15 Reasons Why I Like My RV Better Than A Hotel
My wife and I recently had to stay in a 4-star hotel while attending a business meeting. While nice, I quickly began to miss our RV. Here are 15 reasons why I like my RV better than a luxury hotel.
1. I don’t have to pack or unpack.
2. I know where to find my stuff without sifting through a suitcase.
3. I can step out the door of my RV into the outdoors, unlike a hotel where I have to go out the hotel room door, down the hall, wait for the elevator, go down the elevator and out the door into the concrete jungle.
4. I can have my morning cup of tea how I like it.
With my RV, I have my favorite blend with me, clover honey to sweeten it with, I can enjoy it piping hot and not have to get dressed to go get it from the restaurant.
5. Breakfast doesn’t cost $20 per person and I can enjoy it however I choose to dress.
6. I don’t have to worry about how much to tip the housekeeper.
7. The pillow is just right!
8. I can always open the windows in my RV to enjoy some fresh air (and a great view).
9. You never have someone clomping across the floor above you.
10. I can have more than a duvet and sheet on my bed.
11. I can find the TP in the middle of the night without turning on a light.
12. I don’t have to go any further than my RV refrigerator to find fresh vegetables.
13. I never return from a day of exploring only to find room service hasn’t made up my room yet.
14. I don’t have to rent a car.
15. It’s my dirt inside my RV, not somebody else’s.
Preferring my little ol’ RV over a luxury hotel, an adventure in RVing I will take any time! How about you, do you prefer your RV over a hotel? Please share.
See also: 8 Reasons Why Traveling In An RV Is Better Than An Airplane
Dave Helgeson’s many roles in the RV industry started before he even had a driver’s license. His grandparents and father owned an RV dealership before the term “RV” had been coined, and Dave played a pivotal role in nearly every position of an RV dealership. He and his wife Cheri launched their own RV dealership in the Pacific Northwest. The duo also spent 29 years overseeing regional RV shows. Dave has also served as President of a local chapter of the Recreational Vehicle Dealers Association (RVDA), worked on the board of advisors for the RV Technician Program of a local technical college, and served as a board member of the Manufactured Home and RV Association. Dave’s reputation earned him the title of “The foremost expert on boondocking,” bestowed by RV industry icon, the late Gary Bunzer (The RV Doctor). When he’s not out boondocking, you’ll find Dave in the spotlight at RV shows across the country, giving seminars about all things RVing. He and Cheri currently roam in their fifth travel trailer, with Dave doing all the service, repair and modifications to his own unit.
I’m sure that if you put your mind to it, you could find plenty more reasons.
Hi, all very true. Please allow me to add a few more.
– I know who slept in the bed the night before
– I don’t have to spray the bed for bed bugs
– I don’t have to worry about cockroaches or other critters crawling around.
– I don’t have to pay extra for accommodations, when I am already paying for where my RV is parked.
– I don’t need to use a laundry mat, because we have our own washer and dryer in our RV.
– We never forget anything, because everything is with us.
OK, there is ONE (1) thing that is a must when we do stay in a B&B or Hotel on those very few overnighters we do have, we MUST have a full bath or jacuzzi in our room. ( the one thing our RV doesn’t have (YET). My wife’s favorite part of doing an overnighter someplace.
Only because just to go somewhere overnight, to me, is not worth the hassle of everything involved in bringing our RV, not to mention the fact that there is probably no place to park it when we get there or not even able to pull it down some of those Canyon roads..
You couldn’t pay me to use an in-room jacuzzi in ANY hotel! Do you know what it takes to properly clean one of those, even in your home for your own personal use? The thought of sitting in heated water circulated through hoses that may or may not have seen complete disinfection in between EVERY hotel guest make me sick! No thanks! That’s one hotel amenity that simply doesn’t attract me.
Ok, point taken. We stayed at a major casino on the Ca/NV state line of the I15 a few years back. I got the room with the jacuzzi to have a nice evening with my wife only to be surprised by a nest of cockroaches that scattered as soon as I lifted a nicely folded towel from the corner of the juccuzi. YES the whole relaxing enjoyable evening was ruined not even the room change and free comps from the manager helped repair that fiasco. So now we do inside bathtubs or outside juccuzi by the pool that get professionally cleaned by the pool cleaner often. And for the room, my wife packs the bed bug spray, lysol, and other nessassery things to take care of when we check in, by the time we come back to the room, the dust has settled and we can lay out our own sheets and blankets to sleep. We just put them over the top of the other bedding.
