Full-Time – Campanda News

5 Easy Ways To Organize Your RV

Tom Sperner — Thu, 10 May 2018 14:34:32 +0000

By Liz Wilcox Space is a precious commodity in an RV. And while your RV may never look as perfect as the ones on Pinterest (seriously, it’s impossible and I challenge any real-life RVer to prove me wrong!), that doesn’t mean you should give up on a cleverly organized rig! Here are some simple tricks to help you get organized:

1.Think Like A Square

Consider swapping out the plates and bowls in your RV for square ones like these

RVs are full of 90-degree angles. The cupboards, the refrigerator, the slides — everything is very square! Don’t fight it. Use square storage containers to maximize space in your RV. You can even go a step further and avoid round shapes in your rig altogether: Ditch canned goods and switch to boxed soups, beans, etc.; buy square pans (they exist!); and swap out your dishes for square plates, bowls and so on. It may seem extreme, but you’ll be amazed at how much more efficiently things fit in the cupboards.

2. Look Up

Use the wall space in your RV. We hung these shelves for storing fruit and vegetables in our kitchen, which saves valuable counter space.

Again, space is precious in a rig. That means you need to get creative about how and where you organize your things. A lot of RVs have dead space near the slide-outs and above cabinets and doors. If you’re looking for a place to store kitchen utensils, cutting boards and other lightweight stuff, consider putting them up high in these areas. Use command hooks to store drying racks, white boards and even your broom up high and out of the way.

3. Nest And Stack

A collapsable colander is a game changer in a small space like an RV.

I’m a natural-born minimalist and will always use what I have instead of buying new. I make an exception in my RV. It’s really important to carry things that nest, stack or collapse to keep your RV organized — so important, in fact, that you should replace anything that doesn’t fit well with your other supplies. We’ve replaced mismatched bowls, storage containers, and even pans with nesting ware. It has saved me so much sanity in organizing my RV kitchen!

I use crates like these to store my daughter’s clothes.

For the bedroom, we bought lightweight, stackable crates to store my daughter’s clothing in the cupboard. This has been amazing since we own a Class C motorhome with no extra closet for her. Being able to stack her clothes in a more organized way makes laundry day so much easier. It also helps keep things perfectly organized while traveling. When using bins, stack them based on usage. The most frequently accessed items should go in the top bin. If you really need to save space or just like the idea of having as much room as possible, check out collapsible products. They make bowls, pots, pans and even tea kettles that collapse within themselves to give you more space!

4. Ditch Unnecessary Packaging

We live in a world where boxes come within boxes. When you’re trying to organize your RV, this can be maddening.

Use stacking dry goods containers like these to keep your pantry organized.

When grocery shopping, look for products with minimal packaging. When you get back to your RV, you might consider taking things out of their packaging for a better fit. For example, if I buy graham crackers (s’mores anyone?), once I use one small package from the box, I’ll take the other out, store it in my pantry and get rid of the large box, which is no longer necessary. It’s also a good idea to reorganize pasta and rice. Instead of storing them in boxes that are only half full, empty dry goods into smaller airtight containers that better fit your pantry.

5.Get Things Off The Floor

I live in an RV full-time and I’ve made a lot of rookie RV mistakes along the way — storing things on the floor is one of them. It may sound silly, but leave a tub on the floor long enough and you’ll see what I mean.

Your RV shower can double as storage. We use ours as both a closet and a place to store things we need close at hand.

When we first moved into our motorhome, there was no place for my husband’s toolbox. I told him it was no big deal. We could keep it on the floor of my side of the bed. I thought it would be “out of sight, out of mind.” Boy was I wrong! Within a week, I was going crazy trying to find a new place for the box. It was completely in the way of my walking path and a huge eyesore. By the end of our first month in the rig, my husband had built a storage box just for the toolbox to save my sanity. If you’re having the same issue, try rearranging things in the storage bays outside to fit your belongings. If it’s something you need on hand and inside the RV, I suggest using your shower as a way of keeping it close but out of sight. We keep our toddler’s reading books, vacuum and broom in the shower for that reason.

For more RV organization tips and hacks to make life on the road easier, check out these 18 quick and easy RV hacks that you can do with easy-to-find materials. Still haven’t gotten started on your RV rental listing? Click the link below to learn more about renting your RV with Campanda:

Click Here To List Your RV

Are you an RV enthusiast without a motorhome to call your own? Stop daydreaming about organizing an RV you don’t have — rent an RV on Campanda and get out on the road!

Click Here To Rent An RV

The post 5 Easy Ways To Organize Your RV appeared first on Campanda News.

How I Found Remote Work While RVing

Tom Sperner — Wed, 02 May 2018 18:06:25 +0000

By Camille Attell My husband and I walked away from the best jobs we ever had to RV full time. I had worked for years to secure a position with a really good company, good pay and great benefits. But after eleven years and a lack of creative freedom, it was time to move on. We didn’t walk away for bigger and better career opportunities. We walked away for the freedom and flexibility that a desk job would never provide. Ditching that level of security was really scary, but not walking away and wondering what life could be like felt even scarier. So we took a calculated risk to leave it all behind and go RVing.

Working Remotely From Our RV: How We Planned It All

Bryce giving a thumbs up for being on track with our transition plan.

We are planners by nature, so we built a comprehensive project plan to guide us through the process. The plan contained everything from RV shopping, finances to employment decisions. The hardest part was picturing what remote work looked like. We had worked in cubicles out whole lives and it was hard to imagine what the options were. So we planned to use some of our savings to bridge the gap between leaving our jobs and finding remote work, along with offsetting costs by boondocking (which you can learn more about here) and using camping memberships. But I lasted four months before I panicked and started looking for remote work.

How I Found Remote Work While RVing

I have a storm to thank for my first remote gig.

