Much of the fun of RV travel is in the planning. Enjoy the process. But don't overplan. The greatest thing about motorhome travel is the flexibility it gives you. Please leave room for the road itself to speak to you. With an RV you can go where you want when you want, at a moment's notice. You have more than door-to-door capability; you are a holiday home on wheels. You can toss in virtually as much luggage as you like — unpack it only once — and transport it all to the middle of nowhere, without having to use any nasty bathrooms along the way. (Special tip: Use collapsible luggage, i.e. softsided bags, that can be stored in the RV easily and without taking up much space.) Essentially with RV travel you have no downtime — unless you want to take a nap (buckled in your seat, please) while your partner drives. What's more you can cook your own meals, using local ingredients.
This is all great for families with children. The kids have the security of their "own" bed every night, and they have a private bathroom whenever they need it. With all the extra space, they are able to play or nap more comfortably while on the road (but again, always buckled in their seat while the camper is moving). There's little of the claustrophobia that haunts long family car rides. The kiddos get food that is healthy if not altogether familiar. And at bedtime you can tuck them safely in and then socialize with adults, which would not really be possible in a hotel.
Plus, consider an RV is a self-contained unit which is yours for the length of your trip. The RV will be delivered to you hygienically clean. After that, the germs are your germs. The toilet your toilet. The kitchen your kitchen. The dining table your dining table. And of course when camping you are probably safer than you are in a city.
As for where to travel, we suggest our clients do not plan to rely solely on any one guide nor even on any collection of such guides (whether they be in book form, software form, or online) to plan their trip. Such a guide — especially if it is provided free of charge by the rental company or another entity — should not be considered suitably thorough and up to date, although in many cases they are very useful. Even if a rental company's policy is to provide such guide with every rental RV, they occasionally run out of supply because too many clients lose or abscond with the guide, or for other reasons beyond the rental company's control.
We therefore propose two rules of three. First rule of three: Use at least two published guides, and rely on your own on-the-ground research (e.g. following local signage, asking local people, and so forth) to complete the picture. Second rule of three: Rely chiefly on your instincts, secondarily on word of mouth (especially from locals), and thirdly on guidebooks.
Market forces usually take care of the rest because they result in campground and hotel locations per the general demand and thus near where you are most likely to desire such location.
So many well-marked campgrounds dot the European landscape, for instance, that finding them is usually a no-brainer. Look for the international camping sign: either a "C" with a tent superimposed or else a stylized trailer. Greece, however, denotes campgrounds with a sign reading "EOT." And if you find a campground labeled "FKK" or "Frei Körper Kultur" (literally translated, free body culture), know you've found a clothing-optional campground. More generally speaking, however, Europeans view camping as being cheap, socially oriented accommodation rather than the rugged, back-to-nature experience that North Americans tend to picture. As such, organized campgrounds in Europe are good places to meet the middle class sector of European society, a somewhat different crowd than you'll find in hotels or hostels. Europeans RVers tend to spend more time outside their RV than do North American RVers, and as such you will tend to meet more people in a campground there than you will in a campground (RV park) in the USA or Canada.
The major European cities, too, harbor popular campgrounds. For instance, Thalkirchen campground on the Isar River just twenty minutes outside Munich is a wonderful spot, bordered by the river and within a forest and boasting cafes and bars and an international clientele. Most budget guidebooks describe the best campgrounds in and around the bigger cities or otherwise-popular spots. In fact, nearly every town in Europe is graced with a few RV friendly campgrounds. If you plan to do lots of camping, however, a special guide is worth its price. Many of the tourist offices will send you detailed information about campgrounds. Consider this snippet from Mike and Terri Church's Travelers Guide to European Camping:
Campgrounds are also used by Europeans as destinations for extended vacation visits. Many Europeans get a month off during the summer, usually in July or August, and they flock to the seacoast and to sunny southern locations. The vacation campgrounds that they use are a little more like what we Americans are accustomed to. They are located near beautiful natural areas or places with great weather. Places like the Alps, the Mediterranean coastline, or southern Portugal. Even in these places, though, the campgrounds tend to be privately owned and provide more in the way of facilities and entertainment than we are accustomed to. Best of all, campgrounds are never crowded except in July and August, the rest of the year most places aren't even half full.
By the way, Europe in general is on a much higher latitude than the USA; as such, the summer sun sets much later there.
Camp primarily at designated campsites. Try to research campsites in advance and arrive early so you have time to set up before your neighbors go to bed. But again, don't overplan. Maintain flexibility.
Camping on private property without permission is usually illegal and can be dangerous. However, several great resources have recently emerged to connect landowners, B&B owners, even just home owners, with RVers looking for a place to park and "camp" for a night or two:
Camping in public areas, on the roadside, etc, can be illegal or dangerous or both. Many RV travelers do spend the night in the parking lots of tourist attractions — under the pretense that they're waiting to get in early — or, say, in the parking lots of supermarkets (Walmart is a common haunt of domestic RVers in the USA) or marinas, churches, truck stops, or casinos. Even more popular in Europe are the rest stops along expressways. Many of those European rest stops are designed to facilitate overnight RV stays. In the USA, don't sleep overnight in a rest area (lay-by) — the police will likely knock you awake at 5:00 am or so.
The best value in the USA are the campsites operated by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM); they are more numerous, remote, inexpensive (e.g. USD 16 per night), and are far less occupied than are private, State and National Park campgrounds. Payment for BLM sites is typically on a sort of honor system by cash, check, or credit card form. The BLM campgrounds are "developed", meaning toilets and water and perhaps electric hook-up and dumping are available. Many BLM campgrounds are on first come, first served basis; however, some campgrounds take reservations through recreation.gov. In contrast, dispersed camping, i.e. away from developed recreation facilities, is free of charge and is allowed as long as it does not conflict with other authorized uses or in areas posted "closed to camping", or in some way adversely affects wildlife species or natural resources. Dispersed camping is typically allowed on public land for a period not to exceed 14 days within a 28 consecutive day period. Campsites, cabins and fire lookouts on US Forest Service (USFS) lands can as well be booked through recreation.gov but no earlier than six months in advance.
