TAMPA, Fla. — Renting or buying an RV during the pandemic is a great way to escape for a little while.
One Tampa Bay area family of five decided that's just what they were going to do, except instead of just taking a trip or two, they decided to live life on the road in their RV.
"We are a family of two adults, three kids and four dogs and we live in our remodeled 1983 sliver eagle bus," Jenn Bethune said.
When Jenn and her husband Kyle decided to live full time on the road, they knew their 350 square foot vehicle would have to be customized for their family. That's why they spent the last nine months making this bus the perfect home.
"We have a full-fledged solar system on the top of this bus. We can run 100 percent off-grid without any generators or any plugins," Kyle said.
That also meant putting in some creative and personal touches like a built-in dog crate.
The three kids, ages10, 7 and 5, got to design their own bunk.
"Our youngest loves smaller spaces anyway, so he loves his small little bunk that he has. The others are just so excited to see places and actually put their hands on history and learn about it."
While the Bethune's were planning this well before the pandemic, they realized this is the perfect way for their family to stay safe and still have adventures.
"There are so many families that do this on a regular basis, so I'm not worried about socialization on the road because there are so many kids on the road too."
"I love it. I'll never go back to a big house again," Jenn said.
The Bethunes launched their adventure last week and have already been to 13 states in six days. They are currently in Colorado and loving it.
You can follow their adventures on their website, Red, White and Bethune.
They aren't the only family hitting the road during the coronavirus pandemic.
RV sales have gone through the roof. Some RV stores say they've sold the same number of campers in 10 days that they'd normally sell over three months! The same thing goes for renting one.
Want to take a full tour of the Bethune's RV home? You can find that here.
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