Choosing The Best Way to Travel Full-Time
There are many options for the road life. What it comes down to is personal choice.
If you’re considering a life on the road, whether part-time or full-time, you will have to decide how you will travel.
This can be a very challenging process, so we want to share what we’ve learned over the last few years based on experience and research.
There are several options when it comes to the traveling lifestyle, and it will generally come down to your needs, your budget, and your comfort level as you go and live your adventure.
Most people we’ve met on the road own an RV or a travel van. Some live out of a pickup truck or car. A few of us choose to live in hotels or resorts.
Each mode of transportation or living arrangement has pros and cons.
Hotel Living
I’ll start with this since it’s what we do and are most familiar with.
Living in hotels and resorts has been a great option for us because we didn’t want to haul a trailer and didn’t have the funds for a motorhome or travel van. We also like the ease of movement without the added stress of a fifth wheel. So we just pack all of our required stuff in our Chevy Silverado 1500 and hit the open road.
It’s nice to pull up to a hotel after a day of driving and enjoy the amenities like free WiFi, a hot shower, laundry facilities, and a comfortable bed.
Sometimes we stay in nicer places like Club Wyndham Pagosa Springs, and other times at a crappy Econo Lodge. It all depends on whether it’s a weeklong stay or we’re just passing through to the next destination.
Hotel living has been good with very few problems. The biggest downside to this lifestyle is rude hotel guests and asinine hotel rates.
Additionally, we’ve earned a LOT of free stays through our Choice Privileges (one of the best rewards programs) and our Hilton Grand Vacations package (formerly DRI). We’ll share more about how we’ve used these benefits in a future issue.
Please note: When you travel to busy tourist destinations or National Parks, it can be a real pain in the ass to find parking spaces. This is why a pickup or small car helps.
Travel Vans
We really wanted to purchase a travel van to explore the United States, but after spending hundreds of hours researching and looking at them, the investment price and financing were just cost-prohibitive for us at the time. Yet I’ll share what I’ve learned about it all so far.
New travel vans can cost $100,000 or more, depending on whether you choose a Ford Transit, Dodge ProMaster, or Mercedes Sprinter. These are the three main brands, and of course, the Mercedes Sprinters average $150,000 at the time of this research.
Used vans with high mileage have been holding their value at an average of $80,000 and up, especially if they have more options like showers and toilets.
If you’re handy with tools and construction and you have time to work on a van, the average DIY build costs seem to be between $40,000 and $60,000, though some people have done it for way less.
There are tons of options for travel vans as well!
If you love the minimalist lifestyle, you can easily buy a van, throw in an air mattress, a porta-potty, a Bluetti power station, install some solar panels, and save a lot of money by living off the grid on BLM land. Lots of people do this.
If you want more creature comforts, your travel van can be equipped with AC and heat, an induction stove, a bed, a shower, a TV, and any other amenities you prefer. Of course, the more you want, the higher the cost.
One thing you should know, based on my conversations with other van lifers, is that Mercedes Sprinters can be expensive to maintain and that mechanics can be limited. I’ve heard some people had to wait for months to get repairs done. This does not seem to be an issue with Ford Transits or Dodge ProMasters. Therefore, maintenance can be a real issue in the long term.
The positive aspects of van life are that your home is easy to move, you can park almost anywhere, and there are typically fewer problems than with larger rigs.
Thousands of people are now doing van life because it opens up amazing opportunities you won’t get by living in hotels or owning an RV.
Motor Home RVs
If you have half a million dollars or more, you could really be living the dream in a fully stocked Class A RV or large motor home that’s just as nice as a house, but if price is an issue, you can also find newer and smaller Class C RVs for a more reasonable price, averaging $60,000-$90,000.
Each RV class can offer a broad range of sizes, amenities, and features. Some will be very basic, and others will be filled with more high-end gadgets than ever thought possible. The sky is the limit with these types of rigs!
While I didn’t do as much initial research for these types of vehicles because we’d never be able to afford one, I have talked with many travelers who live in them.
The common response is that their owners absolutely love them because they are homes on wheels and can stay in a favorite location long-term without having to worry about the weather and other challenges.
On the flip side, they’ve also said gas mileage sucks, maintenance issues are always a problem, parking at National Parks or tourist destinations is extremely difficult, and you can’t go off-road in many great locations — which is why hauling a small vehicle behind is a common practice.
Fifth Wheel Trailers
Based on all my research and having lived in a fifth-wheel trailer as a home base, this is one of the best options for travelers if you have the patience and fearlessness to haul one … which I certainly don’t!
One of the appealing aspects of travel trailers or fifth wheels is that they come in all shapes and sizes, and like motorhomes or travel vans, there is a large variety of features you can include in your travel home, making the road life experience as extravagant as you want it to be. Plus, you’ll have more storage and space, in addition to being able to drop your trailer so you can take your vehicle for outdoor excursions or beer runs.
Some of the most popular options at the moment are teardrop trailers. They’re easy to pull behind a truck or SUV, quick to set up, and simple to park. My personal favorites are Timberleaf and ROC trailers.
The costs for these types of trailers vary widely. I’ve seen newer, smaller models go for $15,000, with an average price of $30,000. Larger rigs can range between $80,000 - $150,000.
As for the challenges, it can be harder to find places to camp as RV-style lots fill up fast in popular destinations, gas mileage will be lower, and there are always maintenance costs.
Trucks and Car Living
Should you desire to do more off-roading or rough it, living out of a pickup truck or car is very easy. And interestingly, I’ve seen a lot more people taking this approach for various reasons.
We’ve seen travelers outfit small vans and Subaru Outbacks with a bed, stove, water source, and composting toilet, giving them the basics they need to enjoy life from the road. These people carry the bare minimum they need and are extremely happy with their lifestyle choices.
The appeal of this is enticing. Here’s why.
You’ll spend significantly less money outfitting your vehicle for your adventures than putting all that money in a prestigious travel van or larger rig. This means you can stretch your dollar, live more comfortably, and invest those savings into experiences rather than a home. It’s also simple to drive your vehicle and find a place to park, gas mileage is a hell of a lot better, and you can practically go almost anywhere..
Another aspect of trucks and cars is that you can install a Roof Top Tent (RTT), like we did, to provide a sleeping space outside your vehicle. In our truck, we have a Bluetti AC180 power station, a BougeRV car fridge, an electric grill, camping and survival gear, and even a portable toilet, so we can make do wherever we go.
You really don’t need much to get going!
The biggest challenges to car living are space limitations, and many campgrounds or RV parks don’t allow “car camping” because of the growing problem of homelessness. Many RV parks do allow rooftop tents, though not all.
Decisions. Decisions.
As you can see, there are some great options if you decide to join the road life experience. It all comes down to evaluating your real needs and budget constraints.
Many of the people we’ve met on our journey started small and worked their way up to larger vehicles. Others bought a larger rig and hated it, choosing to downsize to a teardrop trailer instead. Every person is unique.
But here’s the deal. You won’t know until you try it.
If you’re unsure about what might work best for your situation, there are now plenty of businesses that rent travel vans, motorhomes, and trailers. Cruise America seems to be a popular choice for travelers, but there are others like it.
Hopefully, this article helps you get started on choosing the best way to travel for your own adventure. And if you have any advice or feedback, we’d love to hear it.