Posted by RV Pro on May 29, 2009
Economic belt-tightening is not going to stop RVers from traveling this summer. In fact, instead of scuttling travel plans, tourism experts predict the economy to spur an increase in RV travel over the coming months.
“People are not going to stop going on vacation; they’re just going to try to make it less expensive and closer to home,” Tori Knudson of RV Life magazine told reporter Andrew Kirk of the Park City, Utah Park Record at the annual Utah Tourism Conference earlier this month.
Knudson was one of several tourism experts at the conference who expressed optimism that the poor economy would cause Americans to refocus their summer vacation plans rather than cancel them. This year, travel experts expect vacationers to spend more time exploring their own and nearby states and less time traveling across country. They also anticipate an increase in new and used online RV sales as more people, particularly families on a budget, discover the convenience and economy of RV travel.
The poor economy is actually encouraging people to vacation as a way to relieve the stress of the past few months, experts say. People need a mental break from the economic turmoil sweeping the country. Speaking at the Utah conference, marketing psychology expert Ken Foster noted that, according to a Washington Post-ABC News poll, two-thirds of Americans are optimistic about their family’s financial situation, while only half expressed optimism about the national economy. Americans may feel helpless about the big picture over which they have no control, Foster explained; but, because they have a plan to address their own financial issues, they feel more confident about their personal finances.
This personal consumer confidence is encouraging people to be optimistic about their own ability to weather the economic storm successfully and that’s translating into more RV travel plans this summer.
Posted by RV Pro on May 27, 2009
With more people poised to purchase RVs this summer, this is the perfect time to sell your RV and purchase that bigger, better, more luxurious model you’ve had your eye on. According to the 2009 Campfire Survey recently conducted by the Recreation Vehicle Industry Association (RVIA), consumer confidence in the RV industry is high. Sixty-eight percent of RV owners surveyed by RVIA felt that this is an excellent time to buy an RV, and 45% of current RV owners were considering purchasing another RV this summer or in the near future. Nearly all of those surveyed — 94% — said there were tremendous deals available. Prices for both new and used RVs couldn’t be more affordable today, particularly at online RV sales sites like RVT.com, the nation’s leader in online RV sales.
RVIA’s annual survey of RV owners is considered a bellwether for the recreational vehicle industry. This year’s survey indicates that America’s love affair with convenient, comfortable, economical travel is still going strong. More than half of the RV owners surveyed said they plan to use their RVs more this year than last year, despite the economy. Three-quarters expect to take more vacations close to home, 64% plan to visit national parks, and 77% are planning to vacation at state parks.
The majority of RV owners surveyed said the economy of RV travel is particularly appealing today when everyone is watching the family budget. Savings reported over traditional fly/drive/motel travel ran from a minimum of 25% to more than 50%. With more people eager to embrace the economic RV lifestyle and with RV sales prices at their most affordable in years, this is the time to buy or sell an RV on RVT.com.
Posted by RV Pro on May 25, 2009
Misconceptions about battery charging can drain the life from your 12-volt RV batteries prematurely, forcing you to replace them more often than should be necessary. Overcharging and undercharging are the two most common reasons RV batteries fail before they should.
Overcharging occurs when you leave your RV plugged into the built-in battery charger during storage. “The problem is many converter chargers provide a constant charge of about 13.5 volts, which is too high for fully charged batteries,” says Mark Polk on the Family Motor Coach Association website. Instead of keeping the battery “topped off,” Polk warns this practice actually “boils off” electrolytes, resulting in severe water loss, plate corrosion, and “an early death for the batteries.”
Undercharging occurs when you repeatedly fail to fully recharge your batteries after each discharge. “If a battery is not recharged, the sulfate material that attaches to the discharged portions of the plates begins to harden into crystals,” called sulfation, Polk explains. “Over time, this sulfate cannot be converted back into active plate material and the battery is ruined.”
The following tips from Polk can help prevent over- or undercharging and double the life of your RV batteries and keep your recreational vehicle on the road longer:
> Recharge batteries at 80% (12.4 volts) to prevent sulfation.