A popular subscription app for booking all sorts of campsites in the USA and Canada is The Dyrt.
If you're still looking for a campground rather late into an evening, try a truck stop or casino or get off the freeway and cruise along a two-lane highway until you find a little campground (they usually have room) or a church lot. Campgrounds at major attractions (e.g. the Grand Canyon) may have an overflow lot or another solution for late arrivals. And remember: cancellations occur every day, even at the most popular campgrounds. (Nothing ventured, nothing gained.) For RV travel in the USA and Canada, we suggest you keep to a minimum the number of campsites you book, using perhaps less than a handful of such bookings at the most popular RV parks (e.g. Yosemite National Park) as the linchpins of your itinerary.
Remember too, just because you're traveling by RV you don't need to spend every night camping. You can indulge in a sprinkling of hotels. You can sample a hostel or two, many of which welcome RV's. You can incorporate train and bus and moped and especially bicycle travel into your trip. Hey, you can put the movie Planes, Trains and Automobiles to shame — and we encourage you to do so.
Camping, of course, is a money saver. Discreet free-camping in an RV — alias dispersed camping, dry camping, wild camping, boondocking — although explicitly prohibited in certain countries is tolerated almost everywhere in Europe. Sweden officially sanctions free-camping, and Norway and Finland tolerate it in principle. The people of those countries consider free-camping a right: everyman's right (Allmansratten), they call it. To properly exercise that right, as it were, a person camps on unfenced and uncultivated land, at least 150 meters (just over 150 yards) away from any dwelling, stays no more than two nights, and cleans up after himself or herself. (Please note, however, Allmansratten per se, technically speaking, does not apply to RV's.)
When not in Scandinavia, you could take your chances and free-camp unannounced in some discreet spot or, if you are intent on free-camping, you could do the right thing by asking permission of the land owner. If you choose the second option, chances are your host will engage you in a fascinating conversation and, if you're lucky, invite you to dinner. Of course you can sleep in your vehicle if you like.
Again though, for the sake of safety, we recommend you do not free-camp.
European RV campgrounds usually itemize fees — charging for each person, tent, vehicle and trailer. Campgrounds in Europe are rated on a four-star scale; and apart from the basics, four-star operations are likely to provide several of the following: laundromat, grocery store, restaurant, bar, disco, swimming pool, water slide, sauna, tennis courts, fitness facilities, miniature golf course, horseback riding, a library, and a playground. Absolutely great for kids! Many campgrounds also offer mobile homes or bungalows for rent. Unless you plan to rent one of these, don't worry about reservations: European campgrounds are never "full"; the operators will pack you in if need be. Individual campsites are typically not delineated. But beware that most campgrounds lock the gate for the night at about 22:00 (10:00 pm) and for lunch from noon to 14:00 (2:00 pm). Also, most campgrounds in Europe do not provide picnic tables, and, sad to say, they disallow campfires. Though the toilets can be perplexing, we'd rather let you discover their wonders for yourself than force you to suffer through a description here. As for the showers, expect all varieties; and if using one that's token operated, make sure you know how much time a token gives you.
Most European motorhomes have chemical toilets with detachable cassettes designed to be emptied in special receptacles — called "Chem WC" units — installed at most campgrounds, or into a regular toilet. Because large, heavy, irremovable holding tanks (i.e. blackwater tanks) and the corresponding flush toilets are not so common on European motorhomes, many campgrounds in Europe don't have a North American-type dumping station. Campgrounds or other camping facilities in Europe that do have such a facility are denoted by the trailer pictogram and/or the words "Entsorgungskanal" (German), "scarigare" (Italian), or "vidoir" (French). The German auto club ADAC publishes and distributes — free of charge to members of affiliated clubs — a list and map of such dumping stations. For a charge, some campgrounds will allow you to dump without staying overnight. Don't dump these tanks by a highway or in a field — this is highly illegal. If you must, visit a municipal sewage treatment plant to do the job.
Most campgrounds provide central drinking-water taps with a hose connected so motorhomers can fill their tank.
Most European motorhomes are wired with 10 ampere circuits that, given the 230 Volt standard, might allow you to use up to 2300 Watts (that's 10 x 220) of power at any one time. Note, however, that at 230 V or so you need about half the amperage that you need at about 120 V to result in the same power (Watts). A 1000 Watt hair dryer requires only about 4.5 amps in Europe whereas in the USA it requries about 8 amps. Some campgrounds offer a meter at each site, charge you to hook up, and then charge per kilowatt-hour. Others impose an inclusive charge. Since you may have to park quite a distance from a socket, a 25 meter connecting cord (the longer the better) designed for outdoor use is helpful.
You should tell us in advance, and the rental depot on pick-up day, all the countries you plan to visit and if you plan to use the RV for a purpose other than your own tourism or for a special purpose such as to support a business operation you own or are employed by or are affiliated with, to transport merchandise or professional supplies, to film a movie, to attend a rally or a multi-day festival (e.g. the Burning Man festival), etc.
Motorhomes rented via Motorvana can be taken by ferry or the Channel Tunnel to/from England and Ireland from/to continental Europe. Of course the motorhome's steering wheel will be on the left side of continental-Europe-based RV's and on the right side of the UK-based RV's. Though it is perfectly legal to drive such European campervan or motorhome on the other side of the road, as it were, the driver will typically not be able to see around immediately preceding vehicles well enough to overtake those vehicles and will therefore in this respect have to rely on the eyes of a trusted passenger.