Our first remote job was a fluke. While in Florence, Oregon, a storm rolled through that grounded us for several days. I decided that I would look for a local job since we couldn’t do much else. I searched on Craigslist, which is a great resource to find short-term, local jobs. I found four job possibilities and landed a one-hour acting job that paid $100. It wasn’t a lot of money, but it helped me build confidence — I knew that when I put my mind to it I could find employment. After that, I started networking in Facebook Groups, specifically groups like the RV Entrepreneur where business owners interact and sometimes hire for contract work. I have partnered with many entrepreneurs to create blog content and courses. Now I’m generating income through our blog and contract work, and recently I launched a course called Remote Work 101: Work, Live, and Travel Where You Want to help other people learn how to navigate working remotely. And of course, I’m a Campanda contributor, along with my husband Bryce.

Tips For Finding Remote Work As An RVer

Boondocking (and working) on fairgrounds in Kentucky.

Navigating the transition from traditional employment to remote work is different for everyone. However here are some of my top tips for people who are curious about the process.

- Start with a budget and decide how much money you need to make. If you’re traveling, research ways to offset your costs — offsetting costs should be part of your overall income strategy.

- Pick a date and try to work towards that as a goal, otherwise you may never leave your current employment.

- If you would prefer to keep your current job, approach your boss about a short-term experimental remote work period. Try a few days a month and slowly work up to a full-time remote role if possible. Prove to your company that a remote role will not negatively impact your contribution to the team.

- Do a skills assessment to see what job types you’re qualified for. Don’t get stuck on a work “identity” like computer coder as it will narrow your perception about what’s possible.

Put yourself out there. Tell people what you are good at, show that you’re willing to learn and offer to work on a trial basis. This works well for freelance roles.

Tips For Setting Up An RV Office

Bryce and I use our dinette as for work. It isn’t ideal, but it gets the job done!

Ideally you’d have a dedicated space in your RV for an office. But not all RVs will have that available. Some people have converted closets or even second bathrooms into offices. My husband and I use our dinette, which isn’t perfect but is totally workable. Additionally, the passenger seat offers a pull out surface that we use as a desk sometimes. Internet is a hot topic in the working RVer community. You’ll want to choose a main carrier and a backup carrier in case cell service is limited. In some cases even a cell booster comes in handy, especially if you need to upload or download documents. The bottom line is that you need to be prepared with plan A and B and even C — which sometimes might include hitting up a local Starbucks for Wi-Fi.

Resources For Finding Remote Work

I mentioned earlier that I network in Facebook Groups and have found jobs on Craigslist. But there are so many more great places to look for remote jobs. Here are a few websites to start your search:

Escapees | A total support network for RVers services including a job board for employers and job seekers of mobile and flexible work.
Facebook | The world’s preeminent social networking site allows users to make connections and share job opportunities and income ideas.
FlexJobs | An innovative, professional subscription-based job service to find telecommuting and part-time jobs and freelance work.
Indeed | The world’s top job search site with job opportunities aggregated from thousands of websites.
Upwork | Another innovative, professional subscription-based job service to find telecommuting and part-time jobs and freelance work.

For a more comprehensive list, check out this article on my blog.

Transitioning to remote work can feel intimidating at first, but it’s so rewarding in the end.

It’s important to remember that the journey to remote work isn’t always linear. It takes a bit of adjustment and adaptability as you try out different roles and options. If you keep an open mind, put yourself out there and are willing to learn new skills, then remote work is a real possibility and can enable you to live a more flexible lifestyle. Oh, and remember when I said that Bryce and I made a transition plan? We made that plan available to our More Than A Wheelin’ readers here.

Find out if the digital nomad life is right for you. Rent an RV on Campanda and give working remotely a trial run — or just have an amazing vacation!

Click Here To Rent An RV

Own an RV but only use it occasionally? It could be earning you money. Find out to turn your underused vehicle into a second income by renting it on Campanda:

Click Here To List Your RV

The post How I Found Remote Work While RVing appeared first on Campanda News.

Surprising Things You Learn From RVing

Tom Sperner — Wed, 11 Apr 2018 16:18:33 +0000

By Camille Attell

For much of my adult life, I lived in a traditional suburban home and worked in a standard office cubicle. I drove the same route to work every day, followed the same work routines, returned home, ate dinner and settled in for some TV watching. I went to a few weekend social outings and took the occasional vacation.

It was a pleasant life actually, and was relatively safe and secure. Were there any new life lessons? Not really. Was every day new and exciting? No. Did it need to be? Yes, ultimately it did.

After many years of “sameness” my husband and I decided to ditch the 9-to-5, the house and most of our belongings to hit the open road in an RV. You can read that full story here.

Things are quite different now. Every day is unique and often exciting (not always in a good way) and the life lessons we’ve learned on the road have been invaluable. Here are a few lessons we’ve learned from our life on the road.

Life Lesson 1: Go With The Flow

The thing about RVs is that they move. Unlike a traditional home, a house on wheels is meant to move (or at least you have the option). If you’re new to RVing, the “shake, rattle and roll,” might catch you off guard at first and make you a little nervous. When things move and shake, you learn to flow with them. Trust me it’s just easier.

My first test drive in an RV — even as a passenger — was frightening. It was a 30-foot Class A gas coach with a large glass window and what felt like an extra wide body. I think we took up all the lanes and created a line of cars on every turn. It takes some getting used to.

Me, trying to fix our bedroom slide.

Over time, that feeling gets easier, then normal and finally really enjoyable. You learn to go with the flow, and not only in regards to driving.

Things can break (like our bedroom slide in the photo), weather can change, and plans can fly out the window. No really, one of our itineraries literally flew out the window on the Loneliest Road in America in Nevada. While these things might be inconveniences, life is much easier when you approach it as all part of the experience.

