Reflecting on our Mexico RV Caravan trip

We've had a couple of weeks now to think about this most recent Mexico RV trip. This was the third RV caravan group that we have led through Mexico, and it continues to be a learning experience for us.

Let me give you some background. The first trip we did in February of 2016 was just a trial run. We took over another group for 30 days.

The trial run went really well, and we learned that we enjoyed showing people many of the things that we love about Mexico. So when we were offered the opportunity to lead another group for a three month trip to the Yucatan starting in January of 2018, we signed up.

We hadn't been to the Yucatan since 2008, so it was also an interesting trip for us. And of course we're not going to do these trips without enjoying them ourselves. But there were a couple of drawbacks. It was a lot more work than we expected. There were 11 rigs plus ourselves, so a total of 24 people. Some of the rigs were too big. And, on an overall basis that group was a lot higher maintenance than the group that we had in 2016. Not everybody of course, just in general.

And, the schedule was tough. In our opinion, that route for a Yucatan trip is something that should be done over six months, not three!

We tried to make some changes with the company who hired us, but we couldn't come to an agreement.

So we set about planning our own!

Heading across the border on December 2, 2018.

And for the most part, we think were totally successful. On an overall basis, this was a far better trip for both us and the participants.

This trip was four months instead of three. We had been told that a four month trip wouldn't work because people wanted to be home for Christmas, but that turned out not to be an issue at all. In fact, it was almost not long enough. The feedback we got from most people was that there were a couple of locations that they wanted to stay longer!

We had 7 other rigs with us instead of 11. And two of them were singles, so we had 14 people in total instead of 24! Much more manageable.

Packed in tight at Trailer Park Las Americas, Cholula, Puebla.

And we limited the rig size to 32 ft. This was done for a couple of reasons. Some of the places we go in Mexico are not designed for larger rigs. Sure, sometimes you can squeeze a larger rig in if you're traveling on your own. But when there is a group of rigs showing up, maneuvering can be an issue. Also, finding gas stations and other rest stops on travel days that have sufficient space for the group can be challenging. Much easier though with smaller rigs, and less of them!

The route was good. In hindsight, there are not a lot of changes we would have made. We did 5,400 kms (3,350 miles) over the four months. Compare that to the Yucatan trip when we did 9,000 kms (5,580 miles) over three months!

It was much more relaxing.

But as I said, there are still some things that need to be improved. Both for our enjoyment, and the people coming on the trip. If we do another trip, here are some of the changes we would make...

We would make it slightly longer. Four and a half months... maybe even five! After all, the weather is near perfect... every single day. So why not stretch it out as long as you can. Why would you want to rush back to the U.S. where consistent good weather is not guaranteed.

The number of rigs we think was perfect. And with 14 people, it was relatively easy for us to find a rental van for excursions that could accommodate 14 people. With 16 people, we would have had to find vans that are made for 20 or 22. It's still doable, but a little more expensive on a per person basis.

The route was great, but we would switch it up mostly to make things interesting. And believe it or not, there are still some places in Mexico that we haven't been! So we would include some of those places just like we did on this past trip. We would like to return to Copper Canyon as well, but do it from the northern inland route to include the fantastic Basaseachic Falls.

It would be a more adventurous trip, including more hiking and outdoor activity. We might even restrict the trip to active individuals. And even if we don't, I think we will put in a minimal stipulation... like you have to be able to walk two kms (1.3 miles) at a decent pace.

It might include more dry camping. In that regard, we need to do a better job of explaining to people what that entails. We thought we had done that this time, but we still had situations where people weren't fully prepared for the lack of facilities at some of the places where we ended up setting up camp. We will be better prepared for the next group so that there are no misconceptions.

We might limit rig size to 30ft. And explain that lower clearance vehicles might have some issues. We had two different vehicles on this past trip that were fine in length, but had very low ground clearance.

And then of course, we have to decide if we are going to do another one. The answer to that... probably! But we won't make a firm decision until towards the end of June. Stay tuned to this blog... we will announce our intentions then, and we might only have to do it once. Last year, we had 19 responses from our one day blog post. And, a few of the people from this past trip have expressed an interest in going again! So there won't be many vacant spots.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Record low price on the Garmin RV 770 GPS

And in Canada...

Check out the deals at Amazon.ca