Posted by RV Pro on Nov 20, 2009
Vancouver is busy preparing to host the 2010 Winter Olympics from February 10 through March 2, but the Canadian city has already rolled out the welcome mat for RV campers. In addition to the many RV campsites surrounding the Vancouver area, the city’s park board is opening Jericho Beach and Spanish Banks to overnight RV parking during the games at a cost of $95 per night.
While there are numerous RV campgrounds on the outskirts of Vancouver and in nearby communities, only one commercial RV park is located near the downtown area and it already has a waiting list of 100. The park board’s commendable decision to open beach parking lots puts 365 more RV camping spots downtown close to Olympic venues.
If you travel to the Olympics make sure to take the Aquabus ferry across the bay to Granville Island for lunch at the indoor Public Market. Savory scented stalls sell and cook everything from fresh fish to exotic produce. It’s a good place to stock your larder. You’ll find lots of excitement and live music downtown, but if you want to experience the true flavor of Vancouver, locals say you’ll have to venture out to the city’s collar neighborhoods. That’s where you’ll find Vancouver’s funky boutiques stocked with Canadian designer fashions, Lebanese delis, Italian coffee shops and other avant-garde delights.
Enjoy the games if you RV to Vancouver, but spend some time exploring the city, too. It’s a place worth savoring.
Posted by RV Pro on Nov 18, 2009
Cruising local neighborhoods to “see the lights” is an annual holiday tradition for many American families. When you own an RV you can turn that tame evening drive into a fantastic weekend extravaganza. Don’t settle for a few strands of lights thrown over your neighbor’s shrubs. Pack the family into your RV and head for one of the country’s most fantastic light displays. These holiday light extravaganzas feature millions of lights in ornate displays and impressive lighted scenes. Ensconced in your cozy RV, you and the kids have a front row seat for the best Christmas light displays in the country.
Today we continue our list of can’t miss holiday light displays. See our last post for more Top 10 Christmas light shows.
Magical Nights of Lights in Lake Lanier, GA from Nov. 22-Dec. 30 is known as the world’s largest animated light extravaganza. Six miles of twinkling displays and live nativity with actors and animals.
Holiday Festival of Lights in Charleston, SC from Nov.14-Jan.4 turns Charleston’s main park into a magical fairyland.
Enchanted Garden of Lights in Chattanooga, TN from Nov. 21-Jan. 3 transforms the natural beauty of Rock City’s gardens. Millions of lights illuminate rock formations on the Enchanted Trail.
Southern Lights in Lexington, KY from Nov. 22-Dec. 30 is an exciting electric fantasy with petting zoo, model railway, Santa, crafts and more.
Mission Inn in Riverside, CA from Nov. 28-Jan. 4 transforms the grounds into a beautiful Victorian fantasy with Dickens’ Carolers and romantic carriage rides.
Posted by RV Pro on Nov 16, 2009
Nothing puts a family in the holiday mood like an RV cruise through one of the country’s remarkable Christmas light displays. When you travel by RV, everyone get’s a good view and you can whip up a pot of cocoa or some tasty hot cider on the way. So sit back, cozy up and get in the holiday spirit as you watch one of America’s Top 10 Christmas light shows glide past your RV’s picture windows.
Silver Dollar City in Branson, MO from Nov. 1-Dec. 30 is transformed into a winter wonderland with millions of lights. You’ll be mesmerized by the 5-story Special Effects Christmas Tree with 250,000 lights that blink in time to Christmas songs.
Oglebay Festival of Lights in Wheeling, WV from Nov. 4-Jan. 5 has one of the largest light displays. Drive along a 6-mile drive through 300 acres filled with spectacularly lit scenes.
Fantasy of Lights in Pine Mountain, GA from Nov. 14-Dec. 30 features a 5-mile drive past 13 gorgeous holiday light displays. Eight million lights make it the brightest Christmas display in the South.
Smoky Mountain Winterfest in Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge and Sevierville, TN fill the mountains with a fantasy of lights from late fall through February. Gatlinburg’s Christmas Parade features lighted floats, marching bands and giant balloons.
Trail of Lights in Austin, TX from Dec. 14-23 is a beautiful mile-long display of 42 lighted scenes. On Dec. 6 watch the lighting of 39 lighted streamers 155 feet tall suspended from historic Moonlight Tower. Wow!
More Wednesday.
Posted by RV Pro on Nov 06, 2009
Gas up the RV, load up the picnic basket, grab your fishing poles, bikes or hiking boots and head for your favorite recreation spot. To honor the brave men and women who serve or are veterans of our armed forces, federal recreation sites will be free for all on Veterans’ Day, November 11. The recreational fee waiver applies to all public recreational lands managed by the National Park Service, U.S. Forest Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Bureau of Land Management and Bureau of Reclamation. That covers a lot of land and certainly a great place to RV near you.
While you’ll still have to pay for RV camping, concessions and a few other premier services like heritage expeditions, you’ll save on waived entrance fees, boat launch fees and other normal recreational expenses.
A number of state’s are following the fed’s lead and also waiving fees on Veterans’ Day. Florida State Parks will waive day-use entrance fees for all visitors. Check state park websites to see who is participating. Certain rec sites may be excluded from the offer.
