Help! Newbie (sort of) What to buy
Gloria here. What a wonderful site! My husband and I are just starting our search for a new Class C motorhome. We were both campers in our "prior" life, but never a Class C. He was a seasonal (nev...
Forum Discussion
If you look in the Class C section, there is a post about buying ex-rentals. Might be a really good option for you (see the post for pros and cons).
Meanwhile, definitely go look at every one you can. Sit in them and walk through your morning ablutions, cooking, eating, etc. That will help you determine points of "bottlenecking" with various layouts.
If you can, rent one for a weekend and get a feel for it. That will help you determine if you'll have the "hard to move around" complaint that some folks have with Cs. It will also help you determine at what length of rig you will be comfortable without a toad - for some people, 32ft without a toad is fine, for others it's not doable.
Think about your traveling and how you'll be doing it:
Questions like that will help determine exactly what is best for you - both as to type of RV, as well as the layout and size.
As you'll have time between your husband's retirement and yours, you might look for a "basic home repair" course at your local community college for him. Having some basic knowledge of electrical and plumbing will be useful - even if you're not handy, the knowledge will help you determine the cause of a problem while out on the road so you know what type of help you need (and hopefully be able to sense if an unscrupulous repair place is taking you for a ride).
Meanwhile, definitely go look at every one you can. Sit in them and walk through your morning ablutions, cooking, eating, etc. That will help you determine points of "bottlenecking" with various layouts.
If you can, rent one for a weekend and get a feel for it. That will help you determine if you'll have the "hard to move around" complaint that some folks have with Cs. It will also help you determine at what length of rig you will be comfortable without a toad - for some people, 32ft without a toad is fine, for others it's not doable.
Think about your traveling and how you'll be doing it:
- When you're not sightseeing, how do you plan on spending your time? Will you be sitting outside as much as possible? Will you be inside watching TV or on the computer?
- Will you be cooking and/or eating outside whenever possible?
- Do you have hobbies/activities that you want to take with you? If so, how much room do you need for those hobbies/activities?
- Do you want to see cities or just national parks, etc., or both? Would you be OK renting a car if needed to get around a city?
- Do much time do you spend in the same room at home? Can you read while he watches his TV shows, etc.? Does one of you get fidgity and find it hard to sit still for long periods of time?
What breeds are your dogs? Many RV parks have breed bans, so that could affect your ability to travel (some also have size limits, so that's a concern).- Do you want to always have hookups, or do you want to dry camp or boondock? (Dry camping is staying in a developed campground but not having water, electrical, or sewer hookups; boondocking is dry camping but not in a developed campground.)
Questions like that will help determine exactly what is best for you - both as to type of RV, as well as the layout and size.
As you'll have time between your husband's retirement and yours, you might look for a "basic home repair" course at your local community college for him. Having some basic knowledge of electrical and plumbing will be useful - even if you're not handy, the knowledge will help you determine the cause of a problem while out on the road so you know what type of help you need (and hopefully be able to sense if an unscrupulous repair place is taking you for a ride).
