There isn’t anything prettier than an old Airstream trailer restored to better-than-new condition.  With that fine aircraft aluminum shined to a high polish, Airstream trailers make a statement of quality that no other brand can come close to.

Of course, getting an old dull aluminum trailer to that chrome-like shiny condition isn’t going to come easy.  It takes lots of elbow grease to polish an Airstream trailer to that level, not to mention the interior enhancements.

Here is some helpful information about buying Airstream trailers and restoring Airstreams, as well as tips for enjoying a classic travel trailer such as an Airstream.

Dead along the highway... there is no worse predicament to be in.  In some cases, it could even be life-threatening. 

I’ve put in plenty of hours driving across endless desert regions in the southwest with temperatures well over 100 degrees.  Shade is a pretty scarce commodity out there, so making sure you're prepared for problems can mean the difference between inconvenience and disaster.

Of course, proper maintenance and servicing is the best way to avoid breakdowns in the first place.  Taking shortcuts and letting things go will greatly increase the possibility of something quitting on you at the most inopportune time. 

Having appliances like the refrigerator or plumbing give you problems can be annoying, but when the motor sputters to a halt and all you get is a Click, Click when you attempt to restart...  things can get serious real quick.

Your options for seeking roadside assistance vary greatly, depending on what type of RV you have.

I got to wondering -- in a perfect world -- what my next RV would be. I came up with 2 different types of recreational vehicles.

To qualify my 2 choices, I should say that I’m a hands-on kind of guy.  Fixing, adjusting, modifying to suit our needs are the norm for my wife and I.

That said, my top 2 choices for our next RV would be:

a 25-foot fifth wheel trailer

a teardrop trailer

Now, for the "why" I chose each of these RVs...

Have you been considering RV insurance for your motorhome or recreational vehicle? Or, if you already have insurance for your RV, do you know if you are really protected properly?

My Dutchmen travel trailer is insured with State Farm.  Which brand name insurance company you choose makes little difference.  But there are a few things you need to think about if you are seeking RV coverage as a full time RVer.

The fact of the matter is, all major auto insurance companies that insure your car or pickup truck will also sell you a policy to cover your motorhome, travel trailer, or fifth wheel trailer.  But what exactly are you getting when you call your friendly neighborhood insurance agent and ask to have your RV added onto your list of vehicles? 

Shiny and new would be great, but they don’t stay that way for long and the depreciation is rapid and heavy. 

A used travel trailer or 5th wheel RV can save you a large percentage from the expense of buying new, while still providing you with a good alternative. 

Maybe your budget is more in line with a small weekend sized rig, but you really want roomy and spacious so you can live full-time at least part of the year on board. 

Whether on the road, or set up on a lake lot at an RV resort, you can get more bang for your buck if you consider a used RV trailer.

If you're an RVer who happens to like camping and fishing, then few things would sound better than a weekend evening around the campfire, followed by a misty morning out on the lake to take in a little fishing. 

For those who camp in a tent, or a pickup camper, that's no problem.  The same is true if you own a motorhome...  The boat follows along behind on its trailer, and you're ready to go after that Walleye before dawn breaks on your secluded quiet little lake.  But the tent routine is something I gave up about 30 years ago, and most pickup campers are a little too confining for my style.  Suffice it to say I don't own a motorhome... yet.  So my wife and I have become accustomed to the comforts of a travel trailer.

Many states allow a boat trailer to be towed behind travel trailers and fifth wheel campers -- a two-up scenario that will accommodate some smaller boats.  You still have to be within specified total length limits and you can absolutely forget about backing up such a combination.  But for some, this is the perfect answer to the “How do I bring the boat?“ question.

However, there are still some states that restrict the "second trailer boat hauling method" to fifth wheel trailers only. And some don‘t allow it at all.  This leaves those with travel trailers out of the water in states like Minnesota, Michigan, and a few others. 

No problem, a rack on the back of your pickup truck will provide the ability to carry a car top boat.  Great, we’ve covered everything.  Now we can go fishing.

Here in Minnesota, RV season is officially underway. Finally the snow is gone, the trees are leafing out nicely, and the spring air is starting to warm up.  The time has come to unveil the travel trailer for yet another season of RVing. 

If you prepared your RV properly last fall at the end of the RV season, then it’s probably covered with one of those big blue plastic tarps, at the very least. Or, you might have a quality RV cover instead.

