Hi Everyone. Well, after 15 years the RV-Dreams Community Forum is coming to an end. Since it began in August 2005, we've had 58 Million page views, 124,000 posts, and we've spent about $15,000 to keep this valuable resource for RVers free and open. But since we are now off the road and have settled down for the next chapter of our lives, we are taking the Forum down effective June 30, 2021. It has been a tough decision, but it is now time.
We want to thank all of our members for their participation and input over the years, and we want to especially thank those that have acted as Moderators for us during our amazing journey living and traveling in our RV and growing the RV-Dreams Family. We will be forever proud to have been founders of this Forum and to have been supported by such a wonderful community. Thank you all!!
When you travel as a fulltimer, do you spend a lot on "admissions" to various events, historic sites, etc.? I don't mean the usual toursit traps but those places of genuine interest?
We do not unless its something we really want to see for example...when we were in Tucson last winter we went to the Pima Air Museum, Titan Missle Silo, the Living Desert Museum and Tombstone. While in California we went to Yosmite National Pk and the Redwoods. We use our Golden Age Pass which will get you into most of the National Pks for free. southwestjudy
We use the National Park Senior Pass when we go to any National Park or stay in a National Forest, it ws the best $10.00 ever invested. We really blew our entertainment budget this week as we are now in PA we went to Sight & Sound on Monday night and tonight we are going to an Elton John Concert. Don't think much of his lifestyle but he is a great entertainer. Other than State Parks we don't pay to see to many places, unless it is real important to us.
That's a hard question to answer, everyone is different. How much do you spend on entertainment now? That's probably a better indicator than anything.
If you look at fulltiming as one long vacation, then you'll probably spend a lot. If however, you just see moving your house on wheels around slowly and just enjoy the experience, then your "entertainment" costs will probably be about the same as they are now.
If it gets to be too much, it's always easy to cut back.
We, too, try to use our National Parks pass as much as possible. Beyond that we try to find "free" attractions wherever we are and go from there. We're not big on history museums in each locale unless they appear to offer something special or unique, such as the Presidential homes and libraries, the Mormon places in Utah, Cowboy Hall of Fame in OK, Rodeo Hall of Fame in CO, Air Force Museum in Dayton, OH, etc. We find tourist info and will drive by places to see the outside. We also enjoy free factory tours. Small towns and libraries often have free or inexpensive attractions. Other than that, our entertainment isn't much different than when we had a sticks and bricks house...occasional movies, play or concert and dinners out. Mostly we enjoy just sitting around talking or playing cards/games, or bringing out our own dinner for a picnic with our RV neighbors.
Ditto on the $10 investment in the Federal Golden Age Passport or as they now call it the "Seniors". Since I obtained mine before the politcally correct "Seniors" title, guess I am a "Golden Ager"!
We thoroughly enjoy museums, and there are many free or low cost museums, especially in smaller towns or very large cities like DC and Philadelphia.
If ever at or near the Escapees Rainbow Plantation in Summerdale, AL, do not, do not miss the National Museum of Naval Aviation a short drive away in Pensacola, FL. Yes, it is free to all and is it ever well done!!!!
This is also the home to the Blue Angels, who have practice shows weekly.
There is so much to see and do without spending an arm and a leg, which I am lucky to have the original number issued.
Charles
__________________
Ethel & Charles Henry, Itasca Horizon DP/Honda Element Toad Traveling with our furry-snouted, four-legged children.
"Each of us must take part in making this a better world for all people."
I am wondering - there are internet sites, books, etc on free (or almost) camping sites. I wonder if there is a site or book for low cost/free attractions for travelers. Just a thought.
We use the National Park Pass quite frequently. We also get ideas of places we would like to visit from the book: 1,000 Places to See in the U.S.A. and Canada Before You Die. Some things listed are free and some are not but it usually tells you if there is an admission charge and also gives a phone number. (FYI: The above is an affiliate link to Amazon.com).
Another great source of things to do is to talk to people when you get to town. We always make a habit of visiting the Chamber of Commerce or Visitor's Center when we arrive in a new area. Some are very informative and some are not. If we don't get as much information as we like we just stop and talk to strangers to find out what is a 'must-see' in the area. We try not to get into the touristy things..... they can eat into your budget very quickly.
The Web can also be a great source of information, but it is often time consuming. There is a lot of great info in all of the travel blogs out there but again they can be time consuming to go through. It is best just to read them for enjoyment and take notes an places/events that sound interesting.
Happy travels. Colleen
-- Edited by pierreandcolleen at 14:15, 2008-10-16