OK so you have probably heard about the studies done that compare RV vacations to a non-RV Vacation.  A 2023 study sponsored by the RVIA, analyzed vacation costs using two sets of hypothetical travel groups: a four-person travel party of two adults with two children, and a two-person travel party of two adults and compared across all RV types.

This study cherry picks the least costly option when it came to traveling to Orlando, Florida.  They chose a pop-up camper as the RV of choice.  Pop-ups are lighter than a reg travel trailer so gas efficiency will be better.  Pop-ups do not make up the majority of RVs, travel trailers do, then fifth wheels after that.

The study concluded that a family of four taking a 7-day vacation from Atlanta, GA to Orlando, FL would spend $3,216 for a road trip in a family car and staying at hotels and motels. The same vacation in a folding camping trailer would cost $1,712, a 47% savings.

I did my own computation based on trips I’ve taken from Wisconsin to Orlando and plugged in the numbers.  I only used two people in my scenarios.

I didn’t use resort campgrounds during the trip or while in Orlando, I calculated my diesel round trip of 2600 miles at 3.25 a gallon.  I budgeted 400.00 for groceries.  Total cost of the trip = 2,070.00

For the folks not using an RV I used flights to Orlando, a rental car, a three-star hotel with continental breakfast, all other meals out, and fuel costs.  Total Cost of the trip = 2,669.00

If the folks drove from Wisconsin, the cost of their trip would be 1,593.00.  Since they were driving, I added two days of lodging and meals on.

The result was that I came up with a cost savings of about 1100.00 dollars if using a Travel Trailer like mine, when airfare is the comparison.

However, if the 2 non-RV folks drive, They save 447 dollars over the RV folks.  However, if you add two children into the mix, it’s about 300 dollars cheaper to travel in the RV.

But there’s really more to this story:

If you factor in an RV payment, Storage Costs, and RV insurance, those numbers are going to change drastically in favor of the Non-RV trip.

I’ll bet outside storage will run 100/month

Now add your RV payment which could be anywhere from 225/month and up.

Plus, you still have your monthly Insurance Premium.  I’m sure it’ll be over 100 per month.

So, if we add those costs into the equation just for that month, it may still look rosy for the RV owner, with a savings around 175 dollars for the week in Orlando over the vacation with flights.  However, those RV payments don’t stop when the vacation is over.

I don’t say any of this to dissuade an RV purchase. Just keep in mind everything the RV industry puts out is not 100% truthful.

In fact, the study that the RVIA put together factored in a bunch of extraneous stuff in their footnotes such as estimated cost of RV ownership is based upon published data regarding average ownership periods, residual values, annual days of use, insurance, and other costs of ownership, as well as any applicable tax benefits.  That sounds like the warnings at the end of a drug commercial, “May cause drowsiness and loose stools”.

So those numbers are really skewed in my opinion. How would anyone be able to factor in all those things to come up with a weekly trip cost?

RVing is a great way to see the country, but it’s not cheap.  So don’t enter into it thinking that in some way you will be saving money, because you won’t.  In fact, you will be spending additional money each year on repair and maintenance.  So just go in with your eyes wide open. You’ll be happy if you’re prepared for the RV life. RV’s are like any other hobby, sometimes is best not to try and justify the costs, and just enjoy them.