Cry. Laugh. Then Laugh some more. Embrace the challenge, because these moments provide surprising opportunities if you keep your mind open.

Life Lesson 2: Be Resourceful

Being resourceful is the second lesson from life on the road. It’s connected to the first, in that going with the flow often creates a resourceful mindset.

The bedroom slide issue that I mentioned prevented us from accessing our clothes drawers. We had to wear the same clothes for days. Since our rig was at a dealer and we couldn’t leave town, I decided to look for a job on Craigslist and lucked out with a 1-hour gig that produced a crisp $100. You can read that full story here.

My ability to go with the flow allowed me to think of other ideas and ways to experience this journey.

Even the little things like finding inexpensive camping or grocery stores that carry your favorite foods require a bit of resourcefulness. These could either be annoyances or opportunities to develop new skills.

If you can stay open-minded, your confidence increases and your ability to deal with adversity becomes stronger. (You’re totally allowed to write “stays calm in stressful situations” on your resume, by the way.)

Life Lesson 3: Build And Maintain Relationships

The day is finally here! You get to go on your dream RV vacation or hit the open road for an extended trip and leave it all behind. But RVing, as wonderful as it is, can impact your relationships.

Here’s Liz Wilcox (another Campanda Ambassador) and I jumping for joy on top of Enchanted Rock in Texas.

While you’ll see beautiful sights and experience new places, the road can get lonely too. People sometimes talk about missing their family and friends. RVers say that finding a community on the road can be difficult when you’re always moving. Even in RV parks where RVers are everywhere doesn’t guarantee that relationships will be formed. For more information on how to build friendships on the road, click here.

Making friends might not be easy, but its well worth the effort. It’s one of the greatest joys as an RVer.

The road can change your relationship with yourself, too. Long stretches of highway give you time to think and reflect on things. Instead of pondering the past, maybe let your mind wander to the future — or better yet, to the present.

Open Road, Open Mind

I bet you thought that when you set off on your RV adventure it would be a light, fun trip to the river. Maybe that’s still true. But while an RV trip can be as simple as a visit to an awesome national park, it can also be as transformative as any other major life change. Be prepared for either scenario. And as long as you have an open mind on the open road, you’re sure to end up with your own list of life lessons.

Ready for your own RV adventure but don’t have a vehicle to call your own? Rent one on Campanda!

Click Here To Rent An RV

If you’re not using your RV right now, it could be earning you money. Click the link below to learn more about how listing your vehicle can help offset costs — and share the RV life with fellow enthusiasts.

Click Here To List Your RV

The post Surprising Things You Learn From RVing appeared first on Campanda News.

Top 5 RV Campouts, Convergences & Rallies To Attend This Year

Tom Sperner — Tue, 20 Mar 2018 18:04:04 +0000

By Camille Attell RVing is a great way to travel to remote places, far away from the crowds and the bustle of everyday life. But what if you want to experience RV travel and still be with friends? Does it always have to be about being alone or with your family in nature? No, it doesn’t! In fact, one of the the best ways to experience RVing is to attend an RV event. Many people love traveling with others and like to attend events where they can reconnect with old friends and create new relationships. (You can read all about making friends on the road here.) Here are some great RV events to consider adding to your travel calendar:

Escapade Rally | May – June, 2018

The Escapees RV club has been serving the needs of the RV community since 1978. They offer resources and information about all things RVing. In addition to the wonderful services they provide, they also host events. The 58th annual Escapade rally is a week-long event filled with activities, education and fun hosted by the Escapees RV club. There you can socialize, attend learning sessions and even go to RV “bootcamp” where you can learn everything you need to know about RVing. With over 80 seminars, classes and workshops, you will be fully prepared to hit the open road with confidence. This year they have partnered with an organization called Fulltime Families to offer the “Kidscapade” — so the kiddos can have fun and learn about RVing while you get to attend workshops and socialize with the adults. (Check out Escapees.com for more information.)

Xscapers Convergences | Multiple Events Throughout The Year

Xscapers is a community within Escapees that caters to RVers who love an active lifestyle. Many of them work from their rigs too! They host convergences throughout the year and kick things off every January at the “Annual Bash”. It’s a free event (if you’re an Escapees member) where everyone boondocks — there are no hookups like electric, water or sewer. In addition to all the social events, hiking and day trips, you can also attend learning sessions with topics ranging from boondocking to renovating your RV. I actually stumbled on the Xscapers Annual Bash by accident. I was scrolling through the Escapees.com website looking up information when I saw a post for an upcoming event. Luckily, my husband and I had already planned to be near the area and decided to modify our plans to attend. This was our very first event, and it was a game changer for us. We met so many like-minded people and made wonderful connections that will last a lifetime.

IndieRV Campout | September 6 – 9, 2018

There is a new kid on the RV rally/campout scene. IndieRV is a community based on the simple desire to travel and explore. IndieRV compiles all the best places to go and coolest things to see. It also provides bucket lists, itineraries and adventure guides for its members — so you can spend more time traveling and less time trip planning! IndieRV is having its first Campout in Hershey, Pennsylvania this September. This event will be a mix of potlucks, sightseeing and tours at Hershey’s Chocolate World. The event costs $10 per person and is just one of the many campouts, meet-ups and retreats that IndieRV plans to host each year.

Fulltime Families | Multiple Events Throughout The Year

Fulltime Families caters to families living, working and/or schooling from the road. I have never attended a Fulltime Families event, but felt it was worth sharing because I have heard great things and I think it’s a wonderful resource for families. And you don’t have to be a fulltime RVer to attend — so as long as love RVing, you are welcome! To get more information about Fulltime Families, I reached out to fellow RVer Michelle Abraham. Here’s what she said: “We Rallied for [four] days with 40 other families adding up to be about 100 kids in attendance! Each day was jam-packed with kids activities, business learning, RV lifestyle sharing, a talent show, scavenger hunt, kid’s market, home tours, service projects, potlucks and campfires. Some families came a few days or a week before the Rally and some rallied on for a month after! It was a truly memorable welcoming into a new community and road family. We look forward to attending another one soon and have met some of our closest friends at this event.”

