If you have no desire to own an RV or camper trailer but do occasionally have the need for an RV then an RV rental is the way to go. I can not afford an RV at this stage in my life so I have to rent one, and I do not have any friends or family that own an RV that I can either tag along with or borrow. You have many upsides and downsides to owning an RV.
The downsides of owning an RV are:
- Cost of upkeep
- Storage
- Not getting a lot of use out of it
- Taking up a lot of space in your driveway
- Break downs
I could go on and on but that is not the purpose here because you also have many upsides to owning an RV such as:
- It’s your’s and you can use it whenever you want
- It’s an extra room if someone comes to visit you
- You can do to it whatever you want
- You can get up and go on a whim
- It’s just yours
If you fall into the category of not owning an RV but you do occasionally want to rent one so you can go camping or tailgating then you have a few different ways in which you can rent an RV:
- Peer To Peer
- Cruise America
- Dealership
- Dedicated Rental Place
Peer To Peer
This one is now my favorite and it is gaining in popularity each year. It’s AirBnb for RVs. This is where you have a person that wants to rent their RV and you also have a person that wants to rent an RV and you have an in-between company that puts everything together. So when someone wants to rent an RV they go to one of two specific websites and they put in where they want to rent an RV and then a bunch of choices come up and the renter chooses the one they want to rent and then the in-between company handles all the money, paperwork and insurance. No more doing it on Craigslist. The two main companies you have to cheese from are RVShare and Outdoorsy. They are basically websites that take care of all the work for you. I have used RVShare before and had a really good experience. Read my review of RVShare Here. I have not used Outdoorsy but I have heard really good stuff about them. I would not hesitate to use them if I found the right deal. When renting this way just remember that you are renting from people and not a company so don’t wait till the last minute to rent because some people will not get back to you and don’t rent one that looks like it has been used a lot.
Cruise America
I have used Crusie America before and I had a really good experience using them. I rented from them because it was before the peer to peer option was even available. They are a good and trustworthy company. They have been around for a while and they can be a little expensive compared to the peer to peer option. I split the rent between four other people so it was not that bad for us. They will get you on the extras if you are not careful. Some of the extras are going over the allotted miles, using the post and pans, not dumping the toilet and using the propane. As long as you have a plan and you stick to it you will be fine. And they plaster their name and phone number all over the RV so you are a traveling billboard for them.
Dealership
I have never rented from a dealership but it is a very viable way to rent an RV. Not every dealership rents RVs so you are going to have to do some research to find one that rents them. They tend to be more expensive than the peer to peer way but you are renting from a brick and mortar business that has a lot of trust built into it. Because of that trust they tend to rent out very quick so just like everything else don’t wait till the last minute to rent. Also look at the reviews the dealership has to make sure they are a good pace to rent from. And remember when reading reviews it is impossible to make everybody happy so you may have to read between the lines on the negative reviews.
Dedicated Rental Place
Some locations will have places that only rent RVs and travel trailers. You won’t find them everywhere . From what I can tell they mainly exist in locations that are popular tourist destinations that can rent them most of the year. So don’t be surprised if you can not find one when you do your research. As far as prices go I have seen them be really expensive to really affordable. You are just going to have to do your research and see if it is a reputable company and that they are in the game for pricing.
You have many different options when renting an RV. Which ever one you choose good luck and have fun renting your RV.