Traveling by RV

We have a 26 or 28 ft (I can never remember!) class C motor home. We LOVE it!! We use it a lot. We went with a motor home vs. a pull trailer b/c we like to take our boat when we go. It pulls the boat nicely.
Our boys are 7 and 3 and we've had the motor home for 5 years. We have had great luck with ours. We bought it used. We did replace the shower and toilet but that's it. The couple we bought it from took really good care of it.
Do you have a place to keep it in the winter, out of the elements? That will help to keep it in good shape. We keep ours in our shop.
EDIT: When we travel the boys sit at the table and yes, there are seatbelts and if you take the cushion off the seat their carseats fit just perfectly. One is in a booster the other still in a 5 point harness.
Ours sleeps 6 comfortably. I did just go on a girls weekend and 8 of us packed in there, but it was tight and one slept on the floor.

EDIT: Don't buy the scar tactics used by a poster. When you purchase your RV - most likely via a reputable RV seller - they will tell you and show you, as a first time buyer, how to properly store your "stuff" - show you how the drawers must be "picked up" prior to opening so they cannot just randomly open in transit.

The dining tables in MOST RVs (not all) have seat belts to restrain children. My parents does as did the two before this one. Oh yeah - the sofa did too!!

I would NOT recommend traveling with a trailer unless you already KNOW how to handle it. The sway you get can make one panic when driving. So please don't bite the panic button that some are giving you...get educated and informed via people who have been there...feel free to PM me and I will put you in touch with my father who has owned an RV of one kind or another for over 30 years...and yeah - they had the tent trailers too...

ORIGINAL:

My parents started out with a tent trailer then moved up to a Class C. They now own a 40' Bounder with 3 pull outs.

My parents take good care of their motorhome and do not experience a lot of repairs - they bought new and used...

I love to travel with my parents!! You can tow a car in the back and park in one place and tour in the car!! It's great when you want to go "camping" but want "luxuries" of home.

If you go to Mt Rushmore, I would suggest that you stay in the RV park in Spearfish (there are two - Chris's and City park) and they have easy access to Mt Rushmore and a great laundry mat down the street. Chris's has a pool as well as full hook ups and the City Park does NOT have a pool but a AWESOME creek to play in!!

Traveling in Yellowstone there is an RV park at the East Gate (Fishing Bridge that is right on the lake) that you can use...there are 3 or 4 campgrounds in the park..

I would HIGHLY recommend going to the Devil's Tower if you are going to travel to Mt Rushmore - it's a great place to visit - the RV park IN the Tower does NOT have hook ups..the KOA outside does but it is expensive.

Make sure you and your husband get informed on how to empty the tanks - the black and gray water tanks...

I would also highly recommend that you get the "weight" issue down as driving a motor home is NOT like driving a car....it stops differently because of the weight, height, etc. they are also a tad wider than most cars and can be very misleading when driving on narrow roads.

I was fine driving my parents 34' - but the 40' was just a tad too much for me.

Denise P makes a great point! The whole reason we bought the Rialta when the kids were younger was because it had two normal "bucket" seats behind the driver and front passenger seats - more like what would be in a car. This supported their need for car seat and booster seat very well and had shoulder belts too. Our current RV only has lap belts in the back, which would work for a car seat but NOT for a booster seat with shoulder belt. We have made the personnel decision that our kids are at an age where this is ok for us, but might not be ok for all. Definetly something to think about ......

