Atlantic Canada has always been a great spot for enjoying the great outdoors, with RV travel being quite popular. There are so many beautiful places to explore from dramatic coastlines to lush forests to sandy beaches. But this year, with social distancing top of mind, the relative solitude that RVs offer is even more attractive.
You may not want to splash out for a pricey trailer or a new vehicle to tow it just for your summer vacation. Lucky for you, there are places across the Atlantic provinces where you can rent your new summer home on wheels. From small bed-in-a-box style to large 36’ campers, tent trailers to motorhomes, there’s a camping option for you.
While campgrounds and parks were shut down initially due to COVID-19, they are slowly re-opening with RVers among the first allowed to camp overnight. Due to capacity limits and spacing, be sure to plan out your route in advance and pre-book your campgrounds since there’s a possibility of there being no vacancy for a spontaneous stay.
Rent an RV or Share One?
RV rental options in Atlantic Canada fall into three categories: companies who own their rooms on wheels and will allow you to tow them where you like, companies who own their campers but they are permanently set up in a campground, or private individuals who rent out their own trailer for you to use. The latter can be found on RV sharing sites like AirBnB, Outdoorsy, or RVezy.
Like booking through Airbnb or other peer-to-peer sites, the platforms work as marketplaces for renters to meet owners and they don’t oversee the cleaning of the vehicles. So before you book, be sure to ask your host about their cleaning practices to ensure they meet CDC guidelines.
The benefits of a peer-to-peer network is often cost. You can find a unique, vintage trailer for as little as $50/night while renting from a commercial company will likely cost more than $150/night. With either option you’ll need to have your own towing vehicle. RVs set up in campgrounds are a compromise: the price is cheaper, but you lack the freedom to explore multiple locations.
Where to Rent an RV in Nova Scotia
Where to Rent an RV in Newfoundland & Labrador
Where to Rent an RV in Prince Edward Island
There are no commercial RV rentals available on Prince Edward Island that you can tow yourself. Instead, there are several campgrounds that offer stationary RVs for rent. If you want to tour PEI in your own RV it’s best to pick up your camper in Nova Scotia or New Brunswick and bring it to the island yourself.
