Our Biggest Challenges of Full Time RVing
Full time RVing isn’t for the faint of heart. While RV living is full of joy, fun, and simply incredible opportunity, there are some challenges we face with this lifestyle, and we want to be real about it with you!
For us, the reward outweighs the sacrifices we’re making.
Just like anything, there are positives and negatives to your life situation. Just like a family with full time jobs, living in a great neighborhood can’t see the entire country in a year, we don’t get to have the consistency of a “normal day,” have our own bathrooms, and sometimes our neighbors really stink. Anything worthwhile requires give and take.
Stay focused on the desired outcome
Before we dive into the hardships, let’s preface all of it by encouraging you to remember why you’re interested in this lifestyle in the first place.
Because you’ll revisit it over, and over, and over again as you remind each other of the important things you value in life.
Honest moment: last month we were facing some financial hardships, and we looked at each other and asked “why are we doing this?” It didn’t take us but 2 seconds to remind each other of the long list that makes this lifestyle every bit worth it.
The problems from our previous lifestyle looked differently, caused us more stress, and took away from our time together as a family and our future plans.
It was unsustainable.
While we’re grateful that our rock is Christ, and therefore our joy is deep rooted beyond life’s shallow circumstances, the weight that was lifted when we chose to RV full time was obvious.
A pep talk
Find your why and cling to it with all your might.
Maybe you’re doing this so you can say goodbye to a life-draining job and hello to your two-year-old before the sun sets. Maybe you just want more freedom in life and have a stirring deep down that tells you life is too short to these moments in the way you are now. Maybe you’re watching your kids grow up too fast (as they like to do) and want to be give them experiences of a lifetime while they’re young.
Whatever it is, hold onto it. Say it out loud. Remind yourself on the hard days why it’s all worth it. Squeeze your kids a little tighter, kiss your husband a little longer, and learn to smile even when it feels difficult.
Worst things about traveling full time in an RV
Here are some realities of living in an RV and what most full time families have to consider as a challenge in this unique lifestyle.
Note: this isn’t the “duh” list. Obviously if you don’t like living in small spaces, you shouldn’t RV. Or if you don’t like moving a lot, change, or being on the road… probably shouldn’t consider it!
This is more specific to some of the common concerns we hear voiced from families looking to RV, as well as our personal experience in RVing full time.
1. Being extremely weather conscious
We have an “all seasons” RV, but as any experienced RVer will tell you… that doesn’t mean a whole lot (except that there’s a heater vent in the RV under belly). Once we headed to Galveston, Texas along the beach, thinking we dodged most of the sketchy weather (and were definitely avoiding the snowy weather)… only to be wrapped up in a ridiculous storm with tornado warnings only a few miles from us.
You feel pretty helpless when storm warnings pop up on your phone, and have to make critical decisions for the safety of your family. It’s also so hard to plan when you’re on the move, because you never know the weather when you make reservations in advance. This is a big reason why sitting for longer is better because it gives you some flexibility (vs. being on a tight schedule).
It can get tiring to consider the weather!
2. Continuous maintenance
Stuff just wears out quickly. We LOVE our Keystone rig, and it’s honestly faired really well with the full time use. We thought we’d have to be doing a lot more repairs to it than we actually have been.
But traveling a lot means wearing out your tires, wheel bearings, and brakes more often on both your trailer AND your truck (if you’re towing). More frequent oil changes, and as always – the more time on the road means the more chances for things to go wrong.
Sure, having a warranty on your new rig is GREAT.
But (and the manufacturer counts on this)… taking it into the shop is a huge hassle when you live in it.
Having a mobile RV tech be able to come to you to diagnose your issue and start a warranty claim is hugely helpful, because then you’re only taking it in for the actual work. But it’s still a pain in the butt, and we avoid it when we can. (Helps that John is so handy as fixing things).
3. It can be confusing for little ones
We know that kids thrive on routine and consistency. So while we do our best to keep a routine and provide consistency where we can (our home is VERY consistent, no matter the view outside!), our two-year-old still asks (daily) where we are. The scenes are changing nearly every day!
Even our six-year-old son struggles with the inconsistency. So we started writing on a calendar what days are travel days and where we’ll be on what day. This helps him plan ahead in his mind (which he HAS to do with most things). But even then, if you were to ask him where we are today, he probably wouldn’t know (it even takes us a few seconds to remember).
We do sometimes worry about the lack of routine, but the smiles and laughter in our daily activities, all of the people we get to see, and the exciting experiences for them make up for it.
4. You say a lot of goodbyes
We also say a lot of hellos (some we never could if we didn’t travel full time), but our son has gotten really good at making a friend and saying goodbye 24 hours later.
Sometimes that’s REALLY hard. It’s like being a military family on steroids (as one military wife shared what she thought of it with us). And you know how fast kids become each other’s “good friend.” Our son has literally cried in the back seat pulling away from our site. And at his age, it’s hard to have a pen pal.
The goodbyes are SO hard, for all of us. Including the big goodbyes from our home town where we were rooted for 12 years.
