Planning a 12 month 36 state road trip - UK resident

[EmmaLou]

Hi All,
Were planning to buy a second hand Class C RV from the Florida area then do a continuous trip through 36 states over 12 months on a tourist visa - we would not be able to register the vehicle in Florida as we would not have a address in the US does anyone know a legal workaround, the plan would be to sell the unit afterwards on consignment. Any tips in general on this trip - has anyone else done it?

 

[Alaskansnowbirds]

EmmaLou, welcome to the forum. You're not the first to embark on a trip like this. We have a couple of members from your next of the woods that I'm sure will be able to help you. Jackiemac and her husband I know have an RV here in the states. I'm sure she'll be able to help.

Again, welcome to the forum.

 

[Domo]

Find a mailing service that will collect you mail and give you a Florida address. Forward your mail from UK to that address.

We live in Florida, but sold our home when we started full-timing in 2017. We used a mail service so we had a mailing address and, believe it or not, we also legally used our Florida License plate number as our residence address - here's some detail from Good Sam's mail service...

-->> Click Here! <<--

 

[rvlifer]

Welcome to the forum. Personally i would lean toward buying an rv from someone who lived in a dryer state. The moisture on the east coast tends to cause more rust problems in vehicles. Definitely in autos. Not sure how much in rvs.

Definitely get any rv inspected before buying it. Repair places are booked for months so you dont want your vacation plans ruined by being stuck in the rv waiting for repairs.

There are mail forwarding companies out there that may be able to help with registration. We used americas mailbox in south dakota but there are others including a few in florida. They should have more info about whether and what you can do around registration.

Do you have any experience with rvs? They arent like cars. Lots more that goes wrong and a larger learning curve. Trying to learn on a first big trip could cause a lot of stress in the first couple of months on the trip.

 

[EmmaLou]

Welcome to the forum. Personally i would lean toward buying an rv from someone who lived in a dryer state. The moisture on the east coast tends to cause more rust problems in vehicles. Definitely in autos. Not sure how much in rvs.

Definitely get any rv inspected before buying it. Repair places are booked for months so you dont want your vacation plans ruined by being stuck in the rv waiting for repairs.

There are mail forwarding companies out there that may be able to help with registration. We used americas mailbox in south dakota but there are others including a few in florida. They should have more info about whether and what you can do around registration.

Do you have any experience with rvs? They arent like cars. Lots more that goes wrong and a larger learning curve. Trying to learn on a first big trip could cause a lot of stress in the first couple of months on the trip.

We have done shorter trips before and used to have a caravan which is similar internally - were not fixed on entry point so good advice on the dryer states - due to the travel distance and visa restrictions we wanted to do a single trip ideally - think its more cost effective to buy rentals seem very expensive and have mileage restrictions.

 

[TonyL]

Hi Emma, welcome to the forum.
First off, I don't want to burst your bubble, but the maximum you can stay in the US with a visa is 6 months.
You can get an extension ( we did it during covid) but immigration may take a dim view if you want to extend on your first visit.
Friends of ours on the forum from Cornwall bought an ex rental c class in Florida a couple of years ago.
They also paid for a nationwide warranty with the rental company which turned out worthless when they needed it.
As to registering any vehicle, you need a mailing address which is really easy to get. Ours is in Montana and by setting up an LLC, negated paying sales tax.
Are you set on a c class? Remember there's not as much space as an A class, travel trailer or fifth wheel, and any day trip excursions means packing everything away each time.
Many do it, but just wanted you to consider.
As to touring for 12 months, we've been coming out here since 2019 and despite driving 80000 miles, have still only just scratched the surface of this wonderful country.
Jackiemac, one of the forum administrators, will no doubt soon reply. Her knowledge and experience was invaluable to us, and now we're happy to pass our experiences on.
We have a truck and fifth wheel, she has a truck and travel trailer, and the space in ours is incredible.
Whatever help you need, don't be afraid to ask.
Most importantly, have you obtained your B1/B2 visa yet?

 

[TonyL]

Also where you register can make big differences to yearly licence fees( think road tax) whether you need to consider smog testing, and insurance costs. Be advised, insurance in the US is very expensive!
I'll get in touch with our friends who bought the c class and try to get them to post about their experience.

 

[Isaac-1]

If looking at an ex-Cruise America rental unit, I think they offer a 6 month warranty, though I don't know if it is an added expense. As to the Florida concern it may be valid for some coaches, though I bought mine in Florida in 2016 and it has little beyond the expected surface rust on the chassis, and it spent most of its 14 year life at that point registered in Florida, though of course I have no way to know how close to the shore it was or how much time it spent there, just based on vehicle history records it was initially sold in Florida in 2002, then registered in North Carolina in 2003, Tennessee in 2004, then back to Florida in 2005, where it remained registered until I bought it.