If you do plan to take your rental campervan or motorhome on a ferry, you should contact the ferry company in advance to be sure you bring all the vehicle documents required to board. Upon the RV rental pick-up occasion, make sure you have those documents.
Special tip: If planning a long ferry ride with a RV, remember it is not possible to run the refrigerator while aboard the ferry, where the RV engine and propane tanks or bottles must be turned off and where electricity is not provided.
France, Italy, Portugal and Spain have extensive toll road systems on their expressways whereas Belgium, Germany, Denmark and the Netherlands do not. For details on all the various road toll systems and instances in Europe, please see www.theaa.com/european-breakdown-cover/driving-in-europe.
The following countries in Europe require that vehicles using certain of the nation's roads bear a special one-off road tax sticker or vignette: Austria, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Hungary, Latvia, Moldova, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Switzerland. Switzerland requires such vignette on its expressways. You can buy the Swiss vignette for 40 SwF at Swiss National Tourist offices, Swiss Customs posts (the border), Swiss post offices, or Swiss garages. (However, check whether your rental vehicle already has a valid vignette on it from a previous renter, in which case you don't need another vignette.) At the border you can pay in SwF, EUR, £'s and USD. You can also pay inside the Customs office onsite by credit card. The vignette is valid until the end of the January of the year after you buy it, is non transferable, and should be thoroughly affixed to the windshield. If you buy it from the person stationed for this purpose outside the office (who accepts only cash), they will insist on affixing the sticker. If you buy inside the office you can affix the sticker yourself. If your vehicle doesn't bear a properly affixed vignette and the Swiss police catch you driving on an expressway, you'll be subject to a 100 SwF fine — on top of the vignette's cost. Expressways offer the only hope for speedy and level motor travel through mountainous Switzerland. Still, it's not absolutely necessary to use the expressways there. You have to ask yourself this: Why do I want to travel quickly and horizontally through Switzerland? Carefully study your map to determine if you want a vignette. See Wikipedia's Vignette page for more about such vignettes and road taxes.
If your RV's total permissible weight (i.e. basically its unladen weight) is over 3.5 tons (i.e. 3500 kg, which corresponds to a pretty large European motorhome), you must buy a "GO-Box" rather than a simple vignette to travel the tollways of Austria. A white box about the size of your palm, the GO-box should be affixed to the inside of the windscreen. The device logs the tollway distance traveled by the vehicle. (Electrical control points are located along the tollway and are queried by overhead DSRC microwave radio transceivers at different locations. Overhead 3-D infrared laser scanners detect and photograph vehicles travelling without the GO-Box.) A GO-Box initially costs EUR55. These devices are sold at most fuel stations on major roads approaching Austria. (In Germany, look for signs reading "GO Vertrieb.") The initial EUR55 is reduced each time the vehicle passes a tollway control point. As the credit gets low, the GO-box emits certain warning signals. You can recharge the GO-Box in EUR50 increments only. The fine for traveling said expressways without a charged Go-Box is EUR220. For more information, visit www.go-maut.at.
For further resources about RV travel, please see our relevant Resources page, which features heaps of useful info, including links to websites that specialize in RV campground bookings:
Apples to apples. That's how you want to compare RV rental offerings and that's what we facilitate.
Where there are variations between RV rental company policies, prices, inclusions, options, reputations, vehicle age, quality, or specs, our More Info pages — click the More Info button below a vehicle in our Search results — in combination with our online order software and our Customer Reviews, will make those clear to you.
Indeed great variations exist between RV rental companies in terms of inclusions, optional extras and specials. Our software smooths out those differences.
Initially, you should Add Options to at least one most suitable motorhome from each rental company we represent, Saving each such configuration and thus returning to the initial Search results. Those particular rentals will be highlighted in the Search results and their total price will now reflect all the options you chose, yet each will remain in its initial position in the Search results matrix.
Click the More Info button of those highlighted rentals to learn all the details.
You can then Book the rental that's the best value for you.
If unlimited miles/kilometers are not included in the base rates, our software asks you upon the Add Options step to enter your expected driving distance. The software then determines the optimal pre-purchase mileage package for you — considering any free miles or including unlimited miles if the rental company offers them and if they are indeed the best deal for you. To force the software to select any available unlimited miles option, you can enter an especially high number for your expected driving distance. If a supplier does offer unlimited miles, that fact is noted in the text associated with the expected driving distance entry field.
Regarding specials, we keep it simple. As noted above, we just ask you to select the options you want, à la carte. Our software does the rest, selecting the combination of specials, inclusive packages, and miles/kilometers packages that represents the best value for you.
For a unique, customer-centric view onto the various RV rental companies, please see our Customer Reviews. Our customers post their reviews directly to our website, unedited by us. That makes our Customer Reviews unique in the RV rental industry, and it demonstrates how much confidence we have in the RV rentals we represent and how we represent them.
Why so many optional extras and why aren't they just included in the price?
It's because RV's are put to so many different uses by so many different sorts of customers.
RV rental customers are either local to the rental depot, and thus can show up with their own bedding and towels and favorite kitchen wares and such, or they are traveling from a great distance. Some customers use the RV for football weekends, some for temporary housing (and thus almost zero driving, zero miles/kilometres), some for the trip of a lifetime. Movie studios use motorhome rentals to support movie shoots. And business travel is increasingly conducted using motorhomes.
In Europe, Australia, and New Zealand, it is common for unlimited kilometres to be included in the rental price.
