We got a teardrop trailer last winter and have been on two one nighters so far. Trip planned for 10 days in August is to the great northwest just the two of us. Will let you know how it goes. We have reservations in state parks, private camping grounds, and a national park. The only one without showers is the national park for two days. The rest have restrooms and showers. The one nighters we spent with our puppy. It sleeps two of us in a queen size bed. We have friends who have done a lot of camping their whole life. She is a teacher and one summer they went for 6 weeks all over the country and still talk about 15 years later. We just could not do tent on the ground sleeping anymore and wanted to explore the great outdoors. We got this one because it fits in our garage. It does not have AC but does have heater and a fan and is made for off road.
We have a 27 ft travel trailer that we tie with our Explorer. We’ve stayed in KOAs frequently . It’s nice because we use our Explorer for transportation into town once we park the camper. It’s much nicer than tent camping and we have our own shower, stove, microwave and refrigerator . We have found most campers extremely friendly. Many campsites have scheduled activities like movie night, some have pools or fishing lake. When my children were younger ( 5 and 8) we went to a KOA in Tennesee. It happened to be Christmas in July weekend. Many of the campers and RVs went all out on decorations and they even had breakfast with Santa. The boys still talk about it and they are 18 and 15.
We own a 21 foot 1994 Coachmen, the kind with a queen bed in back and another bed above the drivers, similar to what most people rent except way older. Do not rent anything larger. Ours has been across the country multiple times as a retirement vehicle for the in-laws. It is also the largest size allowed on the Going to the Sun road in Glacier NP (been twice, typically opens mid-June so watch the snow forecasts) and some of the twisty mountain roads in Colorado (not recommended). It was over the dirt road from Missoula to Rock Creek last summer. It is not much bigger than a big pickup truck. The big RVs are usually towing a car because they are not reasonable vehicles for day-to-day driving, better for parking for periods of time.
Check to see if you have to rent all the other stuff also or if it comes equipped. Pots and pans, silverware, bedding, are usually all extra. Check for mileage charges. See if it is allowed on dirt roads. Pre-plan the route and make reservations. The water/electric thing is not so complex and people will help if you need.
It really is a fun way to travel. Your time of year will not be busy except the weekends. Also, like Glacier, not everything will be open, so check that too.
I’ve had a lifelong dream of driving all the way to Tierra del Fuego in one of these kind of setups. I wonder if I’m getting too old to pull that off now.
http://image.fourwheeler.com/f/33096637+w600+cr1/129_1108_01%2Boverland_fever%2Badventure_trailer_tent
Our trailer is called a Casita and is SO cute. It’s 17 feet. @carolinamom2boys - Do you use any kind of mattress topper? My husband is on a Casita forum on Facebook and he got convinced that it will greatly add to the comfort of the bed. When we used to take our huge Golden Retriever, he pretty much took up all the floor space.
That’s cute @MomofWildChild. It looks like an igloo on wheels.
@MomofWildChild We have not used a mattress topper, but I bet that would make it way more comfortable. Our Australian Shepherd thinks it’s her camper too. I’ve had to chase her on more than one occasion because she got out of the door. She’s so fast , and I’m not as young as I used to be. 
@carolinamom2boys, your Aussie isn’t as young as she used to be, either.
Check out my avatar.
@VeryHappy So true, and with one MCL repair and she’s still faster than me. Aren’t they the best dogs?
Yes. We have two, and we’re about to get a third. (Yes, we’re nuts.)
Meanwhile, back in RV-land . . . .
That’s actually how I bought my camper . I desperately wanted an Aussie , and my husband likes to camp. He was hesitant to get a dog because he didn’t want to board her all of the time. That’s when I came up with the solution of getting a camper so that she could go with us.
We have a Car-go lite trailer - similar to a teardrop, but no kitchen in back. It’s 5x9 and only 4 feet tall inside - fits a queen bed, an air conditioner and fan, and room for a few plastic tubs of clothes. We LOVE it, and it weighs in, fully loaded with propane storage on front, heavy foam mattress and mattress topper, at 900 lbs. Everyone always asks us if we like our pop up - to which we have to reply, it doesn’t pop up. We have had some fantastic trips in it, including one to the Grand Canyon.
That being said, I am hatching plans to travel around the US in a DIY converted camper van in 2021, because I would like to be able to stand up to change clothes, and would like a portapottie etc available…
^ After a tent we could stand in, best purchase was a porta potty.
@anxiousmom, I agree that the no bathroom is an issue. I get dressed in the bed or in the bathroom on site. But, for toilets as D said, if they have a bathroom at the camp site great, if not then you are way out there and don’t need one. There is a awning attached to the camper that has four sides and could be used for a potty area with a porta potty and a place to change clothes. We just have not used it yet. There is also water hose and warm water attachment we need to learn to use also.