5. Lack of community and church
I know this point will be debated because so many RVing families have found an awesome community. But for us, with how often we’re on the move, it’s next to impossible.
We admire the families we see camping together, and they share with us they’re staying at that particular resort for one month (or sometimes even travel) all together. But we don’t really stay anywhere that long, and we don’t pay any services that help connect us to other “fast movers.”
There’s also a sense of “keeping up the Joneses” that we didn’t know we’d find on the road. We just assumed that getting rid of all of our stuff for a life of more freedom translated to the “stuff” of RVing.
But turns out a lot of families connect over their stuff, and they’ll ride off in the sunset together with their cool golf carts (true story).
Church is also a huge struggle. Most Sundays it’s impossible to church hop (nearly every week). If we’re able to attend a church with family or friends, we trust the church enough with our kiddos and can totally swing a service which we love.
The above spot was $80 a night in Florida. And we were in a dirty gravel pit up against a house.
6. It’s expensive
But it doesn’t have to be, they tell us! Which is true in some regards.
If we were to bookdock in the middle of Arizona for free in the winter, yeah - that’s cheap. Or if we were to stick to an area where Thousand Trails was prominent and we could pay a low monthly cost for staying at their RV parks… sure, that’d save us some money.
But if you want to truly be on the move, see the country, and stay in decent RV parks with full hookups… you’re going to pay.
Being on the move means drinking the expensive fuel, truck and RV maintenance for the astronomical miles you’ll put on your vehicles, and paying for the only park that’ll fit your big rig in the area.
We utilize our Good Sam discount when we can, and love staying at Harvest Hosts and state parks to save whenever we can. We also have a fuel discount card which helps significantly.
However, if we’re honest, those things don’t make a big enough chunk of savings. For us, we spend around $2500 for RV park and fuel expenses each month (up to $3-4k if we splurge on a nice resort and travel a further distance). Yeah, ouch.
Know what you’re getting yourself into and plan accordingly! We really hoped RVing would SAVE us money, and it very simply does NOT.
7. Giving up some basic luxuries
Hard to believe when we travel around in our 42 foot fifth wheel with all the “bells and whistles.” But some things just can’t be avoided.
Take, for example, our journey out to Wisconsin and our summer spot falling through. The only place we could find long term with such short notice did not have any sewer. Gasp!
Showers were a short 2-3 minutes. We washed dishes over a pitcher so we could dump the gray water in the field behind us, and we utilized the park’s restrooms as often as possible, all so that John only had to empty the tanks every 5-6 days (instead of every 3-4 days).
I (Melody) remember showering one morning, and thinking “boy, not every wife could do this!” But I did it for over a month, and I really didn’t care all that much. I’m a “go with the flow” kind of person that finds the best in every situation. So giving up luxuries like baths, dishwashers, doing laundry in less than 5 hours… I’m okay with. But for some it might be their breaking point.
8. Planning fatigue
RVing right now is popular. Resorts and campgrounds are often booked WELL in advance. So you have to be on top of it, especially in a big rig because your options are going to be more limited.
And some days it just feels overwhelming and difficult, and leaves us feeling like we just want to give up. #justbeinghonest
Planning your route, stops, sites, dates, and shifting EVERYTHING because one thing down the planning chain has to change is exhausting.
Here’s how we do it and some tips for you.
But know that we’re not perfect at it, and a lot of days we just want to give up on it. We’ll sometimes procrastinate those calls we need to make, or pretend we’re those free-spirited families that can just go with the wind (and spend countless nights in a Walmart parking lot as necessary), but somehow it all does finally come together and plans fall into place like they need to.
9. Having close neighbors all the time
We actually didn’t realize how big of a deal this was until we had a campground all to ourselves in southern Wisconsin.
We’ve had pretty close neighbors with awfully thin walls for the past two years straight! Even when we’re visiting with friends, we’re in their yard. So to be entirely alone like we were, we started craving that solitude again.
We know the contradiction of “we don’t have community” and “we have too many neighbors,” but the fact is – not every RVer (especially since the majority of them are weekend warriors) aren’t looking for a friendship. Most roll in, gawk at our massive rig, and then leave in a few days. We’re close without being… close.
10. Travel days
Enough said. Spending a lot of hours in the truck just isn’t our cup of tea. We try to limit our travel days to being a short and efficient as possible, and we try to follow the rule of never stopping anywhere for just one night.
But travel days are packed with the stress of packing and driving, and everyone ends up pretty exhausted by the end of it.
It also takes a toll on our businesses since John can’t work while towing (obviously), and lately Melody has been driving the second car, the Mazda, which keeps her from working! It’s really just not our favorite, and that’s why we have to lump it in the “worst part” list.
For all the ins and outs of our travel days, check out this post and our YouTube video for a detailed look at our days.
Despite these challenges, living in an RV full-time and still totally worth it for us! RVing full time can be a profoundly rewarding experience for those who crave adventure, independence, and a break from the conventional. The key to making the most of this lifestyle is preparation, flexibility, and a positive attitude towards the inevitable bumps in the road.
Embrace the journey with an open heart and remind yourself WHY you’re on this grand adventure!
