King of the Road

Since then, the Napoleonville, La.-based couple has spent two to three months each year on the road. Last summer, they hit Disney World, Las Vegas and Grand Junction, Colo., among other stops. They often travel with the Cruisin' Cajuns, a group of roughly 200 fellow motor-home enthusiasts who can cook up some mean crawfish etouffee.

Their current home-on-the-road is a 39-foot Fleetwood diesel coach, with walls that expand when the vehicle is parked. "We have all the conveniences of our own home," says Brenda. "We have all our favorite things out. We have wonderful meals. It's much more fun doing this than sitting in a chair at home watching TV."

These days, both retirees and baby boomers alike are joining in on the fun. In 2004, more than 61,000 motor homes — the highest on record — were sold to the retail market, according to Statistical Surveys, a Grand Rapids, Mich.-based firm that tracks the industry. That's nearly a 25% increase from just 10 years prior. And while sales likely eased in 2005 — due to high fuel prices and rising interest rates — industry watchers expect the long-term trend line to be decidedly up as more baby boomers enter the retirement ranks.

Pimp My Ride
Who says you can't take it with you? Today's high-end motor homes are more like roving mini-McMansions than engine-powered campers.

Luxuries and creature comforts have become commonplace. Class A motor homes — which can run as long as 45 feet and are generally the priciest — often come equipped with no fewer than four flat-screen televisions (including one located outside for tailgating parties), surround sound, washers and dryers, and fully-appointed kitchens with Corian countertops. Some of the very newest models have outdoor pop-out barbecues and — get this — second bedrooms.

Driving the demand for these upscale amenities are well-off baby boomers used to driving high-end cars made by Lexus and Mercedes, says Stewart Schaffer, chief marketing officer at Seffner, Fla.-based Lazydays, a recreational-vehicle dealer that sells roughly 8,000 RVs to individuals each year. The result is motor homes that comfortably fit the bill of a second home.

But bells and whistles like gas fireplaces are small potatoes when compared with what has generated nothing short of a sea change in the motor-home industry: slide-outs. First introduced 10 years ago, slide-outs are wall panels that expand the width of a motor home when parked. Needless to say, that extra room is invaluable to those spending significant time on the road. Today, many motor homes come with as many as four slide-outs (two in the "salon" and two in the bedroom). And in the past year, manufacturers introduced a full-wall slide out, providing even more space.

Perks like this don't come cheap, however. Prices for Class A motor homes generally start at $100,000 and can run as high as $1 million or more for those equipped with the truly tripped-out rock-star amenities. (Prices are cheaper for the smaller Class B and Class C motor homes, as well as for trailers, which don't have an internal motor. For more, click here.)

All these luxuries can really weigh you down, too. Class A models often have heavy-duty diesel motors located in the back of the rig (hence their name "diesel pushers") to handle the weight of these behemoths. Over the past few years, diesel motor homes have been rapidly gaining in popularity. In 1990, only 10% of motor homes used diesel (90% used gasoline), according to Statistical, Inc. Today diesel is about 45% of the market and climbing.

Bringing Your Home with You? Priceless.
Most motor-home owners are addicted to the lifestyle. "We just absolutely love it because we're self contained," says Janne Farrell, age 54, who, along with her husband, travels with her two cocker spaniels and four cats in their 35-foot Class A coach. Right now the couple spends roughly 60 to 70 nights each year on the road, but she looks forward to spending even more time traveling once she retires in a few years from her administrative job with the city of Cincinnati.

Traveling while enjoying many of the comforts of home is a wonderful thing, but the lifestyle doesn't come cheap. Aside from the initial (potentially breathtaking) price tag, motor-home values depreciate rapidly. The hit is the harshest in the first year, when they can lose as much as 20% to 25% of their value. Folks who finance their motor homes with long-term loans, which can extend as far out as 25 years, can find themselves "upside down" on their debt when they look to sell or trade in their rig, warns Bob Livingston, associate publisher of MotorHome Magazine. In other words, they owe more than the motor home is worth.

Since these motor homes can get eight miles to the gallon (typical for a diesel pusher), fuel prices are, of course, another cost concern. But experts say that while high fuel costs may scare away would-be buyers, for existing motor-home owners, fuel prices aren't as big a deal as one might think. Some folks are cutting back on the distance they're traveling, but they're not scrimping on the time on the road, says Robbin Gould, spokeswoman for the Family Motor Coach Association, a trade group.

Brenda Aucoin, whose coach uses diesel fuel, says that even at the current prices, the couple's trips come out about the same as if they rented a car and paid for a hotel. "And we're much more comfortable. We have our own bed. As you get older you get set in your ways and your routines," she says with a laugh.