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RV rentals rise nationwide
As families look to get out of the house while still safely obeying social distancing guidelines this summer, RV rentals are on the rise across the nation.
Cruising, flying, being around too many people is not an option for many Americans this summer.
As the number of COVID-19 cases keeps rising across the country, so is cabin fever, and so families are venturing out and social distancing on wheels.
Thousands of families across the country are taking road trips this summer. RV's and campervan rentals are on the rise.
According to the RV Industry Association, more than 25 million Americans will go RVing this summer.
"Being on the road felt liberating, extremely refreshing after months of being locked up and confined," said Heather Wagner, who just recently rented a campervan for the first time. Wagner and her family took the campervan they rented from Escape Campervans across the country. "It was an option for us to do something that wasn’t potentially scary or confined as is a flight, obviously cruises are out of the question," she said.
Katie Key, President of Escape Campervans, says bookings are up 1700% since April, and June bookings among U.S. renters are up 230% compared to last June.
"The pandemic is opening up the rental option to a lot of people who wouldn’t otherwise be looking," said Key.
RVshare is another company that is doing very well in the new post-COVID-19 world.
“This summer we are actually 3 times larger than we were last summer,” said Jon Gray, CEO of RVshare. According to Gray, RVshare is in the midst of its biggest booking days of all times.
“We are seeing the highest bookings we’ve ever had for the Fourth of July," Gray said.
When the pandemic first hit, both Gray and Key say they didn't know what was going to happen to their industry, but April came around and things turned for the best.