How to find a place to stop?

[DonPd]

I am think of taking a trip that would take more than a day to drive. I have seen where people say to only drive till you are tired or limit the drive to a set number of miles or drive time.

Which method would be best?

OK, when it is time to stop how do you find a place. Are there books or electronic devices to locate the stops?

[mhs4771]

Only you can determine how long or far you want to drive per day. We generally try and stop long before it gets dark, hate to pull into an unknown place in the dark. There are numerous book/maps (Trailer Life Directory, etc) and phone apps to help find a place. We try and estimate how far we'll travel in a day and look for tentative places or as a last resort is the Wal Mart Parking lots.

[bw2]

We determine how far OR the amount of time we want to be on the road. Also what is the total length of the trip. Then we begin a plan for our stops, we look at a map, I like Microsoft Streets & Maps and make a determination where we will want to stop. We use M&S for camping POIs, also Trailer Life software, we are members of Passport America and user their site, and finally use the internet and search for CG in the specified area. We do not always use all of the above but as appropriate. In most trips we make this determination prior to leaving on the trip and make reservations.

[DQDick]

Whether you're an android user or a Iphone user you can go to the app section and find more apps than you can use. We use Woodall's and Trailer life apps the most, but we also have three or four more for backup.

[bigmurf]

It rains- we stop.
It blows- we stop.
I feel bad- we stop.
It gets dark- we stop.
Cat gets mad- we stop.

RETIRED

[padredw]

We have been using the Trailer Life Campground Directory (a big book) for all the 15 years we have been traveling with a fifth-wheel. We keep a copy in the trailer and the main one in the pickup. Shirley often looks up a campground while I am driving and checks, by phone, to see that they have a site for us.

I also use the Trailer Life CD (computer program) for trip planning. I have a copy on my desktop computer and on the laptops we carry on trips.

I can't imagine planning and traveling without these directories.

[BB_TX]

I guess I am too much of an advance planner. I always plan in advance how far we will travel each day and the area we plan to stop, I check campgroundreviews.com for RV parks in that area, and usually will make reservations the day before travel or the morning we leave. I like knowing that I will have a site ready when I pull in the gate.
As far as time or distance, we have traveled up to 10 hours in a day but prefer no more than 5-6. Just depends on where we are headed and how soon we want to get there.
Traveling by car we just go since there are lots of options on where to go and where to stay. But towing the trailer I like to know in advance what to expect.

[seahunter]

On the Good Sam site, you can do a trip maker like the ones you can get from AAA. You just put in your origination and your destination, and it shows a lot of information about mileage along hte way, stops, all the campgrounds, fuel locatons, Camping World locations, etc. Very handy to use.

[ranch560]

When we first started traveling, we would look at our destination and try to get there ASAP. Now we do the same but enjoy the journey much more by taking our time. We are now stopping more, driving less, feeling better when we stop for the night and simply, enjoying the RV way of traveling like we always wanted to do. We still get to our destination, but have seen and experienced much more than our earlier days.

We use the same methods everyone else uses to find a places to stay at night. We would be lost without our computer as that encompasses just about everything we need. We find we need to use a combination of resources to be fully prepared for our stops and/or campground locations.

Jim

[1retired06]

Travel time should be part of the fun, not work.

[steelpony5555]

I used to do the books and prior planning etc, but since I do so much on line now I finally broke down and got a MIFI device from Verizon. Now we bring the tablet in the truck and when I feel like stopping we have an App called We Camp. When you open it, it will show you a map and all the campgrounds near you. You pick one and it will give you all the info from the Tn # to how much a nite. If it sounds goods click on the directions and it will take you right to it. It worked our really well on our last trip. I know there are other apps out there that are simular. I have an inverter so now the wife can surf the web going down the road for something to do.

[subra1228]

For us, we prefer 200-250 hours a day when trying to get somewhere and want to get there fast. We will do 300 miles a day, but for us, that's pushing it. We'll look into free places first, such as WalMart, Cabela's or Cracker Barrel, but will also use campgroundreviews.com to find places.

Remember ~ you've got to do what works best for you, no one else.

[seahunter]

quote:Originally posted by subra1228

For us, we prefer 200-250 hours a day when trying to get somewhere and want to get there fast.

I've had days that seem that long!! Sorry, couldn't resist .

[Bill-N-Donna]

Generally we plan ahead but sometimes that isn’t always an option. We used to always keep Woodall’s & a road Atlas handy along with a cell phone. The DW would sometimes look up a place and we would call ahead. This came in especially handy on one occasion when we were towing a bumper pull with a van and had a break-down. Today with the newer GPS’s we sometimes don’t even think to bring the Woodall’s book along with us but I still like having it. I wouldn’t want to be caught without a plain old Road Atlas anytime! That is our back-up when all else fails.

[Parts Ed]

quote:Originally posted by seahunter

I've had days that seem that long!! Sorry, couldn't resist .

I was thinking the same thing Greg!!

[mhs4771]

I can honestly say, I haven't had and 200-250 hour days since I retired, when working, yea a lot of them or at least they seemed that long.

Isn't it terrible, you make one little slip and nobody cuts you any slack. LOL all in good fun

[DQDick]

[quote]Originally posted by mhs4771

I can honestly say, I haven't had and 200-250 hour days since I retired, when working, yea a lot of them or at least they seemed that long.


Some folks just get more out of life (squeezing more hours out of every day), personally I retired to try and get less out of life. A good six hour day is enough for me

[snfexpress]

We do about 4 hours a day which typically is 200 miles when in touring mode. When in scooting mode, we will do upwards of 7 hours and then Wal-dock.

[Art-n-Marge]

I have a Pioneer Nav system that has millions of POIs that we can locate on our truck's dash. We also use Trailer Life's "RV Trip Navigator" and have used MS S&T in the past. Lastly our new toy is a laptop with a 4G hotpoint (Mifi) to do internet searches. With all this compute power we have a dump cell phone so we only use that for calling ahead. We no longer use paper books, guides, etc. since this can only be done by us at a stop. DW is horrible with books and maps.

We can do all this at a stop or while enroute. Fortunately, if we are enroute DW does all the searching and dialing work, I just coach her on how to get all the information. We've been known to pull off safely somewhere so I can do all the work because DW admits that I am much faster at it, but I must be at a stop or panic will ensue.

We have found that even when planning, if something occurs enroute things might change so we must be prepared to make adjustments.

[Recumbent]

I like to stop between 3 and 4 pm and 300 and 400 miles for way-points if going long distances. The exception to this has been when going home from Topsail Hill, FL we drive 475 miles with some reservation. We do sight seeing travel based on much less distance. We use rvparkreviews for potential CGs when looking the night or week before, and have Exit Now book for rest stops, fuel, CGs etc. and Trailer Life directory book and a road atlas for paper backup. The DW uses her droid phone with apps. We make reservations if a holiday or a tourist area. If there are several CGs in the area we like to investigate the general review trends to eleminate the low end of the group. Hope this helps.