May is always a hectic time of year for our family as we wrap up our son’s school year and complete state testing, as well as my own since I am a teacher. Even though I teach year round, many students are trying to finish before summer, while several are starting my course for either a summer activity or to play catch up for school before fall.
We are back at our home base this month to accomplish these tasks, some family business, and take care of doctor’s appointments since we will be traveling around until fall. Anytime we are at home base, it seems to be a busy time with seeing everyone and tackling projects while we have all the tools and helping hands.
Last week we added to the mix our nearly 16 year old doxie falling gravely ill from her kidney disease progressing, so we made the difficult decision to put her down while we were home. She is now laid to rest next to her sister, our doxie, Angel, that passed a few years ago, on the family property. It’s been an emotional week, and inspiration to write was even harder to come by.
I also started a YouTube channel for cooking in the RV since we are total foodies on a budget and my allergies are a battle, so that has been taking up time. I’ve only just started posting there, but I would love if you would subscribe to There Is Always Takeout.
Over the years, this blog that has evolved from purely teaching to all things life, which is prompting a change. My husband has a blog and website for our traveling family, so we have decided to join forces and combine blogs.
Over the next several days, we will be exporting blogs from Addicted to Teaching and importing them to Barnes On The Move since writing is more my thing and video is more his. This will allow us to work towards a common goal and share the load. I’d love if you’d take the time to click over to our travel page and subscribe and interact there! We are still going to keep our social media pages as well, so you can follow and interact there (details below).
So, you will see this page fade away from your inbox in the near future, but I will still be posting about Food on YouTube, TikTok & Instagram, and we will post about traveling and family on Facebook, TikTok & Instagram. I’d love if you would take the time to follow along on the new journey, but if you were only here for education, I certainly understand if you won’t be joining us there. I wish you all the best and thank you for your support on this blog over the years!
Like or comment below, and share with others to support the blog. I post weekly about teaching, traveling and family. Until next time, you can find us on Facebook, TikTok & Instagram @barnesonmoveor follow our adventures at BarnesOnMove.com
If you have watched many YouTubers or started researching RV life, you have probably heard of Beddy’s. If you have not, they are a bedding set that has the bottom section that fits like a fitted sheet and the top zips onto it, similar to a sleeping bag, that has a flip out section for a drop sheet when sleeping.
They are amazingly convenient for making beds, especially in the awkward spaces of an RV. They are also a minimalist’s dream due to their simplicity and ease. Because so many raved about it, we spent the big bucks to purchase them, only to regret it.
The convenience of making the bed was all that the hype said it was. They zip quickly and seamlessly and the bed looks nicely made all day. They are deep pockets, which work great if you have a large mattress or add a topper for extra comfort, or your RV mattress is an odd size. For us, though, that is where the positives ended.
TEMPERATURE They are extremely hot to sleep under–a negative since we only RV in Florida year round. We chose the minky, which is their heavier version, but liked the feel of the material better than cotton. From researching, the cotton is supposed to be lighter and better for warmer climates, but the comforter itself is heavier than I like to sleep with in summer, and since we aren’t always on 50A hookup to run our bedroom AC, it meant we had to have an additional light sheet to sleep under, or kick them off entirely.
WASHING Due to their bulkiness, even if you are lucky enough to have an RV washer, these won’t fit in them. In fact, when we try to use a regular household washer and dryer, we still have to split them into 2 loads per set. Which meant for our 2 beds, we needed 4 loads, or had to go to the laundry mat for the larger washer and dryer. Depending on the laundromat, they wouldn’t always get completely dry, so that meant finding a way to hang them out to dry or spending extra on another dry cycle.
MAKING THE BUNKS RV bunks are an odd size. Even with the elastic fitted bottom section, they were still too big, making the wall side completely unusable. We did get the sheet clips that work like suspenders to attach them from the underside, but this means taking the mattress off the bed and flipping it around every time the bed needs made or torn apart for washing.
