How would you think these vans would rate in terms of stealth?

[citytravelfotos]

1:<br /><a href="http://pictures.dealer.com/n/nationalautomart/1102/ddb584980a0d02b701220fd1baf650b5.jpg"><img src="http://pictures.dealer.com/n/nationalautomart/1102/ddb584980a0d02b701220fd1baf650b5.jpg" alt="" /><br /><br />2</a>.&nbsp;<br /><br /><img src="http://images.craigslist.org/5Ib5X25M63K83G23H7c9be432c35f96fc1920.jpg" alt="" /><br /><br /><img src="http://images.craigslist.org/5Ge5K45Jc3E33Gc3M3c9b90c8400ee3581e87.jpg" alt="" /><br /><br />3.&nbsp;<br /><img src="http://images.craigslist.org/5I95K85F13E63K53F4c8r68fdb381524818a1.jpg" alt="" /><br /><br />And basically, how would they fare in say:<br /><br />A residential neighborhood<br />Walmart<br />Truck Stop<br /><br />Also, is parking these vans in commercial streets (curbside, beside streetside retail buildings in big cities) overnight viable?

 

[rvwandering]

&nbsp;They would be great for commercial streets. You could get away with them in some residential neighborhoods. Anything goes at Walmarts and truck stops - no need for stealth.

 

[blkjak]

too me #3 is the winner but now that i have one i would go with #1 so i can stand up&nbsp;.... blkjak

 

[Mortisha]

Yeah I agree blkjak... I want #1 as well. But all would be good stealth wise around this area. HuggZ

 

[Pikachu711]

Number 3 has the best appearance for stealth. But number 1 is a good van for headroom. If I had to choose I'd have a hard time deciding which van to buy. They both are good for the reasons I mentioned.

 

[ParadiseParrot]

The problem times are post 10-11 pm to morning. Get a night job and park where ever you like. We have a buch of shore line here in Tampa area. Much of it is near a road and all public. Except for parks with toll booths people are parked here all day. cooking and camping fishing etc etc. All free. All Legal.<br /><br />No overningt parking and some places are dusk till dawn.<br /><br />Other places are heavy into fishing....activity often goes 3 am to late night at the bars.<br /><br />You could park at St John pass all day without problem. Its the 2 am to 4 am that could bring attention. Also overnight parking at nightclubs will not draw too much attention. People get too drunk to drive often. Cops will think u caught a ride. Of course everyone wants to go to the same spot for free every night without a hassle. If &nbsp;such a place existed then 50 people would be there and the powers that be would charge a fee. LOL.<br /><br />Get a night Job and spend all day at the beach.<br /><br />Forget residential streets...you are a lurking child molester to these people and with good reason. Stealth means u have a reason to be there. Where are vans parked all day and all night...especially white ones........<br />Think out it......Industrial parks dude.<br /><br />Every factory I ever worked for had dark parking lots and many vans parked by all the back doors. Some place work second shift. Get there before 2 am and you will be fine.

 

[peacetara]

My van looks a lot like #3.&nbsp; I park pretty much everywhere, I don't really care about where I park much, as long as there isn't a sign that says 'You can't park here at night'.<br /><br />I don't care about stealth, I only stay 1 night usually, and never stay all night and all day. I agree with what these other people say tho.<br /><br />Last night I spent parked on a street, 1 side of the street said 'official state police business only'.&nbsp; the other side of the street said 'No Trucks'. and the state police side was the actual state police headquarters, with state cops coming in/out all night long.&nbsp; The no trucks side was a Hilton Hotel.&nbsp; I parked on the Hilton Hotel/No Trucks side of the street. right in front of a truck(a pickup truck tho)<br /><br />Nobody bothered me all night.&nbsp; Maybe not the wisest place to park, but it worked out great. I'm not staying there tonight, chances are I'll never find that same street again, even if I tried!<br /><br />I'm new to vandwelling, at first I was super worried about where to stay every night.&nbsp; Now I pretty much don't care. <br /><br />My general rules are: <br />&nbsp; 1) Try not to be the only vehicle parked there (tho chances are I'm the only vandweller).<br />&nbsp; 2) Try not to be mean and block driveways, access to things, etc.<br />&nbsp; 3) leave in the morning.<br />&nbsp; 4) don't leave anything behind.<br /><br />regardless, good luck in your pursuits!<br /><br />With Love,<br />Tara

 

[ParadiseParrot]

Anywhere near a hotel is going to have non stop transit traffic. Hotel parking lots are cool.

 

[RVTravel]

Just make sure it's a hotel parking lot that does not keep tabs on all cars that are parked there. Maybe most do not take that information at check-in. I have slept in several. La Quinta and Holiday Inn Express never asked for my license plate in times I have paid to sleep there for bidness.

 

[Pikachu711]

I'll echo what RVtravel mentions. I'm a former desk clerk and most motels (and some hotels) don't really require the guest who's checking in to list their vehicle on their registration card. Our primary concern was getting them in &amp; out of the lobby and into their room. The vehicle information was the LAST thing we cared about. This may vary from place to place.<br /><br />We've had one member here post a reply that he stayed in motels the majority of the time and was never bothered by the motel staff. But the same rule generally applies. Arrive late, leave early.<br /><br />The other benefit of parking in a medium sized motel is that the vast majority of them have free wi-fi. Nowadays the vast majority of the hotels/motels have free wi-fi for their guests. Not a bad deal whatsoever.

 

[lampliter]

When I "lived" in Florida, I fished a lot under the bridges in my 57 Ford panel truck. When I got tired I would just climb in the back and go to sleep. The cops would knock and I would tell them I was fishing and got tired. This was in the parking lot of a large hotel. They would say, just checking.<br />Now they have a "guard" sitting in a chair at the entrance of the same parking lot. Folks; just be careful of where you "fish".&nbsp;

 

[VanLifeCrisis]

My motel has a security guy that rides around.&nbsp;&nbsp; He has caught a few people sleeping up there, but they didn't really try to hide it.&nbsp; One of them was the state highway courtesy patrol (they are like AAA for the state that ride up and down the interstate).&nbsp; Caught him like 2-3 times up there, and the last time he said he would call the state right then and there and ask them why he was sleeping back there.&nbsp; <br /><br />I think if you are stealthy though you would be ok at most hotels, just don't park in front of anyone's room if its a smaller place.

 

[Lifemagician]

Many of my nights on the road, are spent at truck stops.&nbsp;&nbsp; I find them clean, convenient, and truckers most considerate.&nbsp; (Maybe that is just because they like to help a lol.)<br /><br />I always ask at the desk where the best spot is to park, and tell them I will be spending the night.&nbsp; It is usually obvious where to park, but not always.&nbsp; You just want to make sure that you are not parked where some early morning staff member wants to park.<br /><br />There is actually a whole publication that lists which truck stops make rv's welcome.&nbsp; One of my most frequently referred to publications.&nbsp; (There is also an RV directory - same book, different cover!)<br /><br /><a href="http://www.truckstops.com/" rel="nofollow">http://www.truckstops.com</a><br /><br />Lifey

 

[coultergeist]

My&nbsp;E350 van is actually alot like #1 except that its top is actually higher.&nbsp; I'm still working on it and haven't spent much time in it overnight yet.&nbsp; When I have, I haven't been bothered.&nbsp; Nobody ever seems to care at Wal-mart.&nbsp; They are used alot as medical transports.&nbsp; That's what mine was.&nbsp; There always seems to be a few of them at the local hospitals.&nbsp; As long as you moved around a bit you could probably stay there without any trouble too.