If you want to get a quick overview of state parks near you or along your travel route, StateParks.com gathers them all onto one easy to navigate website. From the U.S. map on the homepage, you can quickly click from state to state to get a list of parks. Locations, directions, amenities and user reviews with links to individual park websites are provided for each park. A great RV resource.
Posted by RV Pro on Oct 21, 2009
Fall is a great time for weekend RV trips with the family. Sunny days and cooler temperatures make perfect hiking weather. Even when the temperatures plummet into the 40s at night, you and yours will be toasty warm inside your RV.
Trips to apple orchards for a U-pick experience are fun for the whole family. Many orchards operate cider mills and it’s fun to watch the applies shoot off the conveyor into the grinder before being pressed. There’s nothing better than fresh apple cider — unless its fresh-baked apple donuts or apple pie offered at many apple farms.
One of our family’s favorite apple farms is Long’s Farm in Commerce Township, Michigan, northwest of Detroit. The kids run off some energy picking a couple of bushes of apples. We refuel with cider and apple-cinnamon donuts at the farm stand. Watching through the window as they press the cider and cut and fry the donuts is always a highlight. Recharged, we hit the corn maze. We’ve developed a “Marco”- “Polo” system for finding each other so we don’t lose anyone in the maze.
A stop to pet the farm goats and watch them romp around their 3-story jungle gym rounds out the day before we head for the campgrounds. The kids love roasting hot dogs on sticks over an open fire. But my favorite fall treat is baked apples (core and fill with butter, sugar and cinnamon) wrapped in foil and roasted in the coals for dessert. Yum!
Posted by RV Pro on Oct 16, 2009
Falling leaves and dropping temperatures signal RVers that it’s time to shift from summer driving habits into winter drive mode. Fall and winter highway conditions are more hazardous, requiring that RV drivers take a little extra care while traveling. Today we continue the safe driving tips started in our last post.
As the days shorten, the angle of the sun changes from high to lower on the horizon. RV travelers are more likely to be driving right into the sun for longer periods in morning and evening. Keep your sunglasses handy and use your sun visor. Push your visor all the way forward before pulling it back into position so that it angles slightly toward the window. A visor angled toward the driver’s face can cause injury in a head-on collision.
Be aware that sun blindness can affect not just you but oncoming vehicles and those crossing at intersections. Keep your RV’s low-beam headlights on during the day to make your vehicle more visible. Use extra caution at intersections. Inspect lights periodically and keep front windows clean.
As daylight dwindles be aware that depth perception, color recognition and peripheral vision decrease in the dark. This can be especially challenging for older RVers who may be experiencing night vision problems associated with normal aging. Take 2 to 5 minutes to allow your eyes to adjust after exiting brightly-lit areas. Schedule driving during daylight hours. You’ll have more time to explore your destination and enjoy your RV campsite.
Posted by RV Pro on Oct 12, 2009
In the middle of a grassy New Mexico plain a wall of rock rises into the sky. Runoff from the cliff pools at its base, a rare, reliable water source in the midst of a desolate landscape. For centuries weary travelers have stopped here to fill their canteens and water barrels, refresh their horses and oxen, and rest for a spell before trekking onward. In the soft rock of these cliffs they have left their marks. Names, dates, cavalry units, a rough sketch of a cross-topped church, a flowery signature in old fashioned script — historical graffiti that tells a story of the travelers who passed over these plains.
The site of these historic inscriptions is El Morro National Monument near Ramah, New Mexico. It’s a fascinating destination for an RV tour of the Southwest. If you look carefully, you can find prehistoric American Indian petroglyphs carved into the rock. Spanish provincial governor Don Juan de Onate left his mark in 1605. Conquistador Don Diego de Vargas who led the Spanish charge against the Pueblo Indians passed this way in 1692. Pioneers, cavalry regiments, Union Pacific railroad workers, Civil War soldiers and others have carved their mark into the rock, leaving a rich and varied history of the American Southwest.
El Morro is now protected as a national monument site. If you visit, you won’t be able to leave a record of your own passing in the gray cliffs, but you’ll leave with a deeper sense of our country’s history.
Posted by RV Pro on Sep 28, 2009
If you’re not following RVT.com on Twitter yet, you’re missing some great RV travel destinations, helpful tips and the opportunity to be the first to hear important RV news. For example: Today we’re tweeting on cool zoos you can visit with your family. Zoos are popular RV trip destinations, particularly for families, and fall, when cool weather makes animals more active and playful, is the best time to visit our nation’s many zoos.
You can find first-class zoos in every part of the country. Most are planning special events for Halloween with special activities for children (the popular Boo at the Zoo). The whole family will enjoy a trip to a zoo with recent newborn animals, and it’s a great way to teach your children about wildlife and habitat preservation. U.S. zoos support vigorous breeding programs to preserve and repopulate the world’s animal species. Visiting zoos to watch the playful antics of newborn animals makes for a fun family weekend and a great RV destination. Before you go, check out the ZooBorns website where you can watch pictures and videos of recently born animals at U.S. and world zoos. Use the site to plan your next RV zoo trek.
Information about great zoos to visit is being tweeted to followers on RVT.com Twitter today. Sign up for RVT.com Twitter on our website so you don’t miss out. Sign up is easy. Just click the “Follow Us On Twitter” link toward the bottom of the left-hand navigation column on our homepage.
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2002 Fleetwood Prowler 29F Ringgold (Danville), VA
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2008 Winnebago Access 24V Forest City, IA