While we do love the Beddy’s in terms of comfort and simplicity, they just weren’t a good fit for our RV lifestyle, so have found themselves sealed in a vacuum bag until we have a house again or to pass on to a family member.
Since they are a substantial financial investment, be sure to think about temperatures where you will use them and how you will wash them before making a purchase. In a house where I could do laundry every day, I would absolutely have these, but they just weren’t a good fit for our RV lifestyle, traveling full time in Florida. If they were to come out with a lighter version for warmer climates (more coverlet than comforter), we’d be tempted to give them another try.
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We have been RVing for over a year now and have been “on the fence” about getting a portable dog fence.
Our pups loved having a yard to run around in and have missed that. But with Molly, our senior doxie, a reactor to some vaccines and cannot get them, it means we limit contact for both of them and avoid dog parks. That means they are on a leash if they are outside, or on their tie out if we are all out.
We have also had issues with some park resident’s pets either escaping or just being off leash, and wandering into our site. Since Luna and I were attacked a couple of years ago by a loose dog, we are very skittish. We like the idea of that additional barrier for when they, and we, are enjoying time outside.
On the other hand, it is extra money to spend and inventory to carry around. Some parks have limitations on height, or even if you can have them, so it is something else to think about. And since we move every week or two, it is an extra chore and time on set up and break down.
After going back and forth on it, we decided to give it a try, especially when we found an inexpensive option from Tractor supply (8 24″ panels with a gate were $39 at the time of this blog). We picked up two of them and set them up.
This particular set isn’t the sturdiest and doesn’t stake into the ground like some more expensive options, but it is extremely lightweight, folds up compactly, and works well for our little dogs. We opted to go around the back of our steps, so the two sets give them a good amount of space and they can go down the steps on their own if we leave the doors open on a nice day. The girls have enjoyed the freedom to be off leash. It is also light enough to be used indoors, a great option for when we travel and stay with friends or family and want to limit how far they can go or what they can get into.
We are currently at a park that doesn’t allow fencing, but, because it is lightweight and compact, it was easy to move them out of the way and set up. I’d love to get another set or two to give them more area and fence in our entire under awning area, but not sure we want to spend the money or have the cargo.
So, if you are like us and not sure, start with the less expensive option and only one set for a month or so. It will be a small investment and you can always add more panels or upgrade to another set once you have had a chance to try it.
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I’m in several RV life social media groups, so interact with people at all stages of their journey. One of the most frequent questions asked from those just starting out is “what do I need to pack in my RV?”
The answer is simple: whatever you will need in your daily life.
But the process isn’t so simple.
When we live in a sticks and bricks, we have room, and how much everything weighs doesn’t factor in when making decisions.
But in RV life, space and weight are crucial, so must be thought about. Anytime something can serve multiple purposes, it’s a winner. If a lighter option exists on something you use, it may be good to replace it.
It also depends on what size RV and how long you will be in it. Our packing list for our 16 foot travel trailer for a long weekend is quite different from our 39 foot 5th wheel that we now full time in.
Some of typical living spaces may not be in your RV, some may be combined with another space, so be sure to think about that. Sketching out your storage space and listing what you’ll keep where can be very helpful, and save you from purchasing a rig that may not work for you. Keep in mind, just because the space is big enough, doesn’t mean you should fill it!
So let’s run through the spaces of a typical home and RV and what to think about when deciding.
BEDROOM This is a pretty basic list since the bed and clothing storage come built in. You will need bedding, possibly 2 sets so you have a back up if you won’t have quick access to laundry. You’ll need clothing for the seasons and activities you will participate in. Think about where you will be staying and how often you will have access to a laundry facility to decide. Most of us have too many clothes and that is a lot of extra weight, but, since we do laundry weekly, our rule of thumb is 7-10 days worth of clothing items, plus workout gear, swimwear and sleepwear.
