5 Essential Steps of Planning for an Epic RV Camping Trip

It’s no secret I have OCD. I must have a plan. I am really trying to teach myself the rule to “live in the moment” but it’s going to be a long journey to learn that rule! The plans I make can fall apart in so many ways (and they usually do) however, for me, it gives me peace that I have some idea what we are going to do on our trip. Here are the 5 Essential Steps of Planning for an RV Camping Trip!

 

 

Essential Step 1 in Planning for an Epic RV Camping Trip: The Trial-Run

So, what’s the first step in planning your first RV Camping Trip? It is the RV Camping Trial Run! This is how to plan an RV Camping Trial Run and the items you actually need!

 

What is a Trial Run?

The Trial Run is SO important! A Trial Run is exactly what it sounds like, a trial of a camping trip in a shortened period of time. It is a way to quickly learn what you can about your RV that you may not have already figured out by doing a run-through with your dealer. Of course, if you bought your RV used from an individual, you may not have even gotten a run-through. So, this is a great way to learn what you can about your “new to you” RV whether used or brand-new. Believe me when I say that even those brand-new RV’s can have problems!

 

Who Needs to do a Trial Run?

Everyone who purchases an RV should do a Trial Run with that specific RV. It does not matter whether it is brand new or 20 years old, it is still important to do a Trial Run regardless.

 

When is the Best Time to do a Trial Run?

The best time to do a Trial Run is BEFORE you take your first planned camping trip. There is nothing worse than having your very first RV Camping Trip ruined because of a ton of stuff going wrong with your RV because you did not have any preparation for it.

 

Why is a Trial Run Needed?

Again, it is essential to do a Trial Run to ensure things are working properly with your RV to avoid potentially ruining your very well-planned RV Camping Trip!

 

Where do you do a Trial Run?

A Trial-Run can simply be done in one overnight stay at any campground, or it can even be as simple as doing it right in your very own driveway. However, if you are planning a Driveway-Run (as we call it) you need to keep in mind that you most likely will not be able to complete an entire “mock” camping trip because there are just some things you must be in a campsite for. Nonetheless, if you are in a rush to get ready for your first big trip like we are most of the time and run out of time for a quick weekend or overnight stay to check things out, at least check it all out at home before you head out. You will be so glad you did!

 

10 Important Things to Consider Before Your Trial Run

1. Did you fill your Propane tank?
2. Did you check your RV tire pressure and pull vehicle tire pressure?
3. Do you have drain and water hoses?
4. Do you have an appropriate extension cord for an RV in case your power cable is not long enough?
5. Do you have adapters if you are 50amp service and can only get a spot that is 30 amp?
6. Do you have an EMS to protect your RV electrical?
7. Have you tested your refrigerator to make sure it will cool?
8. Do you have a pressure regulator with you to use on water hydrant?
9. Have you checked that all your exterior lights work?
10. Have you tested your brakes?

 

Some of these things can be done at the campground when doing your Trial Run also.

 

How to do a Trial-Run

Instead of going through the entire list of steps for doing a Trial Run, we thought it would be helpful to offer you a FREE Trail Run Checklist for you to print out and use!

 

 

Important Things to Consider After Your Trial Run

When returning from your Trial Run, there are a few important things to consider.

Did you have enough storage, or do you need to pack differently?

Did you clean your black tank appropriately and were there any issues with it?

Did you have enough leveling blocks for your RV?

Run through the list for Important Things to Consider Before Your Trial Run and the actual Trial Run List to ensure everything worked correctly and you had all you needed.

 

Conclusion of the Trial Run

So, that is the Trial Run in a nutshell!  You can see why we stress how important that is to start with a Trial Run before you head out for a big trip. However, once you complete your Trial Run, planning that big trip is the next step!

 

 

Essential Step 2 in Planning for an Epic RV Camping Trip: Deciding on a Location

The next step in planning an epic RV Camping Trip is to decide where you would like to go, including How to Make Your Personal RV Camping G.O.A.L. Travel Plans.

 

Ask yourself these questions:

1. How often would you like to travel? Will it be weekends only? 3-day weekends? A week-long trip?
2. Decide on a location (but allow for fun in between)! Sometimes setting a location and then allowing yourself more time to get there allows for more stops along the way at places you normally wouldn’t stop by. Remember to research your state and see if there are specific landmarks that you would like to see in an area nearby!