Full-Time Freedom Week | November 2018

Not all RV events have to be in person. There are some really great online events where you can learn and connect with other people.

The ladies of Full-Time Freedom week. From left: Lindsay McKenzie, Julie Chickery, Camille Attell (me), Liz Wilcox.
(Photo Credit: Joe Hendricks)

Full-Time Freedom Week is a week-long event featuring expert RVers sharing their wealth of RV knowledge. You can learn everything from what to look for when you buy an RV to tips for traveling with a family, solo RVing, Workamping opportunities and more. At this free event, you can interact online with speakers and other RV enthusiasts. I was one of the organizers and speakers at the event last year. I made some awesome new connections and learned a lot too!

RV Entrepreneur Summit | February 2019

This event is quite unique: It’s a specialized event that caters to people who work and build businesses from their RVs. It’s hosted by married entrepreneurs Heath and Alyssa Padgett.

Here are some RV friends. That’s me on the far right.
Photo credit: Joe Hendricks

You can attend presentations, workshops and attendee-led meet-ups. You can also collaborate with others in a coworking space, hang out in hammocks and eat some awesome BBQ! I have attended the Summit twice and this year was I invited to facilitate an attendee-led meetup with some RV colleagues about how to turn your blog into a business.

RV Events Are Everywhere!

The nature of RVing means that you are moving around a lot. That itinerant lifestyle is great fun, but it can make it hard to build and maintain relationships. I have met more friends at these events than any other type of RV experience. Hopefully I’ve introduced you to some RV events that you want to check out yourself. Trust me, you won’t regret it!

Feeling inspired? Rent an RV on Campanda to join the fun! Click the link below to check out the selection near you:

Click Here To Rent An RV

Sad to see your own RV sitting in the driveway? Rent it out when you can’t use it and share the RV life (you’ll earn money, too)!

Click Here To List Your RV

The post Top 5 RV Campouts, Convergences & Rallies To Attend This Year appeared first on Campanda News.

30 Must-Have Apps For RVers

Tom Sperner — Tue, 13 Feb 2018 20:49:49 +0000

The Best (Mostly Free) RV Apps To Download Now

Whether you own an RV or are planning to rent one on Campanda, download these 30 (mostly free) apps to make your next RV trip even better! Keep reading or click the links below to discover the best apps for:

Planning An RV Trip
Navigating
Using On The Road
Finding RV Campgrounds & Parking
Finding Good Grub
Outdoor Adventurers
Nature Lovers
Stargazing
Predicting The Weather
Staying Safe

Best Apps For Planning An RV Trip

The Roadtrippers app will help you plan the perfect road trip.

1. Roadtrippers This highly rated app will help you discover new destinations and organize your road trip itineraries. A must-have for RVers. iOS | Android 2. Roadside America Discover all the weird and wonderful things that the United States has to offer with this fun app that helps you find oddball attractions across the country. iOS | (Not yet available for Android) 3. Google Trips Not just for RVers, Google Trips is an all-around great trip planning app that keeps all your plans in one place. Good for planning day trips and exploring new cities along your route. iOS | Android

Best Navigation Apps For RVers

CoPilot is a GPS app that will help you navigate with confidence.

4. CoPilot GPS Millions of RVers and truckers swear by CoPilot, which offers offline maps (essential in areas of spotty network coverage), clear directions and trip planning features. iOS | Android 5. Google Maps A must-have real-time navigation app. Many people don’t realize that you can download maps to use offline (no cell signal required!). One of our favorite things about Google Maps is the way it complements Google Trips by seamlessly mapping out the attractions and reservations that you’ve save in the trip planning app. iOS | Android 6. Waze Waze informs you about traffic, construction, crashes, police and other road blocks in real time — making it popular with Uber drivers and city commuters trying to cut down on travel time. iOS | Android

Best Apps To Use On The Road

GasBuddy could save you hundreds on RV fuel costs.

7. GasBuddy Don’t overpay at the pump! The GasBuddy app lets you search for the cheapest gas prices in your area so you can find the most affordable pit stops. iOS | Android 8. History Here This fun app provides an interactive, location-based guide to historic locations around the country. Use it to explore new places and discover hidden history along your route. iOS | Android 9. Spotify No road trip is complete without some good tunes! Get access to millions of songs with Spotify, a must-have for music lovers and RVers alike. We recommend purchasing a premium subscription so you can listen to music offline (and without the ads). iOS | Android

Best Apps For Finding RV Campgrounds & Parking

RV Parks & Campgrounds will help you find the perfect RV campsite.

10. RV Parks & Campgrounds  Find the perfect RV park. Search over 40,000 commercial RV parks across North America, sorted by rating and user reviews from other campers. iOS | Android 11. RV Parky Built by a full-timer RVer, this must-have app offers a guide to RV parks, campgrounds, rest stops, gas stations and stores, as well as low clearance warnings and a trip planner. iOS | Android 12. Camp & RV By Allstays ($) This app isn’t free, but there’s a reason thousands of RVers swear by it: With information on all kinds of RV campgrounds, parking lots (including Walmart), rest stops, etc., it may end up being the best $9.99 you ever spent. iOS | (Not yet available for Android)

Best Apps For Finding Good Grub

Foursquare uses your location to help you find the best restaurants, cafes and bars near you.

