It's a fact.

Becoming an ?rv? family has now reached record levels. According to the Recreation Vehicle Industry Association (RVIA) nearly 1 in 12 US vehicle owning households own an RV. That's a staggering 8 million households, in America alone!

The typical RV owner of today is 49 years old and married, though according to a study conducted by the University of Michigan more RVs are now owned by those aged 35-54 than any other age group.

This raises the question?Why do people use and choose RVs?

?RV? family members can look forward to simply coming home and just driving their RV straight into the park.

Rvers can permanently have their RV packed all ready for their next trip?there's no need to repack your holiday essentials every time you plan a quick break away.

It's a great way to travel as a family. In fact, RV owners say that travelling in a RV actually makes their bond even stronger.

?RV? owners don't have to give up the comforts of their home. Rvers can enjoy small towns, beaches, parks, mountains, campgrounds?wherever they want, whenever they want, with all the comforts of home. The new sport utility RVs make it easy to transport outdoor vehicles right on board too.

There's an RV for every budget and taste. They can start at $4,000 and go up to $400,000 for type A motorhomes.

Today's RVs provide travellers with all the amenities of home with fully equipped baths and kitchens, central air and heat, surround sound stereos and even plasma TVs.

According to a vacation cost-comparison study conducted by PKF Consulting, RV vacations are more affordable than travelling by cruise ship, commercial airline and personal car. The study estimated a family of four can spend up to 74 percent less when travelling by RV, factoring in ownership costs and resulting tax benefits.

"Regardless of gas prices, RV owners still get a bigger bang for their buck when compared to other types of vacations," says Richard Coon, president, Recreation Vehicle Industry Association (RVIA). "Affordability is a key reason why RV travel appeals so much to families."

In all cases, RV trips were more economical than other vacations analyzed, regardless of trip duration, distance or region of the country," says Kannan Sankaran, PKF's lead researcher for the study.

"Even when fuel prices rise, our data show that each RV vacation would still be significantly less expensive," Sankaran explained.

RV owners enjoy the flexibility and freedom to go when they want, where they want. They don't have the stress and worry about inflexible schedules, airport lines, luggage restrictions and advance reservations.

RVs are used every weekend for camping and outdoor recreation but they are also being used for other purposes like animal shows, antique shows, and other hobbies - even furniture shopping.

RV family members look forward to simply coming home and just driving their RV to the park'it?s that simple. That leaves more time to spend with a cold beer in front of the fire :O)

There are more than 16,000 public and privately owned campgrounds in the U.S. and Rvers, seeking a resort atmosphere, are catered for by the growing number of luxury RV resorts with such facilities as health spas, golf courses and tennis courts.

According to recent studies, people are travelling shorter distances and on shorter breaks. Weekend trips are extremely popular. Travellers also don't want to spend hours planning a trip, they just want to get into their vehicle and go.

The RVIA estimates that there are as many as 30 million RV enthusiasts, including RV renters, in the United States. If the idea of ?roughing it? camping is not your dream vacation, then it's time to consider joining the 30 million RV enthusiasts already out there in the U.S., enjoying the kind of vacations you've always dreamed of!