We've noticed there's a huge bait and switch happening out there right now and you don't
want to fall for it now if you scroll through Instagram Facebook or other social media platforms
you're going to see thousands if not hundreds of thousands of photos and videos of those
living the RV or van life and these people are posting pictures of beautiful scenery
and amazing campsites but RV life is not always rainbows and unicorns and Lakefront campgrounds
so before you jump into full-time RV living there are some things you absolutely need to know to be
able to navigate this lifestyle successfully so you're going to want to stay tuned for this one
now before we jump in if you're new here my name is charity and I've been traveling the
US with my family in our RV for five years now and we have learned a ton along the way now we
started this channel to really be a resource not only for the RV Community but also for those who
are just wanting a simpler way of life so on this channel we share all things small living RV living
tips tricks we share both the good in the bad but solutions to make small living more stress-free so
if that's something that you're interested in be sure to hit that subscribe button to be able to
see some more of the great resources that we have for you right here on this channel now let me just
preface what I'm about to share RV life does offer a sense of adventure and freedom and we personally
have zero regrets about living the RV lifestyle but it comes with its fair share of challenges
and some really big struggles so let me just share some of the most common struggles that not only we
have faced but the majority of full-time rvers face once that they're on the road so struggle
number one really is maintenance and repairs now RVs require regular maintenance and are very prone
to breakdowns in fact we had somebody once tell us that if you're not fixing it you're polishing
it and if you're not polishing it you're fixing it so this really leads to unexpected repairs which
can actually get quite costly and disrupt travel plans we've even actually lost reservations in the
Grand Tetons because of a breakdown and we haven't been able to get reservations there again since so
you just have to know ebb and flow with some of those disruptions that can happen if a breakdown
occurs now struggle number two is just limited space now RVs have limited living space I mean
our RV is about 300 square feet with the slides out which just means downsizing and adapting to
a more smaller and minimalist lifestyle now this can really be a challenge especially for those
that are used to maybe a larger home or for those that might have a large collection of something
maybe tools or antique cars or you have to let us know maybe what are things that you've seen people
collect or maybe you collect yourself but the vast majority of full-time rvers end up renting
some sort of storage unit to be able to store those types of things while they're on the road
so that can be a challenge now Challenge number three struggle number three whatever you want to
call it is something that we've run into multiple times and that is weather related challenges now
full-time RVers have to contend with a lot of weather conditions things like extreme
heat like when we were in Arkansas this summer it was over 100 degrees every day that we were
there and then you have things like hurricanes that can happen or high winds tornadoes hail RVs
are not small houses on wheels they're RVs and weather can damage an RV more quickly than it
can say a house so when you're a full-time rver you just have to really be aware of what's going
on and keep your eye on the weather because you may need to be able to move to safer ground now
before I jump into some of the other struggles of this lifestyle that not only we've had but
many full-time rvers end up facing I do want to take a minute to share about something that has
made this lifestyle a little bit easier for us now one thing that was a huge struggle when we
first got started with RV living was getting a good night's sleep because for some reason
then the Factory mattresses the RVs come with we've just found are not comfortable whatsoever
and I know we've had many of you Echo that same sentiment so this is why one of the first upgrades
many rvers including ourselves make is getting a new mattress and we have the Aurora Luxe hybrid
mattress from rvmattress.com and let me tell you it's been great having a mattress that has all
of the Comforts of home because let's face it this RV is our home for a very good portion of the year
now the process to have it shipped to us and then get it into the RV was super simple because the
mattresses come rolled up in a box and wrapped in plastic I mean I can't even imagine what it would
look like trying to fight a full-size mattress through the door so when our mattress arrived
we brought it into the RV unwrapped it and it quickly expanded it was ready to sleep on now
we realize many of you might be a part-time rver and maybe you're not full-time so what about maybe
when you're not on the road one of the things we realized is we were actually sleeping much
better in our RV then when we would come back to the glamper Hideaway way which is like our
home base slash vacation rental Lots on that so we went with brooklynbedding.com which is
RV mattresses parent company to get another mattress for the Glamper Hideaway and then we
just went ahead and upgraded all of the mattresses at The Hideaway to Brooklyn Bedding so when we're
hosting our guests we know that they're getting a restful night's sleep as well one of the things
we love about RV mattress is that they do have a factory in Arizona they ship for free and they
come with a 10-year warranty so we are set for a very long time and because we want this channel
to be a resource for the RV Community we have partnered with RV mattress.com for 25 off for
our viewers you can learn more at rvmattress.com forward slash grateful or visit the link in the
description below and a huge thanks to RV mattress for sponsoring this video and their continued
support of our Channel now struggle number four our financial considerations now this can be
huge because why rving can be cost effective in some ways it still involves a lot of expenses
