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riversabound's avatar
riversabound
Explorer
Oct 12, 2013

Quit my job, Traveling for 1 year

Hello,
I recently resigned my corporate position, and my wife and I have decided we want to take a RV trip around the US starting from Cleveland Ohio.

We only want to spend $20,000 on an RV, because we want to complete this trip with no debt. We have a 1 year old daughter who will be traveling with us.

My question: how can I get the most "bang for my buck"? I know that $20k is not going to allow us many creature comforts, but I have seen many used Class C's under this amount.


What should I be looking for in terms of an RV? How should I be evaluating the ones that I see, considering my low price desire?

Thank you in advance!

Edit:
Thanks for all the responses. To follow up:
We want to stay in or near national parks, as our goal is to see many of them and hike quite a bit. A big factor for us is the ability to cook food. It does not have to be complex meals, but we eat very healthy, and budget conscience, so we need to be able to have room to prepare our own food.

Our travel plan is to go from Cleveland > Georgia > Colorado > Texas > California > Utah > Montana > South Dakota > Back to Cleveland (stopping many places along the way)

I am 27, and my wife is 25 ... we do not need to many comforts, and the trip itself is more important to us than being comfortable on the trip. We want to see beautiful places, and spend time together getting to know each other more.

28 Replies

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  • MewshawManor's avatar
    MewshawManor
    Explorer
    Oct 12, 2013
    For this kind of money, I'd seriously look at pulling a light/smaller 5'er or travel trailer. You can buy something quite decent, used, for $15,000.
  • tonyandkaren's avatar
    tonyandkaren
    Explorer
    Oct 12, 2013
    How about a B? At first glance a B might seem like a poor choice for a year of traveling especially with a one year old but if you only have a year I'm going to assume that you'll be driving a lot and not staying anywhere for very long. The B will get better gas mileage and be much easier to drive and park. Plus you won't need to have another vehicle.

    Other advantages are good resale value and less of a chance of water damage because Bs don't have the standard motorhome sidewalls and roof construction that leads to leaks. Take a look - http://www.rvtrader.com/Class-B%3A-RVs----Motorhomes-|-For-Sale-|-New-or-Used-on-RV-Trader/search-results?type=Class+B|198068&vrsn=hybrid&price=15000:20000

    Go to a RV show or a large dealer and walk through all of the types of RVs. You'll get a better idea of what will work for you.

    One word of caution - we did this when our daughter was 3 and we liked it so much that we immediately started planning to fulltime when she entered college. It gets it your blood! ;-)

    For some inspiration check out this blog - http://alifemadesimple.blogspot.com/ Three people, including a child, one dog and one cat fulltiming in a van.
  • beemerphile1's avatar
    beemerphile1
    Explorer
    Oct 12, 2013
    Are you wanting a MH (motor home) or do you have a TV (tow vehicle)? If you buy a MH, how will you get around while the MH is at your campsite? Many MH users tow a car behind them. Do you have a car you can tow?

    If you have a truck or SUV to use as a TV you can drive it while the TT (travel trailer) is parked.

    There are so many options we really need more info to advise. What do you plan to do? Where do you plan to stay? How many miles do you plan to travel?

    I would suggest you do a lot of reading here on the forums to determine what you want to do, there is no easy answer we can give you because there are so many ways of traveling.

    You might want to go to the top of this page and click on the 'RVing FAQ' link for lots of great information.
  • Dtaylor's avatar
    Dtaylor
    Explorer
    Oct 12, 2013
    I would vote for a travel trailer as well given your budget. That would also give you a vehicle to travel, go to grocery store, etc and not have to break camp every time.
  • donn0128's avatar
    donn0128
    Explorer II
    Oct 12, 2013
    Under 20K self propelled RV's are generally just not going to be very reliable. For the same 20K you should be able to find a pretty decent towable provided you have enough tow vehicle to handle it. If you dont then that 20K budget is going to blossom to maybe 40K for a combination road worthy enough to travel the country for a year. Good luck what ever you decide on.
  • gbopp's avatar
    gbopp
    Explorer
    Oct 12, 2013
    Welcome to the forum.
    Have you considered a Travel Trailer?
    If you have a vehicle that can tow, the TT may give you the best bang for your buck.
    There is a lot of information available, don't hesitate to ask.
    Also, start reading the different forums listed under 'Jump to Forum' on the right side of the screen.
  • Led_67's avatar
    Led_67
    Explorer
    Oct 12, 2013
    Just 2 things come to mind...Research thourghly and workamping
  • I_am_still_wayn's avatar
    I_am_still_wayn
    Explorer
    Oct 12, 2013
    If I were you, I would buy a used Class C from a rental company. While high mileage, you will get complete service records and a solid coach and chassis. While I appreciate your desire to travel, your scheme is wrought with many potential derailments. The biggest is buying a RV that has issues hidden to the lay person's eye. Water intrusion is the biggest issue, and the second is poor design causing severe road handling issues. Don't count on any dealer helping you with anything except parting with your money. Also, you need to be very handy diagnosing and fixing things or very handy with your check book.

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