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Seeking Long-term RV Site near Manhattan w/ FHU


Dave&Rach

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We are new Escapee members looking to live long-term/permanently in our Fifth Wheel (up to 40ft) within commuting distance of Manhattan, NY, willing to be located up to 1-2 hours away. We're very flexible and open to all sites: RV parks; private lots; mobile home parks; renting small lots, etc. We will also consider sites with no FHU. We welcome any information and ideas! Thank you!

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You don't say when. Most northern cgs shutdown at the end of October. Are you commuting every day? Try Allstays and check off cgs open all year. That should be a good starting point. Regarding MH parks, I think you just need to call them, most don't advertise for RVs.

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Welcome to the Escapee forums and to the Escapees Club as well! It is great having you participate so don't hesitate to join in on anything that attracts your interest.

 

I don't have a lot of experience with long term visits to that area but I'll try and point you to some resources that should help you to evaluate the choices. One of the best ways to locate RV accommodations and to evaluate them is the website RV Park Reviews, checking NY and NJ. Another website that I have had some good results with is Campendendium, but they are somewhat newer so may have fewer listings, although I'd still suggest taking a look at them.

 

When you do locate possible RV parks, make sure that you contact them before you move that way to determine if they stay open all year as many close for the winter months and also to be sure that they have monthly rates. An RV is not very winter friendly so if you haven't yet purchased one, make sure that you keep cold weather comfort in mind when you do so. There are members of these forums who have wintered in cold areas in an RV so the forums will be a good source of advice and support in the preparation for winter once you locate a place to stay.

 

We are here to help so do not hesitate posting questions or comments in any of our forum sections!

Good travelin !...............Kirk

Full-time 11+ years...... Now seasonal travelers.
Kirk & Pam's Great RV Adventure

            images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQqFswi_bvvojaMvanTWAI

 

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Hi S Wharton,

 

Thank you so much for your response! We're hoping to be set up in our RV and in NY by this October. We will only need to commute into the city once or twice a week, so we could live a bit out from Manhattan. Also, we're happy to live in New Jersey, too, or anywhere nearby that will accommodate us year-round. We've already checked Allstays and haven't had much luck, but we just tried Campendendium, which has afforded much better search results. We'll definitely try calling some mobile homes, too, thanks for this suggestion. All the best to you!!

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Hello Kirk,

 

Thank you for your warm welcome, and taking the time to send such great advice!! We've just been doing some searches on the Campendendium link you sent us, and we're having some great results with some parks nearby in New Jersey. Many of them advertise that they are open year-round, and offer monthly rates and long-term RV parking. I think you may have just saved us, and we'll be making calls to these parks tomorrow.

 

We've also been doing our research about RV-ing in the winter months, and are definitely purchasing an RV that is fitted with an Arctic package. I'm sure we'll have some other questions/concerns as we go along, and will definitely take more advantage of this great forum.

 

Again, thanks for making us feel so welcome!

 

All the best to you!

 

Welcome to the Escapee forums and to the Escapees Club as well! It is great having you participate so don't hesitate to join in on anything that attracts your interest.

 

I don't have a lot of experience with long term visits to that area but I'll try and point you to some resources that should help you to evaluate the choices. One of the best ways to locate RV accommodations and to evaluate them is the website RV Park Reviews, checking NY and NJ. Another website that I have had some good results with is Campendendium, but they are somewhat newer so may have fewer listings, although I'd still suggest taking a look at them.

 

When you do locate possible RV parks, make sure that you contact them before you move that way to determine if they stay open all year as many close for the winter months and also to be sure that they have monthly rates. An RV is not very winter friendly so if you haven't yet purchased one, make sure that you keep cold weather comfort in mind when you do so. There are members of these forums who have wintered in cold areas in an RV so the forums will be a good source of advice and support in the preparation for winter once you locate a place to stay.

 

We are here to help so do not hesitate posting questions or comments in any of our forum sections!

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Hi Stekay,

 

Thank you for posting this link! We've actually already seen this park, and were so excited about it until we called and they don't allow any long-term parking/camping, unfortunately. Kirk posted a link above to the Campendendium website, and we've since had luck with some parks nearby in New Jersey. Hopefully one of these will work! Again, we really appreciate your help! All the best to you!

