In my younger days when time was limited I was a get there guy. The wife hated it because I could do 14+ hrs on the road and I refused to get a motel room, (didn't have the trailer then) rare instance when we did. I am retired now and the wife has retrained me to leave at 9ish and off the road by 3pm. I am much happier now. I try to avoid the interstates also because the secondary roads through the small towns are way more interesting and we stop to see the sights whatever they may be. Google knows everything.
We use RVPARKY and start looking for a park on our route or close to it around 2pm and call ahead for availability and have never been shut out of a campground. Granted, some CG's have not been even close to 'luxury' but filled the need. Never felt unsafe.