How to Plan an RV Road Trip

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Last updated on October 21st, 2024 at 04:25 pm

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Cindy Scott is a freelance editor and writer with a background in media, film, and television. She has full-time RVed and thru-hiked the Appalachian Trail. When she's not kayaking or hiking, you can find her blogging about outdoor adventure at Cinders Travels.

But first, here are a few reminders of why road trips are awesome!

Before I go into how to plan an RV road trip, here’s a quick reminder of why road trips are lovely. For those who are used to taking most of their travels via plane, an RV road trip may be a bit of an adjustment. But here are three simple reminders of why road trips are better than flights!

No baggage fees! You can pack as much as you want.
No per person fees.
It’s all about the journey, not just the destination. Just the act of getting to your vacation spot will be as adventurous as your time there. Flights are great, but there is no match for the open road!
Lastly, your furry friends can come along much more easily! Dogs and even cats can partake in your adventure.

Do you have an RV?

“Sure Do!” ✅ Perfect!

“I do not.” ❌ That’s okay! These days, there are so many rental options! I recommend checking out these two:

Check out RVshare for RV rentals!

Check out Escape Campervan for van rentals!

Need help deciding which to choose? Here are 4 Important Questions That Will Help You Choose Between Van Life or RV Life.

Thinking about buying an RV? Here are 6 Reasons To Consider Renting an RV Before Buying One and 8 Questions to Consider Before Purchasing a New RV.

How far can you travel in an RV in a day?

Technically, you can travel as far as you’d like!

However, it should be noted that driving an RV is very different from driving a car. Tenfold more focus is involved. Also, the amount of time you want to give the road will depend on elements such as how much traffic you will endure or how twisty the roads will be.

But overall, in an RV, your road options are limited to the roads that can accommodate your vehicle’s height. So, often fewer backroads and more highways.

For us, comfortably, in the RV, with pets, we say 3-5 hours.

In a van will be different, though! How far you can travel in a van will be much more similar to what you are comfortable with in a car.

Preparing your RV for a Road Trip

Do as much of the packing ahead of time as you can. Packing on a travel day makes the day double stressful and draining.

Also, the less you bring with you, the better!

If you’re trying to figure out what you need and what you don’t, check out this post for a list of the items that we found most important to have with us when we first started RVing.

My Favorite RV Road Trip Planning Tool

Sadly, in an RV, Google Maps will not always cut it.

After three years on the road in an RV, RV Trip Wizard became my favorite tool for planning RV trips.

When building your trip, RV Trip Wizard will ask for your RV specifications (including height, length, and weight), fuel economy, and driving route preferences. It will then take all that information and create the perfect path for you and your RV. You can even search for RV parks and points of interest along your route in the program.

We also use this program to find RV parks, along with Ultimate CG, The Dyrt, Hipcamp, AllStays, RV Parky, Good Sam, Campendium, and Thousand Trails.

RV Road Trip Planning Tip

Making RV Park Reservations

If You Can, Make Reservations

Summer is always the high season for RVing, which makes for a perfect storm of rapidly filling reservations.

Consider Calling to Book

I’m a big proponent of always calling. This is probably due to my short stint working in a hotel reservations department. You’ll get a better feel for your destination when you call and speak to an actual human who lives and works there.

If you want to plan early but aren’t 100% sure you’ll want to stay at that RV park, ask about their current cancellation policy.

How to Pick the Best RV Park?

Picking the best RV park depends on many factors, including your desired budget, proximity to a town, amenities, comfort, and rig size. Here are some articles I have written that can help you figure out where you’d like to stay:

RV Road Trip Grocery Shopping Tips

Generally, on the road, we can trust that some form of a grocery store will be just about anywhere we go. However, who knows whether you’re walking into a store that’s a desolate utopia or a store that’s just not fit for the size of the town’s summer population.

Shop Locally Before Leaving

The best way to avoid being in a packed or unknown grocery store is to first load up on all your groceries at home.

Don’t forget to stock up on basics such as road trip snacks, a first aid kit, allergy meds, sunscreen, and hand sanitizer.

Cook as Much as You Can Before Leaving

To take it one step further, prepare as many meals as you can at home before leaving.

If You Forgot Something, or Your Trip is Long, and You Have to go to a Grocery Store

Grocery shopping in a store you’re unfamiliar with can be intimidating.
To make this experience less stressful:

Pull up the grocery store options around you on Google Maps when you get to a new spot.
Pick a store that looks large and is about 5-10 miles on the outskirts of town, in less populated areas.
Boom! Grocery store paradise.

Also, use the parking lot as a guide. It’s easy to look at the grocery store’s size and then at the number of cars in the parking lot to decide whether it’s worth going in. Navigating a packed grocery store can be an extremely stressful way to start a trip.

We also tend to follow the recommendation of going grocery shopping during the least popular times of the day, before 10 am or after 7 pm.

RV Travel Days

Welcome Centers, Rest Areas & Public Restrooms

Welcome centers and public rest areas are easy to find. On road trips, I use the iExit app to find bathrooms.

If you rent a self-contained RV, you won’t have to worry about this because you’ll have a bathroom! Use your RV for bathroom breaks, lunch stops, and even for naps needed on the road to avoid going into public places.

Tourist Destinations

Mackinac Island Fort Mackinac How to plan an RV road trip

Visitor Centers

Use the local visitor center to help plan your daily activities, but also do all the pre-planning you can before taking off. (This is especially true if you’re going to a place with poor internet or cell signal, where same-day Google research might be tricky.)

Check-in with Attractions, Parks, and Restaurants Before Visiting

Many national parks, such as Arches, now use a reservation system.

A quick visit to the attraction’s Facebook page or website will often include many things you need to know before your visit.

Do Things During Off Times or Odd Hours

Try to take your trip when others are not. If possible, weekends and holidays should be avoided, simply because they are the times most people can get away.

If you have to travel on weekends and holidays, try doing things in town during odd hours. Many vacationers hate to wake up early.

Vacation Time and Activities

Bring Entertainment Options Along

Even though you’ll likely have tons of plans filling your days and evenings, you can also plan on spending some time inside your RV or outside at your picnic table.

Be prepared for that by bringing all the digital or non-digital distractions you desire, including board games, yard games, game systems, cards, Kindles, iPads, whatever floats your boat.

Additionally, if you plan on relying on a hotspot during your trip, you should look up the park on a review site such as Campendium to investigate the strength of the park’s Wi-Fi and cellular signal. No Wi-Fi means no Netflix, Hulu, or Disney+. So plan accordingly and bring lots of DVDs or Blu-rays!

Exploring the Great Outdoors

Smoky Mountain National Park Waterfall How to plan an RV road trip

Spending Time Outdoors

When you’re not touring around town, I recommend spending time outdoors.

Hikes and long walks are free, a terrific way to explore a vacation destination and a great way to keep your trip on a budget!

Check out Alltrails for a list of the most satisfying trails at your destination.

Some other options that will vary in pricing, depending on what you already have at home, include cycling, fishing, kayaking, ATVing, canyoneering, rock climbing, and geocaching!

When Hiking, Have Backup Trail Options

If you plan on hiking the most popular trail in the area, you may arrive and find out that everyone else was, too.

If the parking lot is packed, it’s best to have a backup trail option. And honestly, a few times, the backup trails have ended up being even better than the popular ones ever could have been!

Here are two backup trail examples from our own experience:

Cindy at Rainier National Park Pano — Pinnacle Peak Trail in Mount Rainier National Park

Bear Mountain Trail Sedona — Bear Mountain Trail – Sedona, AZ

I hope this article helped you plan an RV road trip. Have fun out there, and happy planning!