We want more RV friends!
We’ve been traveling alone (meaning just our family) for most of the 4 years we’ve been living RV Life. And every once in a while, we’ve been able to meet up with other families and RV Friends at campgrounds. Something we’ve come to realize is – it can be lonely on the road! Our kids miss their friends and we miss our friends too.
Sometimes someone else to go on a walk with or enjoy a cup of coffee in the morning makes all the difference. Especially, for those of us who are extroverts. (Extroverts are energized from interactions with others vs. introverts are energized from the alone time).
By happenstance only have we met up with other families at RV parks. When we’ve been able to do this, some things that we see that are a benefit include:
Having RV Friends For Your Kids
If you’re a parent of kids, you’ve probably noticed when your kids have a friend to play with they are LESS demanding of your time. Since we are NOT retired and work from the road, we LOVE it when our kids can be riding bikes around the campground or play ball with other kids. It frees us up to be able to get some work done without the demands from our children needing us.
A few years ago we just happened to be in the same campground as our friends the Elementary Explorers. We went on a NICE long hike and not only was it great for the kids to have buddies but, they possessed some great knowledge about the Arizona desert that they were able to share with us and our kids. This made for the perfect lesson on the ecosystem of the desert. You never know if the family you link up with will become a treasure trove of information for your family as well (or maybe YOU can be that family that has all the knowledge you can share with others).
Another benefit for us as parents (and the kids) is when partaking in outdoor activities like hiking or a long bike ride. There is A LOT less complaining from our kids about being hot, tired, hungry, etc when there are friends along to join you in your journey. I think it’s kind of like that peer pressure you experience when doing a group exercise class at the gym. No one wants to be “that guy” who walks out halfway through the class.
Having RV Friends for YOU!
I find that it’s easier for me to stay active if I have a workout buddy. Having a friend to walk laps around the campground can make the time pass quickly. PLUS, it’s always fun to build new friendships. Another benefit for parents is the opportunity to babysit swap.
You know all of those kayak trips you’d love to take but not with your 2-year-old – or maybe that art museum you thought about visiting but your kids wouldn’t enjoy it? (And let’s face it – if the kids are miserable you are going to be miserable)! Having another family means the ability to swap days with other parents can mean you get to each do something or visit a place that isn’t “kid friendly.”
Plus S’mores around the campfire is just more fun when there are RV friends along. (Side note: we love our SoloStove for smokeless campfires)!
Safety in Numbers – RV Friends on the Road
Driving long stretches when in a group will provide some peace of mind that if something happens, you have others there to help. Especially when you are relatively new to RV Life. It’s nice to have someone along who “knows the ropes” when it comes to how to hook up at a campground, back into your campsite, etc.
Potential For Conflict?
Traveling with other families is not going to be all rainbows and unicorns every day. Anytime you mesh lives together there are bound to be some things that not everyone agrees on. For instance, you might not all want to go to do the same things (activities) together all the time.
Depending on the length of your trip or the length of your stay at a campground, remember you each have your own lives. Traveling with other families is not so much about trying to meld lives together. Rather it’s about being able to support each other in your own respective journeys.
We’ve learned good communication is always key to being able to avoid conflict and hurt feelings. Having a clear plan on what days you want to spend together, what days need to be “work days” (if you work from the road), etc. Some advance planning can help keep any conflict to a minimum.
How to get started?
We do not have the answer yet! But, we are looking at how we can implement spending time with families when on the road more often. We know there are clubs out there like Full Time Families but since we live a hybrid RV Lifestyle, that particular club isn’t the best fit for us. So we are exploring what options might look like to be able to meet other families and connect in campgrounds or actually in caravanning for entire trips.
However, we are wanting to travel more with other RV families. Our friends Brian and Erin over at Five2Go did a whole caravan this summer. They shared with us that it was a great experience. They also expressed it was enjoyable being with others while on the road – especially families with kids. Some people joined for the whole trip and some for just parts of the trip. Go check out their video on how they planned their caravan and their thoughts on how things went.
We’ve realized that life on the road for our family can be lonely – and we want community. I need people, our kids need people and we all need friends.
What suggestions do you have to connect with others on the road? Have you ever traveled in a caravan? Let us know in the comments below or on our video on Youtube.
Tentative trip route (End of June through the beginning of August 2022):
- Depart Central FL
- South Carolina
- Raleigh, NC
- Washington DC
- Philadelphia, PA
- New York City
- Jamestown, RI
- Boston
- Bar Harbor, ME (Acadia National Park!)
- Montpelier, VT
- Buffalo, NY
- Gettysburg, PA
- Sperryville, VA
- Columbia, SC
- Charlotte, NC
- Savannah, GA
- End – Central FL
Interested? Download our FREE trip planner here (so we have your email) and we will be sending more info in the spring!
Thank you for the video. My husband and I are new to RVing, and what I’ve already learned is that I would love to travel with others!
We’ve only been full-time since the end of May and have been on the road since end of June but have also found it to be a little lonely at times. I see other families on IG traveling together and think that would be nice. Our home base is in McKinney TX since the hubby still has a business there that requires him to be present January through April and September and October. We are originally from Miami and have most of our family there. This winter we’ll be traveling through Florida and will be staying at the TT Orlando for a couple of weeks. We’re planning on heading to the NE next summer too. It’s me, Jenny, my hubby of 17 years, Jovany and our boys Roman(15) and Jio(11) and our dog Thunder. Maybe we can meet up this winter while we’re in the central FL area.
Thanks for commenting! We’d love to meet up, let us know when you are in the area and we will see if we can make it work out!
Keep us posted if your on the west coast. We have been doing OffRoad adventures and as an automotive fabricator I have plenty of knowledge of rvs and vehicles. We do more boondocking than hookups but willing to change up a little.
Will do, we plan on going back in the next few years! I’m trying to get Charity to do Solar, so we will see how that goes 😉 -Ben