In the United States and Canada, on the other hand, miles or kilometres are sold separately in terms of prepaid chunks, per-day amounts, or unlimited miles or kilometres. Sometimes a certain amount of free miles are included. Any miles or kilometres driven beyond the pre-purchased and/or free miles number are charged at a higher cost upon the return occasion. So, how to choose the correct number of pre-paid miles or kilometres or whether to purchase unlimited miles/kilometres? Simple. Our software does it for you. During the optional extras selection step just input your approximate expected driving distance and our software will compute and select for you your optimal pre-paid mileage or kilometres solution. This is a huge opportunity for you to save money on your RV rental. Moreover, if any kind of miles or kilometres special (e.g. a certain number of free miles) applies to your rental parameters, our software will apply that special for you.
Note: After the pick-up occasion there is never a refund for unused prepurchased miles or kilometres.
In many cases the RV rental company offers an inclusive package that bundles together a set of optional extras — perhaps including some free miles or unlimited miles or unlimited kilometres — for one relatively low price. Again, don't worry about those packages. Just select à la carte the options you want and our software will apply an inclusive package if such is available and if such package indeed gives you a lower price than actually paying for the options à la carte.
Similarly, RV rental companies often offer specials that involve optional extras. Such specials can be complicated and hard for customers to understand. Again, our software is carefully programmed and maintained to automatically apply any specials that benefit you.
We think our software is unique in terms helping our customers optimize their RV rental and minimize their costs in these important respects. Our aim is to provide you with the best value and to increase our sales as a result.
Nearly all RV rental companies include insurance which involves a very considerable deductible (i.e. an excess). Many RV rental companies do offer an optional waiver or two by which the customer can effectively reduce the deductible, perhaps all the way to zero. Note in this respect: the cover which credit cards typically extend to car rentals when the customer uses the card to pay for the rental does not extend to RV rentals, this because RVs (like sports cars, etc) are considered specialty vehicles that are excluded from such credit card cover.
In the USA one way RV rentals are super popular. All the major USA motorhome rental companies we represent support all the one way itineraries that are possible between the rental depots they operate (e.g. Los Angeles to New York, Las Vegas to Orlando, San Francisco to Las Vegas, San Francisco to Boston, etc). What's more, the rental companies' one way fees are reasonable — and in many cases during the spring or autumn travel seasons the one way fees are waived as part of a special. Our online reservation software accounts for all such one way motorhome hire specials.
In Canada one way RV rental is popular between Vancouver and Calgary. Canada cross country one way RV rentals are not as well supported as one ways within Western Canada or Eastern Canada (e.g. between Toronto and Halifax or Montreal) Again, one way fees are reasonable in Canada, and oftentimes during spring or autumn travel seasons the one way fees are waived as part of a special which our software of course accounts for.
In the UK one way motorhome hire is popular between London and Glasgow or Edinburgh, Scotland. It is also possible to go one way between England and Ireland or Scotland and Ireland.
In Ireland one way campervan hire is possible between Dublin, Shannon, Kerry, Cork and Limerick.
In Scandinavia one way camper hire is common in Norway between Oslo, Bergen, Trondheim and Tromso in the Artic Circle, but is also possible between Norway, Sweden and Finland.
On the continent of Europe one way motorhome rental is less common but is increasing and has established itself in France and Italy.
One ways are not so common in Europe because the European geography lends itself more to circular routes, and because the more fractured geopolitical/economic landscape there makes one ways more problematic and costly. A lot of RV rental customers choose to pick-up and return their RV rental in Germany because RV rentals there are considerably less expensive than anywhere else in Europe. Indeed, you should strongly consider starting and ending your RV tour of Europe in Germany — even if the bulk of your holiday lies elsewhere in Europe. Germany lends its outstanding RV's, its central European location, and its leading international airport at Frankfurt to motorhome hire tours of the more extended parts of Europe, including Scandinavia, Spain and Portugal, Italy, Greece, Eastern Europe, and the United Kingdom (UK). The rental motorhomes and campervans can indeed be taken between continental Europe and Scandinavia (now much more accessible, via a bridge between Denmark and Sweden) and by sea or land to Greece or the UK or Ireland.
An RV rental is more akin to a vacation home rental than to a car rental or a hotel stay. The RV rental business is seasonal. Availability can dry up relatively early for peak seasons and even for shoulder seasons.
In these days of COVID-19 consider a campervan or motorhome or truck camper is a self-contained living space which is all yours for the duration of your trip. The vehicle will be delivered to you hygienically clean. After that, the germs are pretty much your germs. The toilet is your toilet. The kitchen is your kitchen. The dining table is your dining table. And of course when camping in the great outdoors, you are probably far safer than when living your normal life.
Book early if you can. As with vacation home rentals, availability is a big issue. Yet of course availability can always open up due to rental cancellations or due to additions to the rental fleets.
The RV rental industry worldwide is predicated on turnover. The companies buy or lease brand new vehicles, rent them for a travel season or two (albeit sometimes more), and then sell them in the autumn. The cycle begins anew each winter or spring. Many of our customers receive RVs that are brand spanking new. Some companies do hold on to rental vehicles for several travel seasons, or buy used vehicles and rent those; but such cases are far from the norm and we specifically point them out on our More Info pages per vehicle< — presented after you enter your pick-up and return dates and location or locations.
The motorhome rental agreement is a contract between you the rental client (i.e. the renter, the client, the customer, the tenant) and the vendor (i.e. the rental company, the supplier) and of course involves the customer in certain responsibilities relative to the vehicle. These responsibilities are analogous but far from identical to those typically associated with a car rental. Motorhome rental customers typically bear more such responsibilities than do car rental customers. As a seasonal industry — and one far smaller industry than the car rental industry — the nature of the motorhome rental industry is such that replacement motorhomes are usually not guaranteed (although in many cases a replacement motorhome can be be effected). Instead timely service of the rental motorhome is guaranteed, along perhaps with replacement car rental and hotel nights and such. The terms in this regard depend entirely on the vendor.
