May 2004 -- For a first-time RV traveler, renting a unit of the same type you're thinking of buying can be an invaluable help in making up your mind. Just be sure to allow enough time -- a week is the minimum, 2 weeks is better -- to get comfortable with the day-to-day logistics of handling it on the road and hooking it up in the campground.
Our own first RV experience was a 6-week lease on a 27-foot motor home because of a book assignment that required us to visit more than 100 remote ski areas. If we'd been renting it for only a few days, we'd probably have turned it back in and said RVing was not for us.
When they heard about our plans, well-meaning friends regaled us with their experiences. A West Los Angeles bookstore owner took her family out for a month, but they used the RV only for travel and sleeping. "We never cooked a single meal inside," she said. "It seemed too complicated."
A couple from San Diego had tried a rented motor home for 2 days, then, frustrated by slow road speeds, turned it back in and set out in their Mercedes 300 SL instead.
But even that's a record compared to a short-tempered lawyer and his wife, who rented an RV for a weekend and gave it up less than an hour into the trip.
Note that in none of these cases did the user give the vehicle the old college try.
When to Rent Rather Than Buy
- When setting out on your very first RV journey.
- When considering replacing your current RV with a different type.
- When your family can only take a 2-week vacation once a year but wants to do it in an RV. That way you can test drive different models, and when you decide to buy, you'll have plenty of experience.
- When you want to travel several weeks far from home -- say, in a distant part of the United States -- or take a camping trip in Europe. Popular fly-and-drive packages are available from many companies.
- When you want to drive the Alaska Highway in one direction only and/or without subjecting your own vehicle to inescapable wear and tear.
Simple Ways to Sample Campground Life With Accommodations Similar to RVs
1. Check into a Kamping Kabin or Kamping Kottage at a nearby Kampgrounds of America (www.koa.com) campground. Kamping Kabins, one- and two-room rustic log cabins with porches and double beds plus bunk beds, can sleep four for $20 to $30 a night. Kamping Kottages offer a kitchenette, dining area, bathroom with shower, and sleeping quarters for four, with porch swing and sometimes fireplaces and air conditioners. It's a good introduction to camping, especially for families with kids. The fee includes use of the campground's toilet and shower facilities, pool, playground, laundry, and store. The Kabins do not have bathrooms, but an outdoor grill and picnic table are provided. You need to bring your own bedding, lantern, and cooking utensils. Get a full list of locations from KOA, free at any KOA campground or by sending $4 to KOA Directory, P.O. Box 30558, Billings, MT 59114. You can call its administration offices at 406/248-7444.
2. Call around to the campgrounds in your area or the area you'd like to visit and ask if they have any rental RV units. Sometimes a popular area may offer RVs already in place and hooked up and available for rent by the night. Outdoor World has a network of 15 campgrounds on the East Coast from Maine to Florida that offers RV rental units where you can sample RV living without owning. Their website has complete details on all the campgrounds. Contact them for details and rates at P.O. Box 447, Bushkill, PA 18324 (tel. 800/446-0229; www.resortsusa.com/ow_vac.php.
3. Book the family into Fort Wilderness at Walt Disney World in Orlando. Lodging is in Fleetwood park trailers with full kitchens and bathrooms, similar to travel trailers but set in place for a season or longer. Although you won't be able to road test the vehicle, you can determine how well your family fits into an RV. The cost-with air-conditioning, pool privileges, cable TV, cookware, and housekeeping services-is around $269 a night for a party of six with two adults. It's a good idea to reserve well ahead. For reservations call 407/934-7639 or 407/WDW-CAMP or log-on to www.disney.com).
Where & How to Rent
Reserve a rental RV at least a month in advance, 3 months during peak vacation time. If planning to rent in Alaska, reserve 6 to 12 months ahead.
A great many rental RVs are booked by European and Australian visitors to the United States who want to be able to see our national parks or drive along the coast of California. The most common unit available for rental is the motor home, either the larger type A or the type C mini-motor home, which accounts for 90% of all rentals. Prices begin at around $875 a week.
Use of the generator is not usually included in the fee. You would need it only for operating the ceiling air-conditioning, microwave, and TV in a place without electrical hookups, and the dealer will know how much time you've logged by reading the generator counter, usually located by the on/off switch.
When you find a company that rents travel trailers, you'll find they usually require that you furnish your own tow vehicle, hitch, and electrical hookups on the tow vehicle. Some companies offer a furnishings package with bedding, towels, dishes, cooking pots, and utensils for a flat price of around $85 per trip. Other add-on kits are those containing power cords and hoses, plastic trash bags, toilet chemicals, and a troubleshooting guide.
Be sure you're provided with a full set of instruction booklets and emergency phone numbers in case of a breakdown. Best of all is to have a 24-hour emergency 800 number in case of a problem. When in doubt, ask a fellow RVer what to do. They're always glad to help, but sometimes hesitant to offer for fear of offending. No matter how much you bustle around like you know what you're doing, the veterans in the campground can spot a goof-up a mile away. Before setting out, be sure the dealer demonstrates all the components and systems of your unit. Take careful notes, and, just as with rental cars, check for dents and damage from prior use before leaving the lot.
