Anybody pick up a local U-Haul when traveling to "temporarily" van-dwell?

[kyonu]

Hey guys, sorry if this isn't in the right spot, not sure if it belonged in the Van section or not.

My wife and are are planning on flying out to Vermont from Texas on vacation (trying to scope it out to make sure it's well enough for her to move there), and the accomodation is just... mind blowingly expensive. We're not traveling in any sort of holiday, middle of the week etc but the cost of flight, accomodation, vehicle rental exceeded $2000 by a hefty margin, and with hidden fees and taxes, probably hitting $2500 total.

That is just way too much for a single week of entertainment. That's an entire months salary. So, I was looking around for alternatives.

At first, we thought "Maybe Airbnb would be better?" but the vehicle rental was still $500 a week, so we'd save about $600 to $700, but we were still almost at $2000 worth of costs. Not to mention Airbnb has a lot of variables that may be incompatible with my wife's particular illnesses.

Then we thought, could we rent an RV or Camper? Well, turns out that's more than a car rental, and brought the costs back up to close to $2500.

Then I thought: What about a caravan rental? Well, they cost about $80 to $100 a day depending on the model, and since i'm 6'4 we needed the $100 model. It was small and cramped, but cozy and we could drive our "home" around.

But that turned out to be $700 still, which means we were sitting at $1700. That was much better than the first option, but then I thought... What about a cargo van?

I visit vandwelling communities online often and love the life style--hope to one day experience it. And thought, what about U-Haul? $20 a day, plus mileage, would be a lot cheaper than $100 a day, and we can just trick it out with camping gear from Walmart. I have a small list for under $100, and most of it we could return before we leave, so we're neutral on equipment that we don't have to bring with us.

I got a quote from Uhaul from their site, and for 300 miles for one rental for 7 days would be $319. Total. That's $45 a day (mileage is estimated within that cost) so it's MUCH cheaper. It'll be mid october, so the weather will be very nice outside, so it won't be scorching hot in the van.

Has anyone done this? Does anyone have any insights on what to expect? It'll have no insulation of course, but we plan to bundle up if it gets too chilly.

 

[Moxadox]

That sounds brilliant! You could always buy a couple of cots for the trip, and then donate them to the local Red Cross when you've finished with them. Cots are much more comfy than simply throwing sleeping pads on the floor.

The Dire Wolfess

 

[kyonu]

I was actually thinking about buying a queen-sized air-up bed for inside the van. I unfortunately cannot sleep on cots as I have a back issue, have slight requirements on sleeping (which is one reason why we opted for not sleeping pads, ironic enough).

However, some of the items we get from WalMart like Pillows we plan to donate since we don't like returning pillows, and perhaps a bunch of other unused consumables that we can't take back with us on the plane.

 

[Turtlelady]

"and we can just trick it out with camping gear from Walmart. I have a small list for under $100, and most of it we could return before we leave, so we're neutral on equipment that we don't have to bring with us."

This part of your plan is unclear to me. Are you referring to equipment you may need but will return if it is not used?  $100 seems a low estimate to me considering you will need to  plan for the possibility that it can be pretty cold and wet in the northeast that time of year. I wish you and your wife a joyous trip, in good health.

 

[kyonu]

The $100 is just the estimate for essentials, which includes the air up matress, a sheet, 3 blankets (one for bulkhead cover, one for use, another for backup use), an LED battery powered lantern, an inverter to plug in our laptops at night, pillows, and not too sure what else we will need besides food. It is a vacation afterall, so we plan on eating at various restaurants to try their cuisine, so we're not worried about eating too much in the van.

We plan on returning equipment that can be reused, like the bed, inverter and lantern. We plan on donating the cloth items.

 

[tx2sturgis]

It sounds like a good plan except I am against a person buying items from a retailer that they fully intend to use for a week or two and then return them, used. That's abuse of the return policy. And not any different than parking lot campers who abuse the generous overnight policy by dumping waste, leaving trash, setting up for days, or causing problems for others....it all costs the retailer money. 

Walmart does not normally refund money for airbeds (and possibly sleeping bags) unless defective, and if used, you will only be offered an exchange for another one. 

If you donate all the items to someone in need, or a charity, or even resell them for half price, I'm all for it. 

I've done this for years camping at Sturgis. Buying stuff like folding chairs, air mattresses, pillows, coolers, lanterns, tarps, sleeping bags, etc, then just donate them to the local kids that come with the clean-up crews after the rally.

 

[kyonu]

We may end up doing that. That $100 isn't a lot, and we can probably get something a bit cheaper anyways. We're mostly worried about the best vehicle to stay in and a way to get showered for 7 days.

 

[MrNoodly]

RV/caravan rental prices are based on the idea it's also a hotel room, not just a vehicle.

 

[QinReno]

... we can just trick it out with camping gear from Walmart. I have a small list for under $100, and most of it we could return before we leave, so we're neutral on equipment that we don't have to bring with us.

I was at the local Walmart yesterday and bought a folding chair. They have signs that say "Camping gear is non-returnable".

OTOH, REI used to take anything back. One day I was in there, and this dude brought in a pair of hiking boots that were clearly 2-years old, covered with mud, the bottoms were worn, and beaten to smithereens. He said: "They just fell apart", and the clerk gave him a refund.

 

[kyonu]

Besides the LED Lantern, the stuff we were getting isn't "camping" gear, it's household gear. But we're thinking of just donating it instead--someone would love to have that stuff.

 

[QinReno]

I donate a lot of unneeded household items to the local Goodwill store.

 

[Minivanmotoman]

Read a blog online about a guy who would fly and vacation cheap, exactly what you're looking for.
He would fly wherever he wanted cheap, Spirit or Southwest, rent the cheapest car he could get, Priceline. Com, and then travel, sleep in his rental with cheap sleeping bag from Walmart and other basics. Sometimes a tent and camp out wherever, camp after dark somewhere, up early in the morning. Can get a tent and sleeping bag for $50. Even a tarp would do in mild weather. Then donate or dump his cheap gear and fly home.
A minivan with all inclusive mileage might be cheaper, on fuel and rental cost.

 

[kyonu]

the only problem with the minivan option is the cheapest I can find that is long enough to sleep me and my wife is over $700 a week not including fees or gas. The uHaul is half that price.

 

[bullfrog]

Most fitness places have try us out for free deal usually for a week I believe if you look on line. That should cover showers.

 

[kyonu]

Yeah I actually called Planet Fitness about it (didn't see a week deal online) and they only offered free one-day passes once a week. However, they have a "black" membership right now for $23 for the first month (1 month down deal right now), but that may go up in October. But if I can get a pass under $30 in October that would be fine since a Black membership allows 1 unlimited guest. $30 for a week of showers isn't too bad.

 

[John61CT]

the only problem with the minivan option is the cheapest I can find that is long enough to sleep me and my wife is over $700 a week not including fees or gas. The uHaul is half that price.

Only if you don't actually drive around.

 

[kyonu]

Well it is going to be vacation afterall, so we will be driving around.

 

[jacqueg]

Don’t forget you can buy a lot of stuff you’ll need at thrift stores.

 

[John61CT]

Well it is going to be vacation afterall, so we will be driving around. [emoji14]

So be sure to check out the per-mile charges.

So many deals look cheap per day before that.

 

[kyonu]

Uhaul actually offers a flat rate at 7+ days. We estimated 300 miles for 7 days and they are going to charge $319 flat rate (mileage included). So unless we go over 300 we won't get a mileage charge.