Likewise the motorhome hire companies try hard to provide the particular model or layout requested or booked, but they cannot absolutely guarantee a certain model or layout. This policy is a motorhome rental industry standard chiefly because a specific vehicle reserved for you may be involved in an accident or may seriously malfunction during a rental previous to yours. Therefore for the same price, the RV hire company reserves the right to substitute a vehicle from the same, an equivalent, or a higher-rated or larger group of RVs (yet still appropriate to your driver's license and the number of people in your party), according to the rental company's system of grouping RVs. Any higher third-party costs associated with a larger vehicle — such as campground fees, tolls, and fueling costs — are to be borne by the customer.
Our online order software presents the number of seat-belted seats and sleeping places in each motorhome, camper van or truck camper and the dimensions of each bed. It is not allowed to transport more people (including driver) in the vehicle than there are fitted seats/seatbelts in the vehicle. The number of seat-belted seats and the bed dimensions are presented on our More Info page for the particular vehicle — click the More Info button below a vehicle in our Search results. We suggest you study the bed sizes carefully to be sure they are large enough for each passenger in the RV. Likewise, if we present multiple models categorized in the same rental RV group you have ordered, you should study the bed sizes of those models, because if you are given a different model than the one you ordered, it will most likely come from that same vehicle group if not from a group of larger vehicles. Please contact us if you have any doubts or require any kind of special sleeping arrangement.
Indeed, we urge you to study the More Info page of each vehicle/rental you are interested in. On such comprehensive page we present not only the vehicle specifications and images, but also the line item price breakdown, all the terms and conditions, and the rental depot location information. To reach the More Info pages, just enter your rental dates and location(s) and click the Search button; all the vehicles will then be presented, ordered by price; and you can then click on a rental's More Info button to pull up its More Info page.
The type of air conditioning described per RV is typically consistent across the aforementioned particular group of rental RVs to which that RV is assigned by the rental company and is typically present on any equivalent or higher-rated group of rental RVs. However, it is possible that exceptions to this rule exist or will occur, in which case it is the responsibility of the rental company and the client to negotiate an agreement regarding the equivalency of any substitute RV. With respect to roof air conditioning (i.e. generated by A/C current via the public electrical grid or a generator), note that it is typically not present on all RVs in a rental company's fleet and that such air conditioning is typically capable of cooling the RV interior by no more than 20 degrees Fahrenheit (6.67 degrees Celsius) relative to the outside air temperature.
Special tip: Most RVs have a roof vent near the rear of the living space. Keep that vent open while driving with the dash air conditioning on (unless driving in rain), as this will cause air flow that will consistently distribute the air conditioned cabin air to the living space. Many roof air conditioning units cannot or should not be run while driving, because they pull fuel from the same tank the engine does — and the engine wins in that tug of war.
Most European RVs feature chemical toilets with detachable cassettes designed to be emptied in special receptacles — called "Chem WC" units — installed at most campgrounds, or into a regular toilet. Because large, heavy, irremovable holding tanks (i.e. "blackwater" tanks) and the corresponding flush toilets are not so common on European motorhomes, many campgrounds in Europe don't have a North American-type dumping station. Campgrounds or other camping facilities in Europe that do have such a facility are denoted by the trailer pictogram and/or the words "Entsorgungskanal" (German), "scarigare" (Italian), or "vidoir" (French).
Regarding RV water systems, waste systems, electrical systems, and liquified petroleum gas (i.e. LPG, propane, butane, camping gaz) systems, please see the following webpages:
There are generally two electrical power sources in the RV: the engine's 12 Volt (V) battery (i.e. direct current, DC); and the living quarters' 12 V deep cycle battery (or series of such batteries, the more the higher the amps), which is sometimes called the auxillary batter, house battery or leisure battery, for operating lights, appliances, etc within the living area. There is a gauge in the motorhome to tell you how charged your battery is. In addition, there is typically an electric cable for connecting to mains electricity (i.e. the public power, grid power, shore power), which in Europe, Australia and New Zealand is about 230 V at 50 Hz (i.e. alternating current, AC) and in the USA and Canada is about 120 V at 60 Hz. This cable is often called the "shoreline", on analogy with a docked boat. A converter in the RV connects these two sorts of systems by converting the AC mains electricity into 12 V DC electricity that recharges the deep cycle battery and provides power for lights and other 12 V appliances. The deep cycle battery is also recharged by the engine power when the engine is running. Most European motorhomes are wired with 10-ampere circuits that, given the 230 V standard, might allow you to use up to 2300 Watts or so (that's 10 x 230) of power at any one time. Most North American RVs are wired with 20-, 30- or 50-amp circuits, depending on how much electricity the appliances use. Most rental RVs in North America are wired with 30-amp circuits; in such case you can still connect to power at RV parks rated at 20 amps, but if you run two large appliances at the same time, such as a TV or microwave and the roof air conditioner, you will likely blow a fuse (no big deal); and even when connected to 30-amps you can blow a fuse if you have several of your appliances and perhaps an outlet or two pulling power at the same time. The interior of the RV will feature one or more AC plugs (e.g. 230 V at 50 Hz, or 120 V at 60 Hz) functional (perhaps via a plug adapter and perhaps via a voltage adapter) when the vehicle is plugged in to the public electrical grid or when a generator is providing such electricity to the vehicle, and one or more DC plugs (into which a portable inverter can be plugged). Portable "inverters", which convert 12 V DC to the standard AC for low wattage devices, are sometimes available for hire from the rental company and are of course available for purchase on the open market.
