1st time renting RV - Any tips for a great family vacation?

How many people? What ages? Typical enjoyment activities? Answers to these questions will greatly help with responses. I personally don't know that area but good luck with your post and have an enjoyable trip!

Kids are 7, 9, 12, 14.

We really like to bike and hike but can't spend TOO much time doing either because of the young one.

We'll probably spend some time fishing but again, it's not something the whole family would enjoy doing for hours on end.

The kids are all into sports -- hockey, lacrosse, soccer, basketball, swim team, etc.

We get a long as a family and love spending time together. Even the 14yo is still close to everyone. At home, we play board games a couple times a week and spend time together when we can in between all the activities.

Hope that helps.

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Youll have a great time. I just finished reading a book about a family who rented an RV and I was on the floor in stitches as the gentleman related going to pick up the RV. He was new to RVing so the saleslady took him and the kids out to the yard and gave him the tour and showed him how everything worked.
Well I guess the folks who had rented it last had neglected to dump the black water, and well you can guess the rest. She pulled the handle and was very glad she had on high heels.
So the first thing I would do when you do the walk around is go inside and push the button that tells you how full or empty the black water is. If it stays on empty your good to go.
A couple things I might mention is the electrical cord There are two different plugs, and if you only have the one, your surely need the other. They are pretty cheap so pick on up at WalMart before you leave.
Check to make sure the RV has a hose for the fresh water and just in case run some bleach water thru it before you use it.
Have one of the kids be your backup guide and decide on signals before you actually back up. If you don't see him or her in the mirror, don't move. If all the kids are out, make sure you have all of them stand on the drivers side so you will know where they are.
Have another one of the kids be your second in command and before you are ready to pull out, have them walk around the outside and check to see if 1) you have left anything laying about, (hoses, tools, cords) Have them check all the basements to see that they are latched closed, the step is in. Have another be responsible for the inside. Vents closed, stuff put away, windows closed, antenna down. Its horrible when you make your first curve to hear a crashing noise
Because your in an RV you won't want to unhook to run to the store for womething you forgot so make a list and check it twince. Don't forget coffee pot, can opener, salt, pepper, foil. Bring stuff to make s'mores cause you can't take kids camping without s'mores.
And have a good time. You can always ask other campers for help if you don't know how to do something

Find out about all the things there are to do in the places you are going, that includes the stuff you already mentioned, as well as touristy stuff, even amusement parks, or what ever attractions you can find.

Have a couple of family meetings about your trip (with that many kids you won't get this done in an hour). Present each leg of the trip to the kids and possible activities. Let them pick things they want to do. The family should agree that each one gets to do one thing they really want to do sometime on that trip, even the adults. Then mix in the things that more than a one wants to do. Then aside from the "must do" things, leave it loose, that is leave room to make last minute changes for things you find out about when you get there, that sort of thing.

We did things this way and had very memorable trips. And those family meetings built up excitement for the trip. Your kids will NOT sleep the night before you leave.

Gatlinburg. We're going there in Sept. Great Smokey Mountains NP could keep you plenty busy just by itself. We're spending 80% of our time there day hiking.

We didn't rent, we jumped in w/ both feet. I can only assume that you'll get a similar walkthrough of the systems that'll overload your brain.

So - one person is video-ing the walkthru while the other person is making notes. :)

Video is a great idea, not just for first timers, but whenever somebody is getting to know a new rig.

Four important subjects:

1. Hooking up the utilities.

2. Turning the gas supply on and off.

3. Turning the water heater and fridge on and off (and the stove the first time it is used to bleed the air out of the lines).

4. Dumping and rinsing the tanks.

Possibly your most important tools will be a note pad and a credit card. The first couple of nights you will think of a list of small items that you should have brought along. Write them down and pull into the first Wal-Mart or Target you come to (park in the far end of the lot) and use the credit card. Not necessarily expensive items that you have at home, but the little things that make life on the road more pleasant. Just rough it on the expensive things and remember them next time.

And there will be a next time!

Enjoy the adventure and be safe out there.

If you're planning on cooking most of your meals, consider bringing a small portable gas grill and a couple of 1 pound propane cylinders. It will expand your menu options some and (perhaps more importantly) expand your kitchen space some by moving some of the cooking outside. The $20 specials are functional, though predictably not as good as $100+ Webbers or whatever. With many of the small grills (at least the cheap ones) it's nearly essential to keep the lid closed as much as practical to keep the heat up.

Also figure out what furnishings if any are included in the rental. You'll likely need to bring some kitchen and dining things (maybe everything you're likely to use), and maybe some bedding, cleaning supplies, etc. As you'll likely want to eat outside much of the time, a tablecloth for the picnic table would not be a bad idea. Likewise a welcome mat to scrub off shoes will help keep dirt down inside.

A couple of aim-n-flame lighters are probably a near essential. Many RV stoves don't have any built-in lighter.

Make sure everybody in your family knows how to open all the doors and emergency exits, and understands that in the event of a fire they need to get out immediately and not worry about trying to save anything. Remind them that the back window exit, although close to floor level inside, is something like five feet off the ground outside and so diving out headfirst is a bad idea. Also make sure they understand the rudiments of the plumbing (i.e. how to flush the toilet and how to turn the water pump on and off).

Sounds like it will be a marvelous trip!

Have EVERYONE practice taking "RV" showers and doing other water consuming things, I.E., brushing teeth, washing hands, etc., without using a lot of water. Running out of water will put a damper on an otherwise enjoyable time in a hurry. Your water supply is not endless and replenishing it means a trip to the dump station (that water went somewhere) and then to the potable water fill; unless you are hooked up to all at a "full service" campground.

If you are wondering what to do at each location do a Google search for `_________ tourism' and put the location in the blank spot.