Some RVers use their RV’s only a few times a year, while others live in them full-time. Some RVers prefer to stay in commercial RV parks or campgrounds, with electric, water sewer and cable TV hookups, and perhaps wireless Internet. Others are happier “boondocking” in remote locations with no hookups or other amenities beyond those provided by Mother Nature.
But one thing that many RVers have in common is the need for a place to spend the night while on a long journey, a journey that takes two days or more to reach a destination. This is where “Overnight RV Parking” comes into play.
If an RVer needs only a place to park and get some sleep, there’s no need for swimming pools, game rooms, craft classes, Laundromats, miniature golf, cable TV, Wi-Fi and all the other amenities that campgrounds can provide. And there’s no need to pay for them if you’re not going to use them. So the question arises, “Where may an RVer park overnight, just to get some sleep, at minimal or no cost?”
Several answers come to mind, including Wal-Mart, Flying J, Cracker Barrel, casinos, and highway rest areas. But these are generalities that don’t tell an RVer whether it’s permissible to park overnight at any specific Wal-Mart, Flying J, Cracker Barrel, casino, highway rest area, or any other specific location.
In January 2007, I began compiling a list of “RV Parking and No Parking Locations,” showing specific places where RVers are or aren’t allowed to park overnight, and I created the “OvernightRVParking” Yahoo Group to allow other RVers to contribute information and share in the results. The entire subject has turned out to be a lot more complex than I expected. This blog will go into some of what I’ve learned while compiling a listing of more than 3,550 such locations in the US and Canada. I’ll be posting an article every week, discussing one aspect or another of Overnight RV Parking, including where we may or may not park and some of the things we should or shouldn’t do. I’m looking forward to sharing what I’ve learned with all of you.
