Join a RV Chat Room or Forum

While your RV dealership provides excellent services to care for your RV, chat rooms and forums offer the opportunity to join a community of fellow RVers and get an inside perspective on the lifestyle.  The scope of information you can discover on forums extends from candid reviews on campgrounds to discussions regarding troubleshooting problems that involve your model of RV. 

In order to post comments on most of the forums or chat rooms, you must register and create a user name.  The ones we found were free and open to the public, and the best ones have rules that monitor the conduct of its members and reserve the right to remove any inappropriate posts.  As a general rule, the sites cannot be used as a method for selling items and are not open to commercial businesses. 

 

You can join a forum that is dedicated to your particular type of RV such as sites set-up for owners of fifth wheels, Class A or Class C motorhomes, travel trailers, folding trailers, or toy haulers.  The topics covered are extensive and only limited by the questions that members bring to the forum.  Examples of topics on one site for Class A motorhomes included breakdown information, helpful tips for new owners, and a discussion on towing a vehicle behind a motorhome. 

There are also forums that primarily deal with repairs for RVs and provide helpful tips for DIY projects.  Several sites allow you to send in pictures along with a detailed description of an issue to get help with diagnosing and repairing the problem.   

Chat rooms can be live and permit you to converse with someone in real time.  The whole point of both forums and chat rooms is to discover new information, leverage the experience of seasoned RVers, and share tips and ideas to enhance the RV lifestyle.   

Pikes Peak Traveland has been one of the top Colorado Springs RV dealers since 1982 and a partner in the national Route 66 RV Network. Whether you are in the market for a new or used RV, want to consign one, or need parts or service, we can help.  We only sell the top names in RVs and offer some of the best prices around.  Please come out and take a look at our extensive inventory of quality RVs for sale. 

First RV Trip? Start a Checklist

One of the things that seasoned RVers recommend to beginners is that they take the time to plan ahead before setting out on the open road.  This doesn’t mean you have to lose all of the spontaneity of your trip, but it does help to ensure you are prepared for whatever you face along the way.  The best way to start is by making a checklist of everything you want to bring along with you as well as keeping a detailed account of the routes you will be taking and the campgrounds where you plan to stay.  Check out the online reviews to see what kind of reputation the campgrounds have.  Will you get good service? Is it a good value?

Take the time to browse through RV and travel guides and search the Internet to discover useful information about the areas you will be visiting.  Plan to bring along the most up-to-date maps and a GPS if at all possible.  Additionally research various campground locations to get an idea of the amenities they offer and the costs.  Whenever you are given the opportunity, make reservations beforehand.   

If you will be traveling through an area and just require overnight parking, check online for websites that list locations to free or minimal cost parking availability.  Many Walmart stores and other large retailers (no hookups) allow you to park overnight in their parking lots as do many casinos, and some rest areas. 

A good rule for RVers is to be prepared for the unexpected.  As part of the standard supplies in your RV, you should include:

·         Flashlights, batteries, candles, and matches. 

·         A fully stocked first aid kit and insect repellant (bring along an emergency backup supply of all medications).

·         Small tool box equipped with the sort of tools that will help to maintain the safety and wellbeing of your RV and do not forget a tire pressure gauge.

·         Entertainment such as playing cards, games, CDs, books, toys, and DVDs.

·         Cell phone and charger.

·         Emergency contact numbers for family members, doctors, and insurance company. 

 

Pikes Peak Traveland has been one of the top Colorado Springs RV dealers since 1982 and a partner in the national Route 66 RV Network. Whether you are in the market for a new or used RV, want to consign one, or need parts or service, we can help.  We only sell the top names in RVs and offer some of the best prices around.  Please come out and take a look at our extensive inventory of quality RVs for sale. 

Planning a RV Friendly Route

 

Technology has made it easier than ever to conveniently plan a fun-filled, trouble-free RV trip and can help you to avoid any unexpected pitfalls along the way.  These advanced RV route planners can be accessed through the Internet or used on a smartphone or tablet and give you the ability to create a fully customized trip.  The best ones use the most current data available and many offer satellite views of parks and campgrounds.  Rand McNally offers a popular one through the iTunes store.

A RV route planner is a handy tool for both beginner and seasoned RVers and provides an abundant amount of information about the route you wish to travel.  Most allow you to choose options that include taking the scenic route, adding in points of interest along the way, and letting you factor in the amount of miles you want to travel each day.  You can use filters to adjust your route to avoid toll roads, steeply graded mountainous roads, or roads that have narrow bridges, tunnels, or low clearance that may give you trouble. 

Route planners will calculate the distance between your chosen campground sites as well as the distance between gas stations, rest areas, and restaurants along the route.  Generally you have the option of printing out a copy of your route or having it emailed to you.  Some route planners even let you download the pre-planned trip into your GPS. 

Additionally most provide detailed information about campgrounds and the amenities they offer.  Other tools may include calculating mileage and fuel costs along with travel times.  Some RV route planners let you convert an address to or from GPS coordinates to figure out your exact destination.  For the most part, these sophisticated planners can be a big help and provide an opportunity for fully customizing your trip while taking into account a whole host of factors. 

Pikes Peak Traveland has been one of the top Colorado Springs RV dealers since 1982 and a partner in the national Route 66 RV Network. Whether you are in the market for a new or used RV, want to consign one, or need parts or service, we can help.  We only sell the top names in RVs and offer some of the best prices around.  Please come out and take a look at our extensive inventory of quality RVs for sale.