13. Yelp This trusted app puts millions of customer reviews at your fingertips to help you discover the best restaurants and businesses near you. iOS | Android 14. Foursquare Kind of like Yelp’s trendy younger cousin, Foursquare is another community review app that will help you find all the best local hangouts, hot spots and need-to-try restaurants. iOS | Android 15. Krazy Coupon Lady This popular coupon app will help you find the best deals on groceries (and pretty much anything else you might need), making dining in your RV even more affordable. Time to stock up s’mores ingredients! iOS | Android

Best Apps For Outdoor Adventurers

AllTrails is a must-have for outdoor adventurers.

16. Oh, Ranger! ParkFinder Find nearby national parks, state parks or national forests with this handy app that lets you search by location and activity (like bird watching or fishing). iOS | Android 17. AllTrails A must-have for hikers, bikers, runners and nature walkers. This app will be your guide to more than 50,000 trails, with maps, trail reviews and photos from its community of users. iOS | Android 18. REI Co-op National Parks Guide This app is your comprehensive guide to hiking and sightseeing in our National Parks — including bucket-list destinations like Acadia, Zion, Grand Canyon, Mount Rainier and more! iOS | Android

Best Apps For Nature Lovers

The Merlin Bird ID app can identify birds from five simple questions — or even a photo!

19. iNaturalist This nature app will help you identify the plants and animals that you encounter on your next camping trip. Record and share your observations with a community of 400,000 scientists and naturalists. iOS | Android 20. Nature Passport Designed to help parents and teachers get kids interested and engaged with nature, this app will encourage your kids to explore their natural surroundings. iOS | Android 21. Merlin Bird ID With just five simple questions (or a photo of the bird in question), this handy app will help you identify the birds you see and hear in the wild. The simple interface makes it great for novice bird watchers. iOS | Android

Best Apps For Stargazing

Star Chart will help you see the night sky like never before.

22. Star Chart This free app uses your phone’s camera to identify stars, constellations, planets and other celestial objects in the night sky. You can even shift the view 10,000 years forward or backward in time! iOS | Android 23. Star Walk 2 ($) Star Walk 2 uses your phone’s gyroscope and location tracking to present an augmented reality view of the sky above you. You can tap on a star to see a 3D model and read more about it. It’s well worth the one-time $2.99 purchase. iOS | Android 24. Sky Safari 5 ($) This powerful astronomy app (which also comes in Plus and Pro versions) will help you explore the universe through beautiful animations, photographs, descriptions and NASA spacecraft images — no internet connection required! Another $2.99 well spent. iOS | Android

Best Weather Apps For RVers

Accuweather is a highly accurate, all-purpose weather app.

25. AccuWeather Did you know that the accuracy of weather apps varies depending on where you are? This tool will help you determine which weather forecast is most reliable for your area. Most of the time, AccuWeather is the clear frontrunner, which is why it’s our favorite all-purpose weather app. iOS | Android 26. MyRadar Quickly see what weather is headed your way with this no-frills app that displays animated weather radar for your current location. iOS | Android 27. Dark Sky ($) Dark Sky gives you hyperlocal, down-to-the-minute weather forecasts in a format that’s both attractive and easy to understand. Free for Android (with in-app purchases), or a $3.99 one-time purchase for Apple. iOS | Android

Best Apps For Staying Safe Outdoors

Designed to work without internet, the Offline Survival Manual will teach you how to survive in the wilderness.

28. Offline Survival Manual This highly rated app is puts essential survival information at your fingertips. Fully functional offline, it contains information on how to find food, build a shelter, make a fire and more. (Not yet available for iOS) | Android 29. First Aid By American Red Cross This app could save a life during an emergency situation. Developed by the American Red Cross, First Aid will teach you essential first aid skills. iOS | Android 30. Anti Mosquito Unless you’re RVing in a malaria or Zika zone, this sonic repeller app probably won’t save your life. But it will help you avoid getting nasty mosquito bites that could put a real damper on your trip! iOS | (Not yet available for Android)

Put these apps to the test on your next RV trip! Don’t have an RV or camper of your own? Rent one on Campanda!:

Click Here To Rent An RV

Already have an RV? Don’t let it sit idle. List it on Campanda to earn money when it’s not in use:

Click Here To Rent Your RV

The post 30 Must-Have Apps For RVers appeared first on Campanda News.

The RV Movement: Why Is RVing More Popular Than Ever?

Tom Sperner — Fri, 19 Jan 2018 18:00:55 +0000

By Camille Attell In the winter of 2015, after a grueling day of work and a two-year stretch of housing and health challenges, my financially conservative, risk-averse husband turned to me and said, “we should leave everything behind and travel the country in an RV.” (You can read our full story here.) We thought our idea to travel and work out of an RV was novel. Neither of us had much exposure to RVing and our perception was that it was something you did in retirement. But we weren’t willing to wait that long. We dove headfirst into research and discovered that not only was RVing quite popular, it was a movement. “Movement” might be a strong word to describe the increased trend in recreational vehicle travel. Movements are often associated with a quest for social or political change. When you examine it more closely though, it’s possible that what’s happening in the RV industry goes beyond an increase in RV sales and travel.

Why is Rving growing as a movement?

RV Nomads is a documentary about the RV movement.

Did you know there’s a full-length documentary film coming out in October 2018 on the RV movement? I’m actually a project manager for the film and my husband Bryce and I will be featured, along with several other RVers. I enlisted my fellow cast members to help me answer the question: “Why is RVing growing as a movement?” Here’s what I found out:

People are yearning for a different American Dream.