Using Google Maps

We go to our laptops and pull up Google Maps. In the upper left-hand corner of your screen, you will find a search engine that says, “Search Google Maps”. Click inside that box and type anywhere you would like to go! If you’re like us planning our first trip, we have no idea where we want to go so we just begin by playing around with the map a bit by using our mouse to zoom out from our current location to where we could pretty much see the entire USA Map. We click and drag the mouse around a bunch until we have an area we like, then we zoom in to take a closer look at what is around that area.

Our Situation

For us, it is imperative that we make enough stops to keep our son, Aiden, comfortable. Therefore, I need to know the distance between each location we chose. You can find this information by going to the search engine at the top left again and enter your current location and click “enter”, then click on the “directions” button below. Google Maps shows how many miles you can travel between those two destinations as well as a few suggestions on routes you can take. Then from there you plan the next stop and so on.

Our goal for our family is to drive around 3 hours at a time and then stop to take a break and stretch out. We prefer to drive as much as we can on the first day or two and get to our location so we can enjoy more time there instead of being on the road for many days.

For example, if we are going on a week-long trip, we want to travel Friday evening through Sunday afternoon (at the most) depending on how far we are traveling and then enjoy the whole week Monday through Friday at our desired location. Then we travel back home Friday through Sunday. This is what works for us; however, you must decide what works best for your family.

3. Set a G.O.A.L. plan that motivates you! Consider what you enjoy most. Do you have any HOBBIES? Some new things to consider are Geocaching, Bird Watching, Antique Shopping, Hunting, Fishing, Hiking, Gardening, Photography, Photojournalism, or Backpacking! Making travel plans with these in mind might lead you to a more enjoyable adventure! Another idea is documenting memories from each trip you take! Here are our suggestions on How to Document RV Camping Memories!
4. Think about what you want to accomplish with this trip? Simply relax in a quiet setting. See everything you possibly can in that specific area. Enjoy family time. Meet new people. Deciding this is important so that you book reservations in the right kind of RV location. For example, a more relaxing setting may be better accomplished in a quiet State Park, whereas keeping busy and entertained may be better enjoyed in an RV Park or Resort.
5. Set a time frame for when you will Get Out And Live! Stay focused on your goal! When your mind starts to lead you towards declining a getaway because of “other things” that come up, stay focused! Is it something that can wait?? Force yourself out of your comfort zone. Do something you wouldn’t normally try! Start that adventure today!

 

 

Essential Step 3 in Planning for an Epic RV Camping Trip: Making Reservations

The third step in planning an epic RV Camping Trip is to decide where you are going to stay overnight. Do you WANT or NEED to make reservations? Or would you prefer to simply head out and see for yourself in person what’s available.

We have considered both ways and have found we are more comfortable with ensuring we have a place to stay every night since we can’t boondock with all of Aiden’s Medical equipment that requires a lot of electricity. We, therefore, NEED to make reservations.

Read more about How to Make RV Camping Reservations and Apps for Support.

 

 

Essential Step 4 in Planning for an Epic RV Camping Trip: Travel (Including GPS and Maps) and Entertainment Itinerary

The fourth step in planning an epic RV Camping Trip is to decide what you want to do for entertainment in your desired location. Having a Travel and Entertainment Itinerary is a good way to ensure you don’t miss out on the most important things you wish to see while on your adventure. You can get that for FREE with SOWLE RV’s SOWLE as You G.O.A.L. FREE Travel Binder Pages!

 

 

The Importance of Having Properly Working RVers GPS and Maps

Having Properly Working RVers GPS and Maps is often not something you realize you need until AFTER you take a trip and get lost or run into road construction that shortens your well-planned RV Camping Trip. That is why we wanted to make sure you all know the Importance of Having Properly Working RVers GPS and Maps with you at all times during your RV Camping Travels.

 We recommend getting the Garmin RV 890 GPS Navigator Bundle or the Garmin RV 785 that allows you to record your trip with a built-in dash cam! Here is the difference between the two so that you can make a decision about which will most likely work best for you.

