We don't know if you saw it, but CNN had an interesting article on its website last week titled, "Is an RV right for you?"
The author of the article, George Bauer, works at CNN and is also the creator and host of "The Seasoned Traveler," which airs on U.S. public television stations and Travel Channel International. His background for writing the article was he had rented a class C RV for three vacations.
As the old adage goes, "Good publicity. Bad publicity. It's all publicity." Bauer was mostly fair in his assessment of the RVing industry as a whole, but he did get a little on the negative side when it comes to upkeep and getting around.
Bauer accurately detailed rising gasoline prices as being a major consideration when purchasing an RV, but he also said repairs, when needed, may take longer and cost much more than repairs on cars or trucks. As far as turnaround time on repairs, that really depends on the shop you work with. With regard to costs, like any car, the more expensive the vehicle, the more costly the repairs will generally be. You can't expect repairs on a Kia to be as expensive as those on a Cadillac. It's the nature of the beast.
He also talked about how the RV ride can be bumpy and uncomfortable, especially for those sitting at the dining table. We know he's referring to motorhomes and not truck campers, but it's worth mentioning that even motorhomes can ride uncomfortably. As far as campgrounds, he pointed out the variety across the nation with some 16,000 public and private campgrounds to choose from, but he also mentioned that in addition to some being very costly, during peak season, campsites can be crowded and noisy. While these campgrounds may have lots of campers, that's one of the best parts about camping — meeting all those campers around you and sharing stories about camping, about your family, and whatever else comes to mind. It's a unique experience that you can't find anywhere else such as a hotel.
Lastly, Bauer talkes about the challenges of backing into an RV campsite location. He compared it to putting a tractor-trailer in reverse. While again we know he's referring to motorhomes, we also know if someone ever has trouble at a campground, such as backing into a space, you can bet there will be more than a few campers around willing to offer their assistance. That's what campers do. That's what camping is all about.
To read the full article, click here.