Almost ready for our RV adventure! I’ve been excited about this trip FOR MONTHS! I’ve pulled my hair out and drank tons of coffee renting the RV (found out I know almost nothing about RVs), planning the route, hoping I picked the right campgrounds and that they are the right size for our RV and are kid friendly. But it’s done so I got to check off RV rental, RV Route Planning, and Campgrounds in our RV Trip Planner.

Okay so now it’s time to focus on packing up the RV. Clothes, food, games for the kids, dishes, kitchenware, bedding, towels, BBQ, camp chairs – check and check. Oh wait, almost forgot our youngest’s favorite stuffed animal – ok, it’s added to the list. Whew. That wouldn’t have been good. Oh let’s not forget coffee either!

When chatting with my neighbor about our trip, she asked if there were any routes we couldn’t take? Bridges, tunnels, construction, roads that don’t allow RVs or that an RV wouldn’t fit going through? What, wait…what??? I began to wonder if there is anyone to do this for me? Is there such a thing as an experienced RV trip planner?

Finally, the big day has arrived. We are packed, we think we got everything loaded. Husband is behind the wheel (check), RV Trip Planner is on my lap (check), GPS is on the dash (check), laptop in my suitcase (check), oh wait, did I pack the chargers? Kids are bouncing with excitement (check). We are ready to hit the road. National Parks here we come!!

Okay Day 1 of our perfect RV adventure has gone pretty good. Did you know my cell phone GPS isn’t the best tool when driving an RV? We took a couple of bad routes and ended up being on the road longer than I had planned. I didn’t know you had to arrive at a campground by a certain time. We got to the first campground really late and ended up spending the night on the road next to the campground. Did you know campgrounds are not like hotels – they don’t have someone at the front desk 24 hours/7 days a week? Kids were excited – no bath that night! My husband and I were tired and a bit frustrated. Next morning, we pulled into the campground and of course we asked if we could get that first night waived since we didn’t know about the arrival deadline. They kindly pointed out the confirmation clearly stated we had to arrive by a certain time. Oops. The staff escorted us to our assigned site (a back-in no less). We tried and tried to get parked into that site and they finally sent someone out to help us. Thought for sure we were going to take out at tree. Then hooking up the water, electric and sewer – sounded easier than it was. Thankfully a neighbor came over and talked us through it. I am now convinced that RV campers are super helpful, and part of the reason this RV adventure is so perfect!

It was overwhelming trying to figure out each destination, entrance fees, special entry requirements, what is there to do, how do I get around, can I take the RV everywhere? What activities are available to us during our trip – are there age restrictions, was there space available for a family of 5, did I miss an important stop, was there something we should have stopped and seen on our way to the campground? I did finally book what I hoped were really great activities for us on this trip – a private guided tour for just our family, wildlife viewing, a jeep tour, bike riding, rafting and I even found a UTV tour that would allow our 8 year old to come with us – YEAH ME!! Then I read there is plenty of self-guided activities and junior ranger programs for our kids. Another win because bored kids are just not that much fun. BUT finding where each activity is, how to get there, and parking for the RV was truly daunting. How do people do this?

We are home, the trip is over, we had a good time. It’s an RV adventure we will remember for a long time – lots of lessons to be learned.

Could our trip have been better – definitely! Are we going to do this again? YES! What will we do differently – find an experience RV trip planner who can help us find a RV rental that fits our family better, knows how to plan a US RV adventure, and can provide us with a RV Road Trip Planner that keeps us on RV friendly roads.

As we look back on the last year, we realize we were extremely lucky on our trip. What would we have done if we had gotten caught up in Hurricane Ida, been in northern California during the fires, camping in Texas when the ice storm hit, and the horrible flood that just hit Yellowstone National Park? We aren’t going to let these disasters keep us home, we want to get out there and explore this great Country but next RV adventure…we are taking back-up!!!