BATHROOM This is another area where it can be easy to have too much. You will need your basic toiletries, cosmetics, linens (plus an extra set, depending on laundry routine) for both bathing and swimming, and don’t forget about pets, if they get bathed. We also keep a few extra throw blankets and scatter rugs in here for cooler weather or messy feet.
KITCHEN This is the area most of us overdo things. While there are plenty of gadgets that do one thing really well, there are a surprising amount that can do more than one thing and eliminate utensils or special equipment. It comes down to what is important to you. Most don’t have a dishwasher, so we keep enough cups, plates and bowls for our family of 3 for 1 meal, plus utensils, as well as enough storage containers to serve from and hold leftovers to feed us all a meal–these are our guide. Should we have company, we use paper plates! I love cooking and baking, so we made room for a nesting mixing bowls, a hand mixer, instant pot, coffeepot, and cook with 2 cast iron pans and a boiler, plus we have a Blackstone grill since we have always loved grilling out. A few specialty utensils and our set is complete and has served us well for over a year.
LIVING ROOM/COMMON AREA This area will be used for movies and television watching, reading and board games or electronic games. We have a small cabinet that houses all of our entertainment–so we downsized our games to travel or card decks, and all of our DVDs fit into small books and stack with our small library of favorite books, as well. Our game system is small and compact, so doesn’t take up a lot of room.
We also keep a couple of throw blankets for cooler nights. Since our RV has only a 2 seater loveseat, we added a lightweight beanbag chair for extra seating, in addition to dining chairs, and it has worked perfectly without adding extra weight. We also added an area rug that makes it feel like home an is an added layer of insulation for keeping cool or warm in the RV.
GARAGE Our 5th wheel RV has a large garage, so we can hold a lot, just as you would a garage in a home. We store tools and equipment for basic repairs or work and RV hookups. For entertainment, we have our snorkeling gear, inflatable paddleboards, fishing poles and a tackle box, bike helmets, a tote of outdoor toys, and a stroller/trailer for our dogs. We also fit our rug, folding chairs, solo stove and dog fencing for enhancing our outdoor space when location and weather allow. Our bikes don’t fit in here, but they do fit on a bike rack on the back (that we ensured was RV rated!). We also like to hike, so keep a small hiking pack, hiking sticks, thermos’s and a soft lunch box, as well as rain gear and a couple other backpacks.
PORCH/PATIO Most campsites have an outdoor space, so we set ours up with the gear we store in our garage. Some RVs even come with fold out porch/patios, but you’ll still need to store things when it is folded away, but you can still create this outdoor space. We had a hammock when we started out, but it wasn’t quick to set up, so we have since put it in storage.
This will just get you started, and as you learn to make these decisions, you will figure out what works for you. Weight is always a factor, so pay attention to what you have. If you plan to spend more time “boondocking” or “off-grid” (a.k.a. not plugged in and completely self-reliant) then you will want less weight to allow for fresh water, and full black/grey tanks when driving (1 gallon of water is 8lbs so it can add up fast!)
A shake down trip, or a few, will be vital to “test drive” the lifestyle and see what you need. Depending on how often you go and where, it can vary. We are lucky enough to have a home base we stop through every few months, so we can swap things seasonally, but this isn’t an option for everyone.
You may keep stuff you end up not needing, and you may get rid of things you did actually need. It will happen. Often you can replace them, and there are always donation drop offs along your travels to get rid of things you won’t need.
Are there things I forgot to include? Comment below and let me know!
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Flagler Beach, Florida has become one of our favorite places to visit. In the last year, we have camped there 3 times, and have day tripped there many times before.
We love the old beach town feel of the place. They have been very strict about keeping buildings from growing too tall, they don’t allow building on the beach side, and have many small businesses in the downtown area. The Flagler Beach Historical Museum is right downtown and a great spot to learn the history about the area and people.