> Don’t allow batteries to discharge below 10.5 volts.
> Batteries discharged to 50% instead of 80% will last twice as long.
> Turn off the battery disconnect when your RV is in storage or not in use to prevent electronics from discharging the batteries.
> During periods of hot weather or high use, check batteries frequently and add distilled water as necessary.
> Batteries can self-discharge by as much as 10% a month, so check batteries periodically when your RV is in storage.
Posted by RV Pro on May 22, 2009
Today marks the traditional start of the summer travel season. For many RV families, Memorial Day weekend signals the end of school activities and the start of summer fun. It’s time to stock the RV, pack up the kids and head out on the highway in search of new adventures. America offers a cornucopia of exciting and FREE RV travel destinations. Here are some more of our favorites:
Rose Gardens, Portland, OR. In June, everything’s coming up roses in Portland, home of the amazingly fragrant 4.5-acre International Rose Test Garden and host of the month-long Portland Rose Festival. With more than 10,000 plantings of 550 rose varieties, these lush thematic gardens drown the senses in color and scent. Spend a delightful day strolling through the romantic Shakespeare Garden or admiring the prize-winners in the Gold Medal Garden. The gardens are open Memorial Day through Columbus Day.
Whale Watching, Big Sur, CA. From late April to early December, humpback whales gather to feed and folic in the waters of the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California, south of San Francisco. From numerous lookout points along scenic Highway 1, you can watch these 55-foot behemoths cavort as they leap into the air and slap their massive tails, sending fountains of spray into the air. Continue driving north along the coast and you’ll see otters, seals and sea lions playing on the rocks near Carmel and Monterey.
Bat Bridge, Austin, TX. They start to emerge every evening at dusk from mid-March through November. From under Austin’s Congress Avenue bridge swarm thousands of Mexican free-tailed bats, blanketing the sky in a dark, undulating cloud that consumes 10,000 to 20,000 pounds of insects nightly. Fans say August is the best time to witness this incredible display by one of nature’s spookiest creatures.
Posted by RV Pro on May 20, 2009
This Memorial Day weekend kicks off the start of the summer travel season. RVers are stocking up, gassing up and preparing to hit the road. America offers plenty of interesting, exciting and FREE travel destinations. Today and Friday we’ll share a few of our favorite, no cost travel sites with you. So program the GPS and pack the kids into the RV. It’s time to take off into the wild blue yonder for another exciting summer of RV travel!
Niagara Falls, Niagara Falls, NY. Every second 750,000 gallons of water crash from a 2,660-foot brink, falling the height of a 20-story building to the rocks below. The violent turbulence at the foot of the falls creates a fine mist and perpetual rainbows. The Niagara River drains the water of the glacial-carved Great Lakes, cascading it around Goat Island in three spectacular waterfalls, the stunning American and Bridal Veil Falls and the spectacular Canadian Horseshoe Falls. Together, they form the world’s second largest falls and one of the planet’s most spectacular displays.
National Air Force Museum, Dayton, OH. The Wright brothers may have flown their first plane along the dunes of Kitty Hawk, North Carolina; but they built it in the back of their Dayton, Ohio bicycle shop and tested it on Huffman Prairie, now the home of Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. The base houses the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force, an amazing collection of 400 aerospace vehicles, many of them one-of-a-kind, chronicling the history of aviation from its earliest days to the present. Follow in the footsteps of presidents as you walk through the original Air Force One. Take a seat at the controls of a WWII fighter. Get a close-up look at the Apollo 15 command module. Acres of aircraft and exhibits will fascinate old and young alike.
Posted by RV Pro on May 18, 2009
If you’ve dreamed of owning a second home at your favorite vacation spot, park model RVs offer an affordable way to realize your dream. Park model recreational vehicles are designed to stay in one location long-term. Built on a single chassis mounted on wheels, park model RVs can be moved; but they’re not built for a life on the road; their mobility is only for occasional relocation. Park model RVs are built to be parked in one spot for years — the ideal vacation hideaway at a fraction of the price of a traditional second home.