 

Details About the Garmin RV 890 GPS Navigator Bundle

This GPS Navigation System by Garmin has an 8-inch edge-to-edge touchscreen display that can be viewed in landscape or portrait mode. They really have thought of everything for an RVer with this package as they note that pull-behind travel trailers make take different paths than Motorhomes and they have allowed for that! They create custom routes with road warnings that help you avoid unexpected sharp curves too. They give you advice on where to stop for views along your trip as well. In addition, the custom RV routing takes into account the size and weight of your RV, then suggests a route from there. There is also a preloaded directory of RV parks and services plus content from Ultimate Public Campgrounds, KOA, iOverlander, and a directory of U.S. National parks!

You can also save profiles for multiple vehicles or trailers which is a great bonus for us with 2 RVs. We can just take it from the Motorhome to the Truck that pulls our Travel Trailer without having to reprogram anything!

What is Included in the Bundle?

They have a bundle available for purchase that includes a Hard Shell10 inch case for tablet and GPS, Dual DC12V/24V Electronic Multifunction Car Socket Lighter USB Ports, and a Dash-Mount for your new Garmin GPS! We included the link in the podcast description!

 

Details About the Garmin RV 785

It has a 7-inch high-solution touchscreen and voice-activated navigation.

Additionally, the custom routine considers your RV size and weight to find the most efficient route.

It also provides road warnings to keep you aware of steep grades, sharp curves, and weight limits.

There is a directory included of RV Parks and Services plus additional campground directories.

It is compatible with the Garmin BC 35 wireless backup camera that we also recommend!

You can pair this GPS with your compatible smartphone to gain access to hands-free calling and smart notifications.

Just like the Garmin RV 890, the Garmin RV 785 has integrated content from Ultimate Public Campgrounds, KOA, iOverlander, PlanRV, TripAdvisor, Foursquare and more!

As if all that was not enough, what we love about this GPS is that it has a Dash Cam so you can record your entire drive to and from, or just special parts of it!

 

The Importance of Having a Proper Map that Works For an RVer

Having a proper Map that will work for you, as an RVer, is very important. The last thing you need is to follow directions from a GPS and all of a sudden find yourself in the wrong location after taking a wrong turn. We love a good GPS and the ones we listed above are both AWESOME, however, all technology can be sketchy and have some degree of imperfection, so that is why we always recommend always carrying a current paper map with you when traveling. We really like the Rand McNally Large Scale Road Atlas.

Why We Love this Map!

• It is Spiral Bound and lays out flat.
• There are 350 detailed cities and national park maps.
• It has a very comprehensive index.
• It contains a mileage chart showing the distances between 77 North American cities and national parks with driving times map.
• It takes into account road construction and conditions and has contact information for every state; all conveniently located within the map pages.

Now, we will admit, the larger style atlas does make it difficult to follow at times because most of the states are divided into many pages, however, when you are driving or riding so much, your eyes tend to get a little blurry at some point, so that is why we like the larger size.

Additionally, there is the Rand McNally EasyFinder Mid-Size Road Atlas.

For those of you who do not desire a large print at all, the Rand McNally Road Atlas featuring maps for the United States, Canada, and Mexico is a great option!

 

Essential Step 5 in Planning for an Epic RV Camping Trip: Menu Plans

Having an idea what you’re going to do for meals while on your trip will help take the stress of meal planning out while on your trip. If you’ve been married as long as we have, the question of “what’s for dinner”, “are you hungry”, “where do you want to eat”, or “what do you want to eat” are just plain annoying!

Although while at home I’m becoming a big fan of the “WHERE do you want to eat” since that means I don’t have to cook, while RV Camping, I prefer to cook. There are so many easy ways to cook and make fast meals. SOWLE RV has an entire section dedicated RV Camping Recipes! It includes a great Weekend Warrior Meal Plan, Crockpot Cheating While RV Camping, Super Simples RV Camping Recipes (Parts 1 & 2), Super Simple Salad Recipes, Air Fryer Ideas for RV Camping, Traditional Snack Ideas for RV Camping, and of course, Our Favorite RV Camping Meal and MUCH, MUCH MORE!

 

 

Conclusion of the 5 Essential Steps of Planning for an Epic RV Camping Trip

We hope these essential steps of planning an RV Camping trip help you to plan your next RV Camping trip! Don’t forget to GET YOUR FREE RV CAMPING TRAVEL BINDER PAGES from SOWLE RV!