 

[Jackiemac]

Hi and welcome to the forum.

Good info from others, Tony's info on LLC useful for an address and to reduce your tax burden.

I wrote the document which you can download from this post and updated it in 2022:

https://www.rvforum.net/resources/info-for-uk-residents-wanting-to-rv-in-the-us.232/

We started our 6 month trips back in 2016 and love every minute. We have never extended our Visa.

Have you already got your Visa?

 

[EmmaLou]

Hi Emma, welcome to the forum.
First off, I don't want to burst your bubble, but the maximum you can stay in the US with a visa is 6 months.
You can get an extension ( we did it during covid) but immigration may take a dim view if you want to extend on your first visit.
Friends of ours on the forum from Cornwall bought an ex rental c class in Florida a couple of years ago.
They also paid for a nationwide warranty with the rental company which turned out worthless when they needed it.
As to registering any vehicle, you need a mailing address which is really easy to get. Ours is in Montana and by setting up an LLC, negated paying sales tax.
Are you set on a c class? Remember there's not as much space as an A class, travel trailer or fifth wheel, and any day trip excursions means packing everything away each time.
Many do it, but just wanted you to consider.
As to touring for 12 months, we've been coming out here since 2019 and despite driving 80000 miles, have still only just scratched the surface of this wonderful country.
Jackiemac, one of the forum administrators, will no doubt soon reply. Her knowledge and experience was invaluable to us, and now we're happy to pass our experiences on.
We have a truck and fifth wheel, she has a truck and travel trailer, and the space in ours is incredible.
Whatever help you need, don't be afraid to ask.
Most importantly, have you obtained your B1/B2 visa yet?

thanks that's really helpful. no visa as still in the how can we do this stage but I do think its possible initially I thought over 2 years but there isn't an option to get a visa for that long and we would not want to stay as we have a home and family here but the US is so beautiful we want to see as much as possible - the focus would be on scenery/landscape not so much the towns on this trip - we wanted class C so it was able to be used as a day tripper but we plan to move camp sites each day or 2 so we can get around as much as possible.

Problem with a 6 month visa is we would have to section up the travel and you need to stay out of the US at least as long as you were in it so this will extend a travel plan to several years and I also plan to do Europe when were back which will take much longer but is easier to facilitate breaks to come home as we can dive the van back to the UK as needed or book it into short term parking.

An extended absence of 6-12 months would make buying a van really in-efficient but rental is almost as costly as having a van plus there are excess miles. We went for C as its big enough for 2 but we wouldn't need to get a licence upgrade, if it was just me I would have a class B but there a bit small for FT with 2 adults.

 

[EmmaLou]

If looking at an ex-Cruise America rental unit, I think they offer a 6 month warranty, though I don't know if it is an added expense. As to the Florida concern it may be valid for some coaches, though I bought mine in Florida in 2016 and it has little beyond the expected surface rust on the chassis, and it spent most of its 14 year life at that point registered in Florida, though of course I have no way to know how close to the shore it was or how much time it spent there, just based on vehicle history records it was initially sold in Florida in 2002, then registered in North Carolina in 2003, Tennessee in 2004, then back to Florida in 2005, where it remained registered until I bought it.

Thank you - iIlike the idea of a ex-rental as they are normally well maintained and kept clean but the mileage is higher although that means you can get a new model so less risk of rust etc..

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

Personally i would lean toward buying an rv from someone who lived in a dryer state. The moisture on the east coast tends to cause more rust problems in vehicles. Definitely in autos. Not sure how much in rvs.

As a Florida resident for the past 48 years and an RV owner for much of that, I don't think this is worth worrying about if the RV is less than 20-25 years old. The RV bodies are filon (fiberglass) or aluminum, so not vulnerable to rust. The vehicle chassis is steel and thus will rust over time, but it takes more than a decade to do more than a surface coating. The exception might be an RV that spend most of it's like parked on a beach (salt water environment), but the days when that sort of camping was allowed are long gone. Very few campsites are that close to seawater.

 

[Jackiemac]

A B1/B2 Visitor Visa lasts for 10 years!!

 

[DutchmenSport]

Rental companies often sell their old inventory. Before selling, they do make sure they are road worthy and functioning properly. And granted, these campers are usually no-frills .... like carpeting and what not. But they are functional and you can get a good deal on them (if you do your research).

It's just a suggestion.... Doing this (literally) long distance will be a challenge, but it's an alternative!

https://www.cruiseamerica.com/buy-used-rvs

 

[Tom]

... I thought over 2 years but there isn't an option to get a visa for that long ...
Problem with a 6 month visa ...