such as Campground fees fuel hello diesel prices Insurance maintenance tires all of these things in
managing finances on the road when your full-time reviewer can be challenging especially if you are
not working from the road or have a consistent source of income whether you're traveling now
struggle number five is just really loneliness and social isolation now constantly moving can really
make it difficult to maintain a stable social network and many full-time rvers struggle with
loneliness and isolation especially if they're introverted because let's just face it it's easy
to like be in your RV and never come out and talk to anybody and that can just make it difficult to
make new friends plus we have found finding your people when on the road can sometimes be difficult
now thankfully we really feel like we have found our tribe and we have found our community but it
took us a couple of years to get there so that's a struggle for sure now struggle number six is
health care and insurance we always get a ton ton of questions about this particular topic and
accessing health care and maintaining insurance coverage can be complex for full-time RVers that
are traveling around the country navigating different Health Care Systems and different
states and finding Health Care Providers on the road that maybe are in network at a network it's
like a whole complex maze in and of itself so it's definitely a challenge and this is
where we decided to use a health sharing plan versus traditional health insurance because it
just made it easier for us while we're traveling to just be able to go wherever we need to if we
need medical care now struggle number seven is internet connectivity and let me tell you this
is a big one like probably one of the biggest struggles with full-time RV life and that is
finding reliable internet access which is crucial for many of full-timers because a lot of us are
working remotely and even if you're not working remotely you want to be able to stay connected
with friends and family and at least check that occasional email but finding that reliable and
fast internet connection is especially in more remote areas that can definitely be a struggle so
I'm going to put a video right up here on what we finally did for internet after nearly four
years of struggling with connectivity this is the ultimate internet setup and we are so happy that
we got that done now struggle number eight can be finding campsites now securing campsites can be a
constant struggle especially during Peak Travel Seasons especially during peak season say winter
in the southern areas of the country because these popular campgrounds get fully booked and a lot of
that just forces those that are full timing to just kind of have to adapt their plans on short
notice and this is where we love using a service like RV to help us out with securing campsites
when we need to now number nine this is a huge struggle personal pet peeve of mine is just being
a responsible Steward of our environment now being conscious of your environmental impact
when rving can be challenging because things like properly disposing of waste when you're
boondocking conserving resources like water all of this can be a struggle and let me just
tell you how personally annoyed I am with the lack of recycling on the road and in campgrounds like
I personally have packed out our aluminum and our glass plastic bottles more times than I can
count because I just didn't feel like right about throwing glass in a dumpster versus a recycling
bin it'd be nice if there was some more recycling options for full-time rvers let me tell you now
struggle number 10 is just residency in domicile issues full-time rvers have to navigate different
states and local regulations including residency requirements vehicle registration and Campground
rules can actually even play into that bearing by state too so staying up to date with all of these
regulations changes in the laws can definitely be a struggle now number 11 is relationship strain
and living in a small space with your spouse or family members can definitely put a strain on
relationships and we have found this out firsthand and we recently just had to take a step back and
reassess all of the strain that rving put onto our marriage and our family and then Implement
some changes in how we live this lifestyle to reprioritize our marriage and our family
so that we can keep living this RV life that we really love now struggle number 12 is just the
emotional toll and some stress factors that come along with this lifestyle now the constant change
and just you're always uncertain right here's one thing that I always think of my favorite grocery
store right in the hometown you know right where everything is you know where the milk is you know
where the eggs are you know where the bread is you're just used to going in and finding it and
when you're in a new town all the time like just little things like that can really just start to
be like mentally taxing because you're having to use this mental energy to navigate and to cope
with something and let's not even talk about like mail delivery package delivery Financial concerns
just maybe not having a permanent home or a soft place to land many of us are in covid found this
out firsthand and and that's why a lot of our viewers that choose to live this lifestyle for
more than a few years do end up with some sort of home base whether that's a piece of land that
they come back to park on or Sticks and Bricks house that can be rented out when it's not in use
because it is really emotionally taxing feeling like that you don't have a place to go if you need
to stop for any reason at all now despite these challenges the RV lifestyle can be incredibly
rewarding and it does offer the opportunity to explore new places meet new people and really
just live life on your own terms but if you want to be successful in this lifestyle plan ahead have
a safety net consider a home base if you plan to be on the road for more than a few years and even
with all of this many still come off the road in fact many people are leaving the RV life right
now for some pretty surprising Reasons I'm going to leave a video about that right up here if we
don't see you out on the road or around the campground we'll catch you in the next video