My wife and I travel the US frequently in a travel trailer. We love it and usually leave for about 1 to 2 months at a time. My two cents is a travel trailer allows for you to unhook and travel in your vehicle. There is no substitute for tow truck. We tow with a F250 diesel. I will buy a F350 next time. You will experience all kinds of weather and the truck and power will be necessary to be safe, especially in winds. Travel trailers can be expensive. They are constantly bouncing and so repairs are frequent. My wife and I love it.

Keep your home. Rent a cheap apartment near the daughter.
RV's only make sense for someone in love with that lifestyle. IMHO, you need to be a professional mechanic and handy man or extremely well off to do the RV thing.
I live in the SW. Nice RV parks will set you back as much or more than a hotel and slots can be hard to get. I have zero interest in the lifestyle.

Before you buy an RV, make sure to watch some of the videos on this YouTube channel:

https://www.youtube.com/@LizAmazing/videos

One horror story after another! Yikes

I'll second the RV life isn't for everyone. We enjoy it though.

We have traveled all over the country. In the past 2 years we've been up to the Arctic Circle, and down to Key West, doing the RV thing.

If expenses are your primary concern, RV isn't the way to go. They're expensive, RV Campgrounds are expensive, maintenance is expensive, and it seems like something is always broken. And you have to have someplace to store it.

But, for us, it's about the adventure. Packed RV parks aren't for us, so we do a lot of local, state and federal parks. Lots more space.

We've traveled coast to coast in a 5th wheel, and now have a Super C. It's the only way to go for us.

My daughter is 9, we've been doing this her whole life. She enjoys it too. At 9, she's been to 49 states. So I'd approach the grandkid life doing the RV thing. Flying sucks.

I’d recommend renting an RV first before jumping in. If you like it, then go in knowing the costs...

quote:

Originally posted by xanth:
If expenses are your primary concern, RV isn't the way to go. They're expensive, RV Campgrounds are expensive, maintenance is expensive, and it seems like something is always broken. And you have to have someplace to store it.

I’ll be 61 in a few months, my SO is ten years younger, and our kids live within an hour drive (no grandkids yet). We had been contemplating getting a class B (a Travato or similar) since my SO isn’t comfortable driving my pickup much less pulling a trailer behind it. Without winning the lottery I just can’t justify the cost. In addition to insurance, depreciation, storage, maintenance and repairs just the yearly license tab fees in MN would be over $2K. In my mind, those costs could easily be 5K to 8K per year. As much as that life appeals to me, I can rent an RV, stay in an ABNB or hotel and still come out ahead.

quote:

Originally posted by mikeyspizza:

Where can you get a "safe" 8%. CDs are 3.9-4%.

If one CD gets 4%, then two CDs would get 8%. It's just maff.

One other consideration, if your daughter lives in an HOA community, check the rule, most won't allow you to park it in the street, nor in the driveway for any amount of time.

That means an RV park, and that means you either flat tow something to drive around, or, rent a car while you are there.

So you end up with the cost of the RV, Fuel, Parking, car rental, hook up costs, and all the work that comes with keeping an RV running which is your maintaining things like draining the waste water, refilling the good water, propane, oil and filter, tires.

If you were going to live in it, tow a small SUV, and travel the USA along with stopping at the grandkids, have at it.

But for a "second home" rent one, VBRO, easy to find weekly rentals in a nice place. If they live near the ocean or gulf rent a condo by the beach and you will have them in it all week!

I voted other.

How much time will/can you spend in the RV? Is camping a lifestyle you have enjoyed in the past? Do you have 100k in cash for the investment?

Grandkids are great, but relatives are like fish, after a few days, they start to stink. How much time do the kids actually want you to spend there.

I vote drive there, rent a VRBO and stay for a long weekends once per month for the next 6 months and see how that feels and works. If your kids want you there longer than 4 days, then think about how to do more economical stays after the newness of that much time wears out.

We rented a class C for a family reunion drive several states away. Had a blast, ended up buying a used class A diesel pusher, traded up for a new same, sold and waited a year, then did what we should have done originally.. bought a lightly used Airstream 25" trailer.

Here's what we learned. 1) you will not use it as much as you think, it will sit a majority of the time, and 2) where do you intend to store it? We built a storage building, another cost. 3) buy used, there is a huge, huge mark up on RV's. Conversely, they are also heavily discounted during negotiation. Again, buy used. 4) you will need to equip the RV, there is a ton of shit you'll need to buy. 5) gas/diesel... you'll shed tears when you fill up at your first truck stop. $400-500 a tank is the norm for a class A 100gal. 6) Black/Gray water handling system. Yuck, but it's part of owning an RV. I could go on, but you get the picture. There's a lot more cost than just scratching a check to the dealer/owner and driving off.

Buy the RV, give it to your kids. They can maintain it and take turns coming to visit you.