Myths About RV Living

Back in August 2019, I gave a seminar about dispelling work from home myths, and I was approached afterwards from individuals who were looking more on how an RV life is sustainable if they’re already working remotely full-time. Having been there myself, I figured it would be best to share some common myths about RV living and how it can work out for you.

RV Living Myth 1: I’ll have to stay in crowded RV parks in order to have access to WiFi

Working remotely often requires Internet access. But there are lots of ways to get Internet access besides using RV Park WiFi.

Status: False

In fact, Rule #1 of RV WiFi is: RV Park WiFi stinks. It’s often next to worthless.

But there are many ways to obtain Internet access besides campground WiFi. Most people who work from the road use a cellular Hotspot. And if you need to be sure you’re connected, you’ll probably want more than one hotspot on different carriers.

Yes, this can get expensive if you use a lot of data, but just factor that into your budget.

If your planning to work from the road, I highly recommend you check out rvmobileinternet.com.  They have LOTS of information about how to get Internet access on the road. A lot of the information is free, and for a reasonable fee you can join and get even more information.

RV Living Myth #2: RVing Means Roughing It

While some people believe that living in an RV means life is tough, this by no means is indicative of what the RV lifestyle is like!

Status: False

Certainly, you can rough it as much as you want. Many full timers like to “boondock” or stay in areas with no power, water, or sewer hookups. But are they roughing it? Not necessarily… they may be staying in a luxurious RV or modified their RV with boondocking capabilities. With solar power and large fresh, black, and gray water tanks, they can stay out for long periods of time. So while they don’t have hookups, they may well be living quite comfortably.

Other people prefer to stay in high end RV parks (Glamping). They not only have the amenities of their RV, but also have high end amenities in the park. 

So while you can live as minimally as you want, you don’t have to rough it to live in an RV.

RV Living Myth #3: RV Living is Inexpensive

I remember listening to a podcast a while back with a guy who was talking about how much money he saves by boondocking in Mexico. He made a strong case that living in an RV is inexpensive. The real story, however, is that the RV lifestyle is what you make of it! 

Status: Depends

I know other people who own high end RVs and only stay in high end, resort-like RV parks. They spend money as much, if not more, RVing as they did in their sticks and bricks home.

So the reality is, full time RVing is as inexpensive or as expensive as you want to make it. 

RV Living Myth #4: I have to wait until I can afford my “Dream RV” to RV Full Time

While it’s tempting to wait until you can afford your “Dream RV” before you start RVing, in reality that’s not such a great idea.

Status: False

Why? Because until you’re actually RVing, you won’t really know what your dream RV is. Features you think you can’t live without turn out not to be so great. For example, most new RVers want an outdoor kitchen. But once they have it, they find out that they don’t use it nearly as much as they thought they would, and they wish they had the extra space instead.

Similarly, features you never even thought about suddenly become very important. For example, I now know that I'd like to have a curbside dinette so that when we eat, I can look at our campsite instead of our sewer connection.

Final thoughts about the myths of RV living

So there you have it: Working remotely may not be a full-time vacation, but with a little planning and boundary setting, you can make it work extremely well. So don’t let the fear of remote work hold you back. You don’t have to wait until you retire… Get out there and start living your dream!