Forum Discussion

whizbang's avatar
whizbang
Explorer II
Apr 14, 2017

Camping at the Hotel/Motel???

My dear wife and I no longer vacation together. In our old age, our sleep cycles are not timed in sync. One of us always seems to be awake while the other is sleeping, and vice versa. We need two completely separate sleeping areas. Neither reasonably priced lodgings, nor my dinky camper, meet this need.

It occurs to me that a perfect fit would be to book my wife into a hotel/motel so she has her own room. And take my camper so I can sleep (camp) in my rig in the hotel parking lot.

Does anybody have experience doing this? Are most hotels for or against such a thing? Should I disclose my intentions up front to the hotel staff or try to stealth camp?

17 Replies

  • We parked in a marriott's lot and booked a room when our genny let us down.. they were fine
  • I like Photomike's idea of saying what you were doing and let them complain if they disagreed.

    Another option would be to tow a small utility trailer with not much more than a bed for you. Would only weigh a couple hundred pounds and be easy to hand maneuver if you got into a tight spot.
  • I asked the same question a couple years ago. Got some good suggestions. Probably the best idea was to pull a really small trailer like a tear drop. My wife does NOT like the TC, nor my snoring. Good luck.
  • There are some hotels that also have rv spaces. You could look for one of those. Or search out an RV that has two sleeping quarters. :)
  • Have done it, some are fine with it some not so much. I did it at one hotel as I had a dog with me and the hotel would not allow dogs. The front desk person was not happy but I moved my TCer to the back of the lot and nothing was said. At another I was told that I would have to pay for two people in the room as they figured that nobody would want to camp in a TCer when there was a nice hotel room, I think they were also thinking that I was going to come in for the free breakfast. After some discussion they agreed.

    In the bigger hotels I stopped asking and just did it, in the smaller ones I would tell them what I was doing and didn't ask for permission. The worst part was when the staff started showing up for work and they all want to see this camper in the lot, once they saw it most agree with my desire for my own place and are shocked at how nice it is.

    I have not tried it with the class c yet.
  • I have done this at a motel on the Cincinnati by-pass. When I was having transmission trouble with my TV, we parked in a motel parking lot, and my son and his wife rented a room while my wife and I stayed in the camper. We asked and they said it was ok.
  • I would not think there would be a problem if you are paying for a room. I have done it before without paying for a room but with permission due to special circumstances.