The tagline on my blog, More Than A Wheelin’, is “A Different American Dream.” That’s what it felt like we’d found when we made the decision to take up RVing full time. My husband and I each grew up with the idea of a familiar, fail-proof roadmap in our heads: go to school, get a job, get a house with a nice green lawn, save for retirement and maybe buy an RV someday, etc. We had built our whole lives according to this blueprint, and when we decided to step off the beaten path, it felt like we were discovering a completely different American Dream. This new dream didn’t look like what we were told it was supposed to look like. It was a dream that we imagined for ourselves.

The Meinhofers are a full-time RVing family of four.

“RVing is growing as a movement because the American Dream isn’t the only dream to have,” say Robert and Jessica Meinhofer from Exploring the Local Life. “There is no escaping work, parenting (unless you don’t have kiddos), laundry and spousal disagreements. But living your life on purpose, knowing that you made choices that pull you away from working in a cubicle and rushing through traffic … deciding to be present in your daily life doing what you enjoy with those you love … learning to see your kids as people and sharing daily life with them … living for yourself and family and not others — RVing gives you that — the freedom, the choice.”

RVing can help you live more simply.

Owning things is a huge part of the American Dream. Part of the blueprint involves buying a home so you can then buy stuff to put in your home. Some of the stuff is useful and some — probably more than you realize — is useless. In fact, instead of owning your material things, your material things start to own you. My husband and I felt that way as we started to purge our belongings. It’s amazing how you can fill an entire garage (and then some) with objects you never use!

Marissa and Nathan Moss sold their house and took up full-time RV living to spend more time as a family.

Marissa Moss from Less Junk, More Journey says: “Our whole lives the world has told us we needed more. More money, more house, more cars, more toys to be happy and successful. But what if the world was wrong? What if actually having less gave you more? More time, more memories, more life, more freedom. People are discovering the RV lifestyle to be the vessel to achieve this goal. A life of simplicity and adventure worth living!” Not everyone is going to leave everything behind to live a different American Dream, and not everyone has to. For some owning an RV is the American Dream. It’s different for everyone, but there’s something about being on the open road in an RV that inspires universal feelings of freedom.

RVs support an active and balanced lifestyle.

The Hebards share their fifth wheel with their cat and two dogs.

Many people are searching for a more fulfilling life — and quite a few are finding that RVing is the answer. Laura and John Hebard from Hebard’s Travel explain that, “many [people] are seeking ways to unwind and unplug more often. Since we’ve been traveling, we’ve forged stronger bonds and friendships emerged that felt more healthy and hearty.” Among its 2017 business indicators, the Recreational Vehicle Industry Association (RVIA) reported that RV owners said that RV travel “enables them to experience nature and outdoor activities and enjoy quality family time.”

Audrey Callahan and her husband started their RV adventure in August 2017.

Owners referenced stronger family bonds, healthier eating and comforts like sleeping in their own beds as benefits of RV travel. It’s not a stretch to correlate a healthy lifestyle with RVing. It makes sense that people who spend time outdoors, cook at home and spend quality time with their families would be drawn to RV travel. This aligns with what singer/songwriter and full-time RVer Audrey Callahan told me: “In the [four] months that we’ve been RVing we’ve visited more beautiful destinations than all of the last couple of years combined. This kind of freedom is addicting and I can see why it has attracted so many adventure seekers of all ages.”

RVing is more cost-effective than other forms of travel.

Kelly Beasley lives a nomadic life out of her 24′ Crossroads Slingshot travel trailer.

Kelly Beasley (a.k.a. RV Chickadee), co-owner of Camp Addict, thinks that “RV sales are up because hotel and flight costs are becoming prohibitively expensive. We’re talking about thousands of dollars, even up to tens of thousands of dollars for a family of [four] to fly and stay in a hotel. RVing is a much more frugal and, oftentimes, a more fulfilling experience.” A 2014 cost comparison by the RVIA showed that a family of four can save up to 62 percent on vacation costs by choosing an RV (even when you account for the costs of ownership, maintenance and fuel). Couples can save 11 to 48 percent. According to the report: “Even when fuel prices rise, more than 80 percent of RV owners say their RV vacations cost less than other forms of travel.” I can confirm that traveling in my RV for months on end is way cheaper than my two-week honeymoon to Europe. (Okay, so I don’t get to eat Italian gelato — but I do get to have s’mores over the open flame with my RV friends!)

Getting internet in an RV has gotten a lot easier.

If you follow RV bloggers who have been around for a while, like Technomadia, they write about how mobile internet was not much of an option when they started out. Limited access to the internet was a barrier for many prospective RVers who wanted or needed to be online.

Sean and Julie Chickery of are exploring the country in their RV.

Today, there’s a growing remote workforce thanks to improving cell data and access to the internet. Julie Chickery of Chickery’s Travels says that RVing is growing as a movement because “technology has allowed people to work remotely. This in turn makes it possible for people to travel extensively while maintaining a stable income.”

Full-timers Lisa and Dan Brown live in their rig with two feline companions.

Lisa Brown from Always on Liberty elaborates on how technology is changing the way we work: “We can take our jobs outside now; beyond boundaries and walls that others dictate. Where else can we be our own boss at life while enjoying [the] freedom to come and go as we please?” It’s no coincidence that as these trends increase, so too does the desire to work, travel and even live in an RV. According to the RVIA: “RV manufacturers are offering innovative new products that offer an optimal mix of size, amenities and price for today’s budget-conscious consumers. Manufacturers are producing lightweight trailers and smaller, fuel-efficient motorhomes. Green technologies such as solar panels and energy efficient components are appearing on an increasing number of RV models.” There’s an RV solution for nearly everyone and every situation.

RVing communities bring RVers together.

I made some lifelong friends at an Xscapers convergence at Quartzsite, AZ.