As you drive along A1A, you can see the dunes and the Atlantic clearly. They have many pedestrian crosswalks and stairs to the beach, as well as street parking. As you drive, be sure to watch for these.
We have tried a few seafood places, local breweries, coffee shops, and sandwich shops and all have been delicious. My only place I continue to return to is Sally’s Ice Cream Shop on the north end of town–they have so many choices, but the chocolate covered key lime pie on a stick is amazing, and definitely worth a longer walk on the beach.
There are several parks and trails in the area, other than just walking on the beach, and you can see all the different ecosystems that thrive along the coast, and the work to preserve them.
Bulow Plantation Ruins Historic State Park is also there and you can see and learn about an old sugar plantation destroyed during the second Seminole War. There are also many other state and national parks along A1A as you travel north towards St. Augustine. Marineland isn’t too far, if you want a more touristy attraction.
We love camping at Bulow RV Resort, as much for the location as for it being a part of our Thousand Trails membership as an Encore park. While it isn’t fancy, the sites are mostly level and spacious (they are grass sites), and have electric and water, with many also having sewer, but there is a dumpt station at the front entrance. Traffic on the road in can be bad since they share an entrance with a village next to it, and there are no sidewalks, but we haven’t had close calls with our daily runs or walks along it, or just staying within the park. They have a community building that has gatherings, and beverages at night, and the pool and laundry room up front aren’t spectacular, but are well maintained and get the job done.
If you are in the area,
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We dreamed of RV life for years and were thrilled to start our journey sooner rather than later. We’d heard so many horror stories, so we prepared, researched and thought we were ready.
Turns out, we weren’t.
We had a lot of great memories our first year, but we had a lot of issues, too.
NEW RV WOES Sadly, there is not a great deal of quality control on RVs that are new and, with full time use, things wear out quickly. Not to mention, it’s like living through an earthquake with every move. We lost a lot of travel time getting repairs done and not being prepared that some appointments were only to see the issue and get warranty work approval–which means multiple visits. If you have to get repairs, ask questions about your appointment. Will the repairs be that day, or is it just to diagnose? How long will they take? Can you still live in your RV while they work (some offer camping on site at night and they work during the day) or will you need to move out for the duration? Let them know it is your full time home if it is, this changes timelines a bit. And if they won’t work with you, go elsewhere. There are many dealerships that can do the warranty work, you just may have to plan travels around it.
SCHEDULING Even in RV life, there are still doctors, dentist, veterinarian, hair, dog groomers, chiropractors…all these appointments need to happen. Our first year, we just came back for them, but as we scheduled for this year, we selected certain months we’d be home and scheduled for during that time, unless we can take care of them on the road. This made life a lot easier.
MAIL This is a difficult one for some, but we’ve been lucky for two reasons. One, our home base family member gathers our mail as it comes in. If it is urgent or looks important, he calls and opens it for us. Two, I was able to set up with our local post office to get a daily email with an envelope scan of our mail, so I know what is coming in. This is great since I can give a head’s up to our family member about it in advance. I know some have a family member gather it up and mail it periodically to a known location, or you can always pay for a mail service in a variety of forms to bundle and mail, or even scan and email everything.
SOCIALIZING We heard it was hard to meet people, make friends and keep friends, and we thought we prepared, but not well enough. Since we RV in Florida, being outside a lot isn’t always possible to meet people, especially if you are only there for a week or so. We’ve met a few friends along the way and have stayed in touch, though. We have also struggled maintaining relationships with local friends at home. Even though we post on our private social media, they still miss it when we are there, or we are so busy we forget to reach out, or we just miss them as they are off somewhere. We have gotten better about joining FullTime Families, sitting outside, talking to people, and calling or texting our friends as we think of them.