We just bought a new one - Class C Coachmen Concord. LOVE IT! Do lots and lots of research......how do you want to travel? How many beds?
We have two kids, so we wanted 3 sleeping areas. We did not want to have to pull a car, so we went with a shorter one - 30ft so we can park it most places. We would have went smaller, but we decided that we wanted our own little "bedroom". Before this one, we had a VW Rialta. They get awesome gas mileage, but it was just getting too small for us since our kids are now 7 and 9. When we purchased this new Concord, we wanted something that we could use for years and years as the kids grow. We were fortunate enough to buy new. We actually decided to stay in our cheaper home so that we can afford our RV and afford to travel - it's THAT important to us. We didn't want to buy used because my husband is not that mechanically inclined and systems will have problems over time. Plus the technology on anything newer than about 2010 is so superior to stuff before that - satelite radio, flat screens, led lights etc.
So back to "how do you travel?" If you destination travel, meaning you travel to one spot and stay there (or near there) for your vacation, you might want to get a trailer. That way you can get to your campsite, drop the trailer and then go explore.
We are always moving forward in our travels, hardly ever staying more than one night in a place, so the RV works well for us - we never have to go back to the campsite to pick up a trailer - especially because by the end of our days adventure we might be hundreds of miles away from that previous campsite......if that makes sense.? I also like the RV (motorhome) because I can hop in the back and make up sandwiches etc. When on vacation, you never have to pack a "day pack" or "cooler" because you literally have everything with you ALL of the time.
You definetly get more for your money with a trailer, but you also have to factor in a vehicle to pull it.
And just like anything, NEVER pay asking price. Ours "lists" for $100K and we got it out the door for $74, 200.
Please pm me if you have more questions......this is our 2nd RV, we've traveled all over in them and we did TONS of research before buying our current one

**Ours has two seat belts on each side of the dinette table and also 3 more seatbelts on the couch, so it's not a problem to strap in carseats.

My daughter still sits in a 5 point car seat, and I've often wondered how you would strap one in- in the back. Are there seat belts anywhere besides the driver and shotgun positions? So if I strapped her in up front with dad...then I wouldn't have a seat belt in the back either? Things that make you go hmmmmm..... I will be curious to see your responses as I would love to do the same thing!

It's a lot more dangerous than most people think! Please be aware:

Suggestions for
RV Travel with
Child Passengers

•Traveling safely in a recreational vehicle (RV) can be a
challenge. RV’s are rarely ideal for transporting children.
For instance, unrestrained passengers as well as luggage
are hazards that can fly into each other in a crash. Lack of
seating positions with safety belts or seating positions that
face rearward or sidefacing can create problems. Child Restraint
Systems (CRS) should never be installed in vehicle seats that do
not face the front of the vehicle.
Here are a few tips to consider:
• Check the driving compartment and driver’s
manual to determine vehicle seats appropriate for
installing a child restraint system. Unlike Class A’s,
the smaller Class B and Class C RV’s are built on
a conventional truck or van chassis, so the cockpit
shares the structural and safety features of those vehicles.
• Consider using a trailer instead of an RV. The CRS
has a better chance of being properly installed in the
conventional vehicle that is towing the trailer.
• If the family is towing a passenger vehicle behind
the RV for jaunts around destination areas, consider
driving this vehicle separately instead, and transporting
children in it.
• Make sure that all occupants stay buckled up while the
RV is moving and that there is enough seating to properly
accommodate all occupants.

Source: RV Consumer Group,
http://rv.org/index/html.

We have a travel trailer. We tow it with our van, so we have full access to a regular vehicle when we are parked and camping somewhere. We love it! With a travel trailer, you don't have the expense of another engine, or the many repairs that often go with that. They are much less expensive, and tend to have more room inside for sleeping, etc, which is important to us since we have 6 children. We have a quad bunk room as well as the table and sofa that convert to beds. Plus, we have a queen sized bed for ourselves. We seriously love it. We have gone on month-long vacations with it all over the country. So much fun. I highly recommend it if you have the funds to do it.

Our RV (a Class A 36' by Winnebago with 2 pull outs) has seat belts in the dinette and the couch/sofa bed. I wouldn't have allowed it otherwise...I'm not a grandma yet and my boys are over 21, but I would want EVERYONE buckled up....we didn't start out big - we started with a little 21' first.

I've experienced a blow out in a motor home. It was scary.

I would highly recommend it. I would NOT purchase a trailer unless you have a lot of experience towing. They can be VERY tricky.

Since you would be coming in from the North East - Mt Rushmore, Devils Tower, then Yellowstone would be a GREAT trip! then come back via Montana and North Dakota...

We are members of the Good Sam club as well - I would recommend finding an RV Club so you can get more information from more experienced RVer's...

Almost forgot - we have minimal expenditures on our RV. Insurance is all right - but we are also above 50 with no accidents - that helps. Gas is CRAZY!! We went to diesel but now diesel is crazy expensive. So we try not to let the gas gauge get under 1/2.

Hope you have many happy travels!!!