Renting an RV provides all the benefits of ownership without long term costs and maintenance hassles.

01 — Decide where you want to go

National Parks (such as Glacier, Yosemite, and Canyonlands) have become increasingly popular to visit for a vacation or short getaway. But don’t forget about state parks. For example, the Utah state park Dead Horse Point is just outside Moab; a short drive from Arches; and next door to Canyonlands. In fact, you can look into sections of Canyonlands from viewpoints within Dead Horse Point State Park.

Many state parks are just as beautiful and interesting as some of our most popular national parks. As a rule, state parks are less crowded and have more RV campsites available. The state park campsites very often can accommodate larger RVs and have utility services such as water, electric, and sometimes sewer hookups. Very few National Park campgrounds have hookups for RVs. Keep your search for where to go broad based. Research state, national, and private campgrounds in the region you would like to explore.

02 — Investigate RV campgrounds in the area

More often than not, traditional lodging is either not available or scarce inside the boundaries of national and state parks. It can also be quite expensive if you can find and book a room. Don’t make the mistake of staying in a hotel outside your nature destination. Especially if it’s more than a 10-15 minute drive to get to the park of your choice. And if you want to visit sites well inside a park, you might have to travel 30-90 minutes to get to a specific scenic spot. For example, from both Gatlinburg and Townsend you’ll drive an hour or more to reach the visitor center at Clingmans Dome. From the Elkmont Campground, you can get to Clingman’s Dome in about 45 minutes. And the drive to the Laurel Falls parking area is less than 10 minutes from the campground.

Locate several camping options within a short drive of your primary destination. Or better yet, centrally within the area where you plan to spend most of your time. A good resource for finding all kinds of campsites is Campendium.com. Find at least two campground candidates before you start diving into booking specific campsites and dates. Don’t be adverse to campground hopping. This is what we call staying in 2-3 campgrounds during a 7-14 day trip. Be sure to pay attention to the length of RVs which can be accommodated.

03 — Research RVs available for rent

An RV for rent close to your destination might actually be more expensive than one available a bit further away. Take into consideration the total cost; including the nightly rate, delivery, setup, and any extra fees. Do you want to pay to have the RV delivered to your campsite? Would you prefer to have the rental company do the utility hookups? If you’re going to stay in campsites that don’t have hookups, pay close attention to the onboard capacity of freshwater, wastewater, propane, and battery capacity.

Camping where you don’t have hookups is often referred to as boondocking or dry camping. As often as not, electrical capacity can be the most critical resource if you plan to boondock for more than a day or two. If you plan to dry camp, look for a rental unit that has solar panels mounted on it. Or one which has an add-on for a portable solar panel you can connect externally. With RV camping you must be mindful to conserve your onboard resources, using them efficiently.

Consider what type of RV you want. Do you want one you can drive? Do you have a vehicle capable of towing a travel trailer, or perhaps a fifth wheel? When it comes to RVs, size matters. Clearly, the longer the RV, the more living space you’re likely to have. Are you going to be camping in cold weather? If so, you’ll want an RV rated for 4 seasons. Do you have pets? Do you have pet allergies? Do you intend to bring your own bedclothes? Do you need to accommodate medical equipment, such as a CPAP?

04 — Pick 2-3 date ranges which fit your vacation plans

Typically you’ll find that reserving an RV campsite for dates that suit your needs will be harder than finding RVs available for those dates. Flexibility with your dates can net you a great campsite. We suggest you go so far as to book your campsite before looking for an RV to rent. Especially if your campsite can be reserved via the recreation.gov website. The cancellation policy for most national and state parks is fairly lenient. In most cases, a cancelled reservation will cost you a small fee in the range of $10-25. Relative to the overall cost of any vacation trip, that is a small price to pay to lock in a campsite while you work on getting an RV to suit your needs.

05 — Select 3-5 candidate RVs

Now that you have locked in your dates and location (at least tentatively), it’s time to pick an RV to rent. Keep in mind the availability of water and electricity at your reserved (or likely) campsite. Eliminate RVs which are too long to fit the site you’ve reserved.

06 — Check available dates for your shortlist of rental RVs

Start with the RV candidate at the top of your list. Check whether your dates are available. If not, move to the next RV on your list. Hopefully, you’ll find one of your top choices is available for your target dates. If not, expand the list.