Dreaming of a great American road trip? Packing everyone up in an RV, exploring the country, and ending each night around a fire pit is the epitome of summer vacation dreams. But once you look up the price of an RV, it’s a bit of a buzzkill. Buying one yourself is expensive, and for the most part, rental prices aren’t exactly affordable. A lot of times, it’s cheaper to get a hotel! That’s why Outdoorsy RV Rental piqued our interest.
Outdoorsy is a platform that connects RV owners with would-be renters at affordable prices. But low prices aren’t the only way the company wants to help road warriors save. Poke around Outdoorsy and you’ll also find great promo codes, discounts through their business partners, and a fairly comprehensive insurance policy (though you will have to pay a premium for it).
If you’re a little apprehensive about learning the ins and outs of another travel platform, we did some of the legwork for you. Here are the ways an Outdoorsy RV rental can help you save big on your next summer road trip.
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Outdoorsy RV Rental is basically the Airbnb of RVs.
That’s really it. If you have an RV that you’re not using throughout the year, you can list it on Outdoorsy to rent out to others. So, if you want to take a cross-country trip but don’t own one of these road beasts, you can use this exact platform to find a reasonably-priced rental near you.
They offer lots of different ways to save money, not just with affordable rental prices.
Lower prices are obviously a huge appeal, but what’s cool is Outdoorsy helps renters save money with discounts through their partners, promo codes, and free roadside assistance.
Outdoorsy can easily save you 35% compared to traditional RV dealership rentals.
RV dealerships often do have a certain portion of their fleet dedicated to RV rentals. But depending on where you’re renting, these traditional rental setups can be more expensive than Outdoorsy RV rentals.
For example, in my hometown of Pittsburgh, I could rent a Class C RV for anywhere between $229 and $495 going through traditional routes. But with Outdoorsy? I can rent directly from neighbors for just $150 – $270. So just by comparing the lowest prices in those two ranges, you’re saving nearly 35%.
So there’s still some comparison shopping to make sure you’re getting the best deal. But by and large, you can find better prices on Outdoorsy than you would with traditional RV rentals.
Get a discount with partner RV park memberships.
Of course, the RV rental price is just part of the overall cost for this kind of trip. Outdoorsy has some partnerships that can help save you money on some of the other stuff, too. For example, if you’re on the road a lot, you might want to invest in an RV park membership to save on fees. Outdoorsy gets you 30% off Harvest Hosts — a membership that connects you with one-night RV parking at a rural farm, vineyard, or other agro-tourism location.
Use this coupon code to get $50 off your Outdoorsy rental.
Oh, hey. Looking for a promo code? Use code EXSPLORE to get $50 off your Outdoorsy rental. (No, it’s not a typo.) You definitely don’t want to leave that money on the table.
Related: Find RV Rentals for Under $5 a Day
Check with your auto insurance before you purchase increased liability protection.
As a renter, you’ll have to pay a premium for insurance coverage. It’s not optional, and the smallest package costs $200+ for one week. The policy covers the renters, owners, and the physical RV. Renters will have the following coverage:
- $300,000 for any damage to the RV.
- State statutory minimum coverage for liability for the renter.
- Option to pay a premium to upgrade to $500,000 in liability coverage.
If you upgrade for more liability coverage, your premium can almost double.
But you may be able to dodge the increased premium and still have larger liability protection. Be sure to check your current auto insurance coverage to see if it may extend to you while you’re driving the RV. In some cases, your liability coverage may follow you regardless of which vehicle you’re driving.
You’ll also pay a deductible if you do need to file a claim. The standard deductible is $1,500, but it goes up to $4,000 if you’re driving a Class A RV. If you do opt for the juiced-up policy, your standard deductible goes down to $500, or $2,000 for a Class A.
So if you end up needing to file a claim, it would be cheaper to pay the increased premium regardless of whether or not your regular auto insurance policy covers you. But you won’t know if it’s worth it or not until after you’ve completed your trip.
Note: Outdoorsy rentals come with free, 24/7 roadside assistance, so if you get a flat or run out of gas, you know you’ve got someone out there to help.
Outdoorsy saves owners money, too.
If you’re an owner, there’s very little financial risk when you rent your RV on Outdoorsy. In fact, renting out your RV could help you save money on all of your maintenance, storage, and financing costs!
Free insurance coverage up to $1 million.
As the owner, you won’t pay a premium or deductible for the insurance, and you’ll have more coverage than the renter. Your liability coverage sits at $1 million. And, of course, your RV is protected from damage for up to $300,000.
Now, you will have to check with your regular insurer that your policy allows you to rent out the vehicle. If it doesn’t and you list on Outdoorsy anyways, you could lose your primary insurance policy.
Use profits to offset your insurance, storage fees, or financing costs.
Outdoorsy claims that the average host makes $32,000 per year renting out their RV on the platform. That’s some big bucks!
You can turn around and use this profit to pay your insurance premiums or pay off the loan you took out to purchase your RV in the first place. You can also use it to pay for storage or parking fees when you’re not using the vehicle. Those fees will likely be smaller as your vehicle will be on the road for a larger portion of the year.
Related: 8 Tips to Buy a Used RV
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