I know that some of you travel in motorhomes. I am hoping to rent one and travel from Michigan to Anchorage to see my grandbaby next summer. (can't afford it this year). Can you tell me what kind of mileage some of your motorhomes get? What are campground fees? Can I save money by eating in for at least 2 meals/day.
I am trying to make this trip as cheaply as possible. There are 4 of us and it is 3635 miles (66 hours) one way. We will have 4 drivers (2 teenager new drivers so not sure how much I will let them drive).
Am I crazy or should I just look into airline tickets and start saving now?

there are ALOT of variables....
size of MH ( 30 or 50 amp)/ diesel vs gas/ poshness of campgrounds/ meals planned/fuel prices


Prices to rent tend to be VERY expensive... so take that in to factor. Start pricing now....
As for fuel, try to stick with truck stops, they tend to have the cheapest fuel. You can track prices and location of most truck stops. Many, if not most, has freq fuel cards that give dicounts on every gal. Love's, flying J, etc.
Definately cheaper to eat in than to dine out... expecially with teens.
Try to map out a tenative route and google/yahoo search for campgrounds along the way....( the closer u get to AK the pricer they will tend to get) With teens, I'd recommend at least some with pools/activity rooms... to give them a break. Most truck stops will allow u to park free overnight as well as most walmarts and malls.... no ammenities but a good time to pick up supplies and it's FREE... another good reason to try to alter it with places that have things for the teens to do or a place for them to get out of ur hair and chill for a while...

I would suggest that you look into joining a club. I have a membership with the Good Sam RV Club. They have lots of helpful tips.
http://www.goodsamclub.com

Don't forget you'll have to have a passport for Canada. I never fly so I have a passport card.

We bought our RV because of the expenses involved with renting. DH planned on selling it when we returned home but we enjoyed ourselves so much we kept it.

Start checking on rentals now and compare with the cost of airline tickets. We have a 40ft diesel and get about 9 miles to the gallon. Remember we keep our RV in tip-top shape which get more mileage. Rentals may not get as much mileage. Also, you need to think about cramped quarters, as rentals tend to be smaller.
To answer your question fly and save your nerves.

As a member of the Good Sam Club which runs about $25 you get 10% discounts at Good Sam parks and usually they are the better parks even though some are priced nicely.
As a member you can run online your trip. It will show gas stations on the way, miles and expected cost for gas based on today's prices. Diesel cost more now than reg. gas, but drives better in mountainous areas. Eating in is a plus, campground rates go from free, to $25. on up to high as you can imagine for fancy resorts. There used to be terrible tales of the roads to Alaska and how it tore up rv tires. Check with rv rental co. to see what their cost are and if they handle any vehicle damage. I see a link on this page to www.campetravelusa.com Not familiar with this site, but might be helpful to you.

I say look into booking flights. You are there in a short time, which means more time with the baby, less aggravation of traveling, no passport required, no worries about meals or about the RV breaking on the road...I can go on. You may find it a lot cheaper flying and relaxed when you get there. You can come back earlier or later if you so wish and don't have an RV to clean up when you get back. Save your money and rent a car there...My two cents.

Gas model RV's get about 6 to 8 miles per gallon. Campgrounds will cost anywhere from $20 to $50 per night depending on where you are and what the campground has in the way of utilities and entertainment... for the teens. Some places charge for showers, and everything else. Many of the Walmarts no longer let you park overnight. You will have to go to a campground every other night or so to dump your holding tanks. It's a long way to Alaska! I wouldn't let teens drive my motorhome, but it's a 39 ft with a car in tow. I don't drive it much myself! Go look at rentals, and think hard before you decide to do this. By the way, you won't make the kind of time in a MH that you do in a car. We rarely drive more than 60 mph.

That's an awfully long drive, and...

Rental of the motorhome for umpteen days + gas + food + campground fees + other expenses you can't predict = a heck of a lot of money compared to airline tickets.

I'd be on the lookout for airline tickets. It sounds like you have plenty of time to find a good deal on them.

We will have 4 drivers (2 teenager new drivers so not sure how much I will let them drive).
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Teenagers driving such a huge vehicle? NEW drivers at the wheel of a monster car with human passengers and innocent drivers on the road with them?

The very thought of this frightens me. Teens need years of driving practice to be able to drive in their own towns, much less in strange places with hills and....well, please don't do this to your family and whomever of my own far flung family who might be driving on those same roads.

Go talk to a Highway Patrolman and ask him/her what he/she thinks of putting a new teen driver behind the wheel of such a vehicle. They can probably tell you a few things that will curl your hair!! And THEN go to your own insurance agent...and tell the rental place what you have planned. Ask if your insurance will cover this trip.

Lot of rentals do not allow people under the age of 25 to drive their vehicles ..probably due to insurance this is something you should check on before renting your RV