However since we like to visit the same area we have found a central located hotel that is clean and a reasonable rate.
For us to travel across the states and stay in many different hotels….. I don’t think so.
X2 on the Roaches! I stayed in a fairly new hotel outside of Phoenix 5 years ago. The Cockroaches were in the lobby and hallways during the daytime hours.
Oh yes…agree 100%
We do the same, but actually lay plastic on top of the bed, then a huge flat sheet then our bedding. Then, years later we decided, to put plastic sheeting down then a flat sheet, then put a tent on top of the bed and our bedding and us inside. Yes, its loads if work, but with our allergies, asthma and now, bedbugs….taking no chances. 😲
You missed the most important be one……
For us older folks, anyway…….
We have our OWN bathroom with us!!!
This is more than just being able to find the TP.
I agree….we have had bad experiences at hotels/motels in the past..a number of years ago. Having our motorhome affords us those amenities which everyone has stated…I cringe at the thought of filthy floors, moldy showers and bugs…I even prefer my own motorhome shower….nuff said
Hey Greg, we have to use hotels for the first 3 or 4 days when we start south in the fall normally, because out 5th wheel is winterized usually as we leave late in October and by then we have already had many freezing temperature days. However as soon as we get to a place where a campground is open all year round, we de-winterize and start living, finally! Having our own toilet while on the road is of prime importance to us as we do not like using public toilets anywhere as much as possible, some folks are just too unclean and careless.
AMEN!
I full time in a little 23’ tag along with no frills, but agree wholeheartedly!
I agree with the gist of this article. I full-time in a 20 ft. Class C , working part time mostly weekends. It’s tricky to stealth camp here in San José, so I try to get to the outdoors during the week.. 3 nights near Yosemite next week and the senior lifetime pass will get us into the park for free. I do miss long showers or hot-tub.
Stay well and have fun. Dave B
I’ll bite. How do you do stealth camping in a Class C?
? Call David Copperfield?
? Slap
ice cream
Schwan’s delivery
Bookmobile
Bloodmobile
….or some other signs all over it?
? Drape a parachute over and hope people think the Flying Elvis group is in town?
? Blow up a hot air balloon nearby and hope the balloon is a distraction?
?
I totally understand. I mostly boon dock, and I love the freedom of doing so.
All the above, PLUS, my fur baby gets to come with me, no extra charge and no cleaning fee!
Our best friend is always welcome without a big pet fee.
Being able to take our dog with us was one of the primary reasons we started traveling by RV. He is
eager to go whenever we begin packing up, and is happy as a clam while we travel. When we began
to think of after-retirement travel, we could not even imagine the hassle of finding motels with pet rooms
every night, finding an appropriate place to leave him if we needed to shop or sight-see and could not
take him. Ten years, and two doggies later, we are so glad to have our RV. We enjoy having our little
house and enjoying it every day we are on the road !! By the way, neither of our dogs bark when we
are in the RV or away except if someone comes to the door.
I can have a campfire and relax ! I don’t have to worry about what the arguement in the adjacent room is about. The only noise may be the coyotes near my unit !
Ralph, I like your post. Reminds me of Tunnel Mountain Campground in Banff. Coyotes were much closer than nearby! Memories you won’t get at a hotel.
Here’s a few of our reasons why we prefer our Jayco over a luxurious hotel room:
1. Neighbors are a different kind of people, and they’re better equipped to help in an emergency.
2. Lodging is cheaper (w/o considering the trailer cost and gasoline, etc).
3. I can hear nature just by opening windows.
4. Our location is Nature, not concrete and glass.
5. Easier and cheaper to accommodate extra family members.
6. Nicer flooring.
7. Travel amenities such as first aide, wildlife field guides, games, books, etc. easily available.
8. I feel as if I’m at home.
Now that’s a list!
I can open my favorite bottle of Pinot Noir without robbing a bank????
Oh now I’m with you Ricky. Nothing like a good glass of Pinot Noir around the campfire 🙂
You did not have to stay at that fancy ass 4-star diddy you could have quit your job ( that requires you and yours to stay at said venue) and gone full timing.
Happy motoring/RVing
DNA. Mine and not some strangers.
Not to mention the slamming doors and people who have to hear their car honk when they lock it.
Imagine settling in for a good night’s rest after a long day on the road, and the couple in the next room having an argument ALL night.
I will take my RV anytime.
I don’t have to worry about drunks pulling the hotel fire alarm at 3:00am!!!!
