Full-time RV living in 2022: Costs, Crowds & Climate Change

As many of you know, RVing has grown exponentially more popular since the start of the pandemic in 2020. We previously lived on the road full-time back in 2018 and as we embarked on this second chapter of full-time RV living in 2020, I couldn’t help but wonder if it would be more difficult.

Not only are there more crowds, additionally everything is getting more expensive, and dangerous weather events are becoming more common. While these are indeed factors worth considering before hitting the road full-time, they have not negatively affected our personal experience. For us, we feel like there’s never been a better time to live a nomadic lifestyle.

Here are some of our thoughts on costs, crowds & climate change…

Costs

If you’re interested in comparing the cost of full-time RV living to the cost of living in a house, we believe this lifestyle can easily cost more OR less depending on how you go about it.

Here are a few ways that RV living could end up costing you more than living in a house:
  • You have a large monthly payment on your RV
  • You move often and spend a lot on fuel
  • You stay mostly at RV parks and paid campsites
  • You eat out often
  • You often spend money on recreation (tours, park fees, rental equipment, etc.)
For us, RV living costs us significantly less than living in a house, here’s why:
  • We own our truck and trailer outright (I know this isn’t possible for everyone, my overall point is that the more modest of a rig you get, the less this lifestyle will cost you)
  • We stay in each campsite for two weeks, keeping our fuel expense down
  • We stay almost exclusively on public lands that are free
  • We almost exclusively cook food at home, from scratch
  • We move with the seasons and therefore spend very little to heat or cool our home
  • We enjoy free activities like riding our bikes, hiking, and yoga

Slowing down our pace significantly, from when we lived on the road back in 2018, and staying at free campsites instead of paid, has really opened our eyes to how affordable it can be to live on the road.

Crowds

Here’s what we’ve found in regards to the masses hopping on the RVing bandwagon. RVing has a learning curve and there’s a reason why most RVs sit in storage lots and on the side of people’s houses. It’s only fun and easy if you know what you’re doing, and it has taken us a good long while to streamline and simplify this way of life.

The people that are out giving it a go, they’re primarily seeking out developed campgrounds and RV parks. If that’s your jam, you have my sympathy, those places are a hot commodity these days and making reservations far in advance is a must at many popular destinations. The days of first-come, first-served campsites seems to have become a thing of the past. Planning ahead is now imperative.

But we don’t like to plan, nor do we like to pay. Every year that dry camping sites are still open and available on public lands, I thank my lucky stars. They are an incredible amenity that we enjoy to the fullest. And while the weekends do get busy, we’ve found that so long as we move to a new site on a Tuesday or Wednesday, we get our pick of the lot.

On our way to a new campsite in Pike National Forest, Colorado.

Of course summer is far busier than winter, a time when we lay low, work, and generally stay away from popular destinations. As for winter, we are currently camped in Quartzsite, Arizona (the boondocking capital of the world) and there’s plenty of desert for everyone.

Climate Change

Since we primarily travel throughout the Mountain West (always in Colorado during the summer), wildfires are always on our minds. Our noses and eyes have become acutely aware of the scent and sight of smoke. Almost daily during the summer months we follow the reporting on fireweatheravalanche.org. Additionally Mark follows the wind forecasting on the Windy.com app. The wind events that have taken place over the last couple of years have shown us how fast a fire can move in the right conditions.

The second day of the Williams Fork Fire, 2020.

If there’s any concern or if the smoke is intolerable, we move. The ability to pack up our home and move it to a safer, more desirable location is a boon in my book. During these strange times, that level of flexibility and fluidity in where we live gives me some comfort. In all transparency though, I will say that a rogue wind event is my biggest fear. We’re proactive when we can be, and hope for the best when we can’t.


While this isn’t an in-depth look at these topics, it’s a little bit about our personal experience from the last 22 months living on the road full-time. If you’re considering this lifestyle, we hope this has helped in giving you some things to consider so that you have the best shot at preparing for and loving this lifestyle as much as we do.

Has your experience been different? We’d love to hear more about what RVing has been like for you in your region!

Thanks to Chris W. for the inspiration for this post.

9 Comments

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  • Thank-you so much for this post! As an owner of a 4-wheel Camper, and a couple of people who twice took a year off to live in a Landrover (not an RV), this was an interesting read. From our perspective, vehicle camping has changed a lot since we dry camped those 2 years above the arctic circle in 1997 and again in 2003. So many people out there now, and all of these ‘tools’ (satellite radios, GPS maps, online tools) to allow inexperienced people to hit the road. Glad we did ours when we were younger. The same is true for our years of travel in Europe where you could easily travel *spontaneously*.

    We have enjoyed your postings and look forward to more.

    Chris W (and wife Florence; now in our 70’s but still camping)

    • So glad you enjoyed the post Chris! I loved hearing just a tiny little bit about the travels you and Florence have under your belt. I have a feeling Mark and I would really enjoy sitting around a fire with you two hearing more about your many adventures.

      You definitely got to enjoy a totally different “camping climate” per se. We feel lucky to have gotten some exploring under our belts before all those tools were as prevalent as they are now. It is a completely different way of traveling and I hate to say that we tend to get lazy now knowing how easy it is to surf satellite imagery or look up reviews on an app. Traveling in Baja, without service, reminded us how much we love to just explore and see what we find.

      I still feel very lucky that the Western US has so much land and open space to offer.

  • Your perspectives are very helpful to me. Thank you! Changing propellers…one request I have for future posts is that you post latitude & longitude (GPS coordinates), especially for places you overnight. Obviously, however, I understand completely if you wish not to ‘advertise’ those finds.
    Stay safe!

    • I highly recommend NOT sharing exact locations of remote places. People need to explore and find their own secret places. Social media is making it a lot harder to find solitude 😀

      • I agree Chris, though I also hope for others to enjoy the outdoors the way that we do. I’m more inclined to share a region, but not necessarily exact coordinates.

    • Thanks for your comment Dean! While we put out some effort to find the exact spot that is perfect for us, I hesitate to share those coordinates. Though I will gladly share a more broad reference to the region or recreation area we in.

      • Hello Mark and Michele, thanks for blogging! We are wondering what your RV spot in Quartzite is costing you per month in the winter months?

By michele

About

Hi!  We’re Mark & Michele, a couple of modern-day nomads perfecting the art of slow, perpetual travel.  Our tiny home on wheels and slow-paced travel style allows us maximum freedom at minimal expense.  This blog is where we share our travels as well as our insights in to this lifestyle that we absolutely love.  Thanks so much for being here.

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