Vacations are always fun, and they always come at a price (literally).
Unless if someone else is paying for your trip, it’s going to cost you money, and RV trips are no exception.
There are a wide variety of expenses that you will incur on your RV trip, including but not limited to reservation fees, security deposits, parking fees, nightly RV rental fees, food, and gasoline or diesel to name a few things.
But while you’re going to have to spend money on your RV trip no matter what, that doesn’t at all mean that you’re going to need to spend as much or more than you might have thought.
In fact, there are a variety of strategies and methods available to save a few dollars here and there on your trip, and when those dollars add up, it can really make a significant difference.
Here are the top five ways that you will be able to save money on your St. Louis RV trip:
1 – Plan Your Meals and Buy Your Own Ingredients
There are few RV trip expenses that will add up as quickly as food, and specifically as eating out at restaurants. There’s certainly nothing wrong with eating out, and sometimes, you may have to.
However, if you really want to save money, it will be a much smarter strategy to instead buy your own ingredients and plan your meals ahead of time. There’s no shortage of easy-to-make meals that you can do, including cheeseburgers, hotdogs, chili, soup, tacos, or nachos to name a few things.
2 – Shop Around For Fuel
Stopping by at the first fuel station you come across in a new town or city you enter is a poor strategy if you want to save money. Since RV’s are gas guzzling vehicles that require so much fuel, buying fuel for even one to two cents at another station can really help you save money.
Your best bet will be to use apps that keep track of all the gas stations in your area and show you their fuel prices. Simply choose the one with the lowest costs and you’re set.
3 – Pay Below The Average Local Rental Fee
According to Outdoorsy, the average nightly fee to rent an RV in the St. Louis area is $156.04 a night, with the prices specifically ranging from $50 a night up to a whopping $400 a night.
While you may naturally desire the most luxurious RV that you can possibly get, if you want to save money, you’ll probably need to settle for something a little smaller and with less amenities. At the very least, you’ll know you’re saving money if you’re paying under the average price.
4 – Look For Lower Parking Fees
Do your homework ahead of time and research all of the RV parks and campgrounds in your general destination area. Then, you can compare prices between them.
Most RV parks or campgrounds will charge around $25 to $40 a night. It’s rare for one to charge under $15 and equally rare to charge more than $50. The more amenities a particular park has, the more it’s probably going to cost. Parks that are pet friendly will also tend to cost a little more as well.
Simply compare prices and then choose the one that fits your budget the best. Even if one park only costs $5 less, if you’re staying there a full week, that’s $35 you’ve just saved.
5 – Travel During Less Busier Seasons
It’s always cheaper or expensive to travel during certain times of the year. The middle of the summer in particular is the absolute worst time to travel in terms of travel costs, because that’s when everybody is traveling and the demand is highest (so you’ll also have to deal with larger crowds and busier RV parks as well).
In contrast to this, travelers are always much less active during the late spring and early fall, when the weather may be good enough to travel as well. In fact, travel activity is often slower even during June. It’s really during July and August when things heat up.
Saving Money On Your RV Trip
You’re always going to need to spend money on any RV trip, and you’ll always be able to save money as well using any one of the money saving strategies that we have covered here today or any others that you are able to research elsewhere.
