Guide to RV Forums and Message Boards

When it comes to RV’s, there are passengers and there are drivers.

The incredible thing about that statement is that many RVers change their roles depending on the situation and topic.

Sharing information is key to making sure that those that desire to become “drivers” don’t stay stuck as “passengers”.

Online RV forums are one of the best ways that like-minded RVers can share information, expertise, and perspectives. Some even organize meet ups and make lifetime friends through RV forums. All of the folks here at DoItYourselfRV are avid readers and contributors to many of the RV forums out there.

These “RV Forums” are concentrated around the idea of people helping people. These forums can help with coping with the RV lifestyle, RV maintenance, RV safety, working on the road, where to stay, what kind of tow vehicles to buy, and much more.

Reading and contributing to RV forums is a powerful way to learn about and give back to the RV community.

The remainder of this article is dedicated to helping you discover the RV forum(s) that best fits your RV, activities, background, and the membership programs you may already be a part of.

When it comes to RV forums, two factors reign supreme:

1. the amount of activity and
2. the collective knowledge of the user base.

There are many RV forums but few have the activity and user base to attract and engage new users. This fact is unfortunate because new users keep the RV forums relevant and useful.

This guide will cover three main types of RV forums:

• General RV Forums – Broad range of topics, information and users for all types of RV’s.
• Niche RV Forums – Much more specific in their targeted audience and may only be helpful to certain RV’s or RV owners.
• RV Make/Model Specific Forums – These types of forums are centered around a brand or manufacturer and are great for more model/make specific issues.

General RV Forums:

General RV forums are broad in nature and welcome all RVers to learn, share, and contribute.

They tend to have the largest user base and their activity levels are generally very high in comparison to the other types of RV forums.

RV.Net – They call it the Open Roads Forum and it is the largest and most active RV forum available to RV community.

This forum is shared by RV.Net, Good Sam Club, Trailer Life, Woodall’s and Motorhome.com so if you join or visit one of them then you will be getting access to the information across all of the different websites.

Here you will find something for almost everyone. There is information on technology, certain classes of motorhomes, and it even a specific topic for Good Sam Club support. You’ll find subtopics with information on every type of RV.

IRV2.com – IRV2 is the only other forum on this list that can compete with the breadth of topics and active user base in relation to RV.net.

It is a very active forum with over 150,000 different topics and 1,500+ users on the site at any given time. Many RVers prefer the user experience at IRV2 over RV.net. Others wish to avoid Camping World and Good Sam altogether, and shy away from RV.net which is affiliated with both. 🙂

Escapees RV Discussion Forum – The Escapees forum was created for their membership club members but it is open to the public as well.

They have a loyal user base with about 500 people online at any given time and over 45,000 topics to review and contribute to. The Escapees club is based out of Texas and many of their members are very well versed in getting resident status in TX.

The RV Forum – The RV forum boasts being the oldest RV forum on the web. “Welcome to the friendliest place on the web for anyone with an RV or an interest in RVing” exclaims their welcome page. They don’t have the largest user base but the members are very helpful people. There isn’t the activity level of the above mentioned RV forums but many times its quality over quantity when you have a tough RV related issue.

FMCA Motorhome Community – The FMCA is the Family Motor Coach Association which has a large group of members totaling more than 85,000 families. They have a RV forum available on their website available for their members but much like the Escapees club, they open their forum to any RV’er looking to be a part of it. They have 6,000 topics to peruse and about 75 users online at any given time.

RV Dreams Community Forums – The RV-dreams forum is part of the RV dreams collection of websites. They have been around since 2005. The owners decided to start the forum to allow all their readers to connect and share RV information. This RV forum is a very friendly one. They have about 80 users online at any given time and over 7,000 topics. The forum members adhere to the “Never rely on a single person or single source for information on RVing” mantra.

RV Talk by RVUSA.com – RV talk is part of RVUSA.com which is a website  dedicated helping viewers learn more about the RV industry. They have been around since 1995. Their primary dealings are with RV sales but they run a RV forum where RV’ers can share information as well. They have around 75 users online at any time and over 13,000 topics to read through.

CampingRoadTrip.com Forums – CampingRoadTrip.com is a great website that is devoted to helping people plan and take road trips in the US. They have not only a forum but also a database of campground and RV parks. CampingRoadTrip.com also offers a IPhone app with info on their campground database.