Why I now prefer RVs to tents. Hint: dogs

Thor came into our lives in April 2016. My husband and I adopted him from Family Dog Rescue in San Francisco. A month later my parents and sister visited, and as a road-tripping family, traveling in an RV is something we\’d always wanted to do. I did not grow up in the US, and no RVs existed in the extent of my known world until I moved to the US. So I rented a 25 foot RV from Cruise America!

Now I\’ve always loved tent camping, and my husband not so much. He prefers modern amenities and we\’ve had many a debate about what is the better way. But I have to say I loved the comfort of living in an RV. I slept better each night, was able to be cleaner, so didn\’t get as much acne as I normally do (yes my youth refuses to leave me :D), definitely felt safer from coyotes, snakes, etc. One of the more important reasons to love it was that on the long trip from San Jose to Yellowstone, we stopped in a different place each night, and the setup was literally 5 mins – just plug in power, water and dump hose. After driving all day, it was a relief to not have to setup a camp site, only to pack it up early next day.

Also compared to staying at hotels, this was better. Not much from a cost perspective because the MPG was pretty low on the RV, and you do pay per night if you use hookups at RV parks. But it was still better than hotels because normally the hotels that allows dogs aren\’t as nice and clean compared to the ones that don\’t, in the same price range. Since getting Thor just over a month before this trip we had stayed at a dog friendly hotel, and hated the smell in the carpet and general mustiness. Thor didn\’t like having to stay in a hotel room.

Besides Thor, my husband enjoyed himself thoroughly and is a happy glamper now, as opposed to earlier when I had to use every arrow in my quiver of reasons we needed to be in wilderness. He does enjoy being in nature, but without giving up some of the amenities we\’ve become used to. He likes hotels and lodges and is willing to drive to lakes and forest, and I like going to sleep and waking up inside the forest. So RVs have turned out to be the solution that works for both of us, and Thor!