Do you sometimes feel like you're seeing more RVs on the road than ever? The short answer is, you are. It looks like 2004 will go down in history as one of the best for RV sales, and there's no slowdown in sight as more and more people discover the good life.

Hollywood has certainly done its bit to introduce people to RVing. Hit movies like About Schmidt, with Jack Nicholson driving across Nebraska in a 35-foot motorhome, and Meet The Fockers, in theatres now starring Dustin Hoffman, Robert DeNiro, Ben Stiller, Barbara Streisand and a Pace Arrow Class A, have put RVs front-and-center on the silver screen. Even so-called reality TV shows have jumped on the bandwagon. The last thing you might expect from Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie would be to see them towing an Airstream from Florida to California, yet that was the very premise for their summer 2004 series The Simple Life 2 - Road Trip. RVs aren't just growing in popularity - they've become chic.

Visit an RV show this winter and you'll quickly see why. The manufacturers have gone beyond simple creature comforts and have begun including features that are just plain cool. We're talking GPS navigation systems, high speed internet, exterior entertainment systems so you can let the kids play video games outside under the patio, and giant plasma TVs that drop down out of the ceiling like something out of a James Bond film. Very cool indeed.

What's truly amazing is that none of this demands an 11-digit price tag. Value for your money has never been higher, particularly in view of the recent rise in the Canadian dollar and stable, low interest rates.

Some folks describe RVs as being "3-F" - representing freedom (to take trips at any time, without having to book in advance), flexibility (depart and arrive whenever you like) and fun (you see new things and meet new friends). No wonder they're chic. Waiting in an airport is not cool at all.

So check the freshly updated event calendar in this issue and go visit an RV show near you. You'll have a chance to see all the newest motorhomes and trailers and, if you're not an RVer yet, you'll see what you're missing out on. (Top)