WORK & SCHOOL We knew we would be closer together in a smaller space, but it took us some time to get used to it. The hardest part is overlap. As a virtual teacher, I do a lot of calls and zoom lessons or meetings, which means the house needs to be quiet and I need to be somewhere with proper lighting and workspace. My son is a virtual student, so deals with the same needs. My husband runs his own business, so has incoming and outgoing calls, as well as work to do. The good news is, other than class times and appointment calls, we can be flexible about who is working and where, but this can make for long, quiet days while we all get through everything, especially if the weather isn’t conducive to being outside. We’ve learned to talk about our week and our day, plan well, and created workspaces throughout the RV so we each have a quiet place if we all need to be on at the same time.
So, as we start year 2, we are doing it a bit differently. While we did get a new RV last month and will still be dealing with a lot of warranty work, we know what to expect and can ask the right questions or make the right plans this time. We are also trying to stay in locations longer, be outside and talk more, and invite our friends to come camping, visit, or get together when we are in town. Our son’s classes have a lot more flexibility and we are learning when we can all work at the same time in the same room, or walk to another room. This new floor plan has a bit more distance between living room and master, so they can watch a movie while I have a call or meeting in the back room. I have faith we will do better this year, but we are sure to still make mistakes and learn more.
Like or comment below, and share with others to support the blog. I post weekly about teaching, traveling and family. Until next time, you can find me on TikTok & Instagram @barnesonmove2or follow our adventures at BarnesOnMove.com, Facebook & TikTok at @BarnesOnMove
Part of living full time in an RV, means making choices. Sometimes that with locations, other times, that has to do with what you can or can not take with you to your next location.
We have gone through processes of eliminating some of our favorite dishes. You know that one coffee cup you cant live without with the cute cats on it. Or getting rid of the 4th pair of running shoes when you only have one pair of feet.
But how do you shave weight from a trailer when you want to carry an extra bag of chocolate chips?
We have seen some things that are attached to the 5th wheel that do not serve a purpose for us. Two of the obvious ones for us where doors and valances.
This new Keystone Arcadia 3550mb only has 2 doors on hinges dividing sleeping rooms. We took them down and put up curtains. This shaved about 5 pounds per door. They opened in a manor that was intrusive to moving around the house.
The valances on the windows. These were brown boxes placed on top of the blinds to give it a more homely feel. Counting around our 5er, we have 13 different windows with these little brown boxes attached.
With a short discussion with the family, we decided they were not needed. The valances where visual clutter and a dust catcher.
Each was held on by 4 screws, and took only a couple minutes each to get off the walls. About an hour later, I weighed the whole stack and found that we cut 31 pounds of valances off the RV. 31 pounds!! that is almost 4 gallons of water. Or could be 30 bags of coffee. That is the weight of a big box store bicycle.
So putting our 5er on a diet let it lose over 40 pounds in a matter of a couple hours. I wish I could lose weight that efficiently.
I have been a traveler all my life. The farthest back I can remember was when I was 6 and we went on a summer road trip from our home in Florida to see family in Alaska. We stopped so many places that, at the time were cool, but not significant. Today, I long to return to so many with my own family. That journey pretty much hooked me on travel. I was always ready to go somewhere.
As soon as I was old enough to drive, day trips were always on the itinerary, and as an adult, I have always had a trip either being planned, or brewing in my mind.
My husband and I have been traveling together for over 20 years and are always up for an adventure. Our travel style is like many others we have met–we have a tentative plan, even an itinerary, but are totally okay with calling an audible and changing it up.
We did a 3 week long tent/couch surfing trip several years back and planned an itinerary out to the day…it lasted 3 hours into our trip before we deviated. While our family prefers to know where we are, they are okay with a general location and check ins when we leave and arrive. It may seem intrusive since we are adults, but it’s not only safer, it keeps them from unnecessary worry.
We talk to a lot of people in our journey, both online and in person, and find that most travelers fall into one of three camps: the detailed planner, the fly by the seat of their pants traveler, or the general idea but up for changes traveler–like us.
No matter which type of traveler you are, be sure you are prepared by taking a few precautions.
