Camping instead of a hotel room is frugal. It is not fun. It is not dangerous. It is not sad.

Good grief. Someone has to say it. First, I would never sleep in a vehicle. It is too hot. It is too cold. It is too hard.<br><br>So through years of work, I have saved enough to have a modest little RV. At home I park it on a small bit of property and power my house with it and a small solar panel. I just use it as a fancy power generator.<br><br>But I love to get out and travel. I will happily spend time on the road for days, stopping at the same sorts of places most people do, Joshua Tree, Crater Lake. I am sure I have gone to the same places you have. I just park my RV in campgrounds along the way, put out the awning and look up at the trees. I put out a camp chair and sit on it and read a book. There is nothing sad about it. There is nothing frugal about it. It is fun and expensive.<br><br>The campgrounds are not free. The gas is not free. The RV was not free. The food is not free. I don't look like a homeless person. I am clean and my RV is clean. I am not costing the government any money. I am not a homeless person, I am a tourist.<br><br>OP is from Chicago and I am from Michigan. I just camp in Michigan. It's an hour from home to campgrounds. I camp for 2-3 days and then go home. I camp in campgrounds with running water. I do not boondock. I am too old to boondock.<br><br>I don't stay in hotels. That is why I never had to get a hotel room to be a refugee from a hurricane. I traveled in my RV instead. There is nothing sad about it. I don't stay in hotels.<br><br>When I was young and single, I stayed in hostels. When I was young and married, I stayed in hotels. When I was old and had a little money, I got an RV. I don't stay in hotels. It is not sad. It is not fun. I just don't stay in hotels.<br><br>If someone breaks into a hotel room and hurts someone, it's not my fault. I am in a campground. If someone breaks into an RV and hurts someone, it's not my fault. I am in a campground. If someone breaks into someone's house through a window, it's not my fault. I am in a campground.<br><br>I don't think I will ever stay in a hotel room again. I am too old to sleep in a tent. I am too old to boondock. Therefore I will never stay in a hotel room. I never have to. I don't have to stay in a hotel. I am not homeless. I am not waiting for an apartment. I am not waiting for a house. I am on a trip. I am having fun. I am camping.<br><br>I had to say it. I had to let you know that there is nothing sad about camping. I am not homeless. I am camping. There is nothing sad about camping.