Get a detailed list of what furnishings are included in your rental so you'll know what necessary items you have to supply. It may be easier to bring things from home than spend vacation time searching for them on the road.
How to Locate RV Rental Companies
To find information about RV rental companies all over the United States and Canada check out the website of Recreation Vehicle Rental Association (RVRA) (tel. 800/336-0355; www.rvra.org). You'll find a directory that lists addresses, phone numbers, and prices for European, Canadian, and U.S. companies listed by city and state or province. There is also a companion page, Rental Ventures, with additional helpful information. Write to them at RVRA, 3930 University Dr., Fairfax, VA 22030-2525. For rental information, call 888/467-8464; www.rvra.org.
Cruise America, the largest rental company with more than 100 outlets, has added budget items such as camping vans, fully equipped travel trailers, and fold-out truck campers with compact pickups to tow them, to answer the requests from European campers in America, who are responsible for one-half to two-thirds of the company's rentals. Rentals will range from $875 to $1,895 a week (tel. 800/327-7799; www.cruiseamerica.com.
Adventures Rental in Ontario, California, claims to have the largest trailer rental department in the United States, offering folding camping trailers from $350 a week and travel trailers from $575 a week. No rentals are made to anyone under 25. Renters supply tow vehicle, hitch and electrical connections, bedding, and utensils. A cleaning deposit is required and forfeited if the vehicle is not returned clean; the company has its own dump stations for holding tanks. Call them at 909/983-2567 for details.
Altman's Winnebago in Carson, California (tel. 800/400-0787 or 310/518-6182; www.altmans.com), has type A and type C new motor homes for rent. A typical rental charge for a small type C motor home would be around $692 to $1,158 a week. Rental of a type A motor home would run around $1,350 a week. Additional charges would be $15 a day insurance, $6 a day generator fee, and optional charges for kitchen kit (pots, dishes, glasses, $42 per trip) and bedroom kit (bedding and towels, $59 a person per trip).
Your local yellow pages should also carry a listing for rentals under "Recreation Vehicle-Rentals."
Many rental companies offer free airport pickup and return, if you notify them ahead of time of your flight number and estimated arrival time.
Finally, if you fall in love with your rental vehicle (as we did our first one), you might be able to negotiate a purchase price that would subtract your rental fee from the total. If the vehicle is a couple of years old, the price should be even lower, since most dealers get rid of vehicles after 2 or 3 years.
Insider Tips -- Normally, insurance on a rental RV is not covered on your personal automobile insurance, so ask your agent for a binder that extends your coverage to the RV for the full rental period. Many dealers require the binder before renting you a vehicle.
Read your instruction sheets and checklists through at least once before setting out, then daily before hooking up and unhooking until you know the whole routine. Otherwise, you may -- as we did that first time -- drive miles out of your way to an RV dealer to find out why your generator doesn't work, only to learn it never works when your gas level drops below one-quarter of a tank.
Ten Big Rental Companies
1. Cruise America, 4,000 units nationwide (tel. 800/327-7799; www.cruiseamerica.com).
2. Rent 'N Roam RV Rentals, Shrewsburg, Massachusetts (tel. 800/842-1840 or 407/872-7730; www.rentnroam.com).
3. El Monte RV Center, Orlando, Florida (tel. 800/367-2120); Santa Ana, California (tel. 800/367-2201 or 714/554-0100; www.elmonte.com), with 950 units.
4. Adventures Rental, Ontario, California (tel. 909/983-2567).
5. Moturis, Inc., 300 units in Hawthorne, California, near LAX; 400 units in San Francisco and other cities in the United States (tel. 877/MOTURIS; www.moturis.com).
6. Road Bear Intl., 100 units in Agoura Hills, California (tel. 818/865-2925; www.roadbearrv.com).
7. Nolan's RV Center, 120 units in Denver, Colorado (tel. 800/232-8989; www.nolans.com).
8. Western Motor Coach, 95 units in Lynnwood, Washington (tel. 800/800-1181; www.westernrv.com).
9. El Monte RV, Linden, New Jersey (tel. 800/337-3418 or 908/474-9000; www.elmonte.com).
10. Altman's Winnebago, 45 units in Carson, California, near LAX (tel. 310/518-6182; www.altmans.com).
Five Money-Saving Rental Tips
- Check prices with several companies before making a decision. Establish exactly what the lowest-priced rental will include, such as free miles, amenities like dishes and linens, and breakdown service.
- Try to plan your trip for shoulder season or off-season. This may vary seasonally, depending on the rental area.
- Check in advance to see if your own automobile insurance agent will cover your rental insurance. He can usually do it more cheaply than the rental company.
- Try to plan a loop trip from the area where the rental unit is based to avoid drop-off charges. On long, major journeys such as Alaska or Baja California, you might want to pay the drop-off charge and fly back rather than repeat the arduous drive back to the beginning.
- Negotiate based on selection. The more units a company has, the wider your choice, but if you're flexible about what sort of rig you rent, you may be able to negotiate a better price if the selection is limited.