Fun to have an RV for our travel time - we dry camped mostly 9 of 10 nights, and having our own space separate from family was a real gift (if you catch my meaning - ha!). I would happily rent from Chad again, though I'd also be just as likely to shop around to see if there was a different option that might be a little newer and maybe a little less spendy. For our 10 nights, we spent $3,352.92 total ($2,202.69 for reservation + coverage, $704.87 for fuel, an estimated $419.65 for milage costs, $25.71 for propane, and a few bucks for fuses).Some observations:
- We picked up at Chad's work, and it was really confusing to arrive at a commercial parking lot with no RV's in it. Fortunately we were able to connect and got the spiel about everything. The RV is about 20yrs old, and for the most part it shows with some little things being broken (cabinet arms busted) or needing repair (drawer continued to fall out of it's tracks).
- When we rolled up, Chad was quickly trying to fix a couple items (a lock and the awning locking mechanism - turns out the awning still didn't work because both sides had a busted locking mechanism. He offered to get the part before we left, but we didn't want to deal with the wait for the benefit of a little bit of shade, though we might have used it while on the trip had it been operational.
- I was really pleased to find that he had updated the stereo and it allowed for a bluetooth connection from our phones.
- Storage seemed ample inside (there were also a couple of exterior bays that we didn't use).
- Be warned: at the max-cooling level of "9", the fridge can freeze your veggies, but the drinks will be wonderfully chilled. :)
- Once underway, we initially overlooked the battery disconnect switch, so when the generator wasn't running we had no lights/heat/refrigeration; thankfully we solved that within the first couple of nights.
- We did not use the AC at all - temps at night dropped down to 25-35° F depending on the night. We found that we got chilled because we overlooked that a ceiling vent had been left open. You'd be wise to check windows and vents each night before you go to bed.
- We didn't ask for any linens/pillows, but there were 3 blankets and 7 pillows in the RV. The 'full' sized (?) mattress up top was comfortable for me, but when my wife and I were both up there, it wasn't very restful. In order to have space we didn't pull out the couch pullout, instead, we took the couch cushions to the floor and that worked well enough.
- Driving this thing is simple enough, but it moves like a boat and accelerates like a snail. You can get it up to highway speeds, but it'll take a while, and a downhill and a stiff tail wind help. Be real carful about bumps/driveways/road features that cause lateral motion, you'll have drawers and potentially your stuff spread all over from heavy side-to-side motion. :)
- We drove about 1200 miles during our trip. For the fuel we put in, it worked out to 6.91mi/gal. Adding the $0.35/mi driving costs, it worked out to $0.93/mi driven (gas costs thru Nevada were from $3.419 to $4.359).
- Propane was used each night (for the generator), and I think it was probably used for the fridge too. Over the 10 days, we used 6.5 gallons (I have no idea how big the propane tank is... That would be helpful to have a better perspective of how quickly it's getting used.
- During the trip, we had an issue with the heater... It turned out to be a fuse had blown. (fuses are inside a metal door on the wall underneath the sink). We swapped it out for another (from the TV circuit), but that one popped too, so I had to spend time looking for replacement fuses, so that was less than ideal. My current theory is that the fuses were old and that's why the popped because my newly purchased ones worked just fine. While I had reached out to Chad during this time, he did not reply until hours later, which left me feeling a touch unsupported. Thankful we were able to get it working.
- On drop off day, Chad did not respond to Outdoorsy message or text (to his personal cell), which was somewhat disconcerting. I wound up dropping it where we had picked it up and sent him texts with pictures of the location of the RV, Keys, and Milage. I'm attributing it to his work (air flight medical staff), but wish I had more timely communications.The Rating:
I'm rating a 4/5 which is "good". I'm leaving off a star for the communication challenges and for the frustration of dealing with aged fuses & the top drawer under the closet which was a real pain, and kept falling open while driving or off the rails altogether multiple times.The pictures:
- Our pickup and drop off location was in front of this Air-flight facility (Atlantic).
- Our parking spot and view at the Valley of Fire State Park (an hour or so outside of Las Vegas).
2 Photos submitted by Cody & Heather B.