With social distancing the new norm, many people are fighting feelings of anxiety and claustrophobia as they feel stuck at home. Staying safe and healthy is the number one concern. Balancing the need to socially distance with the need to stay emotionally healthy can be tricky. The solution – get out and explore. Buying an RV allows you to explore while still respecting all pandemic phases and guidelines. According to Wells Fargo analyst Tim Condor, of all the RV Sales happening currently, about 80% are first-time buyers. The relative ease and accessibility of purchasing an RV in the current environment makes this a fantastic option.
More and more people are opting for travel by RV as traveling in other ways – buses, trains, planes – is becoming more challenging and restrictive. Prices of tickets and travel restrictions can make these modes of transportation a challenge. And once you are at your destination, are you comfortable staying in a hotel or rental home without the creature comforts of home and your own hygienic standards? What types of procedures are these places following for sanitizing spaces and how extended is the time between guests? The anxiety even reading this is high!
Owning an RV allows you a greater sense of freedom. If you are in the middle of nowhere and craving a snack or need a bathroom break, you can simply pull over, take your seatbelt off and step back into your own kitchen space and bathroom. If you decide you don’t want to drive 10 hours in one day to get to your final destination, don’t. Find a proper place to pull over and go to sleep. If you have a pet you would like to take with you as a travel companion, owning an RV makes that a done-deal. All of this in addition to the capability to travel in an RV safely without the risk of requesting contact tracing at every turn, RVs allow you to have your privacy and independence. With the current pandemic, this holds great appeal for many people. The conveniences and benefits are clearly numerous.
On the flipside, the downfall of RV ownership is potential costs. It is a depreciating asset. So although you save money on airfare, hotels, restaurants, etc., you do have to commit to upfront purchase costs, maintenance and gas. There are a plethora of resources out there that provide calculators and cost analyses. So turn to your favorite web browser, blogger or neighbor and start researching whether an RV purchase is in your future.