By the way, laptops and tablets and such are "autosensing," meaning they can run off the voltage/current standards in either Europe, North America, or most anywhere else. This capacity is delineated in the electrical terms printed or molded upon the back of the device. You will probably still need a plug (i.e. prong) converter if traveling overseas, but most laptops and the like come with such. Otherwise you can buy plug converters before you go abroad or at the airport overseas. For many other appliances that you might bring overseas, you will need voltage converters as well as plug converters. Or you could bring an inverter (i.e. DC-to-AC converter), because an inverter marketed in your home country will produce your standard AC current.
Do you need a generator? Typically not. In Europe most RVs do not feature a generator, and generators are not typically available for hire. In the USA and Canada, many rental RVs feature built-in generators which run off gasoline or diesel fuel and which you pay an hourly fee to use; sometimes portable generators are available for hire. If you are plugged in to mains electricity, you of course don't need a generator. And some vehicles feature solar panels instead that generate electricity if there is enough sunlight. As described below, RV refrigerators and heaters are robustly designed so they do not need mains electricity or generator-provided electricity to run. Your fridge will run for days on a bottle of propane and is very efficient. Likewise the RVs interior lights will all work on the battery for several days. Appliances such as TVs and roof airconditioning, however, do need need mains electricity or generator-provided electricity. A generator comes in handy if you are in a remote area without electric hook-up at your campsite for an extended period of time (e.g. more than two days) — especially to charge your phones. The generator also charges your house battery. If you are planning on staying in campgrounds that have power, a generator is generally not needed and generators should not be used at such campsites. Generators are noisy. Please be a good neighbor and do not start your generator early in the morning or late at night. In the state of California, and certain other states, it may be illegal to run a generator. Please check with your local campground host regarding any restrictions on generator use.
The typical RV refrigerator is an "absorption cycle" appliance that can alternately use LPG (e.g. propane, butane) and electricity as the power source. Most operate on LPG and AC current (two-way), while some also run on 12 V DC (three-way). A three-way powered RV refrigerator draws too many amperes to be powered by the deep cycle battery alone, but may run on 12 V DC power while the vehicle engine is running or a generator is running or when the RV is connected to mains electricity. Newer RV models use 12 V DC to control electronics that automatically switch power sources. Absorption refrigerators are very sensitive to being level. If planning a long ferry ride with a RV, remember it is not possible to run the refrigerator while aboard the ferry, where the RV engine and propane tanks or bottles must be turned off and where electricity is not provided.
The heater that is meant to service the living space while the vehicle engine is not running is powered by LPG. Some of these heaters are two-way in that they can alternatively be powered by AC grid current, and some are three-way in that they can alternatively be powered by diesel fuel and/or be supplemented by the 12 V deep cycle battery when the engine is running or a generator is running.
Many European, Scandinavian, British and Irish rental RVs employ LPG cylinders (or bottles) which are meant to be exchanged by the customers rather than refilled by customers or by retail operations, the customer paying only for the LPG. The refilling of such cylinders by retail businesses is prohibited in the UK and in many other countries because it is a dangerous process and one which can easily be performed improperly.
Almost all the motorhomes and campervans available for hire in Europe are diesels and have a manual transmission rather than an automatic transmission. In the USA and Canada, on other hand, almost all the rental RVs are gasoline powered and feature an automatic transmission. Although the cost of fuel in Europe is high relative to its cost in likes of the United States and Canada, the vehicles in Europe get relatively excellent fuel economy, a fact owing especially to their >diesel engines. Overall the cost of fueling and RV in Europe is about the same as the cost of doing so in the USA or Canada.
If you've booked a manual transmission RV, you must be proficient at operating a manual transmission before you pick up the rental RV. If you cannot operate the transmission correctly, the rental company might refuse to give the RV to you. There are no refunds in these cases.
Drive carefully. You are responsible for any damage you cause to the motorhome — including dings, dents and scratches (for they do measureably reduce the value of the vehicle and in general are reasonably not considered expected wear and tear). This responsibility a universal fact, although in some cases you can purchase an optional damage waiver (e.g. CDW) to reduce your monetary risk in this regard.
Be sure the motorhome is low enough to clear overhead obstacles and narrow enough for bridges and roads. Have a person assist you from outside when operating a RV or campervan in reverse.
Motorhomes tend to be more expensive to repair than cars, chiefly because the pieces involved — e.g. side panels, windshield, etc — are larger and are produced in relatively smaller numbers. Thus even surface marks, scratches, and windshield chips represent a larger negative value. If the vendor does not consider a damage a result of normal wear and tear, the vendor will hold the client liable for the damage and will at least debit the client's security deposit up to the applicable deductible. Depending on logistics and the severity of damage, a damaged rental RV might not be repaired for some time after the rental. In fact the vendor (rental company) is not obligated to get the damages repaired; as owners or leasers of the motorhome, they might choose to sell the RV as-is and thus absorb by way of a lower sale price the cost of damages. Hence it is the RV rental industry standard that qualified mechanics employed at or by the rental company estimate the cost of damages and that the rental company charge for damages to the motorhome or campervan based on those estimates. Generally rental companies try to let cosmetic damages accumulate to a sort of optimal point relative to aesthetic sensibilities, demand for the RV, the number of parts (e.g. side panels) involved, and the value of the damages. By thus bundling damages they spread the risk, resulting in increased RV rental availability and an insurance deductible/excess which is lower than it otherwise would be.
Never leave an RV awning deployed while you are absent. Awnings are easily damaged by high winds, falling branches, or heavy rain or snow, and even the calmest weather conditions can quickly change to severe — especially in the mountains or near the ocean; the vendor therefore will consider such awning damage consequent of client negligence.
