Is this your first time planning a road trip with an RV rental? You might be feeling a bit overwhelmed and with a lot of questions. Don’t worry; this is a normal feeling. I remember also feeling like that while planning our first road trip with a campervan hire. One of the first thoughts I had was: ‘A road trip with an RV sounds amazing, but which vehicle should we rent’?
What type of RV to rent? The short answer is to rent the vehicle that better fits your needs. Bigger RVs have more facilities like a toilet, shower, and kitchen inside, but are harder to drive and park. Smaller RVs have simpler living spaces but can be very easy to handle.
In this post, I will walk you through the different things you need to consider before renting the perfect RV for your next adventure.
Should you prefer video, here you go:
Types of RVs - Let’s keep it simple
If you search for ‘types of RVs’ in Google, you will find articles with really long lists of the types of RVs that exist. RV stands for 'recreational vehicle', so the list ranges from big motorhomes to airstreams to roof tents. The options might seem endless.
To keep it simple in the jungle of RV terminology, we would break down RVs into two categories:
1. Compact RVs
In this category, you can find any vehicle that has two to three sleeping spaces. Sleeping areas in an RV are also called ‘berths’. A compact RV can be anything from a converted van to the latest Volkswagen campervan. In most cases, when you hear people talking about campervans, they are referring to these compact vehicles.
A classic example of this kind of RV is the Volkswagen Kombi Bus (or Bulli). Compact campervans don't come with a fixed toilet and/or shower inside. Some of them might have a portable toilet that you can use.
A campervan can either be one mass produced by a vehicle manufacturer or it can be a converted van. A converted van is a type of vehicle that has been heavily modified by the owner to accommodate their custom facilities.
In our past trips, we have rented converted vans and we were very happy with the experience.
What does the kitchen space look like in a campervan?
All of these compact RVs have a kitchen of some sort. Either the kitchen allows you to be indoors while using it, or you have to be outdoors to be able to cook.
In some cases, the kitchen even has a sink. Be aware that if you do have a sink, you will need to dispose of the gray water. Please don’t leave a trace while disposing of your gray water. For more details on how to do this properly, check out our post: ‘What to Do With Your Campervan's Gray Water: A Brief Guide’.
As an example of a kitchen that allows you to cook while being inside, you can check out this video of a VW California.
Below is a picture of two different kinds of kitchens we have had in our rentals. Both require you to be outside while cooking:
Cooking in Australia
Cooking in the US
Keep in mind that these compact RVs require things to be shuffled a lot, which means that the bed needs to be built every evening and unbuilt the next morning. You will also need to move your luggage around as well. With this kind of vehicle, you will learn that having a designated place for everything will save you tons of time.
Pros:
✅ Cheaper to rent
✅ More comfortable to drive and park
✅ Cheaper campgrounds
✅ Less fuel consumption
Cons:
⛔️ Tighter quarters
⛔️ You will most likely need to rebuild your bed every night and put it away every morning
⛔️ Not suitable for more than four people.
2. Non-compact RVs
In this category, you can find larger vehicles that have between 2 and 8 berths. RVs that fall under this category are usually called motorhomes.
Motorhomes usually have all the amenities your home might have:
- Full kitchen: Sink with running water, microwave, and some even have ovens.
- Refrigerator (with a freezer)
- Air conditioning / Heating
- Shower
- Toilet
- Outlets to charge electrical appliances
Having all the facilities within your RV is great for days where the weather just sucks, and you cannot or don’t want to be cooking outside. Another benefit of having this kind of vehicle is that you can have a more comfortable free camp experience since you don’t have to be looking for a spot in nature to take care of your business. 💩
Since you will have more space and more appliances within the vehicle, you must secure everything before driving and be careful not to overstuff your fridge. Believe me; things will shuffle around in there.
Once, on our way to Burning Man with some friends, we did not close the microwave properly. As we were driving away from Walmart, the glass plate came smashing to the ground. Also, we had overstuffed our fridge, so when we opened it, a carton of eggs fell out. And because we had not learned our lesson, when we opened it again, a few hours later, a big yogurt also fell out. Yup, we spent a lot of time cleaning our kitchen floor.
Pros:
✅ Bathroom and kitchen facilities within the campervan
✅ Spacious interior quarters
✅ No reshuffling of your bags
✅ Fixed bed
Cons:
⛔️ Harder to drive
⛔️ More fuel consumption
⛔️ They are not as discreet as a campervan
⛔️ Harder to find parking spots
The four ultimate questions to ask yourself before renting an RV
1. Are you going on a road trip with five people or more?
👍🏽 If your answer is yes - Rent a motorhome.
If you are more than five people and you want to be in the same vehicle, your only choice is to rent a big motorhome. Bigger RVs will provide you with better sleeping facilities than a compact campervan could. Plus, you will most likely get the benefit of having a kitchen, toilet, and bathroom in the vehicle.
