It was one of those “Why didn’t I think of that!” moments. I came across a post online about a guy who “loves planning RV trips.” From planning the route to reserving the RV sites to suggesting fun things to see and do all along the way, Doug Setzer just might be your guy! Like a travel agent for other types of travel experiences, Doug specializes in planning trips for RVers.
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A little background
Doug and his wife began their camping life just ten years ago in a pop-up camper. Doug soon discovered that he could work remotely as a programmer, so the couple traveled, worked, and camped. When babies entered the Setzer family, more space was required. So, the family traded in their pop-up for a 42-foot fifth wheel. They began what would turn out to be five years of living full-time on the road.
Doug is a self-described book learner and likes helping people. When family members asked for his advice about various aspects of RVing, Doug happily responded, of course. Later he posted these responses as articles on the website he named, “Learn to RV.” Since then, Doug has helped countless RVers, many new to the RV lifestyle.
Programmer turned travel agent?
No, Doug hasn’t given up his day job. But things may be changing. A reader on his website recently posted about her frustration in planning a trip to Florida. Doug offered to help. He directed his reader to popular travel planning sites like RV Parky, Roadtrippers, and RV Trip Wizard. Each service has its own little quirks and aggravations, and once again, Doug’s reader petitioned him for help. So, Doug set about arranging the reader’s trip. He plotted the travel route, included interesting sites to see along the way, and put every detail into a travel map, calendar, and spreadsheet format (listing pertinent information).
A new service?
After noting the rave review posted online, many other RVers contacted Doug about arranging their upcoming trips, too! Will this grow into a personalized travel agent business? Time will tell. Should you consider hiring Doug to help plan your next trip? Yes, and here are his reasons (in his own words):
- Less stress. Leave your planning to me and relax knowing I’ve got you covered. No more hours on the phone trying to secure reservations or late nights spent planning a route.
- Claim your time back. We all know how valuable time is, especially when you’re in a busy season of life. By hiring an RV trip planner, you take back the time you would have spent planning, so you can spend time on the things that are most important to you.
- More fun. As someone who has seen the country, I have firsthand experience discovering some of the most magical and exciting places. I can help you weave some of these gems into your travels, making your adventures even more amazing.
Doug’s prices are incredibly affordable, starting at just $50 for six nights or fewer.
Where can you find out more? Right here.
Related:
The people you’ll meet, the places you’ll see… RVing is still the best way to travel
##RVT1025
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We have actually considered the caravan experience to avoid the trip planning aspect of travel, but they are pretty expensive and we honestly aren’t sure we would like the lack of flexibility (going 3000 miles for us would be a once-in-a-life experience which would definitely include a few must-sees).
If you have the patience of Job and sincerely love people, this would be a great job and obviously Doug is great at it. I applaud him!
As wagon master for our club for years, I know it would not be the job for me. Wish Doug had been around all those years ago! lol
I LOVE this! I’ve been a RV’er for most of my life and always enjoyed the trip planning almost as much as the trip. Now days the challenges of planning the trips, (campground reservations, event reservations, ferry reservations, even reservation requirements to enter some National Parks, etc) has turned the joy of planning to frustration in planning. I guess I’m getting lazy in my old age (67 years) but the idea of someone else taking on this task is FANTASTIC! I will definitely contact this guy!
On the first few RV treks I took, I utilized AAA’s “Trip-Tik” routing service which is free to AAA members. This was back in 2010 & 2011. The “Trip-Tiks” were VERY detailed (but DID need to be ordered about six weeks in advance). At that time, my RV was a 2010, 17′ Casita Spirit Deluxe Travel Trailer. Said fiberglass “egg” trailer was relatively compact. I did not need “special” RV routing (but I DID keep an eye peeled for unusually low bridges and propane restrictions). AllStays Camp & RV App was an early purchase (which I still like, use & recommend). These days, I still use AllStays for a lot of trip planning. I’ll have to look into the “RV Travel Agent”; he sounds interesting!
PS: AllStays has a PRO version of their App which is BROWSER based. The Pro version CAN be used on Android devices as well as laptops! Being able to use a laptop’s bigger screen & full keyboard is really appreciated by my aging eyes.
Now this seems like an idea who’s time has come. This could be an add-on service available at rv dealerships’ finance and insurance departments. I can see the demand growing with a population that continues to buy rv’s in record numbers. Thanks for the article.
A big part of my trip planning is doing research on the area we’ll be driving through looking for points of interest such as historical sites or famous restaurants. I spend hours doing that before starting to plan the final route and look for campgrounds.
Nothing is worse than getting back from a trip and learning that someplace you’d always wanted to visit was along your route. (It still sometimes happens even if you plan…)
Doug told me he enjoys researching points of interest all along the route. Plus he’s traveled extensively and can draw on his personal experience. It’s worth a conversation with him. Plus he’s a nice guy!
I suggested this to AAA. The travel agent looked at me like I had just climbed out of the pit from Hell.
YEARS ago AAA would plan trips for you and give you “flip page maps” which made it almost foolproof. Free service back then. I guess that went the way of “good service”.
Yes, and you could also get free flat maps too…any state.
Not quite free – you had to be a member. Also got books for each area, listing hotels, restaurants, and attractions, with how much time to allow to visit each attraction. Also campground directories. And the dues included road service for your car. There was an RV membership, but I don’t know if they still do any of those. We dropped the AAA membership when we found Good Sam road service was better for RVs and Rand McNally Tripmaker was better for planning RV trips.
And before commenting, note the past tense in the last sentence.