Be careful to put the correct fuel in the vehicle. For example, in Europe a diesel fuel pump nozzle is considerably wider than either a leaded gasoline pump nozzle or the even smaller unleaded gasoline pump nozzle and indeed will not fit into either such tank. Consequently a gasoline nozzle will fit into a diesel tank. Therefore, be careful not to put gasoline into a diesel tank. Even a liter of gasoline added to the tank of a modern diesel vehicle can cause irreversible damage to the injection pump and other components due to its relatively low lubricity. A green pump delivers unleaded gasoline or else diesel, a blue leaded gasoline. Diesel pumps are sometimes colored black, sometimes green. Diesel pumps are chiefly signified linguistically, either with the very word diesel or with one of the equivalents: gas-oil, gaz-oil, gasolio, gasóleo, dieselolie, mazot, motorina, or nafta. Make sure you do not mistakenly pull up to a truck diesel pump. The size of the nozzles for the truck pumps versus the car/motorhome pumps is different. A truck fuel nozzle is too big to fit into a car or motorhome's diesel fuel pipe, and the flow rate is much greater. By the way, LPG pumps similarly occupy their own island.
Where/when the ambient temperatures of the low-altitude regions near the depot are expected to be at or below the freezing point of water for a significant duration during a client's rental, the vehicle will be delivered to the client with its water tank emptied, its water heater drained and bypassed, and its water system in general flushed with a special, non-toxic antifreeze. While a vehicle is thus fully "winterized", the fresh water tank cannot be filled and the public water cannot be connected. Bottled water can be used to wash one's hands, face or brush one's teeth. Occasional rinsing of the drains with RV/Marine-approved antifreeze is required. When using the toilet facilities of the motorhome, said antifreeze needs to be used to flush. A dilution of maximum 50 percent with (bottled) water is acceptable. If the client re-hydrates a fully winterized system during the rental and returns the vehicle de-winterized, a fee will be charged to the client upon return. In contrast, if such temperatures will or may be encountered only at higher altitudes or otherwise sporadically during a client's rental duration the vehicle may or will, respectively, be delivered to the client with its water/waste system hydrated as usual. Regardless, in all cases the client is responsible for any damage to the water/waste system due to freezing. Which is to say, the client should be sure the water/waste system is drained of water before using the vehicle where that water system might freeze. Of course upon the pick-up occasion the vendor can provide instruction regarding the draining and rehydration of that system.
RV rental pick-up or return is typically not possible directly at airports, city centers (i.e. downtowns) or rail stations; it usually must occur at the rental depot itself. Chiefly for insurance reasons this constraint is more or less an industry standard. The RV rental depot personnel must explain to you in detail how the RV and its equipment function. The setting and facilities of the depot itself make such explanation possible. The pick-up procedure takes nearly one hour and usually involves a video presentation. Ask questions to resolve any doubts you might have about the rental and operation of the motorhome.
In continental Europe it's not standard for the rental companies to offer airport shuttles, and if they do they typically charge for them. In Scandinavia the rental companies typically do offer free transport from and to the airport but they charge for transport from or to city locations or very distant airports. When you rent a RV in the USA or Canada it is quite standard for rental companies to offer free airport transport but only within a small, standard time window. If the rental you are interested in does not include free shuttle transfer, take solace in the fact that if it did it's price would naturally be higher to accommodate that cost, and it's easier to jump in one or another taxi than to track down a particular shuttle.
Most rental companies account for cost according to standard pick-up and return times so that most vehicles can be prepared during regular business hours and delivered to a client on the same day that the vehicle is returned by the previous client. Thus the rental company doesn't lose out on renting that vehicle for that night. This accounting is analogous to that used by the hotel and vacation home rental industries, where the standard is for afternoon check-in (RV pick-up) and morning check-out (RV return). As such, many RV rental companies account by "nights" rather than "days". A non-standard, morning pick-up would thus entail charge for the previous night. And a non-standard, afternoon return would entail charge for that night. Similarly, if a rental depot is closed on Sundays, a Monday morning pick-up might entail charge not only for the preceding Sunday night but also for the preceding Saturday night, this because the vehicle must be prepped on Saturday morning and therefore cannot be rented out on the Saturday and Sunday night.
Special tip: If you are picking up in your rental RV in your own metro area, consider booking pick-up for the afternoon before you depart on your trip. That extra night of cost gives you the opportunity to drive the RV home, get familiar with it, pack it, and then depart early in the morning rather than much later in the day. Really takes the heat off that first day! Likewise, booking return for the morning after you return home gives you lots of extra time — think flexibility — on the back end of your trip, including plenty of time to unpack the RV, clean its interior, dump the tanks, and fuel it up.
Carefully inspect the RV's surface. Point out any marks, scratches, etc, to the RV rental depot staff. Take time-stamped photos of the vehicle including the roof, or video tape the inspection, so nothing is missed. The rental depot records any rental RV damage on a damage checklist that you will have to sign.
Examine the RV's interior to be sure it's clean, all appliances function, all cabinets and windows close properly, etc.
Read the insurance documentation provided upon the pick-up occasion by the rental company. The terms and conditions of the insurance are of course subject to change between the time you booked the RV rental and the pick-up occasion. Insurance changes are outside the control of Motorvana. Take special note of the geographic domain in which the insurance is effective.
Upon the RV rental pick-up occasion, you must place a security deposit with a valid major credit card in the name of a person who is at the rental depot and traveling in the vehicle. Many motorhome rental companies actually charge that security deposit to the card, refunding it in part or whole within a week or so after the rental return. In contrast, many rental companies simply authorize ("block") the security deposit amount on the card; they only charge the amount or part of it in the event of actual damage. Those who merely authorize are taking more of a risk. Those that actually charge the security deposit are taking less risk yet they do suffer the very considerable merchant credit card transaction fees for both the charge and the (potential) credit. If your security deposit is actually charged and later refunded and if your currency is different than the rental company's currency, you may of course either win or lose in terms of the exchange rate variation between the date of charging and the date of crediting, and you may suffer a foreign transaction fee if your card company does charge such fee (which many car companies pointedly do not charge).