SAFETY GEAR No matter how you travel, having safety equipment is a must. A spare tire, jack, food and water, blankets, cash, first aid kit, flashlight and/or flares, paper/pencil for leaving a note, and maps or a road atlas(paper, not just digital) are a few basic items to keep on hand.
GENERAL IDEA It’s okay to be spontaneous, but having at least a general direction or area will help you narrow things down, and help if someone needs to find you. This could be arriving to a certain point by a certain date and following a path between two locations, or just being in a certain area. This also helps with researching what to do and where to stay so you can see what major events are going on to either attend, or avoid.
BACK UP PLANS Not everything goes perfectly, so having something to fall back on is a good idea. This could be knowing of other places to stay, having multiple memberships to draw from, or just talking to multiple friends or family members in an area to have a place to stay.
POINT OF CONTACT Always make sure someone knows where you are and where you are going. In this day and age, you can’t be too safe, so even if you don’t have a formal or detailed itinerary, make sure you call or text someone with your plans. If something goes wrong, but they know where you are and that you’ll check in daily, at least you know help will be there. Also keep their information in the glove box of your vehicle or as an ICE (in case of emergency) contact in your phone.
So, which type of traveler are you? And what other precautions would you suggest be taken?
Like or comment below, and share with others to support the blog. I post weekly about teaching, traveling and family. Until next time, you can find me on Tiktok @sonya.BOMSquadleader, on Instagram at sonya_barnes_a2t , or our adventures at BarnesOnMove.com, Facebook & TikTok at @BarnesOnMove
When we started this journey into full-time RV life a little over a year ago, we knew there would be a lot of information to keep up with. Being the organized person I am, I got a current road atlas, Planner, RV journal and an RV GPS device, plus I plugged things into our digital family calendar. This along with a couple of camping memberships with location maps and we were ready to travel plan!
Planning trips was not a new experience for us. We’ve been travelers for 30+ years, as kids with our families, solo adults, and as a family. But this brought on a whole new level of challenge with booking multiple reservations at a time over an extended period. The formerly used method of a travel itinerary wasn’t going to cut it, and all these resources were a lot.
First, we used our Google map and marked our membership locations that worked for us in the area we would travel in since we stay in state, mostly. And just added others as we traveled to other states. This helped a lot, but flipping through the books and having multiple calendars to update was too much. By last summer, a few months in, I was already planning a simpler method to combine all our info into one book. Such a thing didn’t exist, at least not that I could find.
By September, we were going through our notes and creating a template of what we wanted. It took us a lot longer than we expected, but we finally created our vision. We ordered our proof copy and started using it for a travel planning session and it worked just like I wanted.
It’s small enough to carry in my every day bag so I can always check it for scheduling purposes. While there are a few tweaks we will roll out with the 2024 version, this has already been great!
Let me give you a quick overview of the sections and why they are there. (If you purchase the book, there is a How To Use section that also breaks this down for you!)
IMPORTANT INFORMATION this information is about your rig to be kept close to make sure you will fit on routes, in spaces, and under overpasses.
MEMBERSHIPS AND PASSES this is for quick reference while planning, making reservations, or checking in and you don’t have data, a signal or your membership card handy.
YEAR-AT-A-GLANCE this is where for planning those big events for the year, or what months to be at home base or other places, such as for appointments or celebrations.
MONTH VIEW the YAG info is added to these pages along with times for specific appointments, but it is where we mark our travel plans. We also designed it to where weekends are together since this is a popular travel time or day.
RESERVATION SHEETS on these pages, list specific stay information from the reservation, such as location, price, deposit, balance due, spot number, phone number, address, check in/out times, and more. You can also rate the places to have as a reference for friends and family, or yourself for future visits. We put several in with each month, but there are extras in the back, if you need it.
THINGS TO DO LIST keep a list of places recommended or researched to do in the area of your reservation–this is a facing page to each reservation page so it stays together. This helps us with intentional travel if there is something we really want to see and don’t want to forget about, as well as ticketed attractions or reservations. We put several of these in with each month, too, but there are extras in the back, if you need it.