We looked around for a couple of years and just could not come up with a camper that fit in the garage. The HOA here will not allow it outside and we did not want to rent storage and not have it near us.
We are going to be camping this summer part of the time with D & SIL as they will be tent camping in the great northwest along side us. We bought bear proof containers and bear spray and are ready, Where we live there are mountain lions but no bears (high desert). One of the reasons we did not get a popup was to have hard sides. After looking at casitas and car-go lites (they both were really cute and loved them) we settled on ours because it was just short enough and thin enough to fit in the garage. It is (12 ft) 15 feet long with the hitches, 72 inches high, and regular mattress queen size wide and just fits by a few inches.
BTW a seniors pass age 62 cost $10 and is lifetime to national parks and monuments and half price on camping.
Bff and I are utterly fascinated with those little towables.
Yes, we have to store our Casita. Not cheap but that’s what we have to do.
No advice but those states are gorgeous! One place people rarely go is Theodore Roosevelt National Park in North Dakota. A great place to see wild horses and there won’t be many people there.
We own an RV and have used it several times for long trips. Keep in mind these vehicles are gas guzzlers. Ours get about 8 mpg. To find locations to stay google “RV campgrounds” . Some places have full hookups: water, electric and sewage, some only water and electricity, others have no hook ups (many national parks). You don’t need a sewage hook up every day, most campgrounds have a place to “dump” your sewage for a fee. We stay in a mix of campgrounds, Walmart, Cracker Barrel, etc. It depends on where we are going and how convenient the various places are. We try to stay in free places (ie parking lots) if we are only sleeping overnight and traveling through. Some highway rest areas have electric hook ups (I think Ohio has them). I love RV’ing and can’t wait to retire when H and I can spend more time doing it. I PM’d you a link to a blog we did on a trip we took several years ago.
Gone With the Wynns is one of the best blogs I’ve seen for full time rv people. They travel with two cats. My cousin/aunt and her husband recently retired and are full time rvers as well. They appear to spend a lot of time at rv repair places getting their brand new rv repaired. But thet don’t seem to mind, and it’s so much fun to follow along with them on Facebook.
We have run the range of campers in our camping experience. We started with a tent when we had no kids and when they were babies. We moved up to very old pop-up and then proceeded on to a 27 ft travel trailer when dh wanted to camp in bear country. There was no way I was taking the kids to the bathroom in the middle of the night with bears roaming! Kids grew older and got jobs, etc, so it was impossible to get away. We sold that, but then got the camping itch again. We bought a 31 ft class c from an elderly lady whose h passed away. It had no miles on it and was in great shape despite being 10 yrs old. It was great for a few years, but just a bit too big for me to drive. Kids were definitely not in the picture for joining us at this point, so we traded that in for a new 24 ft. class c. I love driving it and it is so easy to set up. Plug it in, hook up your hose and you are good to go. Queen bed, yes we get a topper to make it more comfy. Fridge/freezer, micro/convection oven, bathroom with sink, shower, etc. fold out bed and one over the top spot for sleeping. If all those spots were to be filled with people, it would be tight, but hopefully we are out hiking or enjoying the fire, etc.
We took a two wk trip each year with the kids. Yellowstone, Mt Rushmore, Maine, Boston, South Carolina, North Carolina, Smokies, Rockies, New York, etc…Best memories ever. Not always good memories, but we laugh at things now! Hiked, fished, toured, learned new things, laughed like crazy. Best way to see the world, I think. When we dropped our youngest off two years ago, we hit the road and went to Prince Edward Island, etc in Canada. We had the time of our lives. We fill in with weekends when we can, trying to get out at least twice a month during spring-fall.
If you are camping in prime camping time, be sure to make reservations as many campgrounds fill to capacity. If you are going in the spring/fall when families are still in school, it is fun to just wing it and find a place as you go. Some nights we stop at Flying J’s or a Walmart lot or Cracker Barrel and just get some sleep. We tend to do that the first night or two on a long journey. Once we get where we are going, obviously we stay in campgrounds. In regards to finding campgrounds, we have the Good Sam book with us at all times, and of course, their app or other camping apps. Keep in mind, some spots aren’t rated as they are county or state parks. We have found them to be very nice, so look them up online for ratings if they aren’t rated with Good Sam, etc. Because we have small driver, we can get around pretty easily, although if we are staying somewhere for a number of days, we often rent a car so we don’t have to unhook each time we want to go out.
Good luck and enjoy that trip!