Special tip: If you are traveling abroad to a country that uses a different currency than yours, use for the trip a credit card that does not charge a foreign currency transaction fee nor, more generally, a foreign transaction fee. Many do not but many do. Search the subject on the internet to discover the top cards that charge no such fee. At 1–3%, such fees really add up, and they are totally unneccessary.
At some RV rental depots parking is permitted. You must ask in advance. Space is typically not guaranteed, and you park there at your own risk. Typically rental depot personnel can direct clients to optimal parking solutions nearby the depot. Some RV rental depots allow you to store personal items while you are traveling.
Test drive the motorhome or camper van at and near the rental depot. If you notice anything unusual, especially regarding the clutch, or see any warning lights on the dashboard, notify the rental depot immediately.
Please do not expect to make changes to the RV rental booking when you pick up the RV or while traveling. Such changes might be possible, but that depends on availability.
Make sure all of your requested accessories are included. Check them at the depot to be sure they are in satisfactory condition and tell the staff if you have questions or doubts.
Make sure all vehicle equipment is included and in satisfactory condition, such as the hose, cleaning supplies, etc.
Ask how all features work, especially the awning (if present). You will be charged for damage to a motorhome or camper van feature. Some features, such as the awning and bike rack, are not guaranteed, because the vehicle might be delivered directly from the factory with no time for installation.
Test the GPS unit (if present) to be sure it works correctly. Note: it might be less expensive and more effective for you to buy a GPS navigation device before your trip, load it with the appropriate software, and program it with points of interest. Special navigation software for large vehicles (motorhomes, trucks) is now on the market, from the likes of Magellan and Rand McNally.
Check whether the vehicle manual is in the vehicle and in a language you can understand.
Regarding LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) for heating and cooking (alias "camping gaz" or "propane"): Ask the depot for appropriate LPG connectors/adapters for each country you plan to visit, and make sure the motorhome's LPG heating/cooking cylinders are sufficiently full upon pick-up and upon crossing national borders. Many European, Scandinavian, British and Irish rental motorhomes employ LPG cylinders (or bottles) which are meant to be exchanged by the customers rather than refilled by customers or by retail operations, the customer paying only for the LPG. The refilling of such cylinders by retail businesses is prohibited in the UK and in many other countries because it is a dangerous process and one which can easily be performed improperly. Continental exchangeable cylinders are not typically available on the UK or Irish markets; and there is no adapter on the general market which interfaces continental heating and cooking systems to the "Calor" gas exchangeable cylinders standard in the UK and Ireland. So, you might need to bring extra, full exchangeable cylinders if you are crossing to the UK or Ireland for an extended tour. UK and Irish RV rental company's supply the standard Calor gas exchangeable cylinders for travel in the UK and Ireland. When a client is traveling from the UK or Ireland to Europe, the rental company typically supplies the client with continental "Camping Gaz" exchangeable cylinders and/or an adapter that interfaces the Camping Gaz exchangeable cylinders to UK heating and cooking systems. Calor gas cylinders are not available outside the UK. Rgardless of where you are picking up, it is indeed a good practice to ask the depot for appropriate LPG connectors/adapters for each country you plan to visit. The exchangeable cylinders tend to vary by country even within continental Europe. Therefore you might not be able to exchange the cylinders provided by the motorhome rental company. Instead you might need to buy an exchangeable cylinder locally (in which case you'd also have to place a deposit on the exchangeable cylinder, because it remains the property of the gas company.) In such situation an adapter is usually needed to fit the exchangeable cylinder to the vehicle's heating and cooking system. Moreover, you might need a different regulator as well, although this is now typically the case only with pre-year-2004 vehicle models (which are rarely rented). With respect to LPG cylinders that are meant to be refilled by customers or retail operations, various connectors might be needed to re-fill the cylinders because the LPG dispenser nozzles at fuel stations tend to vary from country to country. Three different dispenser connectors used in Europe: the Dutch Bayonet, the Claw or Italian Dish, and the ACME thread. See the following articles.
The RV should be returned with the toilet waste receptacle (e.g. blackwater tank) and the shower/sink waste water tank (greywater tank) empty. Otherwise the rental company reserves the right to charge a waste cleaning fee.
You are obliged to return the vehicle to the scheduled depot or location. There is an hourly charge for late return, and the time window for return is probably far less than 24 hours. Contact the rental depot if you cannot return on time.
The rental depot personnel will thoroughly inspect the RV for any damage. If the damage is not already marked on the damage checklist, you will be held responsible.
The RV should be returned clean inside and be emptied of luggage by the reserved return time. (Typically the motorhome rental company will clean the outside.) If the vehicle is not clean on the inside — i.e. not only emptied of luggage but also with clean floors (vacuumed or thoroughly swept), clean seats, clean appliances, clean bathroom, and generally clean surfaces — the rental company reserves the right to charge a substantial interior cleaning fee. You are not allowed to clean the RV at the rental depot. You will also be responsible for any claim made by a subsequent client because of their pick-up delay.
You must report and turn in to the rental depot any parking, toll-road or other tickets received during your rental. When you rent a RV in Canada, the USA, Europe, New Zealand, Australia, etc, the cost of any associated fine or fines devolves upon you the client, even if you were not directly ticketed for the violation or were otherwise unaware of the violation. Moreover, the rental company might charge you an administration fee for processing each such fine.
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