How To Rv With Your Significant Other

Communicate

I believe that communication is the key to any relationship. When you’re living in a small space, it’s even more critical. Everyone has their moments, moods, hormones. When you know you’re feeling stressed or just need some time, let your partner know. Most people don’t mind accommodating others, but they hate surprises. I’d rather know someone is in a bad mood and prepare to be the diffuser/bigger person than be thrown off and react.

Camper Tip: Just relax. Most likely there were things you thought were the end of your world 10 years ago and they ended up being a small blip on the bigger picture of your life.

Handle Your Responsibilities

When you don’t handle your top responsibilities (financial, health, family, etc.), they have consequences that put strain on your relationships. Build good habits and get things done. It’s amazing how much you can get done when you have good work ethic and grind it out.

Camper Tip: Get to it early in the day and grind it out. Some people like to unwind by watching TV; I feel more relaxed knowing I’m on top of my priorities.

Choose the RV That’s Best for the Family

Depending on what type of RV you have, the type of experience will vary greatly. We found that our Type C was a little tight for us to live and work. Not having a separate workspace meant that Danielle had to tip toe around while I worked. Once we upgraded to our 5th wheel and I put my office in the toy hauler room, it instantly made things easier on our relationship.

Camper Tip: You can get a good grasp on what’s going to work best for you through online blogs and YouTube Videos. Next step is to go touch and feel the RV at the dealership.

Explore the Campground

There’s a good chance that wherever you park, you’ll find something unique. With camping, it’s a choose-your-own-adventure story and you’re the star! Great campgrounds don’t need to be expensive. Do your research and find the campgrounds that fit the experience you’re trying to enjoy.

Camper Tip: Walk or bike around the campground or area together each available evening. You’d be surprised at the deep conversations that come up while simply walking around.

Have Goals

“Life is either a daring adventure, or nothing at all.” – Hellen Keller

Don’t let life pass you by. We’ve all been preached to about goals and how important they are… That’s because it’s true, they are so powerful. We brainstorm big lists of things we want to experience and places we want to go. On a micro scale, each time we visit a new area we dive in extensively on the online research. We’ve gotten pretty quick at finding the hot spots and even the local spots if we’re looking for a non-touristy experience.

Camper Tip: For finding new adventures, online research like a Google search is the way to go. Another fantastic resource is when we get to an area, we always ask a few locals for the must see spots! Work your goals into your date nights and in your time by yourself.

Spend Time Together

There’s a difference between being around each other while you’re going through life and intentionally spending quality time with the person you love. It’s easy to get caught up in daily routines and not give your best friend the quality interaction they deserve. Be intentional about your time. Meet each other’s needs. Date nights are fantastic.

Camper Tip: A fun way to approach date night is to take turns picking the adventure! Set a budget and make a rule that you have to be up for whatever AND with a good attitude.

• When it’s my turn I bring her to scenic vistas to have a picnic, local restaurants with an incredible view, even a scenic hike or drive with the truck.
• Danielle usually picks restaurants with great food, shopping excursions (she loves traveling to so many different malls around the country!) and unique experiences like the Tour Through Tree in the Redwoods (you can drive through it but our RV was too wide so we walked through the tree on a nice easy stroll from the Camper Corral RV Park across the 101).

Spend Time Apart

This might sound counter-intuitive but spending time away from your significant other doing something you enjoy is healthy for your relationship. When you grow as a person you will also grow your relationship. Explore new interests or hobbies to stimulate the brain and body.

Camper Tip: Rather than cutting into relationship time, look into efficient alternatives. I wake up around sunrise almost every day to go hiking, biking, surfing, etc. That way I’m usually back before Danielle and Ella are up and done with their morning routine. I cut into some sleep time to make this happen, but it’s well worth it. To get the most out of the time, I create content for our marketing company on my morning excursions.

Do Things with Friends

It’s healthy for couples to have other like minded couple friends. I know many people have met some great friends through RV Meetup sites and events. We’ve been blessed to have friends spread out all over the country and have routed our travels to stop in and say hello or even stay awhile.

Camper Tip: Social media is designed for being SOCIAL. Let people know where you’re at, you never know what old friends could have moved into that area!

What about you? If you have any tips that have worked for your relationship on the road we’d love to hear them in the comments!