RV Life

Between international trips, we live out of a 2019 Coachmen Leprechaun 27QB “Class C” RV that we bought used in August 2020.

Upcoming Travel Schedule

We make our upcoming travel schedule available here. Just note that we like to maintain a flexible travel schedule, and flight cancellations and border closures have wrecked many travel plans. So, this schedule may not play out as planned.

How Much Does It Cost to RV?

For the first 9 months of full-time RV living, it cost us about $22.4k – or about $2,500 per month. That includes ongoing expenses (like lodging, food/drink, maintenance, and gas), one-time costs (an inspection, RV equipment, and furnishings), and some expenses that are prepaid for an entire year (insurance, memberships).

Here’s a full breakdown of our expenses for the first 9 months. Note that this includes expenses before we moved in on September 1:

For a full breakdown of our expenses, check out our post recapping living in an RV for 3 months.

How Many Miles Per Gallon Does an RV Get?

Our gas-powered RV with a 2018 Ford E350 drive chassis averages between 8 and 9 miles per gallon. Our generator also runs off of the gasoline tank. So, our efficiency drops when we utilize the generator (e.g. at rest stops and when boondocking).

We use a variety of fuel programs and tools to try to cut down the cost as much as possible:

Between these discount programs, we generally save around 15-20¢ per gallon. So, with gas rates around $3.15 per gallon in the Southeast, we pay around 30-35¢ per mile.

Here’s our live-updating fuel efficiency and costs:

 

Speaking of boondocking, you can join Harvest Hosts at 15% off through our referral link.

How We Get Data to Work Full-Time on the Road

When we traveled all around the world, we used (and recommend) Google Fi. The simplicity of landing in a new country and getting connected within a matter of minutes was a game-changer. But, when we got back to the U.S., we found that Google Fi was very unreliable. We couldn’t get data for weeks in Tampa. So, we needed to rely solely on Wi-Fi. And Google Fi’s customer service was a joke.

After looking at a lot of data maps and reading what cell service others recommend, we switched from Google Fi to Verizon. I got the Play More Unlimited plan, and Katie got the Do More Unlimited plan. Both plans include 15GB per month of high-speed hotspot data.

We were able to stay under this quota for the first few months by limiting our laptop browsing, watching videos on our phones, and using Wi-Fi when available. But, in early November, we had both blown through much of our data. So, we both upgraded to the Get More Unlimited plan — which includes 30GB of high-speed hotspot data each month.

Then, in March 2021, we joined a Visible “Party” plan for just $25 per month (reduced to a net of just $10 after temporary credit card credits). This allows us to stream videos on our laptops to watch them on a large monitor screen – instead of just our cell phone screens.

Honestly, we assumed that data was going to be the biggest hassle and limitation to living on the road. But, it hasn’t been an issue at all. We mostly book sites through recreation.gov, which prompts reviewers to note cell phone coverage in their reviews:

We have found that the reviews actually understate the level of connection that’s at the campgrounds we’ve stayed at. For example, we have “excellent coverage” (per the description) at this campground that has just a 2.7 rating.