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Have you researched as to how you live in a RV in winter conditions? It can be done but it takes preparation. You will also go through a lot of propane for heating. If you haven't bought the RV yet you might consider getting into a mobile home park. Mobile homes can take the winters much better than a RV - even with the so-called 'Arctic Packages'.

 

You also mentioned you'd consider a site with no FHU. This would really be difficult in the area you're considering. You would need to move the RV to fill with water and dump the tanks. You wouldn't be able to use the RV furnace or the batteries would run down fast. You'd need a freestanding catalytic heater using propane.

 

Think this all out carefully. Best of luck to you! Here's a site for some reading on wintering in a RV:

 

http://www.gonewiththewynns.com/winterize-rv

Full-timed for 16 Years
Traveled 8 yr in a 2004 Newmar Dutch Star 40' Motorhome
and 8 yr in a 33' Travel Supreme 5th Wheel

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If you only have to be in Manhattan once or twice a week, how about doing the Southwest commute?

 

Head south out of snow country and find a campground in a nice location near an airport that Southwest Airlines serves. Then fly in and out of Newark and ride the train into Manhattan.

 

You may be surprised how low of a fare you can get if you book a month or so in advance, especially if you include the free rewards point flights. A while back Southwest's magazine had an article about a group of flyers that commuted daily from Phoenix to Los Angeles every morning, then flew home that night. The flights in and out of LAX worked out to be quicker and about the same cost as trying to drive across the LA metro area to affordable housing.

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If you only have to be in Manhattan once or twice a week, how about doing the Southwest commute?

 

Head south out of snow country and find a campground in a nice location near an airport that Southwest Airlines serves. Then fly in and out of Newark and ride the train into Manhattan.

 

You may be surprised how low of a fare you can get if you book a month or so in advance, especially if you include the free rewards point flights. A while back Southwest's magazine had an article about a group of flyers that commuted daily from Phoenix to Los Angeles every morning, then flew home that night. The flights in and out of LAX worked out to be quicker and about the same cost as trying to drive across the LA metro area to affordable housing.

Hi Lou,

 

Thanks for your response, and for the new perspective on commuting. I don't think this will work for us, unfortunately, but thanks for the idea as perhaps it could work for us one of these days. I know living in the south would be better for RV living, but I've personally witnessed and know people who've lived comfortably in winter conditions in their RV. It may not be for everyone, but it is something we're prepared to undertake. Thanks again, and all the best to you!

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Have you researched as to how you live in a RV in winter conditions? It can be done but it takes preparation. You will also go through a lot of propane for heating. If you haven't bought the RV yet you might consider getting into a mobile home park. Mobile homes can take the winters much better than a RV - even with the so-called 'Arctic Packages'.

 

You also mentioned you'd consider a site with no FHU. This would really be difficult in the area you're considering. You would need to move the RV to fill with water and dump the tanks. You wouldn't be able to use the RV furnace or the batteries would run down fast. You'd need a freestanding catalytic heater using propane.

 

Think this all out carefully. Best of luck to you! Here's a site for some reading on wintering in a RV:

 

http://www.gonewiththewynns.com/winterize-rv

Hi 2gypsies,

 

Thanks for your advice. We must live in New York or New Jersey in close proximity to Manhattan out of necessity for work/study reasons, so we don't have the option of living in a warmer climate. We've personally known many people who live in their RVs year-round in Alaska, where we currently live, and also in Flagstaff, AZ, and they've lived very cozily. We do know what to expect and are definitely not going into this unprepared, and thank you for the link.

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Hi All,

 

Thanks for all the responses! We wanted to let everyone know we've found a place about 45 minutes west of Manhattan in North New Jersey that allows year-round parking, and which also has many permanent people who live through the winter there in their RVs. We received a lot of advice from the park manager on how to winter in our RV, and we're looking forward to our new home! We'll definitely take into consideration all the great advice provided here, as well.

 

All the best to you all!

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Hi All,

 

Thanks for all the responses! We wanted to let everyone know we've found a place about 45 minutes west of Manhattan in North New Jersey that allows year-round parking, and which also has many permanent people who live through the winter there in their RVs. We received a lot of advice from the park manager on how to winter in our RV, and we're looking forward to our new home! We'll definitely take into consideration all the great advice provided here, as well.

 

All the best to you all!

 

Would you mind sharing the name of the place? I was interested in doing something similar; commuting into Manhattan a few days a week and living full-time in my RV

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