Because they’re designed for long-term use in one location, park model RVs offer many home-like features to increase their comfort and convenience as vacation destinations. Limited by law to 400 square feet, park model RVs are not restricted by the highway standards that govern the size of traditional RVs. Park models have a wider build that allows more spacious living quarters. They usually feature full-size bedrooms, bathrooms and kitchen appliances to provide home-like comfort. Park model RVs must be connected to local utilities for fixtures and appliances to work.
Park model RVs are designed to be parked long-term at an RV park, campground or private lot. There are two basic models:
- 12-footers, many of which are finished to resemble mountain cabins or seaside cottages. Specially-designed and landscaped RV vacation communities are springing up across the country that feature park model units already in place.
- 8-foot, 6-inch models have a traditional RV look and many gain living space with slideouts. While not designed for touring, these park models are more mobile and are a good choice for those who haven’t chosen a final vacation destination.
You’ll find an excellent selection of quality park model RVs on RVT.com.
Posted by RV Pro on May 15, 2009
If you’re in the market for an RV, you already know that RVT.com, North America’s leading online RV sales site, offers unparalleled selection, service and savings. But what if you’re in the market for a real bargain — and, these days, who isn’t? Look no farther than RVT.com’s Reduced Listings. You’ll find hundreds of top quality new and used RVs, their prices all recently reduced to sell even faster!
RVT.com’s quick sorting feature allows you to easily organize RV sales ads — including recently reduced listings — by the features most important to you. With the click of a mouse, you can display RV sales ads by price, model year, the type of RV you want to buy (RV category), the make of RV for those who are fans of a particular manufacturer, RV length or where the RV is currently located. If you want to quickly find newly reduced RVs, you can even sort by the date the ad was posted. Conveniently, RVT.com allows you to sort in both directions from lowest to highest, newest to oldest, A to Z, shortest to longest and vice versa. No matter how you want to browse our RV sales listings, RVT.com makes it easy for you to find the perfect RV to fit your lifestyle — and your budget.
Selling RVs is RVT.com’s business. We do everything we can to bring RV buyers and RV sellers together; and with a decade in the online RV sales business, we have plenty of experience. If you’re looking for a comfortable, affordable way to take the family traveling this summer, RVing is the perfect choice. Why not check out RVT.com’s huge selection of extremely affordable RVs right now? And you bargain hunters out there won’t want to miss our recently reduced listings.
Posted by RV Pro on May 13, 2009
We’re glad Maine lawmakers have come to their senses. Yesterday, the Maine House of Representatives killed a bill that would have banned RVs from parking overnight in commercial lots like Wal-Mart and Sam’s Club. Irate RVers deluged Maine lawmakers with emails opposing the bill. At issue was the RV-friendly policy first adopted nationally by Wal-Mart and copied by other big box stores that allows RVers to park in their lots overnight for free.
However, Maine found that RVers weren’t the only ones opposed to the overnight parking restrictions. Speedway owners, venue operators, and big box stores across the state weighed in. In a typical plea, Oxford Plains Speedway president William Ryan, Jr. said in an email to legislators printed in the Kennebec Journal, “If passed, this bill will close Oxford Plains Speedway after its 50-plus-year history. Each year we depend on people that park their RVs in our parking lot to attend our races so that we can stay in business. It would be sad to see my business fail due to this bill.”
Many RVers take advantage of the free parking welcome mat laid out by Wal-Mart, speedways and others who welcome their tourist business. In some areas it’s easier to find a big box parking lot than a campground or RV park. And, of course, there’s the convenience of parking close to a grocery/discount store so you can restock before your continue your travels. Some Wal-Marts even offer early breakfast and free coffee to RVers camped in their lots overnight.
Before parking your RV in a parking lot overnight, seasoned RV travelers recommend checking with the store’s management to make sure it’s okay. Be a courteous neighbor, and make sure you police your trash and carry it away or place it in the store’s dumpster, if allowed.
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