Adding to Jackie's reply, both a B1 (business) and B2 (tourist) visa will likely be stamped in your passport (one stamp). The visas will likely be valid for 10 years, but that only allows you to land in the US. The length of an individual stay will be decided by the officer at the port of entry, but is limited to 6 months maximum.

As has been mentioned, there are ways of extending your stay (e.g. by filing form I-539), or by restarting the clock by leaving the US (e.g. visiting Canada) and re-entering. Unfortunately, the rules have changed making a visit to Canada a less viable option. I'd encourage you to read the rules on the UCIS web site, including:

https://www.uscis.gov/visit-the-united-states/extend-your-stay

 

[TonyL]

Hi Emma,
You're not quite right about Visa requirements.
There is no set time that you must be away from the US before seeking re-entry. The problem is there's no hard and fast rules that we've found for guidance.
The visa allows you to "knock the door" but it's up to the border official at immigration to decide whether your reason to seek entry is valid. It all seems very daunting to anyone who hasn't been through this, but we've been doing this 6 years, Jackiemac even longer. To give you an example, when we went home in 2019 we left in November. We came back out to the US in January 2020.
Last year we also left in November and returned to the US this January. All you need is to show you have commitments in the UK like property, friends, family etc, be upfront and honest with the official and prove you have the means to support your stay.
I see that you are at the planning stage at the moment.
If I may suggest, if you are serious about wanting to tour the US, start now and obtain your Visas. They are valid for 10 years. Otherwise there's the slim chance that you'll get all the planning done ready to go, and not be granted the visa.
It has happened to others, but the applicant never posted why their application failed.
We normally visit for around 6 months and seek storage near our final destination. During covid our truck and trailer was unused and stored for a year. Others have a permanent storage location and always fly in and out from a local international airport.
What you want to do IS achievable!
Anything worth doing is worth some effort, and touring the US is DEFINITELY worth all the effort.
We return home mid April, and depending on where you are located in the UK, would be happy to meet and go through as many questions you have, or simply keep posting.
Happy planning.

 

[Domo]

No matter how and when - please keep the forum advised, just in case you happen to be in one of our areas and need a hand or advice on sights to see local.

 

[EmmaLou]

A B1/B2 Visitor Visa lasts for 10 years!!

Hi Jackie, with that visa can you stay in the US for 12 months+ continuously everything I read suggest you cant stay more than 12m without applying for residency, which we don't really want and probably wouldn't get as we don't plan to work or study just drive around having adventure and eating good food!

Initially I thought you could get a 2 year visa but I think I was mistake but that would be brilliant if you could.

 

[EmmaLou]

Hi Emma,
You're not quite right about Visa requirements.
There is no set time that you must be away from the US before seeking re-entry. The problem is there's no hard and fast rules that we've found for guidance.
The visa allows you to "knock the door" but it's up to the border official at immigration to decide whether your reason to seek entry is valid. It all seems very daunting to anyone who hasn't been through this, but we've been doing this 6 years, Jackiemac even longer. To give you an example, when we went home in 2019 we left in November. We came back out to the US in January 2020.
Last year we also left in November and returned to the US this January. All you need is to show you have commitments in the UK like property, friends, family etc, be upfront and honest with the official and prove you have the means to support your stay.
I see that you are at the planning stage at the moment.
If I may suggest, if you are serious about wanting to tour the US, start now and obtain your Visas. They are valid for 10 years. Otherwise there's the slim chance that you'll get all the planning done ready to go, and not be granted the visa.
It has happened to others, but the applicant never posted why their application failed.
We normally visit for around 6 months and seek storage near our final destination. During covid our truck and trailer was unused and stored for a year. Others have a permanent storage location and always fly in and out from a local international airport.
What you want to do IS achievable!
Anything worth doing is worth some effort, and touring the US is DEFINITELY worth all the effort.
We return home mid April, and depending on where you are located in the UK, would be happy to meet and go through as many questions you have, or simply keep posting.
Happy planning.

thank you that helpful. what the cost of storage as I didn't consider that as an option thinking it would be best to just do it all so we got the best value out of the trip.

 

[TonyL]

Storage costs vary considerably.
In Virginia we were paying around $350 for covered rv Storage and the truck in the open. We paid 170$ recently for covered Storage north of Las vegas, and $100 near the Canadian border for uncovered Storage.
All were monthly rates.
We've flown in to one location, traveled for 6 months, found Storage and flown home from another state.
It's also very easy to book UK return flights to the same airport and tag on a one way from your final destination back to your departure airport. Sometimes, that works out cheaper than modifying your international booking.