaller and don’t extend as far, reason is I believe with the slides retracted on our 5th wheel, they touched each other inside of the camper, rendering the camper unusable, a Motorhome needs to be useable as it goes down the road with the slides retracted.

Class A gasoline motorhomes can be had for a song, and most have way less than 10,000 miles on them. People buy them because camping with the family sounds so good, but it’s tough to do more than once or twice a year and hold down a full time job, plus those things if driven easily, under the limit may get 5 or 6 MPG, and they underestimate what a drive to the mountains and return costs, they do it once or twice, then realize it’s way cheaper to drive and rent a Motel, it sits a few years and they decide to get rid of it, but most want a new one, so it doesn’t sell well.

Now if you want a nice, as in expensive Diesel pusher bus, you buy a used one in Mesa Arizona or similar, scads of old people move down there to escape the Winter freeze, they get old, one gets sick, the Dr bill is horrendous and they have to sell the bus they paid $500,000 a few years ago for pennies on the dollar.
Bad that it happens, but it does pretty often. They waited too long to Retire, cause they wanted that half million dollar bus.

I looked seriously into the full time RV thing, if you want to do it, best budget a $1,000 a month park fees, and maybe that or double that for fuel, depending on how often you want to move.
Many underestimate the costs, and they don’t move, they essentially live in a KOA because they can’t afford short term rates and fuel, and they work part time in the KOA store.
You sometimes see that with Cruisers too, working in a West Marine etc to make ends meet.

[robert sailor]

Makes total sense A64 that RV's are much cheaper to maintain than a boat. I mean really what can be worse than "sun and salt" boats are corroding while you wash them. It's simply constant labor keeping a boat in good shape from my experience.
No experience with RV's but if they are driven to desert States and left there I would think that other than UV I would expect everything to last pretty good.

[belizesailor]

As you can see from the posts, its pretty common. Weve considered it.

We recently spent some time in NZ and did a couple of weeks campervanning there...great way to see NZ and facilities for campervans are very common.

[meridian28]

Nobody has mentioned cruising at 7 on the ICW vs 70 on the interstates. After living full time on board for 7 years I dread renting a car for a long drive.

[Hudson Force]

We do much traveling after selling the boat, but we were never "destination cruisers" on board our ketch. We simply liked sailing and the travel aboard. I think the RV "land cruising" would be more destination bound than the joy of the cruise. We're just not thrilled about long distances on the road or the restrictions for RV locations.

I should add that my wife's loss of leg strength from post polio syndrome caused us to sell our boat. She was not able to climb the companionway easily; move from deck to dock; or be safe on the deck. She would have many of the same challenges with the RV.

We do well with flights, a rollator device, hotels with elevators, cruise ships, etc. It's a different life compared to our cruising, but we're enjoying ourselves. I'm learning a new language, skating and playing in a concert band... 'got to keep a passion for new things!