If you talk to someone who’s been RVing for a really long time, say twenty or more years, they talk about how isolating the experience was back then. Without internet or Facebook groups, it was pretty challenging to have spontaneous meetups. Unless you planned well in advance with friends and family, you might not see another RVer outside of an RV park. Now there are whole communities of RVers that are an instant message away. These are communities of like-minded people who love the travel lifestyle and understand the unique experiences that RVing offers. (You can read my article on how to make friends on the road here.) Eric Odom, the producer of the RV Nomads film, says that “there are now so many of us coming into the lifestyle at the same time [and] we have this huge community developing where we all share a common thread in our lives. We all deal with similar mechanical issues, we all share the same passion for the outdoors and we all understand why we’re unplugging.” If there’s any doubt about RVing as a movement, look at the Xscapers “Annual Bash,” a yearly convergence of RVers in Quartzite, AZ. We went to our first Bash in 2017, which was attended by roughly 150 people. In 2018, they expect 400. If you there was an Annual Bash stock on the market, I’d buy it right now.

Social media has had a big influence on RVing

A post shared by VANLIFE I TRAVEL I NATURE (@desfenetressurlemonde) on Sep 17, 2016 at 11:01am PDT

Social media hashtags like #Vanlife and #RVlife have popularized the idea of mobile living. I’m convinced that social media has had a huge role in the rise of the RV movement. I couldn’t actually find strong data on the correlation between increasing RV sales and the proliferation of #RVLife and #VanLife hashtags on social media. But c’mon, it’s pretty obvious! There has to be a connection between the RV movement and the sheer volume of RV YouTube channels and slick RV Instagram accounts. I know because people tell me directly. I hear things like, “Less Junk, More Journey inspired me to go RVing,” or “I was at my desk scrolling through Instagram and thinking: that’s what I want to do!” And I get it. Sure, my husband and I made the decision to go RVing on our own, but it wasn’t long before we were watching YouTube channels, reading blogs and learning everything we could in the vast internet sea about RVing.

Full-Time Freedom Week was a big success!

All that social media consumption influenced our decisions — it helped us figure out which RV to buy, which RVing groups to join and which campground memberships to have. At the end of 2017, some RV blogger friends and I put together a live Facebook event called “Full-Time Freedom Week,” a week of RV education, inspiration and entertainment. Over 1,000 people RSVP’d to the event and raved about how inspired they were to run out and buy an RV of their own. If that’s not a movement, I don’t know what is.

The RV movement is expected to grow.

What really strikes me about the RV movement is how RVing truly appeals to all ages. It’s not only for retirees or hardcore outdoor adventurers. CNBC reported that in 2017, millennials (people born between the early 1980s and early 2000s) pushed sales to record highs. The RVIA reported that RV sales are expected to grow as aging baby boomers enter the age range in which RV ownership has historically been highest. In other words, every generation loves to RV! How many other movements can claim that?

Me and my husband, striking a pose in Capitol Reef National Park, Utah.

I hope this article about the RV movement has inspired you. Maybe you’re already rushing out the door now to go check out RVs for sale or for rent (psst … Campanda has a great selection). Hope to see you on the road!

The RV movement is a huge opportunity for savvy RV owners. If you don’t live in yours full time, consider renting your RV, camper or trailer to someone looking to experience the joys of the open road! (You can make some serious money, too.)

Not using your RV right now? Rent it out!

Click Here To Learn More

Don’t own an RV? Rent an RV on Campanda and discover what it’s all about!

Click Here To Rent An RV

The post The RV Movement: Why Is RVing More Popular Than Ever? appeared first on Campanda News.

Making Friends On The Road

Tom Sperner — Tue, 19 Dec 2017 17:17:00 +0000

By Camille Attell

Crickets Do Not Make Great Friends

When my husband and I left everything behind to RV full-time, we fantasized about making friends on the road. Oh, the interesting characters we’d meet! We envisioned eclectic families living off the grid, traveling cat circuses and kindly loners. Instead, it was mostly tumbleweeds and crickets. Crickets do not make great friends. Don’t get me wrong: Crickets are cool, especially at night when they make that soothing “crick-crick” noise. But they don’t engage in deep conversations by the campfire or lend you a cup of sugar when you’re in need. It all starts to feel a little lonely. Crick-crick, crick-crick. Making friends on the road was harder than we imagined. When you move around often, it’s difficult to build a community. Thankfully, we stumbled upon some resources that changed everything.

The Friends We Almost Didn’t Make

I purchased an Escapees membership before we hit the road. Escapees is a total support network for all RVers with everything from blog articles to mapping tools to a job board. Within the network is a group called Xscapers that provides resources to working RVers. After a couple of months, I was browsing through the Escapees website and discovered that they were having an “Xscapers Convergence” in Quartzsite, Arizona. I was thrilled! We were already planning to be in the Quartzsite area around the same time, so I excitedly told my husband about the meeting and boom! Just like that, we made plans. Making spur-of-the-moment plans is one of the many perks of RV life. We arrived in Quartzsite without knowing a soul. By the time we left we had lifelong friends. That’s another great thing about RV life: You inevitably have things in common with people who choose this lifestyle. You instantly have topics to discuss and common experiences that you don’t have to explain. It’s really kind of magical. Anyone looking to meet friends on the road should look into the Escapees and hit up to a convergence or event. You won’t regret it!

We Also Made Virtual Friends

I was never big into social media before living on the road. I’d post the occasional photo of my grande burrito on Instagram or “like” a post on Facebook from time to time, but I wasn’t an avid user. That changed drastically when I joined various RV Facebook groups and followed RVers on Instagram. Those online relationships led to in-person encounters too. Again, you often have instant chemistry because you have so much in common. For example, here’s an invite we got from some fellow RVers on Instagram:

You Can Talk About Almost Anything With RVers

I recently met up with some RV friends for ice cream. They had just purchased a Class B van with a “cassette” toilet, which functions differently than a flush toilet. When I heard this, I exuberantly shouted “I want to see your toilet!” in the middle of the ice cream shop, and we all laughed hysterically. Who else but fellow RVers would understand that kind of excitement? Jokes about toilets aside, I feel so lucky to have met so many wonderful people through RVing.

