The Never-Ending Sabbatical
In this post:
The sabbatical decision
Using the RV for sabbatical
What we learned
A brief checklist for taking an RV sabbatical
The sabbatical decision
After a 90-minute drive from my commuter apartment, I was tired. It had been another long week and I was looking forward to a quiet weekend at home with Jim. But a call from my brother-in-law ended that idea. He and his wife were going to an RV show in north Atlanta and wanted Jim and me to go with them. RVs had been a topic of casual conversation for at least the last few years. It seemed so idyllic to escape to some remote area at a lake, beach, or forest, have our morning coffee outdoors, and just relax. Let me preface this with the reality that neither Jim nor I had any experience camping or RVing. But, the kids were grown and gone and our thoughts turned frequently to travel - and RVs seemed to be the perfect vehicle.
We went to the show and though we didn't buy anything, we did get an education about the variety of RVs. It became the topic of every dinner conversation. We poured over brochures and websites and then we found "Dean" on YouTube. Leisure Travel Vans couldn't have a better "frontman". We were entertained and educated about what to expect in an RV. It wasn't long before we were making plans to go to the RV Supershow in Tampa, Florida. And there we did buy or rather ordered, a Leisure Travel Van Unity MB. It would take almost a year before we took delivery, but in the interim, our lives seem to get even more hectic with work.
When the RV finally arrived, we had already planned our first trip - a week on the Gulf coast between Christmas and New Year's. That trip was a pivot point for us. Traveling by RV really changes your pace and slows down the hurry part of your life. When we returned to work neither of us could stop talking about the RV and how enjoyable it was. We took many local camping trips and a few to the surrounding states. Then, one lovely camping weekend after another long week at work, we both came to the same conclusion. We needed a break and not just a weekend or a week. We wanted a whole year away from work - a sabbatical, after which, we could resume our careers refreshed in both perspective and attitude.
A sabbatical is a great way to reset your mind and body as well as a wonderful opportunity to learn new skills, explore interests, and plan your "next chapter". And that was precisely what we wanted to do. Jim was always a good cook and wanted to learn more culinary skills. I wanted to pursue music and writing. In fact, I bought a ukulele about the same time we bought the RV thinking it would be a good activity when we traveled. Just one year after getting the RV, we sold our home, left our jobs, and departed for Key West. We gave ourselves one full year to enjoy a traveling sabbatical.
Using the RV for sabbatical
The RV was a crazy idea to our kids. We had kind of put everything on the line to give it a try. But I remembered a conversation with a friend when she bought her RV, "There is a tremendous feeling of freedom when you get to the end of your driveway and ask, "Where do you want to go?". That conversation stuck in my mind and seemed like a good endorsement for our sabbatical. It didn't have to be a permanent situation - we weren't going to live in it full time - just travel in it. And, considering the cost to fly around the country, staying in hotels, and buying all our meals in restaurants, it seemed a more relaxed and economical choice. I know, you're thinking that the cost of the RV has to be factored in, and that, of course, does make a difference in the economics. Yet, I can say now, seven years later, that it was one of our best decisions.
The two big questions for travel are, where are you going to stay and how are you going to get there? The RV answers both of those questions. We always have our own "house-on-the-road" to stay in and it also serves as our transportation to get everywhere. We even prep many of our meals in the RV's tiny kitchen. With a small RV like ours, we can drive it almost anywhere - to the grocery store, an attraction, or the beach. It is maneuverable enough to use as a "car" while comfortable enough for extended trips.
Using an RV for a sabbatical just seemed like a "no-brainer". We planned and took trips to many National Parks staying in those campgrounds or very close by at an RV resort. We visited numerous beaches, small towns, and museums, attended festivals, ballgames, and visited friends and family all over the country. And each trip included time to just relax and consider our options for when the year was over.
What we learned
As our sabbatical year drew to a close we found ourselves spending more time on the road. The freedom to just "go" and explore without any time constraints really changed our perspective. We began questioning how we had ended up in the careers we had and whether or not that was where we needed to return. Living in tight quarters in the RV and in my commuter apartment had taught us we don't need as much "stuff" as we had previously thought. How much did we really need to live comfortably and how much income did we need to provide for that? So many questions surfaced during our sabbatical that we extended our time away from our careers for an additional three months. Then, after much discussion in places like Yellowstone National Park, Gulf Islands National Seashore, and the vast fields of Kansas we made the decision to not go back to our previous careers. An endless sabbatical would be our reality. Learning new skills, exploring new places, and gaining an appreciation for our time. We had spent so many years working for others, now we would work for ourselves and scale our needs to a more livable pace.
An RV sabbatical worked well for us and, though we made a complete lifestyle shift, that is not necessary - or even desirable for most people. Because we were close to retirement age, it made an "Endless Sabbatical" a realistic possibility. All those years of hard work allowed us to take a giant leap! But if you're not quite "there" yet, you may enjoy a sabbatical to reframe your career and just get some much-needed rest. Below you'll find a link for a worksheet to help you navigate the idea of a sabbatical and, here are a few tips on how to include your RV.
A brief checklist for taking a sabbatical in an RV
Identify how an RV will enrich your sabbatical
Make a list of places you will go and things you want to see during your RV sabbatical (check out our destination blog posts!)
Don't overcrowd your sabbatical schedule with too much travel time (use the 2.2.2 rule or similar)
Create a realistic budget for your sabbatical including RV maintenance costs (the Small RV Ninja Travel Planner can help you develop a budget)
Do your research on campgrounds and low-cost alternatives (Harvest Hosts, Army Corps sites, BLM sites)