Reasons Why We Are thinking to sell our RV:
1. Hard to get reservations at good campsites with hookups.
2. People who think park rules don’t apply to them.
3. Sites are too close to one another. Like a parking lot.
4. Party people who get drunk, loud, and don’t care that their neighbors are trying to sleep.
5. Unsupervised children.
6. Riding loud dirt bikes w/o helmets.
7. People who leave trash for others to pick up.
8. Dogs left at site that bark constantly while their owners are away from their site.
9. Loud music that other campers are forced to listen to.
I’m actually a fan of #6, except the noise and dust. The less protective gear they wear, the better. #Darwinism
Amen!
C. Simpson – Many of the reasons I prefer to boondock is due to the reasons you listed.
Find a different campground, and some of those things are the same in hotels. Drunks, loud neighbors ect.
You are not staying at the right places then. Try staying at farms and Hipcamp sites and not Rv parks. You will not have those issues.
Love my moving hotel room for all of these reasons and more! Plus I can bring my dogs…..
Agree for the most part, but I do bring clothes to my camper which is comparable to packing. I’ve never spent $20 per person for breakfast in my life, lunch maybe but not breakfast. I take my trailer if I’ll be gone a week or more. My truck gets 8 to 10 mpg, my car gets 32 mpg, on a long trip of short duration a motel is cheaper than gas for my truck, (unless you stay somewhere that charges $20 a person for breakfast).
My travel trailer is my suitcase, I don’t have to live out of a suitcase. My closing stays unwrinkled in my TT closet..
My refrig is well stocked with my favorite beverages….
No dog dander in my motorhome.
It’s all about our dogs! They are comfortable, familiar with their surroundings and love the life. We would never leave them with anyone for a trip or cruise. Oh yeah, all the other reasons too, but the dogs are the mainr eason
After 30 years on the road, 3 nites at least a week in a hotel, some may not, but, many, would be surprised at what I’ve seen in hotel rooms. All of the above apply, in spades!
Pros and cons on both ends…FOR EXAMPLE…can’t tow my trailer to Hawaii!!!
Hawaii doesn’t need me that bad. I’m too busy seeing North America in my fifth.
Isn’t there a joke about God agreeing to build a highway to Hawaii being easier than teaching a man to understand his woman???? 🙂 🙂 🙂
First things, is that you don’t need to worry about bed bugs!! Second thing you have a WC on wheels!!
I wholeheartedly agree with all those reasons! It’s a great life, isn’t it?
Having traveled extensively in my former working career where I had to stay in hotels (good ones), I have only one question to ask people who actually want to stay in hotels. It is (pardon the grossness) : How many gallons of someone else’s drool do you think is in your hotel pillow?
All I can say is I fully agree and thoroughly enjoyed reading your article.
Having spent +/- 180 nights per year in 4-star hotel rooms for 20 years, I spent over $450,000 on hotel rooms, not counting, breakfast, lunch, dinner, tips, taxis, rental cars, parking garages, and plane tickets.
I DO NOT MISS THIS AT ALL. My wife and I now full-time and yes, I am glad that I do not have to put up with all of the stuff that you mentioned plus some of the other comments.
The big point that my wife and I fully agree with is that we do not have to put up with other people’s dirt or bedbugs. I have read about people using black lights to see how dirty 4 and 5 star hotels are. YUCK! More positive points for an RV.
Soooo true. Having been a road warrior, it just turns my stomach to think about what you said.
One night I flew into London, got into my hotel room at about 1:30 am….checked in and went to my room. All looked good until I pulled back the covers to get in bed to find women’s menstruation (fairly fresh) on the sheets. I called the front desk and the person asked me what they should do about it as housekeeping was not available. The hotel was totally full so no other rooms. I slept sitting up in a chair and called my credit card company in the morning to cancel the hotel charges.
I love my RV.
Imagine settling in for a good night’s rest after a long day on the road, and the couple in the next room having an argument ALL night.
I will take my RV anytime.
The MAIN reason we love our 5th wheel is that it has wheels; it can be a place by the ocean, a place in the mountains, a place near a lake, river, or waterfall, a place for a quick escape if we don’t like our neighbors noisy-ness or nosiness. We can have our cats with us, too.
We love ours for all the reason above especially since we can have so many beautiful views from our window and wake up to hearing and seeing wildlife right from our window. I love having my own bathroom traveling right behind me as well as my own kitchen in case I get hungry or thirsty. Best of all we have our own bed, our own pillows and our 4 dogs with us all the time. They love our little traveling home as much as we do.