RV Travel Study

The RVIA recently reported on a study conducted by GoRVing, the RVIA, and CBRE Hotels Advisory Group, which found considerable savings for those traveling by RV compared to other types of travel. The article is on the RVIA website. As a researcher, I would like to read the study, but it is only available to RVIA members. Nonetheless, there were interesting findings reported in the article.

What I Liked About This Study

It compared vacations for two groups. One was a group of 4 people, and the other was a group of 2. I think this is great because I typically see a family on an RV vacation or couples. Having these predominant groups in the study helps them compare an RV vacation with a flying or car road trip vacation.

The study used nine vacation destinations over various lengths of vacation. Using popular vacation destinations makes the study results more practical for those using the study to make decisions. If the study used destinations that were not vacation destinations, the study would be useless because prices are typically more expensive in popular vacation destinations.

Another thing I liked was that they factored in first-class airline tickets when comparing airline travel to travel in a luxury class A. Although not all luxury class A owners travel first class, the point of doing this was that those traveling in a luxury motorhome probably do not buy basic economy airline tickets when they travel. They are also probably staying in higher-end hotels and renting nicer cars than those of us traveling in an inexpensive travel trailer. Not necessarily a rule, but it’s perhaps more common than not.

The data showed savings of an average of 60% for a family of four and 46% for two people. On the surface, this looks like a decent savings. The other thing the article mentions is flexibility. When traveling by RV, it is possible to change routes and your time for travel more so than if you were flying.

What Was Left Out

For instance, the article mentions that the study analyzes the major costs associated with travel but does not indicate it factored in the cost of the RV, ownership maintenance costs, and insurance. With a foldable travel trailer, these costs may be negligible in the overall cost, but with a Super C or Diesel Class A, the costs will definitely affect the overall cost of a vacation. The question becomes how to factor those costs into individual vacations. It would depend on how frequently owners used the RV.

If the study does factor in the cost of the RV, the second concern I have is that a class A is not a class A is not a class A. What do I mean by that? You can get a class A motorhome for 100,000, 500,000, or 1 million dollars. There are wide variations in prices within each class of RV. Again, that would affect the cost of an RV vacation.

Final Thoughts

Even factoring in these costs, I will assume an RV vacation can be less expensive than flying, renting a car, and staying in hotels. You can usually cook at your RV and bring food and supplies purchased elsewhere that are cheaper than you would find in a vacation destination, likely lowering your overall costs. It is hard to believe it would be a 40-60 percent savings. I did not get into RVing for the savings. It was the lifestyle that appealed to me, which I believe is true for many RV owners.

I want to read the complete study to get all the details. If anyone has a copy, please send it.

What do you think? Do you save that much when you vacation by RV over flying or staying in hotels? Don’t forget to factor in the cost of that RV. Let us know.

Safe travels everyone.

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