RV Rental?

[sbgixxer]

I've spent a couple hours looking at RV rentals and am blown away by what it costs. I initially saw $200-$300 a day (on Outdoorsy) which was ok until I saw the rest of it: owner fees, service fees, taxes, insurance, crazy daily mileage limits (100 miles a day), limited generator use, and of course (almost) no 30' RV is gonna be anything but a dog over I70 while getting horrendous mpg. Anybody try this before and care to share their experience? Or does anyone on here do this from the rental side? I would be traveling with a small family (3) so it's gotta be reliable (late model) and if it was diesel all the better. Size is somewhat open but I'd lean towards bigger... no van-style conversions or sprinter vans. I think we'll need something with slides. Thanks guys!

Or should I just buy this 2020 44 footer on CL for a mere $395k:

https://images.craigslist.org/00808_eiLybWimrFA_0lW0i2_1200x900.jpg

[FoxtArt]

Holy heck they've gotten expensive. For $300/night you could be in a relatively luxury hotel + have a sports car rental and still come out cheaper.

[00tec]

I'm probably going to put my camper (28ft toy hauler trailer) on one of those sites next year. Mine would be in the $150/night neighborhood.

[sbgixxer]

That's what I was thinking! I can see the above rig being $6k a week but not a bargain slut RV that can be bought new under $100k.

[00tec]

With how easy it is to make an expensive mistake in one of these, it doesn't really surprise me its that high, especially after you look at the average voter in the area.

Open the awning with a door open= grand
Leave awning out, go fishing and the wind picks up= 3 grand
Don't understand how an rv toilet functions, clog it up and demand refund
For toy haulers, unsecured load= many grands
Put gas in the diesel tank= ouch

[sbgixxer]

I totally get that but figured it'd be part of a security deposit not just everybody pays the penalty for stupid people doing stupid things (I know, I know, look at laws, politics, and America in general...no more personal responsibility). I'm equally surprised that these prices are what the market will bear. I'm half inclined to buy 5 of 'em and rent 'em out for a living.

[00tec]

I totally get that but figured it'd be part of a security deposit not just everybody pays the penalty for stupid people doing stupid things (I know, I know, look at laws, politics, and America in general...no more personal responsibility). I'm equally surprised that these prices are what the market will bear. I'm half inclined to buy 5 of 'em and rent 'em out for a living.

That was actually a driving factor in buying mine. Had a trip coming up. Looked at rental. Jaw hit floor. Drove to Iowa the next day to buy it.

[Irving]

We have a 26' bumper pull with single slide out for sale, but I'm not in a position to make any deals on it.

[sbgixxer]

That was actually a driving factor in buying mine. Had a trip coming up. Looked at rental. Jaw hit floor. Drove to Iowa the next day to buy it.

That's where my mind went. For $5k a week, I need a lot more than a moving road block that sleeps 6 and guzzles fuel at a rate of 6 mpg. Yeah, two week's rental is 1/8th the purchase price??? No thanks.

[BladesNBarrels]

It is a record year for RV sales.
Boats, too.
Used are going through the roof with factories closed.

[00tec]

That's where my mind went. For $5k a week, I need a lot more than a moving road block that sleeps 6 and guzzles fuel at a rate of 6 mpg. Yeah, two week's rental is 1/8th the purchase price??? No thanks.

I get 8 pulling mine with my F150. :D

[hunterhawk]

I'll be buying my camper cheap next year when everyone is back to work or out of work... either way they will be cheaper next year when the market is flooded.

As for your adventures i have looked into the same. Better to buy or hotel it.

[Great-Kazoo]

we looked at renting 1. NO DOGS! so that killed it. But we had did some research for the one we were interested in. The gas or diesel cost would have been approx $600 - $1k, depending how much we traveled up the west coast. Cleaning fees, blah, blah as you included. Compared to good hotels with amenities and no time frame to return it, or have to worry about cleaning or NO Pets. The hotels rentals won out.
It did give us more toy money to enjoy our trip with.

[def90]

Don’t forget to add in the costs of an RV spot at a campground or RV Resort. Depending on where you park it for the night you could be paying more than hotel rooms just for that alone.

[sbgixxer]

This is all a lot of help guys, I appreciate the feedback. Of course the plan is dying quickly but that's ok, better than regretting an expensive choice.

[fj605]

We rented a travel trailer in the Black Hills over July 4th. We rented from someone local to the Hills and he delivered it and set it up at our campsite. Cost was a little more than a hotel but we were able to put the kids to bed and sit around the campfire. The first couple nights were rough but we got it figured out.

It was a less expensive way for us to test drive a camper we thought we wanted to buy.

[Great-Kazoo]

We rented a travel trailer in the Black Hills over July 4th. We rented from someone local to the Hills and he delivered it and set it up at our campsite. Cost was a little more than a hotel but we were able to put the kids to bed and sit around the campfire. The first couple nights were rough but we got it figured out.

It was a less expensive way for us to test drive a camper we thought we wanted to buy.

Good idea. However you did a local rental. Where driving was local and fuel wasn't sucked up trying to get over Floyd Hill, or that long climb from vegas to the state line in CA. Sounds like you had a good time

[Erni]

From my experience.
Rented an RV in Alaska. Cost was more then car plus hotel once you factor in the spot fee. But we could take brakes and eat Luton some scenic places by pulling over. This was great when our kids were smaller and required frequent stops.
We looked local and the cost did not add up. Even with renting two rooms or a suite with a kitchen the cost for the RV alone was greater than rooms. Plus the thing eats gas like crazy so there is that cost.

As far as rental or buy: Coworker has a 26 or 30 foot RV. His conclusion was that if you only use it five times a year or so, renting is cheaper. No idea about his math on that.

[.455_Hunter]

We bought a 16 ft travel trailer new in 2007 when we still lived in Arvada. The size was fine for my wife and I, plus 1 or 2 small kids. We sold it last summer, as it was far too small with the kids now being teen or tween age, plus we had to store it in a lot because flat parking space is at a premium here in the foothills. I didn't really enjoy the towing process, and probably would have preferred putting the $$$ towards an older F350 and a used slider-in camper. With that combo, we could could work around the size issue with supplemental storage.

[kidicarus13]

https://www.insider.com/how-expensive-costs-of-renting-rv-motor-home-2020-8