RVers You Should Know

I’ve made more RV friends than I ever thought possible. Let me introduce you to some of my absolute favorites:

Liz Wilcox

I met Liz Wilcox from The Virtual Campground at the RV Entrepreneur Summit. She had a quirky wit that immediately caught my attention. While we didn’t spend much time in person, we developed a working relationship and friendship online. We’ve since collaborated on several projects, including her hilarious e-book, “Tales From the Black Tank: A Collection Of Hilariously Crappy RV Stories”. She’s a Campanda ambassador, too!

Dan and Lindsay McKenzie

Dan and Lindsay McKenzie also attended the RV Entrepreneur Summit, but we didn’t meet there. I started following Lindsay online (that sounds weird in any other situation, but not for RVing) and really liked their RV brand, Follow Your Detour. We became friends and recently helped each other complete our first online training programs — I created a course on finding remote work and they developed a budgeting program called Finance Your Detour to help people travel full time.

Sean and Julie Chickery

I’ve never actually met Julie from Chickery’s Travels in person. We met online through a mutual project, a documentary film called the Open Road RV Nomad. When she found out about a Mastermind group I was leading with Liz, Lindsay and a few other women, she asked to join. She was a perfect fit! Julie and her husband Sean also wrote an e-book called “Full-Time RV Finance” that offers advice about saving and making money from the road.

It Turns Out Making Friends is Easier than Ever

My own experiences have proven that it’s easier than ever to make friends on the road! Technology has enabled entire communities of Rvers to connect online and through in-person events. RVers are some of the friendliest and most welcoming people around — so you can forget about befriending crickets.

Photo Credit: Joe Hendricks, RV Entrepreneur Summit

Want to swap RV stories? Check out my site, More Than a Wheelin’, and follow me on social media so we can meet up “IRL” (in real life).

Feeling Inspired?

Rent an RV on Campanda and embark on your own adventure. You never know who you might meet!

Click Here To Find An RV

Or maybe you already own an RV? Don’t just let it sit idle — help someone get out on the road and make lifelong friends by renting it out (you’ll earn money too)!

Click Here To Rent Your RV

The post Making Friends On The Road appeared first on Campanda News.

The Full-Time RV Life Chose Me

Tom Sperner — Fri, 15 Dec 2017 15:16:51 +0000

By Camille Attell

The sofa made me do it.

That’s what I like to tell people when they ask why I left everything behind to live, work and travel in an RV full time.

I can’t really blame the sofa though, it hadn’t done anything wrong — except it was old, raggedy and needed to be replaced. But when it came time to buy new furniture for our nearly empty house of two years, my husband and I just couldn’t stomach the idea of being anchored in one place any longer.

Before the RV:

I’m part free-spirit, part Type A overachiever and I tend to live in one extreme or the other.

I’d lived and worked in Orange County, California my whole life. Other than a six-month, solo backpacking trip through New Zealand and Australia after college, I never left home. After that trip, I landed a corporate training job and stayed for about twenty years.

My husband and I got married in 2014 and bought our dream home — matching towels and marital bliss ensued. Then our dream home turned into a water-logged prison.

Okay, maybe that’s a little dramatic but a slab leak did wipe out our first floor and walls and we had to move to a hotel and remove our belongings due to flood and mold remediation.

Then there was that back thing.

Despite the inconveniences, we took everything in stride. We would have returned home, finished buying furniture and settled back into life if it hadn’t been for one thing: the “back spasm” incident.

It turns out that my husband occasionally got these painfully crushing back spasms that he somehow forgot to mention. I witnessed one first hand — for five straight days straight — and let me tell you, it’s a frightening thing to see a loved one in that much pain.

You’d think it was exercise or lifting a heavy object that caused such an injury, but nope — it was just the ten- to twelve- hour work days. All that sitting and crouching over spreadsheets had wreaked havoc on his body.

I also suffered my own health challenges. The combined stresses of long work hours, the house and my husband’s back incident left me depleted. I experienced a series of flu, bronchitis and sinusitis episodes for the better part of a year.

But we continued to drag our sore, tired selves to work and kept being loyal and dependable employees.

The sofa that broke the camel’s back:

The series of events I just described spanned nearly two years and by the time we were ready for furniture, something had shifted in us. We no longer felt the pull of settling into life. We felt a strong desire to do something different — to live a little, explore and create a new future together.

It had never occurred to either one of us that we had life options.

Our upbringing had us convinced that we were supposed to be on a certain path. It took something significant to shake us awake. The housing and health issues led to us finally ask what we wanted out of life.

Honestly though, in the end it was all those camel (or was it taupe?) colored sofa choices that put us over the edge and made us realize that we wanted something more.

Goodbye cubicle, hello open road!

After we decided to seek out a different future, we explored our options and discovered full-time RVing.

We had never been in an RV before. We thought people only RVed when they retired and we had no idea that “full-timing” was a movement. All we knew was that trading in our cubicles for the open road sounded like a dream come true.

We put a transition plan together and worked up the courage to quit our jobs. After nearly twenty years in the workforce as a dedicated and loyal employee, I rediscovered my free spirit and turned in my resignation letter. It was both scary and exhilarating.

Now we’re exploring new terrain and discovering our identities as we learn about life beyond the cubicle. We’ve seen a lot of states, covered thousands of miles and have no regrets.

In fact, I even forgive the sofa.

Renting an RV on Campanda is the perfect way to discover if the RV life is for you.

Click Here To Rent An RV

The post The Full-Time RV Life Chose Me appeared first on Campanda News.