BUDGET SHEETS this is a great place to plan and track expenses for your travels to lessen surprises and overspending, especially for full-timers that struggle with balancing “living” and “vacation”. There’s a budget and an actual side to keep track.
CHECKLIST This is the checklist we use for our RV for setting up and departing. A checklist makes sure you don’t forget to do something, especially when you do it often. We also have a printed one we check off. If you need to customize one for you, you can find the template at our website http://www.barnesonmove.com and download it to tailor it to your needs.
MILEAGE AND MAINTENANCE These sections allow you to track your miles for each trip, as well as the maintenance you do on your vehicles. As it is varies from vehicle to vehicle, we didn’t put in specific times/mileage for the maintenance, but gave you a place to log it. Again, simplicity of one location.
NOTES This section allows you a place to add additional things you may need to track or remember, as well as extra reservation things to do pages if you need more than the monthly section has.
This book doesn’t have a page marker like a lot of day planners have, but I have found them to get knocked out or broken easily, and prefer a paper clip I move to the active month, or months I am currently planning, and it is more secure for me. I’ve been using it for several weeks and it has been so convenient to keep in my purse or backpack and have handy making appointments or talking with friends and family to connect in various areas.
If you are an active traveler with more than one trip planned at a time, this book is for you! While it is geared to RVers, it is still a helpful tool for other types of travel or camping. It is a great tool for you, or gift for other travelers in your life! I is the only planner you, or they, will need all year.
Currently, Our Travel Planner 2023 is being printed on demand through Amazon and can be purchased. We are aiming for a September release of our 2024 planner, so stay tuned for that by following our social media pages, listed below. If you are interested in a bulk order, contact us directly on our website BarnesOnMove .
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Like many travelers, we have to consider very carefully the things we decide to carry with us. Bicycles are one of those difficult to decide on things. While they can be useful, they are a lot of weight, can present transport challenges, and aren’t always easy to use everywhere you go.
For us, though, bikes have been a great choice, and have allowed us to explore new areas and save on parking and navigation headaches. When camped near or in national and state parks, we can explore and get around with ease, even enjoying bike trails that some have to offer. For big cities that are near and that we want to explore, we can load the bikes up, find public parking in a central location, and then navigate with the bikes. When staying at a theme park resort, we used it as a quick way to get to the transportation stations so we didn’t have to rent a club car or wait for the transportation within the campground. We also opted for a 2-in-1 dog stroller/bike trailer so we can take the pups along whenever possible.
If you decide that bikes are a good fit for your traveling lifestyle, be sure to do your research. Many RVs do not have a proper hitch installed, so you may need to invest in one, unless you have storage inside your RV or the back of your truck. Also, check the ratings for hitches. We had a catastrophic failure on a hitch that was rated for enough weight overall, but the adult bikes were too heavy for the individual rating and broke a strap, leaving our bike flopped and about to fall off in traffic, if not for the kindness of a stranger.
Decide what type of bikes you want to use. Electric bikes can be a great option, but also expensive. Do your research on these, especially with children, since the laws for them as an operator can be grey. Also research the areas you will be in to see what kind of bikes are allowed and if they are a bike friendly location, or if you are safer leaving them parked and choosing another option.
Finally, be sure to invest in safety gear. Helmet laws exist in many areas, and are just plain smart. Adding lights to the front and back of your bike is inexpensive and can add visibility. Side mirrors will help if you want to watch for traffic behind you. A bike chain will allow you to keep your bike secured when you leave it somewhere. Do you need a basket, water bottle holder, saddle bags? These are options to think about as well. At one point, we did invest in a bike cover, and it was great, but we found it to be cumbersome. It was too loose to cover while transporting and it was easier to park it under the cab of our 5th wheel to protect it from inclement weather.
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