Have you been dreaming of full-time RV travel or becoming a minimalist, but aren’t sure if you can manage living in such a small space? In June of 2014, we moved from a 2,500 square foot home to a 44′ triple axle toy hauler Fifth Wheel RV and set out on our full-time RV adventure. In March of 2019, we downsized yet again to a 30′ Fifth Wheel RV. In this article we’ll share a tour of tiny, traveling home and share some pointers for enjoying it.
WATCH THE VIDEO BELOW FOR A TOUR.
Why would you live in an RV?
We get asked this question quite often, and there are several reasons. The primary one is that after 20 years in the military we just weren’t ready to settle down in one place. Living in an RV and traveling around North America was the ideal solution. Now we relocate our home whenever the mood strikes us.
Another reason is our love of travel. We’ve always enjoyed visiting new places, but found ourselves wishing we had more time to enjoy a location. Now we can take our time along on the way, and truly get to know an area. We not only hit the highlights or “top 5 things to do” in a given area, but can experience all it has to offer. Currently we stay in each location 4 weeks on average.
Finally, we appreciate the ability to spend time with our family for extended visits. Our parents, siblings, and children are scattered around the United States in Tennessee, Georgia, North Carolina, Florida, Virginia, Texas, and Washington. Now we can take our own home with us when we go to see them. This allows us to stay longer and stay in our own place.
How can you live in such a small space?
This is another common question. Believe it or not, the RV is actually very comfortable. We realized that we didn’t use most the rooms in our large house once our boys were grown. We started out with a very large RV thinking we needed a lot of space, and ended up not using it either.
Our 30′ Fifth Wheel is just the right size for us. I especially love our rear kitchen model that gives it a more open feel. The bedroom has a queen-sized bed with nightstands on both sides. Those were really our only minimum requirements. If you’d like to see the inside of our tour, please watch the video tour at the top of the page. Click here to see the manufacturer’s specs for this RV.
Getting rid of enough “stuff” to fit in the RV was the hardest part. Although we didn’t need most of the items that were filling our home to the brim, I have a hard time of letting go of things that I may use one day. Downsizing in preparation for the move to the RV was actually very freeing. And guess what? We don’t miss any of it! Especially when there is so much to see and do on the road; who would ever trade the amazing emotional rush of the dolphin tours at Myrtle Beach for some “stuff” they never even use?
If you are struggling to downsize, check out my tips on the 3 areas that make the biggest impact.
Now, I’m not going to say there aren’t challenges. As with anything in life there are both pros and cons to it. One of our biggest struggles is with internet connectivity. We’re both working, and need reliable internet and the ability to participate in video conferencing.
Another thing I didn’t like about every RV we looked at was the interior. They were all so brown. We actually made several cosmetic changes to our toy hauler, and will likely do the same with our new RV. Although we loved the “bones” of the Fifth Wheel, we wanted to personalize it and make it ours. Click on the individual articles below for our previous remodeling efforts:
Updating Your RV Window Treatments
RV Organization & Storage Ideas
But doesn’t it cost too much money?
Full-time RV travel can be expensive, but it doesn’t have to be. After five years we created a program, Full-Time RV Finance, where we share our process for paying off $137,000 in two years, exercises for assessing your current situation and designing your dream life, an in-depth look at all the full-time RV expenses you may want to include in your budget, and ideas for making money and saving money along the way.
We’ve also written several articles detailing our financial lessons learned from living and traveling full-time in our RV. Click on the links to read each below.
How Much Does it Cost to RV Full-Time?
5 Ways to Fund Full-Time Travel
Top 7 Ways to Save Money While Traveling
How To Start a Profitable Blog
Should I Buy a New or Used RV?
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