Renting an RV in the USA and Canada

Who may drive

Unlike car rental the threshold is consistent: 21 years, at every company checked.

• El Monte RV and Road Bear RV require 21 years for the renter and every listed additional driver; individual locations may require a higher age. Temporary or replacement licences are not accepted.
• CanaDream puts it as a prohibition: the vehicle must not be driven by anyone under 21 – nor by anyone who gave a false name, age or address.
• Fraserway RV states 21 years and expressly no upper age limit.
• A young-driver surcharge like the one for cars appears in none of the terms checked. Only the age threshold of 21 is documented; whether individual branches add a fee cannot be told from the published terms.

Sources: El Monte RV: Terms and Conditions · Road Bear RV: Terms and Conditions · CanaDream: Rental Terms & Conditions (PDF) · Fraserway RV: Rental Rates & Information

Driving licence

Here the authorities ask for less than the rental companies recommend – and it is the company that stands at the counter.

• Ontario is clear: visiting for less than three months, your home licence is enough. Only from three months does an international permit become necessary.
• The companies still ask for more: Fraserway requires an international permit if your licence is not printed in the Latin alphabet, and strongly recommends it if it is not in English or French. It is valid only together with the national licence.
• El Monte and Road Bear recommend the international permit if your licence is in a language other than English.
• Important for anyone who keeps their licence only on their phone: digital licences are not accepted. Fraserway and El Monte expressly require the physical document at pick-up.
• A special licence class for large RVs could not be documented officially. Rental vehicles usually stay below the limits at which individual US states require one.

Sources: Ontario: Drive in Ontario as a visitor · Fraserway RV: Rental Rates & Information · El Monte RV: Terms and Conditions

You buy the kilometres

With an RV, mileage is almost never included. You buy packages in advance or pay on return – and unused kilometres are not refunded.

• Billing follows the odometer. CanaDream adds that every vehicle carries a tracking device whose data applies if the odometer is broken or shows signs of tampering.
• Fraserway states plainly: there is no refund under any circumstances for early returns or unused paid kilometres. Buying generously means giving money away.
• Package prices appear in none of the terms checked, only on rate pages that change constantly – so no figures here. They are shown when booking; work out beforehand how far you will really drive.

Sources: CanaDream: Rental Terms & Conditions (PDF) · Fraserway RV: Rental Terms & Conditions · El Monte RV: Terms and Conditions

Deposit and excess

This is where RVs differ most from cars: the amounts are of another order entirely, and they depend on the cover you add.

• El Monte and Road Bear require at least $1,500 at pick-up. Only a major credit card in the renter’s name is accepted – debit cards, cash, traveller’s cheques and virtual cards are refused. Luxury and diesel pusher models may carry higher amounts.
• Fraserway scales by cover: CAD 7,500 with basic insurance, CAD 750 with CDR, CAD 100 with CDW – each plus tax, held on the credit card.
• The same ladder applies to the excess: CAD 7,500 standard; CDR (CAD 32 per night, max CAD 960) lowers it to CAD 750 per occurrence; CDW (CAD 15 per night, max CAD 450) to zero – but only together with CDR.
• The key paragraph is in Fraserway’s small print: in these cases the cover you bought falls away and CAD 7,500 applies again – low fluid or tyre pressure, driving off with the awning out, using the awning in wind or rain, misusing the levelling system, ignoring posted height limits, overheated brakes, interior damage by pets, and damage from snow chains.
• CanaDream’s deposit amount is not in the terms but in a separate insurance plan – no reliable source. What is certain: no credit card, no rental.

Sources: El Monte RV: Terms and Conditions · Road Bear RV: Terms and Conditions · Fraserway RV: Rental Terms & Conditions · CanaDream: Rental Terms & Conditions (PDF)

One-way and the border

Driving across the border: yes. Dropping off across the border: no – at none of the companies checked.

• El Monte and Road Bear cover the 48 contiguous US states and the Canadian provinces. Crossing the border is therefore allowed – but for Canada and Alaska only with prior registration (see below).
• CanaDream’s insurance applies in Canada and the continental USA with prior consent; driving beyond that is contractually prohibited.
• At CanaDream, returning to the wrong place costs the one-way fee or the cost of bringing the vehicle back – whichever is greater.
• Fraserway publishes fixed one-way fees, all within Canada – and direction decides: Edmonton → Calgary is free, Calgary → Edmonton $400. Vancouver → Calgary $650, the other way $1,200.

Sources: El Monte RV: Terms and Conditions · CanaDream: Rental Terms & Conditions (PDF) · Fraserway RV: Rental Rates & Information

Fees that come on top

The daily rate is not the price. What is mandatory on top is in the terms – and differs between companies.

• Fraserway: $100 preparation fee, mandatory, once per booking. It covers a tool kit, two rolls of biodegradable toilet paper, fresh and waste water hoses, a full propane tank, a power cord with 15 A adapter, rubber gloves, spare fuses, toilet chemicals and levelling blocks.
• Returning means returning clean: Fraserway charges $50 per hour of cleaning and reserves $500 if the vehicle smells of smoke – cigarettes, e-cigarettes and cannabis included.
• CanaDream wants the vehicle back clean with black and grey tanks emptied; otherwise at least $100 for emptying and $100 per hour for excessive dirt. With a pet there is a $350 fee.
• El Monte and Road Bear list preparation, provisioning and personal kits, cleaning and tank flushing as charges – but without amounts. The contract says only “estimated” and “a minimum charge”. Ask for the figures when booking.

Sources: Fraserway RV: Rental Rates & Information · Fraserway RV: Rental Terms & Conditions · CanaDream: Rental Terms & Conditions (PDF) · El Monte RV: Terms and Conditions

Where you may not drive

This is the section that costs the most on holiday – and is read the least. The penalties are written into the contracts.

• Mexico is off limits. El Monte and Road Bear threaten a $1,500 penalty and the complete loss of all insurance cover; Fraserway simply prohibits it.
• Alaska, Yukon and the Northwest Territories must be requested and confirmed at reservation. Driving there without permission: $1,500 and no insurance, with the renter liable for all repairs.
• El Monte and Road Bear name specific banned roads: Denali, Dalton and Taylor Highway (Alaska), the McCarthy Road, the North Canol Highway (Yukon), the Trans-Labrador Highway and the Dempster Highway between 15 September and 15 May. Driving through restricted areas carries up to $5,000.
• Unpaved roads are prohibited everywhere – and CanaDream draws the sharpest conclusion: damage from driving on unpaved or non-public roads is always the renter’s to pay, even with prior consent.
• Death Valley in summer is closed to rentals – but not for the same span: El Monte and Road Bear say 1 June to 30 September, Fraserway 1 June to 31 August. A good example that your own company’s terms are what count.
• City centres: El Monte and Road Bear prohibit driving in or through inner-city New York, Montréal and Ottawa. Fraserway forbids leaving the vehicle unattended there and in Québec City – doing so voids CDR and CDW and leaves the renter fully liable.
• And a rule that regularly surprises European travellers: at El Monte and Road Bear the vehicle may not be picked up on the day you arrive from overseas. Plan a night in a hotel.

Sources: El Monte RV: Terms and Conditions · Road Bear RV: Terms and Conditions · Fraserway RV: Rental Terms & Conditions · CanaDream: Rental Terms & Conditions (PDF)

More for your trip

• USA trip checklist
• Route 66
• Florida with kids
• Texas with kids
• Southwest national parks
• California with kids
• Renting a car in the USA and Canada
• RV USA & Canada