By Nanci Dixon
We are grateful to have made a few long-lasting friendships while RVing. They are people we stay in contact with and even do meetups every once in a while. How can we build on those relationships and continue to make friends as older adults?
Friendships and social interaction has been shown to be extremely important in maintaining mental and emotional well-being. Loneliness among the older population is at epidemic proportions. RVers have a built-in way to avoid that because we are generally a friendly bunch.
Here are some tips for making new friends and staying connected
Invite people to your site. My husband just loves to talk with folks. As yearly campground hosts, he has become known for his friendliness. After we make our golf cart rounds he starts a campfire and puts out extra chairs. When someone starts talking he welcomes them over to sit down. We have developed lasting friendships from this simple way of being hospitable. It even works without a fire!
Enjoy having campground acquaintances. There are different levels of friendships. Acquaintances do not need to spill their hearts out like close friends sometimes do. It is easy to meet people in an RV park for a few minutes or longer conversation. Sometimes people are much more willing to open up when they know the time together is temporary.
Join a club if you’re in one spot for a while. Seasonal RV parks generally have lots to do. You might not make a lifelong buddy, but having new acquaintances and something to do can help fill that need for social interaction.
Are there groups on social media you are interested in? I belong to an RV group, new RVers group, Tiffin owners group, a tech group, and assorted RVtravel.com Facebook groups. I learn things, can contribute my knowledge, and benefit from the interactions.
Stay connected! Met somebody you enjoyed? Stay in touch. Have business cards to hand out to share contact info. A text is an easy way to stay connected and a video chat is even better. We meet a lot of people and when they give me their contact info I usually write down a few descriptions so I can place who they are later.
Get out of your comfort zone. Try something new or go somewhere new. It may just be finding a different dog park, a place to hike, or a neighborhood coffee shop.
Plan a meetup. As RVers, we have an option to travel to meet people we have gotten close to. We have planned meetups at Harvest Hosts locations, campgrounds, and our sticks-and-brick houses.
Have you made a friend or friends while RVing? How’d you meet? Share your story in the comments below—I’d love to hear. Plus, you may inspire other RVers to get out there and make friends, too.
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We met YOU while camphosting together. We are so grateful to have made such wonderful life-long friends! See you in January
After my Daddy died in January, I needed to get away before settling his estate. I went to my second “home”, a campground in Florida. My campground “family” helped me make it thru such a sad time. The love, support, and advice (thanks Dan!) turned a unbearable few months into one that I could deal with. I thank God every day for my Chaz Family!
My condolences, Cindy. Figuring out what to sell, donate, or dump before needing to sell a loved one’s home is like a double burden to deal with. Hope you got some good advice. Glad you had somewhere to go for support.
Thank you, Nanci! 🙂 We met another couple at our manufacturer’s service center . The next year we saw them again at an RV rally and a day or two after it ened, once again, at the manufacturer’s service center. Since then, we have seen each other about once a year. Have a great week and safe travels! 🙂