I keep our 24-foot Dutchman RV trailer stored in a fenced storage facility.  Unfortunately, I don’t have a garage to keep it in, so mine gets the blue tarp treatment.  Minnesota summers are short, so it spends more of the year protected by the tarp then it does in a state of readiness for the road.

Here's how I prepare our RV each year for a summer of fun on the road...

RVing is exploding as both a family-oriented activity and a way of life for couples or even single individuals who want to travel and see everything this great country of ours has to offer.

When shopping for a new RV, there are lots of choices! For example, there are different types, classes and manufacturers of recreational vehicles to choose from. So many, in fact, that it can easily lead to a sense of confusion when it comes to trying to determine which RV will best fulfill your needs.

Following are some questions you'll want to ask yourself, along with a list of the pro's and con's for each of the different styles of recreational vehicles on the market today. This will definitely be helpful if you're in the market for a new or used RV.

My wife and I made the decision to hit the road as full time RVers with little more preparation than a few years worth of subscriptions to Trailer Life magazine.

We sold the house, the car, and a lot of junk. Then, we packed the rest into a small motorhome and thought we were ready. 

Well, we made some mistakes along the way. Hopefully the following tips will help you avoid some of the pitfalls that we fell victim to during our first year of fulltime RVing -- some of which can break the bank!

The last time you went looking at new RV's at the dealer’s lot, did you ever wonder just how all those new rigs get from the factory to the dealer?  Transporters, thousands of men and women, actually drive or tow new motorhomes and trailers across the country from their point of manufacture to the dealers who sell them.

Fleetwood, Country Coach, no matter the brand, they all must be driven or pulled from the factory to the dealership. 

I worked for an RV transport company in Tucson for about 6 months. During that time, I transported everything from small travel trailers to $400,000 luxury motorhomes all over the country for hire.

Here are some interesting things I've learned firsthand about the business of transporting RVs...

There really is no rule on what the right RV is for fulltime living.

Deciding which RV is right for you may be easier if you think of it as buying a HOME instead of thinking of it as buying an RV. After all, if you're going to be a fulltime RVer, your RV will be a home.

Our article about towing a Jeep Wrangler behind an RV has been so popular, I figured there are lots of other questions that RV owners might have about towing, as well.

So what follows are all the best resources I could find regarding towing with a motorhome.

There are a number of good resources for RV checklists out there.

I've spent some time researching them and I've compiled "the best of the best" below.

Need an RV checklist? Start here...

We are currently in search of an RV to call our own.

We've been fortunate to be able to drive several different makes & models of motorhomes -- many of them for long distances, even cross country!

Here's a running list of the RVs, motorhomes and toterhomes that we've driven to date...

Who says you have to buy an RV or motorhome in order to be an RVer? ...even a full-time RVer!

There IS another option: Sign up to deliver RVs with an official RV transporter!

When Ken [Murray] learned about commercial RV transporting companies, he realized then that his dreams of full-timing could come true. Ken sold his house, and last May he moved into his present RV, a 38 foot fifth wheel trailer with a slide out. He contacted two different RV transport companies, Hinkley RV Transport and Horizon Transport, and says both were more than happy to work with him. Both companies have some 200 drivers nationwide, and while they usually deliver new RVs, when Ken wants to move he calls their dispatcher and they have a driver hook onto his trailer and move him to a new park."
-- Gypsy Journal

Heck, depending on the company (and their requirements), you may not even need to have much RV experience at all! And transporting an RV could even be more exciting than renting one!

I first saw the picture at the right on Ralph Savelsberg's MOCpages when I was surfing for fun RV stuff the other day. I thought it was so unique, that I wanted to share this fun idea with fellow RV enthusiasts.

Then, I did a bit more research and found even more motorhomes made from Legos.

Whether you intend to eventually buy an RV at some point or not, renting an RV is always good idea (...and a FUN one, too).

It might also be the best course of action before you purchase a motorhome of your own.

If you plan to use your RV the typical number of days per year (27), and you purchase your 3-year-old RV on credit, you will pay a premium of $200 more per day for the privilege of ownership versus renting! To make ownership financially worthwhile you need to use your RV about 40 days per year if you buy the RV outright or about 50 days per year if you buy the RV on credit. On the other hand for those who live full-time in their RV the costs per day can be well under $100."

-- "Rent vs Buy" by Dave Neale (May, 2006)