Best RV Trips To Take On A Gap Year

Whether between high school and college or betwixt college and the much-dreaded real world, if you’ve decided to take a gap year from the slings and arrows of formal education, you can’t get more adventurous and rewarding than traveling and living via recreational vehicle. RVs are a undoubtedly a blast, and although they’re incredibly convenient when it comes to traveling and having a great time while you’re at it, there’s another key factor to take into consideration as well: Location.

Simply put, if you don’t have a great destination, then chances are you’re not going to enjoy your experience very much in the end. With that in mind, following are four of our favorite RV trips to take during a gap year, all of which have been provided by our Quality RV team.

Yosemite

Inarguably one of the most beautiful spots in the entire U.S., Yosemite National Park is absolutely breathtaking, and everyone should visit the spot at least once in their lives — so why not during a gap year? With an abundance of scenic wildlife, gorgeous mountains and sprawling rivers, Yosemite is truly a marvel of the natural world, and travelling to the park via RV only enhances your gap year on the scene. However, it should be noted that since the park is so popular, it’s near impossible to visit without first making a reservation. Knowing this, it’s wise to call in advance in order to secure a spot amid the much-coveted Yosemite wilderness.

Grand Canyon

Perhaps the most wondrous site among the contiguous fifty states, the Grand Canyon is a real beaut that has long been a treasure of the American way. Formed over centuries of erosion by the Colorado River, the natural beauty of the steep-walled canyon doesn’t need much more explaining or description.

Visiting the Grand Canyon during your gap year will ensure that you’ll have stories of wonder and amazement for years to come about your gap year and the land you traveled. As well, it should be noted that the same advice for Yosemite applies to the Grand Canyon as well: You should make a reservation as soon as possible, since the site is so popular among RV travellers nationwide.

The Dakotas

When it comes to RV camping, you can’t get much better than the Dakotas. With a plethora of wildlife and the open wilderness of the American heartland, it’s no question that the Dakotas are truly American treasures. True to point, South Dakota is home to both Mt. Rushmore and the Crazy Horse Monument, and North Dakota is home to the Theodore Roosevelt National Park. During your gap year, the Dakotas would not only provide a great place to RV, but they’d be a unique place that you could bring up when talking to friends for the rest of your life. In fact, since North Dakota is America’s least-visited state, you’ll be able to enjoy an especially peaceful gap year in your RV as well as the satisfaction of having visited a location that not many others have spent time around.

Alaska

The lure of Alaska is palpable and unmistakable — just ask Into The Wild’s Chris McCandless! …or not. While you surely don’t want to hike up to Alaska and die while trying to “live off the land” as Chris “Supertramp” McCandless did, it’s certainly true that Alaska is a gorgeous location that deserves to be traversed by everyone at least once in their lives. A gap year is an especially optimal time, but you should just beware that if you plan to visit during the winter, you’ll only receive roughly an hour of sunlight per day. Needless to say, that’s pretty rough! Consider visiting some of the parks via RV during the spring and summer in order to enjoy the converse — up to 23 hours of sunlight per day! (Which is still pretty taxing, but we think it’s worth it to experience the Alaskan wilderness.)

Written by the staff at Quality RV, one of the leading RV dealers in Missouri. Quality RV serves the entire state of Missouri, from St. Louis to Kansas City!