How many years did it take most folks to be comfortable in that regard.....how safe for me and a teenage daughter will this be if i cant fix even a tire????
First, I am an 81-year-old single grandmother, and I have been full-time traveling alone for over 12 years. I do not camp in the desert or forest alone, but rather I stay in national, state, and county campgrounds. In 12 years, no one has ever bothered me. I felt slightly unsafe once as some men down the campground road had been drinking all day, but I left the next morning. But that is all that has happened to me.
However, you do have to expect things like blown or flat tires, or things inside the RV that stop working--like maybe your refrigerator will need to be repaired, or you will need a new water pump. But you'd have that in a house also. And there are hundreds, if not thousands, of videos on the internet made by fellow campers on things like how to replace a toilet or get one unplugged.
I work remotly thus i really want to feel secure doing this so that i can adventure confidently. This may sound sexist but are there are just lady RVers without partners??? Im spending hundreds of thousands,......these forums helped me to narrow down to what i want and need...and now im going about finding them. Im in Ontario so zero inventory here of what i want...im buying in Winter which doesnt allow the camp at dealer to test everything and the deadler ill be buying from will not be in my province and probably not my country so how hard is it to find good repairs shops that dont sell RV's (Dealers bump you if you didnt buy from them). Any advise, help.......is this crazy to do if i and my daughter know jack about repairs right now??
Before you agree to buy anything, the MOST IMPORTANT THING is to get it inspected by an outside inspector! There are people called mobile RV repairmen who can come to a campground to fix things. Many of them have gone to training programs and been certified as technicians, so you should get one of these people to inspect your rig BEFORE you buy it.
Especially if you buy used, you can make some incredibly expensive mistakes if you try to save money by skipping an outside inspection. After several friends told her to get an inspection, one of my friends ignored the advice and bought a motorhome in Arizona. It broke down on the way back to California, and had to be towed. On the way, she found several things that the owner/dealer had lied to her about. The result? She sold it for a big loss through a consignment broker. The next rig she bought she did get inspected, and she is happy with it.
Also, you sound a bit younger, but there are a lot of us older women driving and traveling alone in motorhomes or other types of RVs. In fact, I believe the ratio is about three or four women to every older man traveling alone, so it has to be pretty safe.