I have heard from fellow RVers that sleeping eight in a motorhome is quite crammed. They suggest that at the maximum five adults plus two kids could sleep comfortably in a motorhome.
If your group is more than eight, you should also consider renting multiple vehicles.
👎🏽 If your answer is no, or you want to rent multiple vehicles - then the easiest way to choose the right RV for your next adventure is to ask yourself the next question:
2. Do you need to have a fixed toilet?
👍🏽 If your answer is yes - Rent a motorhome
If your answer is yes, then the solution is quite simple: You should rent a motorhome with a toilet in it. Remember, some vehicles might say they have toilets, but they might be portable ones. So if nature calls in the middle of the night and you don’t want to exit the vehicle, then you might be better off renting a motorhome with a fixed toilet.
👎🏽 If your answer is no - then you should ask yourself the following question:
3. How tall is the tallest person in your group?
👍🏽 If the person is taller than 1.90 meters (~ 6 ft. 3 in.), then a compact campervan might not be the best one for you. Most beds in these types of RVs are no longer than 2 meters. Some campervan rental companies might be able to offer a bed extension, but it is not the norm.
👎🏽 If none of you is that tall - then for the last question:
4. Do you mind building your bed every day and shuffling luggage around?
👍🏽 If your answer is yes - you might be more comfortable renting a smaller motorhome, one that has a set bed built into it, an indoor kitchen, and with a bit more space for storage than a regular campervan would have.
👎🏽 If your answer is no - welcome to the campervan club 😉👊🏽.
If you are still on the fence about renting a campervan, we recommend you check out our article:
‘Find Out If Going On A Campervan Road Trip Is Right For You’.
If you are sure about renting a campervan but are wondering how to handle the whole toilet situation, you can check out our other article on that subject:
‘Do You Need A Toilet In Your Campervan Rental?’
Four last things to consider before renting an RV
1. Maintaining your toilet
If you do have a fixed toilet, keep in mind that you will need to dispose of your black water at dumping stations.
If you are using your toilet often, you will need to do this at least every three days. Otherwise, your home on wheels will become stinky, no matter how many special chemicals you throw in there.
Having to dump your black water so often might limit the number of days you can free camp.
2. Weather
If you decide to rent a campervan without an installed toilet or indoor kitchen, consider the weather forecast. If it is raining most of the time, maybe a campervan might not be the right choice for you or reconsider for one with an indoor kitchen.
Cooking under the rain while getting wet might not be everyone’s idea of fun. If you are staying at campgrounds, you will be able to use their camp kitchen. These kitchens usually are protected from the elements.
Luckily for us, we have just experienced this rainy weather once. During our trip through Australia, it started to pour during the evening as we were approaching our campground. We did not feel like carrying all of our cooking gear to the camp kitchen, so we just went out into town for dinner.
3. Driver’s license
This section applies more to the ones who are thinking of renting a big motorhome. Most RV rentals allow you to drive their fleet with a regular license, but I would recommend checking with them first. At the same time also always check, regardless of the size of your chosen RV, whether you are required to have an International driver's license. Better be safe than sorry, right?
Some countries require you to have one, while rental companies don't. In that case you could get into minor trouble, should you get pulled over during your trip.
4. Are you allowed to free camp
If you are considering renting a smaller campervan because you want to be able to free camp as much as you can, I would recommend first to research your destination and make sure that this is legal.
For example, Australia does not have many free camping areas, whereas the Southwest part of the US does; they are called BLM.
Also, New Zealand requires that campervans are self-contained to free camp legally. So, if you are planning on doing this, you will need a campervan with some sort of facilities in it.
What RV do we prefer to rent?
I hope that you read through the lines by now that Yvonne and I love to rent small campervans for our vancations. Our math is simple:
We are only two, we don’t mind building our bed up and down or not having a toilet, and none of us is more than two meters tall. 🤓
Plus, we get to enjoy some of the cool benefits, like:
- Easier to drive - Driving these kinds of vans is super easy. We even wrote a whole post about it: ‘Are Campervans Hard to Drive?’
- Discreet - We prefer, when possible, to rent campervans without all the crazy colors or branding. It gives us a bit more sense of security, and we think we blend better with cars and locals.
- Less hassle at campgrounds - When you don’t have a campervan that requires a hookup station, you don’t have the trouble of connecting your van to the water / gray water system and electricity. Plus, you usually get better spots at campgrounds with a smaller vehicle.
- Cheaper - It is way less expensive to rent a small campervan. Not only because of the daily fees with the rental companies but because campgrounds, fuel, and tolls or ferries are also cheaper.
- It brings everything we need - We believe that small campervans do bring everything that we need for a road trip. We get a comfy bed, a place to store our things, and a kitchen with all the utensils we need.
Did this article help you pick out the perfect RV for your next trip or you have further questions regarding this? If so, let us know in the comments below which RV you have decided to rent and why.
